HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION FOR JANUARY 2010

Wednesday, January 1, 2002

Our Tennessee Correspondent Andre Whitehead was at the 20th Annual Arby's Classic in Bristol, TN and he tells us that in the che championship game last night Marietta (Wheeler) GA beat Mansfield (H.S.) OH, 68-51.  And the secret to Wheeler's success was 6'9 Jemario Davidson's ability to dominate the boards and get the ball out to 6'1 Soph Sharoud Curry, 6'2 Tremaine Aaron from Marietta (Wheeler) GA, and 6'3 Richard McCray in transiton.  Speaking McCray, who was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, did you know that he is going to Alabama, along with his teammate (Davidson)?  Neither did we until Whitehead called today to provide us with this report.  McCray is a terrific athlete who is strong defensively and excellent at filling the lanes.  However, Whitehead questions McCray's outside shooting and whether he's good enough to be more than a role player in the Southeastern Conference.  Perhaps McCray is part of the Davidson-package to Alabama and he'll be a walk-on or perhaps even he's getting a scholarship in another sport.  Obviously we'll check this out further and get back to you.  Also named to the all-tournament were Aaron; Davidson, who, according to Whitehead, saved his best game for the championship game, as he finished with 17 points, eight rebounds, nine blocks in the championship game; 6'2 Antonio Graves from Mansfield (Senior) OH; 6'3 Jr Yima Chia-Kur from Mansfield (Senior) OH; 5'9 Ryan Saunders from Orlando (William R. Boone) FL; 5'11 Denny Philemond from Orlando (William R. Boone) FL; and 6'5 Drew Hauser from Maryville (H.S.) TN.  Also noteworthy is the fact that 6'2 Lee Humphrey from Maryville (H.S.) TN, who ranked #139 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, was left of the all-tournament team, despite the fact he had 28 points the first night against Kingsport (Dobbins-Bennett) TN, 22 points the second night against Johnson City (Science) TN, and was as good as anybody in the tournament.  However, Humphrey had a viral infection and didn't play on the Monday and Tuesday.  So without its star player, it comes as no surprise that Maryville (H.S.) TN, which won its first two games in the tournament, lost its last two, getting beat by Orlando (William Boone) TN, 4947, in the Third Place Game.  Other players who impressed Whitehead were 6'6 Andre Woodson from Radcliffe (North Hardin) TN, who is already verbally committed to play football at the University of Kentucky; 6'2 Soph Mario Chalmers from Anchorage (Bartlett) TN, who is already getting early interest from schools like North Carolina and Arizona; 6'3 Soph Jon Avery from Mansfield (Senior) OH; and 6'7 Vincent Redd from Elizabethton (H.S.) TN, who most likely will play football (Tennessee leads).   Speaking of Redd, who went head-to-head with Davidson in what was the best match-ups in the tournament, he appedars to be a legitimate sleeper for somebody looking for size at the mid-to-low Division I level.  There were also two foreign teams in the Arby's Classic and Whitehead tells us that 6'8 Tommaso Rinaldi from Rimini, Italy and 6'5 Felix Zzerny from Urspring, Germany both will attract Division I interest.  Rinaldi is slow afoot, but he's fundamentally sound and very skilled in the post.  Zzerny is a good outside shooter, ball handler, and passer, plus he is an excellent student, which is why schools, like Stanford, Davidson, and Vanderbilt, are showing interest. 

Tuesday, December 31, 2002

The results are in from this year's Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE and the best player in the tournament was 6'10 David Padgett from Reno (H.S.) NV.  Not only did he have 27 points and seven points against Miami (Christian) FL; 29 points and 11 rebounds against 6'11 Jr Randolph Morris and Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA; and 25 points and six rebounds against 6'9 Jr D.J. White and Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL in what easily was the best head-to-head match-up of the entire holiday season, but he also was largely responsible for his team's two wins in the tournament.  Padgett isn't a great athlete, but he might be the most skilled big men in the class and, as a result, promises to be a prototypical Roy Williams player at Kansas, which is where he signed last fall.  Finishing a close second on our list of the top players at Slam Dunk to the Beach was 6'3 Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA.  Actually Shakur was the best player in the tournament the first two days, but, in the end, despite the fact that he played well in all three games, as he averaged 19.9 ppg and 10 rpg, Shakur was edged out by Padgett, who was flat out sensatioinal in every game.  And finishing a close third behind Padgett and Shakur was White.  As a matter of fact, White's performance in yesterday's game has to be one of the most important revalations so far this winter.  We're not only talking about an explosive athlete with excellent skills, a great feel for the game, and an incredible wing span, but the word is White, who already is a legitimatr 6'9, may grow some more.  And, if that happens, 6'9 Jr Al Jefferson from Prentiss (H.S.) MS, 6'0 Jr Darius Washington from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 6'9 Jr Joshua Smith from Powder Springs (McEachern) GA, 5'11 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, and 6'6 Jr Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, who in our mind are the top five juniors in the nation, had better come to play every night.  If they don't, White is ready to took their place right now.   He's that good!  Thad Fitzpatrick, who is White's high school coach, tells us that the top four schools on his list are Indiana, Florida, Alabama, and North Carolina.  However, when it is all said and done, we think White is a near lock for Indiana.  In other words, Hoosiers head coach Mike Davis may have wait another year for the quality big man he needs to step in and anchor things in the middle after George Leach graduates next spring.  Actually, we think is more a matter of when, than if, White picks Indiana.  Did you know that Davis and Fitzpatrick not only are close friends, but they were on the same staff together when they were assistant coaches at Alabama?  Did you also know that Fitzpatrick was fired at Alabama and, as a result, may not have a lot of love for the Crimson Tide?  And, if we're right, don't be surprised if Indiana makes another run at the NCAA Championship two years from now.  Remember, by that time Bracey Wright and Marshall Strickland will be juniors and experienced guards and a quality big man can take you long way in the tournament.  In addition to Padgett, Shakur, and White, who finished ranked #1, #2, and #3 by the HOOP SCOOP, we also thought 6'8 Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN and 6'1 Guillermo Diaz from Miami (Christian) FL, who we ranked #4 and #5 based on their performances at Slam Dunk to the Beach, had spectacular weeks.  Unfortunately 6'8 Leon Powe from Oakland (Tech) CA, who had two 30-plus point performances earlier in the tournament, got shut down on the final day.  by 6'6 Oumar Sylla from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY.  Not only did Sylla make the game a lot more physical than  Powe would have liked, but he did a number on him defensively, as was evident by Powe's stats - 11 points and only 4-11 field goals.  So it comes as no surprised that Powe drops to #6 after the final day and Sylla is ranked among our top 10 players in the tournament, behind Padgett, Shakur, White, Humphries, Diaz, Powe, 6'10 Kendrick Perkins from Beaumont (Ozen) TX, and 6'7 Jr Adrian Joseph from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ and ahead of 6'2 Jr A.J. Price from Amityville (H.S.) NY.  Our ranking of the second 10 players in the tournament based on performance in order are 6'11 Travis Outlaw from Starkville (H.S.) MS, 6'7 Jr Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, 7'0 Will Bowers from Severn (Archbisop Spalding) MD, 6'1 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'8 Jr Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'4 Jr Jerome Petticolas from Washington (Spingarn) DC, 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 5'11 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, 6'5 Jesus Verdejo from Miami (Christian) FL, and 6'3 Marquis Webb from Paterson (Catholic) NJ.  Our ranking of the third 10 players in the tournament based on performance in order are 6'7 Jr Alex Galindo from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'8 Sean Banks from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ, 6'7 Soph Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'2 Jr Courtney Nelson from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ, 6'1 Soph Jarius Hill from Starkville (H.S.) MS, 6'11 Darryl Watkins from Paterson (Catholic) NJ, 6'3 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'8 Jr Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL, 6'8 Jr James Gist from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, and 6'4 Darren Clarke from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN.  Our ranking of the fourth 10 players in the tournament based on performance in order are 6'1 Jr Da'Shawn Dwight from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ with 20 points, 6'8 Jr DeSean White from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'8 Will Sheridan from Hockessin (Sanford) DE, 6'2 Christopher Pugh from Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD, 6'11 Jr Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, 6'7 Jr Davis Nwankwo from North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, 6'3 Art Bowers from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'8 Dan Coleman from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, 6'6 Kenna Young from Beaumont (Ozen) TX, and 6'3 Jr Antwan Harrison from Washington (Gonzaga) DC.  Our ranking of the fifth 10 players in the tournament based on performance in order are 6'7 Babacar Thiam from Washington (Springarn) DC, 6'5 Soph Ryan Ayers from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'2 Jr Stanley Hodge from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'4 Raul Orta from Miami (Christian) FL, 6'8 Jr Ben Nwachakwo from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'2 Shannon Davis from Wilmington (St. Mark's) DE, 6'8 Jr Jerome Johnson from Potomac (Bullis School) MD, 6'6 Soph Brian Grimes from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'8 Omari Israel from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, and 6'9 Ousmane Konate from Laurinburg (Institute) NC. 

Monday, December 30, 2002

The top players based on performance on the final day (today) at Slam Dunk to the Beach, as ranked by our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz and yours truly, Clark Francis, Editor and Publisher of the HOOP SCOOP, are 6'9 Jr D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL; 6'10 David Padgett from Reno (H.S.) NV; 6'7 Jr Rudy Gay from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ; 6'8 Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN; 6'1 Guillermo Diaz from Miami (Christian) FL; 6'7 Jr Adrian Joseph from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ; 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI; 6'6 Oumar Sylla from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'1 Soph Jarius Hill from Starkville (H.S.) MS; 6'5 Jesus Verdejo from Miami (Christian) FL, 6'8 Sean Banks from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ; 6'11 Darryl Watkins from Paterson (Catholic) NJ; 6'3 Marquis Webb from Paterson (Catholic) NJ; 6'10 Travis Outlaw from Starkville (H.S.) MS; 6'0 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA; 6'8 Jr DeSean White from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA; 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL; 7'0 Will Bowers from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD; 6'8 Will Sheridan from Hockessin (Sanford) DE; 6'7 Jr Alex Galindo from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ; 6'10 Konimba Diarra from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY; 6'4 Darren Clarke from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN with 15 points, seven points, three assists, and two steals; 6'9 Ousmane Konate from Laurinburg (Institute) NC; 6'8 Dan Coleman from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN with 14 points and 10 rebounds; and 6'8 Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA.  Morris hit only 3-14 field goals and his team got destroyed today, because he still has to make the list because he did finish with 14 points, 14 rebounds, and seven blocked shots. 

If you are looking to see a number of the top high school teams in the nation in one venue, there is no doubt that the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL and the Academy National Invitational were the places to be before and after Christmas.  However, if you were looking to see an overwhelming number of outstanding players, then there is no question that Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE, which is in its final day, still reigns supreme, as the top players in the tournament reads like a Who's Who of our top 100 juniors and seniors nationally.  And unless something changes today, the best player in the tournament will 6'8 Leon Powe from Oakland (Tech) CA.  And he's done so while still not being at 100%.  If you will recall, Powe was out all last summer with a serious knee injury and, as a result, is playing like he still has a lot to prove, as he's put up prolific numbers to the tune of 33.5 ppg and 8 rpg in his first two games.   Second on our list for the week is 6'3 Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, who was the best player in the tournament each of the first two days.  But after that everything appears to be up for grabs.  In the first game of the day earlier today, which was the Tip-Off Classic Consolation Game, 6'8 Will Sheridan had 15 points and 10 rebounds, as Hockessin (Sanford) DE knocked off Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, 54-22.  Next, Laurinburg (Institute) NC beat North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD in the 7th Place Game in the Slam Dunk to the Beach Bracket.  Especially noteworthy in that game was the 15-point/13-rebound/four/block/two steal performance by 6'9 Ousmane Konate from Laurinburg (Institute) NC.  Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN beat Starkville (H.S.) MS, 66-56, in the National Powers Series Consolation Game, but 6'8 Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, who finished with 24 points and 10 points, didn't shoot as well as he did last night as he was only 11-21 from the field, including 0-3 from beyond the arc.  Still, that won't prevent Humphries from being ranked among the top five players in the tournament. The leading scorer in the game was 6'1 Soph Jarius Hill from Starkville (H.S.) MS with 28 points and 6'10 Travis Outlaw, who wasn't nearly as good as he was yesterday when he was the best player for the entire day, chipped in with 18 points and four rebounds. Oakland (Tech) CA couldn't match-up inside against Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY in the 5th Place Game in the Slam Dunk to the Beach Bracket, as they got beat 81-51 and Powe turned in his first mediocre performance of the tournament with 11 points, 15 rebounds, and only 4-11 field goals.  Once again, the best player for Our Savior New American was 6'6 Oumar Sylla, who finished with 22 points, 9-14 field goals, and 3-3 3-pointers.  Also not as good as he's been previously in the tournament was 6'8 Jr Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, as he finished with only six points and six rebounds.  However, 6'10 Konimba Diarra from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY had his best game of the tournament with 16 points and seven rebounds.  In a Tommy Jacobs Memorial Game 6'8 Jr Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL scored his team's first eight points, but then he got in foul trouble and, like they say, the rest is history, as Paterson (Catholic) NJ coasted to a 65-44 victory.  Williams did have 21 points and eight rebounds, and a number of electrifying dunks, but the rest of his points came long after the game was over in the second half.  Paterson Catholic was led by 6'11 Darryl Watkins, who finished with 18 points, seven rebounds, two blocks, and two steals and played as well as we've seen him play in quite a while, and 6'3 Marquis Webb, who had with 17 points, five assists, and two steals.  Barrington (St Andrews) RI was down by as many as 12 points early in the 4th quarter in the 3rd Place Game in the Slam Dunk to the Beach Bracket, but had a chance to win in the final seconds, after 6'3 Abdi Lidonde and 6'8 Demetris Nichols both got hot in the 4th quarter, as they combined for 4-4 3-pointers.  But neither was open for the last second shot, as 6'4 Nick Mattone, who was 0-4 on the day from behind the arc, missed what would have been the game tying shot and, as a result, Cardinal Dougherty held on to win 76-73.  6'7 Soph Shane Clark had 15 points and 11 rebounds, 6'8 Jr DeSean White had 21 points, and 6'1 Jr Kyle Lowry had 21 points, five rebounds, and four assists for the winners, while Nichols had 22 points and eight rebounds and Lidonde had 14 points, despite hitting only 4-12 3-pointers for the game. 

