HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION FOR DECEMBER 2004

Friday, December 31, 2004

With the the holiday tournament season behind us and the new year upon us, it's time to start thinking about player rankings.  And, within the next three months, we plan to update our rankings of the top players nationally in all classes (our current rankings can be found by clicking on National Player Rankings) and many of our state-by-state reports.  In other words, now is a good time to stay home and catch-up.  However, before we start on these endeavors, I thought this would  be a good time to provide you with an overview of where things stand now with regards to the top 60 players nationally regardless of class and position, which can be found by clicking on HOOP SCOOP All-American Teams.  Especially interesting is that fact that our First Team All-American Team, which includes 7'0 Jr Greg Oden from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, 6'11 Andray Blatche from South Kent (Prep) CT, 6'9 Jr Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'5 Soph Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, and 6'5 Soph Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, includes one 5th year player, two juniors, and two sophomores.  And, when we dig even deeper, we find that there are eight 5th year players, 19 seniors, 21 juniors, nine sophomores, and three freshmen on our list.  Not only does this illustrate the mediocrity of the senior class nationally, but it also clearly shows that the junior class has already overtaken the senior class and, when you include all the great juniors, sophomores, and freshmen that are already making an impact at the high school level, over two-third's of the nation's top players are underclassmen.  There also are some surprises and right at the top of the list is the fact that 6'6 Brandon Rush from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC does not make the list.  Sure, Rush has tremendous natural talent, is a world-class athlete, comes from a great basketball family (his older brothers are Jaron Rush and Kareem Rush), and sometimes does show flashes of brilliance, but he doesn't know how to play hard and, more often than not, he's like cancer to his team.  Also not making the list is 6'8 Micah Downs from Bothell (H.S.) WA, but recently his father was quoted saying that his son plans to enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring.  And, if Downs, who currently is ranked #28 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, does listen to his father, this probably would be the biggest mistake of his life.  Remember, Downs is a great 3-pointer shooter and is very athletic, but he needs to get bigger and stronger.  Moral to the story, he probably isn't good enough right now to step in and start next year at Kansas.  It also may shock a lot of people that we've dropped 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, who previously was ranked #1 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, all the way down to the Fourth Team, after his aweful performance at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  But Williams is still the highest ranked point guard (he did show us last summer that he can play the position when he led the Georgia Stars to the 17-Under AAU National Championship in Orlando, FL), ahead of 6'0 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL, 6'2 Soph Derrick Rose from Chicago (Simeon) IL, and 6'0 Soph Jerrad Bayless from Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ.  That's right!  Three of the top four point guards are sophomores, which shows you just how lousy the junior and senior classes are at that position.   And, when you start talking about pure point guards in the senior class, the only two who even make the list are 6'2 Tiki Mayben from Troy (H.S.) NY and 6'2 Greg Paulus from Syracuse (Christian Brothers) NY.  There also aren't that many centers - 7'0 Jr Greg Oden from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, 6'11 Andray Blatche from South Kent (Prep) CT, 6'10 Jr Vernon Macklin from Portsmouth (Norcom)VA, 6'9 Amir Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) NY, 6'9 Jr Curtis Kelly from New York (Rice) NY, 7'0 Jr Brian Zoubek from Haddonfield (Memorial) NJ, and 6'9 Vernon Goodridge from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA - that make the list.  And we continue to be surprised by just how good the sophomore class is turning out to be.  If you will recall, a-year-and-a-half-ago we thought this would be a mediocre class, just like the senior class.  Instead, it's starting to appear that it may overtake the junior class, as 6'5 Soph O.J. Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH and 6'5 Soph Bill Walker from Cincinnnati (North College Hill) OH are as good as anybody in the country right now and 6'8 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX, 6'6 Soph Michael Beasley from Upper Marlboro (Riverdale Baptist) MD, 6'2 Soph Derrick Rose from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'0 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL, 6'0 Soph Jerrad Bayless from Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ, 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, and 6'5 Soph Austin Freeman from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD also all are good enough to make the list.   We also find it interesting that Virginia is the state with the most players on the list, but when one remembers that 6'9 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and 6'6 Sam Young from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA are originally from Maryland, 6'3 Eric Devendorf from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA is originally from Michigan; 6'7 Shane Clark from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA is orginally from Philadelphia, PA; and 6'8 Leo Criswell from Virginia Beach (Coastal Christian) VA; that leaves only one player - 6'10 Jr Vernon Macklin from Portsmouth (Norcom) VA - who is homegrown.  New York has five players on the list, but only two -6'9 Jr Curtis Kelly from New York (Rice) NY and 5'4 Frosh Erving Walker from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY - are from the city.  I'm also sure that I'm going to take some heat for putting Walker on the list, because he's playing on the Christ the King freshman team.   However, Christ the King head coach Bob Oliva told me that if Walker were playing on the varsity, he'd be his starting point guard, which is a pretty strong statement when one remembers that Christ the King won the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX.  Getting back to which states are producing the best talent, Texas with 6'9 Jr Darrell Arthur from Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX, 6'8 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX, 6'8 Damien James from Nacogdoches (H.S.) TX and 6'8 Gerald Green from Houston (Gulf Shores) TX; Illinois with 6'8 Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'2 Soph Derrick Rose from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'5 Jr Jonathan Scheyer from Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL, and 6'3 Bobby Frasor from Chicago (Brother Rice) IL; and Washington with 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, 6'7 Jon Brockman from Snohomish (H.S.) WA, 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA, and 6'6 Marcus Williams from Seattle (Roosevelt) WA all have four players each ranked on our 12 five-man All-American Teams.  Also worthy of special mention is Tennessee, which has three players in the junior class - 6'9 Jr Brandan Wright from Brentwood (Academy) TN, 6'8 Jr Thaddeus Young from Memphis (Mitchell) TN, and 6'8 Jr Pierre Niles from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN - who are on this list.   And, of course, there is Kentucky, which doesn't have anybody on the list.   Yes, high school basketball in my backyard is that bad and there doesn't appear to be an end in sight, as there are no great ones on the horizon.

Thursday, December 30, 2004

6'6 Soph Michael Singletary from Houston (Kingwood) TX scored his team's first 10 points, but he disappeared the rest of the game, as he finished with only 18 points and nine rebounds, Houston (Westfield) TX in the 3rd Place Game in the Texas Division at the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX.  And, when you combine that with the fact that once again 5'9 Jr Nic Wise did not play well (16 points, but only one assist, four turnovers, and 1-6 3-pointers), it's easy to see why Houston (Kingwood) TX, which currently is ranked #14 nationally in the USA Today, went down in flames for the second straight day with a 56-52 loss to well balanced Houston (Westfield) TX team.  Instead, the players that everybody were talking about in this game were 5'10 Derek Barnes and 5'9 Jr Chris Hagan from Houston (Westfield) TX, who combined to finish with 26 points, five assists, and 4-11 3-pointers.  They both have jet-like speed and quickness, good handling and passing skills, are terrific going to the hole, and can hit the three.   However, we suspect neither Barnes nor Hagan will get recruited anywhere nearly as high as Wise, who made one of the earliest verbal commitments to the University of Arizona when he was a freshman in high school two years ago, due to their lack of size and strength.  In other words, we're talking about two mid-major players.  Houston (Westbury Christian) TX jumped out to a 19-15 lead at the end of the First Quarter, but by half-time DeMatha had taken a 33-30 lead against Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD in the 3rd Place Game in the National Division.  From there it was all DeMatha, as they went on a 12-0 run to go up 42-30 with 6:02 remaining in the 3rd Quarter.  And they finished the 3rd Quarter on a 7-0 run to make it, 59-44.  It also got even worse in the 4th Quarter, as DeMatha went on a another 10-0 run to put the game away at 70-50.  From there they coasted to a 77-59 victory.  But even more impressive is the fact that DeMatha's three best players - 6'5 Soph Austin Freeman, 6'0 Jr Nigel Munson, and 6'7 Jr Jeff Allen - are underclassmen, which means they're only going to get better the rest of the year.  And next year they could absolutely tremendous.   Freeman finished with 12 points, seven rebounds, two assists, five steals, and had 12 points; Munson had 11 points, three rebounds, three assists, and three steals, and Allen had eight points, nine rebounds, and seven assists, but 6'6 Mamadi Diane stepped up and was DeMatha's best player against Westbury Christian, as he finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and 3-4 3-pointers.  We also were impressed with the improving coordination, agility, and mobility displayed by 6'9 Jeremy Barr from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, who finished with 15 points and eight rebounds and now appears to be considering Oklahoma State, Arizona State, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and Missouri.  6'0 Wendell Preadom, who also is still available and is athletic and versatile enough to play both guard spots, also chipped in with 15 points, 6'9 Peter Stein had nine points, and 5'10 Jr Monice Garrett had eight points and five assists.  The championship game in the Texas Division was tied at half-time 38-38 and filled with numerous lead changes.   But, at the end, it was 6'8 Jr Darius Santee from Missouri City (Ft. Bend Marshall) TX, who hit a 3-pointer and the buzzer.  And the crowd went wild, as Houston (Aldine) TX and went down in defeat, 70-67.  Santee also a number of other clutch shots, as he finished with 18 points and 8-12 field goals,including 2-4 3-pointers.   5'11 David Devezin, 6'2 Jamaal McCoy, and 6'1 Jr Jonathan Frazier each had 13 points apiece for Missouri (Ft. Bend Marshall) TX, but the best player in the game, as well as the entire tournament was 6'8 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX.  As a matter of fact, we think Johnson is so good that he's arguably the best player in Houston, TX right now.  We also think Glenn Robinson comparisons at the same stage may be in order, because Johnson almost unstoppable when he gets the ball in the low post, he works so hard away from the ball, has a great feel the game, and has a tenacious killer mentality on the court.  And, at the same stage he might be as good as Robinson.  And, we should know, because we were the first one to starting talking about how good Robinson was as a sophomore in high school in 1989.  Johnson, whose early list of colleges includes Duke, North Carolina, Arizona, Texas, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, and UCLA, finished with 26 points, 11 rebounds, and hit 10-16 field goals; 5'9 Jr Brandon Brown had 16 points and hit 4-8 3-pointers; and 5'10 Soph Curtis Hooper had 14 points and hit 2-2 3-pointers for Houston (Aldine) TX.  And it really can't get any better than this, unless Middle Village (Christ the King) NY hangs on and pulls off the upset against Los Angeles (Westchester) CA.  And that's exactly what happened as Christ the King jumped out to a 10-0 lead and never looked back en route to a 49-41 upset against the team that was heavily favored to win the tournament.  The best player for Christ the King was 6'0 Chris Martin, who finished with 10 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, three steals, and hit 5-7 field goals.  But really it was a team effort as 6'4 Akeem Gooding had 16 points and nine rebounds, 6'3 Jr Larry Davis had 10 points, 5'8 Soph Malik Boothe had eight points, and 6'8 Adam Walker had four points and eight rebounds.  Westchester's 6'6 Marcus Johnson, who is their best player, was held scoreless until mid-way through the 3rd Quarter, but helped Westchester get back in the game, as he accounted for 12 points real fast down the stretch.  But it wasn't enough.   Johnson finished with 14 points, 6'5 Jerard Moret added 11 points, and 6'7 Ray Reese had eight points.  However, nobody else for Westchester scored more than two points and that really was the story of the game.   No MVP was named, but our choice for Most Valuable Person would be Christ the King head coach Bob Oliva.  And that's no knock against Westchester head coach Ed Azzam.  It's just that Oliva did an incredible job, as his team first upset Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL two night ago, knocked off Houston (Westbury Christian) TX last night, and stunned Los Angeles (Westchester) CA tonight.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that none of Christ the King's seniors have signed with a Division I scholarship.  Martin is a strong athletic point guard who is like a jack-of-all-trades, but a master of none.  Gooding is a slashing athletic wing forward who can beat you both inside and outside.  Walker is an athletic center with great footwork, excellent hands, and a huge upside.  And all three of them are good enough to get recruited at the mid-major level or higher.   However, the best is yet to come next year, because Davis, 5'8 Soph Malik Boothe, and 6'4 Soph Andrew Gabriel will be back, plus they have 5'4 Frosh Erving Walker, who is one of the top two or three freshmen in the nation, playing on the freshman team.  The top players in the tournament in order are as follows:  6'8 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX, 6'5 Soph Austin Freeman from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'0 Jr Josue Soto from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'6 Martellus Bennett from Alief (Taylor) TX, 6'4 Akeen Gooding from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'8 Jr Darius Santee from Missouri City (Ft. Bend Marshall) TX, 6'3 Jr Larry Davis from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'5 Terrel Harris from Garland (South Garland) TX, 6'0 Chris Martin from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'6 Marcus Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'7 Jr Jeff Allen from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'9 Jeremy Barr from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 5'10 Jr Demond Carter from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, 5'9 Jr Brandon Brown from Houston (Aldine) TX, 6'3 Jr Trent Boone from Garland (South Garland) TX, 5'11 David Devezin from Missouri City (Ft. Bend) TX, 6'0 Jr Nigel Munson from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'7 Fendi Onobun from Alief (Taylor) TX, 5'10 Derek Barnes from Houston (Westfield) TX, 6'0 Wendell Preadom from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'8 Adam Walker from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'1 Jr Jonathan Frazier form Missouri City (Ft. Bend Marshall) TX, 6'6 Soph Michael Singletary from Houston (Kingwood) TX, 6'7 Ray Reese from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 5'10 Jr Monice Garrett from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'5 Brian Hoff from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'5 Jerard Moret from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'7 C.J. Webster from Missouri City (Ft. Bend Marshall) TX, 5'11 Soph Jai Lucas from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 6'9 Peter Stein from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 5'9 Jr Chris Hagan from Houston (Westfield) TX, and 6'5 Soph Kevin Branch from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA.  We also have a final score in the championship game from the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC, as Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY has beaten Memphis (Ridgeway) TN, 51-45.  The obvious choice for tournament MVP honors at the Beach Ball Classic is 6'6 Danny Green from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY with 24 points, nine rebounds, 11-17 field goals, 2-4 3-pointers, and six steals in the championship game.  We also find it interesting that St. Mary's held 6'8 Pierre Niles from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN to only 10 points and four rebounds in the championship game. 

Houston (Bellaire) TX redeemed themselves by beating Houston (Cypress Ridge) TX, 65-38, in the 7th Place Game earlier today in the Texas Division at the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX, but, other than being a sneak preview to the future, the game was absolutely meaningless.  We're talking about the fact that Bellaire's top three players - 5'11 Soph Jai Lucas, 6'9 Soph Isaiah Rusher, and 6'6 Dale Van Wright, who combined for 32 of their team's 65 points- should make Houston (Bellaire) TX one of the top team's in Houston, TX next year.  But, despite the 27-point win against a disappointing Houston (Cypress Ridge) TX team, Bellaire's young players were still not on top of their game's, as Lucas finished with 13 points, but had only four assists and hit only 1-8 3-pointers; Rusher only had eight points and three rebounds; and Van Wright hit only 5-16 field goals and is not as athletic as he needs to be in order to be ranked #80 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, which is where we have him right now.  Montverde (Academy) FL beat Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA, 42-28, in the 7th Place Game in the Texas Division, but, even that doesn't illustrate how bad this game was.  However, the fact that only one player for either team - 6'3 DeAndre Duncan from Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA, who finished with 12 points, scored in double-digits does better illustrate the point.  Montverde Academy did have a more balanced attack than they did yesterday, as 6'5 Larry Williams and 6'9 Arminas Urbutis both had nine points apiece; 6'7 Luc Richard Mbaha Moute and 6'7 Frank Patrick Ndongo both had eight points apiece; and 6'1 Vytaulas Valiulis and 6'7 Stephane Bakinde both had four points apiece, but we still don't see what all the hype is about.  As matter of fact, this might be the most disappointing team that we've seen all winter.  In sharp contrast, the 5th Place Game in the Texas Division was an interesting game, as Garland (South Garland) TX led 16-13 at the end of the first Quarter, 31-27 at half-time, and then opened things up in the 3rd Quarter en route to a 69-56 victory against Alief (Taylor) TX.  The best player in the game was 6'7 Martellus Bennett from Alief Taylor, who had 38 points and hit 13-23 field goals.  However, Bennett also only had four rebounds and 0-5 3-pointers and that was the big difference in the game, as Bennett and 6'7 Fendi Onobun, who had only eight points and four rebounds, could not match-up against the speed and quickness of South Garland's wing players - 6'5 Terrel Harris, 6'3 Jr Trent Boone, and 6'0 Jeremie Hart, who combined for 57 of their team's 69 points.  Another big difference is the fact that Harris, who finished with 17 points, 2-5 3-pointers, and 11 rebounds, used to be an inside player, which means he was much more effective inside than Bennett was when he drifted out on the perimeter.  But, then again, what would you expect from the best tight end in the high school ranks in America.  Speaking of his terrific two-sport athlete, who currently is ranked #82 nationally in the senior class and is our 6th highest senior who is still available, Chris Monter of  CollegeBasketballNews.com talked to Bennett yesterday and what he found out is very interesting.  If you will recall, Bennett verball committed to Miami-FL last fall with the intention of playing both sports, but late changed him mind and is being recruited by Texas, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, and Miami-FL for football and Duke, Georgia Tech, Texas, Kansas, and Miami-FL are recruiting him for basketball.  Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL jumped out early against Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA in the 5th Place Game of the National Division, but they allowed Reserve Christian to hang around and, as a result, Reserve Christian made things interesting down the stretch.  And things were really interesting with 3.9 seconds left and Reserve Christian trailing by three points with the ball.  Everybody in the place thought that 5'10 Jr Demond Carter or 6'5 Soph Kevin Branch, would take the last second shot.  But it didn't happen.  Instead, the ball went 6'4 Jr Konstantinos Brozos, whose shot rimbed in and out at the buzzer and Arlington Country Day survived against Reserve Christian, 59-56.  The big key for Reserve (Christian) LA was the fact that Branch finally stepped up and played like he did a year ago, as he scored 11 points and hit 4-11 field goals and 3-7 3-pointers, and Carter, who scored 24 points and hit 8-24 field goals and 5-16 3-pointers, didn't take as many bad shots as he normally does.  And to provide even further evidence of this fact, Carter hit 5-11 field goals and 3-5 3-pointers in the 4th quarter and was largely responsible for his team's 21-14 run in the 4th Quarter.  However, the game was never really that close (Arlington Country Day never trailed as they were up 19-16 at the end of the first quarter, 34-27 at half-time, and 45-35 at the end of the third quarter) and 6'0 Jr Josue Soto set the tone early with his only 3-pointer right at the start of the game.  And when Soto, who finished with eight points and eight assists, plays well, that makes everything else click for Arlington Country Day, which also got 14 points and 10 rebounds from 6'5 Sammy Hernandez, 12 points and 12 rebounds from 7'2 Jr Jason Bennett, seven points from 6'4 David Huertas, and 16 points and 4-5 3-point shooting from 6'5 Brian Hoff.  Speaking of Hoff, we're talking about an excellent 3-point shooter and a great role player for this team who has Ivy League like grades and an interest in going to the best academic school he can find.  But, as things stand now, nobody's recruiting him.   However, you can bet that all that will change when schools like Pennsylvania, Princeton, Holy Cross, Yale, and Dartmouth read about how well Hoff has played this winter and what a steal he'd be at their level.  We also are starting to think that Jose Juan Barea comparisons may be in order for Soto.  If you will recall, we really liked Barea when we saw him in high school at Miami (Chrisitan) FL, but didn't rank him any higher than #130 nationally in our Final Rankings of the Top Players in the Class of 2002, because his lack of size scared us.  And just like Barea, Soto is a tough hardnosed competitor who can shoot the lights out, has excellent handling and passing skills, tremendous speed and quickness, and usually finds a way to beat you.   And apparently Indiana, Wake Forest, and Florida agree, because they're the early favorites.  We also find it interesting that Soto mentioned that his two favorite schools are Wake Forest and North Carolina, although right now it appears the Tar Heels aren't recruiting him.  But the way he's played at both the City of Palms Classic before Christmas and this week at the Academy National Invitational, maybe they should be.  Yes, we think Soto is that good! 

