HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION FOR AUGUST 1998

Monday, August 31, 1998

Most people still think 6'9 Abraham Keita, who is 19 years old, will be attending prep school at Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT. However, he told us over the weekend at Five-Star that he is going to Winchendon (School) MA. Keita, who currently ranks #96 among seniors nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, has Villanova, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rutgers, UCLA, Florida, Florida State, and Temple on his list.

6'7 Miguel Caballero from New York (LaSalle) NY and 6'10 Micah Brand from Cheshire (Academy) CT both told us that they are wide open when we talked to them at Five-Star and they weren't kidding. Caballero's list includes Villanova, St. John's, Boston College, Providence, Connecticut, Syracuse, Georgetown, Pittsburgh, West Virginia, Rutgers, Seton Hall, Fordham, Massachusetts, Temple, Kentucky, Arizona, UCLA, UNLV, Texas A&M, Texas, and Clemson. Brand has Boston College, Providence, Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Seton Hall, St. John's, Villanova, West Virginia, Miami-FL, Syracuse, Rutgers, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Xavier, LaSalle, UNC-Charlotte, Wake Forest, Penn State, and Northwestern on his list.

At looks like all the L.A. Rockfish guys might be heading to the University of California. The first to go was 6'11 Solomon Hughes from Fork Union (Military) VA, who signed with the Golden Bears last spring. Then, several weeks ago they got 6'10 Nick Van Der Laan from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT. Now Cal has a commitment from 5'10 Shantay Legans from Goleta (Dos Puebles) CA and it wouldn't surprise us they eventually got 6'8 Rafael Beruman from Simi Valley (H.S.) CA, 6'4 Brian Wethers from Murietta (Murietta Valley) CA, and/or 6'8 Dalron Johnson from Los Angeles (Verbum Dei) CA.

We were hoping to see 6'3 Brian Woodward from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, who has been missing in action for eight months due to a torn ACL, at Five-Star Honesdale II. But the doctors advised Woodward not to play outdoors, so we still haven't seen him play in over a year. And like the say, "out of sight, out of mind," which explains why he has dropped to #3 in New York City, even though he may have the most natural talent. As it stands now, Woodward's list includes Villanova, Clemson, Ohio State, Rhode Island, St. John's, Syracuse, and Florida State, but when it is all said and done, don't be surprised if he goes to Providence.

Sunday, August 30, 1998

Boy, does whoever started that rumor about 6'3 DeShaun Williams from Paterson (Catholic) NJ committing to Villanova a couple of days ago really look bad. We talked to his high school coach, Jerome Smart, for a long time after the all-star game last night at the Five-Star Camp and he tells us several things that are extremely interesting. First, Smart thinks if Williams were going to commit today, he would pick Syracuse, instead of Villanova. Smart also thinks Xavier is a lost stronger with Williams than anybody realizes.

6'3 DeShaun Williams isn't the only player that Xavier is especially strong with. 6'0 Brandin Knight from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ and 6'5 Mark Jerrell-Wright from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ also have the Musketeers high on their lists. As a matter of fact, Knight and Jerrell-Wright are best friends and have been talking about going together to the same college as a package, but right now Xavier is the only school that's recruiting both of them. Knight tells us that Pittsburgh and Xavier are the two leaders, but also says Manhattan and Rice have been showing a lot of interest. Jerrell-Wright is considering Xavier, Providence, Seton Hall, Georgetown, and Maryland.

When 6'0 Majestic Mapp from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY committed to Virginia on Friday, we reported that four of the top five point guards were no longer available. Well, it has only taken two days for that to change, because yesterday 6'3 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ verbally committed to Duke. This is absolutely huge, because Williams ranks as the #1 point guard and the #6 player overall nationally in the senior class. This is also important for Duke, because he was the only point guard they were recruiting.

After attending Five-Star's loaded Honesdale II session the last several days, it is now obvious that we already need to make a least one major change to our national top 100 player list.  Right now we have 6'1 Todd Billet from Lincroft (Christian Brothers) NJ ranked #38 nationally, but he needs to move up at least 15 or 20 spots. Billet was not only the foul shooting champion, hitting 47-50 free throws, and the winner of the Mr. Hustle and the Mr. Stations 13 Awards, but he also set the tone early in the NBA  in the Orange-White All-Star Game, as he accounted for 12 of his team's first 14 points with three assists and six points. And throughout the game, the Orange All-Stars always seemed to lose all momentum whenver Billet came back into the White All-Stars' lineup. Not only was he always in control of the game, but in our opinion he very much deserved the all-star game MVP trophy, which he was awarded immedidately following the game, even though his stats weren't overly impressive (13 points and five assists). For the rest of the awards and our impressions from Five Star Honesdale II, click on coverage.

Saturday, August 29, 1998

If you will recall, Michigan landed 6'4 Kevin Gaines a week ago, so it comes as no surprise that the Wolverines have been eliminated in the recruitment of 6'2 Brent Darby from River Rouge (H.S.) MI. According to Chris Johnson, the Ohio Editor of the HOOP SCOOP, who also is very knowledgeable about Michigan, Darby's final four are Michigan State, Ohio State, Connecticut, and Kansas. As long as we're talking about the top players in Michigan, it looks like Georgetown is the favorite for 6'6 LaVall Blanchard from Ann Arbor (Pioneer) MI. Also high on his list are Michigan, Michigan State, and Wisconsin. Notre Dame, Penn State, and Connecticut also make the list, but are considered long shots.

The University of Virginia needed a quality point guard and the Cavaliers were the favorite for both 6'0 Todd Billet from Lincroft (Christian Brothers) NJ and 6'0 Majestic Mapp from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY. Their plan was to take whichever one committed first. Well, after taking an official visit the last two days to Charlottesville, VA, Mapp has decided to become the point guard of the future for the Cavaliers. This means that four of the top five ranked point guards - 6'2 Brett Nelson from St. Albans (H.S.) WV to Florida, 5'10 Jason Gardner from Indianapolis (North Central) IN to Arizona, 6'4 Kevin Gaines from Las Vegas (Clark) NV to Michigan, and Mapp to Virginia- in the Class of '99, according to the HOOP SCOOP, have already committed and, as a result, are no longer available. The lone top ranked point guard remaining is 6'2 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ,who now ranks as the #1 point guard in the nation, after a terrific summer, which included a #2 ranking at the NIKE All-American Camp.

We are now also getting reports that 6'3 Deshawn Williams from Paterson (Catholic) NJ has verbally committed to Villanova. If Williams is in the fold and 6'9 Andrew Sullivan from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ also extremely likely for Villanova, the Wildcats should stay near the top of the Big East for a long time. It looks like one of our competitors jumped the gun, because while Williams may have secretly verbally committed to the Villanova coaching staff, he still wants to look around and take visits. As a matter of fact, he told us last night at Five-Star that Syracuse was the co-favorite, along with Villanova. He also said that he still has St. John's, Xavier, Clemson, N.C. State, Providence, and Seton Hall on his list.

We also talked with 6'1 Todd Billet from Lincroft (Christian Brothers) NJ, who ranks #38 overall and #7 at his position nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, last night at Five-Star and he was well aware that Virginia had gone ahead and taken 6'0 Majestic Mapp from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY. While Virginia was not on his list, he did mention Rutgers, Seton Hall, Villanova, Notre Dame, Clemson, Ohio State, and Princeton. Also legendary Five-Star Camp Director Howard Garfinkel thinks that Duke might try and get involved with Billet, if they miss on 6'2 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ, who currently is the only point guard the Blue Devils are actively pursuing.

Dates for the McDonald's All-American Game have not been finalized, but the location has been. The prestigious all-star game will be held in Ames, IA at Hilton Coliseum on the campus of Iowa State University and I'd be willing to be that 6'9 Nick Collison from Iowa Falls (H.S.) IA and 6'3 Kirk Hinrich from Iowa West (H.S.) IA both make the team. While both are excellent players, neither is guaranteed to my vote, but having two local kids in the game could do wonders for ticket sales. Currently the HOOP SCOOP has Collison ranked #27 nationally and Hinrich #43 nationally.

Friday, August 28, 1998

The coaching staff at Appalachian State is excited because they have picked up a pair of commitments from 6'9 Josh Shehan form Winston Salem (Forsyth) NC and 6'11 Brian Boxler from Durham (North Durham) NC. Boxler, who is the better of the two, is a lefty who made the all-star game at two different sessions of Five-Star this summer. He picks Appalachian State over Loyola-Md., Coastal Carolina, College of Charleston, and Winthrop.

The athletic director at the University of Iowa has killed their recruiting, because as it stands now nobody will even consider the Hawkeyes until they know who will be named to replace the retiring Dr. Tom Davis next spring. As a result, Northwestern head coach Kevin O'Neill is making a living recruiting players from the state of Iowa. Several of the best players in state - 6'9 Adam Robinson from Cedar Falls (H.S.) IA and 6'10 Aaron Jennings from Van Horne (Benton County) IA - committed in June and now you can add another kid from Iowa to the list in 6'7 Brody Deren from Harlan (H.S.) IA. He committed to the Wildcats several days ago. And yesterday Northwestern added one of the best players from Minnesota in 6'3 Ben Johnson from Minneapolis (DeLaSalle) MN. If you will recall, Northwestern got a commitment from 6'10 Brian Weber from Oak Creek (H.S.) WI last winter, but that has since fallen through. As a result, Northwestern still has at least one scholarship left and for a while it looked like it might go to 7'1 Nathan Popp from Lexington (Catholic) KY. However, within the last week Northwestern was eliminated. So might somebody else on Popp's current list of four, which currently includes Tennessee, California, Ohio State, and Purdue. Especially noteworthy is the fact that Kentucky is no longer involved with Popp.

Greg Swaim, who published Midwest Basketball, tells us that Oklahoma State has verbal commitments from 6'8 Andre Williams from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME and 6'10 Jr Jack Marlow from Tulsa (Union) OK. Williams, who will be a 5th year player this year, played extremely well every time we saw him last summer. We look for his value to continue to rise, because anybody who survives playing for a Maine Central head coach Max Good usually improves dramatically. Marlow not only is frequently compared to former Oklahoma State All-American Bryant Reeves, but according to Swaim, he's a lot further along at the same stage. "And he's still growing," says Swaim. Right now Marlow is 6'10, 280 lbs, but Swaim predicts that he'll be at least 7'0, 300 lbs., before he ever touches a college floor. Swaim also predicts that Oklahoma State will get 6'6 Jr Terrance Crawford from Oklahoma City (Bishop McGuinnes) OK, who currently ranks #38 in the junior class, but will likely move up when we revise our junior list, because he had a great summer. However, don't look for Crawford to commit any time soon, because word is he wants to go through the recruiting process.

We find the latest list for 6'10 Donnie Wallace from Wichita (Goddard) KS particularly interesting because it does not include Wichita State, which in recent years has done a good job of recruiting the top players in their own backyard. Wallace is considering Kansas State, SMU, Syracuse, Tulsa, Illinois State, North Texas, Stanford, and Texas.

It looks like 6'9 Dermarr Johnson, who recently announced that he was transferring to Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, is not the only one who won't be at Kensington (Newport Prep) MD next year. Bob Gibbons of All-Star Sports is reporting that 6'7 Damien Wilkins, who enrolled at Newport Prep in the spring, after leaving Frederick (Prospect Hall) MD, is transferring to Orlando (Dr. Phillips) FL, which makes perfect sense, because his father (Gerald Wilkins) plays for the Orlando Magic.

Thursday, August 27, 1998

We finally have a list for 6'8 Jason Kapono from Lakewood (Artesia) CA, who ranks as the #1 wing forward in the nation, according to the HOOP SCOOP. It includes UNLV, USC, Stanford, Oregon State, Utah, Kentucky, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Missouri, and N.C. State, but we think the first three are the serious contenders, because he likely will stay close to home and academics are a major concern. What? You think UNLV isn't an academic school. Well, Runnin' Rebels head coach Bill Bayno recently told us that he's only taken one Prop 48 casualty since he's been there. Obviously, UNLV is trying to change its image and apparently they are doing a good job. If they land Kapono, it certainly would help continue the trend.

We are now getting reports that the University of Kentucky is no longer involved with 6'7 Rod Grizzard from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL, who we discovered in the spring and currently ranks #17 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP. While we'd be very surprised if Grizzard doesn't go to either Alabama or U.A.B., Auburn, Florida State, and Texas Christian are also still on his list.

Allen Rubin, our Philadelphia Area Editor is reporting that Northeastern has a commitment from 6'10 Gokboru Aygar originally from Turkey via Bunker Hill (JC) MA.

Louisville, Kentucky, and Tennessee are the final three for 6'9 Marquis Estill from Richmond (Madison Central) KY, who is one of the fastest rising players in nation and, as a result, now ranks #110 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP. Estill is best described as a skilled big man with excellent bulk and size, but he needs to continue to lose weight and improve his mobility.

