HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION FOR DECEMBER 2000  

Saturday, December 30, 2000, and Sunday, December 31, 2000

Coatesville (H.S.) PA beat Lakewood (St. Edward) OH, 70-57, in the championship game of the National Power Series at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE, but the real story was the play of 6'5 John Allen, who just picked up where he left off two days ago when he was magnificant against Jackson (Murrah) MS with 30 points and 13 rebounds.  This time he was even better, as he hit 13-19 field goals en route to a 30-point, 12-rebound, and five-block performance.  As a result, he not only was the best player in the tournament, but also the most consistent.   And making his performance even more impressive is the fact that Allen did this while matched up against North Carolina-bound 6'9 Jawad Williams, who finished with 16 points, seven rebounds, and three blocks.  However, Williams also had five turnovers and didn't play with that tremendous competitiveness that Allen always brings to the table.  However, we still rank Williams, who scored most of his points with his silky smooth shooting touch, as the #3 player in the entire tournament.  In other words, this was one of the best matchups of the week, as well as a great prelude to the championship game in the Slam Dunk to the Beach Bracket, which currently is in progress.  It shouldn't come as any surprise that 6'6 Jamie Sowers and 6'1 Sam Lake both played in the championship game (they're both such competitors) despite their injuries last night.  However, Willowridge led all the way en route to a 61-43 win, as well as their second consecutive championship in the main bracket at Slam Dunk to the Beach.  The MVP was 6'2 Kenny Taylor from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX.  He finished with 16 points in the championship game and was Willowridge's most consistent player throughout the tournament. Also making the all-tournament team were 6'9 Jr Sheldon Williams from Midwest City (H.S.) OK, 6'5 Jr DeAngelo Alexander from Midwest City (H.S.) OK, 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, 6'6 Jr Darius Sanders from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'6 Jamie Sowers from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, and 6'3 Daniel Ewing from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX.   Also considered for the all-tourmament team were 5'11 Terrance Ford from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX, who was the unsung hero in the championship game with 11 assists, and 6'7 Terry Hill from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, who was the leading scorer in the championship game with 20 points.   Sowers had an off night in terms of scoring, but he ruled the boards with 12 rebounds. 

All this is subject to change, but the best player the last five days at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE has been 6'5 John Allen from Coatesville (H.S.) PA.  He will move into our top 20 nationally and, as a result, will get our vote for the McDonald's All American Team.   The second best player in the tournament is 6'6 Jamie Sowers from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, who also is the currently the leading candidate to be named MVP in the main Slam Dunk to the Beach bracket.  And if he continues to play tonight in the championship game the way he's played in the first two games, he likely will be the MVP even if St. Patrick loses.   Rounding out our top five based on performance are 6'9 Jawad Williams from Lakewood (St. Edward) OH, 6'9 Jr Sheldon Williams from Midwest City (H.S.) OK, and 6'5 Jr DeAngelo Alexander from Midwest City (H.S.) OK.  The second five in order are 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, 6'6 Jr Darius Sanders from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'7 Jr Carmelo Anthony from Towson (Catholic) MD, and  6'3 Daniel Ewing from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX, and 6'2 Kenny Taylor from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX.  The next 10 in order are 6'6 Clark Williams from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA, 6'6 Curtis Sumpter from Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY, 5'11 Jr Earl Miller from Hockessin (Sanford) DE, 5'10 Terrance Ford from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX, 6'4 Jr Rian Powell from Cleveland (Benedictine) OH, 6'9 Robert Little from Fairfax (Paul VI) VA, 6'7 Olu Babalola from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'7 Jr Lee Melchionni from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'6 Josh Childress from Lakewood (Mayfair) CA, and 6'2 Ernest Turner from Somerdale (Sterling) NJ.  7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA also has to be mentioned, but he doesn't get ranked, because he only played in one game.  Also in the one game phenom category are 7'3 Sagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY and 6'7 Jr Matt Walsh from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA.  Alleyne had a terrific second game against Lilburn (Berkmar) GA when he had 18 points, 13 rebounds,and eight blocked shots, but didn't play in Rice's first game and was very ordinary in the 5th Place game today.   Walsh was horrible in his first game of the tournament, but was the best player of the entire day when scored 29 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, and led Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA to a 63-57 victory over Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY three days ago.  Then, today, as our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin would say, Walsh laid an egg.  He also never got into the flow today, despite the fact he he still had good numbers (20 points, including 6-11 field goals and 8-8 freee throws, and six rebounds, but he also had five turnovers and was 0-3 from beyond the arc).  As a result, Walsh is the leading candidate to win our Kwame Brown stock market award, which annually will go to the most up and down player in his class nationally.   Remember, consistency does count, which is why Walsh didn't get ranked among our top 20 players in the tournament.  Also, he will likely drop some on our national list (currently we have him ranked #35 nationally in the junior class), until he gets bigger, stronger, and more consistent.

Even without 7'0 Tyson Chandler, Compton (Dominguez) CA pulled off the upset against Midwest City, 73-67, in the Third Place game earlier today at Slam Dunk to the Beach and, once again, the players who really stepped up were 6'6 Jr Darius Sanders with 21 points and 10 rebounds for Dominguez and 6'9 Jr Sheldon Williams (26 points and 14 rebounds) and 6'5 Jr DeAngelo Alexander (19 points, six rebounds, and 4-8 3-point shooting), both Midwest City.  Hockessin (Sanford) DE jumped out to a 24-12 lead against Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PAin the championship of the Tipoff Series, but by the end of the third quarter, it was anybody's game.  Eventually the tougher competition that Germantown Academy sees in the Philadelphia area helped them prevail, 57-53, but this was also huge for Sanford, because it proves that this team can compete with a nationally ranked team.   It's also important, because most of Sanford's best players, including 5'11 Jr Earl Miller and 6'8 Soph Will Sheridan, will be back next year.   Miller is small, but he's a jet quick point guard, a great passer, good defender, and an excellent 3-point shooter.  This was especially evident today by his 3-6 3-point shooting, as he led Sanford with 19 points.  Sheridan chipped in with 15 points and 14 rebounds, but the key here is his potential.  And he's not the only big guy on this team to keep and eye on in the future, as 6'8 Frosh Joe Dyson came off the bench to contribute four points and three rebounds.  The best player for Germantown Academy was 6'6 Jr Lee Malchionni, who finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds.  Walsh, who we talk about below, had 20 points, and 6'0 Mike Slattery chipped in with seven points and six assists.  Especially disappointing was the performance by 6'11 Ted Skuchas, who athleticially just couldn't match up with Sheridan inside.  Skuchas had four points, five rebounds, and three blocks, but I know Allen Rubin's going to tell me that being almost 7-feet must count for something.  However, in this case, I'm beginning to wonder.

It's a good thing that all the police were out dealing with the weather today, because if they'd seen the 7th Place game at Slam Dunk to the Beach, they might have been compelled to arrest both teams at the conclusion of the game.  Berkmar, which pre-season was ranked #10 nationally pre-season by the USA Today and was ranked as high as #5 two weeks ago, could have been arrested for murder, as they redeemed themselves after two tough losses the last two days with a 85-39 victory over Montgomery (St. Jude) AL.  St Jude could have been arrested for impersonating a basketball team.  Sure, they can use the excuse that 6'9 Ousmane Cisse, who finished with only one point and two rebounds, only played 11 minutes in the first half.  But even then it was ugly, as the score was 31-5 when Cisse was taken out of the game for good.  Stepping up to score 18 points for St Jude was 6'2 Soph Timothy Robinson, while 6'6 Clark Williams (19 points), 6'5 Shawn Ikpa (18 points), 6'4 Wayne Arnold (17 points), and 6'0 Adrian Borders (14 points) all stepped up from Berkmar.  The 5th Place Game was much closer, as New York (Rice) NY beat Baltimore (Southern) MD, 52-51.  However, it wasn't much more interesting.  7'3 Soph Sagari Alleyne, who finished with only six points, five rebounds, and three blocks, played like the sophomore that he is, instead of the potential superstar that he likely will become.  Once again the leading scorer for Rice was 6'1 Jr Steve Burt with 11 points.  Renardo Dickerson led Southern with 16 points and nine rebounds, but the biggest disappointment of the tournament was North Carolina-bound 6'2 Melvin Scott.  He did score 15 points in this game, but 5-17 field goals, five turnovers and no assists were indicative of how he played throughout the week.  Yesterday we told you that we thought 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA had already returned to Southern California, but that was wrong.   Instead, one of the assistant coaches for Dominguez told us last night that Chandler was in the hospital yesterday with the flu.  He also isn't plaing in the game today, but that doesn't seem to be stopping Dominguez, which is up 19-10 at the end of the first quarter.  With this new information, Chander's performance two nights ago against Cisse was even more impressive.  We also reported that 6'6 Jamie Sowers from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ may have re-broken his jaw last night.   However, the hospital has sent him home and the word we're getting from the St. Patrick coaching staff is that Sowers plans to play tonight.  As a result, we think the championship game, which is scheduled to tipoff at 6:30 PM tonight between Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ is almost too close to call.   However, if the guards for Willowridge - 6'2 Kenny Taylor and 6'3 Daniel Ewing - get hot, like they were a year ago in all three games of this tournament, it could be ugly.  Another key will be whether St. Patrick can control the tempo of the game.  

Last night at midnight the national weather service was predicting 16 inches of snow for the Eastern Shore of Delware and, as a result, a number of teams, including New Castle (William Penn) PA, Frederick (Governor Thomas Johnson) MD, Towson (Catholic) MD, and Washington (Archbishop Carroll) DC, have gone home.   However, Bobby Jacobs, who is the Executive Director of Slam Dunk to the Beach, was even more determined than P.T. Barnum that the show must go on.  So, as we previously mentioned last night in the Members Section, the schedule was changed and two of the nine games today were cancelled.  Already in progress is the Mayors Cup game at 9:30 AM between Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY and Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, which has jumped out to an early 27-16 lead and are currently up 57-39 at the half.  Next up at 11:00 AM will be the 7th Place Game between Lilburn (Berkmar) GA and Montgomery (St. Jude) AL.  Then, at 12:30 PM in the 5th Place game it will be New York (Rice) NY and Baltimore (Southern) MD.   At 2:00 PM it will be Midwest City (H.S.) OK versus Compton (Dominguez) CA for 3rd Place.  Hockessin (Sanford) DE will meet Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA in the Tipoff Series at 3:30 PM, Lakewood (St. Edwards) OH will play Coatesville (H.S.) PA at 5:00 PM in the National Power Series, and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ and Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX will meet in the championship at 6:30 PM.  And we have even more good news.  It looks like the storm has moved North much quicker than expected and, as a result, only a couple of inches of snow are currently on the ground, the roads are passable, and sunshine is even predicted for this afternoon.  However, there is still one more very important question yet to been answered before we watch the championship game at Slam Dunk to the Beach. Yes, Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ held on to win last night against Midwest City (H.S.) OK, 69-63, but they were very undermanned at the end, as three players fouled out, including 6'1 Soph Mike Nardi and 6'4 Terry Hill, and, as a result, a player - 6'1 Ben Balcom - who was the team manager for St. Patrick's a year ago even saw action at the end.  And they may be in even worse shape today.  Not only does it appear that 6'6 Jamie Sowers, who may have rebroken his jaw again (he was hit in the jaw last night in one of the final plays of the game), will be sidelined today, but 6'1 Sam Lake, who was physically ill after the game last night due to flu like symptons, also appears to be extremely doubtful for today's championship game.  But don't write off St. Patrick's just yet, because they've already overcome tremendous odds by winning their first two games of the tournament without their two best players - 6'8 Marcus Austin and 6'10 Grant Billmeier.

Louisville (Ballard) KY beat Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA, 54-52, and Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA beat Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA, 58-56, last night at the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC and John Rhodes, who is the Executive Director of the Tournament, tells us that it doesn't get any better than this, as both games were decided in the final seconds.  Rhodes is also happy, because the Beach Ball Classic drew a crowd of over 5,000 fans last night and even more people are expected to be in attendance tonight.  And I'm happy too, because I encouraged Rhodes to take Ballard a year ago at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, despite the fact that they graduated two of their best players (Cedric Knight and Mac Wilkinson) last spring.  In other games yesterday in Myrtle Beach, SC, Albany (Westover) GA beat Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 55-50; Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY beat Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 60-45; Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY beat Mt Vernon (H.S.) NY, 76-69; and Myrtle Beach (Socastte) SC beat Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC., 52-51.  But the biggest news Rhodes has given us about games in South Carolina yesterday involves the Red Cross Tournament in Charleston, SC.   Falls Church (Bishop O'Connell) VA, which is coached by Joey Wootten, who is the son of the legendary DeMatha coach Morgan Wootten, beat Los Angeles (Westchester) CA in the championship game last night, 73-70.  This is very important for two reasons.  First, based on what we saw a week ago at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, Westchester is a good as any high school team we've seen this year.  In other words, we're talking about a major upset.  Second, this game helps to firmly establish the younger Wootten as one of the bright young high school coaches in the nation, as well as help him move another step out of the shadow of his father, who is the winningest high school coach of all time. 

