SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Dec. 22, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Matt Carlino today announced his decision to transfer to Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. He was most recently at UCLA. Matt will start attending classes at BYU in January 2011. Matt released this statement today to the media:

“I’m very excited to announce my transfer to Brigham Young University. I firmly believe that this next step in my personal and athletic life will help me grow as an individual as well as a player. Since deciding to transfer out of UCLA a few weeks ago, I’ve visited a number of universities and feel that BYU offers the best fit for me on many levels. The standards I saw while visiting BYU are very much in line with my own. I’ll start attending classes at BYU in January, will begin formally practicing with the team immediately upon my admission to BYU, and expect to be eligible to play for the Cougars in December of next year. I’m thrilled for the opportunity to play for Coach Rose, and help move the team forward.”

Background: Matt Carlino is a 6-foot-2-inch, 175 pound point guard from Scottsdale, Arizona, who played his first two seasons of high school basketball at Highland High School in Gilbert, Arizona where, in that time, he led his team to a 53-10 record, ending both regular seasons as the No. 1 ranked team in the state, 2 Fiesta Region regular season and tournament championships, and a state runner-up finish in 2009. Carlino was 2nd Team All-State, and 1st Team all Fiesta region as a freshman, and was 1st Team All-State, Fiesta region player of the year, and the East Valley Tribune player of the year as a sophomore.

Carlino played his junior season for Bloomington South High School in Bloomington, Indiana where he helped lead his team to 23-1 overall record, a Conference Indiana regular season title, a 20-0 regular season record, a regular season No. 1 ranking, a No. 5 USA Today national ranking, a Sectional championship, and Regional runner up finish. Carlino was also a member of a Panther program that won 49 straight games which stands as the 2nd longest winning streak in Indiana high school basketball history (the longest win streak stands at 50). Carlino was 1st team All-Conference Indiana, and was selected to the Indiana Junior All-Star team. Carlino completed his high school studies and graduated after his junior year from Bloomington South High School in May of 2010.