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Nnana Egwu sticks out in the hallways of Chicago's St. Ignatius College Prep. The thin 6-foot-9 Nigerian-born sophomore is also starting to stand out on the basketball court, leading the Chicago Catholic league with four blocked shots per game.

"He's the most visible kid in the school," St. Ignatius head coach Rich Kehoe said. "He's very popular in the student body. He's somewhat of a gate attraction for us and doesn't seem to be bothered about it at all. He gets his name in the newspaper a lot. But he's the same kid. He's a perfect kid."

Egwu has only been player basketball for 18 months but oozes potential.

"He's a fast learner, so that always helps," Kehoe said. "He's extremely coachable. That really helps. He's got some great athletic ability. He runs the court well and he's got good hands. He catches some of the toughest passes in the history of basketball because we have some of the worst passers in the history of basketball."

Egwu's stats look more like that of a role player than that of a budding Division 1 prospect. He is averaging five points, four rebounds and four blocks and has been a starter on the St. Ignatius varsity squad since mid-January. His season-high point total was 12 points, the only game he scored in double figures.

But his defensive potential has attracted several high majors. Egwu already holds three scholarship offers, one from Wisconsin and one from Oregon State. Kehoe was unsure of the third school to offer.

Other schools that have shown interest include Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Purdue and Northwestern. Illini head coach Bruce Weber appeared at St. Ignatius' season opener to get a closer look at Egwu. The Illini remain very interested in the shot blocker. Egwu visited the Assembly Hall with Illinois Wolves AAU coach Mike Mullins for an Illinois game early in the season

"He's not going to make any kind of commitment until probably his senior year. That's how I see it," Kehoe said. "I'm guessing on that one. I think he's enjoying the high school atmosphere. He's enjoying being on the basketball team."

Though he has made a big impact on the defensive side of the ball for St. Ignatius, Egwu remains a very raw prospect offensively. But the sophomore is making strides and has flashes of brilliance, Kehoe said.

"He's got a nice turnaround jumper," Kehoe. "He's shooting over 50 percent, but you'd like to see him get more shots, more offensive rebounds and be more of a go-to guy on the blocks or the short corner in and around the 12-foot area. He's got a very nice, coordinated shot, and he's a good dunker. He better be at 6-9. The kids throw up the ball and he can catch it and jam it."

Though he has played basketball for less than two years, Egwu is already receiving plenty of hype. Chicagohoops.com rates him as the No. 7 prospect in the highly touted Illinois Class of 2011.

But Kehoe urges patience with the athletic, raw sophomore.

"A lot of people were surprised at how little he was playing early in the season," Kehoe said. "I think a lot of guys blob on some recruiting list and they think this guy has got to be a superstar. He's not. He's a gradually improving high school player."