Friday, December 29, 2000

Last summer 6'11 Eddy Curry from South Holland (Thornwood) IL was seen in a wheelchair in Orlando, FL the day after he went head-to-head against 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL.   Apparently history is repeating itself, because 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA wasn't in the lineup for tonight's first semi-final game at Slam Dunk to the Beach against Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX.  As a matter of fact, he wasn't even in the gym (the word is that he flew home).  If you will recall, there were reports that he'd been under the weather several days before the big matchup last night and maybe it all just caught up with him.  However, that didn't stop Dominguez from making things interesting in the first half, as it was tied at 26-26 at intermission.   But Willowridge broke the game open in the second half, as they coast to a 58-36 victory to advance into the championship game.  The player most responsible for Willowridge's second half surge was 6'3 Daniel Ewing, who finished with 13 points and five assists, but an uninspired Dominguez team also had a lot to say about why the score was so lopsided.  Also finishing with 13 points for Willowridge were 6'2 Kenny Taylor and 5'10 Terrance Ford.   The only player to score in double digits for Dominguez was 6'6 Jr Darius Sanders (14 points and seven rebounds).  Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ jumped out to a 17-8 lead at the end of the first quarter and is now up 29-13 midway through the second quarter against Midwest City (H.S.) OK in the other semi-final game.  As a result, St Patrick is well on its way into the championship game tomorrow night against Willowridge.   And we may have to make St. Pat's the favorite, because Willowridge has yet to click on all eight cylinders like they did in this tournament a year ago.  We also will never underestimate St. Patrick's head coach Kevin Boyle again.   Upon entering the tournament without his two best players - 6'9 Marcus Austin and 6'10 Soph Grant Billmeier, we thought his team might just go 0-3.  No doubt this reaffirms the fact that Boyle is one of the top young coaches in the game at any level. 

Last night 7'3 Soph Sagari Alleyne, who is ranked as the #1 sophomore in New York City by Ron Naclerio, didn't get to play for New York (Rice) NY for disciplinary reasons (he missed a practice).   However,  when New York (Rice) NY beat Berkmar (Lilburn) GA, 73-63, earlier tonight at Slam Dunk to the Beach, he showed why Naclerio is so high on this giant who effects the game as much as any player we've ever seen at his age.  As a matter of fact, he's already phyiscally one of the biggest guys we've ever seen, as his arms are so long that he can almost reach up and touch the rim.  And his statistics - 18 points, including 9-11 field goals, 13 rebounds, and eight blocks against Lilburn (Berkmar) GA - are amazing.  Also amazing is the fact that Naclerio tells us that Alleyne is further along at the same stage than another great center to come out of New York City 35 years ago. He's talking about Lew Alcindor, who the editor and publisher the H.S.B.I. Report, Tom Konchalski, says is the best high school player he's ever seen.  "Alcindor had a chance to block contest every shot," says Konchalski.  And he often did, because that was before goal tending had been implemented as a rule.  Only time will tell whether Alleyne will ever be that good, but there is no question that Alleyne has the potential to become one of the best shot blockers of all time.  Also putting up impressive numbers once again for Rice were 6'1 Jr Steven Burtt,  who finished with 17 points, and 5'7 Jr Keydren Clark finally found his eye outside, as he hit 4-6 3-pointers and finished with 16 points.  When Berkmar plays well 6'6 Clark Williams, who scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds tonight, usually comes up big.  However, he obviously didn't come up big enough tonight, as Berkmar appears to be well on its way to falling from a #5 national ranking in the USA Today two weeks ago to a 7th or 8th place finish in the main bracket at Slam Dunk to the Beach.   In the other consolation semi-final game tonight Baltimore (Southern) MD beat Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, 55-49, but once again the player who packed the house was St. Jude's 6'9 Ousmane Cisse, who finished with 14 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 blocks.  Yes, that is a triple double, but his performance wasn't as impressive as it was last night.  Not only did the game not have the same level of intensity, but the competition wasn't as good and his shot selection still has a lot to be desired, as he connected on only 5-14 field goals.  Also reinforcing our previously held opinion was 6'1 Melvin Scott, who just can't seem to find outside shooting touch like he did last summer.  We also still question his decision making, which will be necessary for him to step in and make an immediate contribution at point guard at North Carolina next year.  Scott did score 13 points and dished out four assists, but Southern's best player tonight was 6'5 Darshan Luckey, who finished with 15 points and seven rebounds.

The recent reports about 6'10 Jr  Michael Thompson from New Lenox (Providence) IL, who ranks #31 nationally among juniors by the HOOP SCOOP, making a verbal commitment to Duke appear to be premature.   However, our best Duke source tells us that it's not only a done deal, but it will likely become official in early January once school resumes after the Christmas break.   And Thompson isn't the only Chicago area player who appears to be destined for Duke.  As a matter of fact, this same source tells us that the Blue Devils will likely get 6'1 Jr Sean Dockery from Chicago (Julian) IL, who is ranked #9 in the junior class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and they already have a verbal commitment from 6'4 Jr J.J. Redick from Roanoke (Cave Springs) VA, who is ranked #10 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  If that weren't enough, our source also believes the Blue Devils will prevail in the big recruiting battle among N.C. State, Duke, and North Carolina for 6'9 Jr Shavlik Randolph from Raleigh (Broughton) NC, who is ranked #5 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and they also to have the early edge over Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Arkansas, and North Carolina for 6'9 Jr Sheldon Williams from Midwest City (H.S.) OK.  Obviously if Duke can pull this off, we'd be talking about a Fab Five recruiting class, as well as the best recruiting class in the nation a year from now.  In other words, Duke can't afford to sign any more than three players in this recruiting class, based on the five and three rule, which prohibits you from bringing in more than eight players over a two-year period with a maximum of five in one year and three the other.  However, we don't look for that to be too much of a problem, because Duke only signed one player in the fall in 6'3 Daniel Ewing from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX and they are only currently actively recruiting one player in the senior class - 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL.

In a game that was just completed at Slam Dunk to the Beach, Jackson (Murrah) MS knocked off Lakewood (Mayfair) CA, 68-52, but so far today all the games have been in the consolation bracket or, in the case of Greenville (A.I. Dupont) DE versus Somerdale (Sterling) DE and St. Bernard (H.S.) LA versus Cleveland (Benedictine) OH, games that were scheduled prior to the start of the tournament. However, the biggest story of the day appears to be the developing weather situation.  As you probably already now, a winter storm warning has been issued beginning tonight for most of the northeastern part of the United States and enough snow is expected beginning late tonight that the state of Delaware is already talking about declaring a state of emergency.  If it were in the hands of the tournament director Bobby Jacobs, there would be no problem playing getting in all of tomorrow's games.  However, it may not be.  As a matter of fact, we know that there was a meeting at 4:30 PM today with state officials to discuss the situation.  In other words, if you were thinking about coming to the last day of the tournament tomorrow, it might be a good idea to cancel your travel plans.  Also, a lot of the media and college coaches are getting out today.  However, we'll be here to the bitter end and we'll continue to provide daily recruiting updates, even if we get snowed in and don't have access to electricity for several days (we now have the ability to send information to our web site via our digital telephone).  At 10:10 PM tonight tournament officials released a statement to inform us that the tournament is on for tomorrow, but to pay close attention to storm advisories on radio and television.  And as of yet there is no snow or bad weather.  However, several teams, like New Castle (William Penn) DE and Towson (Catholic) MD have already gone home and aren't planning on coming back.  As a result, there will be some revisions to the schedule and as things stand now there will only be seven games.  The plan appears to be move up the schedule and get us out of here at about 7:30 PM.  In other words, the championship will likely tipoff at 6:00 PM, instead of the scheduled 9:15 PM start time.  

Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX beat Baltimore (Southern) MD, 74-64, in the final game last night at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE, but the defending champions in the tournament didn't play very well (they've been off for two weeks), as their three top players - 5'11 Terrance Ford, 6'3 Daniel Ewing, and 6'2 Kenny Taylor - combined for only 32 points.  Instead, the leading scorer in the game was 6'7 Andre Watson, who finished with 19 points and seven rebounds.  The leading scorer for Baltimore Southern was 6'4 Darshan Luckey with 17 points and eight rebounds, but the real story was the mediocre performance by Southern's 6'2 Melvin Scott.   Actually he's not as bad as he looked last night (4-17 field goals, 2-10 3-pointers, 14 points, three assist, four turnovers, and two assists), but he's not as good as his top 25 USA Today ranking nor should he be a lock for the McDonald's All-American just because he's signed with North Carolina.  However, he is good enough to rank among our top 50 nationally (currently we have him ranked #52).   Instead, the problem last night was that he ran up against a major roadblock in Ewing, who simply shut him down defensively.  Earlier tody Newark (Hodgson Vocational) DE beat Felton (Lake Forest) DE, 71-54; Atlantic City (H.S.) NJ beat New Castle (H.S.) PA, 59-50; Greenville (A.I. Dupont) DE beat Somerdale (Sterling) DE, 61-58; Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY beat Fairfax (Pope John Paul VI) VA in overtime, 74-73; and Cleveland (Bendectine) OH beat St. Bernard, 67-62.  That last score is particularly interesting, becaused St. Bernard was horrible in their first game, but yesterday knocked off Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY convincingly and, then, again the played fairly well today, as 6'2 Drionne Major posted on the top scoring efforts in the tournament with a 31-point performance.  Coming up next at the Bobby Jacobs Invitational (Slam Dunk to the Beach) will be Jackson (Murrah) MS versus Lakewood (Mayfair) CA at 3:30 PM, Lilburn (Berkmar) GA verus New York (Rice) NY at 5:00 PM, Montgomery (St. Jude) AL versus Baltimore (Southern) MD at 6:30 PM, Compton (Dominguez) CA versus Sugar Land (Willowrdige) TX at 8:00 PM, and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ versus Midwest City (H.S.) OK at 9:30 PM.  We also talked with our buddy John Rhodes, who is the Executive Director of the Beach Ball Classic, this morning and he tells us that it will be Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA versus Louisville (Ballard) KY and Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA in the semi-finals in Myrtle Beach, SC later today.  He also tells us that 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunwick (Glynn Academy) GA was in a zone yesterday as he registered a triple double.  Rhodes couldn't remember Brown's exact number of points, but Brown's 22 rebounds and 10 blocks left a lasting impression.  As a result, Glynn Academy easily beat Latta (H.S.) SC, 61-40, in a quarterfinals game.  In the other winner's bracket games at the Beach Ball Classic yesterday, Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA beat Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 68-56; Louisville (Ballard) KY beat Horsham (Hatboro-Horsham) PA, 66-45; and Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA knocked off Cincinnati (Western Hills) OH, 87-65.  Also yesterday, Hyattsville (DeMatha) SC destroyed Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC, 82-58, and Jamaica (Archbishop Molloy) NY murdered Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC, 92-44; and Albany (Westover) GA knocked off Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY in the consolation bracket.   However, St. Raymond's, which finished second in the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, only a week ago, got back into the winning column in the first day today by beating Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 76-69, in the third place game. 

Thursday, December 28, 2000

In the big game at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE earlier tonight, 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, who finished with 14 points, eight rebounds, six blocks, and 7-12 field goals, including several crowd pleasing dunks, statistically outplayed 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, who finished with 17 points, six rebounds, four blocks, and 7-21 field goals.  However, a poll of a number of basketball people who were in attendance and watched the game tonight shows that Cisse won the battle in an extremely close decision.  Cisse didn't hit shots, but due to his aggressive nature, incredible work ethic, and tremendous athleticism, it appears that he came closer to playing to his full potential than Chandler.  Another deciding factor may have been the fact that Chandler sat out about half of the second half with four fouls.  However, this time Chandler didn't roll over and play dead.  He not only redeemed himself, but also deserves a lot of credit for showing that he has what it takes to rise to the occasion against both Cisse and 6'11 Eddy Curry from Thornwood (South Holland) IL in the same month.  Chandler's long arms and positioning defensively also had a lot to do with Cisse missing so many shots, plus Chandler impressed us with his excellent passing ability and ability to play more under control than Cisse (in other words Chandler has a  much better feel and understanding of the game).  And that might be the biggest problem with Cisse, as sometimes he's too intense and aggressive for his own good.   However, there aren't too many players who have come along in recent years with as much raw natural talent.  So really there was no winner, except for the fans, coaches, and scouts who got to witness a tremendous matchup.  Just as we predicted Dominguez won the game 61-50, but it really was a lot closer than that until Cisse fouled out with about a minute remaining in the game.  Complementing Chandler for Dominguez were 6'7 Jr Bobby Jones and 6'6 Darius Sanders, who combined for 29 points and 15 rebounds.  Ironically the best player for St. Jude other than Cisse was a 6'0 freshman who has to be ranked among our top 50 nationally in his class.  We're talking about 6'0 Frosh Antonio James, who finished with 14 points, five assists, and three steals.  But even more important, James was poised beyond his years, as he showed no fear and challenged all the more experienced players.  

