Iowa Hawkeyes coaches hoping to lure Minnesota big man Steven Crowl in for visit

HOOVER, Ala. — Steven Crowl is setting his recruitment largely to one side in July, with D1 Minnesota’s sights set firmly on winning hardware in Alabama and Los Angeles.

Whenever he does circle back to it, the 6-9 center from St. Paul, Minnesota, will have plenty to think about.

Crowl, a member of D1 Minnesota’s talented roster who plays his prep basketball at Eastview Senior, has seen a number of Big Ten schools jump into his recruitment in recent months. Just last week, Wisconsin and hometown Minnesota both offered, and Iowa is involved as well. Northern Iowa, South Dakota and Colorado have also offered.

A big man who prides himself on versatility — 247Sports rates him a top-150 prospect, and the No. 23 center in his class — Crowl’s performances have triggered that interest.

“For the season, I think I’m playing pretty well,” he said.

D1 Minnesota won its first tournament-play game Friday, a heavy victory over Handlelife. One of the deeper teams in the field in Hoover, D1 Minnesota had to contend with Indiana Elite and Compton Magic in pool play, and they’ve had to adjust to life without center Dawson Garcia, who couldn’t make the trip south this weekend.

Crowl and his teammates have leaned on their depth to win two of their three games so far, with another scheduled for Friday afternoon.

“It doesn’t matter who’s in the game,” Crowl said. “We’re all going to give it our all, and try as hard as we can to win. We got off to a slow start, but we picked up the pressure and started coming back.”

Both here and in California, Crowl and his teammates are focused squarely on bringing home a championship. Recruiting will come after that.

“Our goal,” Crowl said, “is to win it all.”

What he’s working on: “Probably my strength is the main thing, and then my perimeter game, shooting, dribbling, being able to handle the ball, handle the pressure on the perimeter.”

Iowa’s message: “I haven’t talked to them much, but they just want to get me down, show me around. They said I can be a big part of what they’ve got going on down there. We’ll see as the months go on.”

Wisconsin’s message: “Wisconsin, they say I’m like they’re typical big guy. They think they can develop me into what Frank Kaminsky, Jon Leuer, those types of guys were. That’s been their message.”

Minnesota’s message: “Minnesota, they just want to keep me home, close to home.”

What he’s looking for in a school: “Just the best fit for me, with academics. I’d like to play right away, but we’ll see. Style of play too, for me.”

Plans for visits after AAU season: “That’s all kind of in the future. I know I’m going to Colorado. I’ll probably head over to Wisconsin. But I’d say that’s it so far.”