A 6-foot guard, Hoskins played last season at Victory Rock Prep in Bradenton, Florida.
Playing for his father Darnell Hoskins at Thurgood, Hoskins Jr. was a three-year starter. He averaged 18.2 points, 4.9 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 3.5 steals as a senior. He was the Dayton City League player of the year, the Division II District 15 player of the year and first team All-Southwest District.
SVS is an NCAA D-II program in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The Cardinals were 17-11 overall last season and 10-11 in the conference. Hoskins said he had other D-I and D-II offers, but warmed to SVS on a recruiting visit.
“I immediately told (my parents) that night,” he said during a signing ceremony at Thurgood.
“I told (my parents) this is the right place for me and they have everything I need,” Hoskins Jr. said during a signing ceremony that drew a large crowd at Thurgood. “This is definitely big. It’s been great. I haven’t been able to get any sleep. It’s been real crazy.”
Hoskins initially was thought to be coveted by Mid-American Conference teams and even Wright State. His father, a Chaminade Julienne alum, started his collegiate career at Wisconsin and transferred to Dayton for his final two seasons. He’s now the boys coach at Middletown.
“Sometimes it comes with undue pressure to live up to expectations of your dad,” his father said. “I told him through the entire (recruiting) process, it’s not about me. It’s about you. It’s about the path you desire to take and everybody’s path is not the same. I’m more proud of the kid that he’s become instead of the basketball player he’s become.”
DARNELL HOSKINS JR.
What: Signed to play basketball at Saginaw Valley State University (Mich.).
Prep school: Victory Rock (Fla.).
High school: 2016 Thurgood Marshall grad.
Stats: As a senior at Thurgood, 18.2 points, 4.9 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 3.5 steals.
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