Lakewood (Mayfair) CA came back to beat Fairfax (Pope John Paul VI) VA, 51-50, but the big story was the differnce the way 6'6 Josh Childress played in the first versus the second half.  In the first half he picked up where he left off last night, as he was only 2-8 from the field and accounted for only seven of Mayfair's 22 points.  And just like last night, the first half was ugly, as was evident by the fact that Mayfair was only shooting 32.1% and Paul VI wasn't much better at 32.4%.  However, all that changed when Childress came to life after the intermission.   Not only did he take over the game, but he also got his shooting back on track, as he finished with 26 points and hit 8-12 field goals in the second half.  He even hit the game winning shot with five seconds left.  As a result, he won't drop in our national ranking (currently he's ranked #12), but we have to start to wonder why it takes him several games now to get going (the same thing happened last fall when we saw him in the Rim Rattler Fall Hoops Classic at Lynwood High School in September when he started slow, but finished strong).  Again 6'5 Edwin Draughan also played well for Mayfair, as he chipped in with 11 points.  Combining for 29 points to lead Paul VI were 6'9 Robert Little and 6'7 Tyree Spinner.   Midwest City (H.S.) OK jumped out to a 6-0 lead over New York (Rice) NY, but the big story right now is that Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski is now in the house for the next three games in the prime time Slam Dunk to the Beach bracket.   He's getting an early recruiting advantage in next year's hunt for 6'9 Jr Sheldon Williams, who is the best player in the game between Midwest City (H.S.) OK and New York (Rice) NY.  Duke also is the co-favorite, along with Louisville, for 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL and the Blue Devils already have signed 6'3 Daniel Ewing from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX, who will be playing in the last game of the evening.  In addition to Krzyzewski and Duke assistant coach Steve Wojciechowski, Louisville head coach Denny Crum, and Louisville assistant coach Vince Taylor are in the house to see Cisse, plus an overflow crowd has been on hand for several hours awaiting the big matchup between Cisse and 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, which has to be the most anticipated matchup of the entire season.  Getting back to the game at hand, Midwest City (H.S.) OK controlled the game most of the way, but late in both halves, Rice made a run only to fall a little short on both occasions.  Final score:  Midwest City (H.S.) OK 69, New York (Rice) NY 67.  The leading scorer for Rice was Steve Burt, who finished with 27 points.  But the key to the game was the lack of outside shooting for Rice, as well as the physical inside play for Midwest City.  In other words, we talking about 6'9 Jr Sheldon Williams, who finished with 10 points, 15 rebounds, and six blocked shots.  Also playing well for Midwest City was 6'5 Jr DeAngelo Alexander, who had 21 points, and 6'3 Kentrell Gaddis, who chipped in with 10 points and three assists.  The best player for Rice was 6'8 Jr Shakiem Mitchell, who finished with eight points, 10 rebounds, and more than held his own inside against Williams.

Richland (St. Augustine) NJ coasted to a 74-50 victory over Cleveland (Benedictine) OH in the fourth game on the third day at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE, thanks primarily to the efforts of 6'7 Olu Babalola, who always seems to play well in this tournament.  Not only did he score 11 points, grab nine rebounds, and dish out four assists, but he also silenced one of his biggest credits in Allen Rubin.  As a matter of fact, Rubin was so impressed with Babalola that he now wants to rank Babalola #5 in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area behind 6'2 Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ, 6'5 John Allen from Coatesville (H.S.) PA, 6'2 Ernest Turner from Somerdale (Sterling) NJ, and 6'7 Hakim Warrick from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA.  But it isn't going to happen, because Babalola isn't better than 5'9 Cantrell Fletcher from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA.  Remember, Fletcher was terrific at the City of Palms Classic last week in Ft. Myers, FL.  Speaking of Allen and Turner, they both put up big numbers in the last two games.  Turner helped Somerdale (Sterling) NJ get past a pesky Lewes (Cape Henlopen) DE team, 61-57, that was led by 6'0 Pat Woods (22 points and five assists). Turner put up his usual big numbers en route to a 36 point performance, but even more important he took over the game down the stretch.  However, Turner didn't make his teammates better, which is something that Allen does extremely well.  As a result, it is easy to see why Rubin is so much higher on Allen than he currently is on Turner.  However, all that could change once Max Good gets a hold of him next year at UNLV.  But for now Allen is bigger and stronger, more explosive to the basket, a harder worker, better defender, and  more consistent on his outside shooter than Turner.  Allen, who had an excellent supporting cast in 5'7 Maurice Bryant and 6'2 Chris White, also was much better than 6'1 Maurice Williams from Jackson (Murrah) MS in this afternoon's easy win Coatesville win over Murrah, 87-53, and, for the second consecutive game, Williams appeared to be battling 6'6 Josh Childress from Lakewood (Mayfair) CA, as the big name player most missing in action in the tournament.  Williams did have 15 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists, but also only hit 5-17 field goals, including 2-8 field goals, and had four turnovers.   On the other hand, Allen hit 14-20 field goals en route to a 30-point/13 rebound effort. 

Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin has talked with some of the top underclassmen, including 6'7 Jr Carmelo Anthony from Towson (Catholic) MD, 6'6 Jr Curtis Sumpter from Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY, 64 Jr Rian Powell from Cleveland (Benedictine) OH, and 6'8 Soph Will Sheridan from Hockessin (Sanford) DE at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE.  Anthony likes Syracuse, Maryland, Duke, North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Seton Hall, Temple, Villanova, and UNC-Charlotte.   North Carolina is the strong early favorite for Sumpter, but he also mentions St. John's, Seton Hall, Ohio State, Connecticut, and Villanova.  Powell will be tough to get away from Ohio State, but it looks like Cincinnati, Connecticut, Georgetown, and Seton Hall are going to try.  Sheridan is an excellent student with Ivy League interest, but Duke, North Carolina, Maryland, Seton Hall, Penn State, Temple, and Villanova are also in hot pursuit.  Rubin also has a list for 6'7 Tyree Spinner from Fairfax (Paul VI) VA, which includes Maryland, Virginia, Ohio State, and Syracuse, but he we'd be surprised if Syracuse or Ohio State offer him a scholarship in basketball, because both schools are out of scholarships.  Also, Virginia only has one scholarship remaining and their top recruiting priority is 7'0 DeSagana Diop from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who is ranked #14 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.   So Spinner, who also is a big-time football player, may be one of these guys who signs to play football, but plays both sports.  Rubin also has the scoop on 6'7 Chris Niesz from Middletown (Middletown North) NJ, who has verbally committed to Bucknell.  However, the big question is who is the current leader for 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, who is ranked #2 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP and has a chance to challenge 6'2 Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ for the #1 spot if he comes up big against 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA tonight.  Our guess is Louisville, Duke, and Arkansas, but we may get an even better indicator by which big time head coaches show up at his games during the next three days at this tournament.

Adam Gorney has been tracking down scores from some of the other major post-Christmas Holiday Tournaments in the nation and we were especially surprised by the two big upsets yesterday at the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC.  Believe it or not Horsham (Hatboro-Horsham) PA knocked off Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 56-55, and Latta (H.S.) SC upset Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 78-73.   Actually, the Latta upset isn't all that surprising, because the game was played in South Carolina, DeMatha may not be as good as they look, and 6'1 Jr Raymond Felton, who ranks #26 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, isn't North Carolina's #1 point guard recruiting priority for nothing.  However, after his performance yesterday that may be too low.  As a matter of fact, the legendary Tom Konchalski, who was in Myrtle Beach yesterday, tells us that he thinks Felton is the best point guard he's seen at the high school level since Allen Iverson and Stephon Marbury.  Also yesterday at Myrtle Beach, Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL beat Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 73-60; Louisville (Ballard) KY beat Albany (Westover) GA, 78-65;and Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA beat Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC, 66-55; and, as a result, we now believe either Mater Dei or Ballard will take home the championship.  Today's Beach Ball Classic schedule will tip-off with Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC versus Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY at 10:00 AM, Albany (Westover) GA versus Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY at 11:45 AM, Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC versus Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD at 1:30 PM, Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA versus Houston (Westbury Christian) TX at 3:15 PM, Louisville (Ballard) KY versus Horsham (Hatboro-Horsham) PA beat 4:45 PM, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Cincinnati (Western Hills) OH at 6:30 PM, and Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA versus Latta (H.S.) SC at 8:15 PM.  We don't have any scores and highlights, but the highlight so far at the Arby's Classic in Bristol, TN is the 49-point performance by 6'11 David Harrison from Brentwood (Academy) TN, who broke his own school scoring record, hitting 22-24 field goals.  He also had 14 rebounds, but that was not enough to get his team the victory, as Greenville (H.S.) SC won, 79-76, in double overtime.  In Raleigh, NC at the Glaxo Wellcome Holiday Invitational it is no surprise that Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA beat Newport News (Warwick) VA, 70-50.  Top performances were turned by Oak Hill's 6'8 Jr Mario Boggan, who finished with 17 points, and Warwick's 6'8 Elton Brown, who had 22 points and 11 rebounds.  Here in Lewes, DE at Slam Dunk to the Beach, which is the Final Four of high school basketball, according to Bobby Jacobs, who is the executive director of the tournament, Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD beat Newark (Hodgson) DE, 56-48; Hockessin (Sanford) DE beat East Greenbush (Columbia) NY, 55-36; and Saint Bernard (H.S.) LA shocked Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 69-49.   In a game currently in progress, Richland (St. Augustine) NJ is beating Cleveland (Benedictine) OH, 38-25, at half-time, and later today it will be Lewes (Cape Henlopen) DE versus Somerdale (Sterling) NJ at 2:00 PM, Coatesville (H.S.) PA versus Jackson (Murrah) MS at 3:30 PM, and Lakewood (Mayfair) CA versus Fairfax (Pope John Paul VI) VA at 5:00 PM, New York (Rice) NY versus Midwest City (H.S.) OK at 6:30 PM, Compton (Dominguez) CA versus Montgomery (St. Jude) AL at 8:00 PM, and Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX versus Baltimore (Southern) MD at 9:30 PM.  The matchup between 6'5 John Allen from Coatesville (H.S.) PA and 6'1 Maurice Williams from Jackson (Murrah) MS promises to be one of the highlights of the day, but the highlight of the entire winter could be the matchup between 7'0 Tyson Chandler and 6'9 Ousmane Cisse.  We'd be surprised if every NBA team doesn't have at least one scout in attendance here today and we know that Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski will be in attendance to see Cisse.  We expect Cisse to win the rematch, but we predict Dominguez, which is fresh off winning the championship in the Les Schwabb Invitational in Portland, OR right before Christmas, will win the game.

Lakewood (St. Edward) OH beat Lakewood (Mayfair) CA, 56-42, and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ knocked off Lilburn (Berkmar) GA, 70-44, late last night, but once again the games couldn't have been more different. The game between the two Lakewood's was horrible, as Mayfair shot only 31% from the field and 6'6 Josh Childress, who finished with only 10 points, 0-6 from beyond the arc, and four turnovers, couldn't have played any worse.  Was he sick?  Did he have jet lag?   Did he just miss the sunshine in Southern California?  Your guess is as good as mine, but if you also throw in the fact that St. Edward beat Mayfair bad on the boards (41-29), we're actually amazed that the game was that close.  Instead, the best player for Mayfair was 6'5 Edwin Draughan, who finshed with 14 points, six rebounds, and three assists.  He also only shot 5-19 from the field, but he did most dirty work inside and helped shut down 6'9 Jawad Williams, who also had a subpar night with only 16 points, eights rebounds, and six turnovers.    Draughan not only reaffirmed our belief that he's a steal for Yale, but he also showed that he can play any position at this level, except center.  As a result, we stand by his current #158 nationally ranking and also must now insist that our California editor Dinos Trigonis move him way up on his list.   Currently Trigonis has Draughan ranked #32 in the state and he didn't even bother to report his verbal commitment to us last fall, because he didn't think it was a major deal.  But it was!  As a matter of fact, if many more players like Draughan commit to Yale, we'll have to start mentioning the Bulldogs, along with Pennsylvania and Princeton, at the top of the Ivy League.  In the other late game last night, Berkmar jumped out 3-0, but after that, it was all St. Patrick, as Wichita State-bound 6'6 Jamie Sowers was nothing short of sensational.  Not only did he have 20 points, 14 rebounds, seven blocks, three assists, and five steals, but he also played with more intensity than anybody during the first two days of the tournament.  As a result, he beat out 6'7 Jr Matt Walsh from Ft. Washington (Germantown (Academy) PA and 6'4 Jr Rian Powell from Cleveland (Benedictine) OH for HOOP SCOOP Player-of-the-Day honors.  However, outside shooting is still a major question mark, plus, we want to see if Sowers can come close to duplicating this effort during the rest of the tournament before we move him into our top 200 nationally.  Also playing extremely well for St. Pat's was 6'0 Terrell Prince, who finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, and four steals.  

Wednesday, December 27, 2000

Our Philadelphia/South Jersey/Eastern Pennsylvania Editor Allen Rubin was right on the money when he said the last two games - Frederick (Governor Thomas Johnson) MD versus Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ and Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY versus Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA - were as different as night and day.  The pace of the first game was ugly, as St. Anthony's led 18-17 at halftime, 34-23 at the end of the third quarter, and 44-25 at the conclusion of the game.   That's right!  Thomas Johnson only scored eight points in the entire second half, including only two points in the fourth quarter.  The only player who played well for either team was 5'10 Jr Donald Copeland.  He led St. Anthony in scoring (11 points) and assists (six assists), plus he also had eight rebounds and three steals.  The other game was much more uptempo, as Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA beat Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY, 68-57, and once again the big key was the play of 6'7 Jr Matt Walsh, who had 29 points and 14 rebounds for Germantown Academy.  Walsh also was 7-14 from the field, 4-7 from beyond the arc, and 11-12 from the free throw line, plus he had four assists, and, although he was called for charging, even brought the house down with a breakaway dunk.  But what puts him over the top in his quest for top player of the day honors over 6'4 Jr Rian Powell from Cleveland (Benedictine) OH were his six free throws to ice the game.  And that should hold up, because the game with Lakewood (Mayfair) CA versus Lakewood (St. Edward) OH is already in progress and it promises to be another one of those very deliberate, methodical, boring games where neither 6'5 Josh Childress nor 6'9 Jawad Williams appears to be able to get into the flow.  St. Edward was up 10-4 at the end of the first quarter, but if something exciting happens, we'll let you know tonight.  Otherwise, we'll update you on both this game and the Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ versus Lilburn (Berkmar) GA game, which will tipoff immediately following this game, tomorrow morning. 

