The Valparaiso men’s basketball team received its fifth National Letter of Intent during the early signing period Monday, as head coach Homer Drew announced that Brandon Wood has officially signed to attend Valpo beginning next year.

Wood, a 6’3”, 195 lb. guard from Kokomo, Ind., is playing this season at Highland [Ill.] Community College.  Wood transferred to Highland from Southern Illinois, where he appeared in six games for the Salukis, averaging 3.7 points per game, before suffering a season-ending injury.  He stood out in the Salukis’ opener last year against Northern Illinois, pouring in 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting in 27 minutes off the bench.

Wood was a three-year letterwinner at Kokomo H.S., where he was honored as an Indiana All-Star.  A two-time All-Conference honoree, he was an All-County pick after a senior year in which he averaged 21.0 points per game.  Wood is projected to be the top incoming point guard next year in the Horizon League according to Rivals.com.

“We are ecstatic to have all five of our verbal commitments sign during the early signing period,” said Drew.  “Brandon is a multi-talented guard who can play multiple positions on the court.  He shoots the ball extremely well, but can also use his quickness to take his defender off the dribble.  We are very excited to add Brandon to our strong incoming class for next year.”

Wood joins previous commits Ryan Broekhoff, Chris Halvorsen, Matt Kenney, and Tommy Kurth as new arrivals for the 2009-2010 campaign.  Cory Johnson, who is sitting out this season after transferring from Iowa State, will also be eligible to play at the start of next season.