WASHINGTON, DC/MARYLAND/VIRGINIA
PREP  REPORT 
Steve Turner, Washington, DC Editor; Tony Squire, Virginia Editor; Paul Bowden, Baltimore, Editor
Published on May 8, 2001

THE HOOP SCOOP RANKS 'EM:  THE TOP PREP PLAYERS IN WASHINGTON, DC/MARYLAND/VIRGINIA

WASHINGTON, DC/MARYLAND/VIRGINIA AREA A LOT MORE LOADED THAN YOU MIGHT THINK

by Clark Francis, Editor & Publisher of the HOOP SCOOP

                    It often depends upon how you look at things.  Sure, the senior and junior classes are down in the Washington, DC area, but, if you include all of Maryland and Virginia, a strong case can be made that it is still the best area per capita for basketball talent in the United States.  Let's start with 6'0 Jonathan Hargett, who surfaced at Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD after Durham (Emmanuel Christian) NC closed last fall.  Sure, Hargett didn't make the McDonald's All American Game and he was injured part of last season, but he still is ranked #7 nationally among seniors by the HOOP SCOOP and we still regard him as the #2 point guard in the senior class nationally behind 6'2 Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ.  If you also include 7'0 DeSagana Diop, 6'3 Rashaad Carruth, and 6'3 Billy Edelin, all of whom are at Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 6'8 Elton Brown from Newport News (Warwick) VA, then the Washington, DC/Maryland/Virginia area features five players who rank among our top 40 seniors nationally.  However, Edelin and Brown still can't make our First All-Area Team, because 6'4 J.J. Redick from Roanoke (Cave Spring) VA and 6'7 Jr Carmelo Anthony from Towson (Catholic) MD, both of whom are already near locks for next year's McDonald's All American Game, are better than they are right now.   Remember, we're taking the five best players regardless of class and position when picking the first team. 
                    Joining Edelin and Brown on the second team is another likely McDonald's All American a year from now in 6'2 Jr Marshall Strickland from Sykesville (South Carroll) MD, as well as two excellent seniors - 6'2 Melvin Scott from Baltimore (Southern) MD and 6'8 Levi Watkins from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, both of whom rank in the 50-100 range in the senior class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  And all three may end up heading to the ACC.  If you will recall, Watkins signed with N.C. State and Scott signed with North Carolina last fall and Strickland's sister is a star basketball player on the University of Maryland's women's team.  The third team also features five players who are ranked maong the top 100 in their class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  If you will recall, Massachusetts-bound 6'5 Eddie Basden from Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD and 6'9 Robert Little from Fairfax (Paul VI) VA, who signed with Stanford last fall, both are ranked in the 75-100 range nationally, and 6'8 Jr Travis Garrison from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'1 Jr Johnny Gilchrist from Virginia Beach (Salem) VA, and 6'4 Jr Chris McCray from Seat Pleasant (Fairmont Heights) MD all are ranked even higher than top 50 in the junior class nationally.  So are 6'7 Jr Mario Bogan from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and 6'7 Soph Omari Isreal from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, if you want to include two underclassmen from the fourth team, and 6'4 Soph Ricky Lucas from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD and 6'0 Frosh Eric Price from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, if you want to include a pair of underclassmen on the sixth team.   
                    Also on the fourth team are two other borderline top 100 seniors in 6'10 Jordan Collins from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, who is bound for N.C. State, and 6'3 Delonte West from Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD, who is an absolute steal for St. Joseph's, and one of the biggest sleepers in the nation in George Mason-bound 6'1 Lamar Butler from Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD, who was a big reason why his team was the best team in the DC area all last winter.  The fifth team includes 6'3 Shawn Wiggins from Washington (Spingarn) MD, who recently committed to Dayton after emerging as the top ranked senior in Washington, DC last winter, Georgetown-bound 6'1 Tony Bethel from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'4 Darius Hargrove from Lawrenceville (Brunswick) VA, West Virginia-signee 6'8 Tyrone Sally from Richmond (Meadowbrook) VA, and 6'0 Jr Todd Galloway from Baltimore (City College) MD.  They all would rank among our top 200 seniors nationally, except Galloway is really a 4th year junior.  As a result, he will drop off our list next year and be ranked separately with 5th year players (those who have been in high school nine or more semesters).  