Everybody is anticipating the big matchup tomorrow night between 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA and 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, but Adam Gorney points out there also will be a pretty good matchup tonight between 6'5 Josh Childress and 6'9 Jawad Williams when Lakewood (Mayfair) CA and Lakewood (St. Edward) OH go head-to-head at 8:00 PM.  Based on athleticism and on the way Williams, who is ranked #31 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, played last night, you might think the smart money would be on Williams to win this matchup.  However, Childress, who currently ranks #12 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, is one of the smartest and best skilled players in the senior class nationally.  As a result, we think this one is too close to call.  Earlier today things picked up in the fourth game between Cleveland (Benedictine) OH and Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY.  Lincoln won the game 82-77, but Benedictine's 6'4 Jr Rian Powell, who finished with 34 points, six rebounds, and  eight assists was easily the best player we've seen all day.   Powell was previously listed as a wing forward and ranked #4 in Ohio's mediocre junior class, but all that should change, because he showed point guard skills (great passer and good ball handler) and, based on his performance today, must challenge 6'2 Jr Robert Hite from Cincinnati (Winton Woods) OH for the #1 ranking in the junior class in Ohio.  Powell also has the athleticism and slashing ability to play either wing spot, but his questionable outside shooting makes it almost too close to call between Powell and Hite.  Also playing much better than he did yesterday was 5'10 Frosh Sebastian Telfair, who scored 18 points and had five assists for Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY.   Telfair was terrific early as he scored seven points in the first three minutes, but then he made some freshmen mistakes, forced some turnovers, and played only in spurts the rest of the way.  However, Telfair already is well on his way towards becoming a great one - are you listening Ron Naclerio?  Also playing extremely well in the first half of the against Fairfax (Pope John Paul VI) VA was 6'7 Jr Carmelo Anthony from Towson (Catholic) MD with 16 points and four assists.  However, in the second half he was hampered by foul trouble, didn't hit a shot, and finished with only 19 points, as Towson Catholic coasted to a 58-42 victory.  Also earlier today Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY destroyed New Castle (H.S.) PA, 70-39, thanks to the efforts of 5'11 Greg Caudell, 6'4 Jeremy Kelly, and 6'7 Jr Brad Lightle, who combined for 40 points.  Although the game was ugly, it did offer us a chance to get our first look at PRP's outstanding 6'8 Frosh Terrance Farley, who scored three points and four rebounds in only three minutes.

Earlier today Felton (Lake Forest) DE beat Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, 52-45; Washington (Archbishop Carroll) DC beat Atlantic City (H.S.) NJ, 56-49; Greenville (A.I. DuPont) DE beat St. Bernard (H.S.) LA, 66-54; at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE.  However, these first three games were very non-eventful, so the three primary topics of conversation have been the ridiculously long lines to the hospitality room, whether there has been a worse team in the entire field in recent years than St. Bernard, and the havoc that the ice storm in Oklahoma has played with the travel plans of Midwest City (H.S.) OK.  Midwest City (H.S.) OK was originally scheduled to play Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ at 9:30 PM tonight, but Midwest City won't get into BWI (Baltimore-Washington International Airport) until later today, so they have had to rearrange the schedule.  This is not official, but Bobby Jacobs, who is the Executive Director of the Tournament, has leaked the schedule change exclusively to us, as it will be Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ versus Lilburn (Berkmar) GA tonight and Midwest City (H.S.) OK versus New York (Rice) NY in the 6:30 PM game tomorrow.  That game will be followed by the big matchup between Compton (Dominguez) CA and Montgomery (St. Jude) AL at 8:00 PM, which is being billed as the "War on the Shore," as 6'9 Ousmane Cisse will get another opportunity to show 7'0 Tyson Chandler what life will likely be like in the NBA next year.   Remember, Cisse, who is a relentless competitor, great shot blocker, and aggressive rebounder, totally embarrassed Chandler, who is soft, physically not as developed and not as mentally tough, at the NIKE All-American Camp last summer.  Then, the last game tomorrow night at 9:30 PM should also be a thriller, as it will be Baltimore (Southern) MD versus Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX, which is currently ranked #2 nationally by the USA Today.

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that 6'6 William "Sonny" Johnson, who is transferring from Cleveland State, is not going to join his younger brother Julius Johnson at Miami-OH after all.  Instead, Johnson is transferring to Ohio University.   Speaking of Johnson, we find it especially interesting that he is only the third best basketball player in the family, behind Julius and 6'4 Soph Demetrius Johnson from Warrenville Heights (H.S.) OH, who is ranked #4 in the sophomore class by Johnson.   Still, Sonny is a nice catch for Ohio University.  Johnson also tells us that 6'10 Ajou Ajou Deng made it official last week and announced that he is transferring from the University of Connecticut.  The original speculation was that Central Connecticut State and Fairfield were the leaders, because he wanted to stay close to Connecticut assistant coach Karl Hobbs, who was the person who originally helped bring him to this country.  However, Johnson tells us that Deng is wide open.  While we always thought Deng was overhyped and overrated, his younger brother - 6'10 Soph Michael Deng from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ, is one of the top five sophomores in the nation.  As a result, the two early favorites for the younger Deng will be wherever Ajou Ajou Deng surfaces or wherever Hobbs gets a head coaching job next spring.  However, we don't think this will be one in the same, because Deng will have to decide upon a school before the second semester begins this winter, if he wants to be eligible to play at a four-year school second semester a year from now.  Also, as things stand now, Deng, who is currently listed as a junior, would only have half a year to play, but if he graduates by May of 2002, he would get another year.  If you will recall, Deng had to sit out his first year at Connecticut, as a Prop 48 casualty.  However, he's a good student, so graduating within four years should be no problem.  We've now learned that Deng may be on the verge of transferring to Delaware.  What a steal that would be!

Monday, December 25, 2000, and Tuesday, December 26, 2000

After a very disappointing performance at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE a year ago, it looks like 6'9 Jawad Williams from Lakewood (St. Edward) OH has redeemed himself on the first day of Bobby Jacobs' version of Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus.  Not only did Williams play a lot harder than he did a year ago, but he also scored 34 points, grabbed 18 rebounds, and was the best player of the entire day, according to our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin and Adam Gorney, who is a college student at Penn State that helps us annually at both Slam Dunk to the Beach and the adidas ABCD Camp.  Williams also brought the house down with several earth-shattering breakaway slams, excellent 3-point shooting (4-7), and tough defense, plus he made 7'0 Ted Skuchas from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA look really bad (seven points and six rebounds).   As a result, Lakewood (St. Edward) OH upset Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 74-63.  And, as usual, as goes 6'6 Jr Matt Walsh, who hit only 6-17 field goals and 1-10 3-pointers en route to a 17 point effort, so goes Germantown Academy.   Also chipping in for Germantown Academy with 14 points was 6'7 Jr Lee Malchionni, but their best player today was 6'1 Mike Slattery with 17 points, five assists, and three steals.  In the final game of the night Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY beat Jackson (Murrah) MS, 79-58, and, just like you'd expect, the big hero for Bishop Loughlin was 6'6 Jr Curtis Sumpter, who ranks as the #1 junior in New York City.  He finished with 30 points and 17 rebounds, but, even more importantly, he singlehandedly broke the game open. After Williams and Sumpter, the top individual performances of the day, as ranked in order by Rubin and Gorney, were turned in by 6'7 Jr Carmelo Anthony from Towson (Catholic) MD, 5'11 Jr Elijah Ingram from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 5'10 Jr Scott Greeman from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 7'1 Craig Forth from East Greenbush (Columbia) NY, 6'7 Olu Babalola from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'4 Devon Smith from New Castle (William Penn) DE, 6'1 Jr Jermaine Thomas from Frederick (Thomas Johnson) MD, 6'8 Soph Will Sheridan from Hockessin (Sanford) DE, 6'0 Jr Dwayne Lee from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6'0 Chris Salyor from Greenville (A.I. DuPont) DE.  Anthony not only has grown to 6'7, but he also showed why many think he is a potential McDonald's All-American a year from now.  He was unstoppable going to the hole (27 points) and tough on the boards (11 rebounds).  Ingram only had 15 points, but his defense and court presence were a big reason why Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ beat Atlantic City (H.S.) NJ, 68-50.   Greenman, who finished with 25 points, doesn't pass the look test, but he beat Frederick (Governor Thomas Johnson) MD, 71-69, in the best game of the day, with smarts and several big 3-pointers at crunch time.  Forth dominated the inside against New Castle (H.S.) PA with 22 points, 12 rebounds, five blocks, and 8-10 free throws.   However, New Castle's tallest player was only 6'4, so we're not sure exactly how much he's really improved.  Babalola started off playing outside, but as the game wore on, he moved inside, where he used his body and strength to control the paint and finish with 16 points.  Everything with Smith was from 12-feet and in, but he finished with 34 points and 16 rebounds, as New Castle (William Penn) DE beat Newark (Hodgson Tech) DE, 59-49.  Thomas is a solid point guard who had 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists, but he also got his teammates involved (three of his teammates also were in double digits) and played excellent defense.  Sheridan has excellent hands and feet, the ability to pass from the post, and maturity beyond his years.   Ingram gets all the glory, but Lee, who had a team high 16 points, actually provides more of the offense in what is quickly becoming one of the best back courts in the land.  Saylor is a point guard who controlled the ball and made his teammates better on a guard dominated team.  However, he also was their leader in scoring with 20 points, rebounding eight boards, and passing with five assists.  We also have to mention three freshmen  - 5'10 Frosh Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, 6'8 Frosh Joe Dyson from Hockessin (Sanford) DE, and 6'2 Frosh Marcus Williams from Jersey City (Anthony) NJ, all of whom played well.

Sunday, December 24, 2000

The championship game at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic last night in Ft. Myers, FL was decided with 1:47 left and Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY down by four.  6'4 Chris McRae, who took home tournament MVP honors, had just made a powerful move to the basket and the call could have gone either way.  If the referee had called blocking, the basket would have been good and McRae would have been at the line with a chance to cut the lead to one.  Instead, McRae was called for charging and was disqualified from the game with his 5th foul.   Sure the St. Raymond's as team and 6'6 Julius Hodge in particular, had their opportunities to make it a one possession game, but it didn't happen, as Los Angeles (Westchester) CA held on to win 82-77.  This was Westchester's fifth win in five days, but even more important, they met every challenge, as they did what great teams are supposed to do.  So forget all the rankings.  This is the Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX of this year (Willowridge was the best team we saw all last year, but do to the fact they started off so low in the polls, they never had a chance to pass up certain teams in route to the #1 ranking), because they have so many weapons and, as a result, are capable of running you out of the gym at any moment.  This Westchester team doesn't have the superstar-like players that Willowridge has with 5'10 Terrance Ford and 6'3 Daniel Ewing, but they are much deeper, as is evident by the fact that there is no dropoff with the players between 1-12 on the roster.   Their best two players are 6'3 Jr Brandon Heath, who finished with 17 points, and 6'4 Hassan Adams, who had 12 points before fouling out in the championship game.  Also scoring in double digits were 6'7 Jr Brandon Bowman with 11 points and 6'5 Soph Scott Cutley with 10 points.   5'11 Jr John Clemmons added eight points, 6'3 David Warsaw had seven points, 6'7 Soph Trevor Ariza had six points, and 6'11 Chad Bell had five points.  The scoring was much less balanced for St. Raymond's as Hodge finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds.  McRae added 17, but the big surprise was 6'2 Soph Louie McCroskey, who stepped up with 20 points.   He also made most of his free throws (8-11).  We mention this, because that was the big difference in the game, as St. Raymond's hit only 16-32 foul shots.  But what a game!  At times it was even too fast for the players.  And as usual, Hodge and McRae came up big at crunch time.  However, every time St. Raymond's tried to make a run, Westchester answered.  In other words, this was no fluke.   Westchester is a great team!  In addition to McRae, who was named the MVP, the all-tournament team also included Hodge, Heath, Adams,, 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA, 6'5 Larry O'Bannon from Louisville (Male) KY, 5'9 Cantrell Fletcher from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA, 6'3 Soph Michael Bush from Louisville (Male) KY,  6'6 Clark Williams from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA, 6'1 Chris Hernandez, Fresno (Clovis West) CA, 6'5 Kelvin Brown from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 6'4 Jr Rashad Anderson from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL, and 6'1 Jr Chadd Moore from Huntsville (Lee) AL.  A special thanks to Tournament Director Donnie Wilkie, whose tournament just seems to get better and better every year.  As a matter of fact, we already can't wait until next year, because some of the likely teams already include Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 6'10 Soph Grant Billmeier, Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA with 6'5 Jr Matt Walsh, Louisville (Male) KY with 6'3 Soph Michael Bush, Raleigh (Broughton) NC with 6'9 Jr Shavelik Randolph, Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH with 6'6 Soph LeBron James, Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY with 5'10 Frosh Sebastian Telfair, and Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL with 5'11 Soph T.J. Bannister and 6'3 Soph Dwan Youmans.  And the icing on the cake would be to get Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which should be the pre-season #1 ranked team in the nation next year, back to defend its championship. 

Saturday, December 23, 2000

Louisville (Male) KY beat Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 61-48, in the 3rd Place Game at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic, but 6'5 Larry O'Bannon, who had been sensational in his first three games, only scored five points and had five turnovers.  Instead, the big hero was 6'3 Soph Michael Bush, who finished with 21 points and eight rebounds.  Also really stepping up for Male with 19 points was 5'11 Jr Johnny Mathis, who until this game had been almost a non-factor in the tournament.  Dillard was led, as usual, by 6'5 Kelvin Brown with 15 points and eight rebounds, but the player we have to mention for Dillard is 6'2 Rodney Stone, who finished with 14 points and was one the most consistent players in the tournament.  Los Angeles (Westchester) CA and Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY will tipoff tonight at 9:00 PM in the Bank of America City of Palms Classic and we think Westchester should be a seven or eight point favorite, due to their overwhelming amount of talent and depth.  However, we're predicting that St. Raymond's will pull off the upset.  Not only is experience on their side, but they also have the best player in the tournament in 6'6 Julius Hodge.  And don't forget that Hodge and 6'4 Chris McRae were the heart and sole of an undermanned New York Ravens AAU Team that finished second last summer in the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, NV.  In other words, they've been in this position many times before, the helter-skelter tempo of the game will be too their liking, and they almost always risen to the occasion.  Most of the other major pre-Christmas tournaments around the nation are already over and, just as expected, Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA beat Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA in the Las Vegas Holiday Prep Classic and Louisville (Ballard) KY beat Marion (Tabor Academy) MA in the King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic in Louisville, KY.  One of the biggest shocks of the holiday tournament season came when we heard that New York (Rice) NY lost twice in the Rim Rattler Holiday Invitational in Long Beach, CA.  Instead, Lakewood (Mayfair) CA beat Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC. 

