Wildcats add 2 new recruits as frosh Holm, Oliver sign up
The Chico State men’s basketball team added two new players in Isaiah Holm and Evan Oliver as the two prep standouts officially signed their letters of intent to join the Wildcats.
Holm is a 6-foot-9, 235-pound skilled big man from St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower and Oliver is a 6-foot-1 guard from Riverside Poly. Both are coming off consecutive 20-win seasons and are honor roll students planning to major in business.
“Isaiah and Evan are not only high-level basketball players, but they are elite students as well,” Chico State head coach Greg Clink said in a press release. “We are really excited about the positive impact they can have on our program both on and off the court.”
The Wildcats finished the season 23-7 and earned a berth to the NCAA Championship Tournament for the seventh time in nine years.
A McDonald’s All American
Games nominee, Holm signed his National Letter of Intent to attend Chico State in November while embarking on a season in which he helped lead St. John Bosco to a 23- 9 record and into the CIF Southern Section Open Division playoffs.
Holm averaged 7.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 0.9 blocked shots per game while knocking down his 3-point attempts at a 34-pecent clip.
The All-Trinity League Honorable Mention selection is the 66th-ranked player in the PrepHoops. com Southern California rankings.
“Isaiah is an extremely skilled big man who has the ability to score inside and from beyond the 3-point arc. He fits into our style of play perfectly and we can’t wait to coach him,” Clink said in the press release. “He is a great person and a great student and comes from a great high school basketball program where he played under Matt Dunn. He’s had experience playing against some of the best players in the country at St. John Bosco and on the AAU circuit with the Las Vegas Punishers, coached by James Feltus.”
After transferring to St. John Bosco for his junior season, Holm helped St. John Bosco to its first Trinity League title and the team’s first league title in 24 years. He was named a scholar athlete following both of his seasons at St. John Bosco.
Oliver averaged a teamhigh 19 points and four assists per game while helping lead Riverside Poly to a 27-7 record, the CIF Southern Section Division I title game, and unblemished 12-game run through the Ivy League.
He is a Second Team All- CIF Division I selection and earned First Team AllIvy League honors.
Along the way, Oliver picked up First Team AllTournament honors at the San Diego Holiday Classic ( National Division) and Riverside Kiwanis Tournament, and was selected to the Desert Valley AllStar game. He’s the No. 77-ranked player in Southern California according to PrepHoops.com.
“Evan Oliver is the epitome of the type of player I want to coach,” Clink said. “He’s tough, smart and competitive. He’s extremely skilled and has a passion for the game that our fans will fall in love with. He’s grown up in a basketball home (Oliver’s father, Jeff, is the former head coach at Cal State San Bernardino.), comes from a great high school program at Riverside Poly under Coach Yancy Dodson, and played for an elite AAU program with the Cali Rebels, coached by Yousof Etemadi. We are so excited to coach Evan.”
Oliver, who led the Bears in scoring as a junior and senior, will graduate as a four-time All-League selection and four-time scholar award winner.
PrepHoops. com describes Oliver as “a big time perimeter shooting threat who… never hesitated on open catch-andshoot opportunities… His ability to stroke the 3-point jump shot provides an immediate transferrable skill to the next level.”