Wednesday, December 29, 2004

Garland (South Garland) TX beat Houston (Bellaire) TX, 65-54; Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL beat Montverde (Academy) FL, 66-44; Alief (Taylor) TX beat Houston (Cypress Ridge) TX, 70-50; and Reserve (Christian) LA beat Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA, 49-45; in the Consolation Round games earlier today at the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX, but there really isn't a lot new to report.  Remember, we've already seen all the good young players - 5'11 Soph Jai Lucas, 6'6 Jr Dale Van Wright, and 6'9 Soph Isaiah Rusher - on Houston (Bellaire) TX - who combined for 37 of their team's 54 points, many times before.  We also have seen more than our share of 6'5 Terrel Harris from Garland (South Garland) TX, who teamed with 6'3 Jr Trent Boone to score 34 of their team's 65 points.  We also have seen Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA and Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL already three and four times, respectively, this year and nothing has changed.  When 6'0 Jr Josue Soto, who finished with 23 points, seven assists, and hit 8-9 3-pointers today, plays well, Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL usually wins.  And 5'10 Jr Demond Carter has never seen a shot he didn't like, although today we think he might have been sick, as he took only 17 shots,  including 5-17 field goals and 2-7 3-pointers, en route to a 21-point/five-assist/six-turnover performance.  We also have seen 6'7 Fendi Onobun from Alief (Taylor) TX, who was his usual aggressive self inside with his 16 points and nine rebouds today, about as often as any player in the nation during the last four years.  And I'm one of the 6'6 Martellus Bennett's biggest fans, because he's an undersized killer inside, as is evident by the fact that he had 22 points and 10 rebounds in today's game.  We were interested to see all of  the players on Montverde (Academy) FL, but the only guys who impressed us at all were UCLA-bound 6'7 Luc Richard Mbaha Moute, Hofstra-bound 6'9 Arminas Urbutis, and 6'1 Vytaulas Valiulis.  Mbaha Moute scored 16 points and has big time athleticism, but he's more of a slasher than a shooter, as is evident by the fact that he was only 1-6 from beyond the arc.  Urbutis, who chipped in with eight points, also is an excellent athlete with long arms, nice moves, and a soft touch around the basket.  Valiulis scored nine points, but we were more impressed with his role as a heady floor general (three assists), knack for being in the right place at the right time (five steals), and the ability to shoot the three (3-8 3-pointers).  We also were intrigued by three the sophomores - 6'4 Soph Frank Alexander, 6'4 Soph Donald Williams, and 5'11 Soph Bo Spencer - on Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA, who combined for 17 points and 12 rebounds, despite the fact that Alexander was injuried early and didn't play most the game.  Missouri City (Ft. Bend Marshall) TX beat Houston (Westfield) TX, 59-47, in the first semi-finals game of the day in the Texas Division, but truth be told, this game was worse than most of the consolation games earlier today.  And backing up this point even further is the fact that the two leading scorers for Ft. Bend Marshall were 6'7 Jr C.J. Webster and 6'1 Jr Jonathan Frazier with 10 points apiece.  That's right!  Texas A&M-bound 5'11 David Devezin had only eight points and six assists and 6'8 Jr  Darius Santee, who is ranked #45 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, finished with only six points and four rebounds.  And 6'3 Jr Pierre Beasley, who is ranked #124 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, laid an egg, as he finished with only three points and four rebounds for Missouri City (Ft. Bend Marshall) TX.   Instead, their best players were 5'10 Derek Barnes, who finished eight points, seven rebounds, four assists, two steals, and 2-6 3-pointers; 5'9 Jr Chris Hagan, who had 11 points and four steals, although he hit 0-5 3-pointers; and 6'2 Jr Cleveland Richard, who had 13 points and hit 2-3 3-pointers.  Houston (Westbury Christian) TX made things close for a while in the first semi-finals game in the National Division, as they trailed Middle Village (Christ the King) NY by only one at the end of the first quarter and by eight points at half-time.  However, in the second half Christ the King totally shut down 6'0 Wendell Preadom, who had nine of his team's 21 points before the intermission, and nobody else picked up the slack, as Christ the King outscored Westbury Christian, 51-32, in what turned out to be a rout for the team that upset Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL last night in overtime.  We also were impressed by Christ the King's balanced attack, as 6'3 Jr Larry Davis had 19 points and eight rebounds; 6'8 Adam Walker had 17 points and five rebounds; 6'4 Akeem Gooding had 12 points; 5'8 Soph Malik Boothe had 11 points; 6'4 Soph Andrew Gabriel had six points; 6'3 Jr Robert Hampton had five points; and 6'0 Chris Martin had two points and four assists.  The other semi-finals game in the Texas Division was a battle not only between what are arguably the two best teams in Houston this year, but also bragging rights, as the two best prospects in the game - 6'7 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX and 6'6 Soph Michael Singletary from Houston (Kingwood) TX - have been teammates on the Houston Hoops club team in their age group for years.  Kingwood, which also features 5'9 Jr Nic Wise, is ranked #14 nationally in the USA Today, but in the first half it was all Aldine, as Johnson's presence inside proved to be the difference, as he had nine points and five rebounds, which is a lot in a 25-17 game.  And it was even worse in the second half as Aldine outscored 27-16 en route to a 52-33 victory.  Johnson finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks, and several earthshattering slam dunks that brought the house down.  Also complementing Johnson were 5'9 Jr Brandon Brown, who finished with 16 points and hit 4-8 3-pointers, and 5'10 Tony Hooper, who had 13 points and hit 2-63-pointers.  Singletary led Kingwood with 10 points and 10 rebounds, but 0-6 3-pointers for Singletary and only three points and four assists by Wise really tells the story.  And in the big Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD-Los Angeles (Westchester) CA match-up in the other National Division semi-finals game, DeMatha jumped out early, but by half-time Los Angeles (Westchester) CA was up 37-30 and in control of the game.  As a matter of fact, that's as close as DeMatha got in the second half, as Los Angeles (Westchester) CA coasted to a 63-54 victory to advance into the championship game tomorrow night against Middle Village (Christ the King) NY at 8:00 PM.  The rest of tomorrow's schedule at the Academy National Invitational will include Missouri City (Ft. Bend Marshall) TX versus Houston (Aldine) TX at 6:30 PM in the Championship Game in the Texas Division, Houston (Westbury Christian) TX versus Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD at 5:00 PM in the 3rd Place Game of the National Division, Houston (Westfield) TX versus Houston (Kingwood) TX at 3:30 PM in the 3rd Place Game of the Texas Division, Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL versus Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA at 2:00 PM in the 5th Place Game of the National Division, Alief (Taylor) TX versus Garland (South Garland) TX at 12:30 PM in the 5th Place Game of the Texas Division, Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA versus Montverde (Academy) FL at 11:00 PM in the 7th Place Game of the National Division, and Houston (Bellaire) TX versus Houston (Cypress Ridge) TX at 9:30 AM in the 7th Place Game of the Texas Division.  Getting back tonight's Westchester-DeMatha game earlier tonight, 6'6 Marcus Johnson had 20 points for Los Angeles (Westchester) CA and 6'5 Soph Austin Freeman more than lived up to all the hype with regards to being the next great one from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, as he finished with 20 points and 13 points.  We also were impressed with 6'7 Jr Jeff Allen, who finished with 17 points and five rebounds, but we're still wondering what happened to 6'6 Mamadi Diane, who scored five of DeMatha's first seven points, but disappeared the rest of the game (seven points and one rebound).  DeMatha also only got five points and three assists out of 6'0 Jr Nigel Munson and the pace of the game was too fast for 6'9 Desmond Adedeji, as he only had two points, two blocked shots, and two rebounds.  Another difference was the depth, experience, and athleticism of Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which featured a well balanced attack , as 6'1 Jr Ahmaad Cook had 11 points and 3-6 3-pointers, 6'4 Soph Isaiah Jenkins had eight points, 6'7 Ray Reese had eight points and five rebounds, 6'8 Jarrel Lake had five points and five rebounds, 6'5 Jerard Moret had five points, 6'0 Joey Knox had zero points, but five assists, and 6'9 Amir Johnson had three points, two blocked shots, and four rebounds.  We also have to give Johnson credit for even playing, because he's been recently sidelined with a foot injury.  And, while this 6'9 shot blocking athlete didn't put up big numbers, he did help turn the game around early with his size, athleticism, and presence inside.

Tuesday, December 28, 2004

The HOOP SCOOP has confirmed that 6'9 Frosh Akini Adkins is transferring from Alabama to Florida A&M and this makes perfect sense, because Adkins, who was ranked #70 in our Final Ranking of the Top Players Nationally in the Class of 2003, played high school basketball at Tallahassee (Leon) FL.  In other words, Adkins, who was getting limited playing time with the Crimson Tide, is going home.  And this is huge, because the addition of Adkins and 6'5 Brian Greene from Santa Fe (JC) FL, who is ranked #45 in our ranking of the top junior college players, will give Florida A&M head coach Mike Gillespie the two best incoming players in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference a year from now.  It also appears that 6'8 Frosh Emmanuel Willis is transferring from Southern Cal and 6'8 Soph Regis Koundjia is transferring from LSU, but as of yet, we have not heard where either player is leaning.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that sometime within the last week 6'8 Cameron Lewis from Exeter (School) NH, who is ranked #52 on our list of the top 5th Players, which makes him the equivalent of a high school senior in the 100-300 range, has verbally committed the University of Pennsylvania.  This moves the Quakers' recruiting class into a tie #83, along with Rider, Columbia, and High Point, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  However, even more important, this moves Pennsylvania's class into a tie with Columbia with the #1-ranked recruiting class in the Ivy League.  If you will recall, Pennsylvania also has landed 6'2 Aaron Cohen from Jenkintown (Abington Friends) PA and 6'3 Kevin Egee from Folsom (Ridley) PA, who are two of the better players in the Philly area, 6'7 Tommy McMahon from San Mateo (Serra) CA, and 6'7 Brennan Votel from Covington (Catholic) KY.  We also have confirmed that Louisiana-Lafayette has added three more players - 6'8 Shey Oseni from Hurt (Faith Christian) VA, 6'0 Ryan Francis from Baton Rouge (Glen Oaks) LA, and 6'8 Valentino Hart from Cowley (JC) KS - to its recruiting class, which already includes 6'1 Booker Woodfox from Lewisville (H.S.) TX.   These three additions move Louisiana-Lafayette's recruiting class up into a tie at #80, along with Southern Illinois and Illinois-Chicago, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  But that too doesn't tell the complete story, as Rajin' Cajuns have landed two of the best incoming players in the Sun Belt Conference (currently we have Woodfox is ranked #169 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and Oseni checks in at #238).  Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that 6'3 Danny Williams from Los Angeles (Fremont) CA, who is ranked #91 nationally in the senior class and is the 7th best unsigned senior still on the board, behind 6'8 Keith Brumbaugh from Deland (H.S.) FL, 6'9 Theo Davis from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Uche Echefu from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MA, 6'8 Gary Flowers from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, and 6'6 Martellus Bennett from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX, no longer appears to be a near lock to go to Oklahoma State.  Instead, Trigonis now thinks the University of Texas is the team to beat.  But it really doesn't matter, because Rick Issacs, who is the head coach of the H-Squad and like a father to the kid, is planning on sending Williams, who is a world-class athlete and an excellent 3-point shooter, to prep school next year.  Speaking of Theo Davis, did you know that he's only played one game this season with Bayside (Cardozo) NY and right now he's back in Toronto, ON?  And when we pressed our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio, who also is/was Davis' high school coach, for answers, he didn't have any.  However, we do have to give Naclerio credit, because he didn't bite when we told him that Davis was playing for Toronto (Henry Carr) ON, which is a school that Davis previously attended, in the Beach Ball Classic or that Davis might transfer to Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ.  Instead, our guess is that regardless of whether Davis returns to Cardozo, he'll end up in prep school next year and then (ready or not) attempt to by-pass college and enter his name into the NBA Draft in the spring of 2006.  We also understand that the University of Maryland has an early verbal commitment from 6'7 Jr Landon Milbourne from Alpharetta (St. Francis) GA, who is ranked #175 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and the final five for 6'0 Jr D.J. Augustine from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, who is ranked #10 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, includes North Carolina, LSU, Wake Forest, Georgetown, and LSU.

The first two consolation games earlier today at the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC were less than memorable, as New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA beat Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC, 84-69, and Dayton (Dunbar) OH beat Toronto (Henry Carr) ON, 62-54.  However, 6'5 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH did once again put up impressive numbers, as he finished with 22 points, nine rebounds, nine assists, five turnovers, and 9-17 field goals, although most of his points came off transition and the competition wasn't that great.  In other words, it was like a race-horse dropping down into a cheap claiming race and winning by 10 lengths.  It just doesn't mean whole a lot.  And the same also can be said with regards to 6'8 Soph Aaron Pogue from Dayton (Dunbar) OH, who finished with 14 points, eight rebounds, and 6-7 field goals. The only player worth mentioning for Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC is 6'1 Andy Blondmonville, who finished with 20 points, but was only 1-6 from beyond the arc.  In the other game 6'1 Jr D.J. Augustine had 22 points, seven assists, seven turnovers, three steals, and hit 6-11 3-pointers; 6'6 Corey Bloom had 23 points and hit 8-13 field goals and 3-6 3-pointers, and 6'1 Ryan Block had 27 points and nine rebounds for New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA.  But there wasn't one player worth mentioning for Toronto (Henry Carr) ON.  Yes, it really was that bad!  The final consolation game of the day between Aiken (H.S.) SC and Anchorage (Bartlett) AK was a lot more interesting, as 6'6 Soph Marshall Moses from Aiken (H.S.) SC and 6'2 Mario Chalmers from Anchorage (Bartlett) AK took turns lighting up the scoreboard and making those around them better.  Chalmers, who finished with 33 points, 10 steals, and almost brought his team back from a nine-point deficit with six minutes left in the game, but failed to capitalize on several opportunities to win the game in the final 30 seconds, won the scoring battle.  However, Moses, who finished with 23 points, 13 rebounds, and two blocks, but had a lot more to go with him, as 6'4 Soph Xavian Robinson had five points and nine rebounds, 6'1 Soph Darien Crawford had 10 points, and  6'6 Soph DeMarcus Sullivan had four points and seven rebounds.  Yes, it does look like Aiken's top four players are sophomores and that obviously explains why Donnie Wilkie, who is the tournament director of the City of Palms Classic, already has them lined up to play in his event next year.  Sometimes it's funny how things turn out.  If you'd told me that 6'5 Bryan Harvey was only going to score 10 points and hit 1-5 3-pointers and that 6'6 Brantley Watson was going to be Dominguez's leading scorer with only 14 points, I would have told you that Compton (Dominguez) CA was going to be in big trouble against Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY.  And they were early, as Manhasset (St. Mary's) CA would jumped out to a 16-9 lead early in the first quarterfinals game of the day.  But by half-time Dominguez was down by only two points and they were up by six with 7:58 remaining in the game.  Then, the momentum shifted again, as St. Mary's went on a 9-0 run to take a 60-57 lead and they hit all of their free throws down the stretch to pull out a 66-63 win.  6'6 Danny Green had 19 points and seven rebounds, 6'5 Tyson Johnson had 16 points, and 5'9 Jr Gilbert Montalvo had 14 points and five assists for the winners and 6'4 Soph Quinton Watkins had 10 points and 6'0 Frosh Brandon Jennings had eight points, four assists, and three steals, as they complemented Watson and Harvey for the losers.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that Jennings missed what would have been the game tying shot with time running out .   Obviously you don't want to put that kind of pressure on a freshman, but you have to give Jennings credit for having the guts to take it.  The biggest surprise thus far in the entire tournament occurred when Memphis (Ridgeway) TN jumped to an 18-13 lead early and led by as much as 16 points late in the first half against Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY in the second quarterfinals of the day.   However, if you had told me that 6'0 Chris Lowe and 6'0 Jr Mike Coburn both would be scoreless for Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY at half-time and that 6'8 Jr Pierre Niles would have eight points, five rebounds, three blocks, and be dominating the game just like he did yesterday and 6'0 Jr Wesley Channels would have 15 points and be shooting the lights out (3-4 3-pointers), I might think it would be even worse than the 41-28 half-time score.  But all that changed as Coburn scored early in the second half, 6'3 Jonathan Smith hit a pair of 3-pointers, and Mt. Vernon turned up the heat.  By the nine minute mark the lead was less than double-digits and Niles picked up his 4th fourth foul with 7:37 remaining in the game,  Then, Smith hit another three and Lowe stole the ball and went in for a layup to score his first basket of the game to cut the lead to only four points.  Memphis (Ridgeway) TN, which had only played six players, looked tired and was trying to hang on.  And, at that point, the momentum shifted again, as Niles scored the next four points to give Mt. Vernon a 57-49 lead.  From there both teams traded baskets until the 2:28 mark when Mt. Vernon cut the lead back to five on a pair of free throws by Smith.  Then Smith stole the ball and hit Coburn for an easy basket to make it a one possession game at 63-60 with just over two minutes remaining.  But it wasn't going to be that easy, as Ridgeway took the air out of the ball and did a great job of controlling the tempo and handling Mt. Vernon's pressure.  Both teams did trade baskets several times in the final minute, but the Memphis (Ridgeway) TN pulled off the 68-63 upset. Niles finished with 20 points and nine rebounds, Channels had 19 points and seven rebounds, and 6'0 Jordan Mincy had three points and nine assists for Memphis (Ridgeway) TN and 6'7 Jr Jonathan Mitchell had 23 points and eight rebounds, Smith had 19 points and hit 6-13 3-pointers, Lowe had four points and four steals, and Coburn had six points and three steals.  The final quarterfinals game of the evening also was a major surprise as Dunwoody (H.S.) GA jumped out to an eleven point lead against Miami (Senior) FL mid-way through the first half.  And making matters even worse for Miami (Senior) FL is the fact that 6'0 Edwin Rios had yet to score and he had seven turnovers.   But then Miami (Senior) FL came storming back and late in the first half they were up by five and they led by three at half-time.  However, by this time we'd already dropped Rios, who had only five points, five assists, and 10 turnovers at the intermission, from #1 to #2 in our rankings of the top players in the tournament based on performance.  Remember, we rank players the old-fashioned way.  You have to earn it!  Speaking of our rankings of the top players at the Beach Ball Classic after the first three days, they are as follows:  1) 6'8 Jr Pierre Niles from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN, 2) 6'0 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL,  3) 6'2 Mario Chalmers from Anchorage (Bartlett) AK, 4) 6'6 Danny Green from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY, 5) 6'6 Soph Marshall Moses from Aiken (H.S.) SC, 6) 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, 7) 6'7 Jr Jonathan Mitchell from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 8) 6'5 Steve McCoy from New York (Frederick Douglass) NY, 9) 6'5 Jr Ruben Guillandeux from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 10) 6'5 Tyson Johnson from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY, 11) 6'5 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH, 12) 6'0 Jordan Mincy from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN, 13) 6'1 Jr D.J. Augustine from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, 14) 6'3 Jonathan Smith from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 15) 6'8 Jr Yannick Formbor-Nono from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 16) 6'8 Dwayne Collins from Miami (Senior) FL, 17) 6'5 Bryan Harvey from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 18) 5'9 Jr Kierre Jordan from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, 18) 6'0 Chris Lowe from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 19) 6'0 Jr Wesley Channels from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN, 20) 6'0 Soph Mike Coburn from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 21) 6'3 Cornell Holmes from Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC, 22) 6'5 Andre Davis from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 23) 6'3 Tyrone Cook from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 24) 6'3 Kris Thomas from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, 25) 6'6 Brantley Watson from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 26) 6'0 Frosh Lamar Seymour from Miami (Senior) FL, 27) 5'11 Tony Anderson from Greenville (J.L. Mann) SC, 28) 6'8 Soph Aaron Pogue from Dayton (Dunbar) OH, 29) 6'6 Corey Bloom from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, 30) 6'8 Jr Courtney Wallace from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, 31) 5'9 Jr Gilbert Montalvo from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY, 32) 6'6 Jr A.J. Tolbert from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 34) 6'1 Ryan Block from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, and 35) 6'1 Andy Blondmonville from Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC.  Getting back to the game between Miami (Senior) FL and Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, the Stings were up 13 points with 2:27 remaining, but Dunwoody went on a 14-2 run and almost pulled off the upset.  However, Rios, who finished with 23 points, six assists, and four rebounds, made the final basket of the game with with 39 seconds remaining and Miami Senior prevailed 78-75.  The leading scorer for Miami Senior tonight was 6'8 Dwayne Collins, who finished with 28 points, eight dunks, and seven rebounds.  Once again the best player for Dunwoody (H.S.) GA was 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness, who finished with 31 points and seven rebounds and was largely responsible for his team's impressive comeback.  Also chipping in with 15 points and eight assists and doing a great defensive job on Rios, especially in the first half, was 5'9 Jr Kierre Jordan from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA.

