Making the point an emphasis, the Hawaii basketball team secured a commitment from a prolific junior-college guard.

JoVon McClanahan of Sheridan (Wyo.) College announced on Twitter and confirmed to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser his acceptance of a UH scholarship offer and his intent to sign with the Rainbow Warriors. For now, April 15 is the first day of the spring signing period for basketball prospects, although that date could change because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I’m big on fit,” McClanahan said. “I felt Hawaii — as a player, as a teammate — fit well. The coaching staff, I felt would be a good fit, we’d have a good relationship. I felt Hawaii was the best fit for me.”

McClanahan will compete to fill the potential loss of point guard Drew Buggs, who entered the NCAA transfer portal two weeks ago. McClanahan will enroll at UH as a sophomore in August, and have four years to play three seasons with the ’Bows.

In his lone season at Sheridan, the 5-foot-11 McClanahan compiled per-game averages of 23.5 points (on 47.8% shooting, including 44.5% on 3s), 6.5 rebounds and 6.3 assists. He hit 87.8% of his free throws. Sheridan’s four-out offense is similar to schemes the ’Bows have used previously.

McClanahan was a standout guard for Salesian College Prep (Richmond, Calif.). The Pride went 88-8 in McClanahan’s three seasons as the starting point guard.

“He’s a great all-around person who is the complete package when it comes to being a student-athlete,” Salesian coach Bill Mellis said. “He has good grades. He’s a great leader. He’s a great locker-room guy. Obviously, his basketball talent speaks for itself. He plays bigger than he is. He plays really hard. He plays both ends of the floor. He defends. He can score. He does a good job as a point guard to get everybody involved.”

Mellis recalled: “He had a knack for saying something: ‘outlet the ball, get it to me, run the floor, and I swear I’ll get it back to you. Just be ready to shoot when I get it to you.’ He said things like that. He had everybody’s respect. He had a way of talking to his teammates in a way even coaches couldn’t. He was really good in that way.”

McClanahan was admittedly “under recruited” as a Salesian senior in 2019. He opted to go to a junior college to improve his stock. In choosing UH, McClanahan turned down offers from Washington State, UC Santa Barbara and Montana State. Sheridan fans also gave him the nickname “King Von” that was yelled during home games.

Earlier, the ’Bows signed 6-6 guard Beon Ja Riley, and received oral commitments from 6-1 point guard Biwali Bayles and 6-7 wing Manel Ayol.