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Men's Basketball Signs Two for 2019-20

EDINBURG – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Men's Basketball Head Coach Lew Hill announced on Wednesday the signings of 6-5, 185-pound junior guard Rob McClain Jr. and 6-7, 230-pound redshirt sophomore forward Sean Rhea for the 2019-20 academic year.

McClain comes to UTRGV from United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck, N.D., where as a sophomore, he earned NJCAA All-American honors by averaging 23.1 points, 11.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 2.2 blocks and 2.3 steals while shooting 56.9 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from behind the arc in 32 games. McClain led his team to the Region XIII Championship by leading the conference in scoring, rebounding, blocks and steals. He led the NJCAA in field goals made and defensive rebounding while ranking seventh in scoring.

As a freshman, McClain averaged 18.2 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.5 blocks and 3.5 steals while shooting 65.8 percent from the field in 31 games.

McClain graduates as United Tribes Technical College's all-time leader in rebounds (693), blocks (115) and steals (180).

Originally from Red Lake, Minn., McClain played his high school ball at Red Lake High School, where he averaged 16.4 points, 11.2 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 2.8 blocks and 5.6 steals while shooting 60.1 percent from the field as a senior.

"Rob's a scorer that can shoot the ball," Hill said. "He's a good versatile player, just like we like. He is really good defensively. He can get in the passing lanes, get the ball of the glass, bring it down himself and make plays. He's really athletic and can score at three levels, finishing, at mid-range, and by shooting the three. We're excited about him. We think he can explode in this up-tempo offense and up-tempo defense of ours."

Rhea joins UTRGV after competing in three games at New Mexico Junior College as a sophomore last year, averaging 8.3 points and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 69.2 percent (9-for-13) from the field before missing the rest of the season due to injury.

Rhea started his collegiate career at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in 2017-18, averaging 9.4 points and 5.6 rebounds while shooting 50.0 percent from the field in 27 games and starts. He reached double-figures in scoring 13 times, including a career-high 18 points against Incarnate Word, and rebounds twice, including a career-high 16 rebounds at Sam Houston State.

Originally from Houston, Rhea attended Porter High School, averaging 16 points, 12 rebounds and 3 blocks per game as a senior. He earned First Team All-District and All-County honors as both a senior and sophomore.

"Sean's a big, athletic forward that's really good at rebounding and blocking shots," Hill said. "He's really athletic and can score around the block from 15 feet and in. He's a very versatile player. He gives us something we haven't had as he's a rebounder. I think he can get us 8-to-10 rebounds per game, so we're excited about having him on board."

McClain and Rhea join 6-6, 185-pound freshman forward Connor Raines as part of the 2019-20 recruiting class.

https://goutrgv.com/news/2019/4/17/mens-basketball-signs-two-for-2019-20.aspx?fbclid=IwAR3P2WF5mD49SyIcIjr12cok9Njyfz6BRQHhCCv7AY3KV0obYx4NHnr1tDo

 

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