Portland State Basketball Coach Tyler Geving has added another transfer to his roster with the addition of Cameron Forte. Formerly of the University of Georgia where he played two seasons, Forte will complete his degree this summer and enter graduate school in the fall at Portland State. He will be eligible to play immediately for the Vikings.
Forte is a 6-7, 220-pound forward originally from Tempe, AZ. He played basketball at McClintock High School, then one season at Howard Junior College in Texas (2012-13) before moving on to Georgia.
Forte played for Viking Assistant Coach Jase Coburn when Coburn was the Head Coach at McClintock. They won an Arizona 4A State Championship together. When Coburn moved on to be an assistant coach at Howard JC, Forte followed and played another season for him. At Howard, Forte was also a teammate of former Viking star DaShaun Wiggins.
Last season, Forte averaged 4.0 points, 2.8 rebounds and shot .567 from the field in 13 minutes per game for the Bulldogs. He averaged 4.6 points and 3.4 rebounds in just over 17 minutes in Southeastern Conference games. In 2013-14, Forte started seven of 33 games, playing nine minutes per contest. He averaged 3.4 points, 2.0 rebounds and shot .591 from the field.
Forte averaged 22.5 points, fourth nationally, during the 2012-13 season at Howard JC. His team was 30-7, reaching the NJCAA quarterfinals. He also grabbed 7.5 rebounds and shot 63% from the field while being named to the All-Region 5 team.
At McClintock High School, he averaged 36.2 points and 12.7 rebounds as a senior. He was twice named All-Arizona by the Arizona Republic newspaper.
"Cameron has a knack for scoring in a variety of different ways and he is a very good player in transition," said Geving. "As a fifth-year player, he is also older and more mature. Cameron has been part of an NCAA Tournament team at Georgia, had a lot of success at Howard Junior College, as well as winning a state championship in high school. He has a track record of winning."
The addition of Forte improves an already bolstered front line for the Vikings. In addition to the return of starters Collin Spickerman (6-8, SR, C) and Braxton Tucker (6-6, JR, F), the Vikings have added forward Isaiah Pineiro (6-6, SO) and center Namdi Okonkwo (7-0, JR).
Portland State completed a 15-14 season in 2014-15. The Vikings were sixth in the 12-team Big Sky Conference with a 9-9 record. PSU will return five letterwinners, three starters and two redshirts in 2015-16.
Geving has now signed eight student-athletes for next season.
AID AGREEMENT SIGNEE - June 25
Cameron Forte, F, 6-7, 220, GR, TR, Tempe, AZ (McClintock HS/Howard JC/Georgia)
PREVIOUS NATIONAL LETTER OF INTENT SIGNINGS
Armani Collins, G, 6-5, 190, FR, HS, San Francisco, CA (Stuart Hall HS) - June 12
Namdi Okonkwo, C, 7-0, 205, JR, JC, Dallas, TX (Westwind Prep/Western Wyoming JC) (name pronounced NAM-dee oh-KONK-whoa) - May 18
Khari Holloway, G, 6-2, 185, JR, JC, Jackson, MS (Mountain Pointe (AZ)/Mesa CC) (name pronounced KY-ree) - April 28
Evan Garrison, G, 5-10, 170, JR, JC, Tigard, OR (Tigard HS/Clark College) - April 21
De'Sean Parsons, G, 6-7, 190, JR, JC, Sacramento, CA (Grant Union HS/Salt Lake CC) - April 15
Isaiah Pineiro, F, 6-6, 210, SO, JC, Auburn, CA (Placer HS/Sierra College) - April 15
Torrian Epps, G, 6-4, 200, JR, JC, Holbrook, AZ (Holbrook HS/Howard JC/Central Arizona) - Nov. 19