When former Indian Hills (JC) IA head coach Terry Carroll recently left to take an assistant coaching job at Iowa State, they moved up assistant coach Mike Capaccio, who should have more than enough talent to keep Indian Hills streak of 72 consecutive wins alive for quite a while. Heading Indian Hills all-star cast is 6'7 Terry Black, who is expected to rank as one of the top five junior college players in the nation next season. Black's final five are Baylor, Iowa State, St. Louis, Wisconsin, and New Mexico, but as it stands now, we understand that Baylor assistant coach Mike Wilson about has this one wrapped up. The same appears to be true for the rest of Indian Hills' top players. We predict that 6'7 Shon Coleman will follow Carroll to Iowa State. UNC-Wilmington is expected to get 6'0 Baron Thelmon, UNC-Charlotte is the leader for 6'5 James Zimmerman, and 6'9 Greg Clark will likely return to someplace close to home (he's originally from Atlanta, GA), like UT-Chattanooga.

Wednesday, August 26, 1998

We've spent a lot of time talking about the great recruiting class that the University of Kentucky appears to be on the verge of landing, but it appears that Duke could also be on the verge of a monster recruiting class. Already in the fold for the Blue Devils is 6'10 Nick Horvath from Arden Hills (Mound View) MN, who currently doesn't rank among our top 100 nationally, but likely will move into the top 100, because he's shown dramatic improvement in the last few months, and right now Duke appears to be the leader for 6'2 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ, who was the #2 ranked player at the NIKE All-American Camp by the HOOP SCOOP, 6'11 Casey Sanders from Tampa (Prep) FL, who ranks among our top 10 nationally, and 6'7 Michael Dunleavy from Portland (Jesuit) OR, who Bob Gibbons of All-Stars Sports ranks #5 in the nation. Duke also appears to be a close second for 6'6 Casey Jacobson from Glendora (H.S.) CA and they are a lot stronger with 6'9 Andrew Gooden from El Cerrito (H.S.) CA and 6'9 Carlos Boozer from Juneau (Douglas) AK than most people realize.

Since we're talking about 6'9 Andrew Gooden from El Cerrito (H.S.) CA and 6'9 Carlos Boozer from Juneau (Douglas) AK, now would be a good time to give you their lists of schools. Gooden is considering Kansas, UCLA, Duke, Connecticut, Arkansas, and Michigan. Boozer has narrowed his list to UCLA, Syracuse, Kansas, Duke, Connecticut, Maryland, UNLV, USC, St. John's, and Georgetown.

Our Philadelphia Area Editor Allen Rubin was at the the Sonny Hill Future  Stars Tournament over the weekend and he tells us that B.A.B.C. (Boston Amateur Basketball Club) beat the Cecil Kirk Team from Baltimore, 67-65, in the championship game. The high scorer with 25 points in the championship game was 6'5 Scott Clark, who will return this fall to Winchendon (School) MA, where he will be a 5th year player. The MVP of the tournament was 6'10 Jr Diarra Modibo from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, who had nine points, 17 rebounds, and five blocks in the championship. Also playing well for B.A.B.C. was 6'6 Jr Raheim Lamb from Lynn (English) MA, who added 14 points in the title game. Cecil Kirk was led 5'11 Damon Brown from Randallstown (H.S.) MD and 6'6 Jamal Brown from Baltimore (Dunbar) MD, both of whom are transferring to Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME this fall. However, Rubin also tells us that the best player and the leading scorer in the tournament with 23 ppg was 6'2 Soph Dujuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ, who now ranks as the #1 player in the sophomore class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.

We scooped everybody over the weekend on 6'4 Kevin Gaines from Las Vegas (Clark) NV going to Michigan, but now it looks like the other highly touted point guard from Las Vegas also is no longer available. West Coast Hoops is reporting that 6'2 Demetrius Hunter from Las Vegas (Cheyenne) NV, who ranks #78 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, has committed to Pepperdine.

Tuesday, August 25, 1998

We had reported previously that 7'0 Josh Moore from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ would likely end up at Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT. Well, it's now official, according to HOOP SCOOP New York City Editor Ron Naclerio, who got it straight from the horse's mouth today. We also had reported in July that we thought 6'6 Derick Payne from Washington (Coolidge) DC via Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC would end up at Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA. Apparently that is not going to happen. Where will Payne end up? Probably in prep school, because he's a long way away from passing all the core classes he needs to be eligible to play as a college freshmen, and as a result, will likely need not just one, but two more years of high school. We are also hearing that 6'9 Zach Johnson from Shreveport (Woodlawn) LA, who did not play well when we saw him this summer, may be transferring to Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA. Although it is possible, we'd be surprised if it happens.

Five-Star Basketball Camp's Pitt IV was the camp's best session in several years, according to Tom Konchalski, Editor & Publisher of the H.S.B.I. Report. But that isn't the only session of Five-Star that ranks among the top events of the summer. Honesdale II, which will going on all week with playoff games beginning on Friday morning and the all-star games on Saturday night, features many of the top players in the East, including an outstanding group of point guards in 6'0 Todd Billet from Lincroft (Christian Brothers) NJ, 6'2 Deshawn Williams from Paterson (Catholic) NJ, 6'0 Brandin Knight from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ, 5'10 Fab Fisher from Brookville (Long Island Lutheran) NY, 5'11 Jr Taliek Brown from Astoria (St. John's Prep) NY, 6'0 Jr Omar Cook from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, and 6'1 Soph Dujuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ, who currently ranks as the #1 sophomore in America, after finishing ranked #3 at the NIKE All-American Camp in July by the HOOP SCOOP. Also present are many of the top players from New York City, including Cook, Brown, 6'7 Miguel Caballero from New York (LaSalle) NY, 6'3 Reggie Brown from Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY, 6'11 Micah Brand from Milford (Academy) CT, 6'8 Jr Kyle Cuffe from New York (Rice) NY, 6'8 Jr J.C. Mathis from Bronx (Kennedy) NY, 6'7 Jr Zach Williams from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'5 Jr Tremayne Singletary from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, 6'3 Jr Terrance Watkins from Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY, 6'5 Jr Juma Allen from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'1 Soph Ted Mumford from Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY, 5'10 Soph Famous Brown from New York (LaSalle) NY, and 6'2 Soph Kevin White from Fresh Meadows (St. Francis Prep) NY. The camp also features the fastest rising player in New England in 6'9 Abraham Keita from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, 6'6 Khalid Worthy from New Haven (Hillhouse) CT, 6'3 Tony Dobbins from Washington (Maret) DC, 6'4 Del Bethea from Paterson (Catholic) NJ, 6'6 Tarvel Johnson from Camden (H.S.) NJ, 6'6 Maurice Rhodes from Marietta (H.S.) GA, 7'3 Curtis Johnson from Norfolk (Booker T.Washington) VA, 6'5 Jr Arthur Barkley from Camden (H.S.) NJ, and 6'5 Soph John Allen from Coatesville (H.S.) PA. If that weren't enough, the legendary Hubie Brown is scheduled to speak at the camp today, followed by Jayson Williams, who plays for the New York Knicks, tomorrow, and Boston Celtics head coach Rick Pitino on Thursday. We'll arrive on Friday morning and we'll provide you with all the highlights from the last two days.

Today we received an email from Richard Wright, who the assistant Webmaster at M@ttsStats, and he is reporting that Evansville head coach Jim Crews has landed 6'9 Faruk Mujezinovic from Jasper (H.S.) IN, who is the cousin of former Indiana University center Haris Mujezinovic.

Monday, August 24, 1998

Near the end of July we published our preliminary post summer list of the top 100 seniors. Now, with a month to reflect and some time to break down the top players by position, we have listed below our final post summer rankings of the top 110 players in order nationally and by position. As it stands now, only three of the HOOP SCOOP's top 10 players in the nation (all guards) have been taken off the recruiting board, as 6'2 Brett Nelson from St. Albans (H.S.) WV has committed to Florida, 5'10 Jason Gardner from Indianapolis (North Central) IN has announced for Arizona, and 6'4 Kevin Gaines from Las Vegas (Clark) NV is heading to Michigan. Also gone are seven other players who rank among our top 50, including 6'9 Matt Bonner from Concord (H.S.) NH, who teams with Nelson to give the University of Florida the #1 ranked recruiting class to date in the Class of '99. The only other school that has commitments from two players who rank among the top 50 nationally is the University of Connecticut, which has gotten commitments from 6'3 Marcus Cox from Bridgeport (Kolbe Cathedral) CT and 6'3 Tony Robertson from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI. Not only have 10 of the HOOP SCOOP's top 50 or 20% of the top 50 players already verbally committed, but 18 of top 110 are no longer available.

