Brock Vice, a 6’10”, 240-pound forward, most recently with the Murray State Racers, became Coach Casey Alexander’s first portal commitment as the head Wildcat. A member of the 2023 recruiting class, Vice, signed with Creighton out of Houston High School in Memphis, Tennessee, where he averaged 17.5 points and 14 rebounds as a senior. He was ranked as the 40th center, the 3rd best player in the state of Tennessee, and a 3* prospect. He chose Creighton over offers from Belmont, St. Louis, and Tulsa.
After a season on the shelf as a redshirt for Creighton, Vice jumped in the portal and signed with the North Texas Mean Green. He failed to make his mark as a redshirt freshman, appearing in only 5 games during the 2024-25 season. After a season in Denton, he packed his bags once again and blazed a trail back east to Murray State, where his college career finally found some traction as a redshirt sophomore for the Racers. He appeared in 30 games as a reserve, averaging 2 points and 2 rebounds in about 5 minutes of action per game.
Yes, you read that right, he averaged 2 points and 2 rebounds off the bench at Murray State last season. Before you do anything drastic, let me try to explain.
High School Highlights
Coach Alexander Likes Who He Likes
That’s one thing you’re going to need to get comfortable with under this new regime. In this case, Coach Alexander tried to get Vice to sign with Belmont out of high school but lost him to Creighton. He thought Vice was a good fit for his system three seasons ago, and he still thinks so today.
The above highlights should give you some insight into why Vice is the first player Coach Alexander plucked out of the portal. His system requires a big man who can play on the perimeter, and that’s Vice’s specialty. He can pick-and-pop and drive other centers when he gets the ball on the perimeter. Pair that with his rebounding ability, and his skill set fits the system perfectly. It’s tough to find skilled centers with this type of size who are comfortable playing in a 5-out system.
Vice fits the bill, and I’m going to guess the price was right.
This is How Things are Going to Work
Alexander wasn’t ordering off the top of the menu at Belmont, but he consistently brought in players who would go on to star for other teams after outplaying their high school rankings. He’s going to trust his evaluations for his system over generic recruiting services. That’s going to look weird on occasion, and this is one such occasion.
That said, Vice was low-hanging fruit considering their previous relationship. The Wildcats need skilled size, Vice has size and, in theory, has the skill. Vice was comfortable with Alexander, Alexander was comfortable with Vice, and the deal made too much sense not to get done. I expect you’ll see more production from Kansas State’s portal pulls as the roster comes into focus.
If you’re underwhelmed with Vice, I get it, but I’d hold off on getting too upset until you see him in this offense.
