Elijah Coleman dishes on his visit to Black Hills State

<p><strong>Elijah Coleman</strong> doesn’t know exactly what he expected during a visit last week to Black Hill State alongside Aurora Central teammate <strong>LaDarius Thomas</strong>, but he still managed to take away more than he expected.</p><p>“I was really blown away,” said Coleman, a 6-foot-2 guard who is ranked No. 25 in Prep Hoops Colorado’s most recent Class of 2016 rankings. “I didn’t expect all that from a small town like that.”</p> <p>So what did Coleman enjoy about Spearfish, S.D., a six-hour drive from Denver? A little bit of everything.</p> <p>“There were beautiful sights everywhere,” he said. “Everywhere you went there were trees. It’s a small little town, but everybody was nice. The basketball team was nice to us, too. We hung out with them for hours, and they were great. We met some of their friends, and everybody was nice. The dorms were nice, too.”</p> <p>Coleman and Thomas both left with scholarship offers. For Coleman, it was his first offer -- and it was a memorable experience he cherished.</p> <p>“It meant a lot,” Coleman said. “I felt like I was part of the program. They took care of us. When we walked into the hotel room, they had all this (gear) laid out for us. It’s just like we a part of Black Hills State.”</p> <p>Coleman, who has also visited Colorado Christian, said he hasn’t set a date to make a commitment, but he could definitely envision himself joining the program at Black Hills State.</p> <p>“I am giving it some more time,” Coleman. “I’m keeping an open mind about it, but I think more than likely I’ll be at Black Hills State. I’m just thinking about and making sure I want to go there for sure.”</p> <p>As for Thomas, the PHC No. 11 2016 player, Coleman said it wouldn’t surprise him if the two guards ultimately played college ball together. It’s something they’ve talked about for a long time.</p> <p>“We talk about it quite a bit, after practice, before practice, during school,” Coleman said. “We talk about quite a bit. After three years at Central, I’ve bonded with him the most besides Coach (Calvert).”</p> <p>Coleman feels excited about his college prospects, especially after a great visit to South Dakota that netted him an offer. But he’s also excited to take the floor for his senior year with a Spartans team he believes can make a deep run in the Class 5A state tournament after falling to Heritage in the first round last season.</p> <p>“This is the happiest and most hyped I’ve been for a high school season,” he said. “We have seven or eight seniors, one junior, so we all look to make some noise and make a run in the 5A playoffs. Our school is excited for us. Central is a really good place to be right now.”</p>