THE HOOP SCOOP'S FINAL POST-SUMMER RANKINGS OF THE TOP 110 SENIORS NATIONALLY & BY POSITION

Rank, Name, Height, Class, Position, Hometown (High School) State, College

1. Donnell Harvey 6'7 Sr PF Cuthbert (Randolph Clay) GA

2. Keith Bogans 6'4 Sr 2G Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD

3. Marvin Stone 6'10 Sr C Huntsville (Grissom) AL

4. Leon Smith 6'10 Sr C Chicago (Martin Luther King) IL

5. Carlos Boozer 6'9 Sr PF Juneau (Douglas) AK

6. Jason Williams 6'2 Sr PG Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ

7. Brett Nelson 6'3 Sr PG St. Albans (H.S.) WV - Committed-Florida

8. Jason Gardner 5'10 Sr PG Indianapolis (North Central) IN - Committed-Arizona

9. Casey Sanders 6'11 Sr C Tampa (Prep) FL

10. Kevin Gaines 6'3 Sr PG Las Vegas (Clark) NV - Committed-Michigan

11. Jason Kapono 6'8 Sr WF Lakewood (Artesia) CA

12. Jonathan Bender 6'11 Sr PF Picayune (H.S.) MS

13. LaVall Blanchard 6'6 Sr WF Ann Arbor (Pioneer) MI

14. Dermarr Johnson 6'9 Sr WF Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME

15. Brian Cook 6'10 Sr PF Lincoln (H.S.) IL - Committed-Illinois

16. Jason Richardson 6'5 Sr 2G Saginaw (Arthur Hill) MI

17. Rob Grizzard 6'7 Sr WF Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL

18. Jason Parker 6'8 Sr PF Charlotte (West Charlotte) NC

19. Travis Watson 6'7 Sr PF Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA

20. Majestic Mapp 6'0 Sr PG Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY

21. Joe Forte 6'4 Sr 2G Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD

22. Marshall Williams 6'5 Sr WF Milwaukee (Vincent) WI

23. Casey Jacobsen 6'6 Sr WF Glendora (H.S.) CA

24. George Williams 6'8 Sr WF Sugar Land (Elkins) TX

25. Kenny Satterfield 6'1 Sr 2G New York (Rice) NY

26. Derick Payne 6'6 Sr WF Washington (Coolidge) DC

27. Nick Collison 6'9 Sr PF Iowa Falls (H.S.) IA

28. Joe Johnson 6'6 Sr WF Little Rock (Central) AR

29. Donnell Knight 6'8 Sr PF Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ - Committed-Arizona State

30. Caron Butler 6'6 Sr WF Racine (Washington Park) WI

31. Mike Bauer 6'8 Sr PF Hasting (H.S.) MN - Committed-Minnesota

32. Brent Darby 6'0 Sr PG River Rouge (H.S.) MI

33. Marcus Cox 6'3 Sr 2G Bridgeport (Kolbe Cathedral) CT - Committed-Connecticut

34. Chuck Eidson 6'8 Sr WF Summerville (Pinewood Prep) SC - Committed-South Carolina

35. Ryan Wildenborg 6'11 Sr C Kirkland (Juanita) WA

36. Damien Wilkins 6'7 Sr WF Kensington (Newport School) MD

37. Aloysius Anagoyne 6'8 Sr PF Detroit (St. Martin DePorres) MI

38. Todd Billet 6'0 Sr PG Lincroft (Christian Brothers) NJ

39. Michael Dunleavy 6'7 Sr WF Portland (Jesuit) OR

40. Reese Gaines 6'5 Sr 2G Madison (West) WI

41. Kirk Hinrich 6'3 Sr PG Sioux City (West) IA

42. George Leach 6'11 Sr C Charlotte (Olympic) NC

43. Matt Carroll 6'6 Sr 2G Horsham (Horsham-Hatboro) NJ

44. Andrew Gooden 6'9 Sr C El Cerrito (H.S.) CA

45. DeShawn Williams 6'2 Sr 2G Paterson (Catholic) NJ

46. Hollis Price 5'11 Sr PG New Orleans (St. Augustine) LA

47. Tony Robertson 6'3 Sr 2G Barrington (St. Andrews) RI - Committed-Connecticut

48. Samuel Dalembert 6'11 Sr C Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ

49. Roger Mason 6'4 Sr 2G Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD

50. Matt Bonner 6'9 Sr PF Concord (H.S.) NH - Committed-Florida

51. Josh Moore 6'11 Sr C Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ

52. Tito Maddox 6'4 Sr PG Compton (H.S.) CA

53. Brian Wethers 6'4 Sr 2G Murrietta (Murrietta Valley) CA

54. Jon Higgins 6'2 Sr PG Shaker Heights (H.S.) OH

55. Antonio Falu 6'5 Sr PG Houston (Waltrip) TX - Committed-Houston

56. Curtis Borchardt 6'10 Sr C Redmond (Eastlake) WA

57. Brian Woodward 6'3 Sr 2G Bayside (Cardozo) NY

58. Jamal Brown 6'7 Sr PF Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME

59. Bernard King 6'3 Sr PG Gibsland (Gibsland-Coleman) LA

60. Steve Hunter 6'11 Sr C Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC

61. Ndu Egekeze 6'7 Sr WF Augusta (Westside) GA

62. Erwin Dudley 6'8 Sr PF Uniontown (R.C. Hatch) AL

63. Ray Henderson 6'9 Sr C Charlotte (East Mechlenburg) NC

64. Tony Bobbitt 6'5 Sr WF Daytona Beach (Mainland) FL - Committed-Florida State

65. Jamison Brewer 6'3 Sr PG East Point (Tri-Cities) GA

66. Gregory Morton 6'7 Sr PF Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY

67. John Grove 6'10 Sr C Grove City (George Jr. Republic) PA - Committed-Cincinnati

68. Ronald Slay 6'6 Sr WF Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA - Committed-Tennesseee

69. Jerell Parker 6'5 Sr 2G Chicago (St. Francis DeSales) IL

70. Miguel Caballero 6'7 Sr PF New York (LaSalle) NY

71. Kenny Walker 6'9 Sr PF Jacksonville (Wolfson) FL

72. Derek Smith 6'6 Sr WF Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY

73. Ronald Dupree 6'6 Sr WF Biloxi (H.S.) MS

74. Edward Scott 5'11 Sr PG Hopkins (Lower Richland) SC

75. Keith Kincade 6'5 Sr WF Compton (Dominguez) CA

76. Andrew Sullivan 6'8 Sr PF Richland (St. Augustine) NJ

77. Terrance Woods 6'2 Sr 2G Memphis (Treadwell) TN

78. Demetrius Hunter 6'2 Sr PG Las Vegas (Cheyenne) NV

79. Marquis Daniels 6'7 Sr WF Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC

80. Rodney Tucker 6'8 Sr PF Stone Mountain (H.S.) GA

81. Jonathon Oden 6'7 Sr PF St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO

82. Eric Siegrist 6'3 Sr 2G Poughkeepsie (Spackenkill) NY

83. Tyrone Hayes 6'7 Sr WF Augusta (Josey) GA

84. Micah Brand 6'11 Sr C Milford (Academy) CT

85. Leland Anderson 6'8 Sr PF North Attleboro (H.S.) MA

86. Gavin Groninger 6'5 Sr WF Plainfield (H.S.) IN

87. Richard Wright 6'6 Sr PF East Chicago (Central) IN

88. Ezra Williams 6'4 Sr 2G Marietta (H.S.) GA

89. Julian Swartz 6'6 Sr WF Waukesha (South) WI - Committed-Wisconsin

90. Alonzo Lane 6'7 Sr PF Canton (H.S.) MS - Committed-Mississippi State

91. Brandin Knight 6'0 Sr PG West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ

92. Tahj Holden 6'10 Sr C Little Silver (Red Bank) NJ

93. Kareem Rush 6'5 Sr WF Kansas City (Pembroke Hill) MO

94. Nick Jacobson 6'4 Sr 2G Roseville (H.S.) MN - Committed-Utah

95. Clarence Moore 6'5 Sr PF Galliano (South LaFourche) LA

96. Abraham Keita 6'9 Sr C Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT

97. Heath Orvis 6'0 Sr PG Longmont (H.S.) CO

98. Justin Davis 6'8 Sr PF Alameda (St. Joseph) CA

99. Demon Brown 6'1 Sr PG Randallstown (H.S.) MD

100. Troy Bell 6'0 Sr PG Minneapolis (Holy Angels) MN

101. Jamario Moon 6'7 Sr WF Rockford (Coosa Central) AL

102. Sherrod Teasley 6'2 Sr PG Frederick (Prospect Hall) MD

103. Travis Kraft 6'6 Sr WF Mayfield (Mayfield CG) ND

104. Courtland Freeman 6'8 Sr PF Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC

105. Val Brown 6'0 Sr PG Springfield (Robert E. Lee) VA

106. Rodrick Johnson 6'7 Sr WF Canyon Springs (H.S.) CA

107. Andre Joseph 6'3 Sr 2G Houston (Furr) TX

108. Jerrance Howard 6'1 Sr PG Peoria (Central) IL

109. Tommy Smith 6'8 Sr PF Phoenix (North) AZ - Committed-Arizona State

110. Marquis Estill 6'9 Sr C Richmond (Madison Central) KY

Centers

1. Marvin Stone 6'10 Sr C Huntsville (Grissom) AL

2. Leon Smith 6'10 Sr C Chicago (Martin Luther King) IL

3. Casey Sanders 6'11 Sr C Tampa (Prep) FL

4. Ryan Wildenborg 6'11 Sr C Kirkland (Juanita) WA

5. George Leach 6'11 Sr C Charlotte (Olympic) NC

6. Andrew Gooden 6'9 Sr C El Cerrito (H.S.) CA

7. Samuel Dalembert 6'11 Sr C Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ

8. Josh Moore 6'11 Sr C Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ

9. Curtis Borchardt 6'10 Sr C Redmond (Eastlake) WA

10. Steve Hunter 6'11 Sr C Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC

11. Ray Henderson 6'9 Sr C Charlotte (East Mechlenburg) NC

12. John Grove 6'10 Sr C Grove City (George Jr. Republic) PA - Committed-Cincinnati

13. Micah Brand 6'11 Sr C Milford (Academy) CT

14. Tahj Holden 6'10 Sr C Little Silver (Red Bank) NJ

15. Abraham Keita 6'9 Sr C Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT

16. Marquis Estill 6'9 Sr C Richmond (Madison Central) KY

Power Forwards

1. Donnell Harvey 6'7 Sr PF Cuthbert (Randolph Clay) GA

2. Carlos Boozer 6'9 Sr PF Juneau (Douglas) AK

3. Jonathan Bender 6'11 Sr PF Picayune (H.S.) MS

4. Brian Cook 6'10 Sr PF Lincoln (H.S.) IL - Committed-Illinois

5. Jason Parker 6'8 Sr PF Charlotte (West Charlotte) NC

6. Travis Watson 6'7 Sr PF Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA

7. Nick Collison 6'9 Sr PF Iowa Falls (H.S.) IA

8. Donnell Knight 6'8 Sr PF Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ - Committed-Arizona State

9. Mike Bauer 6'8 Sr PF Hasting (H.S.) MN - Committed-Minnesota

10. Aloysius Anagoyne 6'8 Sr PF Detroit (St. Martin DePorres) MI

11. Matt Bonner 6'9 Sr PF Concord (H.S.) NH - - Committed-Florida

12. Jamal Brown 6'7 Sr PF Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME

13. Erwin Dudley 6'8 Sr PF Uniontown (R.C. Hatch) AL

14. Gregory Morton 6'7 Sr PF Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY

15. Miguel Caballero 6'7 Sr PF New York (LaSalle) NY

16. Kenny Walker 6'9 Sr PF Jacksonville (Wolfson) FL

17. Andrew Sullivan 6'8 Sr PF Richland (St. Augustine) NJ

18. Rodney Tucker 6'8 Sr PF Stone Mountain (H.S.) GA

19. Jonathon Oden 6'7 Sr PF St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO

20. Leland Anderson 6'8 Sr PF North Attleboro (H.S.) MA

21. Richard Wright 6'6 Sr PF East Chicago (Central) IN

22. Alonzo Lane 6'7 Sr PF Canton (H.S.) MS - Committed-Mississippi State

23. Clarence Moore 6'5 Sr PF Galliano (South LaFourche) LA

24. Justin Davis 6'8 Sr PF Alameda (St. Joseph) CA

25. Courtland Freeman 6'8 Sr PF Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC

26. Tommy Smith 6'8 Sr PF Phoenix (North) AZ - Committed-Arizona State

Wing Forwards

1. Jason Kapono 6'8 Sr WF Lakewood (Artesia) CA

2. LaVall Blanchard 6'6 Sr WF Ann Arbor (Pioneer) MI

3. Dermarr Johnson 6'9 Sr WF Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME

4. Rob Grizzard 6'7 Sr WF Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL

5. Marshall Williams 6'5 Sr WF Milwaukee (Vincent) WI

6. Casey Jacobsen 6'6 Sr WF Glendora (H.S.) CA

7. George Williams 6'8 Sr WF Sugar Land (Elkins) TX

8. Derick Payne 6'6 Sr WF Washington (Colidge) DC

9. Joe Johnson 6'6 Sr WF Little Rock (Central) AR

10. Caron Butler 6'6 Sr WF Racine (Washington Park) WI

11. Chuck Eidson 6'8 Sr WF Summerville (Pinewood Prep) SC - Committed-South Carolina

12. Damien Wilkins 6'7 Sr WF Kensington (Newport School) MD

13. Michael Dunleavy 6'7 Sr WF Portland (Jesuit) OR

14. Ndu Egekeze 6'7 Sr WF Augusta (Westside) GA

15. Tony Bobbitt 6'5 Sr WF Daytona Beach (Mainland) FL - Committed-Florida State

16. Ronald Slay 6'6 Sr WF Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA - Committed-Tennesseee

17. Derek Smith 6'6 Sr WF Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY

18. Ronald Dupree 6'6 Sr WF Biloxi (H.S.) MS

19. Keith Kincade 6'5 Sr WF Compton (Dominguez) CA

20. Marquis Daniels 6'7 Sr WF Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC

21. Gavin Groninger 6'5 Sr WF Plainfield (H.S.) IN

22. Tyrone Hayes 6'7 Sr WF Augusta (Josey) GA

23. Julian Swartz 6'6 Sr WF Waukesha (South) WI - Committed-Wisconsin

24. Kareem Rush 6'5 Sr WF Kansas City (Pembroke Hill) MO

25. Jamario Moon 6'7 Sr WF Rockford (Coosa Central) AL

26. Rodrick Johnson 6'7 Sr WF Canyon Springs (H.S.) CA

27. Travis Kraft 6'6 Sr WF Mayfield (Mayfield CG) ND

Second Guards

1. Keith Bogans 6'4 Sr 2G Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD

2. Jason Richardson 6'5 Sr 2G Saginaw (Arthur Hill) MI

3. Joe Forte 6'4 Sr 2G Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD

4. Kenny Satterfield 6'1 Sr 2G New York (Rice) NY

5. Marcus Cox 6'3 Sr 2G Bridgeport (Kolbe Cathedral) CT - Committed-Connecticut

6. Reese Gaines 6'5 Sr 2G Madison (West) WI

7. Matt Carroll 6'6 Sr 2G Horsham (Horsham-Hatboro) NJ

8. DeShawn Williams 6'2 Sr 2G Paterson (Catholic) NJ

9. Tony Robertson 6'3 Sr 2G Barrington (St. Andrews) RI - Committed-Connecticut

10. Roger Mason 6'4 Sr 2G Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD

11. Brian Wethers 6'4 Sr 2G Murrietta (Murrietta Valley) CA

12. Brian Woodward 6'3 Sr 2G Bayside (Cardozo) NY

13. Jerell Parker 6'5 Sr 2G Chicago (St. Francis DeSales) IL

14. Terrance Woods 6'2 Sr 2G Memphis (Treadwell) TN

15. Eric Siegrist 6'3 Sr 2G Poughkeepsie (Spackenkill) NY

16. Ezra Williams 6'4 Sr 2G Marietta (H.S.) GA

17. Nick Jacobson 6'4 Sr 2G Roseville (H.S.) MN - Committed-Utah

18. Andre Joseph 6'3 Sr 2G Houston (Furr) TX

Point Guards

1. Jason Williams 6'2 Sr PG Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ

2. Brett Nelson 6'3 Sr PG St. Albans (H.S.) WV - Committed-Florida

3. Jason Gardner 5'10 Sr PG Indianapolis (North Central) IN - Committed-Arizona

4. Kevin Gaines 6'3 Sr PG Las Vegas (Clark) NV - Committed-Michigan

5. Majestic Mapp 6'0 Sr PG Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY

6. Brent Darby 6'0 Sr PG River Rouge (H.S.) MI

7. Todd Billet 6'0 Sr PG Lincroft (Christian Brothers) NJ

8. Kirk Hinrich 6'3 Sr PG Sioux City (West) IA

9. Hollis Price 5'11 Sr PG New Orleans (St. Augustine) LA

10. Tito Maddox 6'4 Sr PG Compton (H.S.) CA

11. Jon Higgins 6'2 Sr PG Shaker Heights (H.S.) OH

12. Antonio Falu 6'5 Sr PG Houston (Waltrip) TX - Committed-Houston

13. Bernard King 6'3 Sr PG Gibsland (Gibsland-Coleman) LA

14. Jamison Brewer 6'3 Sr PG East Point (Tri-Cities) GA

15. Edward Scott 5'11 Sr PG Hopkins (Lower Richland) SC

16. Demetrius Hunter 6'2 Sr PG Las Vegas (Cheyenne) NV

17. Brandin Knight 6'0 Sr PG West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ

18. Heath Orvis 6'0 Sr PG Longmont (H.S.) CO

19. Demon Brown 6'1 Sr PG Randallstown (H.S.) MD

20. Troy Bell 6'0 Sr PG Minneapolis (Holy Angels) MN

21. Sherrod Teasley 6'2 Sr PG Frederick (Prospect Hall) MD

22. Val Brown 6'0 Sr PG Springfield (Robert E. Lee) VA

23. Jerrance Howard 6'1 Sr PG Peoria (Central) IL

Sunday, August 23, 1998

We thought both Kentucky and North Carolina were still in the hunt for 6'2 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ, so it comes as a bit of surprise that neither is on his final list of seven schools. According to Allen Rubin, the HOOP SCOOP's Philadelphia Area Editor, Williams, who ranks as the #1 point guard in America by the HOOP SCOOP, is still considering two schools from the Atlantic Coast Conference (Duke and Clemson) and five schools from the Big East (Connecticut, Rutgers, Notre Dame, Rutgers, and Georgetown). Apparently everybody else has been eliminated.

