Sampson’s Choice Is Cal

It’s a good thing Jamal Sampson spoke up. The Mater Dei center, a nationally coveted recruit, might not be heading to California if he didn’t tell Monarch Coach Gary McKnight he was interested in attending the school even though its coaches weren’t focused on him.

Several Bear assistant coaches came to a Mater Dei workout about five weeks ago to scout a couple of promising sophomores, and after they left, Sampson, who at the time was considering a number of schools, told McKnight that he wouldn’t mind going to Cal. McKnight then called the coaches to let them know.

“He could have gone anywhere he wanted, North Carolina, Kentucky,” McKnight said. “It’s a very good recruit for Cal-Berkeley. They have a lot of young players and he has a chance to come in and make them very good.”

Sampson made it official when he committed to Cal Friday night. The 6-foot-11 standout, who averaged 13.7 points, 10.6 rebounds and blocked 147 shots as a junior, picked Cal over Saint Louis. “He really liked Lorenzo [Romar, the Saint Louis coach], but I think he wanted to stay close to home,” McKnight said.

UCLA had so coveted Sampson that the Bruins had held a scholarship for him. That scholarship now figures to be withheld until the spring and might not be awarded at all this year.

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UCLA freshman forward Josiah Johnson, son of former Bruin star Marques Johnson, is expected to miss four to six weeks after doctors discovered a stress fracture in his left foot.