TODAY'S HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION

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Friday, April 29, 2005, & Saturday, April 30, 2005

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that 6'4 Jr David Lighty from Cleveland (St. Joseph) OH has made an early verbal commitment to Ohio State and this is absolute huge for a number of reasons.  First, Light is ranked #36 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, which means the Buckeyes now already have the #1 and #2 ranked players in the state in the fold.  If you will recall, a month ago the Ohio State also got an early verbal commitment from 6'4 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH, who is ranked #6 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  Second, Lighty, who is ranked #36 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, is pretty good in his own right, as has he does everything well, including shoot, handle, pass, have great court awareness, play hard, rebound well for his size, and have a high basketball IQ.  Third, the addition of Lighty moves Ohio State's recruiting class up to #1 on our list of the on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2006, ahead of Stanford, Oklahoma, Kansas State, and California, all of which already have early verbal commitments from two players in the junior class.  Fourth, getting Lighty a week before for 7'0 Jr Greg Oden from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, 6'0 Jr Michael Conley from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, and possibly 6'8 Jr Thaddeus Young from Memphis (Mitchell) TN are all supposed to be make official visits to Columbus, OH may give the Buckeyes the momentum that they need to keep up with Duke and North Carolina, which also are expected to clean up with a number of the top players in the junior class.  If you will call, the Blue Devils are the favorite for 6'8 Jr Lance Thomas from Elizabeth (St. Benedict's) NJ,6'6 Jr Jonathan Scheyer from Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL, 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, and 7'0 Jr Brian Zoubek from Haddonfield (Memorial) NJ and they also are one of the teams to beat for 6'10 Jr Brandan Wright from Brentwood (Academy) TN.  And the Tar Heels could conceivably have an even better recruiting class, as they are the leader for 6'10 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, and 6'0 Jr Tywon Lawson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and one of the favorites for Wright, Young, and 6'0 Jr Darryl Augustine from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA.  And, when Cook verbally committed to the Buckeyes, we think that made Ohio State the team to beat for Oden and Conley.  Remember, they (Oden, Conley, and Cook) all play for the Spiece Indy Heat club team, are extremely close friends, and have expressed an interest in attending the same school together.  Speaking of the Spiece Indy Heat, this is one of the only top club teams in the nation that we have yet to see this spring.  However, that will change tonight when we get to the 2005 Spiece Run'N Slam in Ft. Wayne, IN.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that the Spiece Indy Heat and the D-1 Greyhounds have the potential to meet in the championship game on Sunday afternoon at 5:00 PM on Court #1, because they are in opposite brackets of in 2005 Spiece Run'N Slam.  And they're not the only teams in the Seniors-To-be Division that we're looking forward to seeing, as Pool 1 has the Minnesota Magic Elite, L.A. Rockfish, Spiece Indy Heat, and New Hampshire Players; Pool 2 has the D-1 Greyhounds, Nashville Stallions, DTA Wisconsin, and Grand Rapids Lightning; Pool 3 has Blessed IJN Gold, Arkansas Hawks, All Ohio Red, and St. Louis Gameface; Pool 4 has the Randolph Boys Club, Philly MJC, Seattle Rotary Select I, and SYF Players; Pool 5 has Spiece ECI Elite, Inner City Players, Cincy AAU Black, and Illinois Fire; Pool 6 has Cincy AAU Red, Blessed IJN Purple, Ferrari Youth Basketball, and Michigan Hurricanes; Pool 7 has the Toledo Stars, MVP Fastbreak, St. Louis Falcons, and SYF Brotherhood; Pool 8 has The Family, Wisconsin Swing Black, No Excuses, and Ohio Storm; Pool 9 has the KY Hoop Stars Elite Blue, Iowa Magic, Grand Rapids Storm, and Gateway Basketball Club; Pool 10 has the Spiece NW Indiana Alliance, Wisconsin Swing Red, Waterloo Wildhawks, and Mean Street; Pool 11 has the Wisconsin Force, Spiece Dayton Airmen, Illinois Patriots, and Salt Lake Metro; and Pool 12 has Blessed IJN Elite, All Ohio White, Illinois Wolves, and Camp Darryl 2006; Pool 13 has Indy Metros, Majestic Stables, Prime Time, and Cincinnati Royals; Pool 14 has King James Shooting Stars, Full Package Athletics, West Michigan Lakers, and Northwest Ohio Basketball; Pool 15 has the Cincy AAU White, Martin Brothers Select, Michigan Mustangs, and Team Ohio Wildcats; and Pool 16 has the Central Valley Hoops, Cincinnati Cowboys, Fort Wayne Select, and Indy Hoopsters.  And, if you want to see 6'5 Soph O.J. Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH and 6'5 Soph Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, who are the #1 and #2-ranked sophomores in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, you can do so tonight at 8:30 PM on Court #2 in the Spiece Fieldhouse when the D-1 Greyhounds meet the Grand Rapids Lightning.  And, right after that at 10:00 PM, the Indy Spiece heat with Oden, Conley, Cook, 6'3 Jr Eric Gordon from Indianapolis (North Central) IN, and 6'8 Jr Aaron Pogue from Dayton (Dunbar) OH will play the New Hampshire Players on Court #1 in the Spiece Fieldhouse.  Then, tomorrow we'll see the rest of the games in pool play, which begins at 8:00 AM and runs through 3:30 PM, and the first two rounds of the playoffs, which will be at 5:00 PM, 6:30 PM, and 9:30 PM.  And things should really get interesting on Sunday with the Round of 16 at 8:00 AM, the quarterfinals at 11:00 AM, the semi-finals at 2:00 PM, and the Championship at 5:00 PM.  However, before we take off for Ft. Wayne, IN, we also need to mention that the University of Louisivlle head coach Rick Pitino has hired UNLV assistant coach Marvin Menzies and that Louisville administrative assistant coach Scott Davenport has taken the head coaching position at Bellarmine University, which is a Division II school in Louisville, KY.  And, in both cases, it looks like we were right on the money, because we've been mentioning Davenport's name for the Bellarmine job for several months and Menzies for the Louisville job for weeks.  As a matter of fact, we were at least a week ahead of everybody else on this story.  We also think both are great hires, because Davenport, who also used to be one of the top high school coach in state at Louisville (Ballard) KY back in the days of Allan Houston and Dejuan Wheat, is a terrfic X's and O's guy, and Menzies, who has more than his share of connections on the West Coast, was exactly what Pitino wanted for recruiting purposes.  And now that Menzies has left UNLV, the Runnin' Rebels will need somebody with plenty of West Coast connections of his own to keep the pipeline going.  How about Cal State-Fullerton assistant coach Jason Levy, who not only recruited most of the players on a team that finished 21-11 overall and 12-6 in the Big West Conference this past season, but also has a recruiting class that is currently ranked #2 in the league and includes 6'4 Jerard Moret from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'7 Jarrel Lake from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'8 Gary Nunez from Ventura (JC) CA, 6'10 Manuel Montano from Palomar (JC) CA, 6'9 Chris Minardo from Citrus (JC) CA, and 6'9 Brian Marks from Las Vegas (Palo Verde) NV?  Levy also is loyal, hardworking, smart, and has a great future.  As a matter of fact, the only negative thing that I can say about levy is that he doesn't subscribe to the Members Section.  Did you know there is usually a direct correlation between schools that subscribe and school that are getting it done?  However, in Levy's case, he has a good excuse, because Cal-State doesn't have much of a recruiting budget and he already knows who most the players are on the West Coast anyway.  We also suspect that Manhattan assistant coach Steve Masiello will move into Davenport's old spot and become the heir apparent to Kevin Willard, who is now the associate head coach Louisville and in only a matter of time will get a good mid-level head coaching job.  Our Canadian Editor Ro Russell tells us that 6'9 Theo Davis from Toronto, ON, who is ranked #22 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has made it official for Iowa State.  Russell also makes it clear that this is really it for Davis, who originally committed to Texas last summer and has been rumored to be heading to prep school and/or may enter his name into the NBA Draft.  And this is huge for the Cyclones, because Davis has excellent skills, big time athleticism, and an incredible amount of untapped potential.  However, he still needs to play harder on a consistent basis.  Davis signing with Iowa State moves the Cyclones recruiting class into a tie at #23, along with Louisiana Tech, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005 and it gives head coach Wayne Morgan a plethora of new inside players to work with next season.  Speaking of Iowa State's six-man recruiting class, the five inside players in the fold are Davis, 6'11 Shawn Taggart from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'10 Kellen Lee from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'10 Ross Marsden from Ames (H.S.) IA, and 6'8 Mike Evanovich from South Kent (Prep) CT and the one perimeter player they've landed is 6'3 Farnold Degand from Boston (John Bryant) MA.  In other words, it looks like the Cyclones have taken advantage of Morgan's strong Northeast contacts, as he continues to build Iowa State into one of the better teams in the Big-12 Conference.  We also have the scoop from our new Texas Editor Tim Miller about 5'9 8th Grader G.J. Vilarino, who is ranked #4 nationally in the Class of 2009 by the HOOP SCOOP, transferring from Phoenix, AZ back home to Texas, where he will play for the TG Express AAU program and attend McKinney (H.S.) TX next year.  Miller also tells us that 6'6 C.J. Miles from Dallas (Skyline) TX has entered his name into the NBA Draft.  And he plans to keep it there if he can find somebody in the NBA who will lead him to believe hat he will be a lottery pick.  In our opinion, Miles, who is ranked #20 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and has the potential to someday be terrific at the highest level, needs at least a couple of years of college before he should even think about making the jump.  Miller also thinks that Oklahoma may now be the leader for 6'9 Jr Darrell Arthur from Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX, who will be ranked among the top five juniors nationally when we update our Ranking of the Top Players in the Class of 2006 next month and promises to be the best player that Wes Grandstaff has ever had in his Team Texas program, which annually is one of the best in the country.  And, if this happens, Oklahoma could be right up there, along with Duke, North Carolina, and Ohio State, if the recruiting classes that we mentioned above all materialize.  If you will recall, Oklahoma already has early verbal commitments from 6'8 Jr Damion James from Nacogdoches (H.S.) TX and 6'0 Jr Scott Reynolds from Herndon (H.S.) VA and, as a result, has the #3-ranked recruiting class on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2006. 

