Four-star forward Horace Spencer commits to Auburn

AUBURN -- It didn't take long for Bruce Pearl to have an impact on the recruiting trail.

Just 12 hours after his three-year NCAA show-cause penalty ended, Pearl landed a commitment from consensus four-star power forward Horace Spencer, a top 60 overall prospect in the 247Sports Composite rankings.

"The reason why I picked Auburn as because coach (Chuck) Person, coach Pearl, coach (Harris) Adler, the whole staff was passionate about me coming to Auburn and offered me," Spencer said. "I appreciate how they were straight forward and honest about how I could start at the four man spot. I thought it was a perfect scenario and perfect situation for me."

Spencer, a 6-foot-8 225 pound prospect, was on campus visiting Auburn this weekend and met Pearl shortly after show-cause penalty expired at midnight Sunday.

As Pearl walked in to a crowd of roughly 50 fans and the Auburn basketball team shortly before his show-cause expired, Spencer was able to see the commotion from inside Auburn Arena.

"We get there about 15 minutes early. We saw all the students and fans outside cheering for coach Pearl walking in," Spencer said. "He walked in and gave me the biggest hug and strongest handshake I ever had in my life. ... He's really passionate, happy to be back."

Being the first recruit to talk to Pearl in person was "very important" to Spencer, who is leaning towards signing his National Letter of Intent in November. Spencer picked Auburn over UNLV and Rutgers.

Originally from Warminster, Pennsylvania, Spencer is attending powerhouse Findlay Prep in Las Vegas. He averaged 6.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.8 blocks before he suffered a broken thumb on Jan. 31 and missed the remainder of his junior season.

Spencer was not considering Auburn prior to Pearl and his staff being hired.

"I wasn't really thinking about Auburn at all," he said. "At first I wasn't sure I would like it at all. It's down South, I wasn't sure how I was going to like it down South. I came down here, it was like 'Wow, I loved it here.' I think it's a great place to be."

SNY's Adam Zagoria was the first to report Spencer's commitment, the second for Auburn in 48 hours. The Tigers landed four-star small forward Danjel Purifoy on Friday.

Auburn's 2015 class of Spencer and Purifoy is ranked No. 9 by 247Sports. Pearl and his staff are off to a great start and Auburn's recruiting capabilities are radically improved compared to the past.