We are now getting reports that 6'8 Bernard McIntosh from Northern Pioneer (JC) AZ, who was the University of New Mexico's best recruit last spring, has failed to qualify academically. As a result, he will have to sit out the 1998-'99 season.

The University of Minnesota has given 6'0 Troy Bell from Minneapolis (Holy Angels) MN, who ranks among the top 100 players in the senior class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, until mid-September to commit to the Golden Gophers. Bell also has Xavier, Tennessee, and Boston College, but the Minnesota coaching staff has told him that they will look in a different direction, if he doesn't commit to them within the next several weeks. Our prediction is Minnesota will get him. They don't lose many that they want from their own backyard - just ask 6'8 Mike Bauer from Hasting (Senior) MN, who verbally committed a week ago to the Golden Gophers, and 7'0 Joel Pryzbilla from Monticello (H.S.) MN, who said no to Kansas and elected to stay home a year ago.

The University of Dayton has landed its second recruit in a many months with the recent addition of 6'7 Chris Strodes from Independence (JC) KS. Strodes, who is originally from Springfield (North) OH, will sign a national letter-of-intent this fall, but he also will enroll in school immediately at Dayton, where he will red-shirt this year. This means he will have three years to play. How important is this for the Dayton program? "It's huge," says HOOP SCOOP Ohio Editor Chris Johnson. "I think he will be more of an impact player than Brooks Hall, who committed to Dayton last month. Strodes would have ranked among the top 50 junior college players in America, if he had returned to Independence, and he gives Dayton the presence inside necessary to compete against the other top teams in the Atlantic 10, like Xavier, Temple, and Rhode Island."

The latest list for 6'11 Casey Sanders from Tampa (Prep) FL, who ranks among the top 10 seniors nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, includes Duke, Kentucky, Syracuse, Kansas, South Florida, Florida State, Florida, and Miami-FL. He will take official visists to all of the out-of-state schools, but doesn't need to take official visits to South Florida, Florida State, and Florida, because they are all within driving distance and he can get to those places unofficially.

Saturday, August 22, 1998

Mitch Mitchell, our man in Las Vegas, called earlier today to give us the scoop on 6'4 Kevin Gaines from Las Vegas (Clark) NV, who finished ranked #6 by the HOOP SCOOP at the NIKE Camp and was the runaway leading scorer at the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, NV. Gaines has picked the University of Michigan over Kansas, Kentucky, Georgetown, Duke, and St. Louis. He tells us that he picked the Wolverines, because they did an excellent job recruiting him, they need a point guard, and they are expected to have a big recruiting class. At the end of July we had Gaines ranked #12 nationally, but when we update our rankings tomorrow, he will rank #10 nationally, just behind the other three top point guards in the senior class - 6'2 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ, 6'2 Brett Nelson from St. Albans (H.S.) WV, and 5'10 Jason Gardner from Indianapolis (North Central) IN.

We mentioned recently that we thought that Kansas was the favorite for 6'9 Nick Collison from Iowa Falls (H.S.) IA, but we didn't give you the rest of his list, which apparently only includes Duke. This is huge, because normally the University of Iowa would be right there for the best player from Iowa, but obviously Collison isn't interested in waiting around (especially when he has offers from both Kansas and Duke) until spring to see who the Hawkeyes hire to replace Dr. Tom Davis, who announced last spring that this would be his last year coaching.

Friday, August 21, 1998

The final list for 6'7 Travis Watson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who currently ranks #36 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, includes Clemson, Virginia, Florida State, Texas, Syracuse, Michigan, and maybe Wake Forest, but that doesn't seem probably because the Deacons currently only have one scholarship available.

With all the recent problems at Miami (Senior) FL, we mentioned that we thought that 6'3 Stephen Blake from Miami (Senior) FL would likely transfer to prep school in Maryland or Virginia. Well, it has already happened. Steve Smith, the head coach at Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA confirms that Blake will be his point guard next season. Smith also confirms that he's getting another transfer from the Senegal and the word is that 6'9 Abdou Diane may have just as much potential as Kentucky-bound 6'11 Souleymane Camara. Not only is Diane both a tremendous shot blocker and athlete, but he also was the only young player on the Senegal National Team. That's right! Diane is just a junior.

After finishing with a top 10 recruiting class in the spring of '97 and a top 20 recruiting class several months ago, the University of Memphis finds itself in a very interesting situation, according to HOOP SCOOP Mid-South Editor Jim Rothman. Memphis has to replace three starters in 6'6 Omar Sneed, 6'9 Jermaine Ousley, and 5'10 Detric Golden, but, unlike in past years, there isn't a lot of immediate help to be found in their own backyard. "I look for head coach Tic Price to continue the trend of signing the best players he can get right away," says Rothman."This is important, because he may once again have to go the junior college route to find players who can step and make an immediate impact." Among the junior college players we know they're involved with include 6'3 Kenny Dye from Connors State (JC) KS and 6'6 Shannon Foreman from Northwest Mississippi (JC) MS. The high school players mentioning Memphis who could make an immediate impact are 6'5 Marshall Williams from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 6'9 Larry Satchell from Waco (H.S) TX, 6'8 Charles Richmond from Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN, 6'11 Jonathan Bender from Picayune (H.S.) MS, 6'6 Ronald Dupree from Biloxi (H.S.) MS, 6'5 Terrance Salisbury from Memphis (Carver) TN, and 6'2 Terrance Woods from Memphis (Treadwell) TN.

Thursday, August 20, 1998

It comes as no surprise that 6'2 Jon Crispin from Pittman (H.S.) NJ, who ranks #123 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP and #4 in the Philadelphia/South Jersey/Eastern Pennsylvania Area by Allen Rubin, is following his brother to Penn State. He verbally committed to the Nittany Lions yesterday.

Early this week 6'4 Joe Forte from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'0 Val Brown from Springfield (Robert E. Lee) VA, and 5'11 Jamaal Gilchrist from Middleburg (Notre Dame) VA all were at George Mason for an unofficial visit. While George Mason's chances of getting Forte are probably slim and none, they do have an excellent shot at both Brown and Gilchrist. George Mason, whose coaching staff does as good a job as any staff in the nation at evaluating who they can realistically recruit and then getting it done, also appears to be in great shape with 6'10 Jesse Young from Peterborough (Collegiate) ON. Right now George Mason is the leader, but Boston College, Rutgers, Dayton, St. Bonaventure, Xavier, Oregon State, DePaul, and Providence are all trying to get involved.

The final five for 6'10 Marvin Stone from Huntsville (Grissom) AL are Kentucky, Alabama, Florida State, North Carolina, and Auburn. As it stands now, we still think Kentucky is the favorite, but the longer it goes the more it favors Alabama, which could be very tough to say no to in November. Right now Stone has three in-home visits scheduled with Kentucky on September 9th, Auburn on September 10th, and Florida State visits on September 12th. We'll let you know when Alabama and North Carolina are scheduled to go into the home when that information becomes available.

DePaul has gotten a commitment from 6'2 Joe Tulley from Rockford (Boylan) IL, who promises to be an excellent role player for the Blue Demons. Before the summer the HOOP SCOOP had Tulley ranked #487 nationally and #17 in Illinois.

One of the big things that made recently hired University of Louisville assistant coach Vince Taylor an attractive candidate for the position were his connections to foreign players, like 6'10 Mohammed Kante from France. However, Ashley McGeachy is now reporting in the Louisville Courier-Journal that Kante probably will not be eligible to play at Louisville or any other college, because he is a professional athlete and he has played for a pro basketball team in Dijon, France. Two other Louisville recruits - 6'1 Caleb Gervin from Cathedral City (H.S.) CA and 6'5 Janerio Spurlock from Cincinnati (Aiken) OH - are expected to enroll when classes begin on Monday, but neither can receive finanical aid, because they are ineligible to play this season, due to the fact that they haven't met the necessary academic standards set forth by the NCAA.

Wednesday, August 19, 1998

We are now being told by Gary Decesare, the head coach at Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, that the University of Connecticut is still very much in the picture 6'0 Majestic Mapp from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY. Apparently the Huskies want to bring in three guards to replace Richard Hamilton and Khalid El-Amin, if and when he turns pro. They already have commitments from both 6'3 Marcus Cox from Bridgeport (Kolbe Cathedral) CT and 6'3 Tony Robertson from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, but neither is a pure point guard. Mapp, on the other hand might, be the ultimate pure point guard, because he's extremely talented and he makes everybody around him better. This was especially evident this summer at the adidas ABCD Camp, where he led the camp in assists and at Eastern Invitational, where he was named MVP for the week, at the loaded session at the end of July. However, we think this one is far from over, because Decesare told us last night that Virginia, Texas, Notre Dame, Purdue, Seton Hall, and Ohio State are also high on Mapp's list.

The latest list for 6'7 Donnell Harvey from Cuthbert (Randolph Clay) GA, who currently ranks as the #1 player in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, includes Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Georgia, Florida, N.C. State, Clemson, and Villanova.

Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY also has 6'7 Gregory Morton, who is regarded as one of the best defensive forward in the nation. Virginia, Notre Dame, Seton Hall, and Texas have already offered, according to his high school coach, Gary Decesare. Also on Morton's list are Massachusetts, Rutgers, Xavier, and Iona.

Ohio State has received a major commitment from 7'3 Aleksandar Radojevic from Barton County (JC) KS, who is expected to be the best big man in the junior college ranks next year, as well as one of the top three players overall. Originally from the Yugoslavian Republic of Montenegro, Ohio State beat Kansas, UAB, Kentucky, Marquette, St. John's, and Texas Christian for this quality big man. This puts Ohio State into a position where all they need is a point guard, which is what they will use their one remaining scholarship for. Among the most likely candidates are 6'2 Brent Darby from River Rouge (H.S.) MI, 6'1 Todd Billet from Lincroft (Christian Brothers) NJ, 6'0 Majestic Mapp from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'2 George Baker from Lexington (Dunbar) KY,and 6'2 Jon Higgins from Shaker Heights (H.S.) OH. If you will recall, the Buckeyes also got a commitment from 6'8 Slobodan Ocakoljic from Massillon (Washington) OH, who currently doesn't rank among our top 100 nationally, but has a lot of potential.

After spending several years on the East Coast in prep school, it looks like 6'10 Nick Van der Laan from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT will be returning home (he is from Northern California) to play his college basketball, as earlier this week he picked the University of California-Berkeley.

Tuesday, August 18, 1998

Coming almost immediately on the heels of the commitment last week from 6'3 Marcus Cox from Bridgeport (Kolbe Cathedral) CT, the University of Connecticut now has a verbal commitment from 6'3 Tony Robertson from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI. Robertson, who currently ranks as the #1 player in New England and #39 in the senior class nationally, should provide the perfect complement to Cox in the backcourt for the Huskies for years to come, because both can play either guard position, although Robertson is probably best at the wing guard spot. What does this do to Connecticut's position with a number of the other top guards in the nation, like 6'2 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ, 6'2 Brent Darby from River Rouge (H.S.) MI, 6'0 Majestic Mapp from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, and 6'1 Ken Satterfield from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY? Our guess is the Huskies will back off. As a matter of fact, we hear that the Connecticut coaching staff told Cox and Robertson, who were expected to go to Connecticut all along, that the scholarships might not be there if they didn't get it done quickly.

Now that Connecticut will likely be backing off 6'2 Brent Darby from River Rouge (H.S.) MI, who currently ranks #31 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, his final four are Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, and Kansas.

West Virginia University now has a verbal commitment from 6'6 Josh Yeager from Philippi (Philip Barbour) WV, who is widely regarded as the second best player in the senior class in West Virginia, behind 6'2 Brett Nelson from St. Albans (H.S.) WV.

We still hear that 6'8 Jason Kapono from Lakewood (Artesia) CA has yet to narrow his list, but three very important factors make us believe that the only serious contenders are Southern California, UNLV, Stanford, California, and UCLA. Those factors are: 1) he wants to go to a big-time school; 2) he isn't going far from home, because his family wants to watch him play in person most of the time; and 3) he's not going to school just to play basketball - academics are also important, as evident by his 3.8 gpa. We don't include Arizona, because the Wildcats signed a number of forwards last fall.