Thursday, April 28, 2005

For the first time in weeks things are not coming in faster than we can keep up with them and, as a result, now is a good time to catch up on some of the commitments and signings that we haven't gotten to yet.  And right at the top of the list is 6'8 DeAndre Thomas from Chicago (Westinghouse) IL, who has committed to the University of Missouri.  Thomas is not a great athlete, but he is surprisingly mobile and skilled and very effective around the basket, which explains why we have him ranked #141 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  However, what makes Thomas such a steal of the Tigers is the fact that he is the 9th best high school senior still available, behind 6'9 Keith Brumbaugh from Deland (H.S.) FL, 6'9 Theo Davis from Toronto, ON, 6'8 Uche Echefu from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'8 Gary Flowers from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, 6'9 Kent Tribbett from Chester (H.S.) PA, 6'8 Brandon Wolfe from Detroit (Redford) MI, 6'8 Anthony Sparks from Detroit (Murray-Wright) MI, and 6'7 Chris Wright from Cincinnati (Withrow) OH.  In other words, it looks like Quin Snyder and his staff aren't sitting around making excuses about not being able to recruit, as they also already have 6'8 Leo Criswell from Virginia Beach (Coastal Christian) VA, 6'6 Matt Lawrence from Wildwood (Lafayette) MO, and 6'4 Keaton Grant from Kissimmee (Gateway) FL in a recruiting class that is tied at #44, along with Texas A&M, Miami-FL, and Providence, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Remember, one of the terms of Missouri's probation is that the coaching staff can't leave the campus this year for the purposes of recruiting.  And Thomas is exactly what the doctored order now that 6'8 Soph Linas Kleiza, who was Missouri's leading scorer with 16.1 ppg and rebounder with 7.6 rpg, has decided to enter his name into the NBA Draft.  If you will recall, Missouri should be loaded on the perimeter next year, as 6'3 Jr Jimmy McKinney, 6'5 Soph Thomas Gardner, 6'0 Frosh Jason Horton, 6'7 Frosh Marshall Brown, 6'8 Frosh Kalen Grimes, and 6'6 Frosh Glen Dandridge all will be back next year.  However, an additional inside player to go along with 6'9 Jr Kevin Young, Grimes, Criswell, and 6'11 Jr Jeffery Ferguson was a must, if the Tigers want to have a chance to surprise everybody in the Big-12 Conference next year.  We're talking about a team that was 16-17 overall and 7-9 in the league a year ago, but returns nine of its top 11 players, including five freshmen who next year will have a valuable year of experience under the belt.  We also have confirmed that 6'8 Lamar Roberson from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, who is ranked #35 on our list of the Top 5th Year Players, has signed with the University of Houston.  Roberson needs to improve his 3-point shooting, but he's like a point/power forward, because he's an excellent passer and ball handler for his size and is a blue collar athlete who scores, rebounds, and blocks shots inside.  He also has been around the block a few times, as he started his high school career at Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA, then transferred to Compton (Dominguez) CA, and played last season at Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC.  Roberson also verbally committed to the University of Louisville last spring, but several months later decided to re-open his recruitment after the Cardinals landed better players.  Roberson also was supposed to attend Bradenton (IMG Academy) FL and spent a brief time at Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL last fall.  Roberson joins 6'3 Oliver Lafayette from Brown Mackie (JC) KS, 6'9 Richard Young from Hillsboro (JC) FL, 6'4 Tristian Martin from Midland (JC) TX, 6'6 Jahmar Thorpe from Western Oklahoma (JC) OK, and 6'5 Corey Bloom from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, and 6'9 Emmanuel Adeife from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL in a recruiting class that is now ranked #9 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  And Cougars head coach Tom Penders echoed these sentiments in the school's press release that was published on Tuesday, April 26th, when he said "this is a fantastic class of recruits.  This is the best overall class of recruits that I have ever signed in my career as a head coach. When I look back through the years, we may have signed one or two players who were as good as these players.  But, I have never had the overall depth this class has.  They should help us not only compete in Conference USA, but nationally as well."  Lafayette led Brown Mackie (JC) KS to the National Junior College Athletic Association's Division II National Championship a month ago and averaged 17.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 4.4 apg, and 4.4 spg while leading his team to a 35-1 record and earning First Team NJCAA All-American honors.  Thorpe averaged a double-double (18.1 ppg and 11.0 rpg ) this past season and was a First Team Junior College All-American.  Martin, who was ranked as one of the Top 25 junior college players in the nation by Future Stars, averaged 11.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.5 apg, and 1.4 spg and helped his team finish third in the NJCAA Tournament.  Young also was a Junior College All-American, as he re-wrote his school's all-time shot blocking record with 210 rejects.  Bloom, who is ranked #224 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, teamed with 6'0 Jr D.J. Augustine to lead New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA to back-to-back Class 5A State championships the last two years.  Adeife, who is originally from Lagos, Nigeria, is an athletic shot blocker whose best days are still ahead of him.  It also appears that Indiana University has landed 6'3 Earl Calloway from Georgia Perimeter (JC) GA, who finished ranked 5th in 3-shooting (44.7%), 9th in steals (4.96 spg), 15th in field goal percentage (74.3%), 43rd in scoring (18.0 ppg), and 44th in assists (4.85 apg) in the junior college ranks this past season.  So in addition to being an excellent complement to a recruiting class that now is tied at #36, along with St. John's and Marshall, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005 and includes 6'10 Ben Allen from Australia, 6'6 Joey Shaw from Chandler (H.S.) AZ, and 5'11 Deonta Vaughn from Indianapolis (Arlington) IN, Calloway appears to be the replacement for 5'10 Shaun Davis from Southern Idaho (JC) ID, who verbally committed to Indiana several months ago, but changed his mind when his junior college coach Gib Arnold recently became an assistant coach at USC.  Calloway also is good insurance, because Vaughn probably won't make it academically and, as a result, will probably have to go the prep school route next year.  We also have confirmed that 6'4 Marcus Carson from Oakland (H.S.) CA and 6'4 Eli Davis from Glendale (Deer Valley) AZ have both signed with Southern Utah; 6'1 Tyrone Bazy from Temple (JC) TX has signed with Northern Arizona; 6'2 Loren Leath from Los Angeles Valley (JC) CA has signed with Sacramento State; 5'10 Keoni Watson from Seward County (JC) KS has signed with Idaho; 6'0 Akbar Abdul-Ahad from Indian Hills (JC) IA has signed with Idaho State; 6'8 Darin Mahoney from Mt. Pleasant (Wasatch) UT, 6'8 Sol Jensen from Bountiful (Viewmont) UT, 6'5 Dan Henry from Snow (JC) UT, and Nedim Pejevic from Santa Ana (JC) CA have all signed with Weber State; 6'9 Fernando Malaman from Western Arizona (JC) AZ and 6'0 Shawn Broadus from Western Nebraska (JC) NE both signed with Brigham Young; and 6'7 Chris Spicer from Kankakee (JC) IL, 6'4 Durrall Peterson from Hutchinson (JC) KS, and 6'6 Chris Session from Grayson (JC) UT have all signed with Utah State.  And this is important, because, by our count, the Aggies now have nine players in the fold, as well as a recruiting class that is ranked #19 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  If you will recall, Utah State landed 6'3 Michael Daniels from Grayson County (JC) TX, 6'4 Tyler Newbold from Payson (H.S.) UT, 6'0 Mikel Watson from Oceanside (El Camino) CA, and 6'11 Arvydas Vaitiekus from Marshalltown (JC) IA last fall and during the winter they added a commitment from 6'8 Nate Bendall from Salt Lake City (Skyline) UT.  It also looks like the University of Utah has found at least an adequate replacement for 7'0 Soph Andrew Bogut, who is entering his name into the NBA Draft.  We're talking about 6'10 Misha Radojevic from Belgrade, Serbia, who is a tough hardnosed competitor with good skills and an excellent understanding of the game.  And how about Arizona State getting 6'8 Bruno Claudino from Southern Idaho (JC) ID?  Remember, Claudino, who is originally from Sao Paulo, Brazil, was injured early last season and, as a result, ended up being the forgotten man while playing behind 6'11 Abdoulayne Ndiayne and 6'11 Mohamed Kone at Southern Idaho (JC) ID this past season.  The addition of Claudino should give Arizona State three inside players and a 2-guard in this recruiting class who are capable of contributing right away.  If you will recall, last fall they signed 6'9 Jeff Pendergraft from Etiwanda (H.S.) CA, 6'3 Seketoure Henry from Lynwood (H.S.) CA, and 6'10 Sylvester Seay from Winchendon (School) MA.  Currently we have Pendergraft and Henry ranked #62 and #100 nationally in the senior class and Seay #36 on our list of the Top 5th Year Players.  We also find it interesting that 6'9 Dermarshay Johnson from Diablo Valley (JC) CA picked the University of Nevada-Reno.  Johnson was the Bay Valley MVP for the Western Division this past season and he did average 19.3 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 2.1 spg, and 5.2 bpg, but we're still not sure what this means, because junior college basketball was really down in California this past year.  But even more important is the fact that Johnson has never had the burning desire to achieve greatness when we've seen him.  Instead, he's usually been a soft lacsidasical underachiever.  Still, this does move Nevada's recruiting class into a tie at #124, along with George Washington, St. Joseph's St. Bonaventure, Florida International, Towson, Boston College, and Temple, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  And Johnson should fit right in, along with 6'10 Jeremy Mayfield from Irving (MacArthur) TX, who was one the two recruits that the Wolfpack landed last fall.  Mayfield, who would rather drift out onto the perimeter and shot 3-pointers than do anything inside, also very soft.  We also have confirmed that 6'0 Shawn Broadus from Western Nebraska (JC) NE and 6'9 Fernando Malaman from Western Arizona (JC) AZ have both signed with Brigham Young and we expect to 6'3 Jackson Emery from Highland (Lone Peak) UT to follow in their footsteps shortly.  It also looks like Montana State has gotten an early verbal commitment from 6'8 Jr Travis Derochowski from Salem (Western Mennonite) OR and he should go nicely with the four players -  Jacques Wilson from Pocatello (Century) ID, 6'3 Derrick Edmond from Los Medanos (JC) CA, 6'7  Brandon Johnson from Yakima (Eisenhower) WA, 6'6 Chawn Johnson, from Lancaster (Antelope Valley) CA - that the Bobcats have in their current recruiting class.  It's not as good a recruiting class as the one two years ago when Louisiana Tech landed 6'8 Paul Millsap from Grambling (H.S.) LA, 6'3 JueMichael Young from Chipola (JC) FL, 6'7 Barry Thompson from Odessa (JC) TX, 6'3 Donell Allick from Seward County (JC) KS, 6'1 Solomon Brown from Cypress (JC) CA, and 6'2 Fred Marshall from Coffeyville (JC) KS, but it could turn out to be a lot better if the nucleus remains intact.  We say this because the Bulldogs this spring have signed 6'4 Jerome Richardson from Frank Phillips (JC) TX, who is a First Team Junior College All-American; 6'7 Chad McKenzie from Los Angeles City (JC) CA, who was ranked #40 pre-season in the junior college ranks by the HOOP SCOOP and led his team to 29-4 record and the conference championship; and 6'7 Harry Disy from North Idaho (JC) ID, who was a First Team All-Scenic West Conference player.  Louisiana Tech also signed 6'3 Trey McDowell from San Jacinto (JC) TX, who averaged 20.4 ppg on a 31-3 team and was a Second Team Junior College All-American, 6'2 Drew Washington from Clear Brook (H.S.) TX and 6'7 Adrian Rogers from Katy (Mayde Creek) TX and, as a result, their recruiting class now checks in at #25 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  We also understand that 6'9 Brandon Stores from Cincinnati (Christian Center) OH has reneged on his verbal commitment to New Mexico State and has signed with South Florida, 6'6 Damion Marshall from Sheffield (Berkshire Academy) GA has signed with New Hampshire, 6'1 Jason Green from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD has signed with Vermont, 6'2 Cornelius Vines from Syracuse (Henninger) NY has signed with Hartford, and 6'5 Robert Hines has signed with Hofstra.  This last one is especially noteworthy, because Hines is a tough hardnosed competitor who is a force to be reckoned with inside, but also has the ball skills to play out on the perimeter.  And Hines is an excellent player, as is evident by the fact that he was a First Team All-American in the junior college ranks.  Not only does the addition of Hines move the Pride's recruiting class, which also includes 6'9 Greg Washington from Central Islip (H.S.) NY, 6'0 Greg Johnson from Plymouth (Holderness School) NH, 6'8 Chris Gadley from Amherst (Central) NY, and 6'9 Arminus Urbutis from Montverde Academy) FL, into a tie at #54, along with Villanova, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, but it also gives Hofstra the best recruiting class in the Colonial Athletic Association.  And they're almost done recruiting for next year, because Hofstra also already has early verbal commitments from 5'11 Jr Vic Morris from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, 6'2 Jr Sal Patricio from Lake Suzy (Florida Prep) FL, and 6'8 Jr Dane Johnson from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY.  Last, but not least, are the two players - 6'2 Ricky McPhee from Lilburn (Parkview) GA and 5'11 Takayo Siddle from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA - who signed with Gardner-Webb.  McPhee, who was one of the best 3-point shooters in the Atlanta Metro area this past season, not only averaged 25.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.1 spg, and 2.4 apg, but also had one of his best games when he had 27 points against 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA.  Siddle, who is extremely quick and knows how to the runs show, averaged nearly eight points and three assists per game as the first guard off the bench for a team that finished with a 25-1 record and a #2-ranking among prep schools.  They join 6'1 Ed Moore from Tyler (JC) TX to give Gardner-Webb one of the top ranked recruiting classes in the Atlantic Sun Conference for the second year in a row. 

