BURLINGTON, Vt. – The University of Vermont men’s basketball team has announced that Jordan Clarke (Rockville, Md.) and Garvey Young (Washington, D.C.) will join the program next season as members of the class of 2012. Head coach Mike Lonergan made the announcement today. The two recruits signed national letters of intent with UVM during the recent signing period.

“We are very excited about our incoming recruiting class,” said Lonergan. “We feel that Garvey and Jordan are very talented student-athletes who will fit in well at the University of Vermont. Pat Bergmann is really a member of this class as well since he is redshirting this season. This class will add both talent and athleticism to our roster.”

“Garvey and Jordan are terrific recruits for us. They are both highly regarded basketball players and we are thrilled that they are coming to UVM. We are excited that they chose Vermont not only for our strong basketball program but also because of their sincere desire to attend one of the top academic institutions in the country. They are true student-athletes who represent everything we are looking for in a recruit. I can't wait until the Catamount fans can see them play next season.”

Clarke is a 6-foot-7 small forward who is a senior at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, Md. Through 17 games Good Counsel is ranked number four in the Washington Post Top 20 with a record of 14-3. It has already defeated two nationally ranked teams, as MaxPreps ranks Good Counsel as the top team in the state of Maryland.

On the year Clarke is averaging 21 points per game and 14 rebounds per contest as he has been named the MVP of three tournaments this season, the Good Counsel Tip-Off Classic, the Bullis Holiday Classic, and the Merv Lopes Holiday Classic (Hawaii).

“Jordan is one of the most highly recruited players we have been able to sign since I have been here,” said Lonergan. He had 50 Division I scholarship offers and we are fortunate that he chose UVM. We expect Jordan to make an immediate impact on our program and to have a special career as a Catamount. He can play three positions and will give us a boost both in scoring and rebounding.”

Young is a 6-foot-4 guard who plays his high school basketball at Georgetown Prep. This season he is averaging 18 points, eight rebounds and seven assists per contest and has been named to the Good Counsel Tip-Off Classic and Junior Orange Bowl Basketball Classic All-Tournament teams.

As a junior Young he led Georgetown Prep to the IAC Tournament Championship and was named to the Gazette All-County First Team, Washington Post All-Met Honorable Mention Team, and IAC First Team All-Conference. Also a standout on the soccer field, Young earned Gazette All-County Soccer Player of the Year honors after scoring 23 goals and handing out 14 assists this past fall.

“Garvey has the ability to score but is also an excellent defender,” added Lonergan. We will need his defensive talent to help replace graduating senior Kyle Cieplicki.”

Rivals.com recently ranked the top prospect at each position for every conference in the country and Clarke (small forward) and Young (shooting guard) were each selected as the top newcomers in their respective positions for the America East next season.

Vermont graduates three seniors, Kyle Cieplicki (Shelburne, Vt.), Timothy McCrory (Pascagoula, Miss.) and Chad Powlovich (Jericho, Vt.) this season.

Vermont (8-9, 3-2 America East) returns home on Monday as the Cats square off with Stony Brook in an America East contest starting at 7:00pm. The game can be heard live on WEAV-AM 960, WXZO-FM 96.7 and 1320 (Randolph), WCVR-FM 102.1 (Randolph), WCPV-FM 102.1 (CHAMP), WVTK-FM 92.1 (Covers Burlington down Rt. 7 to Rutland), and WTSA-AM 1450 (Brattleboro) and on the internet at www.uvmathletics.com with the audio stream provided by sportsjuice.com.