Monday, December 27, 2004

We expected the game between Memphis (Ridgeway) TN and New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA to be interesting, because 6'1 Jr D.J. Augustine from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA and 6'8 Jr Pierre Niles from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN are ranked #10 and #26, respectively, in the junior class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  However, we didn't know how good both teams would be and, as a result, this game turned out to be the best game thus far in the tournament.  We also did not expect Niles to be 30 pounds lighter than he was last summer, which means he is now a trim 6'8, 230 pounds.  It also means that this physical specimen was almost unstoppable both inside and outside, as he scored seemingly at will inside and even hit some shots from out on the perimeter.  Niles also is the best player that we've seen thus far in the tournament, which means he's probably closer to top 10 than top 30 nationally in the junior class.  Niles also appears to be a top recruiting priority for both Tennessee and Memphis (he told us they're the leaders), but he also has Georgia Tech, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Cincinnati, and Louisville on his list.  However, the way he played today (19 points and 10 rebounds), you can bet that his list will get longer before it gets shorter, plus the possibility that he will by-pass college and enter his name into the NBA Draft may exist.  Niles also has plenty to go with him as 6'0 Jordan Mincy, who scored 13 points, grabbed seven rebounds, had five assists, and thrives in transition, and 6'6 Jr Ernest Fields, who came off the bench and took over for Niles inside when he got his second foul in the first half en route to 13 points.  Augustine did most of his damage for New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA in the first when he scored 13 of his 18 points, but the turning point in the game really came when 6'8 Jr Courtney Wallace from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA got his 4th foul and left the game with 11:29 remaining in the second half (at that point the score was tied 40-40, but Ridgeway outscored Brother Martin 32-18 the rest of the way in what turned into a 72-58 rout.  Wallace had 12 points, five rebounds, and hit 6-9 field goals, but he was the only person New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA had who could contain Niles.  However, the biggest difference in the game was the shooting, as Memphis (Ridgeway) TN hit 28-51 field goals, while New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA hit 22-57 field goals and only 8-29 3-pointers.  And making the story even worse is the fact that Augustine and 6'6 Corey Bloom, who was supposed to be Brother Martin's second best player, combined to hit only 11-33 field goals and 7-24 3-pointers.  The second first round game of the day between Compton (Dominguez) CA and Toronto (Henry Carr) ON went pretty much as expected, as Dominguez jumped out to 19-9 lead, they led by 11 points at half-time, and they won the game, 71-55.   And, as usual, Dominguez featured a well balanced attack that included 6'5 Bryan Harvey with 17 points, nine rebounds, and hit 3-7 3-pointers; 6'6 Jr A.J. Tolbert with 14 points and six rebounds; 6'6 Brantley Watson with 11 points; 6'4 Soph Quinton Watkins with seven points; and 6'0 Frosh Brandon Jennings with six points and five assists.  Yes, Dominguez head coach Russell Otis is going to war in this tournament starting a freshman and a sophomore.   And that's saying a lot, because Jennings, who is ranked #10 nationally in the freshman class by the HOOP SCOOP, has beaten out 5'9 Austin Autry, who started at Torrance (Bishop Montgomery) CA before transferring to Compton (Dominguez) CA last spring, and Watkins is playing ahead of 6'3 Jr Dezon Otis, who is Otis' own son.  The best two players for Toronto (Henry Carr) ON were 6'5 Matthew Powell and 6'6 Jr Stanley Ankrah, who combined for 34 of their 55 points.   Dunwoody (H.S.) GA obviously has been helped by the four games that they played last week in the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL and the return of 6'3 Kris Thomas, who missed that tournament due to an injury, as beat downed Aiken (H.S.) SC, 60-51, in the third opening round game of the day.   But the best player in the game was 6'6 Soph Marshall Moses from Aiken (H.S.) SC, who used his athleticism, strength, skills, ability to score both inside and outside, and great feel for the game to keep it close (they trailed by only four with 30 seconds left in the game).  As a matter of fact, Moses is the second best player we've seen so far in the entire tournament and his 18 points, 8-12 field goals, and five rebounds don't even begin to tell the story.  Not only did he make sit look easy, but he got to the basket, hit the 3-point shot, and used his body to dominate inside.  However, in the end, Dunwoody had just to many players to overcome, as 6'6 An'Juan Wilderness picked it up down the stretch, as he finished with 15 points and eight rebounds; Thomas had 12 points and some impressive dunks; and 5'9 Kierre Jordan ran the show and finished with 14 points and four assists.  The shootout between 6'0 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL and 6'2 Mario Chalmers from Anchorage (Bartlett) AK in the final opening round game of the tournament was as good as advertised.  But it didn't matter, because Miami (Senior) FL jumped out to 20-11 lead and never looked back en route to a 87-70 victory.  We also have to mention that Rios not only won the match-up, but he now has emerged as the best player that we've seen in the first two days of the tournament, as he not only shot the lights out, but displayed an incredible feel for the game, and made everybody around him, including 6'8 Jr Dwayne Collins, who had 12 points and six rebounds, better.  We say that remembering how bad Collins was just a week-and-a-half ago in the King of the Bluegrass in Fairdale, KY.  Obviously we're talking about a great athlete who lacks skills, but fools you when he has great playmaker like Rios to get him the ball when he can do something with it.  Moral to the story, Collins isn't as good as a lot of people think he is.  But Rios is probably better than everybody realizes, as is evident by the fact that he finished with 35 points, eight rebounds, 11 assists, seven steals, and hit 13-26 field goals, and 7-17 3-pointers, which is probably the best stat line I've seen in a long time.  However, that even doesn't tell how good we think Rios is as he arguably is now the 5th best player nationally in his class behind 6'5 Soph O.J. Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, 6'5 Soph Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, 6'7 Soph Michael Beasley from Upper Marlboro (Riverdale Baptist) MD, and 6'7 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX and ahead of 6'3 Soph Derrick Rose from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'0 Soph Jerrad Bayless from Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ and 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA.  Collins chipped in with 17 points and eight rebounds.  We also are intrigued by the fact that Miami Senior has only two seniors on their roster and 6'0 Frosh Lamar Seymour, who had 18 points and hit 4-5 3-pointers, is their third best player.  Chalmers had 29 points and five steals, which also ranks him right up there along with Rios, 6'8 Jr Pierre Niles from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN, 6'6 Soph Marshall Moses from Aiken (H.S.) SC, and 6'5 Steve McKoy with one of the top five performances of the entire day.  Tomorrow's schedule will feature Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC versus New Orleans (Brother Rice) LA at Noon, Toronto (Henry Carr) ON versus Dayton (Dunbar) OH at 1:45 PM, and Aiken (H.S.) SC versus Anchorage (Bartlett) AK at 3:30 PM in Consolation Bracket games and Compton (Dominguez) CA versus Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY at 5:15 PM, Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY versus Memphis (Ridgeway) TN at 7:00 PM, and Dunwoody (H.S.) GA versus Miami (Senior) FL at 8:45 PM in Winner's Bracket games. 

Things have been status quo in the first round of games at the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC and we expect it to be that way for the rest of the tournament, because Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY and Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY are just that much better than the rest of the field.  However, for this match-up to materialize in the championship game on Thursday, December 30th, St. Mary's must get past Compton (Dominguez) CA in the quarterfinals tomorrow night and they must be able to handle Elizabeth (St. Patrick's) NJ in the semi-finals on Wednesday.  In contrast, Mt. Vernon should have an easy road to the championship, as the bottom half of the bracket, which also includes Memphis (Ridgeway) TN, New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, Aiken (H.S.) SC, Anchorage (Bartlett) AK, and Miami (Senior) FL, is stacked in their favor.  Speaking of Mt. Vernon, they jumped out to 16-3 lead and never looked back as the coasted to 76-51 win last night in their opening round game against Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC.  And they're going to be tough to beat inside with 6'7 Jonathan Mitchell, who scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds, dominating the boards and scoring around the basket and they're teriffic in the backcourt with 6'0 Chris Lowe, who with 14 points, six steals, and five assists, and 6'0 Soph Mike Coburn, who had 12 points and four steals in last night's game.  Mt. Vernon also should give anybody they play fits with their speed, quickness, and athleticism, although St. Mary's is capable of balancing that out with their great outside shooting and versatility at the wing spots with 6'6 Danny Green, 6'5 Tyson Johnson, 6'1 Aleek Pauline, 6'6 Tyrone Hanson all being versatile enough to play several different positions.  And this was especially evident last night, as St. Mary's jumped out to a 15-3 lead and beat Dayton (Dunbar) OH, 65-46, in similar fashion to the way Mt. Vernon beat Myrtle Beach in the following game.  Green finished with 18 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and five blocks; Johnson had 13 points, 10 rebounds and four assists; Pauline had 16 points 3-3 3-poiners, and five rebounds; Hanson had four points and five rebounds; and 5'9 Jr Gilbert Montalvo had 10 points, six rebounds, and three assists.  However, before you read to much into this, it's also important to point out that Dayton (Dunbar) OH featured 6'5 Jr Daequan Cook, who put up impressive numbers (18 points and 15 rebounds), but did not come close to resembling the top five-ranked junior that we expected to see; 6'8 Soph Aaron Pogue, who scored 10 points and eight rebounds, but looked lethargic and out of shape; and three midgets.  Yes, they were that bad!  And so were the other two opening round games when New York (Frederick Douglas) NY beat Greenville (J.L. Mann) SC, 61-50, in the first game of the day yesterday and Elizabeth (St. Patrick's) NJ beat Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC, 65-49, on Christmas night.  And in that game it looked like St. Patrick's head coach Kevin Boyle was holding try-outs for the rest of the season.  Remember, three of his best players - 6'9 Jr Derrick Caracter, 6'1 Soph Corey Fisher, and 6'5 Soph Jeffrey Robinson - are out and won't be eligible to January.  Instead, the two players who came up big for St. Patrick's were 6'8 Jr Yannick Formbor-Nono, who scored 23 points, had seven rebounds, and hit 10-10 3-pointers, and 6'5 Jr Ruben Guillandeux, who had 14 points and eight rebounds.  Obviously St. Patrick's will be a lot better when they get their three stars back, but they already appear to have a clear road into the semi-finals, because they already have knocked off New York (Frederick Douglass) NY, 71-65, in the first quarterfinals game that already has been played today.  In that game we also were impressed with their size, intensity, athleticism, and number of bodies that they can throw at you, as Formbor-Nono (six points), Gullandeuz (12 points, 2-3 3-pointers, and three steals), 6'3 Tyrone Cook (15 points and 2-3 3-pointers), 6'5 Andre Davis (14 points and nine rebounds), 6'8 Jr Duquan Cook (seven points), 6'8 Jr Jhamar Youngblood (seven points), 5'11 Soph Javi Gonzalez ( four points), and 5'8 Jr Al Wagner (six points) all contribute.   And while they are capable of upsetting either Compton (Dominguez) CA or Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY in the semi-finals, it's scary how good Elizabeth (St. Patrick's) NJ will be a year from now, as all but two of the above mentioned players are underclassmen.  We also have give New York (Frederick Douglass) NY credit, because they made things interesting until their best player 6'5 Steve McKoy, who finished with 29 points nine rebounds, and hit 3-5 3-pointers, fouled out early in the 4th quarter.  McKoy, who might be one of the kept secrets in the tournament, also had 24 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, and four steals and was clearly the best player for either team in his team's 61-50 opening round game win last night against Greenville (J.L. Mann) SC.  Speaking of the Frederick Douglass-J.L. Mann game last night, 16 turnovers from 5'11 Tony Anderson and 5'8 Jr Karlos Sullivan, who were the two guards from Greenville (J.L. Mann) SC, tells it all.  However, Greenville (J.L. Mann) SC did play a lot better in the first game today, as Anderson followed up on last night's 21-point, 0 assists, and nine turnovers performance today with 34 points, four assists, five turnovers, and 6-10 3-pointers today against Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC in the first Consolation Round Game of this year's Beach Ball Classic.  Also playing well in that game was 6'3 Cornell Holmes from Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC, who finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds and really impressed us with his athleticism and ability to get done things around the basket.  Unfortunately Holmes also was only 1-6 from beyond the arc, which leads us to believe that, just like Anderson, he probably doesn't have a true position at the next level.  We also expect things to pick up the rest of the day, as, in the final four first round games of the tournament, it will be Memphis (Ridgeway) TN versus New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA at 3:30 PM, Toronto (Henry Carr) ON versus Compton (Dominguez) CA at 5:15 PM, Dunwoody (H.S.) SC versus Aiken (H.S.) SC at 7:00 PM, and Anchorage (Bartlett) AK versus 8:45 PM.  That's 6'8 Jr Pierre Niles from Memphis (Ridgeway) TN and 6'1 Jr D.J. Augustine from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA in the next game; 6'5 Bryan Harvey from Compton (Dominguez) CA in the following game; 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA and 6'6 Soph Marshall Moses from Aiken (H.S.) SC in the third game; and 6'0 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL and 6'2 Mario Chalmers from Anchorage (Bartlett) AK in the final game of the evening.  So stay tuned!

Saturday, December 25, 2004, & Sunday, December 26, 2004

I'm already in route to Myrtle Beach, SC to cover the Beach Ball Classic, which actually began last night (Saturday, December 25th) with Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC versus Elizabeth (St. Patrick's) NJ at 7:00 PM and has three more games on the schedule for later today (Sunday, December 26th) with New York (Frederick Douglass) NY versus Greenville (Mann) SC at 5:15 PM, Dayton (Dunbar) OH versus Manhassat (St. Mary's) NY at 7:00 PM, and Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY versus Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC at 8:45 PM.  However, most of the holiday tournaments won't begin until tomorrow due to the fact that most states won't allow teams to play on Sunday.  And, while I've already been to the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL and plan to cover both Beach Ball Classic and the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX, which are arguably three of the top four holiday tournaments in the nation this year, we have yet to mention the Proviso West Holiday Tournament in Hillside, IL, which has the best field that it's had in years.   An even closer look shows that this year's field will include six of the Illinois Prep Bulls-eye's pre-season top 15 teams in the state and 11 teams that were ranked in the top 45.  The list of players also is very impressive, as a many of the players in the state will be in attendance, including 6'8 Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'5 Jr Jonathan Scheyer from Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL, 6'2 Jerell McNeal from Country Club Hills (Hillcrest) IL, 6'11 Clarence Holloway from Chicago (Harlan) IL, 6'2 Tony Freeman from Westchester (St. Joseph) IL, 6'2 Phillip Perry from Maywood (Proviso (East) IL, 6'0 Brandon Ewing from Chicago (Julian) IL, 6'0 Angel Santiago from Chicago (Von Steuben) IL, 6'8 Jeremiah Bryant from Chicago (Harlan) IL, 6'8 Soph Nayal Koshwai from Chicago (Julian) IL, 6'4 Marcus Green from Franklin Park (Leyden) IL, 5'7 Maurice Aker from Country Club Hills (Hillcrest) IL, 6'4 Jr DeAngelo McIntosh from Chicago (Julian) IL, 5'11 Jr Jonathan Peoples from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 6'0 Joe Ballard from Hillside (Proviso West) IL, 6'10 Jr Brian Carlwell from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 6'4 Jr Peter Flowers from Oak Park (Fenwick) IL,  6'5 Jr Andre Walker from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'5 Soph Trey Blue from Chicago (Julian) IL, 6'3 Soph Demetri McCamey from Westchester (St. Joseph's) IL, 6'2 Jeremiah Wise from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 6'4 Blake Nielson from Oak Park (Fenwick) IL, 6'8 Thinjin Moses from Chicago (Julian) IL, 6'1 Soph Jerimiah Kelly from Chicago (Julian) IL, 6'0 Jr Sergio Brown from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 5'10 Toussant Knox from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL, 5'11 Kris Harris from Hillside (Proviso West) IL, and 6'2 Jr Jonathan Peoples from Westchester (St. Joseph) IL.  The first round pairings at Proviso West will be held on tomorrow, Monday, December 27th, and will include Chicago (Julian) IL versus Schaumburg (H.S.) IL at 9:00 AM, Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL versus Evanston (Township) IL at 10:30 AM, Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL versus Chicago (Hubbard) IL at 12:15 PM, Franklin Park (Leyden) IL versus Hillcrest (Proviso West) IL at 1:45 PM, Chicago (Von Steuben) IL versus Winnetka (New Trier) IL at 3:45 PM, Country Club Hills (Hillcrest) IL versus Chicago (Harlan) IL at 5:15 PM, Westchester (St. Joseph) IL versus Oak Park (Fenwick) IL at 7:00 PM, and Maywood (Proviso East) IL versus Chicago (Whitney Young) IL at 8:30 PM.  Another tournament that always has good young players and promises to be the best it's been in years is the Kingdom of the Sun Invitational at Vanguard High School in Ocala, FL.  It also will be held from December 27th-30th and will include players like 6'8 Jr Lance Thomas from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'1 Jr Eugene Harvey from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'5 Soph Corey Stokes from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'1 Denis Clemente from Miami (Calusa Prep) FL, 6'9 Alade Aminu from Stone Mountain (Stephenson) GA, 6'7 Octavius Spann from College Park (Banneker) GA, 6'8 Dwight Burke from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'0 JuJuan Spillman from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'9 Frank Tchusi from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'2 Sean Morrison from St. Petersburg (Lakewood) FL, 6'1 Eric Moore from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'2 Soph Bobby Austin from Cincinnati (La Salle) OH, 6'1 Jazz Neal from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'7 DeAndre Coleman from Stone Mountain (Stephenson) GA, 5'10 Joe Burnett from Eustis (H.S.) FL, 6'3 Jr John Harper from Orlando (Pine Castle Christian) FL, 6'0 Zach Whittenburg from Hilliard (H.S.) FL, 6'1 Jr Daniel Thomas from Hilliard (H.S.) FL, 6'0 Jr Kadero Terrell from Eustis (H.S.) FL, 6'4 Ray Davis from College Park (Banneker) GA, 6'5 Jr Vincent Crutcher from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'4 Albert McClellan from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL, 6'3 Jamal Naylor from Ocala (Vanguard) FL, 6'3 Tommy Smith from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL, 6'2 Jr Joe Mazzulla from Warwick (Bishop Hendricken) RI, 6'5 Jr Sterlin James from Citra (North Marion) FL, 6'6 Soph Orane Chin from Miami (Dr. Krop) FL, 6'5 Soph Max Groebe from Miami (Dr. Krop) FL, 6'5 Jr Jared Reubens from Miami (Dr. Krop) FL, 6'3 Soph Ed Nixon from Lakewood (H.S.) FL, 5'8 Soph Eric Rodriguez from Miami (Dr. Krop) FL, 6'0 Frosh Miquel Paul from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL, 5'10 Frosh Mike Coleman from Ocala (Vanguard) FL, and 6'8 Frosh Frederick Dominguez from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ.  Tomorrow's schedule at the Kingdom of the Sun Invitational will include College Park (Banneker) FL versus Orlando (Pine Castle) FL at 9:00 AM, Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY versus Miami (Dr. Krop) FL at 10:30 AM, Lakewood (H.S.) FL vesus Stone Mountain (Stephenson) GA at 12:30 PM, Eustis (H.S.) FL versus Warwick (Bishop Hendricken) RI at 2:00 PM, Calusa (H.S.) FL versus Cincinnati (La Salle) OH at 3;30 PM, Citra (North Marion) FL versus Bartow (H.S.) FL at 6:00 PM, Ocala (Vanguard) FL versus Hilliard (H.S.) FL at 7:30 PM, and Lakeland (Kathleen) FL versus Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ at 9:00 PM.  We also will be getting reports from the Arby's Holiday Classic in Bristol, TN, because our Tennessee Correspondent Andre Whitehead will be in the house to see 6'5 Richard Delk from Jackson (Northside) TN, 6'5 Reginald Delk from Jackson (Northside) TN, 6'9 Cyrus McGowan from Meridian (H.S.)MS, 6'5 Jevon Shepherd from Toronto (West Hill Scarborough) ON, 6'4 Matt Mortensen from Provo (Timpview) UT, 6'3 Ryan Scott from Reston (South Lakes) VA, 5'11 Jermonte Bush from Tallahassee (Rickards) FL, and 6'3 Soph Brad Wannamaker from Philadelphia (Roman Catholic) PA.   And I'm sure we'll hear a lot about what happens at the Les Schwab Invitational in Hillsboro, OR, because that field includes Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA with 6'9 Jr Kevin Durant, 6'0 Jr Tywon Lawson, 6'3 Eric Devendorf, 6'4 K.C. Rivers, 6'4 Jamont Gordon, and 7'0 Bamba Fall; Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD with 6'8 Uche Echefu, 6'0 Jr Tashi Ito, 6'2 K.J. Matsui, 6'3 Soph Adrian Bowie; Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA with 6'7 Jamal Boykin, 6'5 Soph Chase Stanback, 6'4 Jr Jerren Shipp; Lake Owego (H.S.) OR with 6'8 Soph Kevin Love and 6'6 Soph Kyle Singler; Portland (Jesuit) OR with 6'6 Jr Seth Tarver and 6'3 Jr Josh Tarver; Portland (Lincoln) OR with 6'4 Latravis Turner and 5'10 Omar Leary; Portland (Jefferson) OR with 6'6 Brian Morris and 6'4 Jr Lathen Wallace; Hillsboro (H.S.) OR with 6'7 Brad Hodge and 6'6 Jr Mike McLaughlin; and Canby (H.S.) OR with 6'6 Casey Reed.