Reno (H.S.) NV jumped out to a 19-8 lead early against Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL in the Tip-Off Series Championship Game after 6'9 Jr D.J. White got into foul trouble and 6'10 David Padgett, who accounted for all of his team's first 18 points with five field goals and four assists, was almost impossible to stop when he got the ball inside.  However, once White, who scored 12 points in the second quarter, re-entered the game, Hillcrest went on a 15-5 run and trailed by only one at half-time.  Reno had opened it back up, 43-31, by the end of the third quarter, but Hillcrest made another comeback late in the 4th quarter, as 6'0 Frosh William Barnes and 5'10 Frosh Desmond Jackson hit a pair of threes to made it 47-44.  But that was a close as they were going to get, as Hillcrest's freshmen guards made several critical turnovers and Reno converted their free throws to make the final 51-46.   Padgett finished with 25 points and five rebounds, but we give the edge in the match-up to White, who led Hillcrest with 22 points and nine rebounds.  Speaking of White, we're talking about an explosive athlete with good skills, excellent court awareness, and a nice feel for the game.  Plus, he doesn't go out on the perimeter and try and do things he can't do.  And that's why he reminds our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz of former NBA star Horace Grant.  Instead, White uses his quickness and athleticism to be a dominant force around the basket.  Padgett also has a great feel for the game, is very skilled, and is an offensive threat both inside and outside, as is evident by the fact he hit several 3-pointers and put up prolific number throughout the tournament.  We also have to mention Jackson again, because this freshman with ice in his vains was Hillcrest's second leading scorer with 12 points on 4-8 3-pointers.  Watching 6'5 Jesus Verdejo and 6'1 Guillermo Diaz in transition for Miami (Christian) FL against Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ in the National Power Series Championship was like watching Sports Center on EPSN.  Not only are they both incredible athletes and spectacular dunkers, but they are the heart-and-sole of the most exciting and, perhaps even, the best team in the country.  Verdejo is a world-class athlete in his own right, but he pales in comparison to Diaz, who is reported to have a 50-inch vertical.  We're talking about one of the best leapers/dunkers/showmen that I've ever seen and he generates the same type of excitement that Darrell Griffith, who had a 48-inch vertical leap, did when I first starting watching dunking contests over 25-years ago.  "Griffith jumps so high that he says hello to God three times a quarter," said the legendary Howard Garfinkel, after watching Griffith win the Slam Dunk Contest in the Derby Classic All-Star Game in 1976.   And the same line can be applied to Diaz, who has incredible moves, unbelievable body control, and a crowd pleasing demeanor.  One guy behind me even kept yelling "superman" whenever it appeared that Diaz might be on the verge of doing something spectacular.  However, we want to see Diaz again before we jump on the bandwagon.  Believe it or not, some people in our business are talking about whether Diaz should be a McDonald's All-American.  Others aren't even sure whether Diaz is a high Division I player.  Diaz stronger than he looks, but he's only 6'1, not 6'3, like he was originally reported to be.  He also has a long way to go before he's ready to even think about being a point guard.  However, Diaz does appear to be a much better rebounder and outside shooter than we'd expected him to be, as was evident by his double-digit rebounds, the tough 3-pointer he made from the corner tonight ,and by the fact that he made both the game tying and game winning shots several nights ago.  Diaz, who finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists, also led Miami Christian to a 58-52 victory tonight over Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ.  Verdejo chipped in with 18 points, while 6'7 Jr Adrian Joseph led Bergen Catholic with 20 points and 15 rebounds.  After watching the championship games for the Tip-Off Series and the National Power Series, the championship game for the Slam Dunk to the Beach Division between Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD led Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ turned out to be anticlimactic.  Archbishop Spalding jumped out to a 33-25 half-time led, but, by the end of the third quarter, the lead was down to three and from there it was only matter of time before St. Benedict's prevailed, 49-48.  Tournament MVP honors should have gone to 6'7 Jr Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, but that wasn't going to happen, because they usually don't like to give that honor to somebody on the losing team.  It just isn't politically correct!  However, without Gay, it wouldn't have even been close, as he finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds and played like a man-possessed.  Instead, MVP honors went to 6'7 Jr Alex Galindo from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, who had eight points, nine rebounds, and was 2-13 from the field.  Obviously Galindo, who had scored 13 points and 17 points in his first two games, earned this award based on how well he played earlier in the tournament.  And the fact that Gay was the leading rebounder in the game with 11 rebounds might have been the deciding factor.   In other words, there really was nobody to pick as the MVP from the winning team, as 6'3 Art Bowers, who finished with 10 points, seven rebounds, and 4-12 field goals, and 6'5 Jr J.R. Smith was the leading scorer with 13 points, but didn't play well earlier in the tournament.  Gay did make the all-tournament team for the Slam Dunk to the Beach Division, along with 6'7 Oumar Sylla from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'8 Leon Powe from Oakland (Tech) CA, 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'7 Soph Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'1 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 7'0 Will Bowers from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, and 6'3 Art Bowers from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ.  As a always, a special thanks to tournament director Bobby Jacobs, who continues to do a marvelous job of getting incredible amount of the top talent in the nation to Lewes, DE every year. 

The top 20 players at based on performance from yesterday, Sunday, December 29th, at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE, according to our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz, include:  1) 6'10 Travis Outlaw from Starkville (H.S.) MS with 26 points and nine rebounds; 2) 6'8 Sean Banks from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ with 22 points and six points; 3) 6'3 Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA with 12 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists; 4) 6'8 Jr James Gist from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD with 22 points; 5) 6'8 Jr D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL with 16 points and six rebounds; 6) 6'8 Jr Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY with 19 points; 7) 6'7 Jr Adrian Joseph from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ with 12 points and 12 rebounds; 8) 6'9 Jr Jerome Johnson from Potomac (Bullis School) MD with 18 points and four; 9) 6'8 Omari Israel from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD with 16 points and nine rebounds; 10) 6'5 Soph Ryan Ayers from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA with 18 points and right rebounds; 11) 6'1 Soph Jarius Hall from Starkville (H.S.) MS with 17 points; 12) 6'3 Jr Antwan Harrison from Washington (Gonzaga) DC with 14 points; 13) 6'6 Luke Owings from Washington (Gonzaga) DC with 12 points and nine rebounds; 14) 6'7 Babacar Thiam from Washington (Springarn) DC with 14 points and seven rebounds; 15) 6'8 Will Sheridan from Hockessin (Sanford) DE with 14 points; 16) 6'6 Oumar Sylla from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY; 17) 6'8 Jr Ben Nwachakwo from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ with 16 points and six rebounds; 18) 6'4 Jerome Petticolas from Washington (Spingarn) DC with 10 points and eight rebounds; 19) 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 12 points (four 3-pointers), and 20) 6'2 Shannon Davis from Wilmington (St. Mark's) DE with 18 points.  Editor's Note:  Yesterday was more like the first day at Slam Dunk to the Beach, as many of the top players and teams were not on the schedule.  Therefore, top performances on the second, third, and final days of the tournament will be worth more than those from the first and fourth days of the tournament.  My input will be factored in from the first, part of the fourth, and the final day and our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin's input will be factored in from the first three-and-a-half days.  However, in the final analysis Dave Schultz, who has not only seen, but has kept statistics for every game of the tournament from start to finish, will make the call.  So make sure you check out our final rankings from Slam Dunk to the Beach tomorrow. 

Sunday, December 29, 2002

The rankings of the top 25 players in order based on performance from yesterday, Saturday, December 28th, at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE, as provided by our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz and Philedelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin are as follows:  1) 6'8 Leon Powe from Oakland (Tech) CA with 36 points and six rebounds; 2) 5'11 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY with 34 points; 3) 6'11 David Padgett from Reno (H.S.) NV with 29 points and 10 rebounds; 4) 6'3 Guillermo Diez from Miami (Christian) FL with 18 points and eight rebounds; 5) Kris Humphries from Beaumont (Ozen) TX with 20 points and 10 rebounds; 6) 6'2 Jr A.J. Price from Amityville (H.S.) NY with 32 points; 7) 6'10 Kendrick Perkins from Beaumont (Ozen) TX with 20 points and 10 rebounds; 8) 6'4 Jerome Petticolas from Washington (Spingarn) DC with 25 points and nine rebounds; 9) 6'6 Oumar Sylla from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY with 21 points; 10) 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 16 points and 11 rebounds; 11) 6'11 Jr Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA with 22 points and 11 rebounds; 12) 6'6 Kenna Young from Beaumont (Ozen) TX with 13 points and 11 rebounds; 13) 6'7 Jr Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD with 15 points and seven rebounds; 14) 6'8 Jr Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY with 19 points; 15) 6'7 Soph Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Daugherty) PA with 19 points; 16) 6'7 Jr Alex Galindo from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ with 16 points and 10 rebounds; 17) 6'1 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA with 10 points; 18) 6'8 Jr Michael Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL; 19) 7'0 Will Bowers from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD with 13 points and four rebounds; 20) 6'4 Darren Clarke from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN with 12 points; 21) 6'4 Jesus Verdejo from Miami (Christian) FL with 17 points; 22) 6'9 Jr Davis Nwankwo from North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD with 17 points and four rebounds; 23) 6'1 Bashir Mason from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ with 13 points and five assists; 24) 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 16 points; 25) 6'8 Jr James Gist from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD with 16 points and six rebounds; and 25) 6'7 Babacar Thiam from Washington (Spingarn) DC with 15 points and six rebounds.

Saturday, December 28, 2002

Yesterday I caught the first flight out of BWI in order to spend two days covering the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX.  However, our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz and our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin are still at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE and it appears that yesterday was much more interesting than the first day, as more of the top players and teams participated and the individual performances were a lot better.  As a matter of fact, their list of the top 25 players, based on action from yesterday only, reads like a Who's Who of the top high school players in the nation.  Let's take a closer look.  For the second consecutive day the best player at Slam Dunk to the Beach was 6'3 Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA with 24 points, nine rebounds, and four assists.  A close second was 6'10 Kendrick Perkins from Beaumont (Ozen) TX with 21 points, 14 rebounds, and two blocked shots.  Next, in order were 6'8 Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN with 21 point, 11 rebounds, and four assists; 6'4 Marques Webb from Paterson (Catholic) NJ with 28 points and eight rebounds; 6'8 Leon Powe from Oakland (Tech) CA, who still isn't close to being 100%, with 31 points and 10 rebounds; 6'8 Jr D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL with 21 points and nine rebounds; 6'10 David Padgett from Reno (H.S.) NV with 27 points and seven rebounds; 6'1 Guillermo Diaz from Miami (Christian) FL with 22 points; 6'3 Art Bowers from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ with 21 points and nine rebounds; 6'4 Brian Mason from Laurinburg (Institute) NC with 22 points and six rebounds; 6'7 Soph Antonio Pena from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY with 21 points and nine rebounds; 6'10 Travis Outlaw from Starkville (H.S.) MS with 14 points, six rebounds, five blocked shots, and four assists; 6'5 Jesus Verdejo from Miami (Christian) FL with 29 points and seven rebounds; 6'2 Jr Courtney Nelson from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ with 21 points and eight assists; 6'4 Raul Orta from Miami (Christian) FL with 15 points and three assists; 6'8 Dan Coleman from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN with 14 points and six assists; 6'11 Darryl Watkins from Paterson (Catholic) NJ with 14 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocked shots; 6'1 Jr Da'Shawn Dwight from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ with 20 points; 6'2 Christopher Pugh from Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD with 19 points and four rebounds; 6'2 Jr Stanley Hodge from Washington (Gonzaga) DC with 18 points and nine rebounds; 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 16 points and four rebounds; 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 26 points and 7-10 3-pointers; 5'10 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY with 13 points and seven assists, but only 4-18 field goals; 6'7 Jr Alex Galindo from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ with 13 points and 10 rebounds; 6'2 Shannon Davis from Wilmington (St. Mark's) DE with 29 points, six rebounds, and four assists; and 6'8 Jr Ben Nwachakwo from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ with 13 points and 11 rebounds. 

Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX beat Houston (Aldine) TX, 84-65; Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC beat Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN, 56-51; Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX beat Aldine (Nimitz) TX, 74-71, and Los Angeles (Westchester) TX beat Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 63-58, earlier today in semi-finals consolation games in the National and Texas Divisions at the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX.  Especially noteworthy was the 33- point performance by 6'5 Vakeaton Wafer from Cleveland (Heritage) TX, who onc again showed why we think he is one of the top 10 seniors nationally, as well as one of the best 3-point shooters in the nation.  In this game he was 5-9 from beyond the arc, but he also finished 11-17 from the field and and had seven rebounds.  We also were very impressed with 6'5 Soph Rashad Woods from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, who is just one many outstanding young players that head coach Jerome Tang has in this program.  Woods, who finished with 19 points today against Houston (Aldine) TX, complemented Wafer outside with 3-8 3-point field goals.  But he's also equally good at using his explosiveness and athleticism to score in transtion.   We also were very impressed by 6'7 Justin Bohlander from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, who continued to do all the blue collar work inside (eight rebounds), but, who showed that he has good offensive skills around the basket, as he hit 8-11 field goals and led R.J. Reynolds in scoring with 18 points.  Bohandler also has enough mobility and athleticism to be ranked among our top 150 nationally and get recruited at the high Division I level.  However, right now nobody's recruiting him.   If you will reccall, he was supposed to get an academic scholarship and walk-on at North Carolina next year, but that probably won't happen, because Tar Heels assistant coach Fred Quartlebaum made an illegal contact with him last week after a game and, as a result, turned himself into the NCAA.  Also in light of the fact that 6'8 Sean May was injured in North Carolina's loss last night to Iona and, as a result, will be out for eight weeks, Bohlander probably would be North Carolina's best inside player right now, if he was a college freshman, instead of high school senoir.   We do know that USC assistant coach Kurtis Townsend, who is one of the most astute evaluators of talent in the business, plans to offer Bohlander based on his performance here, but our guess is that his list will get longer before it gets shorter.  Booker T. Washington's leading scorer was 5'9 Jr James Hooper with 21 points, but, as usual, the guy who made this team go was 5'10 Jr Andre Allen, who finished with 11 points, six rebounds, and seven assists.   Obviously we like Allen's upper body strength, athleticism, and ability to get to the hole, but we continue to question his outside shooting and how mich better he'll get.   We also once again were impressed by 6'7 Cartier Martin and 6'5 Blake Adams from Aldine (Nimitz) TX, who combined for 52 of their team's 71 points.   But this still wasn't enough for Nimitz to beat Cedar Hill.  An even better question is how does Cedar Hill win the game when 6'1 Jason Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX has almost as many turnovers (11) as he does points (15)?  The answer was a big performance from 6'4 Kelvin Williams, who finished with 23 points and nine rebounds.  Not only is Williams an excellent athlete who does most of his damage around the basket, but he reminds us of a smaller version of former University of Louisville power forward Alex Sanders.  In the final consolation game 6'10 Ndudi Ebi from Houston (Westbury Christrian) TX, who had only five points and one rebound at half-time, and 6'8 Trevor Ariza from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, who was equally mediocre in the first half with only five points and two rebounds, both came to life in the second half, as Ebi exploded for 27 points and eight rebounds and Ariza finished with 13 points and nine rebounds.  Ariza was complemented by 6'6 Scott Cutley, who finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds, and 6'4 Jr Jonathan Toliver, who had 17 points.  Chipping in with 11 points for Westbury Christian was 6'5 Ugo Ihekweauz.

Now that former Atlanta Hawks head coach Lon Kruger is looking for a job and UCLA's record has dropped to 2-5, after today's loss to Michigan, it only makes sense that Kruger's name suddenly is being mentioned as one of the leading candidates to replace Steve Lavin, if he gets the ax next spring.  However, before anybody starts to write Lavin's obituary, don't forget that this guy with nine lives.  He also should have 6'8 Marcedes Lewis from Long Beach (Poly) CA, who was a top 100 senior nationally in our final rankings of the top players in the Class of 2002, from the football team almost immediately.  And once Lewis gets into basketball shape and has some time to learn the system, UCLA should the inside presence necessary to show dramatic improvement later in the season.  However, if this doesn't happen, then there is no doubt that Lavin is in trouble.  As a matter of fact, in addition to Kruger, the list of potential candidates to replace Lavin already includes Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried, Missouri head coach Quin Synder, Pittsburgh head coach Ben Howland, Utah head coach Rick Majerus, Gonzaga head coach Mark Few, Washington head coach Lorenzo Romar, and UC-Irvine head coach Pat Douglass.  Obviously Romar is a long shot, because he hasn't put all the pieces together since he was at Pepperdine four years ago, but Douglass has a lot better shot than most people realize.  Remember, the new athletic director at UCLA hired Douglass at UC-Irvine six years ago.  We also hear that 6'3 Dommanic Ingerson, who is transferring from the University of Michigan, may be on the verge of picking San Francisco.  And this would make sense, because Ingerson is originally from Santa Barbara (H.S.) CA.  This also would give the Dons what arguably should be the best one-two punch in the West Coast Conference, if 6'9 Julian Sensley from L.A. City (JC) CA, who is one of the top junior college players in the nation, finally meets the academic requirements necessary to be eligible to play at a four-year Division I school.  We also understand that Rhode Island is the heavy favorite for 6'8 Scott Hazelton, who is transferring from the University of Connecticut.  But we also know that the University of Richmond is on the verge of getting a highly touted inside player on the bounce and we suspect Hazelton might be the guy.  The list for 6'1 Jr Jason Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX includes Missouri, Texas, Stanford, Duke, and Michigan.   The favorites for 6'3 Daniel Gibson from Houston (Jones) TX are Texas, North Carolina, and Georgia Tech.  We also have confirmed that 6'9 Nick Stigger, who recently left Van Nuys (Montclair Prep) CA is back in Memphis at Booker T. Washington High School, but he won't be eligible to play until school resumes in early January.  As a result, Stigger was not available to give Booker T. Washington the inside presence they needed at the Academy National Invitational, which is going on right now in Houston, TX.   Right now Booker T. Washington is 0-2 in the tournament.  We suspect that Valparaiso stashed 6'8 Jr Juan Diego Palacios, who reminds us of Jamal Mashburn in many ways, at Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, but the list he gave our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin two days ago at Slam Dunk to the Beach included UNLV, Tennessee, N.C. State, Louisville, Syracuse, Illinois, Standford, and South Florida.

It looked like it was going to be a carbon copy of the championship game earlier this weekend in the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL between New York (Rice) NY and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, as Rice jumped out to a 17-6 lead in today's first National Bracket Semi-Finals Game in the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX.  But St. Patrick had closed by gap to six by half-time and they went on an 11-0 run to start the second half to make it 33-28.  And from that point on it was like a chess match, as neither team could establish any momentum and both teams matched one another whenever the other team made a big play.  However, in the final minute 6'2 Jr Russell Robinson fouled out for Rice and, as a result, they had nobody to take and make the game winning shot, like they did they did last night against Los Angeles (Westchester) CA.  Rice also were unable to take advantage of the size of 7'3 Shagari Alleyne, who normally has a knack for being in the right place at the right time to make the play, as he missed some big shots and was unable to react to things that weren't right in front of him.  The game also was a little more physical than Alleyne would have liked, plus, all too often, he was further away from the basket than Rice head coach Maurice Hicks would have liked.   Still, they got very balanced scoring from 6'7 Arturo Dubois, who finished with 15 points, and Robinson and Alleyne, who scored 14 points a piece, as they accounted for 44 of Rice's 52 points.  They (Alleyne, Robinson, and Dubois) also combined to hit 18 of 31 from the field, as Rice hit 22-42 (52%) from the field.  St. Patrick countered with Patterson's hot hand as he finished with 5-13 3-pointers.  And really that was the difference in the game, as St. Patrick hit 6-22 3-pointers compared to only 1-8 3-pointers for Rice.  And once again 5'11 Jason Patterson came up big for St. Patrick's with 15 points and 6'11 Grant Billmeier, who finished with 10 points and three rebounds, won the battle of the big guys inside against Alleyne.  Obviously it wasn't very pretty, but St. Patrick's 55-52 victory over Rice does establish them as the favorite to win the National Division of the Academy National Invitational on Monday night against the winner of the Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA-Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA game, which willbe played later tonight.  Earlier tonight Houston (Jones) TX knocked off Houston (Westfield) TX in the first Texas Division Semi-Finals Game, thanks primarily to the efforts of 6'3 Jr Daniel Gibson from Houston (Jones) TX, who, now is our choice as the best player in both tournaments after the first two days.  Not only did Gibson score 23 points today, but he grabbed four rebounds, dished out four assists, and shot the lights out from beyond the arc, as he made 5-9 3-pointers.  Once again the best player for Westfield was 6'2 Adam Galbreath, but this lefty slasher's best sport is football and he lacks a true position in basketball.  In the second Texas Division Semi-Finals Game between Port Arthur (Memorial) TX and Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX it was a lot more closer than we expected, as Memorial won 59-53 (we didn't think Strake Jesuit would be able to handle Memorial's pressure nor match up with them athletically).  The leading scorer for Memorial was 6'4 Joshua Charles with 15 points.  Strake Jesuit's best player is 6'4 Park Pinkalla and he finished with 21 points.  The second game in the National Division of the Academy National Invitational started off just like the first one as Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA jumped out to a 7-2 lead.  However, unlike Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, Oak Hill made things more interesting a little quicker, as they cut the lead to 18-14 late in the first quarter and went into the locker room with a 35-30 half-time lead.  Not only is this a different team than we saw yesterday, but Rainier Beach had already scored almost as many points in the first half as they scored yesterday in the entire game when they beat Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, 36-34.   And just like St. Patrick in the other National Semi-Finals Game, Oak Hill went on a 9-2 run to start the second half against Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA and, from there, it was too close to call, as neither team was up by more than six the rest of the way in what easily was the best game of the entire first two days.  And just like St. Patrick in the earlier game, Oak Hill was able to hold on to win, 69-65.  Which means the pre-season #1-ranked team (Oak Hill), according to the USA Today, has knocked off the USA Today's current #1-ranked team (Rainier Beach) and, as a result, will get to play the team we think really is the best team in the nation (St. Patrick), despite the fact they (St. Patrick) lost earlier this week to the team (Rice) they beat tonight.  Certainly it doesn't get any better than this, unless you have 6'7 LeBron James from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH, who, by the way, led his team to a thrilling 67-62 overtime win against Columbus (Brookhaven) OH, which also is one of the best teams in the nation, earlier tonight in Columbus, OH.  Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson was at the game and he tells us that James had 27 points and 5'7 Andrew Lavender from Columbus (Brookhaven) OH finished with 26 points.  Getting back to the Oak Hill-Rainier Beach game, the leading scorer for Oak Hill was 6'2 Marcus Williams with 21 points, but even more important were his nine assists.  Add that to the 14 assists that Williams had yesterday against Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN and it's easy to see why were have him ranked as the #1 player based on the first two days at the Academy National Invitational.  And right behind Williams in our rankings is 6'4 Rodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA.  Not only did Stewart scored 20 points and grab six rebounds, but he also had six assists and three steals, as he was the catalyst for Rainier Beach's transition game.  The best players from the Academy National Invitational after two days are as follows:  Marcus Williams, Rodrick Stewart, 6'3 Jr Daniel Gibson from Houston (Jones) TX, 6'10 Ndudi Ebi from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'5 Vakeaton Wafer from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'7 Cartier Martin from Aldine (Nimitz) TX, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY, 5'11 Jason Patterson from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'8 Trevor Ariza from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'2 Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY, 6'1 Jr Jason Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, 6'8 Ivan Harris from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 Blake Adams from Aldine (Nimitz) TX, 6'4 Parker Pinkalla from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX, 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubois from New York (Rice) NY, 6'2 Jr Isaiah Swann from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 5'10 Andre Allen from Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN, 6'4 Kelvin Williams from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, 6'7 Justin Bohlander from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, 6'1 Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'10 Jr Chester Giles from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'11 Grant Billmeier from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'2 Adam Galbreath from Houston (Westfield) TX, 5'9 Jr James Hooper from Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN, 6'5 Soph Rashad Woods from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, and 6'2 Marcus Williams from Houston (Aldine) TX.  Conspicuous by their absence are players like 6'7 Reyshawn Terry from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'2 J.R. Reynolds from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'9 Byron Joynes from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Warren Scott from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 6'4 Lodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, all of whom have big time reputations, but did not play as well as we've seen them play in other venues.  

