MIAMI (May 22, 2017) – FIU men's basketball Head Coach Anthony Evans announced today the signing of 6-foot-4 point guard Cordell Viera from Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada (Toronto Basketball Academy) to a National Letter of Intent (NLI) during the recent spring signing period. Viera joins 6-foot-5, guard Isaiah Banks from Conyers, Georgia (Heritage High School) and 6-foot-6, guard Willy Nunez from Orlando, Florida (Indian River State College/Oak Ridge High School), who also signed during the spring period, and 6-foot-5, guard Josh Stamps from Chicago, Illinois (Trinity Valley C.C/Curie Metropolitan High School), who signed his NLI during the early signing period in November. The quartet is expected to contribute immediately during the 2017-18 season.

"Cordell, at the end of his four years will be a very, very good player as he progresses," said Evans. "He has tangibles that you cannot teach, leadership qualities and a high basketball IQ. He will have a learning curve like a majority of high school student-athletes, adapting to the pace of the game and the physical nature of the game. In the end, though, he will be a delight to watch for the fans. Cordell, is an excellent young man that will be a very popular student-athlete."

Viera averaged 19.7 points-per-game and 8.0 rebounds-per-contest during his time at the Toronto Basketball Academy. In addition, Viera dished out 6.5 assists-per-outing during his senior season, and was regarded as the 29^th-best prep player in Canada by North Pole Hoops.

"We are very excited to see Cordell continue his Post-Secondary journey at Florida International University," said Adeel Sahibzada, head coach at the Toronto Basketball Academy. "I have enjoyed every moment in these past three years watching Cordell grow as an individual. Cordell will bring his unique charismatic leadership qualities to FIU, in addition to his on-court abilities. Cordell is a great teammate and was a pleasure to coach."

Fans are encouraged to follow @FIUHoops on Twitter, and "Like" FIU men's basketball on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/FIUMensBBall) for the latest Panther basketball news.

Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Google+ (FIU Athletics), Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).

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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in eight different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and at Riccardo Silva Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU is Worlds Ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 50,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.