Dalton Pepper became the first player to officially join the 2009 WVU men’s basketball recruiting class.

Pepper led Pennsbury to the PIAA Class AAAA state semifinals and a school-record 30-3 mark in 2007-08. At the recent Eddie Griffin Challenge, Pepper was named MVP, finishing with 19 points and nine rebounds, including the game-winning basket.

“We fully expect Dalton to come in and contribute immediately,” says Huggins. “He has excellent size and strength for an off-guard. He is well-coached in high school so his adjustment to college basketball should be minimal. He’ll remind Mountaineer fans of Alex Ruoff.” 

The Ruoff comparison is an obvious one. Pepper is similarly sized and skilled and will be called upon to replace the graduating Ruoff — and sooner rather than later. Pepper doesn’t shy from the association.

“We’re about the same height and right now he’s probably stronger than me. He’s a really good player with good skills and he’s a good player to be compared to. He’s a good shooter, but I’m probably just a little more athletic than him and maybe a little better at ball-handling.”

Pepper is one-third of WVU’s recruiting class. Forward/centers Dan Jennings and Deniz Kilicli are committed and plan to sign and send their letters of intent soon.

Deniz Kilicli, a forward/center from Turkey playing this season at Beckley’s Mountain State Academy, is the final player committed to the 2009 class. He didn’t sign Wednesday, but his coach, Rob Fulford, said everything should be finalized by the end of the week.

A parent or guardian must also sign the letter and Fulford is waiting on the signed letter to arrive from Turkey before Kilicli signs and sends it to WVU.

“No hold-ups, no worries,” Fulford said. “It’s just a matter of paperwork.”

Jennings, who is from New York City and plays at a prep school in Connecticut, hadn’t received the signed letter from his mother, either.