Thursday, December 23, 2004, & Friday, December 24, 2004

In the final analysis, the best player at this year's City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL was 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA and, as a result, he must now be considered the leading candidate for national Player-of-the-year honors in the Class of 2005.  Sure, Webster was medicore his the first game of the tournament (6-12 field goals, 2-7 3-points, five turnovers, and only one assist) against Dunwoody (H.S.) GA.  But he did score 20 points and grab 12 rebounds in that game, which is still pretty good for somebody who was having an off night.   And after that Webster was sensational, as he had a 37-point/11-rebound game in the quarterfinals against Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, a 27-point/eight-rebound game in the semi-finals against West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, and a 33-point/seven-rebound game in the 3rd Place Game against Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.  And, if that game had gone a few seconds longer (he missed a half-court shot at the buzzer), Webster probably would have won the game with what would have been his 10th 3-pointer of the game (his line score in that game was 11-18 field goals, 9-14 3-pointers, 2-2 free throws, seven rebounds, three personal fouls, 33 points, two asssits, two turnovers, one blocked shot, and one steal).  Webster also finished as the tournament's leading scorer with 29.3 ppg, the 4th leading rebounder with 9.5 rpg, and among the top 10 in both field goals (52.6%) and 3-point field goal percentage (47.5%), but making the story even more impressive is the fact that Webster made more field goals and more 3-pointers than anybody else in the tournament, as he hit 40-76 field goals and 19-40 3-pointers.  However, picking Webster over 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA wasn't all that easy, because Ellington not only showed why we now regard him as one of the top five juniors in the nation, but he also finished as the tournament's third leading scorer with 27.5 ppg, was tied for 4th in steals with 2.5 spg, was sixth in field goal percentage hitting 37-66 field goals for 56.1%, was tied for second in 3-point shooting with 9-12 3-pointers for 75.0%, and took over the game when 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA fouled out mid-way through the 4th Quarter of the 5th Place Game.  The MVP of the tournament, after leading his team to the championship, and our choice as the third best player was 6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY.  Sure, Harris was not one of the leaders in the tournament in scoring, as he only averaged 14.0 ppg, but he did finish ranked second in both rebounding (11.3 rpg) and assists (4.3 apg) and was tied for 4th in blocked shots with 1.5 bpg.  Harris is currently a 4th Year junior, so he is expected to attend prep school next year.  But for now nobody in his class does a better job of combining athleticism, toughness, being an incredible physical specimen, and just flat out being a winner.  So it should come as no surprise when we rank him among the top 20 players in the junior class nationally next time we update our rankings.  Fourth on our list is 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, who finished as the third leading scorer with 27.3 ppg and the leading rebounder in the tournament with 12.0 rpg.  And, while Mitchell probably cost himself a spot among our top five seniors nationally next time we update our national rankings, his mediocre performance 11-point/five-rebound/five-turnover performance against Milwaukee (Vincent) WI in the 5th Place Semi-finals probably would not have gotten him ranked any higher among the top players in the tournament.  Yes, Webster, Ellington, and Harris were that good!  Rounding out the top five is 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA and once again the statistics reinforce what we already thought, as he finished the tournament ranked #6 in scoring with 24.3 ppg, tied for 8th in rebounding with 8.0 rpg, 9th in 3-point shooting percentage hitting 15-37 for 40.5%.   From there not much has changed since we listed the top 30 players in the tournament in order in the morning of the last day of the tournament.  However, we would move 6'5 David Huertas from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL up about 10 spots, because he was Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day's) FL best player (22 points) in the 3rd Place Game against Seattle (Prep) WA and drop 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA a little bit, because with the expection of his terrific 35-point/12-rebound game in his first game of the tournament, he was average at best.   As a matter fact, Hawes finished ranked no higher than #13 in scoring and #11 in rebounding in the tournament with 18.0 ppg and 7.8 rpg averages.  We also thought that 6'5 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, who finished ranked #7 in scoring with 25.0 ppg and tied for 8th in rebounding with 8.0 rpg, should have been on the all-tournament team.  James also was left off the all-tournament team a year ago, which leads us to believe that an undersized 6'5 power forward whose future appears to be in football, instead of baskebtall, is looked upon differently than other players with future college potential who accomplish the same results.  However, the fact that his team lost two games in the tournament before beating Cape Coral (H.S.) FL in the Challenge Round may also have had something to do with it.  But, then again, why is 6'8 Richard Hendrix on the all-tournament team?  Sure, Hendrix put up big numbers in two of his games and was the 7th leading scorer with 24.3 ppg and the 3rd leading rebounder with 10.8 rpg in the tournament, but sandwiched in between his 32-point/18-rebound performance against Cape Coral (H.S.) FL and his 30-point/17-rebound performance against Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL were games when he had 21 points and four rebounds versus against Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL and 14 points and four rebounds against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA.  In other words, Hendrix registered big number against the local schools, but averaged only four rebounds a game when he faced serious competition.  We're also wouldn't have put 6'1 Jr Reed Baker from Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL on the all-tournament team.  However, that's not a knocked against Baker, because he was one of the most consistent players in the tournament, as he had 27, 26, and 28-point games, which ranked him 5th in scoring with 27.0 ppg, and shot 9-19 from beyond the arc, which ranked 7th in 3-point shooting percentage.  Moral to the story we just thought there were better players in the tournament, plus Baker's team went 0-3.  But, then again, Baker was a local player and that's good for business.  We also were impressed with the fact that Joe Keller, who runs the adidas Phenom Camp and the Team California Club Team Program, brought two of his top players with him all the way from California just to watch the tournament.  We're talking about 6'3 Demetrius Walker and 6'7 Aaron Moore, both of whom will attend Fontana (H.S.) CA next year and are ranked among the top five 8th Graders in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP.   And not being one to miss an opportunity, Donnie Wilkie, who is the tournament director, put Walker and Moore to work helping judge the Slam Dunk Contest.   And, if that weren't enough, Walker also brought the house down when he was asked to show everybody how it really is done (he tossed the ball against the backboard, caught it, and slammed it).  The leading scorers in the tournament were 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA with 29.3 ppg, 5'10 Jr Demond Carter from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA with 29.0 ppg, 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA with 27.5 ppg, 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA with 27.3 ppg, 6'1 Jr Reed Baker from Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL with 27.0 ppg, 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 25.5 ppg, 6'5 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 25.0 ppg, 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL with 24.3 ppg, 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 23.5 ppg, 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL with 19.8 ppg, 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA with 18.8 ppg, 6'0 Mike Gerrity from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 18.8 ppg, 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA with 18.0 ppg, 6'4 Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 17.8 ppg, 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA with 17.8 ppg, and 6'2 Tobias Mahone from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 17.3 ppg.  The leading rebounders in the tournament were 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA with 12.0 rpg, 6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY with 11.3 rpg, 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL with 10.8 rpg, 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA with 9.5 rpg, 6'5 Jr Justin Porter from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA with 9.0 rpg, 6'2 Tobias Mahone from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 8.8 rpg, 6'8 Jr Avery Jukes from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 8.0 rpg, 6'5 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 8.0 rpg, 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 8.0 rpg, 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA with 7.8 rpg, 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA with 7.3 rpg, 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA with 6.8 rpg, 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 6.5 rpg, 6'9 Jr Mike Yocum from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA with 6.5 rpg, 6'3 Jr Lenardo Bryant from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL with 6.5 rpg, and 6'8 Jr Tyrell Lynch from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY with 6.5 rpg.  While most of the pre-tournament hype was about all the great seniors in this year's City of Palms Classic field, it appears that one of the big stories was how well all the underclassmen played, as is evident by the fact that eight of the 16 leading scorers and 10 of the 17 leading rebounders in the tournament were underclassmen.  We also find it interesting how dominant so many players were in the tournament, as Webster, Mitchell, Williams, Hendrix, King, Henderson, Hawes, James, Wilderness, and Mahone were ranked among the leaders in the tournament in both scoring and rebounding.  And when you also include assists we find that Mercer and Mitchell's names show up in all three categories, as the leaders in assists were 6'4 Michael Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 4.8 apg, 6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY with 4.3 apg, 6'4 Jarrett Brown from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL with 4.0 apg, 6'0 Mike Gerrity from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 3.5 apg, 5'10 Jr Kierre Jordan from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA with 3.5 apg, 5'10 Daniel Bryant from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL with 3.3 apg, 6'3 Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 3.3 apg, 5'10 Jr Demond Carter from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA with 3.0 apg, 6'1Casey Stewart from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 2.8 apg, 6'1 Robert Garrison from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY with 2.8 apg, and 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA with 2.8 apg.  Especially noteworthy is the fact that 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, who projects as a point guard in the NBA did not make this list.  So combined with the fact that Williams also was the leader in turnovers with 6.3 tpg and he never saw a shot he didn't like, it's easy to see why Williams was the biggest disappointment in the tournament.  However, Williams was one of the leading scorers, leading rebounders, and was tied for the lead in steals, along with 5'10 Delano Howard from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'4 Jarrett Brown from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, and 6'1 Soph Kamyran Brown from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, with 2.8 spg.  And right behind those four players in steals, all tied with 2.5 spg, were 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'3 Kyle Brown from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'1 Robert Garrison from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, 6'3 Kris Thomas from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, and 5'3 Jr Donald Ray Walls from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA.  We also think it is interesting to note that 6'5 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL led the tournament in field goal percentage (30-47 field goals for 63.8%) and 6'4 Jarrett Brown from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL was the best 3-point shooter as he hit 8-10 treys for 80.0%.  However, 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA (9-12 3-pointers) and 6'1 Robert Garrison from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY (12-16 3-pointers) were right on his heels at 75.0%.  It also comes as no surprise that the leaders in blocked shots were 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL with 4.8 bpg, 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA with 3.5 bpg, and 7'2 Jr Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL with 2.8 bpg. 

Wednesday, December 22, 2004

Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA jumped out to a 13-0 lead against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA and never looked back as they coasted to a 60-48 victory in the Consolation Championship earlier today in the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  And the big difference in the game was South Gwinnett's speed, quickness, athleticism, and relentless pressure, which they used to get countless lay-ups, especially early in the game.  But that didn't stop Louis Williams from taking his normal assortment of bad shots (10-27 field goals and 1-6 3-pointers), as his line included 28 points, seven rebounds, zero assists, four turnovers, and seven steals.  In contrast, we actually thought 6'4 Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, who finished with 16 points, six rebounds, 6-13 field goals, 2-4 3-pointers, four assists, three turnovers, and two steals, played well and 6'8 Jr Avery Jukes from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA had his best game of the tournament, as he finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.   This also was the worse game of the tournament for 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who scored only 13 points, hit only 5-13 field goals and 1-5 3-pointers, and six turnovers.  However, King did get 14 rebounds, which moves him up among the leaders in rebounding in the tournament with 8.0 rpg.  Instead, the best player for Mater Dei was 6'0 Mike Gerrity from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who not only scored 12 points and dished out three assists, but also gave Williams fits, as he stopped him from driving at will and even bodied him up on a number of occasions.  Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA beat Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 58-53, to win the 5th Place Game, despite the fact that 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA fouled out mid-way through the 4th Quarter.   But that's also when 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA took over the game, as he not only scored 11 points down the stretch, but also made the pass to 5'8 Dylan Brown, who made what turned out to be the game winning 3-point shot.  Ellington also is currently the second leading scorer in the tournament with 27.5 ppg and he could end up being the leading scorer in the tournament, if 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, who had 84 points and averaged 28.0 ppg in his first three games, isn't at least one point shy of his average in the 3rd Place Game against Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.   We also were impressed by the performance turned in by 6'7 Marcus Landry from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, who scored 23 points and connected on 10-14 field goals.   Currently Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL has a 31-29 lead at half-time over Seattle (Prep) WA in the 3rd Place Game, but Webster already has five 3-pointers, 19 points, and appears to be well on his way towards solidifying his spot as the leading scorer in the tournament.  So it appears that he will likely surpass his 37-point performance against Milwaukee (Vincent) WI in the quarterfinals of the tournament.  However, even more important, Webster has more than made up for his mediocre performance in his first game of the tournament against Dunwoody (H.S.) GA and, as a result, very well may be one his way towards being the top ranked senior nationally in the class.  And a big reason why we've come to this conclusion is the fact that he easily has handled the smaller and quicker players on both West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL and Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.  Combine that with his powerful body, excellent skills, and tremendous versatility (handles, passes, shoots the three, and rebounds with almost anybody he faces at this level) and the sky's the limit.  Also putting on his best performance of the tournament is 6'5 David Huertas from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, who had 13 points at half-time and, along with 6'0 Jr Josue Soto, has provided the spark as Arlington Country Day opened up the lead 46-39 at the end of the 3rd Quarter and 54-41 early in the 4th Quarter.   And during this time Webster has been amazing silent, as he has yet to score a single point in the second half.  But as soon as we wrote this, Webster hit a pair of treys and suddenly Seattle Prep is right back in the game.  Webster also went on to hit three more big 3-pointers, but Huertas made all of the big free throws down the stretch and Arlington Country Day squeaked out its second close game in three days with a 64-62 win.  Webster finished with 33 points, Huertas had 22 points, and we only hope that the championship game is as good as the 3rd Place Game.  Everybody, including us, thought Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY would be tough to beat, but 6'3 Corey Claitt scored the first basket of the game, 6'4 Jarrett Brown hit a three, and Brown slammed home an offensive rebound, as West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL jumped out to a 7-0 lead against Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY in the championship game.  However, Niagara Falls quickly adjusted to Palm Beach Lakes incredible quickness and they cut it to one late in the first quarter and led by as many as six in the second quarter.  And, it would have been more than that, if Niagara Falls was hitting their free throws, because the outside shot on which Palm Beach Lakes has lived off of throughout the entire tournament wasn't going down.  By half-time Palm Beach Lakes had cut it back to two and it is still anybody's game.  The two players who came up big for Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY in the first half were 6'4 Jr Paul Harris and 6'4 Greg Gamble, who combined for 15 of their first half points.  And 5'10 Daniel Bryant, 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt, and 6'4 Jarrett Brown accounted for all but two of Palm Beach Lakes's 24 first half points.  It also looks like we were right on the money with our first half analysis, because Niagara Falls beat Palm Beach Lakes on the boards 17-7.  And there were plenty of defensive rebounds for Niagara Falls to get, as Palm Beach Lakes hit only 10-29 field goals.  In contrast, Niagara Falls hit only 3-9 free throws.  The second half began exactly the opposite of the first half as Niagara Falls jumped out to a 32-24 lead and Brown quickly picked up his 4th foul.  From there went on to enjoy a 40-30 lead with 2:30 left in the third quarter.  But then the momentum shifted again and Palm Beach Lakes tied it at 43-43 early 4th Quarter.  Then 6'3 Jr Lenardo Bryant hit a big 3-pointer to give them a 46-43 lead with 5:56 left in the game and they were up by as many as five, before Niagara Falls cut it back to one with 1:29 left and took the lead with a minute to go.  Are you starting to get the idea that this is about as good as it gets?   Then, Brown hit a 3-pointer with 40 seconds left to give Palm Beach Lakes the lead, 51-49.   And 22 seconds later 5'10 Soph Jonathan Flynn came right back with another 3-pointer to give Niagara Falls the lead, 52-51. And that was it, because with four seconds left in the game Gamble deflected the ball away from Claitt and, as a result, Palm Beach Lakes never got a look at the basket in the closing seconds.  Final score:  Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY 52, West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL 51.  6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, who 13 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, two blocked shots, and one steal in the championship game, was named the tournament MVP.  The rest of the all-tournament team included 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, 6'1 Robert Garrison from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, 5'10 Daniel Bryant from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'0 Jr Josue Soto from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, and 6'1 Jr Reed Baker from Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL. 

6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL scored 30 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in his team's 64-53 win against Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL and 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA scored 18 points and grabbed five rebounds in his team's 71-65 win in the first two Challenge Round games earlier today at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  However, things got a little more interesting as Denham Springs (H.S.) LA beat Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA in the final Challenge Round game in what was more commonly referred to as the "Battle of the Bayou," because both teams are from the state of Louisiana.  5'10 Jr Demond Carter form Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, who finished with 43 points, won the scoring dual between himself and 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, who finished with 33 points, but Denham Springs (H.S.) LA won the game, 80-69.  This also moves Carter into second in scoring in the tournament with 29.0 ppg, behind 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA with 29.7 ppg and ahead of 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA with 28.0 ppg, Mitchell with 27.3 ppg, 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 27.0 ppg, 6'1 Jr Reed Baker from Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL with 27.0 ppg, 6'6 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 25.0 ppg, 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL with 24.8 ppg, 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 24.7 ppg, and 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL.  Carter also put up the most points any player has scored in an individual game in the tournament, but he also took what seemed like more shots that Louis Williams and Michael Mercer combined, as he hit 15-34 field goals 7-21 3-pointers against Denham Springs (H.S.) LA and was 30-83 from the field and 16-48 in three games in the tournament.   So it should come as no surprise that we will leave him off the list when we vote for our 12-man All Tournament Team, plus a tournament MVP, later today.  Instead, assuming that Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY beats West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL in the championship game, I will probably pick 6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY as the Most Outstanding Player and the other 12 players that I plan to vote for are 6'1 Robert Garrison from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Jr Tyrell Lynch from Niagara (H.S.) NY, 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, 5'10 Daniel Bryant from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA, 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'0 Jr Josue Soto from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, and 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA.  Mitchell's 21 rebounds and five blocks moves him up to first in rebounding and second in blocked shots in the tournament with 12.0 rpg and 3.5 bpg.  However, all these statistics are subject to change, because the Consolation Championship, 5th Place, 3rd Place, and Championship games are yet to be played.  And, as things stand now, we give the nod to 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA as the #1-ranked player in the tournament over 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA.  We also think that 6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY belongs in the top five, because he is the heart and sole of his team and he personifies their toughness and athleticism on the court.  We also put 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA and 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL in the top five because consistency throughout the tournament counts.  Then comes 6'0 Jr Josue Soto from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, because he was the best player of the entire day yesterday and, as a result, was largely responsible for his team's near upset against Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY.  And 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA,  6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, and 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA round out our top 10.  The second 10 in order includes 6'7 Marcus Landry from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 6'1 Robert Garrison from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Jr Tyrell Lynch from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, 6'0 Mike Gerrity from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'6 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, 5'8 Daniel Bryant from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, 6'4 Michael Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'3 Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, 6'4 Jarrett Brown from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, and 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, 5'10 Jr Demomd Carter from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, 6'4 Greg Gamble from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, 6'7 Elliott Johnson from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 6'5 Sammy Hernandez from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'3 Jr Lenardo Bryant from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, 6'2 Tobias Mahone from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 6'1 Jr Reed Baker from Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL, 6'6 Daniel Clemons from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, and 6'5 David Huertas from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.

Tuesday, December 21, 2004

Jacksonville (Raines) FL beat Cape Coral (H.S) FL, 52-38; Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA beat Athens (H.S.) AL, 89-49; Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA beat Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, 74-65; Milwaukee (Vincent) WI beat Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, 57-34; and Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA beat Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 77-49; earlier today at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, but the big story of the day was the mediocre performance turned in by 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA.  We're talking about a guy who almost willed his team to win with incredible guts and determination against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA on Friday night and was leading the tournament in scoring  the 32.5 ppg and was among the leaders in rebounding with 11.5 rpg.  However, this afternoon Mitchell scored just 11 points and had just five rebounds, as he eliminated himself from contention from both top player honors in the tournament and a #1 ranking nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  As a matter of fact, the contrast was so dramatic that it reminded us watching Kwame Brown in this tournament four years ago.  If you will recall, Brown was great when he was playing for something or when University of Florida head coach Billy Donovan was in the house, but totally uninterested when people like us were the only ones watching him in the Consolation Bracket in a meaningless afternoon game.  Also stinking it up earlier today was 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL.  But he may have had an excuse, because he had nobody to go with him and his team was down 19-0 to Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA before anybody on his team managed to score a point.  Yes, we're talking about a somebody who was averaging 26.5 ppg and 11.0 rpg in the first two games of the tournament, but managed to score just 14 points and grab only four rebounds against Mater Dei.  And making matters even worse is that fact that Hendrix, who has no business playing out on the perimeter, was 1-6 from 3-point land.  We also were once again disappointed with 6'2 Louis Williams and 6'4 Michael Mercer, who combined for 1-8 3-pointers and 10 turnovers in their team's nine-point win against Dunwoody (H.S.) GA.  Williams did have 24 points and four assists, but 12 of those points came from the foul line.  In other words, we still trying to figure out if this is the same player we saw last summer.  And the same goes for Mercer, who finished with 16 points and four assists, but still hasn't seen a shot he didn't like.  Instead, the player that we liked the best in this game was 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, who finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds.  Earlier in the day 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA scored 25 points and in the next game 6'7 Marcus Landry and 6'7 Elliott Johnson, who combined for 26 points and 11 rebounds were solid for Milwaukee (Vincent) WI.  Otherwise, lackluster efforts really did rule the day until 6'4 Jr  Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA did his thing against Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL.  Ellington not only scored 35 points, hit 12-14 field goals, 3-3 3-pointers, 8-10 free throws, dished out four assists, and had four steals, but he also took over the lead as the leading scorer in the tournament with 29.7 ppg.  And Ellington's teammate, 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, was pretty good too, as he chipped in with 18 points, nine rebounds, and four assists.  And, if that didn't wake everybody up, the semi-finals game between Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL and Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY certainly did.  Niagara Falls jumped out to a 8-0 lead, but then 6'0 Jr Jose Soto from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL scored 10 straight points and what very well may be the best game of the tournament was under way in earnest.  Arlington Country Day shot the light out (Soto hit 5-5 3-pointers and scored 25 points, as a team, they shot 53.7% field goals and 70.0% from the field).   Arlington Country Day also broke Niagara Falls' full court press for numerous fast breaks and controlled the tempo of the game at the defensive end with their zone defense, which for a while frustrated Niagara Falls from beyond the arc.  However, Arlington Country Day still lost the game, as the one player who did get hot for Niagara Falls was 6'1 Robert Garrison (5-8 3-pointers) kept chipping away at Arlington Country Day's lead.  They also beat Arlington Country Day on the offensive boards and finally started to have success against Arlington Country Day's zone.  Garrison finished with 25 points, 6'8 Jr Tyrell Lynch had 11 rebounds and seven rebounds, and 6'4 Greg Gamble had 14 points, but the unsung hero was 6'4 Jr Paul Harris, who finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds and dominated inside against 7'2 Jr Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.  Speaking of Bennett, he only had six points and six rebounds, but this was the best we've ever seen him play, as he ran the court, blocked shots, scored and rebounded inside, and was much more mobile, agile, and confident than he's been in the past.  Getting back to Harris, he also beat 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA and 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA to win the Slam Dunk Contest.  Moral to the story, Harris is so strong, so athletic, and so competitive that he is one of the few players at his size who can be a dominant force in almost any game.  Harris, who is a 4th Year Junior, also told us after the game that he plans to attend either Syracuse or Pittsburgh, although prep school likely will be in his future first next year.  The other semi-finals game was anti-climatic when compared to the Arlington Country Day-Niagara Falls game, which for all practical purposes probably determined who the champion will be tomorrow night.  However, when it was all said and done, West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL had too many weapons for Seattle (Prep) WA to overcome.  Remember, 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt (21 points and 3-7 3-pointers), 6'1 Daniel Bryant (17 points, 3-6 3-pointers, and five assists) and 6'4 Jarrett Brown (seven points) are excellent outside shooters; Claitt (four rebounds), Brown (four rebounds), 6'6 Daniel Clemons (six rebounds), and 6'3 Jr Lenardo Bryant (six rebounds) are all excellent on the boards; 6'1 Jr Antoine Williams and 6'3 Soph Alphonso Starling provide exccellent depth; and they all play with tremendous intensity and are extremely athletic.  In contrast, 6'7 Martell Webster (27 points), 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes (18 points), and 6'1 Jr Jordan Bremond (12 points) accounted for all but three of Seattle Prep's points.   And the 64-60 final score sets up tomorrow night's championship game between Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY and West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, which are two of the most athletic and two of the deepest teams in the tournament.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that nobody thought either team would be playing for the championship tomorrow night.  Speaking of tomorrow's games, it will be Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL versus Athens (H.S.) AL at 10:15 AM, Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL versus Dunwoody (H.S.) GA at Noon, and Denham Springs (H.S.) LA versus LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA at 1:45 PM in Challenge Round Games; Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA in the Consolation Championship at 3:45 PM; Milwaukee (Vincent) WI versus Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA in the 5th Place Championship at 5:30 PM; Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL versus Seattle (Prep) WA in the 3rd Place Game at 7:15 PM; and West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL versus Niagara Falls (H.S.) FL at 9:00 PM. 

