BEACH HOOP Recruiting News
May 1998 Signing Period
Richie Smalls
49ER MEN’S BASKETBALL ANNOUNCES SPRING SIGNINGS
LONG BEACH, Calif. — Long Beach State men’s basketball coach Wayne Morgan announced today
that Allan Gomez (East Los Angeles CC) and Richie Smalls (St. Catherine Junior College, St. Catherine,
Kentucky) have signed national letters-of-intent to attend Long Beach State in the fall.
Gomez and Smalls join the 49ers’ fall signees, Ugonna Onyekwe, a 6-8 forward from Nigeria by way of
Mercersburg Prep Academy in Pennsylvania; Charles O’Neal, a 6-2 1/2 guard from Florida CC in
Jacksonville, Florida; and 1998 redshirt transfer Ramel “Rock” Lloyd (G, 6-4, Syracuse University ) as
newcomers to the 49er roster.
49er Head Coach Wayne Morgan said, “We are very pleased to add Allan and Richie to our basketball
family at Long Beach State. They are two players whom I believe will have an immediate and positive
impact on our program.
49er Associate Head Coach Clyde Vaughan says Gomez is an outstanding shooter who will bring a new
dimension to the Long Beach offense in 1998-99. Gomez averaged 23.0 points per game, with 5.77
rebounds. He shot 43.0% from three-point range for ELAC, making 77-of-179 three-point attempts.
Colorado State and Tulane also recruited the 6-5 wing player.
Smalls, at 6-8 and 205 pounds, is an extremely athletic player who plays taller than his listed height,
according to Vaughan. Originally from The Bronx, NY, Smalls played at Walton HS, and also played for
the nationally renowned Riverside Church (NY) AAU team. At St. Catherine, Smalls averaged 16 points, 12
rebounds, and 4.5 blocked shots per game. He was also recruited by Bradley, Louisville, Fordham, Indiana
State and Middle Tennessee State.
St. Catherine coach Ryan Swanson says Smalls “is very athletic and can put the ball on the floor. He
probably would have scored even more, but we had five kids who signed with Division I teams, so we had
a lot of kids with 10-16 points per game.”
Morgan announced that assistant coach Tom Lewis has been promoted to the job of Director of
Recruiting, effective immediately.
Morgan also reported that junior guard Jermel Bradley is transferring to Cal State Dominguez Hills, and
freshman guard David Egans has been given a release from his scholarship so he may transfer to another
school.
(credit to the Long Beach State Athletics)