The 6th team is also outstanding, as Price and Lucas are joined by 6'3 Jr Darryl Morrow from Washington (Ballou) DC, who is the top ranked junior in Washington, DC, and 6'2 Kaleaf Watson from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA and 6'4 Steve Leven from Kensington (Newport School) MD, both of whom are still unsigned, but good enough to play at the high major level.  In other words, 6'4 Shawn Harris from Ettrick (Matoca) VA, Old Dominion-bound 6'8 James Smith from Virginia Beach (Cape Henry) VA, 6'4 Darshawn Luckey from Baltimore (Southern) MD, 6'2 Jr Wade Dunston from Potomac (The Bulles) MD, and 5'11 Soph Vernon Hamilton from Chester (Thomas Dale) VA, all of whom are excellent players, didn't even make the 6th team.
                    And the Washington, DC/Maryland/Virginia area is even deeper if you include all the good 5th year players.  Let's start with Florida-bound 6'7 James White from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, who would rank among our top 10 nationally, if he were still a senior, and played well in the McDonald's All American Game.  And how about Virginia-bound 6'8 Jason Clark from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, who would be a legitimate top 50 senior, and Clemson-signee 6'9 Sharrod Ford from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, who came on like gangbusters last summer and, as a result, would be a top 30 senior?  Rutgers-bound 6'4 Ricky Shields from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA and Virginia-signees 6'3 Keith Jenifer from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA and 6'3 Jermaine Harper from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA also would rank in the 50-100 range nationally.  In the top 100-200 range would be Maryland-bound Andre Collins from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, Hartford-bound 6'1 Sean Swan from Virginia Beach (Coastal Christian) MD, 6'6 Dario Scott from Lynchburg (Virginia Episcopal) VA, Geroge Washington-bound 6'0 T.J. Thompson from Kensington (Newport School) MD, and Brown-bound 6'0 Jason Forte from Potomac (Heights School) MD.  And don't forget several other players, like 6'8 Mauricio Branwell from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'6 Cortez Davis from Bridgton (North Bridgton) ME, and 6'5 Pierre Tucker from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT have gone north to prep school.
                    But it still is the great sophomore class in the Washington, DC/Maryland/Virginia area that has everybody excited.  And it just seems to get deeper and deeper all the time, as is evident by the fact that 6'0 Soph Tre Kelly from Washington (Dunbar) MD, 6'2 Soph Alfred Walsh from Washington (Archbishop Carroll) DC, 6'1 Soph Dominique Smallwood from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, and 6'7 Soph Steve Danley from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD are ranked in the 11-14   range in the sophomore class in the area, but are legitimate top 50-75 range players nationally.  We've already mentioned Isreal, Lucas, and Hamilton, but 6'10 Soph Jaron Green from Fredericksburg, VA is a major sleeper who is being touted by our Virginia editor Tony Squire and 6'8 Soph Darian Townes from Alexandria (T.C. Williams) VA, 6'8 Soph Byron Joynes from Towson (Catholic) MD, 6'7 Soph Tavon Nelson from Baltimore (Lake Clifton) MD, 6'1 Soph J.R. Reynolds from Roanoke (Catholic) MD, and 6'7 Soph Marcus Sykes from Middleburg (Notre Dame) VA all deserve to be ranked in the 25-50 range nationally in the sophomore class. 
                    However, the best young player in the area is Price.  We're talking about one of the top five players in the freshmen class, as well as one of the big reasons why Washington (Gonzaga) DC finished second to Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD in the WCAC (Washington Catholic Athletic Conference) Playoffs and won the prestigious Alhambria Tournament Championship in March.  Our Washington, DC editor Steve Turner also believes that 6'1 Frosh Isaiah Swann from Rockville (Magruder) MD is good enough to be on 6th team.  "He led is team to an undefeated season and the Maryland 4A State Finals," says Turner.  And Squire tells us that Virginia is loaded.  Among those to watch are 6'8 Brian Johnson from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, 6'2 Frosh Torin Marshall from Farmsville (Prince Edward) VA, 6'8 Frosh Bomboli Osby from Richmond (Thomas Jefferson) VA, and 5'9 Frosh Kenny Rivers from Stafford (Colonial Lodge) VA.  Turner also tells us that there are several 8th graders - 6'4 Marcus Ginyard from Oxon Hill (Potomac) MD and 5'11 Stephen Snowden from Gaithersburg (Montgomery Village) MD - who also should be ranked among the top five or 10 nationally.

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