This is still subject to change, but our ranking of the top 15 players with only one more game to play at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, includes in order 6'6 Julius Hodge from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA, 6'4 Chris McRae from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'5 Larry O'Bannon from Louisville (Male) KY, 5'9 Cantrell Fletcher from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA, 6'3 Soph Michael Bush from Louisville (Male) KY,  6'6 Clark Williams from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA, 6'4 Jr Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'1 Chris Hernandez, Fresno (Clovis West) CA, 6'5 Kelvin Brown from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 6'3 Jr Brandon Heath from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'4 Jr Rashad Anderson from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL, 6'7 Victor Brown from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 6'9 Duane Erwin from Huntsville (Lee) AL, 6'0 Adrian Borders from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA.  Hodge, who is the leading scorer in the tournament, is in a class by himself.  Brown gets ranked second, but we almost have to do it under protest.  Despite the fact that Brown ranks among the top five in both scoring (24.3 ppg) and rebounding (10.0 rpg), he only had one game where he put out any effort.  Instead, the big story of the week were guys like McRae, O'Bannon, and Brown, who don't really have a true position.  But that doesn't mean they're won't be able to take their games to a higher level.  McRae is already a steal for Hofstra.   Likewise for Brown who recently verbally committed to South Florida.  O'Bannon appears to be waiting for Louisville or Kentucky to offer in the spring, but it isn't going to happen.  However, that doesn't mean other schools at that level shouldn't be taking a look.  And as long as we're talking about undersized players, our favorite player, as well as the best point guard in the entire tournament, is 5'9 Cantrell Fletcher from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA.  I still remember telling Allen Rubin, who is our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor, last December at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE that I thought Fletcher was a poor man's Andre Barrett.  But at the time he insisted that was ridiculous, because Fletcher's decision making isn't even close to that of Barrett's.   However, Fletcher's ability to score both inside and outside is a lot like Barrett, as is evident by the fact that he finished 6th in the tournament in scoring (19.5 ppg).   So is his willingness to compete.  As a matter of fact, throughout most of the tournament Fletcher was better on the boards than St. John Neumann's big man - 6'8 Brandon Brigman.  Brigman did finally redeemed himself in the 5th Place Game with 12 rebounds, which placed him 6th in rebounding in the tournament, but Fletcher also made the list of the 15 top rebounders in the tournament, averaging 4.8 rpg, plus he's ranked among the top 15 in both steals and assists. 

Our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio tells us that if he had to rank the top seniors in the city today, he would have 6'0 Darryl Hill from Bayside (Cardozo) NY and 6'4 Chris McRae from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY ranked #2 and #3 in the city behind 6'6 Julius Hodge from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY.  Previously 6'8 Kenny Adeleke from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY, 6'7 Wendall Gibson from Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY filled those spots, but I would know about McRae, because he's been one of the top five players here at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL and Naclerio should know about Hill, because he's Hill's high school coach.  As a matter of fact, Hill has been incredible in his last two high school games, as he had 50 points and hit an amazing 20-26 field goals, including 6-8 3-pointers, against Fresh Meadows (Francis Lewis) NY and 42 points, nine assists, and nine rebounds against Jamaica (August Martin) NY.  Currently Hofstra and Northeastern are the two favorites for Hill, who is averaging 30.9 ppg, 5.8 apg, 6.1 rpg, and has a 2 to 1 assist to turnover ration this seaon.  However, if they don't get it done soon, you can bet some bigger schools will enter the picture as the season progresses.  Naclario says that Hill has a lot of the same handling and shake-and-bake moves that Rafer Alston had in his game, although Hill is a better outside shooter.  However, he's not as naturally talented as Alston, who is now making a living playing for the Milwaukee Bucks.   And Hill isn't the only one of Naclerio's players that he's touting.  One for the future is 5'8 Frosh Duane Johnson from Bayside (Cardozo) NY.   "He's like a young Omar Cook," says Naclerio, who has also produced a number of outstanding players in recent years, including Duane Woodward, Brian Woodward, Charles Cranford, Royal Ivey, Abdou Sylla, and Melvin Robinson.   Duane Woodward was an All-Big East player at Boston College three years ago, while his younger brother was Rhode Island's best player before he got injured early this season.  Cranford is currently the leading scorer at Northeastern, Ivey has emerged as  the starting point guard at Texas, Sylla is one of the first players off the bench at Hofstra, and Robinson recently had a 24 point game for St. Peter's.  Also, another one of Naclerio's former players, David Duke, who is one of the bright young coaches in the business, is now an assistant at Hofstra.  Obviously this explains why Hofstra is one of the current favorites for Hill.

Lilburn (Berkmar) GA knocked off Huntsville (Lee) AL, 89-61, in the Consolation Championship and Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC upset Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA, 84-78, in the 5th Place Game earlier today at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic.  Especially impressive was 6'6 Clark Williams from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA, as he scored 31 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and continued to show that he is vastly underrated nationally.  Williams struggled last summer, but his numbers here - averaging 23.5 ppg, which ranks him #4 in the tournament, and 6.0 rpg, which ranks him tied for 8th in the tournament, helped him redeem himelf.  Williams is best in a system, because he doesn't have great speed and quickness, but he is an excellent 3-point shooter, as well as a good rebounder for his size.  As a result, he is one of the best players in the tournament.  He's also get top 100 consideration nationally, but he still needs to be careful to pick the right college program, because he could get lost in a more unstructured situation.  Also playing well and redeeming himself today for Berkmar was 6'4 Jr Wayne Arnold, who scored 22 points, as he connected on 5-11 3-pointers, and 6'5 Shawn Ikpa, who had 13 points and 13 rebounds.  Berkmar was ranked #5 nationally by the USA Today prior to the tournament, so it comes as no surprise that they coasted past Huntsville Lee.  However, 6'1 Jr Chadd Moore also had something to do with it as he went 0-7 from 3-point land and finished with only 14 points and two assists.  Instead, Huntsville Lee's best player was 6'9 Duane Erwin, who hit 6-8 of field goals, as he finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, and eight blocks.  Finally 6'8 Brandon Brigman stepped up for St. John Neumann with 24 points and 12 rebounds, but it wasn't enough, as Neumann's secret weapon - 5'9 Cantell Fletcher  - had a subpar afternoon as he only scored 13 points and was 4-12 from the field.  The best player for R.J. Reynolds was 6'4 Derrele Mitchell with 19 points. 

Friday, December 22, 2000

Didn't I say the other night that Los Angeles (Westchester) CA is the best team I've seen this year and that includes Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA?  Well, in their first two games of the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL against Ft. Myers (Cypress Lake) FL and Orlando (Edgewater) FL they were up against suspect competition and last night they allowed Lakeland (Kathleen) FL to hang around.  But tonight they jumped out to early 12-0 and led by as much as 22 points in the first half against an excellent Louisville Male team.  The game plan for Male was to control tempo, but the only points they seemed to be able to muster early were off alley-oop dunks, mostly by 6'5 Larry O'Bannon.   O'Bannon had 22 points, but the rest of Male's team seemed to be in shock, as Westchester led 50-32 at the half.  The pace of the game seemed like a 100 miles an hour, as Westchester was literally running them out of the gym.  And as usual, Westchester's scoring was extremely balanced, as nine players scored in the first half.  They also had nine steals, forced 16 turnovers, and were beating Male on the boards 18-12 at half-time.  However, all that change in the second half, as Male show why Kentucky team's (up until this game) were 15-1 in the City of Palms Classic during the last six years.  They made a 9-2 run to start the half and by the end of the third quarter had outscored Westchester 27-18.  Early in the 4th quarter Male cut the lead to one, but then Westchester regained their momentum and pulled out a 100-89 victory. As a result, we really do think they might be the best team in the nation, along with Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX. And Male deserves a lot of credit, because most teams would have given up and gone home at the half.  O'Bannon finished with 32 points, including 9-13 field goals and 14-14 free throws.  But even more important, O'Bannon elevated his game to another level, as he is still the second leading scorer (27.0 ppg) and fifth leading rebounder (7.0 rpg) in the tournament after four days.  He also even showed signs that he can keep you honest from beyond the arc, as he's hit 4-5 3-pointers this week.  As a result, he has to rank as one of the top three players in the tournament based on performance, along with 6'6 Julius Hodge from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY and 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA.  In other words, he's just to good not to move back into our top 100 nationally, despite the tweener tag.  6'3 Soph Michael Bush and 6'7 Jr Lavar Carter complemented O'Bannon with 18 points apiece for Male. The leading scorers for Westchester were 6'3 Jr Brandon Heath with 26 points, 6'4 Jr Hassan Adams with 17 points, and 6'2 Jr Ashanti Cook with 13 points and one of the big reasons why Westchester held on to their led was their foul shooting, as Adams was a perfect 11-11, Heath was 8-9, and Cook was 6-8 from the free throw line.  And as a team Westchester hit 37-44 free throws (84%) for the game.   Also scoring in double digits for Westchester were 6'8 Soph Trevor Ariza and 5'11 John Clemmons with 11 points apiece, while 6'7 Jr Brandon Bowman, who is a tremendous athlete with an incredible upside, chipped in with eight points.

If you told me that 6'5 Kelvin Brown only scored six points and fouled out of the game, then I would tell you that Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL would be in trouble, especially if they were playing against Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY in the semi-finals of the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  This was the case, as St. Raymond's handed Dillard a 59-45 loss earlier this evening.  However, it could have been worse, because 6'6 Julius Hodge from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY had a poor shooting night (for him), as he only hit 9-20 from the field and 3-8 from 3-point land.  Instead, his teammate, 6'4 Chris McRae, picked up the slack, especially early as he scored 12 of St. Raymond's first 14 points and had 17 of their 28 points at half-time.  Forget the tweener tag!   McRae, who was the leading rebounder in the tournament heading into today's game, simply reinforced everything we saw last summer.  Currently our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio has McRae ranked #5 in New York City behind Hodge, 6'8 Kenny Adeleke from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY, 6'7 Wendall Gibson from Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY, and 6'0 Darryl Hill from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, but on our national list the only NYC player ranked ahead of McRae, who checks in at #78 in the senior class, is Hodge.  McRae is a relentless competitor, great rebounder, and excellent defender.  In other words, he's a steal for Hofstra!   However, Hodge still was St. Raymond's leading scorer, as he finished with 25 points.  He also is still the leading scorer (31.3 ppg), leading field goal shooter (36 for 60 for 60%), and leading 3-pointer shooter (12 for 24 for 50%) in the tournament and had a lot to do with holding the entire Dillard team to 45 points.  As a matter of fact, only one Dillard player 6'2 Rodney Stone scored in double digits with 12 points.  McRae finished with 21 points and St. Raymond's moves into the finals against the winner of the Louisville (Male) KY-Los Angeles (Westchester) CA game, which will tip-off in half an hour.  Earlier today in the two 5th Place Bracket Games, 5'9 Cantrell Fletcher, who finished with 25 points, led Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA to a 58-56 victory over Lakeland (Kathleen) FL and Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) knocked off Fresno (Clovis West) CA, 61-60. 

Tonight at 7:20 PM EST it will be Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY versus Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL and at 10:PM it will be Louisville (Male) KY and Los Angeles (Westchester) CA in the semi-finals at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL. And it doesn't get much better than this, as St. Raymond's is ranked #4, Dillard is ranked #7, Male is ranked #8, and Westchester is ranked #15 nationally in the latest Fox Sports High School Poll.  However, you can forget the rankings, because on paper Westchester is by far and away the most talented team in the tournament, based on their depth and overwhelming amount of young talent.   But we're predicting an upset, because Male is extremely well coached and has the discipline necessary to take Westchester out of their game.  They also have two of the best players in the tournament in 6'5 Larry O'Bannon and 6'3 Soph Michael Bush.  But even that doesn't begin to describe the talent level at the City of Palms Classic this year, as nine of the 16 teams are ranked nationally among the Fox Sports Top 35.  Even further evidence was provided yesterday when Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL head coach Matt Hurting made the comment yesterday to the tournament director Donnie Wilkie about getting beat in the first round by the #4 ranked team in the nation by Fox Sports (St. Raymond's) and then having to play the #5 ranked team in the USA Today (Berkmar) the next day in a consolation game.  Speaking of Berkmar, earlier today they  beat Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA, 78-67, to advance into the finals of the consolation bracket against the winner the Huntsville (Lee) AL, which knocked off Ft. Myers (Cypress Lake) FL, 64-55.  In that first game today 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA had 25 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and seven steals, plus he hit 8-9 field goals and 9-11 free throws.  However, he didn't put forth the same effort he did yesterday, despite the fact that Florida head coach Billy Donovan and assistant coach John Pelphrey were both in attendance.  Getting back to Louisville (Male) KY, if the Bulldogs can pull off the upset tonight, they would extend the winning streak by teams from Kentucky in the tournament to 16 consecutive wins against non-Kentucky teams.  As a matter of fact, the last time a team from Kentucky lost a game in the tournament to a non-Kentucky team was in 1995 when Cape Coral (Mariner) FL knocked off Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 91-81, in the 5th Place Game.  In 1996 there were two eight teams fields, one of which was won by Lexington (Catholic) KY.  That started the streak at three.  In 1999 Georgetown (Scott County) KY beat Louisville (Ballard) KY in the championship game, so that extended the streak to nine.  Last year Ballard extended the streak to 13 by winning the tournament and so far this year, Male is 2-0 in the tournament.  

