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West Virginia adds Ohio forward to ’17 class

Bob Huggins

Bob Huggins

AP

West Virginia has started its 2017 recruiting class in a big way.

The Mountaineers received a commitment from 6-foot-8 power forward Derek Culver of Ohio on Tuesday, according to multiple reports.

Culver, a consensus top-60 recruit, picked Bob Huggins’ program over offers from Indiana, Memphis and Clemson, among others.

“West Virginia made Derek Culver a priority,” NBCSports.com recruiting analyst Scott Phillips said, “and the move paid off as Bob Huggins has a really talented big man in the fold in the Class of 2017.

“Culver runs the floor well and has a high skill level but he needs to be more aggressive on both ends of the floor. Culver has a lot of upside and could be molded into a very good player at West Virginia. He’s one of the better passing big men in the class.”

Culver, who visited WVU earlier this summer, follows in the footsteps of fellow Ohio big man Esa Ahmad, who started every game last year for the Mountaineers after starring at Shaker Heights in Cleveland. West Virginia will likely have significant frontcourt depth for the 2017-18 season, but will need to reinforcements shortly thereafter.