With the spectacular performance turned in last night by 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, who had 37 points and 11 rebounds against Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, it is now clear that two players in the tournament have risen above the rest.  And the composite statistics through last night illustrate this perfectly, as Webster is now the third leading scorer with 28.5 ppg and is tied as the leading rebounder in the tournament with 11.5 rpg and 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA is thei leading scorer in the tournament with 32.5 ppg and third leading rebounder in the tournament with 11.5 rpg.  Webster also teams with 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes, who had an impressive 35-point/12-rebound performance of his own against Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, to form the best one-two punch in the tournament.  We're also talking about two of the top five players in the tournament and, as a result, we think their match-up against West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL tonight will be very interesting.  However, for Seattle Prep to win the game both Webster and Hawes have to come up big.  They also will have to be able to handle Palm Beach Lakes' quickness, athleticism, pressure, and outside shooting.  Mitchell led his team to the big first round upset against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, but, despite a 30-point/nine rebound performance yesterday, didn't have the supporting cast necessary to pull off another upset against Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY.   However, we're still not ready to proclaim that either Webster or Mitchell is the best player nationally in the senior class for pretty much the same reason. Webster is better out on the perimeter and Mitchell is better inside, but neither one has the blazing speed and quickness, athleticism, and athleticism of somebody like 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA or 6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY.  But they do have a much better concept of how to play the game than Williams and, as a result, both have had a much better tournament.   Mitchell also plays harder than Webster, but Webster is more versatile and he plays on a better team.  But Webster doesn't play on as good as team as Harris, who is the catalyst for the team that now appears to be odds-on-favorite to win the touranment.   Harris also is a killer inside and he has the perimeter skills necessary to make those around him better.  However, Harris doesn't shoot it nearly as well as Webster, Mitchell, or Williams, who has the most natural talent of all the above mentioned players.   In other words, if you could take the best of Williams, Webster, Mitchell, and Harris, you'd easily have the best player in both the tournament and the senior class nationally, but.....   And just missing making our list of the top five players in the tournament is 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who, after his team beat Athens (H.S.) GA, 89-49, in the first Consolation Semi-Finals Game earlier today, is now the third leading scorer with 27.0 ppg and the leading 3-point shooter in the tournament with 14-32 treys.  And rounding out the rest of our top 10 are 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington and 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, both of whom are ranked among the top dozen in scoring the tournament with a combined 48.5 ppg average and are the second best one-two punch in the tournament; 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, who was his team's second best player in both games, but is one of the leaders in the tournament in scoring, rebounder, and steals with 21.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg, and   2.5 spg; and 6'4 Jarrett Brown from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, who didn't shoot well (3-13 field goals), but had eight points, seven rebounds, and five assists against Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA and stole the show last night against Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 23 points, five rebounds, three assists, and 4-4 3-pointers.  From there you can take you pick among 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, 6'6 Jr An'Juan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, 6'8 Jr Tyrell Lynch from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, 6'6 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, 5'10 Jr Demond Carter from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, 6'4 Michael Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'7 Marcus Landry from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 5'10 Daniel Bryant from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, and 6'2 Tobias Mahone from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL.

Saturday, December 18, 2004, Sunday, December 19, 2004, & Monday, December 20, 2004

Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA beat Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, 86-65; Dunwoody (H.S.) GA beat Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL, 65-58; and Athens (H.S.) AL beat Cape Coral (H.S.) FL, 83-79; in Consolation Bracket Quarterfinals games and Niagara Falls (H.S) NY beat Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, 75-60; Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL beat Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 56-55; Seattle (Prep) WA beat Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 60-54; and West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL beat Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 74-61; in the quarterfinals at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  However, the highlight of the day was watching 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, who not only redeemed himself with a 37-point effort that included 23 of his team's 32 first half points, but also rebounded (11 rebounds), passed, scored both inside and outside (13-19 field goals and 5-10 3-pointers), and dominated the game in every way.  And he did so from start to finish, as he scored his team's first 12 points, had 16 points at the end of the first quarter, and was involved in a scoring dual with 6'7 Elliott Johnson from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, who had 11 points of his own in the first quarter.  But, while Webster was going nuts the rest of the game, Johnson totally disappeared, as he finished with only 13 points and seven rebounds for the game.  And this was the big difference in the game, as Seattle Prep jumped out to a 32-20 half-time lead and never looked back.  Also in sharp contrast to two nights ago when 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA scored 35 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, he finished with only six points and seven rebounds in today's quarterfinals win.  The leading scorer for Milwaukee (Vincent) WI was 6'7 Marcus Landry, who finished with 18 points and once again showed why we have him ranked among our top 100 seniors nationally.  One of the other highlights of the day was watching 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington and 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson combine for 43 of the 55 points for Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, which almost pulled off the upset against Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.  We pick up the action with 2:11 left in the game when Henderson received a pass from Ellington and drove along the baseline to draw the fifth foul from 7'1 Jr Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.  Henderson then made both free throws to give Episcopal Academy its first lead of the game at 53-51.  But, with less than a minute to go and while Episcopal Academy was holding the ball, Ellington missed what turned out to be a contested lay-up.  Arlington Country Day's 6'0 Jr Josue Soto went on to hit the game winning free throws with 3.8 seconds left in the game.  George Mason-bound 6'5 Sammie Hernandez, who finished with 11 points, also hit some big baskets for Arlington Country Day, but the leading scorer for the USA Today's #4-ranked high school team was 6'5 Brian Hoff, who hit a pair of 3-pointers early and finished with 16 points.  Bennett had 10 points and seven rebounds, 6'4 David Huertas had eight points, and Soto had seven points, but even that doesn't tell the story of how unimpressive Arlington Country Day was in this game.  As a matter of fact, we think the best move Arlington Country Day can make in tomorrow night's semi-finals game against Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY would be to get a white flag and surrender early.  Yes, Niagara Falls, which was led by 6'4 Jr Paul Harris, who finished with 14 points, 13 rebounds, and five assists and is as athletic and hardnosed as anybody in the tournament; 6'8 Jr Tyrell Lynch, who finished with 14 points and nine rebounds, and is one of the biggest sleepers to emerge in the tournament, as is evident by the fact that he is not ranked among our top 575 juniors nationally; 5'10 Soph Jonathan Flynn, who scored most of his 18 points in transition; 6'4 Greg Gamble, who signed with Buffalo during the Fall Signing Period and had 13 points in this game; and 6'1 Robert Garrison, who finished with 12 points and matched Gamble with a pair of treys; appears to be that good.  They not only have the size and athleticism necessary to run Arlington Country Day out of the gym, but they also have the killer instinct necessary to be the team to beat in the tournament.  In the final quarterfinal game of the evening Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL made things interesting early (it was tied 21-21 at the end of the first quarter), but West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL just had too many weapons as they jumped out to a 43-34 half-time lead and coasted the rest of the way.  And this time the big hero was 6'4 Jarrett Brown, who impressed us with his strength, athleticism, upper body, intensity, versatility, rebounding, and outside shooting, as he finished with 23 points and caused havoc at both ends of the court.  Also chipping in for West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL with 20 points was 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt, who once again more than justified his #3 ranking in the junior class in the state by the HOOP SCOOP, 5'10 Daniel Bryant who had seven points, and 6'3 Jr Lenardo Bryant with eight point and eight rebounds.  Earlier today 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL had a big game against Cape Coral (H.S.) FL, as he finished with 32 points, 18 rebounds, and 12-16 field goals in what has to be one of the best performances of the tournament.  Tomorrow's schedule will include Jacksonville (Raines) FL versus Cape Coral (H.S.) FL in a Challenge Round Game at 10:00 AM, Athens (H.S.) AL versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA in a Consolation Semi-finals game at 11:45 AM, Dunwoody (H.S.) GA versus Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA in a Consolation Semi-finals game at 1:30 PM, Denham Springs (H.S.) LA versus Milwaukee (Vincent) WI in a Fifth-place Semi-finals game at 3:15 PM, Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL in a Fifth-place Semi-finals game at 5:00 PM, Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY versus Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL in a Semi-finals game at 7:00 PM, and Seattle (Prep) WA versus West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL in a Semi-Finals game at 9:30 PM.   

We predicted three weeks ago that Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA and Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA would be the two teams playing for the championship in the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  So, needless to say, this mornings consolation game between South Gwinnett and Reserve Christian was not something that we expected.  And that's the big story so far at the City of Palms Classic, as West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL upset Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 82-73; Denham Springs (H.S.) LA knocked off Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 76-74; and Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA beat Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA , 76-62; all in the first round of the tournament.  But that doesn't mean the level of play has fallen off any in this year's tournament as the four quarterfinals games later today will feature Denham Springs (H.S.) LA versus Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY at 3:15 PM, Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL versus Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA at 5:15 PM, Seattle (Prep) WA versus Milwaukee (Vincent) WI at 7:00 PM, and West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL at 9:30 PM.  The other big story so far is that nobody has clearly stepped up and taken over the as the #1-ranked senior in the nation.  Remember, prior to the tournament we thought that 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, and 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA were all legitimate candidates for national player-of-the-year honors in the senior class.  But the player who has impressed us the most so far is 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA, who is ranked #11 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.   Not only did Hawes hit 13-18 field goals en route to a 35-point/12-rebound performances versus Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, but he also was unstoppable when he got the ball in the low post, as he used his soft hands, excellent moves, and surpring mobility and agility to dominate inside.  So it should come as no surprise that Hawes is a top recruiting priority for schools like Kansas, Texas, Gonzaga, UCLA, Arizona, Duke, North Carolina, N.C. State, Kentucky, and Stanford, although when it is all said and done we'd be surprised if he doesn't follow in the footsteps of his two AAU teammates - Webster and 6'7 Jon Brockman from Snohomish (H.S.) WA, both of whom signed with the University of Washington this fall.  We also were very impressed with 5'10 Daniel Bryant and 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt, both from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, who combined for 49 points in their team's stunning upset against Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA on Saturday night.  Physically we're not sure that Bryant has the size to play in the big time college level, but he would be a steal for anybody in the Atlantic-10 and on down.  We're talking about a jet quick point guard with long arms, a competitive nature, good court savvy, and the ability to step up and make big shots at crunch time.  Bryant also has a great nose for the ball, as is evident by the fact he had five rebounds and two steals, and he was quick enough to match-up against Williams step-for-step.  In other words, we're talking about one of the biggest sleepers to emerge in the tournament.  Claitt, who has to be regarded as one of the top juniors in the state, also thrives in an uptempo setting and he made a number of big shots in the second half, as Palm Beach Lakes outscored South Gwinnett 22-16 in the third quarter and 21-17 in the fourth quarter.  And Williams and 6'4 Michael Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, both of who are bound for the University of Georgia and led the Georgia Stars to the AAU 17-Under National Championship last summer, picked up where they left off a year ago in this tournament, as they jacked up numerous bad shots, were totally out of control, and dramatically underachieved.  Illustrating this fact even further was their 12-41 field goals and 3-13 3-pointers versus West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL.  They did manage to combine for 19-39 field goals and 5-16 3-pointers in their 86-65 win against Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA earlier today, but Williams' assist to turnover ratio (3 assists and seven turnovers) was pathetic and the fact that both Williams and Mercer both never saw a shot they didn't like makes them two of the biggest disappointments in the tournament.  Moral to the story they both were as bad here as they were good when we saw them on numerous occasions last summer.  We also were disappointed in the play of Webster, despite the fact that he finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds against Dunwoody (H.S.) GA in the final game of the evening on Saturday night.  Webster does have excellent skills and is capable of playing multi-positions, but still hasn't gotten his explosiveness back and, as a result, is still the same player he was last summer when he was coming off the injury that sidelined him for six months.  Obviously this is bad news for Webster, whose #13 ranking nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP is very fair, in his quest for national player-of-the-year honors.  However, it's good news for University of Washington head coach Lorenzo Romar, because he shouldn't have to worry about whether Webster will have any thoughts about by-passing college and entering the NBA Draft next spring.  Some other great individual performances before we arrived on Saturday evening were turned in by 6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, who had 14 points, eight rebounds, and six asssists against Jacksonville (Raines) FL; 6'6 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, who had 23 points and 10 rebounds against Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY and 37 points and eight rebounds against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA; 6'3 Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, who had 24 points, seven rebounds, and eight assists against Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY; 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, who had 21 points against Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington and 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, who combined for 50 points against Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA; 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who had 28 points and hit 5-9 3-pointers against Denham Springs (H.S.) LA and 28 points and hit 5-13 3-points against Jacksonville (Raines) LA; 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, who had 35 points and 13 rebounds against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA; and 6'4 Brian Asbury from Miami (South Miami) FL, who had 35 points versus Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL.  However, we won't include Asbury's single-game performance with top tournament averages, because the only game he will appear in was a bonus game on Saturday afternoon.  Instead, the two leading scorers in the tournament are 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA and 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL with 35 points apiece.  Then, 6'6 Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL checks in at #3 with 30 ppg , followed by 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA and 6'6 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 28.0 ppg; 6'1 Jr Reed Baker from Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL with 26.5 ppg, 5'10 Daniel Bryant from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL with 26.0 ppg, and 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 25.0 ppg.  The two leading rebounders in the tournament are 6'7 Marcus Landry from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI and 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA with 13.0 rpg.  Yes, the race for top player honors in the class may have come full circle in the last year.  Remember, a year ago Mitchell was the consensus #1-ranked player in the class and now he appears to be the most dominant player in the tournament, as he was largely responsible for his team's first round upset against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA and is tied with Hawes as the leading scorer, Mitchell as the leading rebounder, and is ranked among the leaders in assists with 4.0 apg. 

Friday, December 17, 2004

Now that I am done wrapping up all of the recruiting from the Fall Signing Period, it's time to turn our focus to the King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic at Fairdale High School in Fairdale, KY, where last night Louisville (Ballard) KY beat Frankfort (H.S.) KY, 100-90; Fairdale beat Horse Cave (Caverna) KY, 65-61, Mt. Washington (Bullitt East) KY beat Louisville (Butler) KY, 73-55; and Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY beat Scottsville (Allen County) KY, 52-49, and later today it will be Henderson (County) KY versus Miami (Senior) FL at 4:30 PM, Mt. Vernon (Rockcastle County) KY versus Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY at 6:00 PM, Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY versus Mayfield (Graves County) KY at 7:30 PM, and Louisville (Trinity) KY versus Owensboro (Catholic) KY at 9:00 PM.  I also plan to attend the University of Louisville-University of Kentucky game tomorrow at noon and then fly to Ft. Myers, FL, where I am scheduled to arrive at 7:31 PM, which should be just in time to catch the final two games of the evening tomorrow night with West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL versus Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA at 8:15 PM, and Seattle (Prep) WA versus Dunwoody (H.S.) FL at 10:00 PM. at the City of Palms Classic. In other words, today I will get to see 6'0 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL, who is one of the top 10 sophomores in the nation, all the good young players that are supposed to be Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, and 5'11 JuJuan Spillman from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, who is arguably the best senior in the state, as well as the former teammate of 6'10 Frosh Terrance Farley, who was kicked off the Louisville Basketball team two days ago for being late on several different occasions..   However, that's not the end of the story as Farley's former high school coach Dale Mabrey wrote a letter yesterday to the Louisville Courier-Journal defending his player and publicly exchanging words with Cardinals head coach Rick Pitino, who now is saying that Farley has a chance to be reinstated onto the team.  So stay tuned!  And tomorrow afternoon I will get to see one of the biggest rivalries in college basketball and tomorrow night I will get to see 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA and 6'6 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, who are our two leading candidates for top player honors in the senior class nationally, as well as 64 Michael Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, who is ranked #42 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA, who is ranked #11 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  And assuming that both South Gwinnett and Seattle Prep win their opening round games on Saturday and their quarterfinals games on Monday, the best match-up of the entire tournament should be the semi-finals game on Tuesday, December 21st, between these two teams (for a complete look at the field for the City of Palms Classic, see our post in this section on December 1st).  I also am looking forward to attending the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC on December 26th-28th, and the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX, on December 29th-30, which are arguably the two best tournaments after Christmas in the country.  The Beach Ball Classic actually will begin a game on Saturday, December 25th, with Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC versus Elizabeth (St. Patrick's) NJ at 7:00 PM.  Then, the rest of the first round games will be held on Sunday, December 26th with New York (Frederick Douglass) NY versus Greenville (Mann) SC at 5:15 PM, Dayton (Dunbar) OH versus Manhassat (St. Mary's) NY at 7:00 PM, and Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY versus Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC at 8:45 PM and Monday, December 27th, with Memphis (Ridgeway) TN versus New Orleans (Brother Rice) LA at 3:30 PM, Toronto (Henry Carr) ON versus Compton (Dominguez) CA at 5:15 PM, Dunwoody (H.S.) GA versus Aiken (H.S.) SC at &:00 PM, and Anchorage (Bartlett) AK versus Miami (Senior) FL, at 8:45 PM.  There also will be a consolation game between the loser of Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ-Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC game and the loser of the New York (Frederick Douglass) NY-Greenville (Mann) SC game at Noon and a winner's bracket game between the winner of Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ-Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC game and the winner of the New York (Frederick Douglass) NY-Greenville (Mann) SC game at 1:45 PM on Monday, December 27th.  We'll also get to see the other three consolation bracket games and the winners bracket games on Tuesday, December 28th at Noon, 1:45 PM, 3:30 PM, 5:15 PM, 7:00 PM, and 8:45 PM.   However, we won't get to see all of the semi-finals games on Wednesday, December 29th, and championship games on Thursday, December 30th.  But you can get the complete schedule by clicking on Beach Ball Classic.  The Beach Ball Classic will feature some excellent seniors, like 6'2 Mario Chalmers from Anchorage (Bartlett) AK, 6'5 Bryan Harvey from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'6 Danny Green from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY, and 6'5 Tyson Johnson from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY.  But it's the plethora of great underclassmen, including 6'4 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH, 5'11 Jr D.J. Augustine from New Orleans (Brother Rice) LA, 6'8 Jr Pierre Niles from Memphis (Treadwell) TN, 6'0 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL, 6'7 Jr Jonathan Mitchell from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 5'10 Soph Corey Fisher from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 5'10 Soph Mike Coburn from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'5 Jr AnJuan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, 6'3 Jr Rashaad Green from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY, 6'7 Soph Marshall Moses from Aiken (H.S.) SC, 6'7 Jr Dwayne Collins from Miami (Senior) FL, 5'11 Frosh Brandon Jennings from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'6 Jr A.J. Tolbert from Compton (Dominquez) CA, 6'4 Soph Quinton Watkins from Compton (Dominguez) CA, that has us excited.  And, if by some chance 6'9 Jr Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, who is not supposed to be eligible until early January, wins his appeal and his able to play, that would be just the icing on the cake.  The Academy National Invitational, which will be December 28th-30th, also will feature more than it's fair share of outstanding underclassmen as the list includes 6'7 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX, 5'10 Jr Demond Carter from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, 6'3 Jr Nigel Munson from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'8 Jr Jeff Allen from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 5'8 Jr Nic Wise from Houston (Kingwood) TX, 6'9 Jr Darius Santee from Houston (Kingwood) TX, 6'5 Soph Mike Singletary from Houston (Kingwood) TX, 5'10 Soph Jai Lucas from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 6'5 Jr Dale Van Wright from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 6'8 Soph Isaiah Rusher from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 6'4 Jr Trent Boone from Garland (South Garland) TX, 6'4 Soph Kevin Branch from LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA, 7'2 Jr Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'3 Soph Austin Freeman from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 5'11 Jr Josue Soto from Jacksonville (Arlington Country) FL, 6'4 Jr Larry Davis from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'7 Soph A.J. Stewart from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'5 Jr L.D. Williams from Montverde (Academy) FL, and 6'9 Jr Luis Colon from Montverde (Academy) FL.  And there are some pretty darn good seniors in the tournament as well, including 6'9 Amir Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'6 Marcus Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'7 Fendi Onobun from Alief (Taylor) TX, 6'4 David Huertas from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'5 Terrel Harris from Garland (South Garland) TX, 6'6 Martellus Bennett from Alief (Taylor) TX, 6'7 Luc Richard Mbah A Moute from Montverde (Academy) FL, 6'8 Arminus Urbutis from Montverde (Academy) FL, 6'1 Vytautas Valiulis from Montverde (Academy) FL, 6'8 Brian Beckford from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'0 Chris Martin from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'9 Desmon Adedeji from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'5 Sammie Hernandez from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'0 David Devezin from Ft. Bend (Marshall) TX, 6'5 Mamadi Diane from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'9 Jeremy Barr from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'8 Wendell Preadom from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'9 Peter Stein from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX.  The Academy National Invitational will feature a Texas High School Division, which will include opening round games with Ft. Bend (Marshall) TX versus Garland (South Garland) TX at 9.30 AM, Houston (Bellaire) TX versus Houston (Westfield) TX at 12:30 PM, Houston (Aldine) TX versus Alief (Taylor) TX at 3:30 PM, and Houston (Kingwood) TX versus Houston (Cypress Ridge) TX at 6:30 PM, and a National Division, which will include opening round games with Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL versus Middle Village (Christ the King) NY at 11:00 AM, Montverde (Academy) FL versus Houston (Westbury Christian) TX at 2:00 PM, Hyattsville (DeMatha) FL versus LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA at 5:00 PM, and Los Angeles (Westchester) CA versus Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA at 8:00 PM, all on Tuesday, December, 28th.  To see how the brackets break down and the times of each game on Wednesday, December 29th, and Thursday, December 30th, click on VisionSports.com.