After the first three days and the first three games today at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL the leading scorer and the leading rebounder in the tournament are both from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY.   We're talking about 6'6 Julius Hodge, who is averaging 34.5 ppg, and 6'4 Chris McRae, who is average 12.0 rpg.  Hodge is tied for 10th in rebounding, with 6.0 rpg, is second is steals with 4.0 spg, and is shooting the lights out, as he's first in both field goal percentage (27-40 for .675) and 3-point field goal percentage (9-16 for .563).  Also ranked among the top 15 in scoring in order are 6'5 Larry O'Bannon from Louisville (Male) KY with 24.5 ppg, 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA with 24.3 ppg, 6'3 Soph Michael Bush from Louisville (Male) KY with 22.0 ppg, 6'6 Clark Williams from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA with 21.0 ppg, 6'7 Victor Brown from Orlando (Edgewater) FL with 20.5 ppg, 5'9 Cantrell Fletcher from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA with 20.0 ppg, 6'1 Jr Chadd Moore from Huntsville (Lee) AL with 18.7 ppg, 6'4 Jr Rashad Anderson from Lakeland (Kathleen) FLwith 18.5 ppg, 6'1 Chris Hernandez from Fresno (Clovis West) CA with 18.0 ppg, 6'4 Jr Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA with 17.7 ppg, 6'4 Soph Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 17.5 ppg, 6'0 Adrian Borders from Berkmar (Lilburn) GA with 17.3 ppg, 6'7 Jr Lavar Carter from Louisville (Male) KY with 16.0 ppg, 6'2 Mitchell Baldwin from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC with 15 ppg, 6'3 Jr Brandon Heath from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA with 13.7 ppg, and 6'5 Jr Keith Everage from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA with 13.7 ppg.  After McRae, the leading rebounders so far in the tournament are 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA with 10.0 rpg, 6'8 Jr Richard Young from Ft. Myers (Cypress Lake) FL with 10.0 rpg, 6'7 Victor Brown from Orlando (Edgewater) FL with 9.0 rpg, 6'5 Larry O'Bannon from Louisville (Male) KY with 8.0 rpg, 6'9 Soph Keith Foster from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC with 8.0 rpg, 6'3 Soph Nathan Holmes from Ft. Myers (Canterbury) FL with 7.5 rpg, 6'5 Jr Keith Everage from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA with 7.0 rpg, 6'6 Clark Williams from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA with 6'5 rpg, 6'6 Chris Burns from Orlando (Edgewater) FL with 6.5 rpg, and 6'9 Duane Erwin from Huntsville (Lee) AL with 6.3 rpg.

Yesterday's USA Today article Stormy Weather:   Players' Defiance Clouds NBA Leadership Picture by Greg Boeck is must reading for anybody interested in the problems facing basketball today.  It talks about the highly publicized incidents of player rebellion this season and draws the conclusion that "the inmates are taking over the asylum."  The trickle down effect is having a major effect on players at the high school level, because more often than not players don't play hard, they get too much notoriety and exposure too early, and they don't spend nearly enough time developing the skills necessary to excel at higher levels.  However, players today are bigger, stronger, faster, and more physically developed than they've ever been, which also is a problem, because it makes it harder than ever for coaches to motivate them and get their attention.  We could write volumes about the problems facing the game today, but we want to go into a different direction, because some players seem to be able to handle all the pressure and attention that goes with superstardome in this day and age.  We're talking about 6'2 Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ, who is so big, strong, and athletic that he's almost unstoppable when he wants to score at the high school level.  As a result, he ranks as our #1 senior in the nation and he'd be our choice above any of the current crop of college guards, if he decided to bypass college for the NBA draft next spring.   Not only has Wagner always lived up to all of the incredible expectations at every step so far in his career, but he almost always surpasses them.  This season appears to be no exception, as he already is well on his way towards breaking of the all-time New Jersey scoring record.  In his first three high school games of season he had 36 points versus Pennsauken (Bishop Eustace) NJ, 50 points versus Voorhees (Eastern) NJ, and 55 points versus Camden (Catholic) NJ.  That's an average of 47 ppg or 1,410 points this season alone, if he plays in the 30 games.  Right now the all-time leading scorer in New Jersey state history is John Somogyi from New Brunswick (St. Peter's) NJ, who scored 3,310 points from 1965-68, which was prior to the evolution of the 3-point shot.  To date Wagner has 2,371 points, but Camden only played in 17 league games when Wagner was a sophomore, due to his team's probation that resulted from a fight in the state championship game the previous year, and he was sidelined the first half of last season with a hand injury.  In other words, Wagner has missed almost a full season during his high school career, but four games into his senior year needs only 941 points to break the record.  That's only 37.7 ppg (assuming that Camden plays 30 games).   A year ago he averaged 31.8 ppg and 35.0 in the state playoffs. 

Thursday, December 21, 2000

Well, it looks like this is the day that the cream rises to the top of the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.   Not only did 6'10 Kwame Brown from Brunwick (Glynn Academy) GA put up big numbers earlier today (30 points, 17 rebounds, and three blocks), but 6'6 Julius Hodge from Bronx (St.  Raymond's) NY showed why he ranks as the #4 senior nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, as he did everything except sells tickets.  He finished with 38 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks, and three steals.  But that doesn't begin to tell the real story, as Hodge hit 16-19 field goals, 6-8 3-point field goals, and was the primary ball handler against the pressure applied by Fresno (Clovis West) CA.  Hodge also clearly establishes himself as the leading scorer in the tournament with with 32.5 ppg after two games, but what makes his potential truly scary is the fact that he's just turned 17 last month.  Tracy McGrady was stronger physically and more explosive at the same stage, but that's who Hodge reminds us of, because he has that same uncanny ability to find ways to score in traffic, plus Hodge is a much better outside shooter at the same stage.  As a matter of fact, Hodge is one of the best pure 3-point shooters in the class nationally.  In other words, when it is all said and done, Hodge may have as much natural talent and potential as anybody in the class.   Remember, Hodge isn't through growing and he's going to get a lot bigger and stronger (right now he only weighs 175 lbs.).  But what really makes Hodge such a terrific prospect is the fact that he's a tremendous competitor. And that's the big difference between the players in our top five nationally like 6'2 Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ, 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, 6'4 Kelvin Torbert from Flint (Northwestern) FL, and 6'2 Carlos Hurt from Louisville (Moore) KY, and the big guys in the class, like Brown, 6'11 Eddy Curry from South Holland (Thornwood) IL, and 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, who only come to play when they want to.  Also, unlike a lot of the players we just mentioned, Hodge have the time he needs to develop at the college level (with his lack of size there is no way he is going hardship to the NBA any time soon).  We're talking about the most important player N.C. State has signed since they landed David Thompson 30 years ago and a potential 10-year NBA All-Star.  However, he did have some help from 6'4 Chris McRae, who also had 17 points and 11 rebounds, as he and Hodge combined for 55 points and 21 rebounds.  St. Raymond's jumped out to a 25-15 first quarter lead and never looked back, as they led 49-34 at half time and coasted to a 94-81 win.  Making St. Raymond's even more of a lock to get the finals is the fact that 6'0 Jr Alan Ray, who had been sidelined previously this week with an ankle injury, played 13:04 minutes and scored six points in the third and fourth quarters. Clovis West was never really in the game, but 6'1 Chris Hernandez proved that he will be outstanding next year as Stanford's point guard, as he handled St. Raymond's relentless pressure.   Hernandez displayed a lot of poise, outstanding handling and passing skills, and excellent 3-point shooting range, as he scored 20 points and dished out four assists.   Also scoring 16 and 17 points apiece were 6'2 Tyrone Jackson and 6'4 Jr Nick Debban, but a big key was the fact that 6'2 Jason Walberg, who was only 1-6 from beyond the arc, got very few open looks. Earlier today Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL knocked off Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA in overtime, 54-52.  Once again the best player for Dillard was 6'5 Kelvin Brown, who apparently has verbally committed to South Florida.  Brown had 18 points, eight rebounds, and four assists.  Leading the late charge for St. John Neumann (they were down 41-33 at the end of three) was 5'9 Cantrell Fletcher, who scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half.  Also playing well defensively and scoring 15 points was 6'2 Robert Beattie-Taylor, but where was 6'8 Brandon Brigman?  Brigman always seems to be embarrassingly non-productive in the rebounding department and at the defensive end, but he also failed to score.  As a result, St. John Neumann will meet Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC at 3:00 PM tomorrow in a 5th Place Bracket game tomorrow.  On the other side of the winners bracket, Louisville (Male) KY and Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC were tied at the end of the first quarter, but Male coasted from there to a 71-52 victory.  The leading scorer for R.J. Reynolds was 6'1 Mitchell Baldwin (former Mitchell Bittle) with 13 points, but the player we liked the best was 6'9 Soph Keith Foster.  He only had three points, but he plays harder than most seniors, as he dominates the boards (eight rebounds) and mixes it up inside.  Male once again was led by 6'5 Larry O'Bannon, who finished 20 points, and 6'3 Soph Michael Bush, who had 21 points and was 9-14 from the field.  Also chipping in with 16 points and five rebounds for Male was 6'7 LaVar Carter, who was especially effective scoring inside against all of R.J. Reynolds' big guys - Foster, 6'9 Jason McDougald and 6'9 Soph Eddie Green.  As a matter of fact, field goal shooting was the big difference in the game, as Carter (8-10), O'Bannon (7-10), and Bush (9-14) were 24-34 from the field.  Also, Male shot  63% versus R. J. Reynolds 38.5% for the game.   The heavy favorite in the final game of the night will be Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, but if Lakeland (Kathleen) FL pulls off a major surprise, we'll let you know tonight, instead of tomorrow morning. 

He truly is the Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde of the class.  At the Boo Williams Invitational last April we thought 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA was one the leading candidates for National Player-of-the-Year honors and we even thought he might be better than 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, who at the time was the #1 ranked player on a number of national lists.  Then, at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions during Memorial Day Weekend, Brown scored only two points and was a total non-factor when we saw him with Georgia Stars.   However, he led his team all the way to the championship game against the Atlanta Celtics after we left.  He also took home tournament MVP honors while playing for the losing team in the title game, which is a strong statement in itself.  Then, he was a no-show again at the adidas ABDC Camp, as he scored in double digits only twice all week, averaged 4.0 rpg, and clearly was outplayed by 6'11 Eddy Curry from South Holland (Thornwood) IL in their head-to-head matchup.  However, Brown apparently played well a week later at the NIKE Peach Jam in Augusta, GA.   Then, he once again didn't show up yesterday, as his play was uninspired and lackadaisical.  But today all that seemed to change when University of Florida assistant coach John Pelphrey walked into the gym (Brown signed with the Gators this fall).  Brown had 30 points, 17 rebounds, and three blocks, but, even more important, the effort was there, as he impressed us with his incredible quickness, shot blocking ability, and offensive reportoire.  There is no doubt that he is the most skilled of the three when compared to Curry and Chandler, but he's also the most inconsistent.  As a matter of fact, we're thinking about naming an award after him, which would go to the most inconsistent player in future classes.  However, that doesn't mean we're ready to move Brown back into our top five nationally.  Remember, you have to play hard to be ranked in our top five, which explains why Curry and Chandler are currently ranked #6 and #7, respectively, nationally.  Brown's effort also proved to be important for his team today, as Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA knocked Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 75-61, in the second consolation game of the day.  Brown was complemented inside by 6'5 Alfred Smith with 14 points and five rebounds and 6'0 Patrick Kenty, who scored 18 points and ran the show.  The best player for Edgewater was 6'7 Victor Brown, but he wasn't nearly as good as he was last night, as he finished with only 11 points and three rebounds.  In the first consolation game earlier today Ft. Myers (Cypress Lake) FL beat Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, 74-45, and in the third consolation game today Lilburn (Berkmar) GA is up 20-3 at the end of the first quarter against Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL. 

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson wants to continue the discussion about 6'4 Antonio Falu fromSan Jacinto (JC) TX, who supposedly has verbally committed to Texas Christian.  If you will recall, Greg Swaim, the editor and publisher of http://www.GregSwaim.com, has reported that Falu's commitment to Valparaiso won't hold up, because he never mailed his signed National Letter-of-Intent to Valparaiso.  However, Johnson, who has done some additional research into this case, tells us that the faxed National Letter-of-Intent Falu sent to Valpo is binding.  According to Johnson, each conference can set their own standards with regards to how they accept their Letters-of-Intent and in Mid-Continent Conference a fax is acceptable.  If Johnson is correct, Falu will have to go to Valparaiso or sit out two years, because the Crusaders aren't planning on releasing him from his Letter-of-Intent.  However, if Swaim is correct, Falu would be free to sign with any Division I school in the spring.  All this is important, because if Falu is still bound to Valparaiso, any coach who recruits him could be accused of tampering.  But that doesn't mean that Falu isn't free to call schools and recruit them.  And knowing Falu, he probably will.  Speaking of players who may be transferring, it looks like 6'10 Marvin Stone may be leaving the University of Kentucky.  We don't know anything official, but we do know that Stone's AAU coach Mark Komora was in Lexington, KY yesterday and the word is that he was there to deal with Stone's situation.  Apparently Komora isn't very happy with Stone's development and playing time during the last year-and-a-half with the Wildcats.   Currently Auburn and UAB are both rumored as possibilities for Stone, but right now that's pure speculation.  It also looks like 6'4 Ronald Blackshear and 6'9 Carlton Aaron are both leaving Temple.  The word is that Blackshear will also likely end up Auburn. 

