.jpg)
Isaiah Cole always hoped the road would lead to a chance to play university basketball. Turns out he just had to take a quick detour to get there.
Cole, a 6-foot-5 forward who played two seasons with the CMU Blazers of the Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference, has committed to head coach Mike Raimbault and the UWinnipeg Wesmen men’s basketball program as the latest member of the recruiting Class of 2022.
He will enroll in the Faculty of Business and have three years of eligibility.
Cole shone for the Blazers and head coach Scott Martin after coming out of River East Collegiate in 2019. He averaged 23.7 points per game and was third in Northern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference scoring as a freshman on his way to being named all-NIAC in 2020.
Last season, Cole moved to point guard and led the MCAC in both points and assists per game with 20.1 and 5.9 in helping the Blazers to the conference championship game.
“CMU gave me the opportunity to develop at the college level,” Cole said. “Coach Martin there helped me with my skills and gave me the platform there to play in games. I was one of the key players there, so having that opportunity allowed me to showcase myself and show my talent to be able to come here.”
But Cole, who played high school basketball for former Wesmen player and assistant coach Tyler Kohut, always had hopes of taking his game to another level and had eyes on the U of W.
“The goal right after high school was to try and play (university),” he said. “I was looking for that the entire time. When I went to CMU, I was always looking to end up coming here, so I’m grateful for that.”
Cole describes himself as a hard-working player “who can score on three levels and can also play defence.”
“We are excited to add Isaiah to the group,” Raimbault said. “He has a great combination of size, skill, and athleticism that should allow him to help us at multiple positions.”
Cole joins a 2022 recruiting class that also includes forward Ryan Luke from John Taylor, forward Elijah Mensah from Miles Macdonell, and guard Alberto Gordo from Gran Canaria, Spain.
Source: https://wesmen.ca/general/2021-22/releases/20220606p7up0f