Wednesday, April 27, 2005

Like everybody else, we've heard the rumor that 6'10 Jr Vernon Macklin from Portsmouth (Norcom) VA is planning on transferring to Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA next year.  And, if this happens, Macklin will give the legendary Steve Smith the best one-two-three punch that he's ever had.  Remember, Macklin is the shot blocker/scorer/rebounder/athlete that every coach dreams about, 6'10 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA promises to be the next Carmelo Anthony, and 6'0 Jr Tywon Lawson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA is arguably the best point guard in the junior class nationally.  In other words, we could be talking about three of the top 10 players nationally on the same high school team next season.  However, contrary to reports that say otherwise, it hasn't happened yet.  Apparently some of our competitors have taken the fact that Macklin visited Oak Hill earlier this month and jumped to the conclusion that this is a done deal.  But, as things stand now, Macklin is still considering transferring to Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA.  There also have been a lot of new transfer news during the last week, including 6'5 Frosh Justin Cerasoli, who is leaving Seton Hall; 6'8 Soph Patrick Ewing, who is leaving Indiana and is heading to Georgetown; 6'3 Frosh Marquis Cooke, who is leaving Virginia Tech; 6'1 Frosh Zam Frederick, who is leaving Georgia Tech; 6'5 Frosh Lorenzzo Wade, who is leaving Louisville and likely will end up at UNLV or New Mexico State; 6'9 Jr Aaron Johnson, who is leaving Penn State and appears to be the most interested in the University of Arizona; 6'2 Soph Lawrence McKenzie, who is leaving Oklahoma and is heading to Minnesota; 6'2 Frosh Manny Quezada, who is leaving Rutgers; 6'4 Soph Ricky Lucas, who is leaving George Washington; 5'11 Soph Roscoe Biggers, who is leaving Baylor; 6'7 Frosh Tim Pierce, who is leaving Arizona State, 6'7 Soph Wilfred Fameni, who is also leaving Arizona State; 6'3 Frosh Xavier Price, who is leaving Purdue and is heading to Western Illinois; 6'7 Frosh Adam Liddell, who is leaving Purdue; 6'8 Frosh Jerrell Houston, who is leaving Mississippi State; 6'9 Frosh Charles Rhodes, who also is leaving Mississippi State; and 6'10 Frosh Walter Sharpe and 5'11 Soph Gary Ervin both might be leaving Mississippi State.  And when you also remember that 6'4 Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS has made it official and announced that he will by-pass college and enter his name into the NBA Draft, it's easy to conclude that Bulldogs head coach Rick Stansbury and his staff still have some last minute scrambling to do, despite the fact they still have a recruiting class that is tied at #11, along with LSU, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  If you will recall, Mississippi State already has 6'9 Vernon Goodridge from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 Richard Delk from Jackson (Northside) TN, 6'5 Reginald Delk from Jackson (Northside) TN, and 6'7 Bernard Rimmer from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME in their current recruiting class.  However, this won't be the first time that the Bulldogs have had to figure something out at the bitter end.  Remember, they had three players - 6'10 Travis Outlaw, 6'11 Jackie Butler, 6'8 Wojciech Barycz - from the same recruiting class decide to by-pass college and enter the NBA Draft, but still managed come up with 6'9 Lawrence Roberts, who, at the time was transferring from Baylor and ended up being one of the best players in the Southeastern Conference the last two years.  Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that 6'3 James Douglas from Schoolcraft (JC) MI and 6'8 Ryan Childress from Cincinnati (Moeller) OH have both have been released from their National Letters-of-Intent from Wisconsin-Milwaukee and, as a result, will only have to sit out one year, instead of two, when they pick another school.  It also appears that Western Illinois head coach Derek Thomas, who has always been a great recruiter dating back to his days as an assistant coach at Saint Louis, Minnesota, Illinois, and UNLV, is continuing to stockpile players.  The latest three are 6'3 Frosh Xavier Price, who is transferring from Purdue, 6'3 Sam Hunter from Southeastern Illinois (JC) IL and 6'6 Lorenzo Taylor from Alton (H.S.) IL.  Price doesn't count with Western Illinois' recruiting class (we do not include transfers when ranking recruiting classes), but both Hunter and Taylor do count and, as a result, we're talking about a recruiting class that is now tied at #34, along with SMU and Cincinnati, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  If you will recall, the Leathernecks also landed three excellent junior college players last fall in 6'7 Marlon Mahorn from Coffeyville (JC) KS, 6'8 Chris Gonzalez from Navarro (JC) TX, and 6'10 Eve Samuel from Sheridian (JC) WY.  And all this comes on the heels of their recruiting class a year ago, which was ranked #29 in our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Class of 2004 and included 6'7 Fred Oguns from Sheridan (JC) WY, 6'8 Eliz Cepeda from Southeastern Iowa (JC) IA, 6'3 David Jackson from Memphis (Westside) TN, 6'4 Troy Okelson from Dodge City (JC) KS, 6'0 Nathan Koster from Illinois Central (JC) IL, 6'9 Kyle Lasek from Moline (H.S.) IL, 6'8 N'Vonta Kentel from Pine Bluff (H.S.) AR, and 6'5 Allen McFarland from Las Vegas (Durango) NV.  As a matter of fact, the only two schools at the mid-to-low Division I level (schools not in the ACC, SEC, Big East, Big-10 Big-12, Pacific-10, Conference USA, Mountain West, Western Athletic, and Atlantic-10) that have recruited better Western Illinois during the last two years are the College of Charleston and Middle Tennessee.  So it stands to reason that Western Illinois, which 11-17 overall and 7-9 in the Mid-Continent Conference this past season, should be one of the most improved teams in college basketball next season.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'4 Mike Spadafora from Warminster (Archbishop Wood) PA has signed with Maryland-Baltimore County and 6'4 Noel Wilmore from Chester (H.S.) PA has signed with George Washington.  Wilmore, who was ranked #17 in the area on Rubin's latest rankings, apparently has dramatically improved, because the Colonials had to beat out schools like, Georgetown, Wisconsin, and Northwestern for Wilmore's services.  Wilmore always has been an excellent 3-point shooter and a good defender, but he's a better slasher now and, as a result, should fit in perfectly with the Colonials' recruiting class, which already includes 6'8 Robert Diggs from Gywnn Park (Brandywine) MD and 6'7 Montrell McDonald from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME and is tied at #121, along with St. Joseph's, St. Bonaventure, Florida International, Towson, Boston College, and Temple, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Obviously the connection for getting Wilmore is George Washington assistant coach Roland Houston, who not only is Philadelphia-native, but also is one of the best recruiters in the area after having served as an assistant coach at La Salle for five years prior to moving into a similar position with the Colonials a year ago.  However, George Washington's best new player next year promises to be 6'8 Soph Regis Koundjia, who sat out last season after transferring from LSU to GW.  Not only are we talking about a ridiculous athlete, but also somebody who was good enough to be ranked #21 nationally in the Class of 2003 when LSU signed him when he was a senior at Laurinburg (Institute) NC.  Spadafora not only is versatile enough to play the one, two, and the three, but he also was the MVP in the Philadelphia Catholic League this past season.  We also have confirmed that 5'10 Jordan Mincy from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN has signed with Kent State and 6'2 Jr Corey Lowe from Newtonville (Newton North) MA has made an early verbal committed to Providence.  And this could be a major steal for the Friars, because this scoring point guard is regarded by those in the know as the best prospect in the junior class in the Boston area.  Mincy may be small, but he combines excellent speed and quickness with great passing ability and the understanding of what it takes to run a team.  The early favorites for 6'3 Soph Jerryd Bayless from Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ are Arizona, Texas, and Kansas and the list for 6'3 Jr Christian Polk from Glendale (Deer Valley) AZ includes Boston College, Arizona State, N.C. State, Indiana, and Miami-FL.  It also appears that 7'0 Jr Greg Oden from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN is still considering Indiana, Wake Forest, Michigan State, and Ohio State and 6'0 Jr Michael Conley from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN still has Ohio State, Wake Forest, Illinois, North Carolina, and Arkansas on his list.  In other words, if Oden and Conley decide to attend the same school, it's either going to be the Buckeyes or the Demon Deacons.  We also understand that 6'8 Uche Echefu from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, who is the 3rd highest ranked high school senior still available, has narrowed his list to North Carolina, Kentucky, and Maryland.  Yes, the Terrapins are a late entry and the connection appears to be Alan Stein, who is the new strength coach at the University of Maryland.  Stein also runs Elite Athlete Training Systems and previously spent a lot time working with the players at Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD.  But, when it's all said and done, we'd be very surprised if Echefu doesn't pick the Tar Heels.  As a matter of fact, he's supposed to be visit Chapel Hill, NC this weekend.  And, assuming that Montrose Christian head coach Stu Vetter is able to push another one of his players to the ACC, then North Carolina's recruiting class would move up to #7 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, behind Louisville, Oklahoma State, Duke, Washington, Mississippi, and Marquette and ahead of Baylor, Memphis, and UNLV. 

