One sophomore in Illinois who has continued to see his recruitment grow over the past year is Rocco Pagliocca. As part of a deep and balanced Stevenson High School team this past season, the 6’2” guard averaged 12 points and 4 assists per game while shooting 40% from three. He also blocked over 20 shots during the season. With all of this, he earned himself all-conference honors in the North Suburban Conference while helping Stevenson reach the sectional finals.
Even before starting up his sophomore high school season, he was able to pick up his first scholarship offer, coming from an in-state division one program back in November. The offer for Pagliocca came from Eastern Illinois University. “I like (assistant) coach London a lot, he coached Evan Turner at St. Joe’s. I grew up watching Evan workout in the gym, so it was cool to get the offer from them,” he said when speaking about Eastern Illinois.
While Eastern Illinois is his lone offer being early on in his recruitment as a sophomore, he does have interest from several other division one programs. Schools in the Big 10, Horizon, and Ivy League are some to have shown interest in Pagliocca so far.
In the upcoming spring, Pagliocca will once again be suiting up for the Illinois Wolves. “I would like to continue to show people how much of a two-way player and how competitive I am,” he said about the upcoming grassroots season. “This past high school season I consistently guarded the best guard or wing on the other team. Also, how well I play in the ball screen to either make a play for myself or other people.”