College Commitment: Brennen Neyt (2022 Eagle Point)
It’s not a stretch to say Brennen Neyt Brennen Neyt 6'4" | SF Eagle Point | 2022 State OR wasn’t expecting too much close to a year ago at this time. Eagle Point was going through a rough 2021 campaign and losses were mounting. But fast forward to now and it’s a whole different ballgame for the lanky 6-foot-4 senior swingman. Coming off a storybook senior season, Neyt is now also off to play college basketball after making a commitment on Friday night to play at Pacific for head coach Justin Lunt.
“It’s a family – I like how it’s a close-knit community on campus, the professors know the students, and when I was taking my tour people were fist-bumping each other how are you doing and I thought that was really cool,” Neyt said. “It’s a high level of basketball and it’s somewhere that I could see myself playing. Obviously I’m not going to be NBA level talent so I wanted somewhere I could be a college student and while I could still continue to get better at basketball.”
Neyt made his commitment after attending Pacific’s elite camp where prospective students, after they got a tour of campus and met with the coaching and on-campus staff, got a chance to work out and play with current members of the Boxers team. At the conclusion of camp, Neyt and his mother met with head coach Lunt and Neyt made the decision that he wanted to be a Boxer.
The college commitment might not have been possible had Neyt and Eagle Point not had the dream season they put together in 2021-22. The Eagles burst out of the gates with a 16-2 record and proved themselves as Midwestern League contenders. A win over Hood River Valley propelled them to the state tournament and while they went two-and-out at Gill Coliseum, it was still a senior season Neyt and his teammates won’t soon forget.
“Going into the season I didn’t have high expectations, but we got three transfers and they helped out a lot – the comraderie of the team was way better,” Neyt said. “That was able to push us in the right direction and throughout the season we were pushing each other every day. We knew we had something special. It sucks that it ended the way that it did but we’re still proud in every way.”
As for Neyt individually, he earned First Team All-League honors after averaging 17.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.7 steals during the regular season. The lefty was impressive at Pacific Elite Camp, hitting perimeter shots but was especially impressive using his ability to create off the dribble and finish at the rim against the competition at hand. Neyt is happy with the way his game evolved this past season.
“I was able to really find the ways I need to score,” Neyt said. “My first couple of seasons we didn’t have a lot of options so I either had to do nothing or do everything. This year I could finally settle into my role and I was able to get a lot of good shots. Teams started recognizing what I could do so I had to keep adapting.”
Our congratulations go out to Neyt and his family on his commitment.