Freshman Ithiel Horton makes quick impact with University of Delaware basketball team

As a high school senior, Ithiel Horton was often overshadowed by more highly touted teammates.

That was fine with him, as the 6-foot-3 guard still managed to be the second-leading scorer on New Jersey Tournament of Champions winner Roselle Catholic.

It was fitting Horton had the assist on teammate and LSU signee Naz Reid’s decisive alley-oop dunk that gave Roselle Catholic the NJSIAA nonpublic B title.

“My role was kind of like the glue,” said Horton, who averaged 13 points for a 29-4 team and was third-team All-State.

He has carried the same team-first attitude in his freshman season at the University of Delaware. But Horton, only seeking to complement his teammates, has managed to stand out.

Going into Delaware’s game Sunday against visiting St. Francis (Pa.), Horton is the leading scorer among Colonial Athletic Association freshmen averaging 14.0 points per game, tied for 16th overall in the conference and second among Hens.

That’s been fed by prolific shooting percentages of 45.7 overall, 46.2 on 3-pointers (fifth best in the CAA) and 83.3 at the foul line (eighth in the CAA).

Horton wasn’t aware of those numbers, he said, adding he stopped paying attention to statistics because “I would get too caught up, but it lets me know I’m on the right track.”

The Blue Hens (7-3) and Red Flash (3-5) tip off at 2 p.m. in a Carpenter Center double-header Sunday. The Delaware women (3-5) follow with their home opener against Central Florida (6-1) at 5:30 p.m.

Horton was in his first year at Roselle Catholic in 2017-18, going there after St. Anthony’s had closed.

“We kinda needed that one guy to pull us together, plus we needed a shooter,” he said. “I would shoot. I would spot up, drive the lane, just try to get guys open, pretty much help everybody get their shot.”

It certainly prepared Horton for the college game.

In addition to Reid, his high school roster also featured Alanzo Frink, now at South Carolina, and juniors Kahlil Whitney, since committed to Kentucky, and Joshua Pierre-Louis, bound for UNLV.

“When I watched him last year in high school, he was really a role player, trying to fit in,” Delaware coach Martin Ingelsby said. “I’ve been very impressed with how aggressive he has been at both ends of the floor. He’s gotten more and more confident week after week. His teammates are confident in him. He’s easy to play with.

“I’d be lying if I told you I thought he’d able to do what he’s done consistently at this level for us 10 games into the season. But he’s playing as well as anybody on our team right now.”

Horton’s contributions have been important as Delaware is without 2018 CAA Rookie of the Year Ryan Allen. The sophomore guard is out until later this month after October foot surgery.

“We really tried to nurture that development out of Ithiel right away,” said Ingelsby, who speaks highly of Horton’s humility.

An early 3-pointer and high-flying slam dunk in the season opener at Maryland indicated he was ready. Last week in a double-overtime win at Columbia, Horton played all 50 minutes.

“He’s playing with the ball in his hands probably more than he ever has,” Ingelsby said. “When we recruited him on the AAU circuit, I was just so impressed with his ability to make shots.’’

Horton had also visited Lafayette before committing to Delaware and canceling a visit to Penn. But other schools were also eyeing him, including Mississippi State from the SEC.

The Vauxhall, New Jersey, resident had grown up with an unusual fascination with Delaware from passing through the state on I-95 during trips to South Carolina to visit his maternal grandmother Hattie Mickens.

“We would always enter Maryland and I’d be like ‘Dad, ‘Why are we in Maryland so quick?” said Horton, whose father, Kevin, and uncles Lenny and Brian also played Division I basketball.

Now Horton has made Delaware his four-year home. The Blue Hens, who’ve had the last two CAA rookies of the year in Ryan Daly (now at St. Joseph’s) and Allen, have a strong candidate for 2019 honors.

And Horton isn’t alone.

Fellow freshman Matt Veretto, who like Horton has started the last four games, is averaging 9.6 points and 4.2 rebounds per game and drained his first six 3-pointers at Columbia.

“We couldn’t ask for a better 10 games out of those guys to start their college careers,” Ingelsby said. “They’re just competitors. They wanna win. They wanna be out there. They’re sponges. They soak it all up. The older guys have really brought them along and they know how important they are for us.”

Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @kevintresolini.

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