In the spring 6'8 Rico Harris from L.A. City (JC) CA, who was one of the top junior players in the nation, committed to the University of Rhode Island, but more recently he reneged. For a while we thought he might end up at the University of Missouri, but now Chris Johnson, the HOOP SCOOP's Ohio Editor, has found out that Harris plans to enroll at Cal State-Northridge this fall. And Mike Miller's West Coast Hoops Web Site confirms this fact.

Monday, August 17, 1998

We now have confirmation that 6'7 Lubos Barton from the Czech Republic has committed to Valparaiso. Barton, who has top 100 potential nationally in his class, told sources close to the HOOP SCOOP this morning that he cancelled his visit to California this weekend, because he's going to Valpo. He also says he is academically qualified. This is huge for Valparaiso, because it shows that new assistant coach Steve Flint has simply picked up where former assistant Jim Harrick, Jr. left off in terms of recruiting foreign players. How big a commitment is this? Probably the biggest since Bryce Drew. And like Drew, Barton is a great 3-point shooter.

We mentioned that the University of Minnesota might have a hard time getting 6'9 Mike Bauer from Hastings (Senior) MN to stay home, because the Golden Gophers made a major recruiting mistake when they withdrew Bauer's scholarship offer the week before the NIKE All-American Camp. Well, surprise! Minnesota not only shows that they can keep the top players in the state home, but they did it fast. If you will recall, Bauer made his official visit to Minnesota only last week.

Minnesota also appears to have strong connections in Seattle. If you will recall, last fall head coach Clem Haskins signed 6'3 Kevin Burleson from Seattle (O'Dea) WA and the Golden Gophers appeared to be a virtual lock 6'7 Doug Wrenn from Seattle (O'Dea) WA, at least until his recruitment got strange at the end. Now it appears that Minnesota is keeping the Seattle connection alive, because they are among the finalists, along with DePaul, Texas, Clemson, Oklahoma, and Washington, for 6'11 Ryan Wildenborg from Kirkland (Juanita) WA, who was terrific when we saw him at the adidas & Double Pump Best of the Summer High School Boy's Basketball Tournament at Cal State Dominguez Hills, CA in July. Apparently Minnesota head coach Clem Haskins has promised Wildenborg that he can play power forward along side the shot blocking 7'0 Joel Pryzbilla and this appeals to him so much that Minnesota might now be the leader. And wouldn't that be interesting, especially if 6'9 Mike Bauer from Hastings (Senior) MN develops 3-point range, so they can play him exclusively at the wing forward spot. Haskins, who is black, could have a chance to get back to the NCAA Final Four with three multi-talented white guys starting on his front line.

IUPUI is close to getting a commitment from 6'1 Taj Hawkins from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA. Hawkins was the forgetten man last year on one of head coach Steve Smith's best teams ever, as was evident by the fact that the other four starters went to Temple (Kevin Lyde), Wake Forest (Antwan Scott), Kentucky (Souleymane Camara), and Xavier (Lloyd Price) and they competed for the mythical national championship against Frederick (Prospect Hall) MD in the Dean E. Smith Student Activity Center in late February. Hawkins, who led Oak Hill in minutes played, assists, and steals, is an absolute steal for IUPUI, which is joining the Division I ranks this year.

Last week we mentioned that the University of Miami-FL had picked up a commitment from 6'7 Djahaue Rodrigue from Miami (Northwest Christian) FL. He is not to be confused with another big guy - 6'9 James Jones from Miami (American) FL, who verbally committed to the Hurricanes late last week. While Jones isn't as aggressive as Rodrigue, he does have a man-child type body and he is excellent on the boards.

Utah, Oklahoma, Iowa State, and Kansas appear to be the final four for 6'3 Kirk Hinrich from Sioux City (West) IA, who ranks #49 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, but Kentucky also could be a factor if they don't wait around too long. And by the way, we heard the rumor that Hinrich visited Kentucky unofficially on his way back from Orlando, FL in July. But we didn't go with it, because a source close to the Kentucky program was unaware of any visit by Hinrich to Lexington, KY. However, he could be an excellent answer to their future point guard needs. Hinrich, whose dad is his high school coach, is an athletic white kid who can shoot, handle, pass, and defend. Plus we like his aggressive hardnosed demeanor and court savvy.

Sunday, August 16, 1998

We have heard from several sources that 6'6 Derek Smith from Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY, who ranks #63 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP in basketball, but who also is widely regarded as the best tight end prospect in the nation in football, is close to making a commitment to Kentucky, where he will play both sports. If you will recall, in July it was rumored that he had committed to Western Kentucky, which made no since. because the Hilltoppers weren't even on the list that he'd given us the previous week. His list for basketball was Kentucky, Tennessee, Northwestern, and South Carolina. His football list included Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan.

The final five for 6'4 David Young from New Castle (H.S.) PA, who had a terrific spring, but not so great a summer, includes Villanova, West Virginia, Xavier, Duquesne, and Clemson. All but Clemson have offered. Apparently the Tigers are waiting for Young to become qualified academically before offering him a scholarship.

Ever hear of 6'5 Jaeson Maravich from Covington (St. Paul's) LA via a prep school in New Hampshire. Neither had we until he committed on Friday to the University of Alabama, where he plans to walk-on the basketball team this season. Maravich's big claim to fame is that his father was perhaps the best shooter of all time - Pete Maravich. However, unlike his father, Jaeson is not known for his outside shooting and great ball handling. Instead, he's just a great kid and a good student with a legendary last name.

Saturday, August 15, 1998

It has been reported by one of our competitors that 6'7 Lubos Barton from the Czech Republic, who impressed us this summer at both the adidas Big Time Tournament and the Double Pump & Run Tournament, while playing for the Virginia Select American Team, has committed to Valparaiso. While we think this may happen, sources close to the Valaparaiso program tell us that it hasn't happened yet. As a matter of fact, Barton, who was at Valparaiso earlier this week, is scheduled to visit the University of California this weekend. Virginia and Clemson are also still on his list, but neither has a scholarship available right now and both are encouraging Barton to go to prep school for a year. However, if he gets cleared by the NCAA's Clearing House, he could be eligible to play next season. But he'd have to get cleared fairly soon, because a decision would have to be made within the next few weeks, so he can enroll in school.

University of Utah head coach Rick Majerus has made a living taking players without big reputations and developing them into quality players. Another guy who could fall into the mold is 6'11 Lance Allred from Salt Lake City (East) UT, who has committed to Utah within the last 24 hours.

We mentioned several weeks ago that the University of Rhode Island hired Nate Cadigan, who was formerly an assistant coach with the Long Island Panthers AAU Program. Since that time several people have told me that I was wrong, that Rhode Island hired former Valparaiso and Marshall assistant coach Jim Harrick, Jr, who is the son of Rhode Island head coach Jim Harrick. Just to set the record straight, Rhode Island had two openings on the staff and both Cadigan and Jim Harrick, Jr, were hired.

Friday, August 14, 1998

It is official! As expected, at 3:30 PM today 6'9 Matt Bonner from Concord (H.S.) NH picked the University of Florida over Virginia. This comes on the heels of Florida's #8 ranked recruiting class, according the HOOP SCOOP, in the spring and a commitment from 6'2 Brett Nelson from St. Albans (H.S.) WV before the beginning of the summer.

We've done some checking and apparently the player we told you about several days ago 6'7 Trello Galloway from Fork Union (Military Academy) VA is for real! Last year, as a high school senior at Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC, he was ineligible most of the season, but Eddie Oliver, Editor and Publisher of HOOPS USA and the driving force behind the Beach Ball Classic for years, comfirms that he's much better than the other highly touted player from Myrtle Beach - 6'9 Courtland Freeman from Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC. Oliver says that former Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC head coach Buddy Rogers has been close to Galloway, who will enter his 5th year of high school this fall, since he was in elementary school and that he thinks the sky could be the limit for this phenomenal athlete who can play both inside (excellent rebounder) and outside (good 3-point shooter).

Bob Gibbons in All-Star Sports has come out with his list of the post-summer top 100 seniors and it is very interesting. Ranked #1 is 6'6 LaVell Blanchard from Ann Arbor (Pioneer) MI, who is our choice for Player -of-the-Summer, based on his performances at the adidas ABCD and Five Star Pitt IV. He was the leading scorer and one of the leading rebounders at both camps, but we're still not sure he belongs among the very elite in this class nationally or is even the best player in Michigan. Gibbons also surprises us with 6'9 Nick Collison from Iowa Falls (H.S.) IA at #2. While we like Collison and think he has tremendous skills and lots of potential, in our humble opinion, we think that's a little high. Evidence of that fact can be found when we ranked Collison #38 nationally in the class in late July. We're on the same page with Gibbons's next two picks - 6'7 Donnell Harvey from Cuthbert (Randolph Clay) GA, who is ranked #3, and 6'11 Leon Smith from Chicago (Martin Luther King) MI, who is ranked #4, but we're still not as high as a lot of scouts on 6'5 Michael Dunleavy from Portland (Jesuit) OR, who Gibbons has #5 in the class. While Dunleavy has improved tremendously in the last year and he's one of the most skilled players and best outside shooters in the class, strength and a lack of quickness are still question marks. Rounding out Gibbons' top dozen in order are 6'4 Keith Bogans from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'3 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ, 6'5 Jason Richardson from Saginaw (Buena Vista) MI, 6'8 Jason Parker from Charlotte (West Charlotte) NC, 6'3 Joe Forte from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'8 Jason Kapono from Lakewood (Artesia) CA, and 6'11 Jonathan Bender from Picayune (H.S.) MS. For the rest, you'll have to buy his report.

Houston signed 6'7 Cedric Taylor from Houston (Waltrip) TX last spring, but he hasn't made it academically and, instead, will enroll in junior college. Originally we had heard that he would enroll at San Jacinto (JC) TX, but if he did that he would have to pass an exit exam to be eligible to play at a four year school in two years. So instead, he has enrolled at Garden City (JC) KS, where all he has to do it graduate from junior college to be eligible at a four year school.

We are still hearing from sources close to the Louisville program that it's far from over for 6'4 Antonio Falu from Houston (Waltrip) TX. While we're counting Falu (until he says otherwise) as a commitment for Houston, our sources tell us that Louisville head coach Denny Crum will make an in-home visit with Falu in September and that Falu still plans to make an official on-campus visit to Louisville this fall. Certainly Louisville's chances will be enhanced, if they get a clean bill of health from the NCAA. That's another thing we're hearing - Louisville is going to get nothing more than a slap on the wrist from the NCAA. If you will recall, Louisville assistant coach Scooter McCray gave the Wilson Inn his a credit card as security for Nate Johnson's father's room, which is a violation according to NCAA rules.

Thursday, August 13, 1998

Wayne Simone, the New England Editor of the HOOP SCOOP and the Publisher of High School Hoops in Connecticut, reports that 6'3 Marcus Cox from Bridgeport (Kolbe Cathedral) CT was on campus at the University of Connecticut last night and that while on the visit Cox verbally committed to the Huskies. This was not unexpected, but still, it is huge for UConn, because Cox has emerged as the premier player in New England. According to Simone, Cox didn't get much nationally exposure this summer, but he has passed up both 6'3 Tony Robertson from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI and 6'9 Matt Bonner from Concord (H.S.) NH and is now the #1 ranked player in New England. Also don't be surprised if Connecticut winds up with another commitment this weekend, because both 6'3 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) NJ, who is currently the #1 ranked point guard in America by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'1 Kenneth Satterfield from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY are both expected to be at Connecticut this weekend.

Wayne Simone also confirms that 6'9 Matt Bonner from Concord (H.S.) NH will announce for the University of Florida tomorrow. He is expected to pick the Gators over the University of Virginia. This is huge, because it gives Florida head coach Billy Donovan a physical presence inside, as well as another terrific perimeter shooter.  It also proves that Donovan can jgo ust about anywhere to get players. Remember, a year ago he landed 6'8 Mike Miller from Mitchell (H.S.) SD and more recently he got 6'2 Brett Nelson from St. Albans (H.S.) WV. Florida also may now be the leader for 6'3 Tony Robertson from Barrington (St. Andews) RI, which is a major accomplishment in itself, because Florida is already overstocked at both guard positions with Nelson verbally committed and 5'9 Ted Dupay from Cape Coral (Mariner) FL and 6'4 Ladarius Halton ready to enroll as freshmen this fall.

The University of Miami-FL has picked up a commitment from 6'7 Djahaue Rodrigue from Miami (Northwest Christian) FL. He doesn't rank among our top 100 nationally and he may be undersized, but Rodrigue is one of the most aggressive power players in the class. If he's coming off the bench for you in the Big East, you're pretty darn good. If he's starting for you, don't expect him to take any prisoners. As a result, we think this is a pretty good get for Miami head coach Leonard Hamilton.