Tuesday, April 26, 2005

We told you late last week that 6'8 Mario Boggan from Chipola (JC) FL might be the next in a long line of players to sign with Oklahoma State and now it looks like you can write it down, because this athletic blue collar power forward signed with Cowboys yesterday.  And this is huge, because the addition of Boggan, who was one of the top 5th Year players when he originally signed with the University of Florida three years ago, moves Oklahoma State's recruiting class into a tie at #1, along with Louisville, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  And this does not include 6'8 Gerald Green from Houston (Gulf Shores) TX, who signed with Oklahoma State last fall, but recently entered his name into the NBA Draft.  So, if by some chance Green takes his name out of the draft and they also get 6'6 Brandon Rush from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, whose list currently includes Illinois, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Missouri, and Georgetown, it might be scary just how good this class might turn out to be.  Or, if 6'9 Amir Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, who signed with Louisville last fall, enters his name into the NBA Draft before the May 14th deadline, the Cowboys could end up in sole possession of the #1-ranked recruiting class by default.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'4 Dionte Christmas from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, who is ranked #34 on our list of the Top 5th Year Players, has signed with Temple and 6'1 Tyrese Rice from Chesterfield (L.C. Bird) VA, who is ranked #261 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has signed with Boston College.  And, like so many players that the Eagles have signed in recent years, Rice, who is an excellent ball handler and a great 3-point shooter, not only appears to have fallen under the radar at the high school level, but he also has a tremendous upside and, as a result, may be good enough to immediately step in next year and challenge 6'0 Soph Steve Hailey for the starting point guard spot.  We also think Christmas is a great get for the Owls, because he's a big time athlete, streaky 3-point shooter, and he's played well enough this spring to be the equivalent of a top 100 senior nationally.  Rubin also tells us that the six left on the list of 6'9 Kent Tribbett from Chester (H.S.) PA are Navy, Providence, Connecticut, Georgetown, George Washington, and Drexel and that the final three for 7'0 Jr Brian Zoubek from Haddonfield (Memorial) NJ are Duke, Stanford, and Wake Forest.  Rubin and Kenny Gillion of BreakDownMagazine.com both tell us that 6'4 Maxwell Dubois from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL has signed with Penn State and this too appears to be exactly what the doctor ordered, because the Nittany Lions are trying to fill the void created by 6'0 Soph Marlon Smith, who was sidelined after 13 games last season with a heart problem.  Dubois is an excellent defender and is great at getting to the hole, which means he should be the perfect complement to 6'2 David Jackson from Gulf Coast (JC) FL,, who is a lights out 3-point shooter and signed with Penn State last week.  The Nittany Lions also appear to have improved inside with the addition of 6'11 Joonas Soutamo from Finland, 6'0 Milos Dogetic from Serbia-Montenegro, and 6'5 Jamelle Cornelly from Columbus (Brookhaven) OH  and, as a result, it should come as no surprise that the Penn State's recruiting class is now tied at #55, along with Wisconsin-Green Bay and San Diego State, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.   However, that doesn't even begin to tell what a great job the Nittany Lions, which were 7-23 overall and 1-15 in the league this past season, have done in terms of closing the gap between themselves and the rest of the teams in the league.  But the fact they had the third best recruiting class in the league, behind Purdue, which has the #22-ranked recruiting class on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, and Wisconsin, which is tied at #47 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005,  does illustrate the fact that Penn State has made major strides with this recruiting class.  And the same can be said about Purdue, which landed 6'1 Tarrance Crump from Shelton State (JC) AL a week ago.  We're talking about somebody who averaged 16.0 ppg and 7.0 apg and was the recipient of the Bud Obee Most Outstanding Small Player Award at the National Junior College Tournament, where his team finished 8th in the tournament.  However, this too does not tell the complete story, as, in addition to a recruiting class that also includes 6'3 Nate Minnoy from Chicago (Hales Franciscan) IL, 6'4 Chris Lutz from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'0 Korey Spates from Warrenville Heights (H.S.) OH, and 6'4 Marcus Green from Franklin Park (Leyden) IL, the Boilermakers also have 6'8 Soph Marcus White, who transferred from Connecticut and sat out this past season, waiting in the wings.  And this too is important, because suddenly it looks like Purdue is stronger than they've been in years in the Chicago Area, as Crump, Minnoy, Lutz, Green, and White all are originally from the Windy City.  We also have confirmed that 6'8 Brian Gilmore from Fork Union (Military) VA and 6'5 Jordan Nichols from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD have both signed with American University.  Nichols, who is best described as an overachieving undersized inside guy, promises to be an excellent role player for the Eagles.  So the fact that he provides an excellent link into one the perennial powerhouse teams in the tough DC Catholic League is just an added bonus.  Gilmore, who can play either facing the basket or with his back to the basket, promises to be the steal of American University's recruiting class, which already includes 6'5 Gary Garris from Princeton (The Hun School) NJ, 5'9 Derrick Mercer from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, and 5'9 Garrison Carr from Issaquah (H.S.) WA, because he was hurt all last season and, as a result, flew under the radar screen.  It also appears that 6'6 Jr Dwight Lewis from Metairie (Archbishop Rummel) LA, who is ranked #125 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has reneged on Kansas.  If you will recall, we reported last week that Lewis had verbally committed to the Jayhawks, but now it looks like somebody has put the breaks on, at least until he can make an official visit later this spring to Lawrence, KS.  We also have received word from our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis that 6'8 Davon Jefferson from Lynwood (H.S.) CA has officially pulled the plug on going to UNLV and, instead, will go the prep school route.  And, if Louisville head coach Rick Pitino hires UNLV assistant coach Marvin Menzies, who is in Louisville, KY interviewing for the job today, then suddenly the Cardinals would become one of the leaders, along with USC and Oklahoma State, for Jefferson's services a year from now.  Remember, Menzies was the guy who signed Jefferson at UNLV last fall.  So it makes sense that he'd be involved the next time around.  It also appears that Louisville, Tennessee, Marquette, and Wisconsin are all high on the list of 6'2 Jr Jerry Smith from Wauwatosa (East) WI, who is ranked #14 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.   But, believe it or not, we think the school that you have to beat right now is Wake Forest.  As a matter of fact, Smith was at Wake Forest on an official visit this past weekend.  This also could be a sign that the Demon Deacons have slipped in the race for 6'0 Jr Michael Conley from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, who is ranked #38 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP and until recently appeared to be a near lock for Wake Forest.  However, that changed when 6'4 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH picked Ohio State.  If you will recall, Conley, Cook, and 7'0 Jr Greg Oden from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN all are close friends, they play for the same AAU team, and they have let it be known that they are interested in attending the same school as a package.  So now it appears that the Buckeyes could be on the verge of big recruiting year.  

