By Dave Morrison
Register-Herald Sports Editor
BECKLEY —
Two years ago, Cam Miller was instrumental in getting Nick Aldridge to sign with Mountain State.
Two years later, the role has reversed.
Miller, a 6-foot-8, 215-pound rising junior, has transferred from Marshall to Mountain State, signing Sunday.
“We thought we had a shot at getting Cam two years ago,” MSU coach Bob Bolen said. “Cam and Nick had been high school rivals (in their native Ohio and teammates at Western Carolina).
“When Nick was looking for a school after leaving Western, he talked to Cam.”
“I told him I had been here and I really liked it,” Miller said.
Aldridge thrived at MSU, averaging 23 points and eight rebounds in leading MSU to the national tournament and was named Basketball Times NAIA Player of the Year.
Miller, meanwhile, had gone back and forth between Marshall and MSU.
He finally decided to give the Division I level one more shot and signed with the Thundering Herd and Donnie Jones.
“I’m not saying I made a mistake,” Miller said. “I liked the school, I liked the coaching staff. But it wasn’t really my style. And you kind of put all your trust in a coach when you sign on the dotted line. When coach Jones left (for Central Florida) I kind of started thinking that I wouldn’t be at Marshall next year.”
Two weeks ago, he was again pondering Mountain State when Aldridge visited.
“I pumped him, trying to get all the information I could,” Miller said. “I knew Nick wouldn’t lie to me. He never said a negative word. And I feel a lot more comfortable with coach Bolen than I did with coach (Tom) Herrion (the new Marshall coach).”
Miller, who averaged 3.2 points per game for the Herd last season, is the shooter Bolen coveted. He missed 10 of Marshall’s last 19 games because of a foot injury.
“He’s a terrific shooter,” Bolen said. “At 6-8, he is a wing that can shoot it. We had Nate Daniels, who has played professionally the last six years. I kind of liken Cam to that type of player.”
“Most definitely, that is what I do,” Miller said of his shooting prowess. “I really like the style we play here. Run and shoot the three. I was never really able to get into a groove at Marshall. If I made a mistake I knew I was going to get yanked out of the game.”
He had a career-best 16 against Brescia last season and he had nine against ECU, going 3-for-3 from 3-point range.
“This is a big-time recruit for us,” Bolen said of Miller, who has two years of eligibility left. “We really fell in love with his game two years ago. We expect Cam to come in and make an impact immediately.”
MSU lost seven players from last year’s team that was No. 1 in the nation for nine weeks.
Bolen expects to add a point guard or two and is also in need of a couple big men.
