April 27, 2009

(San Diego, CA) - University of San Diego men's basketball head coach Bill Grier and his staff announced today the signing of Rafael Crescencio (Santo Andre, Brazil) to a national letter of intent and scholarship agreement for the 2009-10 campaign. Crescencio, a 6-9, 220 lb. forward-center, will have two years of eligibility with the Toreros.

"We are excited to add a student-athlete of Rafael's caliber," said Torero head coach Bill Grier. "His length, athleticism and skill will have an immediate impact on our program. He is very intelligent and will be a great ambassador for the university."

Crescencio played at Arizona Western College (Yuma, AZ) the past two years for coach Kelly Green. This past year as a sophomore he helped the Matadors win the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference title. He averaged 13.6 points per game, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per contest. Additionally, he connected on 55.5% of his shots from the field. He was named a 2008-09 First Team All-ACCAC member, as well as a 2008-09 ACCAC All-Region Division I Second Team pick. During his freshman year (2007-08) he was 2nd Team on both squds after averaging 13.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg and a league-best 3.4 blocks per game. Prior to college he attended Sebastiao Fernandes Palma High School in Santo Andre, Brazil.

Crescencio joins a trio of players that signed NLI's during the early signing period back in November - Chris Manresa, a 6-8, 245 lb. forward from Tesoro High School in Mission Viejo, California; Ken Rancifer, a 6-5, 215 lb. forward from El Cerrito High School in El Cerrito, California; and Cameron Miles, a 6-1, 160 lb. point guard from Skyline High School in Dallas, Texas.