• ASU's Trent Lockett transfers to Marquette

    Arizona State's Trent Lockett announced that he would be transferring to Marquette University on Saturday. Lockett, originally from Hopkins High School in Golden Valley, MN, has graduated from Arizona State in three years could be eligible immediately and will have one year remaining.

    Lockett's transfer situation is quite different than most. His mother in Minnesota had become ill, and the standout Junior went home to visit her. "I was at home visiting my mom. I had talked to a few of my close advisers about the possibility of transferring to be closer to her, and the media got wind of it. I thought about going through this with a quiet process, but two days into it, it just blew up."

    The decision to leave Arizona State was a difficult one, the three year vet committed to the Sun Devils when he was 16, and the program was like a family to him. "Making the decision to leave was really hard. I love the entire staff, and every one of them helped me in their own unique way. The people had been great. This was difficult, but the fans, the people in the Administrative Offices, the Academic Support staff, and all of the people in my inner circle were so supportive, it was really hard to leave that atmosphere, but it was a decision I had to make. Coach Sendek was especially very understanding and supportive of me during this process."

    Lockett had been through the recruiting process before, but now he's five years older. "This has been a tough month, juggling everything - trying to graduate, visiting multiple schools in multiple states, finally graduating, but especially with trying to visit and be with my mom.Having been through it before, this time around was much different. Now I have a better feel of knowing what to look for, especially on the basketball side. It was a long but necessary process, and I am glad its over."

    With so many schools involved in the process, and so many others trying to get involved, the Minnesota native wanted to make sure that he was close to mother, but also where he knew he had a chance to improve his game. In the end, he narrowed it down to Marquette and Iowa State. "When it came down to those schools, it was like comparing apples to oranges. The programs are both so similar. They both average 15,000 per game, they both have been to the NCAA tournament, they both have great players and they both have the same goals as a program. I knew no matter which school I decided on, I would be making a great decision."

    Another major factor in narrowing it down to Marquette and Iowa State was the conferences that the two programs were in. "People say the PAC 12 is down right now, and then you look at the Big XII and the Big East, these are two of the best conferences in college basketball. In the Big XII you play big games every night, and the Big East is one of, if not the best conference in all of college basketball. I did get a chance to play in Madison Square Garden my freshman year, and i am really looking forward to getting back there."

    Lockett had bonded with both coaching staffs, and felt they had the biggest impact on his decision. "The coaching staffs were both great. They work hard and they develop their players. Coach Hoiberg and Buzz are both very different, and I have a great deal of respect for both of them. They both have a lot of experience and both have their programs headed in the right direction. I had really bonded with Coach (Tony) Benford at Marquette and Coach TJ (Otzelberger) from ISU. They had really been good to me and patient with me considering what I was going through."

    In the middle of it all Lockett was thrown a curve ball when Marquette Associate Head Coach Tony Benford left Marquette to become the head coach at North Texas. "It was a catch-22. I really bonded with him and he is a very good coach. I was looking forward to gaining from his knowledge. But I looked at it as a positive. Some schools unnecessarily trying to hold on to their coaches, but when you have a situation where they work to get their guys to get head coaching jobs, that really says a lot about the people in your program, and is a sign that your program really is headed in the right direction."

    When it came time to make a decision, it wasn't easy. "It was really hard to make that call to the staff at Iowa State. TJ & Coach Hoiberg had been so good to me, and I knew I would have blossomed with Coach Hoiberg. But the difference was coach Buzz. Marquette is a great opportunity and I really felt that the way he works and does things, that Buzz could bring things out of me that no once else could. I really felt that he could be the difference in my future."

    In the end, Lockett wrapped up the interview with the following message..... "I am really looking forward to coming to Marquette and becoming a Marquette Golden Eagle. I also want to thank all of the fans and people at Arizona State for their understanding of my decision and for being so supportive."

    There is no question that Marquette is getting a great player in Trent Lockett, but they are also getting a pretty solid person too.



    The Trent Lockett file:

    • Last season Lockett appeared in 25 games for the Sun Devils and started in all 25 of those contests.
    • He averaged 13 point per game, and led the team with 5.8 rebounds per outing.
    • He led the team with 326 points scored, and also led them in steals (37) and 3 point percentage (.412).
    • Lockett has graduated and earned his degree in Business Communication in 3 years.
    • In 2009-10 he was named to the Pac 10 All Freshman Team.
    • In 2010-11 he was a second team All Pac 10 selection.
    • He was a Pac 10 first team All Academic selection in '10-11 and '11-12, and an Academic All District Selection in '11-12.
    • He was regarded as the best Student-Athlete in the Pac 12 coming into the '11-12 season.