Thursday, December 16, 2004

With today's publication of our Different Ways to Look at Recruiting section, which is 12-pages and includes a ranking of the Talent Rating Average Per Recruit for each conference, a ranking of the Highest Talent Rating  Per Recruit by Team, a ranking of the Highest Talent Rating for the Top Two Recruits, a ranking of the Highest Talent Rating for the Top Three Recruits, a ranking of the Highest Talent Rating for the Top Four Recruits From This Fall and Last Year Combined, and a ranking of Recruiting By Conference for Players Ranked Among or Equivalent to Top 100 Nationally, we are finished with our wrap-up of recruiting from the Fall Signing Period.  We're talking a grand total of 69 pages, which also includes 20 pages of National Signings & Commitments, our 15-page Ranking of  the Top 220 Recruiting Classes, and our 22-page Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes By Conference.  We also have ranked each team in order and provided the total number of points, the total number of recruits, and the Talent Rating Average Per Recrut for each team.  Remember, we assign each player on every team a ranking on a scale of a 1-10 scale, whereby a  top five player nationally is worth 10 points, a top 10 player nationally is worth nine points, a player in the 11-40 range nationally is worth eight points, a player in the 41-70 range nationally is worth six points, a player in the 71-100 range nationally is worth four points, a player in the 101-300 range nationally is worth three points, a player in the 301-1000 range nationally is worth two points, and anybody not ranked among the top 1000 gets one point.  Junior college and prep school players are factored in as if they are the equivalent of a high school senior.  And now that we're done, we find all kinds of interesting things.  Like the fact the Southeastern Conference (5.136) edges out the Atlantic Coast Conference (5.114) with the highest Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  However, the Big-12 Conference with Kansas and Texas and the Atlantic Coast Conference with Duke, Maryland, and North Carolina account for all five of the teams with the Highest Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  And, when we dig a little deeper, we find that only one team from the Southeastern Conference is ranked among the top dozen on our list of teams with the Highest Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, as Mississippi State checks in at #6, followed by Connecticut, Syracuse, Louisville, Marquette, Pittsburgh, and California.  But the strength of this class does show up when we look at who signed the best two players (Mississippi State, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, and Mississippi are all ranked among the top 20), the best three players (Mississippi State, Georgia LSU, and Mississippi are ranked among the top dozen), and the best four players signed both this fall and last year (Kentucky, Alabama, and LSU are ranked among the top dozen).  The Southeastern Conference also is the clear winner when you add up the points for all of the players who are the equivalent of a top 100 senior nationally, as 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA to Georgia, 6'5 Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS to Mississippi State, and 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL to Alabama all get 10 points apiece; 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA to LSU gets nine points; 6'7 Korvotney Barber from Manchester (H.S.) GA to Auburn, 6'4 Ravone George from Georgia Perimeter (JC) GA to Alabama, 6'6 Tyler Smith from Pulaski (Giles County) TN to Tennessee, 6'9 Vernon Goodridge from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA to Mississippi State, 6'3 Clarence Sanders from Okaloosa-Walton (JC) FL to Mississippi, 6'9 Kendrell Gransberry from San Jacinto (JC) TX to LSU, and 6'10 Carl Swanigan from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL to Mississippi all get eight points apiece; 6'4 Michael Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA to Georgia, 6'6 Alonzo Gee from West Palm Beach (Dwyer) FL to Alabama, 6'5 Richard Delk from Jackson (Northside) TN to Mississippi State, 6'5 Reggie Delk from Jackson (Northside) TN to Mississippi State, 6'8 Alassane Savadogo from Gulf Coast (JC) FL to South Carolina, 6'9 Marquis Young from Chicago (Austin) IL to Mississippi, 6'3 Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL to Florida, 6'4 David Huertas from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL to Florida, and 6'11 Magnum Rolle from Laurinburg (Institute) NC to LSU all get six points apiece, and 6'5 Byrce Sheldon from Fullerton (JC) CA to South Carolina, 6'5 Bobby Clark from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL to Mississippi, 6'9 Joey Cameron from Leeds (H.S.) AL to Auburn, and 6'10 Jimmie Sutton from Coconut Creek (North Broward) FL to Florida all get four points apiece.  So it appears that Mississippi State, whose recruiting class is tied at #6 in our Ranking of  the Top 220 Recruiting Classes and is ranked #6 on our list of team's with the Highest Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, is the only team that signed both quality and quantity.  However, it's also obvious that most of the teams in the league landed two or three really good players.  And the ones that didn't (i.e Kentucky, Arkansas, and Vanderbilt) didn't need to, because they had excellent recruiting classes a year ago.  We also are really intrigued by the ranking of the teams with the Highest Talent Rating Average for the Top Four Recruits from this Year and Last year Combined, because the teams on this list (North Carolina, Duke, Louisville, Connecticut, Memphis Texas, Kentucky, Kansas, Alabama, Marquette, USC, LSU, UCLA, Syracuse, Arizona, Florida, Pittsburgh, Oklahoma, Missouri, Cincinnati, Indiana, Baylor, and Washington) read like a Who's Who of Who are Going to be the Top Teams in College Basketball in the Future. 

Wednesday, December 15, 2004

Our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes By Conference From The Fall Signing Period for the Class of 2005 simply reinforces what we told you yesterday (the Southeastern Conference appears to be the big winner and almost have of the top 60-ranked recruiting classes belong to teams in only three conferences).  However, several other things do surprise us.  First, the Southeastern Conference has a total of 226 points and 44 recruits, which is a record number for the Fall Signing Period when we compare this year's class to the last six dating back to 1998.  As a matter of fact, since that time only four classes during the Fall Signing Period have accumulated more than 200 points , as the Southeastern Conference had 203 points in 1998 and the Southeastern Conference has 226 points, Big-12 Conference has 206 points, and Conference USA has 201 points this year.  Second, is the strength of Conference USA when compared to the Big East.  Not only do the five new teams (Louisville, Marquette, DePaul, Cincinnati, and South Florida) in the Big East have a combined 112 points, 21 recruits, and 5.333 a Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, but Memphis, which also has the #5-ranked recruiting class in our Ranking of  the Top Recruiting Classes From The Fall Signing Period for the Class of 2005, checks in with 35 points, six recruits, and a 5.8 talent rating average per recruit.  In contrast, the teams in the Big East this year currently have 166 points, a 4.742 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit and not one team ranked among the top 15 recruiting classes (Conference USA has three with Louisville at #1, Memphis #5, and Marquette at #15).  Third, is the fact that the Atlantic Coast Conference is ranked so high (4th) in our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes By Conference From The Fall Signing Period for the Class of 2005, but, at the same time, has its second lowest talent rating average per recruit (5.114 points) dating back to 1998-99.  Obviously this has to do with the fact that the league has added two more teams in Miami-FL and Virginia Tech.  Fourth, the Mountain West Conference is ranked ahead of the Big-10 Conference, which, as a league, has registered its weakest recruiting class during the Fall Signing Period since we started keeping track six years ago.  Fifth is the fact that Mid-American Conference checks in at #9 in our ranking of the top conferences with 102 points, 40 recruits, and a 2.550 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  However, a quick look back at our rankings of the Top Recruiting Classes By Conference shows that this is a trend, as the Mid-American Conference finished ranked 10th a year ago with 67 points, 26 recruits, and a 2.577 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit; 8th in the fall of 2002 with 87 points, 36 recruits, and a 2.417 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit; 9th in the Fall of 2001 with 78 points, 29 recruits, and a 2.7 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit; 11th in the Fall of 2000 with 61 points, 28 recruits, and a 2.2 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit; 9th in the fall of 1999 with 63 points, 24 recruits, and a 2.6 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit; and 11th in the fall of 1998 with 67 points, 26 recruits, and a 2.577 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  In other words, a strong case can be made the Mid-American Conference is the best mid-major conference in college basketball.  We also are surprised by the fact that the Big West Conference checks in at #10 in Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes By Conference From The Fall Signing Period for the Class of 2005.  This league was ranked as high as #13 in both 1998 and 1999, but the highest the Big West Conference has been ranked in recent years is 15th with 53 points, 22 recruits, and a 2.409 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit in the fall of 2002.   There is no question that all this will change between now and the conclusion of the Spring Signing Period and you can keep track of it by clicking on our Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, which right now is exactly the same as our Ranking of  the Top Recruiting Classes From The Fall Signing Period for the Class of 2005.   And we should get a good start, as people tell us who has already signed, but slipped through the cracks during the Fall Signing Period.  In other words, if you know of anybody that is missing from our list, now it a good time to email me at hoopscooponline@msn.com.  Not only will I add the new names to both our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005 and our list of Recent Commitments, but I also will go into detail with the highlights on a slow day.  However, don't expect that to happen until after the first of the year, because the holiday tournament season is upon us, as the King of the Bluegrass Tournament in Fairdale, KY starts tomorrow.   I also plan to be in Ft. Myers, FL on Saturday to cover the City Palms Classic and after Christmas I will be at the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC, the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX, and the Dell Curry Shootout in Charlotte, NC.  And you will get all the highlights, right here!

Monday, December 13, 2004, & Tuesday, December 14, 2004

It took a lot longer than I expected, but we are finally finished with our Ranking of  the Top Recruiting Classes From The Fall Signing Period for the Class of 2005 and any way you slice it, it appears that the big winner is the Southeastern Conference.  Not only does the Southeastern Conference have four of the top 10 recruiting classes with #4-ranked Mississippi, #7-ranked Mississippi State, #8-ranked LSU, and #10-ranked Alabama, but it also has nine of the top 60-ranked recruiting classes, as Georgia is #16, Auburn is #21, Florida is #31, Tennessee is #49, South Carolina is #57, and four of our top seven ranked seniors in the nation in 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, who is bound for Georgia; 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) GA, who is bound for Alabama; 6'4 Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, who is bound for Mississippi State; and 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, who is bound for LSU.  The Big-12 Conference has 10 of the top 60-ranked recruiting classes, but the only team in the league with a class ranked among the top 10 is Oklahoma State, which checks in at #8.  Conference USA and the Big East, Pacific-10, Atlantic Coast Conferences all have six teams apiece in the top 60-ranked recruiting classes, but, if you include the teams that will be joining the Big East next year, then that league would have 10 of the top 60-recruiting classes, as Louisville is ranked #1, Marquette is ranked #15, Pittsburgh is ranked #17, Connecticut is ranked #20, Notre Dame is ranked #24, Syracuse is ranked #25, St. John's is ranked #26, DePaul is ranked #31, and Cincinnati and Rutgers are tied at #40.  In other words, almost half of the top 60-ranked recruiting classes belong to teams that will be in three leagues next year.  And, as things stand now, eight of the top 10-ranked recruiting class, belong to teams in three leagues, as the Southeastern Conference has #4-ranked Mississippi, #7-ranked Mississippi State, #8-ranked LSU, and #10-ranked Alabama; the Atlantic Coast Conference has #2-ranked Duke and #6-ranked North Carolina, and Conference USA has #1-ranked Louisville and #5-ranked Memphis.  We also find it interesting that the highest ranked recruiting class in the Big-10 belongs to Minnesota, which checks in at #34.  And this is important, because there could be light at the end of the tunnel, if Golden Gophers head coach Don Monson, whose team currently is 5-3 and has Chicago State, St. Francis-PA, UNC-Greensboro, Coppin State, Loyola-Marymount, and Penn State next on the schedule, survives this season.   As a matter of fact, Minnesota Athletic Director Joel Maturi has let it be known that 12 or 13 wins by the Golden Gophers this season will be enough for Monson to keep his job for at least another year.  However, we also hear that the biggest contributor to the school may not donate any money to the school next year if the bottom falls out once the Golden Golphers get into their league schedule.  Moral to the story, don't be surprised if Maturi and Monson both don't get fired at the end of the season.  Another coach whose days may be numbered is John Beilein at West Virginia.  Sure, the Mountaineers are off to a 6-0 start with wins against St. Peter's, Duquesne, LSU, Radford, St. Bonaventure, and Coppin State, but they are picked 10th in the league this year and it doesn't get any better in the future, as is evident by the fact that their current recruiting class, which features 6'6 Alex Ruoff from Brookville (Central) IL and 6'7 Joe Alexander from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, is tied at #133 in our Ranking of  the Top Recruiting Classes From The Fall Signing Period for the Class of 2005. And when you include the five new schools (Louisville, Cincinnati, Marquette, DePaul, and South Florida) in the league next year and exclude Boston College, which is going to the Atlantic Coast Conference, next year, West Virginia's recruiting class would be ranked #15 in the league behind the 10 schools mentioned above, #64-ranked Georgetown, #76-ranked Providence, #78-ranked South Florida, and #87-ranked Villanova and ahead of Seton Hall, which is tied at #203.  This also comes on the heels of last year's recruiting class, which was ranked #178 in our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Class of 2004 and included 6'11 Luke Bonner from Manchester (Trinity) NH and 6'2 Darius Nichols from Radford (H.S.) VA.   No, we don't think it's time to start the Bobby Huggins rumor to West Virginia just yet, but you might want to keep it in the back of your mind when once 6'7 Sr Tyrone Sally, 6'11 Sr D'or Fischer, 6'4 Jr Patrick Beilein, 6'6 Jr Joe Herber, 6'11 Jr Kevin Pittsnogle, and 5'10 Jr Jarmon Durisseau-Collins, who are West Virginia's top six players, all have graduated a year-and-a-half from now.  Getting back to our Ranking of  the Top Recruiting Classes From The Fall Signing Period for the Class of 2005, the Mountain West appears to have won the battle for best of the rest, which includes all the conferences, except the Atlantic Coast, Southeastern, Big East, Big-12, Big-10, Pacific-10, and Conference USA.  We're talking about the fact that this league has three recruiting classes with UNLV at #11, New Mexico at #18, and Colorado State at #26 ranked among the top 30 recruiting classes.  We also find that the Big West Conference with Utah State at #35, Cal-State-Fullerton at #46, Long Beach State #55 has three recruiting classes in the top 60-ranked ranked recruiting classes.  And when you exclude teams in the 10 top conferences (Atlantic Coast, Southeastern, Big East, Big-12, Big-10, Pacific-10, Conference USA, Mountain West, Western Athletic, and Atlantic-10), then the list of schools with the best recruiting classes includes Marshall at #26, Utah State at #35, Wisconsin-Green Bay at #45, Cal State-Fullerton, Arkansas State, and Georgia State all tied at #46, the College of Charleston at #49, Long Beach State #55, Gonzaga at #57, Illinois State at #61, Pacific at #63, Wisconsin-Milwaukee at #64, Hofstra and Chattanooga both tied at #69, Western Michigan at #74, Central Michigan at #75, Southern Illinois and Illinois-Chicago both at tied #80, Rider, Columbia, and High Point all tied at #82, Georgia Southern at #87, and Buffalo, Dartmouth, Middle Tennesee State, Yale, and Akron all tied at #90.  

Friday, December 10, 2004, Saturday, December 11, 2004, & Sunday, December 12, 2004

Except to cover the L&N Credit Union Blue Chip Shootout at Bellarmine University in Louisville, KY on Friday night, I've done nothing but cross-check and add to our list of National Commitments, which not only provides you with our list of the signings and commitments through the conclusion of the Fall Signing Period, but also a rating on a 1-10 scale for every player.  A top five player nationally is worth 10 points, a top 10 player nationally is worth nine points, a player in the 11-40 range nationally is worth eight points, a player in the 41-70 range nationally is worth six points, a player in the 71-100 range nationally is worth four points, a player in the 101-300 range nationally is worth three points, a player in the 301-1000 range nationally is worth two points, and anybody not ranked among the top 1000 gets one point.  Junior college and prep school players are factored in as if they were the equivalent of a high school senior.  And in the process we have made this list correspond with our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, which will be finalized and published exclusively in the Members Section tomorrow.  Most of what we've been doing is cross all the "i's" and dotting all the "t's", but we did make one major change when we moved the University of Washington's recruiting class up from #5 to #3 our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, based primarily on the fact that we think 6'6 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, who was ranked #13 in the senior class nationally in our latest rankings, will move back up to #1 or #2 in the class after we get a chance to see him three or four times next week at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  If you will recall, we had Webster ranked #1 in the class until he was slowed by injuries last winter and he had not fully recovered when we got to see him at the NIKE All-American Camp and the Main Event last summer.  We also gave 6'7 Jon Brockman from Snohomish (H.S.) WA and 6'0 Justin Dentmon from Winchendon (School) MA each an additional point, because we plan to move Brockman up from #11 to #10 next time we update our national rankings and because we think Dentmon is now the equivalent of a top 100 senior, instead of somebody in the 100-300 range, which is where we had him a year ago.  And I will continue to work adding whatever missing signings and commitments that I can find to our list of National Commitments the rest of the evening.  However, once I get done late tonight, all new signings and commitments that I become aware of will be added to our list of Recent Commitments, which will be our ongoing list from this point until we start the process all over again when we get ready to publish our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Class of 2005 next spring.  And with a couple of exceptions, due to the fact that we simply ran out of time in the spring of 1999 and 2002, you also can go back and look at our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes, Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference, and Different Ways to Look at Recruiting for every year from 1998 to 2004 from both the spring and the fall by clicking on Top Recruiting Classes.   As for this fall's Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference and Different Way to Look at Recruiting, which includes our ranking of the school's that signed the highest talent rating average per recruit, the top two players signed, the top three players signed, the top four players signed this year fall and last year, and anybody who is the equivalent of a top 100 senior nationally by conference, we're shooting for finalizing and publishing these two comprehensive lists on Wednesday and Thursday of this week.   In other words, it's crunch time, because, beginning Thursday afternoon I will be in a gym every day, except on December 23rd, 24th, and 25th, covering high school basketball between now and the first of the year.  As for the L&N Credit Union Blue Chip Shootout, there were five things that are important to note from Friday night.  First, and probably the most important, 6'9 Jr Brandan Wright from Brentwood (Academy) TN, who finished with 22 points against Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, reinforced our believe that he is better than 6'9 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who scored 16 points in his team's 60-43 win against Louisville (Manual) KY.  Currently we have Wright ranked #3 and Durant ranked #4 nationally in the junior class.  Second, we suspect that Wright is a near lock to enter his name into the NBA Draft a-year-and-a-half from now.  As a matter of fact, Wright already says that it's 50-50, which puts him way ahead of what most players say about their chances of by-passing college and entering the NBA Draft when they are this young.  Wright, who reminds us Kevin Garnett and Darius Miles, but without the perimeter skills, also says he's wide open.  But when we put the fullcourt press on, Wright told us that his top five schools were North Carolina, Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, and Georgia Tech.  Third, Brentwood Academy may have some other great young players in the program, but nobody who was much help to Wright, as Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, which was led by 6'0 Dominic Tilford and 6'2 Corey Clark, who combined for 43 points, led their team to a 68-59 upset in the second to the final game of the evening.   Speaking of Tilford, his list includes Murray State, Southern Miss, and Morehead State, but he's decided to wait until spring in order to see if somebody bigger will come calling.   Fourth, 7'2 Jared Carter from Georgetown (Scott County) KY, who finished 15 points and 11 blocked shots, apparently played well enough to spark some interest from University of Kentucky head coach Tubby Smith, who was in the house to watch Wright and Durant, both of whom are prime recruiting targets for the Wildcats.  Also showing interest in Carter have been Western Kentucky, Illinois, Tennessee, Boston College, Vanderbilt, Cincinnati, Nebraska, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, and Ohio State, but our guess is that his list will get longer before it gets shorter, because big guys like this are few and far between.  Fifth, Oak Hill head coach Steve Smith confirms that Tennessee is the leader for 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who was Oak Hill's leading scorer last night with 18 points, but also notes that Alabama, Illinois, and Mississippi State are still on his list. 