Friday, December 27, 2002

The big game between Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA and Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC at the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX had all the ingredients necessary to be a great game, as 6'4 Rodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'4 Lodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'7 Reyshawn Terry from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, 6'10 Jr Chester Giles from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, and 6'8 Keith Foster from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC are all players with national reputations and both teams are nationally ranked in the latest high school polls.  As a matter of fact, Rainier Beach is currently ranked as the #1 high school in the nation in the latest USA Today poll and R.J. Reynolds was ranked as high #6 nationally by the USA Today prior to the start of the season.  So obviously it was a major disappointment when both teams combined to score only 70 points.   Rainier Beach squeaked it out 36-34, but R.J. Reynolds, which led 22-14 at half-time, scored only 12 points in the second half and they shot a miserable 7-34 from the field for the game.  They also only hit 1-8 from beyond the arc, but Rainier Beach was even worse, as they didn't hit a 3-pointer all day (0-12).  The only player to score in double-digits for Rainier Beach was Rodrick Stewart, who finished with 13 points, five steals and 5-12 field goals.  Lodrick  Stewart hit 2-11 field goals en route to only five points for Rainier Beach. The leading scorer for R.J. Reynolds was Foster with 13 points and seven rebounds, but it proved to be a very tough day for Terry, who went 2-12 from the field and 1-5 3-point land, as he posted only nine points for the game.  We also have to mention 6'7 Justin Bohlander from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, because we liked his blue collar work ethic and toughness on the boards.  However, he scored all four of his points at the foul line, as he hit 0-6 field goals.  And the three games earlier in the day, also weren't overly exciting, as Port Arthur (Memorial) TX beat Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 74-53; Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA beat Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TX, 63-56; and Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX beat Houston (Aldine) TX, 52-50.  But we do have to make note of the 14 assists by 6'2 Marcus Williams from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, the excellent outside shooting (4-7 3-pointers en route to 23 points) by 6'2 Jr Isaiah Swann from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, the 18 point/12 rebound effort turned in by 6'5 Chris Chaney from Houston (Aldine) TX; and 17 points by 6'4 Parker Pinkalla from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX.  Things did start to heat up as in the 5th game of the day as Houston (Westfield) TX knocked off Aldine (Nimitz) TX, 68-63.   And the big difference in the game was Nimitz's inability to negate Westfield's 6'2 Adam Galbreath with the outside shooting of 6'6 Cartier Martin and 6'6 Blake Adams.  Galbreath, who did most of his damage in transition and from mid-range and in, hit 12-17 field goals, as he finished with 26 points.  Martin and Adams did combine for 45 of their team's 63 points and 15 of their team's rebouds, but they also were only a combined 3-9 from beyond the arc.  Next came the game between New York (Rice) NY and Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which more than lived up to the billing, as Rice jumped out early to a 22-11 lead.   Then, Westchester, thanks primarily to the efforts of 6'8 Trevor Ariza, who had picked up where he left off when we last saw him at the adidas Big Time Tournament last summer in Las Vegas, NV, came back and led most of the second half.   However, in the end, Rice did what great team's are supposed to do.  And the player who came up big at crunch time once again for Rice was 6'2 Jr Russell Robinson, who hit the game winning shot in the final seconds to make it 52-51.   If you will recall, Robinson was the MVP last week, after scoring 42 points in the semi-finals and 18 points in the championship, most of which came down the stretch, when Rice won the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  The leading scorer (20 points) and rebounder (eight boards) for Rice was 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY.  Robinson and 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubois both chipped in with 11 points apiece for Rice.  Ariza not only led Westchester with 22 points, six rebounds, four steals, and three blocks, but he also thrived in his team's uptempo setting, hit 10-12 field goals, and played tremendous intensity.  Unfortunately the much anticipated match-up in the next game between 6'3 Jr Daniel Gibson from Houston (Jones) TX and 6'1 Jr Jason Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX was somewhat of a disappointment.  And actually it was almost too close to call, as they both finished with 18 points and neither shot well from the field, as was evident by Horton's 6-18 field goals and 1-5 3-pointers and Gibson's 6-17 field goals and 2-7 3-pointers.  Gibson also had seven rebounds, three assists, and three blocks, while Horton had four asssits, three steals, and five turnovers.   Here, the edge goes to Gibson, but overall we like Horton better, because he's more of a pure point guard, as he makes great decisions, breaks you down off the dribble, and is an outstanding ball handler and passer.  He also shoots it just as well as Gibson, plus he has explosive speed and quickness, can stop on a dime, and changes speeds as well as anybody.  However, Gibson is bigger, rebounds better, and is more under control.  In other words, you can go wrong with either player, as both are ranked among our top 15 juniors nationally.  It looks like their loss in the championship game in Ft. Myers, FL earlier this week provided the necessary wake-up call to Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ.  Not only did St. Patrick jump out early to a 19-4 lead, but they never looked back against Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, as they coasted to 67-46 victory.   Another big difference between tonight's game and earlier in the week was St. Patrick's ability to hit the outside shot (9-16 3-point shooting).  St. Patrick's was led by 6'1 Michael Nardi with 18 points, three assists, and four steals, while 6'11 Grant Billmeier chipped in with 13 points and four rebounds 5'11 Jason Patterson had 19 points and four steals.  6'10 Ndudi Ebi from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, who finished with 24 points, nine rebounds, and four blocked shots was only player who stepped up for Westbury Christian, but even he did most of his damage after the game was over.  Tomorrow's Consolation Bracket Games in the Academy National Invitational will begin at 9:30 AM with Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX versus Houston (Aldine) TX, followed by Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN at 11:00 AM, Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX versus Aldine (Nimitz) TX at 12:30 PM, and Houston (Westbury Christian) TX versus Los Angeles (Westchester) CA at 2:00 PM.  Tomorrow's Winners Bracket Games will feature Houston (Westfield) TX versus Houston (Jones) TX at 3:30 PM, New York (Rice) NY versus Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ at 5:00 PM, Port Arthur (Memorial) TX versus Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX at 6:30 PM, and Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA versus Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA at 8:00 PM.  Yes, that's a rematch of the City of Palms Classic Championship Game from five days ago betwen Rice and St. Patrick in Ft. Myers, FL, as well as the USA Today's current #1-ranked team (Rainier Beach) versus its pre-season #1-ranked team (Oak Hill).  And our guess is that it will be St. Patrick versus Oak Hill in the finals on Monday, December 30th at 8:00 PM.

Thursday, December 26, 2002

Earlier today at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE 6'3 Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds versus Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA and 6'1 Jr A.J. Price from Amityville (H.S.) NY had 30 points, seven rebounds, and five assists, but both of these performances were cut short as Shakur fouled out with 2:35 left in the third quarter against Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA and Price was slowed by an injury early in the fourth quarter against Bloomfield (Tech) NJ  However, the rest of the day was very uneventful and the low scores and the fact that most of the teams played a zone defense tells a lot of the story.  The results are as follows:  Laurel (H.S.) DE beat Lewes (Cape Henlopen) DE, 67-63; Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA beat Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 67-57; Amityville (H.S.) NY beat Bloomfield (Tech) NJ, 72-63; Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD beat Oradell (Bergen Catholic) PA, 57-54; Washington (Spingarn) DC beat Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD, 75-57; Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD beat Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 53-52; Potomac (Bullis School) MD beat Hockessin (Sanford) DE, 43-40; Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD beat North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, 45-40; and Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA beat Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 64-57.  And to provide even further evidence of how mediocre the first day was is the list of big name players who failed to even make our list of the top players, which can be found below.   Those who didn't make the list are 6'8 Sean Banks, who shot a miserable 4-14 from the field en route to a 11-point/rebound performance against Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD; 6'8 Omari Israel and 6'8 Jr James Gist, both from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, who combined for only 14 points and eight rebounds versus Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ; 6'7 Babacar Thiam from Washington (Spingarn) DC, who hit only 3-12 field goals and finished with seven points and five turnovers; 6'9 Jr Jerome Johnson from Potomac (Bullis School) MD, who finished with only three points and six rebounds against Hockessin (Sanford) DE; and 6'7 Jr Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, who had six points and two rebounds against North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD.  The top players at Slam Dunk to the Beach based on performance in order after the first day were Shakur; Price; 6'6 Oumar Sylla from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, who scored all but 12 of his team's points in the second half en route to a 26-point effort against Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA; 6'0 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA with 13 points, 10 rebounds, and three assists versus Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY; 6'8 Jr Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, who had 14 points and nine rebounds against Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA; 7'0 Will Bowers from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, who had 16 points, four rebounds, four blocked shots, was 9-12 from the foul line, and did a lot things that don't show up in the box score versus North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD; 7'2 Jr Roy Hibbert from North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, who was in foul trouble and didn't play most of the second half, but had nine points and five rebounds versus Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD; 6'9 Jr Davis Nwankwo from North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, who had seven points, seven rebounds, and seven blocked shots versus Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD; 6'2 Jr Courtney Nelson from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ with 18 points versus Amityville (H.S.) NY; 6'4 Jerome Petticolas from Washington (Spingarn) DC with 28 points and 10 rebounds versus Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD; 6'2 Christopher Pugh from Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD, who scored 18 points and hit the game winning 3-point shot versus Washington (Gonzaga) DC; 6'1 Isaac Greer from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA with 15 points versus Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY; 6'7 Soph Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA with 13 points and nine rebounds versus Centerach (Our Savior New American) NY; 6'6 Soph Brian Grimes from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA with 13 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and three blocked shots versus Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA; 6'1 Jr Da'Shawn Dwight from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ with 22 points and six assists versus Amityville (H.S.) NY; 6'8 Jr DeSean White from Philadelpia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA with 13 points and six rebounds versus Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY; 6'4 Sohi Frazier from Washington (Spingarn) DC with 15 points, nine rebounds, and three steals versus Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD; 6'5 Soph Ryan Ayers from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA with 20 points, 8-12 field goals, and seven rebounds versus Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA; 6'5 Soph Paul Johnson from Washington (Gonzaga) DC with 11 points and 10 rebounds versus Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD; 6'8 Will Sheridan from Hockessin (Sanford) DE, who had 11 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocked shots against Potomac (Bullis School) MD; 6'7 Jr Adrian Joseph from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ with 16 points and 10 rebounds versus Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD; 6'9 Jr Jared Gaither form Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD with 17 points, 6-7 field goals, and eight rebounds versus Washington (Spingarn) DC; 6'0 Kevin App from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, who scored 22 points and was one of the best 3-point shooters we saw all day (3-8 3-pointers) against Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ; 6'5 Anton Ridley from Laurel (H.S.) MD with 17 points and 14 rebounds versus Laurel (H.S.) DE; 6'1 Daniel Marshall from Washington (Spingarn) DC with 17 points, five assists, six turnovers, and seven steals versus Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD; 6'3 Jr Antwan Harrison from Washington (Gonzaga) DC with 15 points and nine rebounds against Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD; 6'2 Jr Deandre Scott from Lewes (Cape Henelopen) DE, who hit 3-6 3-pointers en route to 22 points and 10 rebounds versus Lewes (Cape Henelopen) DE; and 6'0 Jr Jackie Taylor from Lewes (Cape Henelopen) DE with 17 points versus Laurel (H.S.) DE. 

Wednesday, December 25, 2002

Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE, which is one of the premier events of the entire year, tips off tomorrow and the first game will be at 10:00 AM with Lewes (Cape Henlopen) DE versus Laurel (H.S.) DE, followed by Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, versus Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA at 11:30 AM; Amityville (H.S.) NY versus Bloomfield (Tech) NJ at 1:00 PM, Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD versus Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ at 2:30 PM, Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD versus Washington (Spingarn) DC at 4:00 PM, Washington (Gonzaga) DC versus Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD at 5:30 PM, Potomac (Bullis School) MD versus Hockessin (Sanford) DE at 7:00 PM, Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD versus North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD at 8:30 PM, and Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA versus Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY at 10:00 PM.  The schedule on Friday, December 27th, will include Bloomfield (Tech) NJ versus Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA at 8:30 AM, Wilmington (St. Mark's) NJ versus Laurel (H.S.) DE at 10:00 AM, Richland (St. Augustine) NJ versus Washington (Gonzaga) DC at 11:30 AM, Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD versus Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN at 1:00 PM, Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD versus Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY at 2:30 PM, Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL versus Starkville (H.S.) MS at 4:00 PM, Miami (Christian) FL versus Reno (H.S.) NV at 5:30 PM, Beaumont (Ozen) TX versus Paterson (Catholic) NJ at 7:00 PM, Laurinburg (Institute) NC versus Barrington (St. Andrews) RI at 8:30 PM, and Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ versus Oakland (Tech) CA at 10:00 PM.  The schedule on Saturday, December 28th, has Washington (Spingarn) DC versus Amityville (H.S.) NY at 8:30 AM, Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD versus Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD at 10:00 AM, Potomac (Bullis School) MD versus Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY at 11:30 AM, Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA versus Reno (H.S.) NV at 1:00 PM, the loser of Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD-North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD versus the loser of Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA-Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY in the Slam Dunk Consolation Semi-Finals at 2:30 PM, the loser of Laurinburg (Institute) NC-Barrington (St. Andrews) RI versus the loser of Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ versus Oakland (Tech) CA in the Slam Dunk Consolation Semi-Finals at 4:00 PM, Beaumont (Ozen) TX versus Camden (Wilcox Central) AL at 5:30 PM, Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN versus Miami (Christian) FL at 7:00 PM, the winner of Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD-North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD versus the winner of Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA-Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY in the Slam Dunk Semi-Finals at 8:30 PM, and the winner of Laurinburg (Institute) NC-Barrington (St. Andrews) RI versus the winner of Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ versus Oakland (Tech) CA in the Slam Dunk Semi-Finals at 10:00 PM.  The schedule on Sunday, December 29th, includes Lewes (Cape Henelopen) DE versus Richland (St. Augustine) NJ at 10:00 AM, the Mayor's Cup Consolation Game at 11:30 AM, the Mayor's Cup Championship at 1:00 PM, Washington (Spingarn) DC versus Potomac (The Bullis School) MD at 2:30 PM, Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL versus Hockessin (Sanford) DE at 4:00 PM, Washington (Gonzaga) DC versus Barrington (St. Andrews) RI at 5:30 PM, Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY versus Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD at 7:00 PM, and Starkville (H.S.) MS versus (Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ at 8:30 PM.  The schedule on Monday begins at 8:30 AM with the Tip-Off Classic Consolation, followed by the Slam Dunk -7th Place Game at 10:00 AM, the National Power Series Consolation Game 11:30 PM, the Slam Dunk-5th Place Game at 1:00 PM, Camden (Wilcox Central) AL versus Paterson (Catholic) NJ at 2:30 PM, the Slam Dunk-3rd Place Game at 4:00 PM, the Tip-Off Championship Game at 5:30 PM, National Power Series Championship Game at 7:00 PM, and the Slam Dunk-Championship Game at 8:30 PM.   The top players include at Slam Dunk to the Beach will include 5'10 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, 6'3 Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 6'8 Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, 6'7 Sean Banks from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ, 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) DE, 6'9 Travis Outlaw from Starkville (H.S.) MS, 6'10 David Padgett from Reno (H.S.) NV, 6'10 Jr Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, 6'11 Darryl Watkins from Paterson (Catholic) NJ, 6'7 Regis Koundjia from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'8 Leon Powe from Oakland (Tech) CA, 6'8 Will Sheridan from Hockessin (Sanford) DE, 6'8 Jr Stanley Branch from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'3 Art Bowers from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'6 Jr Earl Smith from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'7 Barbacar Thiem from Washington (Spingarn) DC, 6'3 Soleheim Frazier from Washington (Spingarn) DC, 6'8 Jr D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, 6'8 Jr Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'7 Demetrius Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'0 Jr A.J Price from Amityville (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Omari Israel from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, 6'9 Oumar Sylla from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'8 Boubacour Coly from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'1 Guillermo Diaz from Miami (Christian) FL, 6'9 Konimba Darra from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'4 Jesus Verdejo from Miami (Christian) FL, 6'3 Marquis Webb from Paterson (Catholic) NJ, 6'11 Will Bowers from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, 6'3 Abid Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'0 Jr Emery Outland from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Jr Nick Matone from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Rashard Nixon from Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD, 6'8 Daniel Coleman from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, 6'7 Keena Young from Beaumont (Ozen) TX, 5'11 Jr Roy Hibbert from North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, 6'9 Jr Davis Nwanko from North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, 6'8 Jr Jerome Johnson from Potomac (Bullis School) MD, 6'9 Jr Jarrett Gaither from Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD, 6'7 Jr DeSean White from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 5'11 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'8 Jr James Gist from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, 6'0 Jr Lorenzo Miles from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'6 Soph Shane Clark from from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'4 Jr Bilal Benn from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'3 Jr Antwan Harrison from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'6 Soph Paul Johnson from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, and 6'1 Jr Courtney Nelson from Bloomfield (Bloomfield Tech) NJ.  For even more information about the Slam Dunk to the Beach, go to there website at Slam Dunk to the Beach.

