University of Massachusets Athletics
Dynamic Shooting Guard Ricky Harris Signs NLI With UMass
April 12, 2006 | Men's Basketball
April 12, 2006
AMHERST, Mass. - University of Massachusetts basketball head coach Travis Ford announced the signing of shooting guard Ricky Harris (Baltimore, Md.) to a National Letter of Intent on Wednesday, as he will join the Minuteman program for the 2006-07 season. Harris (6-2, 175 pounds) comes to UMass after playing a prep season at The Winchendon School in Winchendon, Mass. He graduated from powerhouse Calvert Hall College High School in Baltimore, Maryland in 2005.
"We are very excited to welcome Ricky Harris to the UMass basketball family," said Ford. "Ricky brings a new and different dimension to our basketball team as a quick multi-talent guard. He is a great shooter who can create his own shot. He is great at defending the ball as well and plays with an intensity that will be a great addition at UMass. Being coached by UMass alumnus Mike Byrnes, Ricky has been prepared to thrive at the highest level after working under the highly-successful coach at Winchendon. Ricky is very excited to join our program and we are equally thrilled to welcome him."
Harris feels he made the right decision in coming to UMass. "I feel very confident in my decision in choosing UMass. They have had a connection with Baltimore area players in the past including Donta Bright (who played on three A-10 title teams and the 1996 Final Four team). When I met with Coach Ford he was straight up and forthright with me from the start. He showed me that he cared about me and my family as individuals, which was important to me. I also felt comfortable with Assistant Coach Adam Ginsburg since he also had Baltimore connections having coached at Towson University."
Harris has had a standout season at Winchendon in 2005-06, averaging 17.0 points while shooting 43 percent from 3-point range and 81 percent from the foul line. He helped the Green Wave to the NEPSAC Championship game on the way to a 19-14 record under head coach Mike Byrnes, who played basketball for the Minutemen in the late 1980s. Harris' scored a season-high 33 points against Philadelphia Lutheran at the Prep Showcase in November 2005.
"Ricky is a high energy player," said Byrnes. "We plays with great effort and passion. He can really score the ball and fill it up, which is what UMass needed help with last season. He will be a great asset to their team."
Harris starred in the National Prep School Invitational in February of 2006 earning the top ranking of all players at that event held in Rhode Island. HoopScoop.com ranked him as the 27th-best fifth-year player in the nation. He was ranked as the fourth-best shooting guard available in the late signing period by HoopScoop.com.
Harris was a high school star at Calvert Hall where he earned Baltimore Catholic League Co-Player of the Year honors in 2005 playing for head coach Mark Amatucci. He was honored as All-Baltimore Metro and All-Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) as a junior and senior. He was named to the Baltimore's Sun's All-Metro Second Team as senior. Harris averaged 23.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals as a senior and 19.0 points per game, 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game in his junior year with the Cardinals. He finished as Calvert Hall's third all-time leading scorer behind 2002 Maryland All-American and current Portland Trailblazer Juan Dixon and Reggie Bryant who starred at Villanova and Saint Louis.
Harris played for the Baltimore Select AAU team. He was named the Eastern Invitational's Most Outstanding Player after his senior season. He also played in the Charm City Challenge in Baltimore, the adidas Memorial Day Classic in Maryland, the Kingwood Classic in Houston, the BET Pro-Am and Top 20 All-Star Game in 2005.
Ricky Dontae Harris was born on August 12, 1987 in Baltimore, Maryland. He is son of Donna Evette Harris and Ricky Lee Harris, and is the brother of Derrick and Riquelle Harris.