One that got away from Miami-FL was 6'3 Stephen Blake from Miami (Senior) FL, who committed to Maryland last spring. However, we're convinced that Leonard Hamilton isn't too worried about it after watching Blake play in the NIKE Peach Jam in Augusta, GA last month. Blake can't create his own shot off the dribble and he's not very athletic, which makes him a backup iat best in the always tough Atlantic Coast Conference. We also find it hard to believe that he's still ranked among the top 20 seniors nationally by some scouting services. Don't be surprised if Blake ends up at a prep school in Maryland, because he was one of the players involved in the controversy involving Miami Senior and, as a result, is not expected to be eligible to play in Florida next year. Also don't be surprised if Maryland recruits right over him, because guys who don't rank among our top 100 nationally usually don't contribute a lot at programs of Maryland's stature.

Last spring Stephen Bell, who publishes the Bank, which is a scouting service that covers Michigan, told us that the University of Detroit would be tough to beat for 6'8 Aloysius Anagonye from Detroit (DePorres) MI, who is one of the four outstanding seniors in Michigan, along with 6'6 LaVell Blanchard from Ann Arbor (Pioneer) MI, 6'5 Jason Richardson from Saginaw (Buena Vista) MI, and 6'2 Brett Darby from River Rouge (H.S.) MI. Apparently he knew what he was talking about, because the final four for Anagonye appear to be Detroit, Michigan State, Michigan, and Georgetown.

Wednesday, August 12, 1998

We talked with Darren Matsubara, the head coach of the EBO-Fresno Team, and he tells us that his star player 6'9 Carlos Boozer from Juneau (Douglas) AK, who currently ranks #5 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, still has not narrowed down his list. It has been reported by one of our competitors that UCLA, Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, Maryland, Syracuse, and Arizona were his final seven, but we know that is incorrect, because Kentucky is not one of the schools currently being considered and Georgia Tech is pushing hard. However, as we've said all along, we still think UCLA will be very tough to beat in the end.

We also hear that UCLA has a lot of interest in 6'8 Jason Parker from Charlotte (West Charlotte) NC. But his AAU coach Michael Watkins, whose Team Carolina Sonics lost in the championship game in the adidas Big Time Tournament in mid-July, tells us that Parker's top four schools are North Carolina, Michigan, Georgetown, and UNC-Charlotte. However, if North Carolina offers, we think it's a done deal. Apparently the Tar Heels are waiting to see what his academic situation is.

Michael Watkins also tells us that the best player on his team might not be 6'8 Jason Parker from Charlotte (West Charlotte) NC, 6'8 Chuck Eidson from Summerville (Pinewood Prep) SC, 6'9 Ray Henderson from Charlotte (East Mecklenburg) NC, or 6'10 George Leach from Charlotte (Olympic) NC. Instead, he tells us that 6'7 Trello Galloway from Ft. Union (Military) VA is the not only the real deal, but also might be his best player when we see his team next month at the Charlie Weber Tournament. Right now he's one of the biggest sleepers in the nation, because he attended summer school all summer and, as a result, wasn't seen on the summer camp trail. As it stands now, nobody is recruiting Galloway, who transferred to Ft. Union (Military) VA from Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC, except for Xavier. Apparently Galloway, who has a 43-inch vertical jump, has not only grown, but has dramatically improved. How much so we'll see in the fall.

Tuesday, August 11, 1998

Kansas struck out on a number of the big name players they were involved with a year ago, but we don't look for the same thing to happen this time around. As a matter of fact,the Jayhawks may be close to getting commitments from 6'8 Mike Bauer from Hastings (Senior) MN and 6'9 Nick Collison from Iowa Falls (H.S.) IA, both of whom will receive plenty consideration for the McDonald's All-American Game next spring. Kansas is also the leader for 6'9 Andrew Gooden from El Cerrito (H.S.) CA, although that might not be as rock solid as it was a week ago.

We talked with our Georgia Editor Linzy Davis today and he tells us that an updated Georgia Report is about ready to be published. Obviously, the #1 ranked player in Georgia is 6'7 Donnell Harvey from Cuthbert (Randolph Clay) GA, but the #2 player may come as a surprise. It's 6'9 Rodney Tucker from Stone Mountain (H.S.) GA, who impressed us at the NIKE Peach Jam with his athleticism, ability to run the court, and get it done on the boards. Third on his list of seniors is 6'7 Ndu Egekeze from Augusta (Westside) GA, who is not only a tremendous athlete and true thoroughbred on the court, but also is an outstanding student in the classroom. Next on the list in order are 6'7 Tyrone Hayes from Augusta (Josey) GA, 6'4 Jamison Brewer from East Pointe (Tri-Cities) GA, 6'3 Richard Wilson from Augusta (Butler) GA, 6'3 Ezra Williams from Marietta (H.S.) GA, 5'10 Lee Gaton from Fairbanks (Landmark Christian) NC, and 6'0 Ross Sims from McEachern (Powder Springs) GA.

6'5 Antonio Falu from Houston (Waltrip) TX committed to Houston on Sunday, but we have a source who doesn't think that it's over just yet. You guessed it, they still think Louisville has a shot. We're also hearing that Falu's age and grades are an issue, so who knows what will happen. Falu has been making all the headlines this week, but the best player in the senior class in Texas is 6'8 George Williams from Sugar Land (Elkins) TX. Williams tells us that he's wide open and hasn't even begun to narrow down his list, but his AAU coach, John Eurey, tells us that N.C. State, Texas, Houston, Michigan, and Kentucky have been showing the most interest.

Monday, August 10, 1998

Boy, do we look bad on 6'5 Antonio Falu from Houston (Waltrip) TX. A source very close to the Louisville program told us on Saturday that they expected to get Falu today (there goes that guy's credibility). However, we first became aware that this was not correct yesterday when we received an email from Parker Binion, who is one of our subscribers. "As reported by Mark Berman of the local Fox affiliate during last night's newscast, Falu has committed to UH over Louisville, Michigan, Texas, and Texas A&M." Since that time we've gotten it confirmed from a number of other emails, from Greg Swaim of Midwest Basketball, and from John Eurey, the President of the SuperStar Foundation, Inc., who operates one of the premier AAU programs in Texas. Apparently Falu announced it officially yesterday on television in Houston. Also very interesting is the fact that in late May Falu told us that Houston wasn't even on the list and that in the spring he verbally committed to Alabama, but changed his mind when the old staff was fired in February.

John Eurey also mentioned to us today that his outstanding sophomore 5'10 Soph Terrance Ford from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX might be the best sophomore in the nation. While we do rank Ford among the top 10 players in his class nationally, you've got to be pretty darn good to be ranked among the top five in the Class of 2001. Currently, we have 6'1 Soph Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ #1 in the class. If you will recall, Wagner was absolutely terrific earlier this summer at the NIKE All-American Camp, where he was ranked #3 in camp by the HOOP SCOOP. Right behind Wagner is 6'8 Soph Robert Whaley from Benton Harbor (H.S.) MI, who used his man-child body to terrorize opponents at the adidas ABCD Camp, where he finished #8 overall, according to the HOOP SCOOP. Checking in at #3 in the sophomore class nationally is another warrior from Michigan - 6'4 Soph Kelvin Torbert from Flint (Northwestern) MI - who led his team to the championship at the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, NV. Potential and flashes of brilliance get 7'0 Soph Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA ranked #4 in the class nationally, but he needs to up the intensity level and consistency and learn to stay out of foul trouble, if he wants to be mentioned in the same breath with Wagner, Whaley, and Tolbert, who better than most of the players two years ahead of them right now. One of the best 3-point shooters in the nation is 6'4 Soph Rashaad Carruth from Decatur (Cathedral) GA, but he drops to 5th in the class nationally, primarily due to the fact that he didn't go to stations and the lectures at Five Star Pitt IV, which not only cost him a spot in theNBA Orange-White All-Star Game, but also makes us wonder if he has the work ethic and dedication necessary to become a great player.

Sunday, August 9, 1998

Another one of the top events of the late summer was the 1998 Converse Summer Jam, held on July 31st at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, OK. Top players from Arkansas, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Minnesota, Maryland, California, Illinois, Louisiana, Utah, Texas, Missouri, New Mexico and Oklahoma showcased their skills to nearly 90 college coaches in attendance. Top JUCO players who turned the heads of Division I coaches were 6'9 Kyan Brown from Westark (JC) AR, 6'9 Armand Etame from Rose State (JC) OK, 6'4 Chris Westbrooks from Hagerstown (JC) MD, 6'2 Tyrone Mooreland from Connors State (JC) OK, 6'4 Marquette Williams from Eastern State (JC) OK, 6'2 Antonio Anderson from Northeastern A&M (JC) OK, 6'3 Demorrio Driver from Murray State (JC) OK, 6'0 Andy Hale from Northern (JC) OK, 6'3 Lyndon Hawkins from Murray State (JC) OK, 5'10 Jeremy Marshall from Northeastern (OK) A&M JC, 6'3 Bryan Miller from Pratt (JC) KS, 6'0 Wes Norris from Westark (JC) AR, 6'2 Phil Rodriguez from Rose State (JC) OK, 6'0 Zim Satcher from Clarendon (JC) TX, and 5'9 Jake Simmons from Dixie (UT) JC. Several post-graduates who played well and are still looking for schools include 6'6 Chris Oney from St. Charles (Catholic) LA, 6'4 Ryan Roepke from Springfield (New Covenant) MO, 6'0 Corey Bell from Grand Prairie (H.S.) TX, and 6'0 Courtney Crawford from St. Louis (Clayton) MO will either end up at top JUCO programs or get a late Division I or II offer. The elite seniors were 6'9 Donnie Wallace from Goddard (H.S.) KS, who has top 50 potential, and players who've been getting some top 100-250 notice nationally, such as 6'1 JoJo Noles from Tulsa (Central) OK, 6'1 Antonio Reed from Tulsa (Washington) OK, 6'3 Ryan Stock from Springfield (Kickapoo) MO, 6'9 Randy Gabler from Altus (H.S.) OK, and 6'1 Junior Blount from Tulsa (Washington) OK. Top 20 national junior 6'5 Terrence Crawford from Oklahoma City (McGuiness) OK and top 50 6'10 Jack Marlow from Tulsa (Union) OK had everyones attention. Marlow tested the endurance of the breakaway rims all day and Crawford is silky-smoothe athlete with skills to match. Top 40 sophomores 6'7 Eric Castro from Oklahoma City (Mt. Saint Mary's) OK and 6'7 Pat Moore from Pawnee (H.S.) OK, both showed well, coming off of their teams second-place finish at the AAU 15 & Under National Tourney. Top five freshman 6'7 Shelden Williams from Midwest City (OK) showed that he is the real deal and look for 5'11 8th-grader Jared Mitchel from Woodward (H.S.) OK to make big noise in the coming years. These and other top players from around the country will attend the Converse September Slam on September 19th in Oklahoma City. For more information check out the Midwest Basketball Website at Converse September Slam.

Although 6'9 Marquis Estill from Richmond (Madison Central) KY is being recruiting by Kentucky, Louisville, Western Kentucky, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, South Carolina, and Cincinnati, Larry Kihnley, the Kentucky Editor for the HOOP SCOOP, still has 6'6 Derek Smith from Ft.Thomas (Highlands) KY and 7'1 Nathan Popp from Lexington (Catholic) KY ranked ahead of him. "Estill might actually be the better player right now," says Kihnley. "But I still like Popp's potential. There are very few 7-footers in the class and Popp has gotten a lot stronger in the off season." Most college coaches didn't get to see a lot of Popp and/or Estill this summer, but Kihnley says he has seen both play this summer at least a dozen times. He also thinks that if Estill wants to go to Kentucky, he'd better do it soon, because if the Wildcats have the big recruiting class that everybody keeps talking about, there may not be any scholarships available. As for Louisville, Estill would definitely make an immediate impact, although he still needs to continue to take off weight and become better at running the floor. However, Estill has excellent skills, good athleticism, and he has improved dramatically in the last six months.

Kihnley ranks 6'2 George Baker from Lexington (Dunbar) KY and 6'1 Rick Jones from Georgetown (Scott County) KY, #4 and #5 in Kentucky. "If you're only talking about where they are right now, Jones would be 2, but what you see might be what you get," says Kihnley. "Popp, Estill, and Baker all have great upsides." Right now Tennessee leads Ohio State, Kentucky, Michigan, Connecticut, LSU, and Western Kentucky for Baker. Jones list includes Wisconsin, Florida State, Louisville, St. Louis, and Radford. Next on Kihnley's list in Kentucky are 6'5 Chris Shumate from Louisville (Male) KY, 6'4 Duane King from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'1 Michael Griffith from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'3 Alonzo Evans from Louisville (Western) KY, and 6'10 Billy Howell from Vanceburg (Lewis County) KY. Shumate, who was injured part of the time, didn't have a good summer, but Louisville, Western Kentucky, and Georgia are all interested. Western Kentucky, South Carolina, Tulsa, Wichita State, and South Alabama have all called about King. Griffith has received interest from Seton Hall, Tulsa, East Tennessee State, Georgia State. Evans is junior college all the way and Morehead State is the strong favorite for Howell, who also is being recruited by Butler, Marshall, and Western Kentucky. We find it very interesting that 6'9 Joe Sykes from Ratcliff (North Hardin) KY, who committed to the University of Louisville earlier this year, is no longer ranked among the top 10 in Kentucky. How bad a summer did Sykes have? If Sykes were a stock, it would be a good time to sell. He's a nice kid, but we have to question how bad he wants it. As a result, it will be very interesting to see if he ever plays at Louisville.

