Cole Anderson is deadly accurate on the basketball court, so when it was time for a college decision, of course, he didn’t miss.
The Clovis West star announced his commitment to play college basketball at UC Santa Barbara via Twitter Tuesday evening. The junior Anderson received 12 offers total from Division-I colleges, and considered Cal Poly, San Francisco, Fresno State, and Washington State before deciding on UCSB.
“UCSB is a perfect fit for me, after meeting with the coaches and visiting their beautiful campus,” Anderson said. “Another big thing for me was education. I am big on preparing for life after college, and I like that it’s a UC campus.”
Another thing to like about UC Santa Barbara is a new transfer also coming to the school – from Cole’s own house.
Megan, Cole’s older sister, transferred to UC Santa Barbara from San Jose State in April, meaning as Cole plays on the men’s team his freshman year, she will spend her senior year playing for the women’s team.
“I admit, I was pushing her to go to UC Santa Barbara last month when I had an idea of where I wanted to go,” Cole said.
“We will be down in Santa Barbara quite often during the winter,” his father Nick said.
Indeed, Santa Barbara will become a second home for the Andersons, a family that has now sent three children to play Division-I college basketball. For the family patriarch, UCSB was the school that provided Cole the best opportunity to showcase his skills.
“When we went down there on a visit, the coaches were upfront and honest and recruited us the hardest throughout the process,” said Nick Anderson. “That told Cole that UCSB really wanted him, and that they would fit him into their offense.”
Offense has been the specialty for Cole Anderson during his career at Clovis West. The three-time TRAC MVP enjoyed a junior campaign where he was named All-State by Cal-Hi Sports, after averaging 27 points per contest and shooting 45 percent from three-point range during the season.
Clovis West boys’ head coach Vance Walberg has enjoyed watching the long-distance fireworks from Anderson over the past three years, and he holds no doubt what Cole can do at the next level.
“Cole’s work ethic and upbringing will prepare him for college,” Walberg noted. “He is a self-motivated athlete, and he will have no problem adjusting to college.”
Right now, however, Anderson wants to focus on his senior season at Clovis West, and take care of some unfinished business.
“It’s great being able to make my decision now,” he said, “because it takes a weight off my shoulders, and I can focus on helping my team win a Section title.”