Two Plumlees don't seem to be enough for the Duke men's basketball program, which will add a third for the 2011-12 season after a weekend commitment from Marshall Plumlee.
Marshall, the younger brother of Miles and Mason Plumlee, is a 7-0, 215-pounder who is ranked as the nation's fifth-best center in the class of 2011 by scout.com. He will be a senior at Christ School in Arden, a program he has helped to three consecutive NCISAA 3-A titles and a combined 107-5 record over three seasons.
Coach David Gaines of Christ School says it wasn't a given that Marshall would follow his brothers to Duke.
"Marshall and his mother and father were very thorough in selecting a college," Gaines said. "But I do think what was maybe the deciding factor was he spent a week in June down there at Duke with Miles, and I think he got a real feel for campus life and what it's all about."
Gaines says that Plumlee is looking forward to trying to win another state title as a senior because "then he would have something on his brothers -- four state titles."
Plumlee also was being recruited by Purdue, Indiana, Michigan, N.C. State, Virginia and others. His father, Perky Plumlee, said yesterday that Marshall's decision came down to Duke and Virginia.
"Duke offered him a scholarship last summer, but he really wanted to take his time and make sure of everything that was involved," the elder Plumlee said. "And to their credit, his two brothers never pressured him into making a decision. We ultimately wanted it to be Marshall's decision."
Perky Plumlee, a lawyer and former basketball player at Tennessee Tech, says that the family might have over-analyzed the recruiting process a little, adding: "We just wanted to make sure it was done where we weren't following our emotions."
Marshall Plumlee averaged 8.4 points, 8 rebounds and 2.9 blocked shots last season as Christ School went 37-1.
Gaines said that Plumlee will have to pick up his scoring average and become more of an inside force, something he might have to gain weight to do.
"We've talked about it, and we need him to become about a 15- to 18-point-a-game scorer for us," Gaines said. "But the thing about coaching Marshall is you never have to tell him anything more than once."
Gaines, who coached all three Plumlee brothers, said that Marshall is different from Miles and Mason.
"He's a true center who stays in the paint," Gaines said. "And I would say that the sport hasn't come as easily to him as his two brothers."
When Marshall starts at Duke in 2011, Miles will be a senior and Mason a junior, if they haven't left early for the NBA. If that happens, the Plumlees can make ACC history -- becoming the first set of three brothers to play for the same school in the same season.
"That would be amazing," Perky said.
Marshall is the last of the Plumlee sons, but there's a daughter -- 5-10 ninth-grader Madeline -- still at home in Warsaw, Ind., for now. Perky said she favors volleyball.
"She's actually going to go to St. Mary's in Raleigh this fall, and that way she can go to a lot of her brothers' games at Duke," Perky said. "She's never really played basketball."
Marshall Plumlee gives Duke three commitments for its 2011 class. He joins wing player Michael Gbinije and power forward Tyler Adams. All three can sign binding national letters-of-intent in November.
jdell@wsjournal.com
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