Saturday, August 8, 1998

We've heard rumors about 6'1 Soph Dujuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ being in Louisville last week to explore the possibility of transferring to Ballard High School. And that's exactly what this is - a rumor. Wagner's father, Milt Wagner, told Allen Rubin, the HOOP SCOOP's Philadelphia Area Editor, that they were not in Louisville recently looking at schools and as it stands now, his son will remain at Camden High School. However, there is still a possibility that he could transfer to Louisville (Ballard) KY, Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, or even Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, but nothing will happen until they see who gets the head coaching job at Camden. Also we've heard rumors that the New Jersey State High School Association might let Camden play their full schedule, if suspended Camden head coach Clarence Turner goes ahead and retires. As it stands now, Camden can't play any non-conference games and has been barred from participating in the state tournament.the next two years, due to the fight they were involved with in the state tournament last March.

Contrary to popular belief, Connectciut is not the heavy favorite for 6'9 Abraham Keita from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, who was the leading shot blocker at the adidas ABCD Camp a month ago and is one of the fastest rising players in the nation. According to Wayne Simone, who is the HOOP SCOOP's New England Editor, Massachusetts and Villanova are the leaders over Rutgers, UCLA, and Providence.

It's not done yet, but we are now predicting that Louisville will solve their point guard problems once and for all by getting a commitment from 6'5 Antonio Falu from Houston (Waltrip) TX, who ranks #38 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, but has the potential to move much higher if he ever develops a shorter's mentality. Falu is ideally suited for Louisville, because he's a great passer who can play either guard spot and he thrives in an uptempo setting. And this didn't just happen, because Cardinals head coach Denny Crum spent a lot of time watching Falu on the summer camp trail this summer. Also on Falu's list are Kansas, Houston, Texas, and Texas A&M, but we think it's more a question of when than whether he'll announce for Louisville. And don't be surprised if it happens fairly soon.

As long as we're talking about the University of Louisville, the Cardinals also are one of the leaders, along with Maryland, Virginia, and Syracuse for 6'4 Roger Mason from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, who currently ranks #48 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and they've spent a lot of time recruiting 6'9 Marquis Estill from Richmond (Madison Central) KY, who is one of the fastest rising players in the nation.

Friday, August 7, 1998

Yesterday the University of Minnesota had 6'8 Mike Bauer from Hastings (Senior) MN, 6'6 Travis Kraft from Mayville (Mayville CG) ND, and 6'0 Troy Bell from Minneapolis (Holy Angels) MN all on campus, but don't look for any commitments to be forthcoming from this group. Apparently Minnesota made a major recruiting error when they withdrew their scholarship offer to Bauer the week before the NIKE All-American Camp, which is when he exploded onto the national scene. Obviously, Minnesota has reoffered, but apparently he has some hard feelings and, as a result is leaning elsewhere. Right now Kansas is the leader and Northwestern is second on his list, followed by Michigan, Minnesota, and Kentucky. Minnesota is also a distant third on Kraft's list, who right now is favoring both Clemson and South Carolina. Right now Bell is wide open and his list will likely get a lot longer before it gets shorter.

As long as we're talking about players from Minnesota, one of the biggest sleepers in the nation is 6'5 Jason Krone from Roccora (Cold Springs) MN, who has an excellent combination of skills, savvy, and strength. He can play either guard spot, but nobody knows about him, because he played baseball all summer. However, he's now decided that basketball is the sport that he wants to play in college and he's a pretty good player, as was evident last weekend when he played 6'4 Shane Schilling from Minnetonka (H.S.) MN straight up. Right now a number of Division II schools, like St. Cloud, South Dakota State, and Augustana are hoping to keep the lid on, but he's at least a mid-level Division I player.

We don't look for Cincinnati to have a top 10 recruiting class, like they did last spring, because the Bearcats aren't expected to bring in the numbers that they did a year ago. With the commitment from 6'10 John Grove from Grove City (George Jr. Republic) PA, the Cincinnati coaching staff has been pursuing primarily wing forwards and guards. Among the players on their list are 6'5 Marshall Williams from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 6'3 Keith McCloud from Winchendon (Prep) MA, 6'5 Keith Kincade from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'6 Derick Payne from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'4 Brian Wethers from Murietta Valley (Murietta) CA, 6'5 Jason Richardson from Saginaw (Arthur Hill) MI, 6'4 Tito Maddox from Compton (H.S.) CA, 6'2 George Baker from Lexington (Dunbar) KY, 6'3 Abdul Mills from Milford (Academy) CT, 6'1 Kenneth Satterfield from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'4 Ezra Williams from Marietta (H.S.) GA, 6'4 Ronald Blackshear from Chatham (Hargrave) VA, and 6'5 Leonard Stokes from Buffalo (Turner-Carroll) NY.

Ron Naclerio, the New York Editor of the HOOP SCOOP, who also is the head coach of Bayside (Cardozo) NY, tells us that his star player - 6'3 Brian Woodward from Bayside (Cardozo) NY has been cleared to play again after being sidelined for six months with a torn ACL. Naclerio also confirms that Rhode Island is involved with Woodward, but he doesn't think they're one of the leaders. Neither are Seton Hall and St. John's, but they're also on the list. So are Florida State, Ohio State, Connecticut, Boston College, Virginia, N.C. State, Clemson, Miami-FL, and West Virginia.

It's late, but 6'2 Sam Smith from Salt Lake (JC) UT, who is originally from Connecticut via Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and the University of Hawaii, has become eligible and is looking for a four year school to attend this fall. If you will recall, he was the third guard at Hawaii several years ago when he was a freshman and he has gotten bigger and stronger since then. College coaches who still need a quality point guard can call him at 860-225-2297.

In case you missed it, Siena already has a commitment from 6'0 Bryan Evans from Brewster (H.S.) NY. However, he's not the only guard that Siena head coach Paul Hewitt has been living with this summer. He is also hoping to steal 6'0 Lionel Chambers from Schenectady (Bishop Gibbons) NY and 6'3 Eric Siegrist from Poughkeepsie (Spackenkill) NY, both of whom are currently getting big-time looks. Right now Siegrist's list also includes Massachusetts, Maryland, St. John's, and Northwestern, but we not sure he's anybody else's first choice. Chambers has been offered by both Rutgers and Pittsburgh, but how long will those offers be on the table?

Thursday, August 6, 1998

I'm not sure exactly where our Kentucky Correspondent, Larry Kihnley, is going to rank 6'10 Marquis Estill from Richmond (Madison Central) KY, but it wouldn't surprise us if he ranked the 260 pound center, who won't turn 17 until October, #2 in the state behind 6'7 Derek Smith from Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY. And we may add him into our national top 100 when we update the list later this month. Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina, Louisville and Vanderbilt have already offered and we know that a number of other big-time schools, like Cincinnati are also interested.

Brick Oettinger of the Recruiters' Handbook tells us that the rumors about 6'8 Ray Henderson from Charlotte (East Mechlenburg) NC are premature. The Wolfpack are definitely the favorite, but others schools, like Clemson, UNC-Charlotte, Wake Forest, South Carolina, and Georgia are still on his list. Speaking of N.C. State, we continue to hear from everybody who has seen him play that 6'3 Clifford Crawford from Winston-Salem (Parkland) NC, who committed in mid-July, is a major steal.

We understand that Bob Gibbons of All-Stars Sports is considering ranking 6'8 Jason Parker from Charlotte (West Charlotte) NC as the #1 player in the nation. While Parker isn't one of our choices for national player-of-the-year (we have him currently ranked #26), you have to like his man-child body, athleticism, and willingness to get it done on the boards. We've heard the comparisons to Duke All-American Elton Brand, but Parker still has a long way to go before we're ready to buy that comparison. As long as we're talking about Parker, word is that he was supposed to visit Chapel Hill, NC this past weekend, but didn't show. However, the visit appears to have been rescheduled for later this week - so don't be surprised if he shows up today or tomorrow. Parker told us in Las Vegas, NV at the adidas Big Time Tournament two weeks ago that North Carolina is the heavy favorite. The only hold up right now might be his grades.

We mentioned yesterday that 6'4 Nick Jacobson from Fargo (Shanley) ND had verbally committed to the University of Utah, but we didn't tell you that Jacobson is transferring to Roseville (H.S.) MN to play his senior year of high school. According to Joe Hyser, who is the head coach of the Howard Pulley Panthers, which is one of the fastest rising AAU programs in the nation, Jacobson's father is the new head coach at Roseville High School. So obviously Nick's part of the package.

Wednesday, August 5, 1998

Chris Johnson, the HOOP SCOOP's Ohio Editor has the scoop on what college 6'5 Shane Schilling from Minnetonka (H.S.) MN, who ranks #128 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, will be announcing for later today. Actually it's not a surprise at all that Schilling has elected to stay home and attend the University of Minnesota.

It comes as no big surprise that Jacobson picks the University of Utah, but it's not the palyer you'd expect. Apparently last Friday 6'4 Nick Jacobson from Fargo (Shanley) ND committed to Utah and, as a result, the Utes are no longer on the list for 6'6 Casey Jacobsen from Glendora (H.S.) CA, who has always been a big fan of head coach Rick Majerus. Currently Casey Jacobsen ranks #15 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, after leading the United States team to the Gold Medal in the Men's Youth Games in Moscow. Right now the race between Duke and Stanford is too close to call for Casey Jacobsen. According to Frank Burlison, who writes for the Orange County Register, Nick Jacobson picked Utah over Minnesota, Clemson, and Texas.

Bob Gibbons of All-Stars Sports is reporting that Maryland leads Seton Hall, Syracuse, Ohio State, and Virginia for 6'9 Tahj Holden from Little Silver (Red Bank) NJ, whose value rose dramatically this summer, despite the fact that he was not seen at either the NIKE or adidas camps, because played in Russia in the World Youth Games. Word is that Holden played especially well in the 17-Under National Tournament in Orlando, FL.

Arizona State convinced 6'8 Donnell Knight from Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ last week to stay home and, as expected, they have another major commitment from his AAU teammates - 6'8 Tommy Smith from Phoenix (North) AZ, who made a name for himself last week at the BCI Tournament in Phoenix, AZ. Smith is a terrific athlete with lots of potential, but he needs to become more aggressive, physically stronger, and more skilled to be ranked among our top 100 nationally.

Tuesday, August 4, 1998

Several days ago we proved you with some of the highlights and award winners from Five Star Pitt IV, but Rob Kennedy's last week of Eastern Invitational was also outstanding, according to Allen Rubin of the HOOP SCOOP. It featured both quality and depth. The MVP of the camp was 6'0 Majestic Mapp from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, who does a great job of penetrating and dishing. As a matter of fact, no point guard in the nation does a better of job of making his teammates better, which is why he'll likely get our vote for the McDonald's All-American Team next spring. The Top 20 All-Star Game MVP was 6'8 Quadir Habeeb from Buffalo (Turner-Carroll) NY, who is a very physical player and an overachiever. The Top 40 All-Star Game MVP went to 6'7 Justin Leith from Princton (Day) NJ, who scored 28 points, which is an Eastern Invitational All-Star Game Record. The Underclassmen All-Star Game MVP was 6'5 David Holmes from Washington (Coolidge) DC, who had 16 points and nine rebounds. One of the highlights of the week was when 6'7 Gregory Morton from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY broke the backboard. Morton got 13 stitches, but to his credit returned and played the rest of the week. Also in attendance were two of the nation's top shot blockers in 6'11 Samuel Dalembert from Elizabeth (St.Patrick) NJ and 6'9 Abraham Keita from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT. One of the most improved players in camp was 6'4 Rick Apodaca from North Bergen (H.S.) NJ, who has tranforme himself from being a low Division I recruit at the beginning of the summer into an Atlantic 10 player. Steve Keller, who is the player personal director for the camp, thinks that 6'6 Jr James White from Kensington (Newport Prep) MD was the top underclassman in camp. And that's a strong statement when one considers that the camp also featured a number of other outstanding underclassmen, like 6'7 Jr Eddie Griffin from Philadelphia (Roman Catholic) PA, 6'9 Jr Harve Lamezanz from  Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'10 Jr Modibo Diarra from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'2 Soph Ernest Turner from Somerdale (Sterling) NJ, 6'4 Soph Melvin Scott from Baltimore (Southern) MD, 6'7 Brandon Brigman from Philadelphhia (Neumann) PA, who would have been the MVP in the underclassman all-star if his team had won.