Wednesday, December 20, 2000

Three of the top juniors at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic are 6'4 Jr Antonio Lawrence from Jacksonville (Jackson) FL, 6'1 Jr Chadd Moore from Huntsville (Lee) AL, and 6'4 Jr Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA and in each case their list of schools was predictable.   Lawrence, who is ranked #7 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has Florida, Miami-FL, Kentucky, Cincinnati, St. John's, Texas Christian, and South Florida at the top of his list, but right now he's sideline with a broken hand and, as a result, won't play in this tournament.  Moore, who is ranked #6 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, is believed to destined to become an Auburn Tiger, but his mother told us earlier today that Indiana and North Carolina have been showing a lot of interest.  Adams, who currently is ranked as the #4 junior in California by the HOOP SCOOP and is one of the fastest rising juniors nationally, is getting the most early attention from California, Connecticut, and USC, but you can bet that list will get a lot longer before it gets shorter.  We're also looking forward to getting a list from another underclassmen - 6'3 Soph Michael Bush from Louisville (Male) KY - in the tournament tomorrow.  We know that both Louisville and Kentucky have recruiting him since 8th grade, but even more important right now is the fact that he has a chance to become the first player ever in the history of the state to play on both a state championship football team (Male won the state Class 4-A champion) and a state championship basketball team (currently Male is the #1 ranked basketball team in the state).  He also will probably be the best player in the state as a junior next year in both sports, so two years from now he also should be the heavy favorite to become the first player ever to win Mr. Basketball and Mr. Football in the state of Kentucky.  

Huntsville (Lee) AL beat Ft. Myers (Canterbury) FL, 76-41, in a consolation game and Los Angeles (Westchester) CA beat Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 108-82, in the first of the four remaining first round games earlier today at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.   In the first game 6'1 Jr Chadd Moore from Huntsville (Lee) AL turned in one the best performances so far in the tournament with 26 points, five assists, and four steals.  He also got free to hit 3-5 3-pointers.  Also worth mentioning for Huntsville Lee was 6'9 Duane Erwin, who finished with 15 points, five rebounds, and three assists.  Nobody stood out for Canterbury, but 6'1 Jr Sam Rosenberg finished with 10 points.  Los Angeles Westchester, which had to play an extra game last night, just picked up where they left off yesterday, as six players again finished in double digits and 11 different players scored.  However, that doesn't begin to tell the real story about Westchester's depth.  As a matter of fact, their second unit, which consists of 6'8 Soph Trevor Ariza (10 points), 6'7 Jr Brandon Bowman (10 points), 6'5 Soph Scott Cutley (2 points), 5'11 John Clemmons (six points), and 6'5  Jr Brice Buchanan (14 points), got almost as much production as the first unit.   Their star today was 6'4 Jr Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, who was unstoppable slashing to the basket and from beyond the arc (3-4 3-pointers), as he finished with 24 points.  Currently he ranks #4 in California by the HOOP SCOOP, but after watching him in his first two games at the City of Palms Classic, our guess is that he will move up to #3 behind 6'7 Evans Burns from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA and 6'9 DeAngelo Collins from Inglewood (H.S.) CA.  And if he continues to play as well as he did today, he also will likely move into the top 30 nationally in his class.  Also playing well were 6'3 Jr Brandon Heath, who chipped in with 18 points, and 6'5 Jr Keith Everage, who had 10 points and nine rebounds.  We were hoping that 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA would redeem himself after his miserable performance last summer at the adidas ABCD Camp (that's the last time we've seen him), but it wasn't meant to be as he finished with a quiet 18 points and six rebounds in a 65-52 loss to Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL.  He did show one great move, as he drove along the baseline late in the game for a spectacular dunk, but his lack of effort is frustrating to watch, because is so big, so skilled, and so talented.  Will the light ever click on?  We hope so, but we're cautiously optimistic.  Are Tim Thomas comparisons in order?  Remember, Thomas had all the talent in the world, but playing hard has never been something that was in his vocabulary.  We also have some of the same questions about 6'9 Steve Allen from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, but he actually was tougher inside (he had five fouls versus Brown's two), even though his numbers (eight points and four rebounds) weren't very impressive.  Instead, the star for Dillard was 6'4 Kelvin Brown, who is one of the top unsigned seniors still available in the tournament.  Brown finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds, but his outside shooting (0-2 from beyond the arc) remains a question mark.  However, his athleticism and ability to slash to the basket should be enough to get him a high Division I offer.  Bronx (St Raymond's) NY was expected to have an easy time with Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL, but the Ravens were missing their star point guard - 6'0 Jr Alan Ray, who is out with a sprained ankle, and Bishop Verot did a good job of controlling tempo early.  As a matter of fact, the entire first half has been a war and at half-time St. Raymond's, which currently is ranked #12 nationally by the USA Today, was only up 26-24.   However, in the third quarter St. Raymond's outscored Bishop Verot 19-10, as they coasted to 65-47 victory.  It also should come as no surprise that 6'6 Julius Hodge's performance in this game was the most dominant so far in the tournament.  He had 27 points, two blocks, five steals, and was pretty much unstoppable when he wanted to score.  As usual, Hofstra-bound 6'4 Chris McRae, who finished with 15 points and 13 rebounds, did most of the dirty work inside and 6'0 Anthony Epps provided solid play on the perimeter.  A big key to the game was St. Raymond's ability to shut down Bishop Verot's big man in the second half.  We're talking about 6'8 Kevin Krieg, who had 10 of his team's 24 points before the break.  However, in the second half he was held to only two points.  In the final game of the night Lakeland (Kathleen) FL upset Lilburn (Berkmar) GA, which was ranked #5 nationally in USA Today, 71-69.  Actually, after their performance tonight, we're not sure that Berkmar is one of the top five teams in this tournament. A quick look at the shooting percentages tells why.  Kathleen shot 60% for the game, while Berkmar only hit 39%, including only 4-19 from the 3-point land.  The two leading scorers in the game were Berkmar's were 6'6 Clark Williams, who finished 22 points and 11 rebounds, and 6'0 Adrian Borders, who had 20 points, but 6'4 Jr Wayne Arnold was only 3-13, including only 1-9 from beyond the arc, and Southern Miss-bound 6'0 James Patiman was a non-factor as he had only two points, two turnovers, and no assists.  Instead, the best player in the game was 6'4 Jr Rashad Anderson, who finished with 19 points for Kathleen.  We also were impressed with two of Kathleen's other juniors - 6'7 Jr Jerron McCiskell and 6'5 Jr Julius McClellan - both of whom took care of business inside, as they combined for 23 points and 12 rebounds. Tomorrow we move into the quarterfinals of the winner's bracket, as Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL meets Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA at 3:15 PM, Fresno (Clovis West) CA faces Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY at 5:00 PM, Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC plays Louisville (Male) KY at 7:20 PM, and Los Angeles (Westchester) CA takes on Lakeland (Kathleen) FL 10 PM.  The first three games all promise to be great matchups, but we don't think Westchester will have any problem with Kathleen.  After watching them the last two days, there is no question this is the best team in the tournament and, if they continue on their present pace, they may get our vote as the best high school team in the nation.  Also, tomorrow in the Consolation Bracket it will be Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL versus Ft. Myers (Cypress Lake) FL at 9:45 AM, Orlando (Edgewater) FL versus Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA at 11:30 AM, and Lilburn (Berkmar) GA versus Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL at 1:15 PM. 

Several days ago we talked about how the top conferences stack up in terms of talent average per recruit, but now we're ready to look at a number of Different Ways to Look at Recruiting in our just published 11-page report.  We start with our list of teams with the highest talent rating average per recruit and it comes as no surprise that Florida, which has three outstanding players in their recruiting class in 6'8 David Lee from St. Louis (Chaminade) MO, 6'7 James White from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, and 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA, is at the top of the list.  However, the Gators finish ranked second behind Memphis on our list of who signed the best two players and best three players.  As a matter of fact, first-year head coach John Calipari's recruiting class includes both the best high school player in the nation in 6'2 Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ and the best junior college player in the nation in 6'8 Chris Massey from Oxnard (JC) CA.    Both may ending up putting their names into the NBA draft next spring, but if they don't, Memphis should be one of the premier team's in college basketball next year.    However, Memphis drops to second when we look at the top four recruits from both this year and last year combined.  As a matter of fact, Michigan State is the first team in memory to get a perfect score of 40 points in this department.  If you will recall, a year ago the Spartans signed two top five players in Zach Randolph from Marion (H.S.) IN and 6'1 Marcus Taylor from Lansing (Waverly) MI and this fall they landed another top five player in 6'4 Kelvin Torbert from Flint (Northwestern) MI and a player in the 11-40 range in 6'6 Alan Anderson from Minneapolis (DeLaSalle) MN.  The catch is that we regard Randolph as a superstar, so he gets 12 points, instead of the normal 10 points assigned to a top five player nationally.  So 12+10+10+8=40 points.  Memphis does finish second ahead of Seton Hall, Florida, and DePaul in this very important area.  We say that, because, unlike in football, where it takes several years to build a program, you can sign four great players and get real good real fast.  We also take a look at how many top 100 seniors nationally or the equivalent in junior college or prep school signed with each conference.  The Conference that did the best was the Atlantic Coast with 19 top 100 signees.  Sometimes quantity doesn't always equal quality, but in this case it does, because after we assign each top 100 player a ranking on our 1-10 scale and add up the points, the ACC still wins.  All this comes on the heels of our 16-page list of all the Signings & Commitments from the Fall Signing Period, our nine-page list Ranking the 140 Top Recruiting Classes, and our 19-page Conference By Conference Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes.   We would offer to sell it to you in printed form.  But you have a computer, so we encourage you to print all 55-pages that we've published this fall for your personal use.    In other words, we're done with recruiting for this fall and just in time, because tomorrow morning we're heading to the KMOX Shootout in St. Louis, MO, where we will see the big matchup tomorrow night at 9:00 PM between 6'11 Eddy Curry from Thornwood (South Holland) IL and 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA.  Nearly every NBA team will have a scout in attendance, so a great performance by either player could be the determining factor in who goes higher in the draft next spring.  Remember, both players think it is their birth right to go straight to the league right out of high school.  Wouldn't it be embarrassing if Curry and Chandler leave their intensity and effort at home tomorrow night? Well, they'll probably both a least show flashes, but the smart money will be on Curry, because he's physically so much bigger and stronger than Chandler.  Which brings us to our next point.  Can Chandler loss the matchup tomorrow night against Curry and then get embarrassed again after Christmas at Slam Dunk to the Beach and remain in anybody's top top five nationally, much less be a lottery pick in the NBA draft next June?    The other big game of the day will feature #1 ranked Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA versus Chicago (Whitney Young) IL at 6:00 PM.  Then,  the local folks will get a chance to see 6'8 David Lee, who ranks among our top 10 seniors nationally, as St. Louis (Chaminade) MO  meets Centralia (H.S.) IL at 7:30.    Earlier in the day it will be Belleville (West) IL versus Hazelwood (Central) MO at 11:45 AM, Pleasant Plains (H.S.) IL versus Columbia (H.S.) IL at 1:15 PM, Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ versus Mount Zion (H.S.) IL at 2:45 PM, and St. Louis (Beaumont) MO versus Leavenworth (H.S.) KS at 4:30 PM. 

Tuesday, December 5, 2000

Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis provides evidence that miracles do happen.  Yes, 6'10 Tony Key is eligible and playing this season at Compton (Centennial) CA.  If you will recall, Key led Russellville (H.S.) KY to the final four of the Kentucky State Tournament last spring, but then transferred last summer to Durham (Emmanual) NC.  But that basketball factory in North Carolina closed in October.  So Key had to quickly find a school that would make him immediately eligible.  However, that doesn't mean Key started off with a bang.  He did have a double-double last night against San Bernandino (Cajon) CA, but he obviously needs to get a few more games under his belt before he lives up to his hype as one of the top available big guys in the nation.  Centennial eventually did pull away en route to a double digit victory, but the other new faces for Centennial - 6'6 Antonio Griffin, who transferred to Centennial from Tempe (McClintock) AZ, and 5'11 Frosh Gabriel Pruitt, who is ranked as the #2 freshman in the state by the HOOP SCOOP, were the guys who really stepped up.  Speaking of great young players in Southern California, Trigonis tells us that the Shane Battier comparisons for 6'9 Soph Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who ranks among the top five sophomores nationally, have already began.  "It's appears to be a two-horse race between Stanford and Duke," says Trigonis.  "And just like Battier, Schaen is a better person than he is a basketball player."  That's a pretty strong statement when one remembers that Battier is the consensus leading candidate for National College Player-of-the-Year Honors.  Trigonis also tells us that Upland (H.S.) CA, which features Oregon-bound 6'6 Kirk Snyder, pulled off a stunning 30-point upset against Compton (Dominguez) CA over the weekend in the Clovis West Tournament in Fresno, CA.  Clovis West didn't have 6'7 Jr Charlie Rodriguez, who apparently is still stuck in the Dominican Republic, but the host school still won the tournament, as they beat Upland by five points in the championship game.  And we'll get a chance to see both of these teams, along with Compton (Dominguez) CA, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, Santa Monica (Crossroads) CA, Los Angeles (Fremont) CA, Torrance (Bishop Montgomery) CA, Lakewood (Mayfair) CA, Fontana (H.S.) CA, Corona (Centennial) CA, and Inglewood (H.S.) CA, in the Dream Classic on January 15th.  Originally this outstanding single-day event was scheduled to be played at the Pyramid at Long Beach State University in Long Beach, CA, but now it looks like it will be held at Lynwood High School in Lynwood, CA.

