WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – William & Mary head men's basketball coach Dane Fischer announced the addition of guards Miguel Ayesa (Miami, Fla. / Doral Academy/ National Top Sports Institute) and Rainers Hermanovskis (Smiltene, Latvia) and forward Ben Wight (Columbus, Ohio/Thomas Worthington) to the Tribe program. Ayesa, Hermanovskis and Wight join the Green and Gold as freshmen beginning in the fall of 2019.
 
"We are thrilled to announce the addition of Ben, Miguel and Rainers to the William & Mary Basketball Program," Fischer said. "All three of these young men possess the qualities we are looking for in the classroom, on the court and in the community and we can't wait to work with them."
 


Miguel Ayesa
Guard
6-5 • 197
Miami, Fla./Doral Academy/National Top Sports Institute
 
Prep
Played a prep season at National Top Sports Institute in Orlando … Averaged 21 points per game, knocking down 110 3-pointers for NTSI … Scored a season-high 36 points on 10-of-17 from 3 against DME Academy … Named to the first team at the 2019 Scotland Campus Invitational … Tallied 12 games with five or more 3-pointers for NTSI … As a senior in 2017-18, led Doral Academy to the 2018 FHSAA Boys Basketball Class 7A State Championship … Topped Doral in scoring at 16.5 points per game and shot 39 percent from 3-point range … Selected to the All-State First Team in 2018 … Hit 105 3-pointers during his senior season … Averaged four rebounds and an assist per game in 2017-18 … Rated as one of the top shooters in the state of Florida … Named the Miami Herald Dade County Player of the Year and was selected to the All-Dade First Team … Honored as both Doral's Team MVP and Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2018 … Averaged nine points and 2.5 rebounds per game as a junior in 2016-17 … Shot 47.9 percent (35-of-73) from 3-point range … Selected as the team's Rookie of the Year in 2017 … Helped Doral to district championships in 2017 and 2018 along with a  regional title in 2018 … Played AAU for Florida Elite (2016-18) … Helped Florida Elite to the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions title … Played for the Doral All-Stars from 2011-18 … Represented Spain in the 2018 FIBA European Championship … Scored nine points on 3-of-7 from 3-point range in the Group Stage against Ukraine.
 
Personal
Son of Carlos Ayesa and Carmen Rodriguez … Born in Madrid Spain … Father, Carlos, played basketball professionally in Spain from 1981-93, and was a tennis athlete (1978-1981) and a swimmer (1975-1978) … His mother, Carmen Rodriguez, was a track and field athlete from 1988 to 1997 and competed in gymnastics (1977-1984) and the military triathlon (1984-1987) … Intends to major in marketing at W&M.
 
Fischer on Miguel Ayesa  
"Miguel comes to our program with the reputation of a high-level shooter. His ability to stretch the defense and make tough shots really stood out to us throughout the recruiting process. Miguel has also spent time with the Spanish National Team which will greatly help his transition to Division I basketball."
 


Rainers Hermanovskis
Guard
6-4 • 194
Smiltene, Latvia
 
Prep
Competing for the Latvian U20 National Team over the summer at the FIBA European Championships … Played for Latvia in both the FIBA U16 and U18 European Championships as well … Appeared in seven games for his home country at the U18 Championship in 2017-18, averaging 8.1 points, 2.4 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game in 24.2 minutes … Scored 18 points on 7-of-15 shooting, including 4-of-10 from 3-point range, to go along with four rebounds, five assists and two steals against Slovakia in the Group Phase … Started 16 of 26 appearances in the Estonian-Latvian Basketball League for BK Jekabpils in 2018-19 …  The ELBL, which started during the 2018-19 season, is the top division of basketball in Latvia and Estonia … Averaged eight points, 1.6 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game … Knocked down 38 3-pointers and shot 34.9 percent (38-of-109) from 3-point range … Scored a season-high 21 points on 6-of-9 from 3-point range against BK Ventspils on Jan. 1, 2019 … Competed for the BC VEF Riga Junior Team at the ADIDAS Next Generation Kanunas Tournament in both 2017 and 2018 … Averaged 10.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game over four contests in 2018.
 
Fischer on Rainers Hermanovskis
"Rainers is a combo guard with really good size. He has the ability to make plays with the ball in his hands as well as play off the ball. Rainers will spend this summer playing for the Latvia U20 team in the FIBA European Championships which will be a great experience and help prepare him for competition at the Division I level."

 

Ben Wight
Forward
6-9 • 200
Columbus, Ohio/Thomas Worthington
 
Prep
Selected to compete in the Ohio vs. Kentucky All-Star Game following his senior season … Averaged 13.5 points, nine rebounds and 2.5 blocked shots per game as a senior … A two-year starter at Thomas Worthington High School under head coach Sean Luzader … Named First Team All-Ohio Capital Conference and honorable mention All-Central District in 2019 … Was a District All-Star selection in 2018-19 … Tallied a nice stat line of 22 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocks in a win over Worthington Kilbourne in 2019 … Scored 25 points and added seven rebounds in a win over Brunswick Dec. 29, 2018 … As a junior, averaged 12 points and eight rebounds a game … Named First Team All-Ohio Capital Conference and All-District Honorable Mention in 2018 … Played AAU for Ohio Nova in 2018 and the team was ranked second in the state … Competed for the Hidden Gems sponsored team in 2017 … Involved in community service in high school … Named a Scholar-Athlete.  
 
Personal
Son of Bill and Stacey Wight … Enjoys fishing, boating and kayaking … Intends to major in business at W&M.
 
Fischer on Ben Wight
"Ben is an incredibly athletic forward whose best basketball is ahead of him. He plays extremely hard and has a unique skill set for someone his size. Ben is young for his grade which leads us to believe he is just starting to scratch the surface."

The trio joins a group of nine returners from a season ago, including pair of starters in senior Nathan Knight and junior Luke Loewe. Knight has established himself as one of the top big men in the country and is one of only two returning finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award presented by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Senior 7-foot transfer Andy Van Vliet, who sat out last season as a transfer from Wisconsin, bolsters the Tribe roster along with the return of experienced players in junior Jihar Williams and sophomores Quinn Blair, Thornton Scott and Mehkel Harvey.