He hasn't put it all together yet, because he was slowed by an injury in the spring, but one of the best athletes and best 3-point shooters in the class is 6'5 Darmetrius Kilgore from South Bend (Washington) IN, who we saw play three time at the Las Vegas Grand Finale. His list of schools includes SW Missouri State, Northern Illinois, Valparaiso, Indiana State, Ball State, and Akron, but he has the talent to play in the Big 10. Also impressing us on the S.Y.F. Players team in Las Vegas was 6'6 Marcus Jefferson from East Chicago (Central) IN, who is a big-time athlete and slasher, but lacks a shooters' mentality. His list includes Boston College, Michigan, Villanova, Wright State, and Southwest Missouri.

Different people often see different things and Brick Oettinger of the Recruiters' Handbook ranks 6'11 Samuel Dalembert from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ as potentially the #1 big man prospect in the nation, based on his observations at the NIKE All-American Camp in early July. In sharp contrast, the HOOP SCOOP ranked Dalembert #14 in camp at the center postion. He did block shots and rebound well, especially at defensive end, as the week wore on, but he still has a long way to go in terms of developing offensive moves. He also still needs to become less mechanical as he learns the game. However, at 6'11, Dalembert is a great kid and a tremendous athlete. His list schools includes Rutgers, Seton Hall, Syracuse, Kentucky, Kansas, Florida, and Georgia.

The HOOP SCOOP is in the process of putting together a list of our summer camp award winners and 6'7 Donnell Harvey from Cuthbert (Randolph-Clay) GA appears to be the hands down winner for Best Performance of the Summer, based on the way he shut down 6'11 Leon Smith from Chicago (Martin Luther King) IL, who at the time was the leading candidate for Player-of-the-Summer, in the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, NV. Harvey also gets the nod as the #1 player in the class due to his great athleticism, incredible intensity, relentless style, and great work ethic. We've said for several months that Harvey was a near lock for Kentucky (that's where he wants to go). But it might not be as done a deal as we originally thought, because there appears to be some academic questions and right now we understand the admissions people at Kentucky are reviewing his transcript.

Monday, August 3, 1998

Congratulations are in order for both NIKE and High Five America, which put on the NIKE National Summer Basketball Championship in San Diego, CA, because in its first year, this was one of the five best events of the summer, along with the adidas ABCD Camp in Teaneck, NJ; the NIKE All-American Camp in Indianapolis, IN; the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, NV, and the NIKE Peach Jam in Augusta, GA. The tournament had a Southern California flavor, as three of the four teams were from Southern California, but yesterday afternoon, the Illinois Warriors took home the title with a hard fought, 60-51, win over Belmont Shore. The leading scorer for the Warriors was 6'4 Jr Matt Lottich from Winnetka (New Trier) IL. Lottich, who is already almost a lock to stay home and play for Illinois head coach Lon Kruger, scored most of his 19 points in the first half from 3-point land, as he nailed five straight 3-pointers to give the Illinois Warriors a five point half-time lead. Also playing well for Illinois Warriors head coach were 6'9 Jr Darius Miles from East St. Louis (Lincoln) IL, who will move into our top five nationally in the junior class based on his performance here, and 6'5 Jerell Parker from Chicago (St. Francis DeSales) IL. Having a big game for Belmont Shore was 6'4 Albert Miller from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, who is prep school bound this fall, but the point guard for the Illinois Warriors - 6'1 Jerrance Howard from Peoria (Central) IL - did a good job of stopping 6'4 Tito Maddox from Compton (H.S.) CA, who was 3-14 from the field and had six turnovers. Also worth mentioning from Belmont Shore was one of our favorite players 6'7 Jr Ellis Myles from Compton (H.S.) CA. Myles, who had 12 points and 11 rebounds in the championship. However, he mpressed us even more in the semi-finals when he not only outplayed 7'0 Soph Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA inside, but also stepped outside and hit three straight 3-pointers. In the third place game the Southern California All-Stars beat QBL Lakewood, 67-66. The leading scorer in the tournament was 6'6 Casey Jacobson from Glendora (H.S.) CA, but he didn't play well in either the semi-finals or the championship game. The leading rebounder in the tournament was 6'7 James "Caron" Butler form Racine (Park) WI and the assist leader was 6'0 Omar Cook from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY. The most over hyped player in the tournament was 7'5 Yao Ming from Shanghai, China. He did lead the tournament in blocked shots and did show flashes, but the way people were talking about him, you'd think he was the next great player in basketball. However, when we watched him against the Alabama Lasers, which didn't have a great big man inside - 6'10 Marvin Stone from Huntsville (Grissom) AL didn't make the trip, Ming only had seven points and four rebounds. Certainly he has long arms, nice skills, and a tremendous upside, but unlike some scouting services, we rank players the old fashioned way - we make them earn it by the way they play on the court.

Also exploding at the NIKE National Summer Basketball Championship in San Diego, CA was 6'5 Keith Kincade from Compton (Dominguez) CA, who went for 18 points in the semi-finals against Belmont Shore and who didn't miss a shot in the third place game, as he went for 19 points against QBL Lakewood. At one time Kincade was ranked among the top 30 nationally in his class, but after a sub par winter, we dropped him out of the top 100. However, based on his performance here, nobody in the class is better at scoring along the baseline, but he also showed he has the ability to beat you outside with his jumper. Kincade and his high school coach Russell Otis both tell us that Cincinnati, Michigan, Michigan State, and San Jose State are showing interest, but his list should get a lot longer before it gets shorter. With the confidence he gained in this tournament and his tremendous athleticism, look for Kincade to elevate his game even more this fall. As a result, we think a top 50 ranking nationally is justified.

Ron Naclerio, the New York Editor of the HOOP SCOOP, tells us that 7'0 Jr Josh Moore definitely won't be back at Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ. Right now it looks like he's heading to prep school at Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, but Naclerio warns us that it's not a done deal just yet, because Winchendon (Prep) CT and Milford (Academy) CT are also recruiting him hard.

The final five for 6'10 Marvin Stone from Huntsville (Grissom) AL are Kentucky, Alabama, Florida State, North Carolina, and Auburn, but we still think it's a two horse race. Kentucky is way out in front, but Alabama is charging hard in an attempt to make up ground as they come down the stretch. Alabama, Auburn, Connecticut Villanova, UCLA Michigan, and Kentucky are all involved with Stone's AAU teammate - 6'7 Rod Grizzard from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL, who has as much natural talent as anybody in the class. But don't be surprised if UAB head coach Maury Bartow steals this one. And if he does, it would put his program on the map in a big way.

Sunday, August 2, 1998

Who is the best point guard in the junior class in New York - 6'0 Jr Omar Cook from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'0 Jr Taliek Brown from Astoria (St. John's Prep) NY, or 5'9 Jr Andre Barrett from New York (Rice) NY? Right now we have Brown ranked #1, but it's a tough call, as each of them led their team to the championship of a major tournament this summer and in the process claimed MVP honors. Barrett, who is also an excellent student, has Georgia Tech, N.C. State, Kentucky, Providence, Villanova, Virginia, and Ohio State on hist list, but those in the know think Duke is the leader. Brown likes Michigan, Georiga Tech, USC, Texas, Arizona, California, Syracuse, Providence, St. John's, Georgetown, and Texas A&M. Cook tells us neither North Carolina or St. John's are on his list and that makes perfect sense, because the Red Storm and the Tar Heels both have a great freshman point guard with 6'1 Erick Barkley from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME and 6'3 Ron Curry from Hampton (H.S.) VA. Instead, Cook has Duke, Florida State, Maryland, and Georgia Tech on his list.

One of the leading candidates for Player-of-the-Summer has to be 6'6 LaVell Blanchard from Ann Arbor (Pioneer) MI. He was one of the best players at the NBA Players' Association Camp in Princeton, NJ in late June. He was the leading scorer and one of the leading rebounders at the adidas ABCD Camp in Teaneck, NJ in early July. In mid-July he helped lead his team to the championship in the adidas Big-Time Tournament in Las Vegas. And on Friday night at Five Star Pitt IV, he took home camp MVP honors after leading the camp in both scoring and rebounding. He also could have been named MVP in the Orange-White All-Star Game, as he was tied for high point honors with 24 points. Instead, the All-Star Game MVP went to 6'3 Aaron Abrams from Vista (Rancho Buena Vista) CA, who led the Orange All-Stars to a 114-107 victory with 24 points, three assists, five rebounds, and two steals. Also chipping with 17 points for the winning Orange team was 6'9 Stephane Pelle from Mercersburg (Academy) PA. Leading the losing White Team was Michigan State bound 6'9 Adam Wolfe from Westerville (South) OH, who had 21 points. The Most Promising Prospect, which is an award which goes to the best underclassmen, was 6'3 Jr Marcus Taylor from Lansing (Waverly) MI. The Playoff MVP was 6'3 Jason Williams from Metuchen (St. Josephs) PA, Best Defender was 5'8 Fab Fisher from Brookville (Long Island Lutheran) NY, Best Playmaker was 6'3 Steve Blake from Miami (Senior) FL, and Mr. Hustle was 6'6 Darrell Wright from Port St. Lucie (H.S.) MI. Mr. Station 13 went to 6'3 Tony Dobbins fromWashington (Maret) DC, 6'4 Brady Merchant from Lebanon (H.S.) OH, and 6'7 D'Jahue Rodrigue from Miami (Northwest Christian) FL.

Saturday, August 1, 1998

A year ago the Bronx Gauchos lost to Arizona in the title game of the Las Vegas Grand Finale, but last night they took home the title, as they beat the SYF Players, 74-58, in the championship game. The game really wasn't that close, but tournament 5'9 Jr Andre Barrett from New York (Rice) NY, who was our choice for MVP, had 16 points and helped ice the game with his excellent foul shooting and outstanding ball handling. Also playing well for the Gauchos in the title game were 6'9 Carlton Arron from Chesapeake (Atlantic Shore Christian) VA with 15 points and 6'3 Ed Starks from Bronx (Gompers) NY and 16 points. But the guy who carried the Gauchos throughout the tournament was 6'7 Miguel Caballero from New York (LaSalle) NY, who has reestablished himself as the #1 forward in New York next year. Also playing well and providing the perfect complement to Barrett in the backcourt was 6'0 Marcello Williams from Teaneck (H.S.) NJ, who is an excellent sleeper who could be a steal for the right mid-major program. The S.Y.F. Players from the Northwest part of Indiana featured 6'5 Darmetruis Kilgore from South Bend (Washington) IN, 6'6 Marcus Jefferson from East Chicago (Central) IN, and 6'9 Vincent Hart from Gary (West Side) IN, but they were well coached and had a number of other players with Division I potential, including 6'9 Patrick Danley from Gary (West Side) IN, 6'0 Ajagbe Gillis from East Chicago (Central) IN, 6'5 Shane Power from Gary (Andrean) IN, 5'11 Eugene Wilson from Merrillville (H.S.) IN, and 5'11 Steve Drabyn from LaPorte (H.S.) IN, all seemed to take turns stepping it up.

All Ohio Red, which beat the Oklahoma Rams by 22 points in the quarterfinals of the Las Vegas Grand Finale, but lost to the S.Y.F. Players in the semi-finals by nine, featured a number of good players, including 6'6 Phillip Dupree from Columbus (Brookhaven) OH, 6'4 Isaac Jefferson from Columbus (West) OH, 6'9 Delano Thomas from (Beachcroft) OH, 5'11 Frank Cardwell from Columbus (Brookhaven) OH, 5'9 Art Sanders from Columbus (West) OH, 6'6 Preston Dean from Columbus (Miflin) OH, 6'10 Sada Mijajovic from Massillon (Washington) OH, and 6'8 Slobodanoco Koljic from Massillon (Washington) OH. Koljic has already committed to Ohio State. Mijajovic, who is mechanical right now, because he's still learning the game, is getting some big-time looks from Nebraska and Northwestern, but he's also a priority for a number of schools in Ohio like Cleveland State, who had an assistant at all his games, Wright State, Bowling Green, and Daytont. Dean is drawing interest from Ohio University, Butler, Ball State, SW Missouri State,and Loyola-Chicago. Thomas likes Northern Illinois, Wright State, Ohio University, Kent, and Bowling Green. Cardwell is being recruitng by Akron, Kent, Northern Illinois, Murray State, and Ashland. Sanders, who is best described as a small, quick, scoring point guard, is a total sleeper with mid-major potential. Jefferson has an interesting list, which includes Ohio University, Penn State, Georgia, Northwestern, Wright State, Bowling Green, and Ball State. Dupree is probably the most talented player on All Ohio, but this terrific athlete, who lacks perimeter skills, has Ball State, Penn State, Northwestern, Butler, Wright State, and Ohio University all on his list.

We got word yesterday from Wayne Simone, who covers New England for the HOOP SCOOP, that the University of Rhode Island has finally filled its open assistant coaching position, which became vacant when Larry Farmer took the Loyola-Chicago job several months ago. Apparently head coach Jim Harrick has hired Nate Cadigan, who was formerly an assistant coach with the Long Island Panthers AAU Program. This could be huge, because instantly they become the favorite with 6'7 Doug Wrenn from Seattle (O'Dea) WA, who is prep school bound this fall, and 6'4 Brian Woodward from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, both of whom play for the Long Island Panthers program, and it could also make them a factor with 6'3 Tony Robertson from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI.