One of the best players in the state of Kentucky has decided to pass on multiple Division-I scholarship offers in favor of the chance to walk-on at Louisville. You have to love that.
Trent Gilbert, who averaged 26.1 points per game for state runner-up Scott County last season, committed to walking on at Louisville last week despite being able to claim scholarship offers from Marshall, Winthrop and Tennessee Tech. He committed after visiting U of L and meeting with Rick Pitino, where he apparently met the coach's high standards.
"I just feel like it's a great opportunity to extend my basketball career," Gilbert told The Courier-Journal. "It's a good school. I feel like I can learn a lot from Coach Pitino and the rest of the staff. ... Coach Pitino was straightforward with me about everything and said that nothing would be easy. I'm OK with that. I want a challenge in everything I do. They seemed like they wanted to have me. I decided today that that would be a good fit for me."
Gilbert is leaving Scott County -- one of the premier high school basketball programs in the state -- as the school's all-time leading scorer. He made 130 of 326 three-pointers (40 percent) during his senior season, and drilled a remarkable 304 of 335 free-throw attempts (91 percent).
Still, Gilbert is well aware that finding playing time early on in his career as a Cardinal is going to be more than a little tough.
"It's a long shot, and it won't be an easy process." Gilbert told Lexington-based reporter Mike Fields. "I'll have to work and earn it. But I'm going to take my chances and go for it."
Gilbert got a chance to show U of L fans his game last November when Scott County opened its 2013-14 season at preseason No. 1 Ballard. Though the Cardinals fell to the Bruins, Gilbert finished the evening with 40 points, including 21 in the game's final quarter.
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