Nichols player is a wanted man

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Some of the top college basketball coaches in the country have been making regular visits to Buffalo this year.

They all want a look at Will Regan of the Nichols School.

Michigan's John Beilein was there Monday. Villanova's coach was there Friday.

Coaches from Maryland, Stanford, Arizona State and Penn State have all come to Nichols to watch and recruit Regan.

Nichols Center Will Regan said, "I think you think about it, but its not really pressure. You get used to it, at least for me, because you have coaches there a fair amount now."

Regan's a wanted man because the six-foot-eight inch forward can play tough inside, and shoot from the outside. Vikings coach Greg Plumb has been helping will deal with all the attention.

Nichols head coach Greg Plumb said, "I just try to help him gather as much information as possible. Obviously, there's coaches calling every day, there's e-mails, phone calls. So I just try to gather as much information as I can."

Will says he'll make a decision after the season, so he can relax and enjoy his senior year, "It's just gonna be a combination of the school, the academic side of it, the players on the team, because you want to be in a good situation with the team, and the system. So its just a combination of the basketball, the school and the players."

Twenty-one years ago, it was another Nichols Athletic Hall of Famer who blazed the same trail that Regan is following now.

He was another hot-shooting big man.

His name was Christian Laettner.

Regan said, "What Christian Laettner's done is he's had such a great career. My goal is to kind of model after him."
"Just the way he's pursued a basketball career is the way that I should follow it. Obviously, it's a great success."

Regan averaged 22 points and 11 rebounds a game.

His Nichols team plays St. Francis Saturday in a Manhattan Cup Semi-Final game.