Men's Basketball Signs Three Student-Athletes To NLIs

ALBANY, N.Y - University at Albany men's basketball head coach Will Brown has announced three early signings for the 2013 Great Danes. UAlbany is currently 2-1 in the 2012-13 regular season and prepares for University of Missouri-Kansas City in the first round of the Springfield bracket of the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off tournament. "I am excited about adding Lamin (Fulton), Levan (Shengelia), and Dallas (Ennema) to our program", said Coach Brown on the three NLI signees. "Each has excelled on the court and in the classroom. They will fit in well at Albany and represent our program in a positive manner. All three have the ability to make an immediate impact. The early signing period was a huge success for us. We will continue to recruit and will complete our 2013 Class in the spring." Lamin Fulton- Ht: 5'10 Wt: 185 Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Previous School: Northwest Florida State JC - Northwest Florida State lost in the 2012 NJCAA National Title Game and is currently ranked #2 in the nation. As a freshman, he led St. Peter's of the MAAC in minutes played at 29.6. He averaged 8.9 points per game and led St. Peter's in three's made with 59. Lamin was the 2011 Philadelphia Catholic League Player of the Year. He led Neuman Goretti to two State Titles, three Catholic League Titles, and three City Titles. He was 1st Team All-State, 1st Team All-City, and 1st Team All Catholic League two years in a row. Coach Brown on Fulton: "Lamin is a tough city combo guard who has the ability to score the basketball and also makes plays for his teammates. He played off the ball at St. Peter's and was a point guard in High School. Lamin is used to winning as he won at a high level in High School and will compete for a National Championship this season at Northwest Florida State. Lamin has been well coached as he played for legendary coach Carl Arrigale at Gorretti and currently plays for arguably the best Junior College coach in America in Steve Forbes. He will bring tremendous toughness, ability, experience, and a winning mentality to our program!" Levan Shengelia- Ht: 6'9 Wt: 250 Hometown: Republic of Georgia, Texas Previous School : Odessa JC- Spent his first two years at the University of Rhode Island of the Atlantic-10, where he was in the starting line-up as a true freshman during the 2010-11 season. He suffered a season ending knee injury in the first minute of his first college game at Pitt and had to redshirt. As a redshirt freshman in 2011-12, Levan scored a season-high eight points at Nebraska. Levan spent a prep season at MCI Prep in Maine. At Maine Central Institute, he spent the 2009-10 season at MCI, where he averaged 18.6 points and 9.2 rebounds per game for head coach Dave Campbell. He connected on 57.0 percent of his field goal attempts at MCI. Levan represented his native Georgia as a member of its U16 and U20 national teams. At the 2009 FIBA Under-20 European Championship, averaged 12.9 points and 5.9 rebounds. During tournament play, Shengelia scored 20 points versus Poland (7/23/09), while grabbing 10 rebounds vs. Luxembourg (7/18/09). At the 2008 U20 European Championship in 2008, he averaged 14.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists. Coach Brown On Shengelia: "Levan is a big physical power forward who plays extremely hard. His knee is finally healthy and I am confident that he will bring immediate rebounding and low-post scoring to our program. His experience of playing at the Atlantic-10 level and internationally, combined with his physical presence, will allow for a smooth transition to Albany and the America East. He will benefit greatly this season from playing for Coach Tra Arnold at Odessa on a team loaded with D1 talent. Dallas Ennema- Ht: 6'7 Wt: 205 Hometown: Sheldon HS, Iowa. Ennema averaged 19.1 points and 8.2 rebounds per game as a junior for Coach Claude Struve. He was picked as pre-season Player of the Year of the Sioux Land Conference. Dallas played for the Martin Brothers AAU Program run by Hank Huddleson. Current Great Dane John Puk and former Great Danes Brent Wilson and Brian Lillis played for the Martin Brothers Program as well. He is a member of the National Honor Society. Coach Brown on Ennema: "Dallas is a talented small forward with great size. He reminds me a lot of former Great Dane Brian Lillis but with more size. Dallas is very versatile and has a very good feel for the game. I think he is the best player in the 2013 class in the state of Iowa."