Saturday, April 23, 2005, Sunday, April 24, 2005, and Monday, April 25, 2005

Upsets were the order of the day in the playoffs at the the Houston Kingwood Classic in Houston, TX, as the SYF Players knocked off the Houston Hoops, Blessed IJN knocked off the Southern California All-Stars, and the Georgia Hurricanes knocked off the Friends of Hoop in the Round of 16 and the SYF Players knocked off the D-1 Greyhounds in the semi-finals.  But the biggest surprise of all came in pool play on Saturday afternoon when the D-1 Greyhounds jumped out early and never looked back against the Houston Hoops.  Remember, the Houston Hoops, which also were the host team in the tournament, already had finished second in both the Las Vegas Easter Classic  and the Boo Williams Invitational and won the Las Vegas Spring Showcase this earlier spring.  However, 6'5 Soph O.J. Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH and 6'5 Soph Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, who combined for 49 points against the Houston Hoops, once again showed why they are two of the top five players in the nation regardless of class, along with 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'10 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 7'0 Jr Greg Oden from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, and why LeBron James comparisons may be in order.   Mayo is not the incredible physical specimen that James was at the same stage, but Mayo does shoot it better and, as a result, unlike James, has no weaknesses in his game.  On the other hand, Walker is an incredible physical specimen and, just like James, needs to continue to work on his 3-point shot, if he wants to stay up there with Mayo, who already is a lights out 3-point shooter.  And this competitiveness and on-going rivalry to see which one can be the best, is one of the reasons why both Mayo and Walker are destined for greatness.  Not only do they have all the intangibles (heart, skills, athleticism, versatility, work ethic, etc.) that James had in high school, but they also have one another to compete against every day, which means they both still have huge upsides, despite the fact they both are at least a year older than the grade.  Also just like LeBron James and, unlike way too many players in this day and age, Mayo and Walker don't do a lot of trash talking.  Instead, they just go about their business and show you how good they are every time they step on the court.  And, in the process, just like LeBron James, they also seem to draw a big crowd wherever they go.  As a matter of fact, every time they played in the Houston Kingwood Classic, the place was packed.  So with all this in mind, it came as a total surprise when we found out that the SYF Players had knocked of the D-Greyhounds to set up the championship game between the Portland Elite Legends and the SYF Players.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that the Portland Elite Legends coasted to 68-48 victory in the title game without a single point and only limited playing time from 6'9 Soph Kevin Love from Lake Oswego (H.S.) OR.  Instead, it was their other great sophomore - 6'8 Soph Kyle Singler from South Medford (H.S.) OR - who stepped up with 21 points and had a lot of people wondering if he is better than 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who recently reneged on his verbal commitment to UCLA.  Singler appears to be just as good a 3-point shooter as King, plus he's an inch taller and more athletic than King.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that UCLA head coach Ben Howland and Arizona head coach Lute Olson both stayed until the bitter end just to watch Singler and Love play.  If you will recall, a week ago Love, whose list includes Duke, North Carolina, Kansas, Arizona, UCLA, Oregon, Oregon State, and Washington, and Singler, whose list includes Oregon, Kansas, Duke, and Arizona, both told us that they are best friends and they expressed an interest in attending the same school.  Also staying to the bitter end was new Purdue head coach Matt Painter.  Not only are the Boilermakers one the top four, along with Iowa, Ohio State, and Northwestern, for 6'8 Jr Luke Harangody from Gary (Andrean) IN, but they have to be one of the favorites for 6'9 Jr Jamil Tucker from Gary (West Side) IN, 6'3 Tyrone Appleton from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME, and 6'4 Soph E'Taun Moore from East Chicago (Central) IN, all of who are getting underrecruited to the point that SYF Players head coach Wayne Brumm couldn't even provide us with a list of who is interested.  Harangody is probably a little bit overrated by the HOOP SCOOP at #49 nationally in the junior class, but we love his tough hardnosed blue collar work ethic, deceptive mobility, and excellent skills.  Tucker is soft, but it's hard to argue with his ability to play away from the basket and ability to shoot the three.  Appleton, who is originally from Gary, IN and plans to return to prep school next year, not only is a point guard with both size and athleticism, but he is an excellent complement in the backcourt to Moore, who promises to be the next great player to come out of the Northwest Region in the state of Indiana.  The Georgia Hurricanes, which were led by 6'4 Jr Jodie Meeks from Norcross (H.S.) GA, 6'8 Soph Tracy Smith from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'6 Jr A.J. Wilson from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'3 Devon McLendon from Chester (H.S.) PA, 6'1 Jr Ed Tucker from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'5 Soph Tony Neysmith from Mauldin (H.S.) SC, and 6'8 Horace Dixon from Mauldin (H.S.) SC, was the other team that made the Final Four in the Platinum Division.  And making this story even more interesting is the fact that this is the first year that this team has been in existence.  In other words, there is a new team to be reckoned with in the Peach Tree State.  Meeks needs to improve his 3-point shooting, but he has the talent, athleticism, versatility, and ability to get to the hole and, as a result, is a legitimate top 100 junior nationally.  Smith, who has been reclassified as  a sophomore, dominated on the boards and played the best we've seen him play since his freshman days when he led The Family to the 14-Under AAU National Championship.  Wilson, who also has been reclassified, doesn't handle it well enough to play point guard, but is versatile and athletic enough and rebounds well enough to make him dangerous both inside and outside.  McLendon will be a 5th Year Player at Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC; Tucker, who originally is from Saginaw (Buena Vista) MI and was a Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, is expected to transfer to a high school in Georgia; and Neysmith, who is the son of Georgia Hurricanes head coach Horace Neysmith, is one of the better guards in the sophomore class.  They provide additional firepower on the perimeter, while Dixon, who is a raw athletic power forward heading to prep school at Fork Union (Military) VA, provided depth inside.  We also thought 6'5 Jr JaJuan Jones, who transferred from Sidney (H.S.) OH to Douglasville (Douglass County) GA last fall, really helped himself in this tournament.  We're talking about an athletic 2-guard who is explosive in transition, but also is an excellent passer and has a nice looking 3-point shot.  However, we were disappointed in 6'7 Jr Landon Milbourne from Alpaharetta (St. Francis) GA.  If you will recall, Milbourne is already verbally committed to the Maryland, but he's not tough enough to play inside and doesn't have the skills perimeter necessary to project as a wing forward in the Atlantic Coast Conference.  But Milbourne does have big time talent and athleticism, so we reserve the right to change our mind.  The Atlantic Celtics also deserve a mention not just because they had 6'5 Jr Javaris Crittenton from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, 6'8 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, and 6'6 Jr LaShun Watson from Greenville (H.S.) GA, but also because they were not intimidated (like the Houston Hoops were) when they faced the DI Greyhounds and, as a result, took Mayo, Walker, and Company to overtime before finally losing in pool play.  We also were impressed by 6'7 Frosh Olu Ashaolu from Stockbridge (Community Christian) GA, who easily was the best player for Team Georgia.  Not only does Ashaolu handle, pass, and rebound well, but he's got big time athleticism and gets to the hole with the best of them.  Still outside shooting and age could be question marks for Ashaolu down the road.  One of the most interesting match-ups in the tournament occurred when Houston Swoosh and the Smryna Stars met in the semi-finals of the Gold Division (the elite teams in the 17-Under Division played in the Platinum Division) and 6'9 Soph DeAndre Jordan from Houston (Episcopal) TX went head-to-head against 6'9 Jr Jordan Hill from Kennesaw (Kennesaw Mountain) GA.  We're talking about two long lanky athletic shot blockers who ran the court, were surprisingly active around the basket, and project as legitimate sleepers for the top 100 nationally in their respective classes.  One of the best point guards that we saw all weekend was 5'10 Jr Jerome Randall from Chicago (Hales Franciscan) IL.  We're not sure how well he shoots it and he's really small, but Randall is a tremendous competitor with jet-like speed and quickness, excellent ball handling and passing skills, a great crossover, and a knack for knowing when to speed things up or slow them down.  In other words, he'd be a steal at the mid-major level.  But we didn't like 6'10 Jr Brian Carlwell from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, who was Randall's teammate on the Ferrari Youth Basketball Team.  As a matter of fact, we'd heard how much Carlwell had improved, but he was soft, lackasidasical, and not very productive (he only had four points) we saw him.   The same also can be said when about 7'0 Jr Kyle Luckett from Ft. Wayne (Southside) IN, but his team did knock off the Southern California All-Stars in Round of 16 and the word is that he did play better as the tournament went along.  While most everybody else was watching the two semi-final games in the Platinum Division, I was watching the MBA Hoops and the the Louisiana Stars in the semi-finals of the Silver Division.  And it was well worth it, because 6'9 Renardo Grant from Jackson (Peoples) MS, who is ranked #25 on our list of the top 8th Graders nationally, but will be ranked much higher next time we update our list of the top players in the Class of 2009, has grown three inches and is amazingly skilled and athletic for somebody his age, and 6'9 Jr Perry Stevenson from Lafayette (Northside) LA, who is a legitimate top 100 junior nationally, is extremely active and athletic both in transition and around the basket.  We also were intrigued by 6'9 Soph Matthew Simpkins from Oakland (Mc Clymonds) CA, who is surprisingly mobile and quick afoot for somebody so big and so young.  However, from there it was really status quo, as not a lot changed in terms of the top players in the junior class nationally and everything was too spread out to see very much of the younger age groups. 