Tuesday, December 24, 2002

There were not a lot of changes during the final day at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, as the leading scorers in the tournament were 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 29.0 ppg, 6'1 Jay Jackson led Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 26.8 ppg, 6'2 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY with 24.3 ppg, 6'2 Tre Kelley from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 22.7 ppg, 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 22.7 ppg, 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 18.8 ppg, 6'4 Brendon Rooney from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 18.0 ppg, 6'5 Louie McCroskey from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 17.8 ppg, 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 16.5 ppg, 6'5 Jr Brian Laing from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 16.5 ppg, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY with 16.3 ppg, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 16.3 ppg, 6'3 Wesley Washington from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 16.3 ppg, 6'2 Jr Johnny Hammons from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 15.3 ppg, and 6'4 Johnny Hodge from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 15.3 ppg.  The leading rebounders in the tournament were 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 10.3 rpg, 6'7 Cedric McGowan from Miami (Northwestern) FL with 10.3 rpg, 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 9.3 rpg, 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 9.3 rpg, 6'5 Louie McCroskey from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 9.0 rpg, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 8.8 rpg, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY with 8.3 rpg, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 8.0 rpg, 6'9 Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 8.0 rpg, 6'8 Jr Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 7.5 rpg, 6'6 Jr Lamar Barrett from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 7.5 rpg, 6'4 Assad Shakir from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 7.0 rpg, 6'11 Grant Billmeier from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 7.0 rpg, 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubios from New York (Rice) NY with 6.8 rpg, 6'4 Steve Dryer from New York (Rice) NY with 6.5 rpg, and 6'2 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY with 6.0 rpg.  The assists leaders in the tournament were 6'0 Mike Woodard from Fairburn (Creekside) GA with 4.0 apg, 6'2 Jeremy Farmer from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 3.8 apg, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 3.7 apg, 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubios from New York (Rice) NY with 3.3 apg, 5'10 Daon Merritt from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 3.3 apg, 5'7 David Ellis from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 3.0 apg, 6'2 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY with 2.3 apg, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 2.3 apg, 6'1 Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 2.3 apg, 6'2 Earl Risby from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 2.3 apg, and 5'7 Jr Gerald Gillion from Miami (Northwestern) FL with 2.3 apg. The leaders in steals were 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY with 4.3 spg, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 4.0 spg, 6'5 Soph James McDonald from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 3.0 spg, 5'7 David Ellis from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 2.8 spg, 6'4 D.J. Strawberry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 2.6 spg, 6'2 Jeremy Farmer from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 2.5 spg, 6'4 Johnny Hodge from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 2.5 spg, 6'0 Mike Woodard from Fairburn (Creekside) GA with 2.5 spg, 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 2.5 spg, 6'6 Jr Charles Bouie from Pahokee (H.S.) FL with 2.5 spg, 6'3 Wesley Washington from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 2.2 spg, and 6'6 Jr Brian Laing from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 2.0 spg.  The leaders in blocked shots were 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY with 5.3 bpg, 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 2.5 bpg, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 2.3 bpg, 6'8 Jr Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 2.3 bpg, 6'9 Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 2.0 bpg, and 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 10.3 bpg.  As you can see, Robinson, Gordon, Caracter, McCroskey, Nichols, and Alleyne were all dominant in a number of statistically categories.  Robinson not only had a 42-point game in the semi-finals, but he led the tournament in steals, was 3rd in scoring average, 4th in 3-point shooting, and was tied for 7th in assists, plus he averaged 6.0 rpg.  In other words, Robinson, who has been slowed by injuries for the last year, now appears to be fully recovered.  And, according to Rice head coach Maurice Hicks, he's also a prime recruiting target for St. John's, Villanova, and Louisville.  Caracter was tied for top rebounding honors, tied for 5th in blocked shots, and just missed making the top scoring list averaging 15.0 ppg.  But even more, important Caracter threw the game winning pass to Nardi in overtime in the semi-finals and was the big reason why St. Patrick won in the semi-finals as he finished with 18 rebounds, many of which came in the 4th quarter and overtime.  And one big time college coach who was in attendance last night even goes so far as to compare Caracter to John Williams and Chris Webber.   "Caracter has the same type of body, athleticism, and high degree of skill level both inside and outside that John Williams had, but he also has incredible hands, just like Chris Webber."  Caracter also would have taken home tournament MVP honors, if St. Patrick hadn't lost in the championship, and, as a result, any way you slice, is already way ahead of LaBron James at the same in his quest to become high school basketball's next summer star.  If you will recall, James didn't become the consensus #1-ranked player in his class nationally until he scored 33-points and almost singlehandedly pulled off the upset against Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA two years ago when he was just a sophomore.  In Caracter's case, he was the leading rebounder in the top pre-Christmas Tournament in the nation while playing in the first three high school games of his career.  And this isn't the first time Caracter has stepped up to the plate and hit a home run against incredible competition.  He also was ranked as one of the top five players at the NIKE All-American Camp last summer by the HOOP SCOOP.   We're still not convinced Gordon can play point guard in the Big East (he signed early with Virginia Tech), but he did lead the tournament in scoring, was second in steals, third in assists, tied for 8th in rebounding, and ranked 12th in field goal percentage.  As a matter of fact, the only thing Gordon didn't do was help his team win a game in the tournament (Andrew Jackson High School went home 0-3). McCroskey finished 5th in scoring, 8th in rebounding, 3rd in 3-point shooting, and 6th in field goal percentage, plus he averaged 1.8 spg.  However, just like Robinson, we're not sure most of our competition realizes just how good this guy is.   Maybe it's theirNew York City bias coming into play.  Alleyne finished 11th in scoring, 7th in rebounding, 1st in field goal percentage, and 1st in shot blocking.   However, his greatest asset is his ability to intimidate inside with his incredible wing span and 7'3 presence.   As a matter of fact, Alleyne has a tendency to change the game so much that on several different occasions we saw players alter their shot and miss an easy basket, even though Alleyne was out of the game.  We've already mentioned that Nichols had a bad final game, but that shouldn't totally negate the first three games when he was totally sensational.  Not only did he finish tied for   9th in scoring and  tied for 3rd in rebounding, but also finished ranked second in blocked shots and tied for 13th in 3-point shooting.  But that still wasn't enough for Nichols to be named to the 12-man All-Tournament Team.  Instead, it appears they took 6'9 Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA over Nichols when deciding the final spot.  Schaen did finish tied for 8th in rebounding, tied for 5th in blocks, 5th in field goal percentage, and he did play an important role in helping Mater Dei finish third in the tournament.  However, Barrington (St. Andrews) RI didn't get anybody on the all-tournament, despite the fact 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI finished ranked #6 in scoring, 8th in field goal percentage, 6th in 3-point field goal percentage, and was terrific all week.  Also making the all-tournament team were Cain, Nardi, Louisme, Washington, Dubois, and Jackson and comparing their numbers is interesting as well.  Cain finished ranked 12th in scoring, tied for 3rd in blocked shots, 6th in rebounding, 3rd in field goal percentage, and tied for 7th in the assists.  Nardi finished tied for 7th in assists, 11th in 3-point shooting, and averaged 15.0 ppg.  Robinson, who was the leading scorer in the championship game, finished ranked 12th in rebounding, tied for 4th in assists, and averaged 1.8 bpg.  Washington was 13th in scoring, 12th in steals, 7th in field goal percentage, and averaged 1.6 apg.  Louisme was 10th in rebounding, third in blocked shots, and 2nd in field goal percentage.  Jackson was the second leading scorer in the tournament, but was not mentioned among the leaders in any other statistical category.    In other words, the 14 above mentioned players (the 12 players on the all-tournament team, plus Schaen and Lidonde) and Woodard, who led the tournament in assists and was tied for 7th in steals, clearly separated themselves from all the rest just about any way you slice it!

Monday, December 23, 2002

We are getting reports that 6'1 Chris Lofton from Maysville (Mason County) KY, who is ranked #88 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has verbally committed to the University of Louisville.  However, according to Rick Bolus, editor and publisher the High Potential Scouting Service, these reports are premature.  Bolus, who talked with a number of people close to the program at the King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic last week, does think this will probably happen in the near future, but is careful to add "it hasn't happened yet."  And, if it's going to happen, Lofton will probably do it sooner than later for several reasons.  First, the Cardinals are also very much in the picture for 5'10 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, who is the #4-ranked junior nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and, as a result, they may decide against bringing in two similar players in the same recruiting class.  Remember, Lofton led Mason County to the championship over Owensboro (Apollo) KY at the King of Bluegrass and, in the process, was named tournament MVP, as he averaged close to 30 ppg.  In other words, Lofton suddenly is one of the fastest rising players in the nation, as well as perhaps the leading candidate for Mr. Basketball a year from in the juior class.  Which means Lofton might be good enough to take right now, if you can get him, and not worry about Telfair, who also is being heavily recruited by schools like Georgia Tech, Pittsburgh, Iowa State, North Carolina, and Duke.  Second, the longer it goes, the more you have to like the University of Kentucky's chances.  Remember, Kentucky is still the state school and Wildcats head coach Tubby Smith still is need of a quality point guard.  It also looks like Laurinburg (Institute) NC head coach Chris Chaney is well on his way towards becoming one of the best recruiter's in the nation and part of his secret appears to be the fact that he can get players into school at just about anytime during the year.  Did you know that 6'9 Ousmane Konate, who was supposed to be at North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME  this year, instead, is now expected to surface at Laurinburg (Institute) NC at any time?  And did you know that 6'9 Renaldo Balkman from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL has already transferred to Laurinburg?  It also appears that the Pendleton School already has a replacement for Balkman, because 6'10 Jr Jermaine Bell transferred from Virginia Beach (Coastal Christian) VA to Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL earlier this fall.  Speaking of Bell, who has been reclassified as a junior, he no longer is verbally committed St. John's.  Did you also know that 6'9 Nick Stigger is no longer in school at Van Nuys (Montclair Prep) CA and appears to have returned to Memphis, TN.  And this would make sense, because Stigger, who previously attended Memphis (Hillcrest) TN, was stashed at Montclair Prep by USC.  However, that relationship soured when the Trojans coaching staff changed their mind about taking Stigger and didn't offer him a scholarship this fall.

Earlier today in the Challenge Round at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, Pensacola (Woodham) FL knocked off Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL, 74-47; Miami (Northwestern) FL, 84-46; Barrington (St. Andrews) RI beat Jacksonville (Andrew Jacksonville) FL, 85-66; and Pahokee (H.S.) FL beat Fairburn (Creekside) GA, 65-58.  Among those who picked up where they left off last week were 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 26 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and two steals against Barrington (St. Andrews) RI; 6'7 Cedric McGowan from Miami (Northwestern) FL, who finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds versus Corbin (H.S.) KY, 6'2 Johnny Hammons from Corbin (H.S.) KY, who finished 15 points and hit 3-4 3-pointers versus Miami (Northwestern) FL; 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, who hit 4-7 3-pointers and finished with 19 points versus Jacksonville (Jackson) FL; 6'2 Zabian Dowdell from Pahokee (H.S.) FL, who had 15 points, including 4-4 3-pointers, four rebounds, three assists, and two steals; and 6'0 Mike Woodard from Fairburn (Creekside) GA who had 13 points and four assists versus Pahokee (H.S.) FL.  However, 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI and 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL failed to duplicate their earlier performances.   As a matter of fact, Nichols, who was our choice as the best player in the tournament heading into the final day, laid an egg, as he finished with only six points and five rebounds versus Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL.  If you will recall, Nichols was ranked among the leaders heading into today in scoring, rebounding,  and blocked shots, plus he played a pivotal role when St. Andrews almost knocked off Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ on Friday night.  Bell did have 15 points and five rebounds, but heading into this game he was averaging a double-double with 26.5 ppg and 11.5 rpg.   The most disappointing team in the tournament has been Washington (Dunbar) DC and it was a fitting end when they forfeited the Consolation Championship Game to Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 41 seconds left in the third quarter after a controversial traveling call and several technicals on 6'2 Tre Kelley from Washington (Dunbar) DC.   Kelley had been one of the better players and leading scorers in the tournament, but in this game finished with only 13 points.  Instead, the best two players in the game were 6'8 Jr Robinson Louisme and 6'4 Brendan Rooney, both from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL.  Speaking of Ft. Myers High School, they provide us with one of the best stories of the tournament, as they made made things interesting before losing 61-49 in their first round game versus Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA and then went onto beat Miami (Northwestern) FL, 68-55; Corbin, 67-58; and Dunbar, 49-35, en route to the Consolation Championship.  Next up is Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA versus Monroe (Ouchita Parish) LA, but we're really looking forward to the Third Place Game between Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA and Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY and championship game between Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ and New York (Rice) NY.  However, we don't think either game will close.  In other words, we're predicting an upset in the third place game, because we expect Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY to roll right past Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA.  Not only does St. Raymond's have the toughness, athleticism, and experience, but we think Oliver Antigua is one of the bright young head coaches in the nation and, after losing a heartbreaking overtime thriller on Friday night to Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, we think his team still has a lot to prove.  We're also more convinced than ever that St. Patrick is the best high school team in the nation and, as a result, we'd be surprised if they don't make up for the two overtime games in the quarterfinals and semi-finals with a double-digit win tonight.  As a matter of fact, with a day to rest up and get healthy (a number of the St. Patrick's players have been battling the flu all week), it wouldn't surprise us if the championship game is over by half-time.  And, if this does happen, don't be surprised if 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, who already is potentially the next LaBron James, wins tournament MVP honors.  Obviously things can change, but,with three games left in the tournament, our other choices for the all-tournament are 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, 5'10 Jason Patterson from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'1 Jay Jackson from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA, 6'5 Louie McCroskey from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'1 Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY, 6'3 Wesley Washington from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'8 Jr Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, and 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (Bartram) PA. 

