D'Iberville's Howard signs with Xavier-New Orleans

D'Iberville senior forward Evan Howard signed to play basketball for Xavier-New Orleans on Wednesday in the high school's gymnasium.

The 6-foot-8 forward is averaging 7.2 points and 7.1 rebounds this season for the Warriors (7-2).

Howard will attend Xavier on an academic scholarship.

"It means a lot," Howard said of signing. "It's a burden off your shoulders, not having to pay for school. You get to do something you love and further your life in something else other than basketball."

Howard scored a 24 on his ACT and carries a 3.8 GPA. He plans studying in Xavier's pharmacy school.

Watching Howard sign Wednesday was a satisfying experience for D'Iberville head coach Lorenzo Wright.

"Watching his growth the last three years has been awesome," Wright said. "He's a great kid, works hard and stays out of trouble. He busts his tail in practice. It's exciting to see the reward for him at the end."

D'Iberville is ranked No. 4 in this week's Sun Herald Top 10 and Wright believes Howard's signing is another step in the right direction.

"When I first took the job, we talked about building a tradition, legacy," Wright said. "We're doing something different and you're finally seeing the results. You see it on the court with our record right now and you also see it in Evan's signing day. I think we'll have a couple of other guys sign also."

This story was originally published December 16, 2015 at 9:18 PM with the headline "D'Iberville's Howard signs with Xavier-New Orleans ."