What ever happened to the Recruiting Beat?   Well, I talked with Steve Richardson, who is the Washington, DC Editor for the Recruiting Beat, last night and he isn't sure either.   Apparently Recruiting Beat Editor and Publisher Patrick Jira, who is now is 18-years-old, enrolled in a junior college this fall and hasn't been heard from since.  Hopefully we'll find out more about Jira at the Bank of America City of Palms Classic in a couple of weeks, but we do know that Richardson hasn't missed a beat in DC.  As a matter of fact, the reason he called last night was to tip us off about 6'2 Soph Earl Rigsby from Washington (Gonzaga) DC.  Apparently Rigsby is thinking about transferring to New Hampton (Prep) NH and it may happen sooner than later.  We also have important information from the top guru in Canada - Ro Russell, who will be launching his own web site this Friday at http://www.hoopscanada.com.  Russell tells us that 6'1 Kyle Wilson from White Rock (Christian) BC has verbally committed to Villanova.  Originally we thought Wilson, who had 28 points and 10 assists versus Olympia (Capital) WA and UCLA-bound 6'11 Mike Frey last week, would attend high school for another year, because he's so young for his class.  But now it appears that he will count with this year's recruiting class.  Russell also confirms that another Canadian player - 6'9 Terry Licorish from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC - is still available.   Apparently several people in the local media jumped the gun and led many of the local folks to believe that Licorish had verbally committed to Louisville.  However, it didn't happen.  Louisville is the heavy favorite, but he hasn't made it academically yet and, as a result, Louisville can't afford to offer him the scholarship, because tehy only have two remaining scholarships and they have to sign two players who can step in and make an immediate impact next spring.  If you will recall, Licorish also told us a month ago that he still wants to take some more visits to places like Clemson and USC.

Our Ranking of the 140 Top Recruiting Classes and our Conference By Conference Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes   from the fall signing period are finished and I'm fighting the clock to finish our Different Ways to Look at Recruiting Section, as well as our New York City and Texas Reports, before things get crazy with non-stop high school basketball the rest of the month.   So I am not going to even consider adding any late additions (i.e. Columbia's four recruits).  And it's too bad that we didn't know before now that 6'3 Jeremiah Boswell from Jasper (Pickens County) GA, 6'4 Tito Hill from Boca Raton (St. Andrews) FL, 6'5 Colin Davis from Green Bay (Notre Dame) WI, and 6'10 Dave Bizgia from Plainview (John F. Kennedy) NY all had committed to Columbia this fall.  If we had, that would have moved their recruiting class into the #2 spot in the Ivy League behind Yale and ahead of Princeton.  It also would have moved Columbia into a tie at #123 with Northwestern State on our list of the Top 140 Recruiting Classes and would have moved the Ivy League up from #23 to #20 in our Conference By Conference Rankings.  However, this will be reflected in our list signings list, which you can get by clicking on National Commitments and they will be included in our final recruiting class rankings next spring.

Monday, December 4, 2000

Yesterday our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin and our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz were at the Keystone Roundball Classic in Lebanon, PA, so they both got a chance to see one of the top young teams in America - Jacksonville (Arlington County Day) FL.  As a matter of fact, Arlington Country Day, thanks primarily to the efforts of 5'11 Soph T.J. Bannister and 6'4 Soph Dwan Youmans, beat Fairfax (Paul VI) VA, 60-52, in the championship game.  Bannister took home tournament MVP honors and Youmans was especially impressive in the semi-finals when he hit 10-13 field goals, but the most intriguing player in the entire tournament was 7'0 Jason Bennett.  Bennett didn't even get to play until late in the championship game, but we're talking about a 13-year old 7th grader.  The other big story occurred when Fairfax (Paul VI) VA upset Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 52-45, in the semi-finals on Saturday.  Stanford-bound 6'9 Robert Little had 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Paul VI, but the egg laid by 6'6 Jr Matt Walsh, who had 3-17 field goals, 1-7 3-pointers, nine points, and four turnovers, proved to be the key to the game.  However, Walsh redeemed himself in the third place game, as Germantown Academy beat Harrisburg (H.S.) PA, 76-64.  After a slow start (only two points and 1-8 field goals in the first half), Walsh reverted to his old self as he hit 8-13 field goals in the second half and finished with 26 points for the game.  Walsh also had 36 points on Friday night, which explains why he was named to the all-tournament team, along with Bannister, Youmans, Little, 6'7 Jr Lee Melchionni from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'7 Anthony Thompson from Harrisburg (H.S.) PA, and 5'9 Cantrell Fletcher from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA.  Speaking of Fletcher, he played great in the 5th place against Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, as he scored with 26 points and was far superior to his teammate- 6'8 Brandon Brigman, who scored only nine points in the 5th place game. 

Anybody can come up with a list of the top recruiting classes nationally, but for a number of years we've also provided a Conference-by-Conference Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes and during each of the last three years we've archived all this under Top Recruiting by Year.  As a result, we can make all kind of comparisons, as well as track the history of all the players signed by any given conference in recent years.   At first glance the big winner appears to be Conference USA, which edges out both the Atlantic Coast and Southeastern Conferences by eight points and features the #1 and #2 ranked recruiting classes in Memphis and DePaul.  However, you may not agree when you take a closer look.  Conference USA finished with 159 points, 34 recruits, and 4.7 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, while the Atlantic Coast Conference finished with 151 points, 28 recruits, and 5.4 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit and the Southeastern Conference finished with 151 roints, 29 recruits, and a 5.2 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  To arrive at these numbers we first assigned each player a talent rating on a scale of 1-10 and then arrived at cumulative total for each team.  Then, we came up with a cumulative total for each team within all 32 Division I Conferences (independents are included together as if they were a conference) and we've laid it all out in our 19-page report, which is available by clicking on Conference By Conference. 

Saturday, December 2, 2000, and Sunday, December 3, 2000

Our Final Ranking of the Top 140 Recruiting Classes From The Fall Signing Period has been completed and the top two recruiting classes (Memphis and DePaul) both belong to schools from Conference USA.  The Pacific-10 Conference with UCLA and Arizona and the Southeastern Conference with Auburn and Florida also landed two teams among the top 10 recruiting classes, but if you go a little deeper you will find that big recruiting winner is really the Atlantic Coast Conference, which has five teams (Virginia, Clemson, N.C. State, North Carolina, and Georgia Tech) ranked among our top 25 recruiting classes).  Let's take a closer look.   Memphis heads the list, followed by 2) DePaul, 3) Missouri, 4) UCLA, 4) Auburn, 6) Florida, 7) Kansas, 7) Virginia, 9) Minnesota, 9) Arizona, 11) Alabama, 12) Syracuse, 13) Clemson, 13) Michigan, 15) Michigan State, 16) N.C. State, 17) North Carolina, 17) California, 19) Georgia Tech, 19) Florida International, 21) Louisville, 22) Washington, 23) UNLV, 23) Ohio State, 23) LSU, 23) West Virginia, 27) Southern California, 28) Louisiana Tech, 29) Kansas State, 30) New Mexico State, 31) Stanford, 32) Baylor, 32) Iowa State, 34) Rhode Island, 35) Marquette, 35) Kentucky, 35) Purdue, 38) Georgetown, 39) Colorado State, 40) Maryland, 41) Southern Mississippi, 41) Utah State, 43) Northeastern, 44) Texas, 44) Valparaiso, 46) Rutgers, 46) Mississippi State, 48) Penn State, 48) Texas Christian, 50) San Jose State, 51) Seton Hall, 51) Florida State, 51) Wake Forest, 54) Boston College, 54) Saint Louis, 54) Notre Dame, 54) Iowa, 58) Massachusetts, 58) Utah, 58) Wisconsin, 58) Xavier, 62) Western Michigan, 62) SMU, 64) Providence, 64) Arizona State, 64) George Mason, 64) Connecticut, 68) Oregon State, 68) South Florida, 68) St. Joseph's, 68) San Diego, 68) George Washington, 68) Georgia, 74) Nebraska, 75) Cincinnati, 75) Duke, 75) Fresno State, 78) Iona, 78) Villanov, 78) New Mexico, 81) Eastern Michigan, 82) UTEP, 82) Indiana State, 82) Santa Clara, 82) Jacksonville State, 86) Loyola-Maryland, 87) Illinois, 87) Hofstra, 87) Temple, 87) Oklahoma, 91) Yale, 91) St. Francis-PA, 91) Siena, 91) Old Dominion, 91) Gonzaga, 91) Long Beach State, 91) Boise State, 91) Akron, 91) Wichita State, 91) Eastern Washington, 91) North Texas, 102) Liberty, 103) Miami-FL, 104) Miami-OH, 104) Vanderbilt, 104) Tennessee, 104) Tulane, 104) Texas Tech, 104) St. Bonaventure, 104) Bradley, 104) Indiana, 104) Wyoming, 104) Central Connecticut State, 113) Loyola-Chicago, 113) Houston,  113) Denver, 113) Drexel, 113) Holy Cross, 113) Eastern Michigan, 113) Western Carolina, 113) Youngstown State, 113) Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 123) Northwestern State, 124) American University, 124) Cleveland State, 124) Delaware, 124) Hartford, 124) Loyola-Marymount, 124) Marshall, 124) Maryland-Baltimore County, 124) Mississippi, 124), Montana State, 124) Morehead State, 124) Princeton, 124) Rice, 124) Richmond, 124) Toledo, 124) Tulsa, 124) William & Mary, and 140) San Francisco.   To get the complete list of recruits for each team, plus the total number of points for each team, the number of players signed by each team, each team's talent rating average per recruit, and the conference to which each team currently belongs, click on Top 140 Recruiting Classes.

Friday, December 1, 2000

Not only was the National Prep School Invitational Tournament one of the best events of the entire year a year ago, but it also was one of the most important, because it offered us a chance to see most the top prep school players with their team in late season form.  And it looks like tournament director Mike Procopio has an even better field lined up this year, as is evident by the fact that we list this as one of the top 10 events of the entire year.  Just take a look for yourself, as the field includes Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, Worcester (Academy) MA, Winchendon (School) Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, New Hampton (Prep) NH, Pittsfield (Maine Central (Institute) ME, Milford (Academy) CT, Dobbs Ferry (The Masters) NY, Salisbury (School) CT, Marion (Tabor Academy) MA, Springfield (McDuffie) MA, North Andover (Proctor Academy) NH, Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, Berkshire (Academy) CT, North Bridgton (Bridgton) ME, and Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT.  The only problem with the National Prep School Invitational Tournament a year ago was trying to figure out where to park around Boston University, but it looks like Procopio has solved that problem as well, because he's moving this great event from Boston University to Worcester Academy this year.  The dates are February 9th-11th and we plan to be there the first two days.   Speaking of prep schools, all the rumors about Milford (Academy) CT being closed are true.  However, our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio tells us that this is only temporary.  Apparently players on the football team destroyed the dorms several weeks ago and, as a result, he fire marshall stepped in and declared the place unsafe.  Stay tuned!

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that there are two important events this weekend in the Buckeye State.  Tomorrow night Jerry Watson's Ohio Slam-N-Jam Hoop Festival will be held at Whitehall-Yearling High School in Whitehall, OH.  The first game at 7:00 PM will feature Columbus (East) OH versus Cincinnati (Withrow) OH.   In other words, the top two unsigned players in the state in 6'3 Tihon Johnson and 6'7 John Myles, both from Columbus (East) OH, will be matched up against Withrow's 6'8 Pierre Darden and 6'7 Jr Shawn Simpson.  The second game at 9:00 PM will feature Columbus (Brookhaven) OH, which is predominately a junior team with 6'3 Jr Raheem Moss, 6'7 Jr Anthony Murphy, 6'3 Jr Ron Lewis, and 6'0 Jr Dante Patterson, versus Cincinnati (Western Hills) OH, versus Cincinnati Western Hills, which is one of the top two or three teams in the state with 6'6 Danny Horace, 6'5 Darryl Peterson, and 5'9 Malcolm Andrews.  Then, on Sunday afternoon our old friend Jack Miller has put together the USA Challenge of Champions at Akron J.A.R. Arena at the University of Akron.  The first game, which will be at 2:00 PM, has Akron (Buchtel) OH versus St. Louis (Vashon) OH.  The second game at 4:00 PM has Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH versus Virginia Beach (Cape Henry) VA and that promises to be the highlight of the day, because St. Vincent-St Mary's 6'6 Soph LeBron James is the consensus #1 sophomore in the nation.   Johnson also provides a sneak preview of the National Hoops Classic, which will be held at Batelle Hall at the Greater Columbus Convention Center on Saturday, January 13, 2000.  The first game at 9:00 AM has Huntington (Ross) OH versus Wheeling (Wheeling Park) WV.  Then, at 10:45 AM it will be Wellston (H.S.) OH versus Durham (Bonner) NC, followed by Logan (H.S.) OH versus Lima (Senior) OH at 12:30 PM, Zanesville (H.S.) OH versus Brentwood (Academy) TN at 2:15 PM, Chesapeake (H.S.) OH versus Toronto (Runnymeade) ON at 4:00 PM, Canton (McKinley) OH versus Kettering (Alter) OH at 5:45 PM, Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH versus Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA at 7:30 PM, and Reynoldsburg (H.S.) OH versus Pickerington (H.S.) OH at 9:15 PM.  

---

To Return today's Hot Recruiting Information Page click on Today