Since making our prediction about the Third Place game in the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, we have been informed that two starters and three substitutes have been suspended and, as a result, won't play in tonight's game.  And one of those starters is 5'10 Daon Merritt, which means we suddenly think this game is up for grabs.  Also of note is the fact that 6'1 Jay Jackson led Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA to a 59-56 win in the Fifth Place game over Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with a 27-point effort.   This ranks Jackson second in scoring (26.8 ppg) in the tournament behind 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL (29.0 ppg) with only two more games to play.  It also assures Jackson a spot on the all-tournament team, along with Gordon and 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA, who finished with 12 points and three rebounds against Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA.   Instead, the player who stepped up big for Ouachita Parish was 6'1 Charles Jones, who had what was easily his best game of the tournament, as he finished with 17 points.  Getting back to the all-tournament team, City of Palms Tournament Director Donnie Wilkie already has announced that Jackson, Gordon, and Cain will be named to the all-tournament team, which means he only has nine more spots to fill at the conclusion the tournament later tonight.  So far we are three-for-three with our selections, which can be found above.  Our original prediction about the Third Place Game being a blow-out was right on the money.  But we had the wrong team, as Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA jumped out to a 32-19 lead and never looked back.  The big gun for Mater Dei early was 5'11 Trevante Nelson, who hit 4-7 3-pointers en route to 16 points, all of which came in the first half.  Also playing well for Mater Dei were 6'9 Harrison Schaen and 6'7 Marcel Jones, who combined for 29 points.  However, the player most responsible for Mater Dei opening up the lead to as many as 25 points on several occasions in the second half was 6'5 D.J. Strawberry, who scored 13 of his 16 points down the stretch.   It was 92-72 when Mater Dei called the dogs off with 1:37 left in the game.   The final score was 97-76.  Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY got strong efforts from 6'5 Louis McCroskey, who finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds, and 6'5 Jr Brian Laing, who had 33 points, five rebounds, and three steals.   However, they seriously missed both Merritt and 6'4 Tariq Atkins, who were suspended for violating team rules and, as a result, didn't play.  Also suspended were reserves 6'3 Soph Ricky Torres and 6'2 Miguel Garcia.  Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ jumped out to a 5-3 early lead in the Championship Game, but 6'11 Grant Billmeier and 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter both picked up two early fouls and New York (Rice) NY was able to take advantage of the momentum shift, as they led the rest of the half by as much as six and by as little one.   At that point 6'1 Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ had scored five straight points, but the momentum shifted back to Rice, because Caracter picked up his third foul and immediatley went to the bench.  Right now the half-time score is 29-26 and Caracter now has three fouls.  Billmeier has still has two fouls and 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY also has two fouls.  Carcater is the leading scorer for St. Patrick with nine points and 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubois is the leading scorer for Rice with 11 points in the first half.  The All-Tournament Team has already been named and it includes Caracter, Nardi, Dubois, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY, 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY, 6'1 Jay Jackson from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA, 6'5 Louie McCroskey from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, 6'3 Wesley Washington from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'9 Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'8 Jr Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL,and 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (Bartram) PA.   It's a final, Rice 64, St. Patrick 51!  Rice has pulled off the upset and, as a result the St. Patrick jinx continues.  If you will recall, St. Patrick, which finished second to Baton Rouge (Parkview Baptist) LA in 1997, Miami (Senior) FL in 1996, and New Orleans (St. Augustine) LA in 1994 and finished third in 1995, has never won this tournament.  The leading scorer for Rice was Dubois with 19 points, but Robinson, who was named tournament MVP, came up big, as he scored most of his 18 points in the second half.  Robinson, Alleyne, and Dubois all were tied with eight rebounds a piece.  Alleyne also had six blocked shots.  Caracter, who would have been the tournament MVP, if St.Patrick had won, led the losers with 15 points and eight rebounds.  Nardi also had 15 points.  

Sunday, December 22, 2002

The top players based primarily on performance at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL after the first four days are as follows:  6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'1 Jay Jackson from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA, 6'5 Louie McCroskey from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'1 Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, 5'10 Jason Patterson from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (Bartram) PA, 5'10 Daon Merritt from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'0 Mike Woodard from Fairburn (Creekside) GA, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY, 6'3 Wesley Washington from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'8 Jr Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 6'4 Johnny Hodge from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA, 6'5 D.J. Strawberry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'9 Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'2 Tre Kelley from Washington (Dunbar) DC, 6'4 Tariq Atkins from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'6 Jr Gavin Grant from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'11 Grant Billmeier from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'6 Jr Lamar Barrett from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'4 Brendan Rooney from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 6'5 Jr Brian Laing from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'7 Cedric McGowan from Miami (Northwestern) FL, 6'7 Devon Pearson from Miami (Northwestern) FL, 6'3 Jr Bryant Leach from Philadelphia (Bartram) PA, 6'2 Zabian Dowdell from Pahokee (H.S.) FL, 6'2 Bennett Jones from Fairburn (Creekside) GA, 6'9 Jr Chris Henry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubois from New York (Rice) NY, 6'4 Jeff Trotter from Fairburn (Creekside) GA, 6'2 Jr Antonio Wilson from Pahokee (H.S.) FL, 6'1 Jr Emery Outland from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'7 Jr Marcel Jones from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'2 Johnny Hammons from Corbin (H.S.) KY, 6'3 Roderick Handy from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA, 6'5 Khalil Salaam from Philadelphia (Bartram) PA, 6'10 Isaiah Mills from Corbin (H.S.) KY, 6'6 Jr Charles Bowie from Pahokee (H.S.) FL, 6'8 Gary Springer from Fairburn (Creekside) GA, and 6'8 Mario Henderson from Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL.  The top scorers in the tournament are Gordon with 30.ppg, Kelley with 27.5 ppg, Bell with 26.5 ppg, Robinson with 26.3 ppg, Nichols with 20.0 ppg, Lidonde with 18.7 ppg, Rooney with 18.7 ppg, Alleyne with 18.0 ppg, Cain with 17.0 ppg, McCroskey with 17.0 ppg, Hodge with 16.7 ppg, and Washington with 15.8 ppg.  The leading rebounders in the tournament are Caracter with 11.5 rpg, Bell with 11.5 rpg, Nichols with 10.7 rpg, Cain with 10.7 rpg, McGowan with 10.0 rpg, McCroskey with 8.7 rpg, Schaen with 8.5 rpg, Alleyne with 8.3 rpg, Louisme with 7.3 rpg, Barrett with 7.0 rpg, Trotter with 7.0 rpg, Grant with 7.0 rpg, and Atkins with 7.0 rpg.  The leaders in assists are Woodard with 4.0 apg, 6'2 Jeremy Farmer from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 4.0 apg, Gordon with 3.5 apg, Dubois with 3.3 apg, Merritt with 3.3 apg, 5'7 David Ellis from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 3.0 apg, 6'2 Earl Risby from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 3.0 apg, and Nardi with 3.0 apg.  The leaders in steals are Robinson with 5.0 spg, Gordon with 5.0 spg, 6'5 Soph James McDonald from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 4.0 spg, 6'0 Winston Hines from Pensacola (Woodham) FL with with 3.5 spg, Woodard with 3.3 spg, Bell with 3.0 spg, and Bouie with 3.0 spg.  The leaders in blocks are Alleyne with 5.0 bpg, Louisme with 2.7 bpg, Nichols with 2.3 bpg, Caine with 2.0 bpg, Grant with 2.0 bpg, Caracter with 2.0 bpg, and 6'4 Soph Alpha Neinge from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 2.0 bpg.  The leaders in turnovers are 5'7 Sheldon Meggie from Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL with 5.0 tpg, 6'2 Antonio Wilson from Pahokee (H.S.) FL with 5.0 tpg, 5'7 Jr Gerald Gillion from Miami (Northwestern) FL with Miami (Northwestern) FL with 4.5 tpg, Caracter with 4.5 tpg, 6'1 Charles Jones from Philadelphia (Bartram) PA with 4.0 tpg, and 6'2 Jeremy Farmer from Corbin (H.S.) KY.

Saturday, December 21, 2002

The statistical leaders after three days (Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday) at the City of Palms Classic are as follows:   The leading scorers in the tournament are 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 30.5 ppg, 6'2 Tre Kelley from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 27.5 ppg, 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 26.5 ppg, 6'1 Jay Jackson from Monroe (Ouacita Parish) LA with 23.5 ppg, 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 22.0 ppg, 6'4 Brendon Rooney from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 18.5 ppg, 6'4 Johnny Hodge from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 18.5 ppg, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY with 18.5 ppg, 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY with 18.5 ppg, 5'10 Jason Patterson from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 18.0 ppg, 6'2 Jr Antonio Wilson from Pahokee (H.S.) FL with 18.0 ppg, 5'10 Daon Merritt from New York (Rice) NY with 16.5 ppg, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 16.0 ppg, 6'2 Johnny Hammons from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 16.0 ppg, and 6'10 Isaiah Mills from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 16.0 ppg.  The leading rebounders in the tournament are 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 11.5 rpg, 6'9 Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 10.7 rpg, 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 10.0 rpg, 6'7 Cedric McGowan from Miami (Northwestern) FL with 10.0 rpg, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 9.0 ppg, 6'11 Grant Billmeier from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 9.0 rpg, 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubios from New York (Rice) NY with 9.0 rpg, 6'8 Devon Pearson from Miami (Northwestern) FL with 8.5 rpg, 6'6 Jr Lamar Barrett from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with  8.5 rpg, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY with 8.5 rpg, 6'4 Jr Bryant Leach from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 8.0 rpg, 6'4 Assad Shakir for Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 8.0 rpg, 6'5 Louie McCroskey from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 7.5 rpg, 6'10 Isaiah Mills from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 7.5 rpg, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 7.5 rpg, and 6'4 Jeff Trotter from Fairburn (Creekside) GA with 7.5 rpg.  The assists leaders in the tournament are 6'1 Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 4.0 apg, 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubios from New York (Rice) NY with 4.0 apg, 6'2 Jeremy Farmer from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 4.0 apg, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 3.5 apg, 5'10 Daon Merritt from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 3.0 apg, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (Bartram) PA with 3.0 apg, 6'2 Earl Risby from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 3.0 apg.  The leaders in steals are 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 5.0 spg, 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY with 5.0 spg, 6'4 D.J. Strawberry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 3.3 spg, 6'5 Soph James McDonald from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 4.0 spg, 6'0 Mike Woodard from Fairburn (Creekside) GA with 4.0 spg, 6'0 Winston Hines from Pensacola (Woodham) FL with 3.5 spg, 6'4 Johnny Hodge from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 3.5 spg, 5'7 David Ellis from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 3.0 spg, 6'6 Jr Charles Bowie from Pahokee (H.S.) FL with 3.0 spg, and 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 3.0 spg.  The best 3-point shooters in the tournament are 6'0 Jr Tremaine Stevenson from Miami (Northwestern) FL hitting 3-5 for 60%, 6'0 Jr Ryan Maquet from Corbin (H.S.) KY hitting 5-9 for 57%, 6'2 Jr Antonio Wilson from Pahokee (H.S.) FL hitting 6'11 for 55%, 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI hitting 8-15 for 53%, 6'2 Jr Johnny Hammons from Corbin (H.S.) KY hitting 3-6 for 50%, 6'3 Jr Bryant Leach from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA hitting 6-13 for 46%, 6'4 Brendan Rooney from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL hitting 5-12 for 42%, and 6'2 Zabian Dowdell from Pahokee (H.S.) FL hitting 7-17 for 41%.   The leaders in blocked shots are 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY with 6.5 bpg, 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 3.0 bpg, 6'6 Jr Gavin Grant from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 2.5 bpg, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 2.0 bpg, 6'8 Jr Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 2.0 bpg, 6'4 Soph Alpha Neinge from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 2.0 bpg, and 6'7 Jr Arturo Dubios from New York (Rice) NY with 2.0 bpg.  The leaders in turnovers are 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ with 5.0 tpg, 6'1 Sheldon Maggie from Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL with 5.0 tpg, 6'2 Antonio Wilson from Pahokee (H.S.) FL with 5.0 tpg, 5'7 Jr Gerald Gillion from Miami (Northwestern) FL with 4.5 tpg, 6'2 Jeremy Farmer from Corbin (H.S.) KY with 4.5 tpg, 6'7 Jr Marcel Jones from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 4.5 tpg, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY with 3.5 tpg, 6'1 Emery Outland from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 3.5 tpg, and 6'2 Zabian Dowdell from Pahokee (H.S.) FL with 3.5 tpg. 

