Former Louisville Commit Brian Bowen Has Enrolled at South Carolina

As I mentioned in the blog yesterday for the cheat sheet I talked about how the FBI investigation is still looming over the sport. Well, one of the key names of the investigation has resurfaced:

Brian Bowen, a McDonald’s All-American who was probably most known for allegedly being part of a plan to receive $100,000 from Adidas for going to Louisville. It ultimately led to the firing of Rick Pitino and Tom Jurich, but more importantly for Bowen it meant that he wasn’t playing college ball.

Bowen was actually cleared by the FBI on November 2 but was ruled he wasn’t allowed to play at Louisville this season. So now the question became whether or not he’d just prepare for the NBA Draft or go enroll somewhere else and try to get eligible this year.

He has clearly decided to with the latter. He’s officially enrolled at South Carolina and they are working to get him eligible this year. This tweet is from Bowen’s lawyer:

Now, it’s worth mentioning it’s kind of ironic he decided to go to South Carolina. Why, you may ask? Well, South Carolina was subpoenaed by the FBI due to Lamont Evans, one of the assistant coaches who was arrested during this ordeal. Evans was an assistant for the Gamecocks from 2012-16.

As for what Bowen can bring to the Gamecocks if he is able to play this year. You have to start with wing scoring – the biggest weakness for South Carolina, who has a long way to go if it wants to make the NCAA Tournament again. They are currently 10-6 with just one top-100 win (Vanderbilt). Bowen is a 6’6″ wing though that can step in be a shooting threat. He also fits South Carolina’s mold due to his ability to attack the offensive glass and be physical.

Now, I don’t know if he’ll play. We’ve seen the NCAA be weird with decisions all year – just look at Kansas right now. The one thing I do know though is if he plays, De’Anthony Melton at USC better play as well. Same with Auburn’s Austin Wiley and Danjel Purifoy. Personally I hope they all play.