Friday, April 22, 2005

Greg Swaim of GregSwaim.com tells us that it's now official for 6'0 Jamaal Brown from Southern Idaho (JC) ID, who today signed a binding National Letter-of-Intent with Oklahoma State.  And this is huge for several reasons.  First, Brown will give the Cowboys not one, but two point guards in this recruiting class who are capable of setting in and running the show next year.  Remember, Brown was ranked #15 on our pre-season list of the top junior college players, and 6'0 Byron Eaton from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, who signed with the Cowboys last fall, was named to play in the prestigious McDonald's All-American Game.   Second, Brown should also provide an excellent complement to all the other players - 6'8 Torre Johnson from Garden City (JC) KS, 6'0 Byron Eaton from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, 6'5 Terrel Harris from Garland (South Garland) TX, 6'6 Roderick Fleming from De Soto (H.S.) TX, and 6'11 Kenneth Cooper from Monroe (Richwood) LA - that Oklahoma State head coach Eddie Sutton has in this recruiting class.  Third, the addition of Brown moves Oklahoma State's recruiting class, which also includes up to #7 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  And that's even without 6'8 Gerald Green from Houston (Gulf Shores) TX, who no longer counts with Oklahoma State's recruiting class, because he recently entered his name into the NBA Draft.  However, if Green does not sign with an agent and takes his name out of the draft, then Oklahoma State's recruiting class would move into a tie at #1, along with Louisville, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Or, if the Cowboys get 6'7 Mario Boggan from Chipola (JC) FL, who is making an official visit to Oklahoma State this weekend, then the result would be the same.  And, if they add both Green and Boggan to this year's recruiting class, then we'd be talking about a recruiting class that blows away all the other top ranked recruiting classes (one of which belonged to Oklahoma State in 2000) in recent years.   But even if the Cowboys don't get Boggan and Green does not return, it's still conceivable that at the end of the day Oklahoma State could end up with the #1-ranked recruiting class.  However, for that to happen Louisville-signee 6'9 Amir Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, Duke-signee 6'10 Josh McRoberts from Carmel (H.S.) IN, Mississippi State-signee 6'4 Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS and Washington-signee 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA will all have to enter into the NBA Draft this spring, 6'8 Devon Jefferson from Lynwood (H.S.) CA will have to renege on UNLV and go the prep school route, and 6'10 Carl Swanigan from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL will have to not show up at Mississippi and, instead, go the junior college route.  And, if all this does fall just right, Marquette, which earlier this week landed 6'8 Jamil Lott from North Dakota School of Science (JC) ND and now also has signed 6'8 Dwight Burke from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, could move all the way up to #2 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.   However, for now we have the Golden Eagles' recruiting class, which also already includes 6'4 Wesley Matthews from Madison (Memorial) WI, 6'2 Jerel McNeal from Country Club Hills (Hillcrest) IL, 6'1 Dominic James from Richmond (H.S.) IN, and 6'5 Matt Mortensen from Provo (Timpview) UT, ranked #8 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  As for Burke, who originally signed with East Carolina last fall, but has been released from his National Letter-of-Intent this spring, his high school coach Danny Hurley recently told us that Burke dramatically improved during the season.  So it looks like Marquette head coach Tom Crean may have stolen another one.  Our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio tells us that 5'10 Sharaud Curry from Marietta (Wheeler) GA has signed with Providence and, as a result, the Friars' recruiting class, which also already includes 6'8 Jonathan Kale from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'4 Weyinimi Efejuku from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, and 6'6 Geoff McDermott from New Rochelle (H.S.) NY, moves into a tie at #38, along with South Florida, Texas A&M, and Miami-FL, on our list of Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  But, even more important, Providence head coach Tim Welsh should have a great nucleus of young players that also includes 6'5 Soph Dwight Brewington, 6'4 Soph Gerald Brown, 6'10 Soph Randall Hanke, 6'7 Frosh DeSean White, 6'9 Soph Herbert Hill, 6'7 Frosh Jeff Parmer, 6'3 Frosh Rob McKiver, and 6'6 Frosh Charlie Burch.  In other words, it looks like Providence Steve DeMeo, who is the Friars' chief recruiter, has once again done a great job of rebuilding the program.  However, the Friars may have to survive another year of growing pains before they once again jump into the upper echelon of the league year after next.  Naclerio also tells us that the same person who tipped him off about Sean May, Raymond Felton, and Marvin Williams all entering the NBA Draft also told him that Duke's Sheldon Williams will follow in their footsteps next week.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'8 Maurice Thomas from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, who verbally committed to UTEP last fall and UNLV earlier this spring, but both times later reneged, now has an official visit scheduled to North Carolina for early next week.  And this isn't as big of surprise as you might be think, because Thomas is one of the best inside players in the high school and/or prep school ranks who is still available.  Rubin also tells us that 6'2 David Jackson from Gulf Coast (JC) FL has signed with Penn State and that 6'8 Chris Seaborne from New Mexico JC) NM has signed with Maryland-Baltimore County.  The verbal commitment by Jackson is especially significant, because he not only is a terrific outside shooter, but he also will likely step in and fill the void created by 6'0 Soph Marlon Smith, who was sidelined after 13 games last season with a heart problem. 