Thursday, December 9, 2004

It was the "Blatche and Thomas" and the "Green and Adams" shows, as 6'11 Andray Blatche and 6'6 Jr Rob Thomas combined for 42 of the 80 points for South Kent (Prep) CT and  6'9 Gerald Green and 6'1 Jovan Adams combined for 60 of the 76 points for Houston (Gulf Shores) TX in what proved to be the most exciting game of the day at the Shop'N Save KMOX Shootout earlier this evening at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, MO.   And making the story even more interesting is the fact that game went three overtimes.  The best player was Blatche, who was more reminiscent of the player that we saw last spring when we ranked him #2 in our Final Rankings of the Top Players in the Class of 2004, behind 6'11 Dwight Howard, instead of  the player that we saw in July when he finished ranked #27 in our rankings of the top players at the Reebok ABCD Camp and was mediocre at best at the Reebok Big Time Tournament.  Blatche, who finished with 24 points, 17 rebounds, four assists, two steals, and two blocked shots, also solidified his spot as a high pick in next spring's NBA Draft, as he impressed everybody with his incredible quickness and athleticism, tremendous skills, great moves, outstanding passing, and terrific hands.  Sure, Blatche needs to get bigger and stronger, but, if we included him with our rankings of the top high school seniors (we rank 5th Year Players separately), he would easily be our #1-ranked player in the class.  Blatche was complemented by Thomas, who scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half; 6'5 A.J. Hawkins, who finished with 12 points; 6'6 Gilbert Brown, who had 10 points and impressed us with his athleticism and explosiveness to the basket.   Green and Adams kept Gulf Shores in the game with their incredible athleticism, explosiveness in transition, and outside shooting, as they combined for 10-29 3-pointers.   And it was Adams, who got hot down the stretch, as he hit three stretch 3-pointers to the game into overtime.  The biggest upset of the day occurred when St. Charles (Francis Howell Central) MO knocked off Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX, 66-58, thanks primarily to the outside shooting of 6'0 Justin Fuehrmeyer and 6'1 Mike Parson, who hit 9-20 3-pointers and combined 46 of their team's 66 points.  Fuehrmeyer, who is an absolute steal for Southwest Missouri State, also had six assists and steals, but he was the only Division I player on a team that not only outscored, but also out rebounded a South Oak Cliff front-line that included 6'9 Jr Darrell Arthur, who is one of the top-10 juniors in the nation; 6'9 Kevin Rogers, who is ranked #63 nationally in the senior class and is bound for Baylor; and 6'4 Jerel Hastings, who is ranked #251 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and is bound for Stephen F. Austin.  As a matter of fact, Fuehrmeyer was so good that our Roy Scmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report told us that he though Fuehrmeyer was the best player of the entire day.  Arthur, who finished with 20 points and 13 rebounds for South Oak Cliff also was one of the top players of the day, but Rogers, who finished with six points and five rebounds, and Hastings, who had 10 points and seven rebounds, were both major disappointments, as they got outplayed by a scrappy bunch that just wanted it more.  And the same thing happened in the 78-73 overtime win by Carbondale (H.S.) IL over Lynwood (H.S.) CA, which featured 6'8 Jerry-Davon Jefferson, 6'3 Seketoure Henry, 6'6 Jr Josh Guillory, 6'4 Jr Tim McLaurin, and 6'5 Soph Derrick January, and clearly was the better team on paper.   And, if that weren't enough to overcome, 6'4 Josh Tabb, who is Carbondale's best player, finished with only five points and was only 2-13 from the field.   Instead, the big hereos for Carbondale were 6'3 Phillip Fayne, who had 25 points and did most his damage in transition, and 6'7 Jr Manual Cass, who used his athleticism, long arms, good hands, and nose for the ball to dominate inside, as he finished with 22 points and five rebounds.  Another big difference in the game was the fact that the the outside shoot wasn't going down for Lynwood, as Jefferson, Henry, and Guillory hit a combined 3-13 3-pointers.  So, when you combine that with the fact that Jefferson doesn't play very hard and defense is something that Henry rarely engages in, the outcomes really should not have come as much of a surprise.  Earlier in the day Madison (Memorial) WI beat Wildwood (Lafayette) MO, 45-40; Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL beat Jennings (H.S.) MO, 53-35; Bethalto (Civic Memorial) IL beat Vandalia (Va-Far) MO, 47-39; and Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL beat Webster Groves (H.S.) MO, 55-41.  And, yes, the games were even worse than the final scores would indicate.  Homewood-Flossmoor's 6'8 Julian Wright did finish with 16 points and, seven rebounds, three assists, and four blocks, and three blocks, but he did not turn in one of the top performances of the day, much less make a case for being ranked among our top five seniors nationally (currently we have Wright ranked #3 nationally in the senior class, but will probably drop him in the 6-8 range next time we update our rankings).  We also were disappointed by 6'6 Jonathan Scheyer from Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL primarily due to the fact that the outside shot just wasn't falling (only 5'8 field goals and 1-8 3-pointers en route to only 16 points) and 6'5 Wesley Matthews from Madison (Memorial) WI, who finished with only 14 points.  Instead, it was lesser name players, like Missouri-bound 6'7 Matt Lawrence, who hit 3-6 3-pointers and finished with 17 points, and 6'0 Jr Stephen Jones, 6'5 Jr Dustin Maguire, and 6'0 Jr Michael Elliott, who combined for 38 points for Bethalto (Civic Memorial) IL, who deserve most of the accolades from the games earlier in the day.   We also were impressed by the quickness, athleticism, and ability to score in transition displayed by 6'1 Marcus Walker from Kansas City (O'Hara) MO in the final game of the evening.  However, we still question whether Walker is a pure enough point guard to step in and run the show as a freshman next year at Nebraska, although he is good enough to get top 100 consideration nationally in the senior class next time we update our national rankings. 

Wednesday, December 8, 2004

Tomorrow I will be attending the Shop'N Save KMOX Shootout at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, MO and once again we're looking forward to seeing an excellent group of players including 6'8 Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'11 Andray Blatche from South Kent (Prep) CT, 6'8 Gerald Green from Houston (Gulf Shores) TX, 6'6 Rob Thomas from South Kent (Prep) CT, 6'8 Jerry Davon-Jefferson from Lynwood (H.S.) CA, 6'4 Wesley Matthews from Madison (Memorial) WI, 6'8 Kevin Rogers from Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX, 6'3 Seketoure Henry from Lynwood (H.S.) CA, 6'1 Jovan Adams from Houston (Gulf Shores) TX,   6'4 Josh Tabb from Carbondale (H.S.) IL, 6'2 Kevin Lisch from Belleville (Althoff) IL, 6'0 Marcus Walker from Kansas City (O'Hara) MO, 6'6 Matt Lawrence from Wildwood (Lafayette) MO, 6'5 Eric Jones from Webster Groves (H.S.) MO, 6'1 Landon Shipley from Wildwood (Lafayette) MO, 6'9 Jr Darrell Arthur from Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX, 6'5 Jonathan Scheyer from Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL, 6'5 Jr Josh Guillory from Lynwood (H.S.) CA, 6'2 Jr Tim McLauren from Lynwood (H.S.) CA, 6'6 Jr Manual  Cass from Carbondale (H.S.) IL, 6'5 Jr Dusty Maguire from Bethalto (Civic Memorial) IL, 6'6 Jr Mike Smith from Vandalia (Van-Far) MO, and 6'4 Jr Sanijay Watts from Jennings (H.S.) MO, who will be attendance.  However, we're not looking forward to the match-ups, as it will be Wildwood (Lafayette) MO versus Madison (Memorial) WI at 10:30 AM, Jennings (H.S.) MO versus Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL at Noon, Vandalia (Van-Far) MO versus Bethalto (Civic Memorial) IL at 1:30 PM, Webster Groves (H.S.) MO versus Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL at 3:00 PM, St. Charles (Francis Howell Central) MO versus Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX at 4:45 PM, Carbondale (H.S.) IL versus Lynwood (H.S.) CA, at 6:15 PM, Houston (Gulf Shores) TX versus South Kent (Prep) CT at 7:45 PM, and Belleville (Althoff) IL versus Kansas City (O'Hara) MO at 9:15 PM.  As a matter of fact, we're not even sure what is the marquee of the day.  However, one thing is for sure.  We won't be sticking around to the bitter end, which usually comes after 11:00 PM and precedes a 265-mile drive home in the middle of the night.  And the same also can be said about the L&N Federal Credit Union Blue-Chip Shootout, which will be held on Friday, December 10th, and will feature 6'9 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'10 Jr Brandon Wright from Brentwood (Academy) TX, 6'4 Eric Devendorf from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'0 Jr Twyon Lawson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 7'1 Bamba Fall from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 5'11 Dominic Tilford from Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, 7'0 Jared Carter from Georgetown (Scott County) KY, 6'6 Alex Smith from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'1 Justin Royles from Louisville (Manual) KY, 6'2 Soph Matt Walls from Georgetown (Scott County) KY, and 6'5 Soph Brandon Brown from Brentwood (Academy) TN.   However, the line-up of teams includes Portsmouth (Clay) OH versus Louisville (Holy Cross) KY at 3:30 PM, Nicholasville (West Jessamine) KY versus Louisville (Western) KY at 5:00 PM, Georgetown (Scott County) KY versus Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY at 6:30 PM, Brentwood (Academy) TX versus Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY at 8:00 PM, and Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA versus Louisville (Manual) KY at 9:30 PM.  And it doesn't get any better the next day (Saturday, December 11th) at the Kentucky Bank Shootout in Paris, KY when it will be Cynthiana (Harrison County) KY versus Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY at 10:30 AM, Frankfort (H.S.) KY versus Nashville (Antioch) TN at Noon, Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY versus Lexington (Dunbar) KY at 1:30 PM, Hopkinsville (H.S.) KY versus Cincinnati (Princeton) KY at 4:30 PM, Brentwood (Academy) TN versus Paris (Bourbon County) KY at 7:30 PM, and Coconut Creek (North Broward Prep) FL versus Paris (H.S.) KY at 9:00 PM.  But once again the list of top players, which includes 6'9 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'10 Jr Brandon Wright from Brentwood (Academy) TX, 6'4 Eric Devendorf from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'0 Jr Twyon Lawson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'10 Jimmie Sutton from Coconut Creek (North Broward) FL, 6'2 8th Grader Kenny Boynton from Coconut Creek (North Broward) FL, 5'11 JuJuan Spillman from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 7'1 Bamba Fall from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Ross Morin from Cincinnati (Princeton) OH, 6'4 Tory Roberston from Frankfort (H.S.) KY, 6'6 Alex Smith from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 Curits Pulley from Hopkinsville (H.S.) KY, and 6'5 Soph Brandon Brown from Brentwood (Academy) TN, at the Kentucky Bank Shootout is very impressive.  But the match-ups do get better at the King of the Bluegrass at Fairdale, KY, where the opening round games will feature Louisville (Ballard) KY versus Frankfort at 4:30 PM, Fairdale (H.S.) KY versus Horse Cave (Caverna) KY at 6:00 PM, Louisville (Butler) KY versus Mt. Washington (Bullitt East) KY at 7:30 PM, and Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY versus Scottsville (Allen County) KY at 9:00 PM on Thursday, December 16th, and Miami (Senior) FL versus Henderson (County) KY at 4:30 PM, Mt. Vernon (Rockcastle County) KY versus Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY at 6:00 PM, Mayfield (Graves County) KY versus Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY 7:30 PM, and Louisville (Trinity) KY versus Owensboro (Catholic) KY at 9:00 PM, on Friday, December 17th.  However, the level of talent doesn't promise to be as good at the King of the Bluegrass, because the list of the top players promises to include 6'1 Soph Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL, 6'7 Jr Dwayne Collins from Miami (Senior) FL, 5'11 JuJuan Spillman from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'8 James Tchana from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'3 Maurice Grinter from Fairdale (H.S.) KY, 5'11 Aaron Cash from Mt. Vernon (Rockcastle County) KY, 5'11 Dominic Tilford from Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, 6'4 Tory Roberston from Frankfort (H.S.) KY, 6'5 William Reeves from Louisville (Ballard) KY, 6'3 Ravon Lee from Louisville (Ballard) KY, 6'0 Zach Berry from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'3 Kyle Saxton from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'4  Jr Randon Cavette from Mayfield (Graves County) KY, 6'2 Daniel Alcorn from Mt. Washington (Bullitt East) KY, 6'1 Ryan Troutman from Mt. Washington (Bullitt East) KY, 6'8 Jr Jay Ivey from Owensboro (Catholic) KY, 6'2 Brett Oliver from Scottsville (Allen County) KY, 6'1 Jazz Neal from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'4 Jr Vincent Crutcher from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'1 Daniel Johnson from Louisville (Butler) KY, 6'2 Soph William Bradley from Horse Cave (Caverna) KY, 5'10 Brandon Adams from Horse Cave (Caverna) KY, 5'11 Zach Sims from Mayfield (Graves County) KY, 6'0 John Mark Holder from Scottsville (Allen County) KY, 6'0 Zack Davis from Henderson (County) KY, 6'4 Chris Lamar from Henderson (County) KY, and 6'1 Jr Andrew Howard from Owensboro (Catholic) KY.

Tuesday, December 7, 2004

Everybody knew that USC head coach Henry Bibby had to show improvement upon his team's 13-17 and 13-15 records the last two years, but it still came as a major surprise that he was fired after starting the season with a pair of wins against UC-Irvine and Brigham Young and a pair of losses against North Carolina and La Salle.  We're already hearing comparisons to what happened a year ago when St. John's head coach Mike Jarvis got fired after starting the season with a 2-4 record, but, unlike a year ago, whoever gets this job could be walking into a gold mine.  Sure, the new coach will have to replace six seniors - 6'2 Sr Derrick Craven, 6'2 Sr Errick Craven, 6'8 Sr Nick Curtis, 6'8 Sr Jeff McMillan, 6'11 Sr Rory O'Neill, and 6'0 Sr Greg Guenther - who will graduate a year from now and there still appears to be a possibility that 6'4 Soph Lodrick Stewart will follow in his brother's footsteps and transfer to another school.  But that's not necessarily bad news.   Remember, this is the same bunch that has had more than its share of chemistry problems and dramatically underachieved each of the last two years.  And even better news is the fact that the Trojans already have 6'6 Frosh Nick Young, 6'1 Jr Dwayne Shackleford, 6'4 Frosh Gabriel Pruitt, and 6'8 Emmanuel Willis, all of whom were a part of last year's recruiting class that finished tied at #7, along with Florida, in our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Class of 2005, in the program this year and they also have 7'0 Julius Lamptey from Garden City (JC) OK, 6'7 Theo White from Tyler (JC) TX, 6'3 Sead Odzic from Skokie (Niles West) IL, and 6'8 Michael Freeman from Alexandria (Hayfield) VA, all of whom are a part of a recruiting class that is ranked #20 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, in the fold for next year.  In other words, the cupboard is almost full for the next coach and, as a  result, the hottest topic of conversation in college basketball right now is who will get the USC job next spring.  There is no doubt that Pepperdine head coach Paul Westphal, who is an alumnus of the school and has head coaching experience at both the college and professional levels, will be near the top of any list.  However, some of the other names that have already been tossed around include former Utah head coach Rick Majerus, former New Mexico head coach Fran Fraschilla, Cincinnati head coach Bobby Huggins, Manhattan head coach Bobby Gonzalez, former UCLA head coach Steve Lavin, Saint Mary's head coach Randy Bennett, Louisville assistant coach Reggie Theus, and Pittsburgh head coach Jamie Dixon.  But, when it's all said and done, don't rule out USC interim head coach Jim Saia, who finds himself in the same position that Iowa State head coach Wayne Morgan found himself in a-year-and-a-half ago when Southern Miss head coach Larry Euctachy was forced from the helm of Cyclones.  And, just like Morgan, who found himself out of work for a year after getting fired as the head coach at Long Beach State and prior to becoming an assistant coach at Iowa State two years ago, Saia, who was hired at USC last spring, sat out last season after getting fired, along with his former boss Steve Lavin, at UCLA in the spring of 2003.  And, just like Lavin, who got the UCLA job on an interim basis when Jim Harrick got fired and won enough games during the 1996-97 season to get the job on a permanent basis, Saia appears to be perfectly positioned to take advantage of all the good young players already in the program.  Saia also already has head coaching experience both with Athletes In Action in 1994 and at Columbia (JC) CA, where he posted a 61-10 record and was twice named the Central Valley Conference Coach of the Year during the 1994-95 and 1995-96 seasons.   Our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio tells us that 5'10 LeVance Fields from Brooklyn (Xaverian) NY, who is ranked #80 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has finally made it official.  And this is big for the Panthers for several reasons.  First, Fields was the 6th highest ranked senior, behind 6'8 Keith Brumbaugh from Deland (H.S.) FL, 6'9 Theo Davis from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Uche Echefu from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, and 6'8 Gary Flowers from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, who was still available.   Second, getting Fields keeps the New York City pipeline going, as he becomes the 8th Player who will be on the Panthers' roster next year from the New York Metropolitan area.  If you will recall, earlier this fall they also landed 6'8 Tyrell Biggs from Ramsey (Don Bosco Prep) NJ and they already have 6'2 Jr Carl Krauser Bronx, NY, 6'6 John DeGroat from Newburgh, NY via Northeastern Colorado (JC) CO, 6'10 Chris Taft from Brooklyn (Xaverian) NY, 6'2 Frosh Keith Benjamin from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Frosh Dante Milligan from Pawling (Trinity-Pawling) NY, and 6'1 Frosh Ronald Ramon from Bronx (All Hallows) NY in the program.   Third, the addition of Fields, who is a strong physical scoring combo guard, moves Pittsburgh's recruiting class up to #17 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, which means the Panthers have edged out Connecticut, Syracuse, St. John's, and Notre Dame, for the #1 spot in recruiting among teams currently in the league.  And this comes on the heels of last year's recruiting class, which included 6'2 Frosh Keith Benjamin, 6'6 Jr John DeCroat, and 6'1 Frosh Ronald Ramon.  We also have confirmed that Dartmouth has landed 6'5 Alex Barnett from St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO, who is ranked as high as among the top 200 nationally in the senior class by Bob Gibbons of All-Star Sports.  And this comes on the heels of Dartmouth's other three commitments, which include 6'1 Devon Mosley from Mesquite (H.S.) TX, 6'8 Jarrett Mathis from Sheffield (Berkshire) MA, and 6'1 Marlon Sanders from Cleveland Heights (H.S.) OH, and, as a result, the Big Green's recruiting class moves into a tie at #81, along with Western Michigan and Buffalo, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  And this time the guy who got this one done is Dartmouth assistant coach Tommy Deffebaugh, who last year was at South Florida, but also has strong Midwest ties dating back to his days as an assistant coach at Western Michigan, Southwest Missouri State, Oral Roberts, and Southern Illinois.  Obviously this huge, because the Big Green has landed two players (Barnett and Mosley) who are ranked in the 100-300 range nationally and two other players (Mathis and Sanders) who also are expected to step in and make an immediate impact next year.  This also moves Dartmouth's recruiting class into a tie at #1, along with Yale, and ahead of Columbia, Pennsylvania, and Princeton, in the Ivy League.   Speaking of the Ivy League, we've added a number of new players, including 6'6 Joe Bova from Albany (Christian Brothers) NY to Columbia, 6'2 Dan Trepanier from Tecumseh (St. Anne's) ON to Columbia, 6'7 Leon Nolan from Princeton (The Hun School) NJ to Columbia, 5'9 Drew Housman from Calabassas (H.S.) CA to Harvard, 6'8 Aaron Jimenez from Franklin (Leyden Township) IL to Brown, 6'5 Travis Pinick from Orange (Lutheran) CA to Yale, 6'5 Conor Mullen from Seattle (O'Dea) WA to Cornell, 6'5 Ugo Ihekweazu from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX to Cornell, 6'8 Micahel Strittmatter from Phoenix (Brophy Prep) AZ to Princeton, and 6'3 Geoff Kestler from Mt. Lebanon (H.S.) PA to Princeton, from this league to our list of Recent Commitments.   We also will be adding a number of other players to this list, but the drop dead date for finding signings and commitments that have slipped through cracks is quickly approaching, as we'll need at least a day to finalize our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes from the Fall Signing Period, two days to finalize our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference, and a day to finalize our section which includes Different Ways to Look at Recruiting Classes, like who signed the highest talent rating average per recruit, the best two players, the best three players, the best four players from this fall and last year, and what conferences have signed the most players who are the equivalent of a top 100-ranked high school senior.  So, if you think we're missing somebody, now is the time to email us at hoopscooponline@msn.com, along with all of the pertinent information, including the correct spelling of the player's name, height, position, hometown, high school, state, and school at which the player has signed. 