After the first three days at the City of Palms Classic, 6'2 Jr Antonio Watson from Pahokee (H.S.) FL and 6'2 Zabian Dowdell from Pahokee (H.S.) FL were two of the leading 3-point shooters in the tournament.  However,  Dowdell shot a miserable 1-16 from beyond the arc and hit only 3-19 field goals overall, while Watson hit only 2-14 3-pointers and was only 5-23 from the field earlier today in their consolation bracket semi-final game against Washington (Dunbar) DC.  In other words, Watson and Dowdell hit a combined 3-30 3-pointers and 8-42 field goals, but thanks to the fact that their team had 17 offensive rebounds and Washington (Dunbar) DC still hasn't put it all together, they had a chance to win the game with the last possession of the game.  But Dunbar prevailed and 6'2 Tre Kelley, who is the second leading scorer in the tournament (28.0 ppg), continued to put up big numbers as he finished with 29 points and four assists.  However, Kelley got little help, except from 6'4 Jr Randy Hampton from Washington (Dunbar) DC, who chipped in with 17 points and seven rebounds, as 6'0 Soph Eric Price once again didn't play (he was injured in the first game) and 6'2 Earl Risby, who is averaging 4.3 ppg for the tournament, was just as bad as he was in the previous two games.  Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL beat Corbin (H.S.) IN in the other consolation semi-final game, thanks once again to the efforts of 6'4 Brandon Rooney and 6'8 Robinson Louisme, who combined for 38 points and 17 rebounds.  Robinson, who finished with 9-11 field goals, 19 points, nine rebounds, and four blocks now appears to be the biggest no name player to emerge in the tournament and, unlike Dowdell, he has maintained his status as one of the better players in the tournament throughout the week.  Rooney, who is one of the leading 3-point shooters in the tournament, hit only 3-9 field goals, but he still scored 19 points thanks to his 2-4 3-point shooting and perfect foul shooting (11-11 free throws).  And that proved to be the big difference in the game, as Corbin's best players - 6'2 Jeremy Farmer from Corbin (H.S.) KY, Johnny Hammons from Corbin (H.S.) KY, and 6'10 Isaiah Mills from Corbin (H.S.) KY - hit a combined 11-33, as Corbin shot 18-51 (35%) from the field, while Ft. Myers shot 22-45 (.49%).  Ft. Myers' victory over Corbin also adds shape to the Challenge Round on Monday, which will have Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL versus Pensacola (Woodham) FL at 8:30 AM, Miami (Northwestern) FL versus Corbin (H.S.) KY at 10:15 AM, the Philadelphia (Bartram) PA-Barrington (St. Andrews) RI loser versus Jacksonville (Jackson) FL at Noon, and the Monroe (Oauchita Parish) LA-Fairburn (Creekside) GA loser versus Pahokee (H.S.) FL at 1:45 PM.  However, like everybody else, we are a lot more interested in the big Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY-Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ match-up tonight, plus we can't wait for the Santa Mater (Mater Dei) CA-New York (Rice) NY game, because 6'9 Harrison Schaen will be going head-to-head against 7'3 Shagari Alleyne.  And, although they both rank among the top players so far in the tournament, they both still have a lot more to prove.  Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA beat Fairburn (Creekside) GA, 74-71, in the first 5th Place semi-finals game earlier today thanks to an impressive 33-point performance by 6'0 Jay Jackson, who scored 33 points and, even did something that he didn't do yesterday, which was hit some outside shots.   Questionable outside also is the big question with the other outstanding guard in this game - 5'10 Mike Woodard from Fairburn (Creekside) GA.   However, Woodard, who finished with 10 points and a single-game tournament high seven assists, is one of the best pure point guards in the tournament, despite his lack of size and 3-point shooting.  And that's one of the stories the tournament, as combo guards, like Woodard, Jackson, Dowdell, 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, and 5'10 Jason Patterson from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, like and positionless forwards, like 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, 6'4 Johnny Hodge from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA, and 6'4 Jeff Trotter from Fairburn (Creekside) GA, all have have to be ranked on our list of the top players in the tournament.  Getting back to the Ouachita Parish-Creekside game, the key to Ouachita Parish's victory was their ability to hit free throws down the stretch and the guy who was most responsible was Jackson, who was a perfect 10-10 from the line.  Neither Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA nor Barrington (St. Andrews) RI played with the same intensity that they played with yesterday in their respective quarterfinals losses, but this 5th Place Game Semi-Finals Game was still an excellent game.  It also went right down to the wire and, just like last night, St. Andrews lost a heart breaker in the final seconds, as 6'1 Charles Jones went coast-to-coast to hit the game winning basket to make the final score 57-55.   This game was also significant, because 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI eliminated any doubts about who the best player is based on performance in the tournament with a 30-point/12-rebound effort.  Nichols does it all, as he uses his explosive quickness and athleticism to electrify the crowd with earth-shattering slam dunks, knock down 3-pointers, rebound, block shots, and defend.   And, if he keeps playing like this, he may be tough to keep off the McDonald's All-American Team next spring.  Also stepping up big was 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 19 points, 14 rebounds, two assists, and two blocks.  Not only has Cain taken his game to another level in the last two games, but he has great hands, a soft touch, and an excellent nose for the ball, plus he's surpringly athletic, rebounds surpringly well for his lack of size, and does most of the dirty work.   In other words, if Cain were a stock, now would be a great time to buy.  Not only is he's one of the few unsigned big men left and his list, which currently includes Penn State, UNC-Greensboro, Virginia, Western Kentucky, Drexel, and South Alabama, but his list is sure to get longer before it gets shorter, as his value goes through the roof after his performance in this tournament. 

The first semi-finals game in the City of Palms Classic between Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ wasn't as well played as last night's overtime thriller between Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ and Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, but it was just as good!  St. Raymond's jumped out early to a 7-2 lead, they were up 34-26 at halftime, and they appeared to still be still in total control of the game, 55-43, at the end of the third quarter.  However, by that time the momentum had changed.  Actually this happened with the score 55-41 and St. Patrick trailing by 14 points late in the 3rd quarter.  And when 6'11 Grant Billmeier fouled out early in the 4th quarter and 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter returned to the line-up and 5'10 Jason Patterson hit two big 3-pointers in a span of about a minute, St. Patrick's took over the game.  By this time they were on a run where they scored unanswered points and outscored St. Raymond's 15-3 in the 4th quarter.  And St. Patrick would have won it in regulation, if 6'4 Tarik Atkins from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY hadn't hit the game tying 3-pointer with two second left to make it 58-all and send the game into overtime.  From there it was nip and tuck the rest of the way, but St. Patrick finally prevailed in what public address announcer Chris Diller says is the best game he's seen during his 20-year announcing career.  The big hero for St. Patrick was Patterson, who made four of his five 3-pointers during the comeback.  Patterson, who appears to be close to making a verbal commitment to Fairleigh Dickinson, finished with 21 points.  Caracter, in only the second high school game of his career, finished with 15 points, 18 rebounds, two assists, four turnovers, two blocks, and one steal.  6'1 Michael Nardi, who also chipped in with several big 3-pointers of his own, finished with 16 points.   The player who stepped up the biggest for St. Raymond's was 6'5 Willlie McCroskey with 21 points and 11 rebounds.  Also chipping in with 11 points and 11 rebounds was 6'4 Tariq Atkins, while 5'10 Daon Merritt had 12 points, four rebounds, and four assists, 6'5 Jr Brian Laing had 12 points, and 6'6 Jr Gavin Grant finished with seven points and nine rebounds.  We think this game was for the championship, but New York (Rice) NY head coach Maurice Hicks is hoping that his team is up to the task of the knocking off  Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, which is currently ranked #4 nationally by the USA Today, in tonight's second semi-finals game, which is scheduled to tip-off in about 20 minutes.  And, if that happens, Rice will have to hope that St. Patrick is more than just a little fatigued after playing in two grueling overtime games the last two nights.  However, a day to rest tomorrow may prevent Rice from having any chance of pulling off a miracle finish, just like N.C. State did against Houston in the NCAA Final Four in 1983, against St. Patrick in the championship on Monday night.  The second semi-finals game started off just like the first one, as Rice jumped out to 11-6 lead, thanks, at least in part, to the fact that four of Mater Dei's starters - 6'3 Wesley Washington, 6'9 Harrison Schaen, 6'5 D.J. Strawberry, and 6'7 Jr Marcel Jones - were benched after violating the team's curfew policy last night.  And even after the starters returned, it took Mater Dei a while to get going, as they had fallen behind by as many as 16 points early in the second quarter.  However, Washington, who led Mater Dei with 13 points and seven rebounds, started to make a living off transition and, as a result, Mater Dei went on a 12-2 run to end the first half.  That made the score 38-32 at the intermission.  7'3 Shagari Alleyne scored all of his six points early in the game, but once Mater Dei head coach Gary McKnight made the necessary adjustments, Alleyne became a non-factor with only six points, three rebounds, and one blocked shot.   Instead, the big gun for Rice has been 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson with 22 points, two rebounds, and three steals in the first half.  However, Rice once again took control of the game in the third quarter, as they jumped out to a 48-38 lead in the first three minutes of the second half.  And by the end of the third quarter, Robinson had 31 points and it was 63-47.   Will lightning strike twice in one night (just like in the previous game) and Mater Dei come back from a 16-point deficit?  Stay tuned!  Well, it looks like we knew what we were talking about when we hinted that it might be Rice and St. Patrick in the championship game on Monday night.  That's right!  We're talking about an upset, because Rice, which is ranked #16 by the USA Today, has knocked off Mater Dei, which is ranked #4 by the USA Today.  Final score 88-76 and really the game wasn't that close!  Robinson led Rice with 42 points and Alleyne chipped in with 17 points.  Washington finished with 24 points for Mater Dei.   This sets up the championship game on Monday at 9:00 PM between Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ and New York (Rice) NY.  Also on Monday it will be Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL versus Washington (Dunbar) DC at 3:30 PM in the Consolation Champsionship, Philadelphia (Bartram) PA versus Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA at 5:30 PM in the 5th Place Championship, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY at 7:15 PM in the 3rd Place Championship. 

Friday, December 20, 2002

Watching the City of Palms Classic in Ft.Myers, FL is almost like watching two tournaments.  Obviously the winner's bracket is loaded as Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, New York (Rice) NY, Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, and Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA are all or have been nationally ranked and Fairburn (Creekside) GA and are two of the most unheralded teams in the nation.  However, the consolation bracket not only isn't very good, but there aren't very many noteworthy players.  As a matter of fact, in the first three games today the only players worth noting were 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, 6'3 Daniel Bell from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL, 6'10 Isaiah Mills from Corbin (H.S.) KY, 6'2 Zabian Dowdell from Pahokee (H.S.) FL, and 6'2 Tre Kelley from Washington (Dunbar) DC.  Gordon picked up where he left off yesterday, as he combined with Bell for 57 of Andrew Jackson's 77 points.  But that still wasn't enough for Andrew Jackson to beat Corbin, which pulled out a 78-77 victory in the first game of the day.  Gordon did show more range (1-3 from beyond the arc) and did have three assists, but we still seriously question whether he can play point guard, which is the position for which he was recruited at Virginia Tech, in the Big East Conference.  Still, Gordon is a terrific talent and he has totally dominated the tournament after the first two-and-a-half days, as he is both the leading scorer and the leader is steals with 30.5 ppg and 5.0 spg.  And Bell is the third leading scorer (26.5 ppg) and the second leading rebounder ( 11.5 rpg) in the tournament behind 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY, which explains how Andrew Jackson made it a six-point game yesterday versus Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY.  But it doesn't explain why they lost Corbin this morning.  Another interesting contrast involved Mills, who had only four points and one rebound Wednesday night versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, but came back with 26 points and 14 rebounds versus Andrew Jackson today.  Mills impressed us today with his skills and ability to get it done around the basket, but he also impressed us with his ability to step out on the perimeter and hit the open three and, as a result, we think he is a steal for Tennessee Tech, which where he signed early.  However, it also is obvious that Mills needs to get bigger and stronger inside.  We also were impressed with Dowdell again, but we don't think he's fast enough and strong enough to get past more athletic and physically stronger guards at the high Division I level.   Instead, we think he's ideally suited for the Sun Belt and Florida International might be the perfect fit.  As a matter of fact, Florida International assistant coach Lonnie Williams not only was seen at both of Dowdell's games, but we also know that he has a good rapport with Christopher Maxon, who is the head coach at Pahokee (H.S.) FL.  In other words, it appears that Williams, who is largely responsible for all the great talent Florida International has landed during the last several years, is on the verge of stealing another one.  Kelley followed up last night's 26-point effort with 29 points today and this time he even managed to dish out a pair of assists.  But this doesn't mean that Kelley did much to impress us.   Neither has anybody on Washington (Dunbar) DC, which has easily been the most disappointing team in the tournament, despite the fact they beat a mediocre Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL team earlier today.  As a matter of fact, we're hard pressed to even mention anybody from Lehigh, but 6'8 Mario Henderson is a wide body at 325 lbs. and he did have 14 points and seven rebounds versus Washington (Dunbar) DC.  We also have to give Donnie Wilkie, who selects the teams for the City of Palms Classic, a lot of credit, because he made the best out of a bad situation by getting teams like Washington (Dunbar) DC, Philadelphia (Bartram) PA, and Pensacola after Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, and Miami (Christian) FL, both of which were originally scheduled to appear in this tournament, dropped out of the field to attend other tournaments.  Obviously it's unfortunate that these coaches' word meant nothing, but really all it did was weaken the consolation bracket.  Thus, explains why things picked up so dramatically in the first quarterfinals match-up between Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA and at Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA at 3:40 PM.  Not only was this best game so far in the tournament, but we also had a major upset in the making as Ouachita Parish was up 35-28 at half-time.  If you will recall, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA is ranked #4 nationally in the latest USA Today poll and Ouachita Parish is the #8-seeded team in the tournament.  6'4 Johnny Hodge was leading Ouachita Parish with 16 points and five rebounds and 6'3 Wesley Washington (10 points) was the only player for Mater Dei in double-digits as the second half began.   However, it wasn't meant to be, as Mater Dei went on a 13-3 run to take the lead at 41-38 lead.  From there they coasted to a 71-60 victory.  The difference in the game was Mater Dei's size, depth, and athleticism and Ouachita Parish's inability to hit 3-pointers down the stretch.  Still, Hodge and 6'1 Jay Jackson are two of the best players in the tournament, although they both have a position question for the next level.   Jackson has explosive quickness and excellent moves to the basket, but he is not a consistent outside shooter and  is not a pure point guard, even though that's the position he will likely have to play in college.  Georgia Tech is interested, but the rest of his list, which includes Louisiana Tech, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe, and Liberty, is most realistic, if he wants to have a great college career.  Hodge is an excellent passer and terrific rebounder for his size, but he does his best work in the low post, because he's a terrific athlete, physical specimen, and warrior on the boards.  The only problem is that he's only 6'4.  Washington led Mater Dei with 18 points and four steals, but 18 points by 6'3 D.J. Strawberry and 11 rebounds by 6'9 Harrison Schaen also were deciding factors.  Speaking of Schaen, he is currently averaging 10.3 rpg, which ranks him among the top five rebounders in the tournament.  And this is important, because a lot of big time programs, like Stanford, California, and USC, passed on Schaen, because they thought he was too soft, and, as a result, Schaen is now heading to Princeton.  Not only has Schaen gotten tougher inside, after fully recovering from injuries that sidelined part of his sophomore and junior years, but he also is playing with a lot more confidence.  In other words, we think that Schaen has more vindicated himself and might even be too low at #51, which is where he is ranked nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.   Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, which, in our opinion, is underrated at #12 in the latest USA Today poll, jumped out to an 18-0 lead early against Philadelphia (Bartram) PA in today's second quarterfinals game.  However, Bartram wasn't ready to roll over to play dead, as they cut the lead to 11 at half-time and only ended up losing by six in what was by-far-and-away the most intensely played game so far in the tournament.   Also noteworthy is the fact that 6'9 Jason Cain redeemed himself after a mediocre first round game when he scored only five points and had only six rebounds versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL.  This time Cain, who sparked Bartram's 17-11 second quarter comeback, finished with 27 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, and two blocks.  Cain also impressed us so much that we'll have to stronger consider moving him a lot higher than #258 nationally, which is where he currently is ranked by the HOOP SCOOP.  Sure, Cain needs to get bigger and stronger physically, but he has a blue collar work ethic, a toughness on the boards, and surprising athleticism, which is uses to block shots, get up and down the court in transition, make things happen around the basket.  St. Raymond's was led by 6'5 Louis McCrosky with 18 points and eight rebounds, 5'10 Daon Merritt with 16 points, 6'4 Tariq Atkins with 12 point and eight rebounds, and 6'6 Jr Gavin Grant with 14 points and six rebounds.  Next up is Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ versus Barrington (St. Andrews) RI in what should another highly charged uptempo quarterfinals game.  And making this game even more significant is the fact that tonight is the high school debute of 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, who is the consensus #1-ranked freshman in the nation. 