The Houston Kingwood Classic, which once again promises to be the premier event of the entire spring, as well as one of the best events of the year, will tip-off tonight in Houston, TX and it will be live for Division I college coaches tomorrow and Sunday.  The field will include over 700 teams teams in the 17-Under, 16-Under, 15-Under, 14-Under, 13-Under, 12-Under, 11-Under, 10-Under, and 9-Under Divisions and it will be the largest single weekend tournament ever put on in this country, as the 17-Under Division alone will include 252 teams and the 16-Under and 15-Under Divisions will include another 200 teams.  The headquarters will be at Westfield High School, which is located at  16713 Ella Blvd. in Houston, TX and college coaches can get a head start on covering the tournament today by checking in and getting their packet tonight between 5:00 PM and Midnight.  There also will be seven gyms within walking distance of one another and, just like last year, Hal Pastner, who is the master at organizing and running big events, will have all the good 17-Under Teams playing in these gyms.  Let's take a closer look at some of the top match-ups.  Tonight we will start out with Team Breakdown versus the New Mexico Force All-Stars in Gym #1 and Baltimore Select and Team Houston in Gym #2 at 6:30 PM at Westfield High School and then we're going to sneak away and watch some younger players.  Then, on Saturday morning we plan to watch the Compton Magic versus Team Georgia Elite (Linzy) in Gym #2 at 8:00 AM at Westfield High School, the Portland Legends versus the Southern California All-Stars in Gym #1 and the Friends of Hoops (Seattle) versus Miami Tropics in Gym #2 at 9:10 AM at Westfield High School, the Houston Hoops versus the Atlanta Celtics Black in Gym #1 and Nor Cal Elite versus Blessed IJN Elite (Indiana) in Gym #2 at #10:20 AM at Westfield High School, Texas Blue Chip versus Howard Pulley in Gym #2 at 11:30 AM at Westfield High School, New York Elite versus Georgia Hurricanes in Gym #1 at 12:40 PM at Westfield 9th Grade, DI Greyhounds versus the Houston Hoops in Gym #1 at 1:50 PM at Westfield High School, New Heights versus the Portland Legends in Gym #2 at 3:00 PM, and the Jackson Panthers versus Bingo All-Stars in Gym #1 and the Dallas Mustangs versus the South Carolina Ravens in Gym #2 at 4:10 PM at Bammel Middle School.  Then, the first round of the playoffs will begin in the Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze Divisions with games at 5:20 PM, 6:25 PM, 7:30 PM, and 8:35 PM, followed by the round of 32 at 9:40 PM and 10:45 PM on Saturday night and the round of 16 at 8:00 AM, quarterfinals at 10:20 AM, semi-finals at 12:40 PM, and the Championship at 3:15 PM.  The tournament also is loaded with outstanding talent, as some of the top players to watch include 6'5 Soph O.J. Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, 6'5 Soph Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, 6'7 Jr Chase Budinger from Carlsbad (La Costa Canyon) CA, 6'0 Jr Darryl Augustine from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'8 Jr Lance Thomas from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'3 Soph Derrick Rose from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA, 6'8 Jr Damion James from Nacogdoches (H.S.) TX, 7'1 Jr Kyle Luckett from Ft. Wayne (South Side) IN, 6'5 Soph Lace-Darius Dunn from Monroe (Excelsior Christian) LA, 6'7 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX, 6'0 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL, 6'0 Soph Jerrad Bayless from Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ, 6'8 Soph Kevin Love from Lake Oswego (H.S.) OR, 6'7 Jr Kyle Singler from Medford (South Medford) OR, 6'5 Soph Alexander Legion from Birmingham (Detroit County Day) MI, 6'6 Jr Dwight Lewis from Metairie (Archbishop Rummel) LA, 5'11 Jr Josue Soto from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 5'7 Soph Isaiah Thomas from Tacoma (Curtis) WA, 5'9 Jr Nic Wise from Houston (Kingwood) TX, 5'10 Jr Tory Jackson from Saginaw (Buena Vista) MI, 6'6 Frosh Olu Ashaolu from Stockbridge (Community Christian) GA, 6'5 Jr Marques Johnson from Ft. Wayne (Snider) IN, 6'5 Jr Javaris Crittenton from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, 6'7 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, 6'1 Jr Willie Walker from Bolington (H.S.) IL, 6'9 Jr Richard Semrau from Rocky River (Lutheran West) OH, 6'5 Soph Daniel Hackett from Bellflower (St. John Bosco) CA, 6'6 Jr Jervaughn Johnson from Compton (Centennial) CA, 5'11 Soph Jesse Woodard from Compton (Centennial) CA, 6'2 Jr Tyree Thompson from Compton (Centennial) CA, 6'4 Soph Etwan Moore from East Chicago (Central) IN, 6'9 Jr Jamal Tucker from Gary (West Side) IN, 6'8 Jr Luke Harangody from Gary (Andrean) IN, 6'4 Jr Carlos Morais from Stockbridge (Community Christian) GA, 6'6 Jr Seth Tarver from Portland (Jesuit) OR, 5'10 Soph Jai Lucas from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 7'0 Jr Tom Herzog from Flint (Powers) MI, 6'5 Jr Devan Bawinkle from Winnebago (H.S.) IL, 7'2 Jr Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, and 6'5 Soph Tony Neysmith from Mauldin (H.S.) SC.  And that's just in the 17-Under Division.  The complete breakdown of teams in the 17-Under Division is as follows:  Pool A has the Southern California All-Stars Red, New Heights NYC, and Portland Legends; Pool B has the Houston Hoops, D-I Greyhounds, and the Atlanta Celtics Black; Pool C has the Georgia Stars, Arizona Magic, and Ferrari Youth Basketball; Pool D has the Miami Tropics, Friends of Hoop Seattle, and Philadelphia Ballhawks; Pool E has Team Georgia, Compton Magic, and King James Shooting Stars; Pool F has Nor Cal Elite, Blessed IJN Elite, and Reebok Delaware Sharpshooters; Pool G has the Michigan Hurricanes, Mean Streets, and Utah-Pump-N-Run; Pool H has the Illinois Wolves, Gateway Basketball Club, and South Florida Heat; Pool I has NOGA African All Stars, Cavs (California), and Chicago Jaguars; Pool J has the Howard Pulley Panthers, Texas Blue Chips I, and Tennessee Travelers; Pool K has the South Carolina Ravens, Dallas Mustangs Blue, and SYF Players; Pool L has the New Mexico Force All-Stars, Team Breakdown, and Indiana Elite; Pool M has the Georgia Hurricanes, New York Elite, and Team D1 Ambassadors; Pool N has the St. Louis Eagles, Bingo All-Stars (New York), and Jackson Panthers; Pool O has the South Carolina Celtics, Arizona Stars, and Texas Top Prospects; Pool P has the KC Keys (Missouri), Southeast Elite Reebok, and God Squad Athletics (California); Pool Q has the Portland Panthers, Belmont Shore, and Houston Elite; Pool R has the New Orleans Jazz, Branch West Team Reebok (California), and New York Ravens; Pool S has the Midstate Ballerz Elite (Tennessee), Birmingham Raptors, and H-Squad; Pool T has the Westside All-Stars, Team Indiana, and Kentucky Hoopsters; Pool U has Baltimore Select, New Orleans Panthers Select, and Team Houston; Pool V has Rise & Shine (Mississippi), Louisiana Stars, and Dallas Mustangs White; Pool W has the Illinois Blue Devils, West Atlanta Tar Heels (Georgia), and Rising Stars of America (California); Pool X has the Smyrna Stars (Georgia), Texas Terps, and Sacramento Classics, Pool Y has 1 Tough School (California), RDV Stars (Florida) and Houston H.O.P.S.; Pool Z has Full Package Athletics (Illinois), Acadicana Hoops (Louisiana), and Islanders Basketball Foundation (Texas); Pool AA has the Georgia Warriors, Houstonians, and I-can All-Stars Silvers (California); Pool BB has the Louisiana Future Rising Stars, RBC West (California), and Southeast Texas All-Stars Elite; Pool CC has Victoria Australia, Etowah Stars (Georgia), and Bay Area Hoosiers Red (California); Pool DD has Victoria Prep (Canada), 805 Basketball and El Paso Suns; Pool EE has the Syracuse Rochester RAP, ATL Explosion (Georgia), and Team New Jersey Elite Blue; Pool FF has Blessed IJN Gold, Arizona Cagers Black, and Oklahoma Heat; Pool GG has Branch West Red, San Antonio Heat, and West Virginia Wildcats; Pool HH has Houston Swoosh Blue, Whatcom Hoops (Washington), and Southern Cal Razorbacks (California); Pool II has ARC BTI North (California), Chi-Town Mixers (Illinois), and Southwest Rebels (Arizona); Pool JJ has Team Hoop Zone (Texas), Topp Sports (South Carolina), and First Class (Illinois); Pool KK has Worldwide Renegades (Georgia), Texas Force, MPSLO (California); Pool LL has Austin Hoop Zone (Texas), SYF Brotherhood (Indiana), MBA Hoops Black (Mississippi); Pool MM has the Waukegan Traveling Stars/North Illinois Surge, Atlanta Celtics Gold, and Houston '05; Pool NN has the Emerald City Pioneers, Arlington Colts, and Northside Mavericks; Pool OO has And 1 True Players (Washington), El Paso Wildcats, and San Antonio King; Pool PP has ARC BTI South (California), Aneesa's Sports (New York), and Houston Swoosh Orange; Pool QQ has Kansas City Rocktown, Inland Reebok, and Smyrna Stars II (Georgia); Pool RR has Tampa Fastbreak (Florida), PHPS Select (California), and Blessed IJN Purple (Indiana); Pool SS has ATX Boys Blue (Texas), Old Gold Basketball (Illinois), and Next Level Santa Monica; Pool TT has the Next Level BC All Stars (BC, Canada), Kingwood Mustangs, and Inner Strength (Georgia); Pool UU has the Dallas Lakers, Buffalo Playaz (New York), and Gastonia Mountaineers (Georgia); Pool VV has the Grand Bahamas All Stars (Bahamas), Southern Cal All Stars Black (California), and Friends of Hoop Seattle 2; Pool WW has the SchneiderAllStarscom (Arizona), Team Fort Worth, and Branch West Purple (California); Pool XX has the High Desert Lakers (California), Team Angels Gold (Arkansas), and Houston Storm; Pool YY has the Northwest Arkansas Raptors, Team New Jersey Elite Orange, and Kansas City Premiere Unsigned Seniors (Missouri); Pool ZZ has High Five America (California), Reach Legends (Michigan), and Arizona (CTB); Pool AAA has the Austin Pastner All Stars (Texas), Killen Future Stars (Texas), and Lakers (Wisconisn); Pool BBB has the Arizona Cagers Rage, North Channel Cyclones (Texas), and Team Heat (North Carolina); Pool CCC has the Illinois Patriots, First Team (Louisiana), Houston Heat 16s (Texas); Pool DDD has the Louisiana Dream Team, Houston Hoopsters, Impact Basketball 16s (California); Pool EEE has the San Antonio RoHawks (Texas), Las Vegas Dynasty (Nevada), and Southside All Stars (Texas); Pool FFF has the San Diego Cougars/Young Gunz (California), Georgia Ballers, and Texas Top Prospects Black; Pool GGG has Texas Wolverines, Team Georgia Elite (Outlaw), and ARC BTI West (California); Pool HHH has the Bobby Jackson Bball Town Pharaohs 16 (CA), DK Ballers (Louisiana), and Houston Gold; Pool III has Minnesota Swoosh, Louisiana LT Rockets, and Centex Ro'Dawgs (Texas); Pool JJJ has the Houston Hoops Action Black (Texas), Centex Shooters (Texas), and Bay Area Hoosiers White (California); Pool LLL has the Bomb Squad of Louisiana, Florida Force, and FTW Wolfpack/Unsigned Seniors (Texas); Pool MMM has Master's Touch (U.S. Virgin Islands), Marietta Devils (Georgia), and Kerrville Bullets (Texas); Pool NNN has Portland ICP, Nashville Stallions (Tennessee), and Texas Blue Chips 2; Pool OOO has the Houston Hoops Action, West Coast Ballers (California), and Midstate Ballerz Select (Tennessee); Pool PPP has the Kansas City Premiere 2006 (Missouri), Westside Wizards (Texas), and Minnesota Select; Pool QQQ has Houston No Limit I, Illinois Bobcats, and Madison County Ballers (Mississippi); Pool RRR has the I-Can All Stars (California), MBA Hoops Orange (Mississippi), and Houston Flight; Pool SSS has the Bobby Jackson Basketball Town Pharaohs (California), Louisiana Leaders, and Thunder Basketball (Texas); Pool TTT has the Texas Ambassadors II, Nebraska High 5, and San Antonio Celtics; Pool UUU has Connecticut Young Gunz, Team Larry Johnson Orange (Texas), and ATX White (Texas); Pool VVV has the Houston Superstars, KC 76ers (Missouri), and San Antonio Hawkeyes; Pool WWW has the H Town Players, LA Stars (California), and TG Basketball (Texas); Pool XXX has Atlanta All Stars (Georgia), Connecticut Flame Unlimited, and Silver Lakers (Texas); Pool YYY has Houston Play Makers (Texas), Augusta Skillz (Georgia), and Pro Skills B (Texas); Pool ZZZ has the Wichita Wolfpac (Kansas), Scaddling Court Ballhawks (Ontario, Canada), and Pro Skills A (Texas); Pool BBBB has the South Texas Stallions, Utah Heat, and Platinum Starzz (Texas); Pool CCCC has Team Phoenix, Metrocrest Hawks (Texas), and San Antonio RoHawks Seniors (Texas); Pool DDDD has the Lighthouse, Houston Southwest Bulldogs (Texas), and Dallas Mustangs; Pool EEEE has the Oklahoma Explosion Elite, West Side Hoops (Washington), and Team Angels 2007 (Arkansas); Pool FFFF has Emerald City Elite (Washington), Midwest Storm (Missouri), and Houston Lynx Blue (Texas); and Pool GGGG has the Arkansas Lakers, Texas Top Prospects Red, and Agassi Stars (Nevada).  For even more information about the Houston Kingwood Classic and all of the events that Pastner runs, click onto VisionSports.com. 