Saturday, December 4, 2004, Sunday, December 5, 2004, & Monday, December 6, 2004

Anytime Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA gets knocked off it's a big story.  But when the nation's #2-ranked team lost 68-67 to Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL in the final game of the evening  Saturday night at the Marshall County Hoopfest in Benton, KY, it was a classic illustration of what can happen when you let a good team hand around.  Remember, Homewood -Flossmoor advanced all the way to the state title game in the state's large school classification last March and they feature the HOOP SCOOP's #3-ranked senior in the nation in 6'8 Julian Wright.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that Wright failed to score a single point until late in the first quarter, had only seven points at half-time, and finished with 19 points for the game.  Instead, the two unsung heroes for Homewood-Flossmoor were 6'2 D.J. Posley and 6'3 Freddie Barnes, who combined for 26 points, as they took advantage of the fact that Wright was double and triple teamed most of the night.  So, with Oak Hill up by 10 points with five minutes left in the game, the stage was set for Wright to take over the game and for Oak Hill to fall apart.  In other words, on paper this should be one of Oak Hill head coach Steve Smith's best team's ever, as 6'0 Jr Twyon Lawson has jet-like speed and quickness, is a terrific ball handler and passer, and an excellent 3-point shooter; 6'4 Eric Devendorf is a tough hardnosed competitor who can beat you both with his outside shooting and ability to get the hole; 6'4 Jamont Gordon is an incredible athlete and is like a highlight film when he goes to the basket; 6'5 K.C. Rivers is a lights out 3-point shooter, 7'1 Bamba Fall is a shot blocker/defender who is just oozing with athleticism and potential; and 6'9 Jr Kevin Durant is a combo forward who is potentially one of the best players to ever play at Oak Hill.   However, it doesn't look like Smith has put all the pieces together yet.  As a matter of fact, Rivers didn't even play due to an injury that is expected to sideline him for several more weeks.  And, in contrast to the previous night when Jackson (Lanier) MS tried to match Oak Hill point-for-point, Homewood-Flossmoor did an excellent job of controlling the tempo and frustrating Oak Hill at the defensive end.  Lawson finished with 21 points both nights, but even that's deceiving, because Lawson had 15 points in the first half against Homewood-Flossmoor and late in the game did not get his teammates involved the same way he did against Jackson (Lanier) MS and in the first half against Homewood-Flossmoor.  Gordon had 13 points, Durant had 12 points, and Devendorf had 11 points against Homewood-Flossmoor.   In contrast, Durant had 24 points, Devendorf had 21 points, and Gordon had 16 points against Lanier and, as a result, this was a much more exciting game.  However, the real show here was 6'4 Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, who finished with 48 points and made it look easy as he helped his team take 55-53 and 57-55 leads late in the 3rd Quarter, before Oak Hill went on to coast to a 94-98 victory in the final game of the evening on Friday night.   We also found it interesting that Smith told us that the University of Maryland has dropped out of the hunt for Lawson, whose list now includes N.C. State, Wake Forest, North Carolina, Michigan, and Texas, because the already have an early commitment from 6'2 Jr Eric Hayes from Dumfries (Potomac) VA.  And, we find this hard to believe, as is evident by the fact that Hayes is ranked no higher than #327 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP and was nothing more than just a good role player on the Boo Williams Summer Team last summer.  But, then again, we didn't think Maryland's last two point guards - Steve Blake and Johnny Gilchrist - would turn out to be as good has they did.  So obviously we'll be watching this one with a great deal of curiosity.  Smith also tells us that the early favorites for Durant are Kentucky, Arizona, Duke, North Carolina, and Texas, but, if he gets bigger and stronger and continues to develop, it may be tough for him to turn down the NBA at the end of his senior year in the spring of 2006.  The second best individual performance of the entire weekend was turned in by 6'9 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO, who finished with 34 points and 12 rebounds against Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL and 7'2 Jr Jason Bennett, who finished with only four points and three rebounds.  If it were somembody else, we might say that Hansbrough was trying to impress North Carolina head coach Roy Williams, who flew in from Chapel Hill, NC, after the Tar Heels beat the University of Kentucky earlier in the day to see the prize of this year's recruiting class.  However, Hansbrough always play like there is no tomorrow, which is why he's ranked as high as #2 in the senior class nationally by Bob Gibbons of All-Star Sports.   And sitting several seats away from Williams was Cincinnati head coach Bobby Huggins, who was there to see Bennett, whose top five includes Florida, Florida, State, Wake Forest, and Arkansas.  Remember, new Cincinnati assistant coach Frank Martin, who previously was the head coach at Miami (Senior) FL and an assistant coach at Northeastern, has all the right connections necessary to get this one done.    However, Hansbrough alone was not good enough to overcome all the talent on Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, which won the game 64-56, as 6'0 Jr Josue Soto finished with 23 points and seven assists, 6'5 David Huertas finished with 17 points, and 6'6 Sammy Hernandez finished with six points and nine rebounds.  We also were impressed by 6'4 Nate Minnoy from Chicago (Hales Franciscan) IL, despite the fact that he's gained 20-30 pounds since we saw him last summer, and 6'2 Kevin Lisch from Belleville (Althoff) IL, who is a steal for Saint Louis, in the previous game.  Not only did Minnoy turn in a 20-point/11-rebound effort, but he also proved to be the difference in the game as Hales Franciscan squeaked it out, 57-55.  Lisch is like a coach on the floor, as he has a knack for being in the right place at the right time, is an excellent defender, and has great form on his jump shot, although it wasn't falling in this game, as he hit only 1-6 3-pointers.  Still, Lisch finished with 17 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and more than justified his #168 national ranking in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.   In the first game of the evening, Carbondale (H.S.) IL beat Memphis (White Station) TN, 62-59, thanks to the efforts of 6'6 Jr Manual  Cass and 6'4 Josh Tabb, who combined for 36 points.  Cass is probably a better player right now than he is an prospect.  We're talking about a big time athlete who lacks the strength necessary to play inside and the outside shooting and perimeter skills necessary to play away from the basket at the high Division I level, but what a steal he would be if he elects to stay home and joins Tabb, who already has signed with Southern Illinois, a year from now.  White Station's 6'6 J.P. Prince was his usual self, as he didn't impress anybody with his outside shooting, but still thrived in transition and finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds, and two assists.  Instead, the surprise here was Holy Cross-bound 6'6 Colin Cunningham, who finished with 11 points and impressed us with his versatility, skills, outside shooting, and athleticism.   Houston (Westbury Christian) TX beat Coconut Creek (North Broward) FL, 67-60, in the only afternoon game that is worth mentioning, but the best player in the game was North Broward's 6'10 Jimmie Sutton, who finished with 12 points and six rebounds, and the best prospect in the game was 6'2 8th Grader Kenny Boynton, who finished with nine points and was one of the best players in the game.  Westbury Christian was led by 6'0 Wendell Preadom with 21 points and six rebounds, 6'8 Jeremy Barr, who had 16 points, five rebounds, and hit 7-9 field goals, and 6'9 Peter Stein, who finished with eight points and seven rebounds. 

Friday, December 3, 2004

Chris Monter of CollegeBasketball News catches us up on some more signings and commitments that have slipped through the cracks, as he tells us that 6'10 Kendrick Johnson from Morton (H.S.) TX has gone to Georgia, 6'3 Calvin Johnson from Morton (H.S.) TX has gone to Santa Clara, 6'1 Devon Mosley from Mesquite (H.S.) TX has gone to Dartmouth, 6'4 Jerel Hastings from Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX has gone to Stephen F. Austin, 6'6 Michael Gore from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI has gone to St Peter's, 6'8 Lamar Pittman from Poughkeepsie (H.S.) NY has gone to Long Island, 6'5 Matt Mortensen from Provo (Timpview) UT has gone to Marquette, 6'1 Antonio Hanson from Liberal (H.S.) KS has gone to Tulsa, 6'7 Kahiem Seawright from Uniondale (H.S.) NY has gone to Rhode Island, and 6'3 Jarvis Hill from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC has gone to Auburn.  The verbal commitment by Hill, who is ranked #212 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP comes as no surprise.  As a matter of fact, we suspected that Hill would end up Auburn about a month after he reneged earlier this fall on the University of Tennessee.  Hill is an excellent 3-point shooter and knows how to play the game, which means he should be an excellent complement to 6'7 Korvotney Barber from Manchester (H.S.) GA, 6'9 Joey Cameron from Leeds (H.S.) AL, 6'5 Rasheem Barrett from Atlanta (Marist) GA, and 6'7 Josh Dollard from Pickens (Prince Avenue Prep) SC, all of whom committed to the Tigers earlier this fall.  The additon of Hill also moves Auburn's recruiting class up to #21 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  However, even more important, it looks like first year head coach Jeff Lebo and his staff have done a great job of building an excellent foundation.  Remember, Barber is ranked #12, Cameron is ranked #89, and Barrett is ranked #158 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and Dollard is ranked #40 on our list of the Top 5th Year Players, which makes him the equivalent of a top 200 senior nationally.  The biggest steal of the group of players mentioned above has to be Mosley, who is ranked #230 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, picking the Big Green.  And, when you add Mosley to a recruiting class that already includes 6'8 Jarrett Mathis from Sheffield (Berkshire) MA and 6'1 Marlon Sanders from Cleveland Heights (H.S.) OH, it looks like Dartmouth head coach Terry Dunn is off to a heck of a start, as the Big Green's recruiting class is tied at #102, along with Evansville, Valparaiso, Northern Iowa, Pacific, Oakland, Monmouth, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  However, we'd expect nothing less, because Dunn was an excellent recruiter when he was an assistant coach at Colorado and Dartmouth assistant coach Shay Berry is second to none on the recruiting trail, thanks to his strong Five-Star Basketball Camp and New York City ties dating back to his days at Fordham University and New York University.  The most interesting of the above signings is the one by Kendrick Johnson, who, at one time, was ranked as the best player in the class when he was in 8th Grade.  However, his skills never developed and, as a result, he is more of a project than a finished product right now.  But, like they say, your can't teach somebody to be 6'10 and athletic, so it wouldn't be a surprise if Johnson ends up being a lot better than #208 nationally in the senior class, which is where we have him ranked right now.    Another big key in Johnson's development will be if he rises the occasion when he goes head-to-head everyday in practice against 7'0 Rashaad Singleton from Graceville (H.S.) FL, who is long, lanky, athletic, and ranked #101 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  In other words, Bulldogs head coach Dennis Felton has not one, but two, big guys in this recruiting class who aren't finished products right now, but have the potential to someday make money playing the game.  Felton also has our #1-ranked senior in the nation in 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'4 Michael Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, adn 6'6 Terrance Woodbury from Norfolk (Granby) VA in the fold and, as a result, has a recruiting class that currently is ranked #16 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Calvin Johnson is Kendrick's brother, but he obviously isn't as tall and, as a result, doesn't have the same upside.  However, the shorter Johnson does work a lot harder, which should make him a nice catch for the Broncos.  We also are impressed by the fact that the Golden Hurricane has landed Hanson.  If you will recall, he originally verbally committed to Oklahoma State, but when it started to look like 6'0 Byron Eaton from Dallas (Lincoln) TX was a near lock to pick the Cowboys, Hanson changed his mind.   And we think this was a great move, because Hanson is ideally suited to step in and solve Tulsa's point guard problems once and for all a year from now.  Seawright is ranked #210 nationally in the senior class, but we're not sure whether he will make an immediate impact for the Rams, because he needs to get bigger and stronger and meaner and tougher in order to play inside in the Atlantic-10.  The additon of Mortensen also is noteworthy, because he moves the Golden Eagles' recruiting class up to #15 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  If you will recall, Marquette also has 6'4 Wesley Matthews from Madison (Memorial) WI, 6'2 Jerel McNeal from Country Club Hills (Hillcrest) IL, and 6'1 Dominic James from Richmond (H.S.) IN in the fold, which means a year from now they will have a great group of guards to complement the trio of inside guys they landed a year ago in 7'0 Jr Mike Kinsella, 6'10 Frosh Ousmane Barro, and 6'8 Soph Ryan Amoroso.  Hastings picking the Lumberjacks and Gore picking the Peacocks are also both significant, because they are ranked #251 and #252, respectively, in the senior class nationally.  Monter also tells us that 6'4 Tyrone Appleton from Gary (Roosevelt) IN, who impressed us enough to be the #9-ranked point guard last summer at the Reebok ABCD Camp, is now at North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME; 6'5 Syndey Rice from Gaffney (H.S.) SC, who is ranked #203 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, is now attending the University of South Carolina and is playing football; and 6'2 Aaron Jackson from West Hartford (Northwest Catholic) CT, who is ranked #214 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, is now at Worcester (Academy) MA.  We also have confirmed via our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin that 6'8 Maurice Thomas from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA has reneged on UTEP and one of the schools that is rumored to be involved is the University of Kentucky.  We also have finally confirmed that 6'9 Soph Keenan Ellis from Indianapolis (Cathedral) IN, who is ranked #33 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP, has transferred to Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, where he will eventually team with 6'5 Soph O.J. Mayo and 6'5 Soph Bill Walker to form what should be one of the best one-two-three punches in high school basketball.  We phrase it that way, because, as things stand now, Ellis is ineligible to play.  However, sometimes these things have a way of working themselves out.  So stay tuned!

Thursday, December 2, 2004

I started working on Allen Rubin's Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Report on Sunday, November 28th, and I finished it tonight in record time.  We're talking about 28 pages of nothing but names, which includes Rubin's rankings of top 612 seniors, top 516 juniors, top 314 sophomores, top 173 freshmen, top 40 8th Graders, top 21 7th Graders,and Top Two 6th Graders all in order by class.  This can be found by clicking Rubin Ranks Em:  The Top Players in Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey.  We're also talking about Rubin's Eight All-Area Teams, which includes his ranking of the top players in the area regardless of class and position; Rubin's rankings of the Best Shooters, Best Scorers, Best Playmakers, Best Rebounders, Best Shot Blockers, Best Defenders, and the Most Improved Players; and my comments and analysis of how great the future is with regards to the level of talent in the junior, sophomore, and freshmen classes in the area.  And, if that weren't enough, I've also incorporated Rubin's list of the Top 38 5th Year Players in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area into the text.  Especially noteworthy is the fact that Rubin ranks 6'4 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA as the Best Shooter and Best Playmaker, as well as the 3rd Best Scorer; 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA as the Best Scorer and 6th Best Defender; 7'0 Brian Zoubeck from Haddonfield (Memorial) NJ has the Best Rebounder and the 5th Best Shot Blocker in the area.  No wonder these three players are ranked on the First Team All-Area Team, along with 6'9 Vernon Goodridge from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA and 6'6 Ryan Ayers from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA.  We also find it interesting that Ayers is the only senior ranked among the first and the second teams, which helps illustrate just how strong the underclassmen are in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area.  Instead, Rubin went with three 5th Year Players in Goodridge, 6'4 Stephon Jackson from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA and 6'5 Marc Edgerson from Philadelphia (Berean Institute) PA; four juniors in Ellington Henderson, Zoubeck, and 6'5 Jr Earl Pettis from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA; and two sophomores in 6'2 Soph Antonio Jardine from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA and 6'8 Soph Richard Jackson from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA.  Yes, three underclassmen (Jardine, Jackson, Pettis) from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA are listed on the Second Team, which should be more than enough to draw the attention of the all of nation's top holiday tournament directors, like Beach Ball Classic's John Rhodes, the Academy National Invitational's Hal Pastner, and the City of Palms Classic's Donnie Wilkie.  And, believe it or not, the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey area also is one of the few places in the nation where there are still some uncommitted seniors that are recruitable this winter.  Right at the top of the list is 6'9 Kent Tribbett from Chester (H.S.) PA, whose list of Virginia Tech, Virginia, Georgia, Navy, George Washington, Rutgers, Penn State, Fairfield, and Lehigh will probably get longer before it gets shorter.  Also still available and ranked among the top 10 seniors in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey area are 6'3 Devon McLendon from Chester (H.S.) PA, 6'6 Teron Murray from Camden (H.S.) NJ, 6'4 Samaj Inge from Camden (Woodrow Wilson) NJ, and  6'7 Brian Grimes from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA.  And digging a little deeper, we also find that five of the second 10-ranked seniors - 6'4 Tristian Crawford from Steelton (Steelton-Highsphire) PA, 6'5 Kashif Carr from Philadelphia (Christian) PA, 6'5 Matt Spadafora from Warminster (Archbishop Wood) PA, 6'4 Noel Wilmore from Chester (H.S.) PA, 6'5 Dave Burton from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA, and 6'6 William Royal from Harrisburg (H.S.) PA - also are still on the board.  And that doesn't even include 6'5 Dionte Christmas from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, 6'6 Marcus Green from Philadelphia (Christian) PA, 6'8 Ishan Phillips from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, 6'8 Dontay Tabbs from Philadelphia (Berean Institute) PA, 6'8 Matt Walden from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, and 6'3 Chris Matthews from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, all of whom are ranked among the top 10 5th Year Players and are still available.  We also think it is important to point out that we disagree with the fact that Rubin has 6'4 Tyreke Evans from Aston (American Christian) PA listed on the 7th Team All-Area Team.  No, we're no complaining about Rubin having a freshman on the list.  Instead, we think he should be ranked higher.  After all, Evans is arguably one of the top two or three freshman in the nation and, by the end of the season, we wouldn't be surprised to see him on the first or second team.  However, right now we'd probably put him on the 4th Team, along with 6'9 Jr Andrew Ott from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'4 Jr Reggie Redding from Philadelphia (St. Joseph's) PA, 6'3 Devon McLendon from Chester (H.S.) PA, and 5'10 Paul Gause from Pittsgrove (Arthur P. Schalick) PA. 

Wednesday, December 1, 2004

It looks like Donnie Wilkie, who is the tournament director for the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, has outdone even himself this year.  Not only has he once again put together the best pre-Christmas Tournament in the country, but he also arguably has the most talented array of players that we'll see at any one event all winter.  Don't believe it?  Well, 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, who is ranked #1 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP; 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, who is ranked #4 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP; 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, who is ranked #4 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP; and 6'6 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, who is ranked #4 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP; are all legitimate national Player-of-the-Year candidates and a dominating performance by any one of the these four players may be enough to tip him over the top.  Actually we think the smart money will be on Webster, because the word we're getting from people in the Pacific Northwest is that Webster is better than ever.   And that's a pretty strong statement when one remembers that we had Webster ranked #1 nationally in the class prior to when he broke his foot last winter and was sidelined for almost six months.  The tournament also will feature 6'11 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA and 6'5 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, who are ranked #11 and #13, respectively, in the junior class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'7 Soph Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who is one of the top 10 sophomores in the nation.   That's seven players who ranked among the top 15 players nationally in their respective classes.  The field also will include 6'4 Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'3 Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, 6'4 David Huertas from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'11 Ricky Sanchez from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, 6'7 Marcus Landry from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 6'5 Brian Asbury from Miami (South Miami) FL, 6'11 Abdul Herrera from Miami (South Miami) FL, 5'11 Josue Soto from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'5 Sammy Hernandez from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'9 Rousean Cromwell from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, 6'8 Elliott Johnson from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 5'7 Billy Mims from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 6'0 Michael Gerrity from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'2 Sal Patricio from Lake Suzy (Florida Prep) FL, 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'4 Jr Paul Harris from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, 5'10 Jr Demond Carter from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, 6'5 Jr Anjuan Wilderness from Dunwoody (H.S.) NY, 7'2 Jr Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'7 Jr Avery Jukes from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'3 Jr Corey Claitt from West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, 6'4 Soph Kevin Branch from LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA, 6'7 Soph A.J. Stewart from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'5 7'1 Soph Alex Jacobson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, and 6'5 Soph Lance Kearse from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL.  The first game of the tournament will tip-off on Thursday, December 16th, at 7:30 PM with Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL versus Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL.  And you can bet the place will be packed, because these two local teams don't play one another during the regular season.   Then, on Friday, December 17th, there will be four games with Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY versus Jacksonville (Raines) FL at 4:15 PM, Athens (H.S.) AL versus Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL at 6:00 PM, Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA versus Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA at 7:45 PM, and Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Denhan Springs (H.S.) LA at 9:30 PM.  And on Saturday, December 18th, it will be Lake Suzy (Florida Prep) FL versus Naples (Lely) FL at 1:15 PM and Miami (South Miami) FL versus Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL at 4:45 PM in a pair games between teams that aren't in the regular 16-field, but are in the Sunshine Series, which gives each of these four teams one game in the tournament.  Sandwiched in between these two games will be the loser of the Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA-Denham Springs (H.S.) LA game versus the loser of the Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY-Jacksonville (Raines) FL game at 3:00 PM.  And following the second Sunshine Series game will be Milwaukee (Vincent) WI versus Cape Coral (H.S.) FL at 6:30 PM, West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL versus Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA at 8:15 PM, and Seattle (Prep) WA versus Dunwoody (H.S.) FL at 10:00 PM.  Sunday will be a dead day, but Monday, December 20th, will begin with the other three consolation bracket games, as it will be the loser of the Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA-Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA game versus the loser of the Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA-West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL game at 10:00 AM, the loser of the Ft.Myers (H.S.) FL-Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL game versus the loser of the Dunwoody (H.S.) GA-Seattle (Prep) WA game at 11:45 AM, and the loser of the Milwaukee (Vincent) WI-Cape Coral (H.S.) FL game versus the loser of the Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL-Athens (H.S.) AL game at 1:30 PM.  The four winner bracket games will feature the winner of the Niagara Falls (H.S.) FL-Jacksonville (Raines) FL game versus the winner of the Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA-Denham Springs (H.S.) LA game at 3:15 PM, the winner of the Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA-Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) LA game versus the winner of the Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL-Athens (H.S.) AL game at 5:15 PM, the winner of the Milwaukee (Vincent) WI-Cape Coral (H.S.) FL game versus the winner of the Dunwoody (H.S.) GA-Seattle (Prep) WA game at 7:00 PM, and the winner of the West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL-Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA game versus the winner of the Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL-Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL game at 9:30 PM.   In other words, Wilkie has guaranteed that one of the local teams will advance into the quarterfinals, which should guarantee that there will be another packed house on Monday night.  And if things go as expected, it will be Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL, Jacksonville (Raines) FL, Athens (H.S.) AL, Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, Cape Coral (H.S.) FL, West Palm Beach (Palm Beach Lakes) FL, and Dunwoody (H.S.) GA in the Consolation Bracket and Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY, Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, and Seattle (Prep) WA in the winner's bracket.  The action will resume on Tuesday, December 21st, with two Consolation Semi-Finals Games and, if things go as expected, it will be Athens (H.S.) AL versus Jacksonville (Ribault) FL at 11:45 PM and Dunwoody (H.S.) GA versus Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA at 1:30 PM.  Next, will be the two 5th Place Semi-Finals Games and, if things go as expected, it will be Milwaukee (Vincent) WI versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA at 3:15 PM and Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL at 5:00 PM.  And, finally it will be the two Semi-Finals Games and, if things go as expected, it will be Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA versus Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY at 7:00 PM and Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA versus Seattle (Prep) WA at 9:30 PM.  Yes, we think Seattle (Prep) WA will advance this far, if Webster and Hawes can stay out of foul trouble.   Remember, Hawes is a dominant force inside and Webster is versatile enough to play the one, two, and three spots. The final day, Wednesday, December 22nd, will include four Challenge Round games at 8:30 AM, 10:15 AM, 12:00 Noon, and 1:45 PM; the Consolation Championship Game, which, if things go as expected, will match Jacksonville (Ribault) FL versus Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, at 3:45 PM; the 5th Place Championship Game, which, if things go as expected, will match Milwaukee (Vincent) WI versus Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, at 5:30 PM; the Third Place Game, which, if things go as expected, will match Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY versus Seattle (Prep) WA, at 7:15 PM; and the Championship Game, which, if things go as expected, will match Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA versus Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, at 9:00 PM.  And this one shouldn't even be close, as Williams and Mercer will pick up where they left off last summer when they led the Georgia Stars to the 17-Under AAU National Championship in Orlando, FL.