Peninsula College sources

Mitch Freeman, Peninsula College’s new men’s basketball head coach, faced a recruiting challenge when he took the helm of the Peninsula College men’s basketball program on Aug. 1 – and he has quietly assembled the makings of a very talented team.

With only a handful of returners in the mix — led by all-conference standout Xavier Bazile, role player Domach Domach and red-shirt sophomore T.J. McKinney — and just one of the players signed by coach Lance Von Vogt still on board in Jal Deng, who led his Bartlett team to an Alaska State championship in 2011, Freeman hit the recruiting trail in August and has signed some outstanding players.

Here is a look at Freeman’s first recruiting class:

• Branden Charbonier (6-5, freshman, wing)

Charbonier graduated from Ayala High School in 2013 and is a talented wing.

• Kyshawn Erwin (6-6, freshman power, forward)

Erwin graduated from Arroyo Valley High School in 2013 and is an strong inside player with outstanding athleticism.

• Juwan Flowers (6-0, freshman, guard)

Flowers played his high school ball at Beamer High in SeaTac where he was a first team all-conference player in the South Puget Sound League.

• Daren Hechanova (6-2, sophomore, guard)

Hechanova, of Torrance, Calif., played high school basketball at Torrance High in 2011 and played one year at Saddleback Junior College in Orange County.

• Geno Horsley (5-10 freshman, guard)

Horsley graduated from Lincoln High School in Tacoma in 2011 where his team was one of the top teams in the state his senior year.

• Glen Jackson (6-2, freshman, guard/wing)

Jackson is a Decatur High graduate and a former teammate of Markus Rawls, who is also joining the Pirates this year.

• Ryan Johnson (6-1, freshman, guard)

Johnson graduated from Valley High School in Las Vegas in 2013 and comes from a successful high school program coached by Brian Farnsworth.

• Terrell Penney Jr. (5-9, freshman, guard)

Penney graduated from Grant High School in Tacoma and is the most recent player to commit to Peninsula.

• Markus Rawls (6-3, freshman, guard/wing)

Rawls is the younger brother of Jordan Rawls, who played for the Pirates two seasons ago. He played high school ball at Decatur in the Federal Way area.

• Erron Shamlin (5-11, sophomore, guard)

Shamlin comes to Peninsula College from Houston, Texas, where he played high school ball at Humble HS and was recruited to play for Texas Southern University in 2012-2013, but has decided to transfer to play for coach Freeman.

Also …

In addition to Freeman’s recruiting class, Peninsula is expecting a handful of walk-ons, including athletes who trained with the Pirates in coach Von Vogt’s advanced basketball class last spring, as well as others from the surrounding region. Freeman is planning some open gyms as early as next week to evaluate walk-ons. Interested players are encouraged to contact him at 417-6467.