Thursday, April 21, 2005

Just like a year ago when they landed 7'0 Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, who was ranked #17 nationally in our Final Ranking of the Top Players in the Class of 2004, and 6'3 Joe Crawford from Detroit (Renaissance) MI, who was ranked #19 nationally in our Final Ranking of the Top Players in the Class of 2004, it looks like the University of Kentucky has once again hit the jackpot during the Spring Signing Period, as the Wildcats now have a verbal commitment from 6'8 Rekalin Sims from Salt Lake (JC) UT, who was the #1-ranked junior college player in the nation prior to the start of the season by the HOOP SCOOP.  And Sims appears to be exactly what the doctored ordered, because he should be able to play step in and play either forward spot for the Wildcats.  Sims, who averaged almost a double-double this past season with 19.4 ppg and 9.6 rpg, is a terrific rebounder and scorer, but he does need to improve his 3-point shooting, as is evident by the fact that he hit 46-155 (.297%) of his 3-point attempts this past season.  The addition of Sims moves Kentucky's recruiting class, which also already includes 7'1 Jared Carter from Georgetown (Scott County) KY and 6'5 Adam Williams from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, into a tie at #66, along with South Carolina, Arizona State, Gonzaga, and Western Illinois, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Sims also should be the perfect complement to all the great guards, like 6'1 Jr Patrick Sparks, 6'2 Frosh Rajon Rondo, 6'3 Frosh Ramel Bradley, and 6'3 Frosh Joe Crawford, and good big men, like 7'0 Frosh Randolph Morris, 7'3 Soph Shagari Alleyne, 7'1 Soph Lukasz Obrzut, and 7'1 Jared Carter from Georgetown (Scott County) KY, that the Wildcats will have in the program next year.  And they should have plenty of depth with 6'7 Soph Sheray Thomas, 6'7 Soph Bobby Perry, 5'9 Jr Brandon Stockton, and 6'2 Jr Ravi Moss, who is one of the most valuable walk-on players in the nation.  However, Kentucky does not have a lot of scholarships available for the Class of 2006 and that's when they have a chance to land players like 6'9 Jr Brandan Wright from Brentwood (Academy) TN, 6'10 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Jr Thaddeus Young from Memphis (Mitchell) TN, and 6'9 Jr Richard Semrau from Rocky River (Lutheran West) OH.  So suddenly the question becomes do you take 6'8 Uche Echefu from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, who also is considering schools like Arizona, Duke, Florida State, North Carolina, and Michigan and is one of the best unsigned seniors still available, this spring, or do you save the scholarship so you can sign three players, instead of just two, next year?  It also looks like Oklahoma State has gotten 6'8 Torre Johnson from Garden City (JC) KS and we don't think 6'0 Jamaal Brown from Southern Idaho (JC) ID will be too far behind.  Remember, Brown originally signed with the Cowboys a year ago, when he was at Dixie (JC) UT, but then had to go back to junior college for another year in order to ensure that he makes it academically.  The addition of Johnson moves Oklahoma State's recruiting class into a tie at #11, along with LSU, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  If you will recall, the Cowboys also signed 6'8 Gerald Green from Houston (Gulf Shores) TX, 6'5 Terrel Harris from Garland (South Garland) TX, 6'0 Byron Eaton from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, and 6'6 Roderick Fleming from De Soto (H.S.) TX during the Fall Signing Period, plus they got a verbal commitment from 6'11 Kenneth Cooper from Monroe (Richwood) LA during the winter.  However, Green no longer counts towards Oklahoma State's recruiting class, because he's decided to enter his name into the NBA Draft and appears to have hired an agent.  Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that Ball State has landed 6'3 Jalon Perryman from Detroit (Rogers) MI, who is ranked #131 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and was the second highest ranked 2-guard still available, and Bowling Green has signed 6'4 Darryl Clements from Detroit (Rogers) MI, who is ranked as the 4th best senior 2-guard in the state by Michigan Prep Spotlight.  Johnson also notes that Perryman and Clements both played a pivotal role in the three straight Class D State Championships that Detroit (Rogers) MI and that their high school coach Steve Hall is one of the candidates for the University of Michigan coaching position that was vacated when Charles Ramsey got the head coaching job at Eastern Michigan earlier this spring.  We also have confirmed that Bowling Green has landed 6'7 Dusan Radivojevic from Serbia and Montenegro. We're talking about somebody who is an excellent outside shooter that averaged 35 ppg for his Serbian club team and, as a result, should be an excellent complement to Bowling Green's recruiting class, which also includes Clements, 6'3 Martin Samarco from Schoolcraft (JC) MI, 6'6 Lionel Sullivan from Detroit (St. Martin DePorres) MI, 6'7 Erick Marschall from New London (H.S.) OH, 6'8 Jeremy Holland from Austin (H.S.) IN, and 6'5 Nick Wilson from Trenton (Central) NJ and is now tied at #35, along with Utah State on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Johnson also tells us that it looks like 6'9 Jeremey Barr from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX has reneged on the verbal commitment that he gave Texas Tech last week and has signed with Southern Cal, where he will join 5'10 Shaun Davis from Southern Idaho (JC) ID.  If you will recall, Davis verbally committed to Indiana University several months ago, but appears to have reneged and, instead, will follow his junior college coach Gib Arnold to USC.  And don't be surprised if USC's recruiting class moves up to #20 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, because the Trojans also appear to be the leader for 6'11 Abdoulayne Ndiayne from Southern Idaho (JC) ID, who is ranked #5 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005 and currently is the top junior college player still available. 

Wednesday, April 20, 2005

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that 6'6 Soph Nate Miles from Toledo (Libbey) OH, who is ranked #80 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP, made an early verbal commitment to Xavier over the weekend.  And this comes as no surprise to Johnson, because, although schools like Cincinnati, Ohio State, Valparaiso, Xavier, and Connecticut had all been showing interest, nobody except the Musketeers had offered this long, lean, Tayshaun Prince-like athlete who can shoot the lights out.  And Miles isn't the only young highly ranked player that Johnson talked to a-week-and-a-half ago at the All-Ohio NIKE Cup Tournament in Columbus, OH.  The leaders for 7'0 Tom Herzog from Flint (Powers) MI, who is ranked #68 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, are Michigan State, Michigan, Notre Dame, and Illinois.  Michigan and Florida are believed to be the favorites for 5'11 Jr Torey Jackson from Saginaw (Buena Vista) MI, who is ranked #16 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, but Syracuse, Miami-FL, Kansas, and Illinois also must be mentioned.  Michigan State, Michigan, Duke, North Carolina, and Syracuse are already in the hunt for 6'5 Soph Alexander Legion from Birmingham (Detroit Country Day) MI, who is ranked #18 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP, and among those showing the most interest in 6'5 Soph Darquovis Tucker from Saginaw (Arthur Hill) MI, who is ranked #34 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP, are Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina, Illinois, UCLA, Kansas, and Connecticut.  The race for 6'8 Frosh Yancy Gates from Cincinnati (Hughes) OH, who is ranked #12 nationally in the freshmen class by the HOOP SCOOP, already includes Xavier, Cincinnati, and Ohio State.  The early favorites for 6'6 Frosh Rayshawn Goines from Cleveland (Rhodes) OH, who is ranked #123 nationally in the freshmen class by the HOOP SCOOP, include Duke, North Carolina, Ohio State, Illinois, and N.C. State and among those showing the most interest in 5'11 Frosh Anthony McBride from Cincinnati (Withrow) OH, who is ranked #190 nationally in the freshmen class by the HOOP SCOOP, are Cincinnati, Xavier, Ohio State, N.C. State, Florida State, Syracuse, and Connecticut.  We also have confirmed th