Hokies in the top five for Kuony Deng

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Will Virginia Tech be able to close on top Juco target Kuony Deng? They drew one step closer when he named five finalists.

The 6-6, 235-pound Deng began his college career at VMI, but left after two years to play at Independence (Kan.) Community College for a season in hopes of finishing his career at a major program. All five of his finalists - Cal, LSU, Texas A&M, UCLA, and the Hokies - certainly fir that bill.

Deng took his official visit to Blacksburg last Thursday for the team's loss to Georgia Tech, but has opted not to participate in interviews since returning to school afterward. Nebraksa and Iowa are among the bigtime schools that he's visited (in the Huskers' case, multiple times) that didn't make his final cut.

A native of Sudan who grew up in Iowa, Deng has strong connections to the Commonwealth after playing his high school ball at Aldie (Va.) John Champe. Signing with the Keydets out of high school, he spent several years of his life in Virginia - making the Hokies the "close to home" option if that's going to be a strong consideration. VT was also among the first schools to issue him an offer this Summer after he went through spring ball at Independence.

The four-star and No. 10 junior college prospect nationally, Deng has not announced plans for further narrowing his list or making a college commitment. However, he intends to enroll in January at the school of his choice, so picking one of them likely isn't too far off.