Collen Signs Three Players
November 20, 2003 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 20, 2003
Louisville, Ky. -
Three players have signed national letters-of-intent to continue their basketball playing careers at the University of Louisville announced head coach Tom Collen. Guards Patrika Barlow and Valeriya Musina along with forward Yuliya Tokova give the Cardinals a very versatile and athletic class in the early signing period.
"I'm not sure where the recruiting servies would rank this class because I don't think they know anything about Yuliya or Valeriya," said head coach Tom Collen. "But I can tell you this. These three along with Missy Taylor put us much closer to being able to compete in the future with UConn, Notre Dame and Rutgers in the BIG EAST. And you have to remember that Tatjana Kiselova is redsirting this season, and is also a Top 50 recruit. If the recruiting services do their homework, this would be a Top 10 class."
Barren County High School's Patrika Barlow, one of the top players in the state of Kentucky, averaged 20 points, 8.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists as a junior. All-Star Girls Report rank her as the 147th best player and the 44th best point guard in the nation. In three seasons at Barren County, she has averaged 16 points, 7rebounds and 4 assists per game.
The 5-8 guard was a second team all-state selection by the Courier Journal and Cincinnati Enquirer as a junior. She was also a first team all-region and all-district selection her senior year. She helped guide Barren County to a 24-6 record her junior season and was named to the all-district and all-region tournament teams.
"We are excited about having Patrika in our program," said Collen. "She is widely regarded as the best guard in the state of Kentucky. She is a lightning quick athlete who will help us at both ends of the floor. She was a sleeper nationally because she chose not to play on the summer circuit. We like that she has so much upside. The only thing holding her back as being rated as one of the elite guards in the country is that she has always been a four sport athlete. Now that she has made the decision to concentrate on basketball she will improve very quickly. We are proud that our first official recruit is from the state of Kentucky and we plan on continuing to make that a top priority."
Yuliya Tokova is a 6-1 small forward from the Ukraine. Last season in the European Championship for Cadettes, she averaged 18.1 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. She shot 63.0 percent from the field and 63.6 percent from the free throw line.
"Yuliya is considered to be the future of the Ukraine Olympic team," Collen said. "She is currently the top player in their junior program. She has great athleticism and is a great rebounder. She will be an impact player for our program. If she were a senior in the United States, she would be regarded as one of the Top 25 players in the country."
"Yuliya is a fantastic recruit," said Jake Solomon of Pan Continental Basketball Recruiting Service. "I wasn't expecting her to leave the Ukraine, she is certainly the top European forward in her class. She is a very athletic 3 or 4 player, a tremendous rebounder and has a never say die attitude. She has very quick hands and feet and is one of the top five players in Europe overall."
Valeriya Musina is a 6-0 combo guard from Russia. Last season she averaged 8.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game in the European Championship for Cadets.
"Valeriya has the potential to be our point guard," said Collen. "In her own country she is referred to as the playmaker, which is the point guard in their system. She is versatile enough to play any perimeter position in our system. She will be a great inside-outside type of player. She has the strength to post up and the skills to break people down off the dribble. She is the best high school guard in Russia and has the potential to be a future Olympian."
"She is a very exciting player to watch," said Solomon. "She is a big guard and is very quick, she will create a lot of matchup problems for other teams. There are not many players in her division that can match her athleticism. I saw her play against the U.S. in France and she had a fantastic game, she kept beating the U.S. team off the dribble."
The three signees join Purdue transfer Missy Taylor in Collen's first recruiting class. Taylor was ranked as the 53rd best player in the country and the six best forward by the All-Star Girls Report her senior year.
The Cardinals still have three scholarships open and are expected to sign two or three players in the spring signing period.