When they talk about the great games in the 30-year history of the City of Palms Classic, tonight's game between Barrington (St. Andrews) RI and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ will have to be right at the top of the list.  St. Andrews jumped out early with 19-12 lead, but by half-time it looked like St. Patrick was ready to take control of the game, as they went into the locker room leading, 31-25.  However, every time St. Patrick scored in the second half it seemed like St. Andrews answered.  First, it was 6'8 Demetris Nichols, who scored most of his 17 points and 15 rebounds, in the second half, as he kept St. Andrews' hopes alive.  Then, it was 6'4 Abdi Lidonde who stepped up and made big shot after big shot at crunch time, as he finished with 25 points.  And finally it was 6'1 Jr Emery Outland, who got most of his 12 points and six rebounds in the final minutes of the game.  At the end of regulation it was tied and early in the overtime it looked like St. Andrews was on the verge of putting St. Patrick away as they were up six with less than a minute remaining.  But then St. Patrick did what great teams are supposed to as 5'10 Jason Patterson hit a 3-pointer to cut the lead to three, 6'4 Robert Hines hit a pair of big free throws, and 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter hit 6'1 Michael Nardi for a layup to take the lead with only seconds remaining.  St. Andrews did get another look at the basket, but St. Patrick prevailed, as they showed why we think they are the best high school team in the nation.  And, based on tonight St. Andrews isn't too far behind.  Not only is Nichols, who promises to be the heir-apparent next year to Carmelo Anthony at Syracuse, much better than we thought, but Lidonde has to be one of the best unsigned players in the nation.  He also will be ranked among our top 100 seniors nationally next time we update our national rankings.  Not only is Lidonde a lights out 3-point shooter, but he is money at clutch time, as was evident by his 5-10 3-point shooting.  Right now Pennylvania, Xavier, Rhode Island, Manhattan, and Rider are showing the most interest, but Lidonde is good enough to play anyplace!  Nichols and Lidonde were the big guns tonight, but head coach Mike Hart also got important contributions from Outland, 6'6 Jr Lamar Barrett, who scored six point and grabbed 10 rebounds; 6'8 Milos Mirkovic, who finished with six points and six rebounds; and 6'4 Jr Nick Mattone, who finished with seven points.  The leading scorer for St. Patrick was Patterson with 18 points.   Caracter chipped in with 15 points, while Nardi had 14 points and four assists, Hines had 11 points, and Billmeier had 10 points and nine rebounds.  So the stage has been set for the big Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ-Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY semi-finals match-up tomorrow night and we think whoever wins that game will win the tournament.   And, if things hold true to form, New York (Rice) NY will beat Fairburn (Creekside) GA in the game fourth quarterfinals game that has just gotten under way.  Speaking of this game, we're predicting Creekside will pull off the upset against Rice, which currently is ranked #16 nationally in the latest USA Today poll, but stunk it up last night in their opening round game against Penascola (Woodham) FL.  However, it doesn't really matter, because neither one of these teams should beat Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA tomorrow night in the other semi-finals game and Mater Dei doesn't have the toughness to knock off either St. Patrick or St. Raymond's in the championship game on Monday night.   It looks like we missed the boat on the Creekside-Rice game, because Rice is up 60-46 late in the fourth quarter.  Keys to the game were the inability of Creekside to make three's, especially 6'2 Bennett Jones from Fairburn (Creekside) GA, who hit 4-7 3-pointers last night, and a less lacksidasical effort by 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY, who played tonight more like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's than Neil Fingleton's little brother.  Tomorrow's schedule has Washington (Dunbar) DC versus Pahokee (H.S.) FL at 11:15, Cobin (H.S.) KY versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL at 1:00 PM, Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA versus Fairburn (Creekside) GA at 2:45 PM, Barrington (St. Andrews) RI versus Philadelphia (Bartram) PA at 4:45 PM, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY versus Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ at 7:00 PM, and Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus New York (Rice) NY at 10:00 PM. 

Thursday, December 19, 2002

Everything has gone pretty much true to form after the first two days at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, as Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA beat Miami (Northwestern) FL, 75-50; Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA beat Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 61-49; and Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA beat Corbin (H.S.) KY, 87-62; last night and earlier today Barrington (St. Andrews) RI beat Pahokee (H.S.) FL, 63-58; Jacksonville (Jackson) FL, 92-86; Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL beat Miami (Northwestern) FL, 68-55, in a consolation game; and Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA beat Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL, 87-38; New York (Rice) NY beat Pensacola (Woodham) FL, 81-48; and Fairburn (Creekside) GA beat Washington (Dunbar) DC, 75-52.  However, the players that turned in some of the top individual performances may surprise you.  The list includes 6'2 Jamon Gordon from Jacksonville (Andrew Jackson) FL with 33 points, seven rebounds, eight steals, and 14-26 field goals versus Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY; 6'1 Jay Jackson from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA with 24 points and 10-14 field goals versus Miami (Northwestern) MI; 6'8 Demetris Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 13 points, five rebounds, five blocks, and three steals against Pahokee (H.S.) FL; 5'11 Mike Woodard from Fairburn (Creekside) GA with 10 points, three rebounds, four assists,and four steals against Washington (Dunbar) DC; 6'2 Zabian Dowdell from Pahokee (H.S.) FL with 18 points and 4-10 3-pointers versus Barrington (St. Andrews) RI; 5'10 Daon Merritt from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY with 17 points and four asssits against Jacksonville (Jackson) FL; 6'2 Bennett Jones from Fairburn (Creekside) GA with 17 points and 4-7 3-pointers against Washington (Dunbar) DC; 6'4 Abdi Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI with 19 points and 3-5 3-pointers versus Pahokee (H.S.) FL; 6'8 Devon Pearson from Miami (Northwestern) FL with 21 points and 13 rebounds versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL; 6'9 Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 12 points and 13 rebounds versus Corbin (H.S.) KY; 6'2 Tre Kelley from Washington (Dunbar) DC with 26 points and 0 assists against Fairburn (Creekside) GA; 6'8 Jr Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 16 points, eight rebounds, and two blocks versus Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA; 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY with 19 points, 12 rebounds, and eight blocks against Pensacola (Woodham) FL; 6'9 Jr Chris Henry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 12 points and nine rebounds versus Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL; 5'11 Trevante Nelson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 13 points and five rebounds versus Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL; 6'5 D.J. Strawberry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 17 points and four rebounds versus Corbin (H.S.) KY; 6'7 Cedric McGowan from Miami (Northwestern) FL with 19 points and eight rebounds versus Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA; 6'3 Jr Bryant Leach from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA with 23 points, 4-9 3-pointers, and 11 rebounds versus Ft Myers (H.S.) FL; and 6'4 Brendon Rooney from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 26 points versus Miami (Northwestern) FL.   But a top performance doesn't always translate into being a better college prospect.  As a matter of fact, we don't even think it's close between Dowdell and Gordon.  Sure Gordon is more athletic and explosive to the basket, but we seriously question whether this undersized 2-guard can make the transition to point guard at the next level, while, if what you see is what you with Dowdell, he should be able to make the transition to the next level with ease.  In other words, we may be talking about a potential top 100 senior nationally.  We also may be talking about the best senior point guard who is still available nationally.  Brionne Gillion of break-down.com, which is one of the top sources of information on high school players in the state of Florida, even goes so far as to rank him #5 in the state in the senior class, plus he thinks Dowdell is the best senior point guard in the state ahead of 6'0 T.J. Bannister from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.  So, if Dowdell is so good, why isn't anybody but South Florida recruiting him and why have most people never heard of him?   Well, Dowdell was sidelined most of his junior season with a sprained ankle and he missed the entire summer with a broken ankle.   He also is not exactly easy to find, unless you see him at the City of Palms Classic this week, because Pahokee High School is a small town off the beaten path in South Florida.  We're talking about a point guard with good handling and passing skills, the ability to beat you with his outside shooting, an excellent feel for the game, and a silky-smooth demeanor that is so deceptive that even some of the scouts who are attendance are missing on this one.   Dowdell also appears to be an excellent student.  He tells us that he has a 3.52 gpa and a 22 on the SAT.  He's also totally wide open, which is evident by the fact that hardly anybody is recruiting him.  However, this won't be the first time that we've run across a major sleeper on our annual trip to Florida the week before Christmas.  In case you've forgotten, Florida International and Central Florida were the only two schools recruiting 6'6 Eddie Jones from Pompano Beach (Ely) FL, who was so terrific at the Great Florida Shootout in 1990 that we called him the biggest sleeper in the nation and said he was a top 50 senior nationally.   Another player without any rep at all (even Breakdown Magazine doesn't have him on their list), is Robinson, who impressed with his quick hands, surprisingly agility, and the ability to finish around the basket.  Right now Robinson projects at the Sun Belt level, but, if he gets into better shape and develops more of a killer instinct, he too could have a big time future.  We also were very impressed with the balanced attack by Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, which featured six players - Merritt with 17 points, 6'5 Soph Chris Bethel with 14 points, 6'4 Tariq Atkins with 13 points, 6'5 Louie McCroskey with 12 points, 6'5 Jr Brian Lainge with 12 points, and 6'6 Jr Gavin Grant with 10 points.   But we still think the team to beat is Elizabeth (St. Patrick's) NJ, which, ironically, is the only team we haven't seen yet in the tournament (St. Patrick gets a first round bye and won't play until tomorrow when they face St. Andrews at 7:25 PM).   And the game between St. Patrick and St. Raymond's, which is potentially the best game of the entire tournament, will take place in semi-finals on Saturday night.  In the other semi-finals game it should be Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus the winner of tomorrow's quarterfinals match-up between Fairburn (Creekside) GA and New York (Rice) NY.   And we're predicting an upset in that game, because Creekside's strength is Rice's weakness.  Remember, Creekside has a terrific point guard in Woodard and Rice is inexperienced in the backcourt after Jason Wingate, Keydren Clark, and Steve Burtt Jr all graduated last spring.   Creekside also is better inside with 6'8 Gary Springer and 6'4 Jeff Trotter, both of whom are more athletic and tougher on the boards (they combined for 15 boards versus Dunbar) than Alleyne.  Speaking of Alleyne, he reminded us more of the major disappoint that we saw last summer at the NIKE All-American Camp than the dominating force that we heard about when he led Rice to the Catholic League Championship in New York City last March.  Alleyne did finish with a near triple-double, but it was due more to the fact that he's almost a foot taller than anybody on Woodham's team than anything he did to dominate the game. Tomorrow's schedule includes Jacksonville (Jackson) FL versus Corbin (H.S.) KY at 10:25 AM, Pensacola (Woodham) FL versus Pahokee (H.S.) FL at 12:10 PM, Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL versus Washington (Dunbar) DC at 1:55 PM, all of which are consolation bracket games, and Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA at 3:40 PM, Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA versus Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY at 5:40 PM, Barrington (St. Andrews) RI versus Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ at 7:25, and New York (Rice) NY versus Fairburn (Creekside) GA at 10:00 PM, all of which are quarterfinals games. 

Wednesday, December 18, 2002

Within the last 48 hours our entire focus has changed, as we've moved from wrapping up recruiting from the fall signing period to covering several of the top holiday tournaments in the nation, including the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, which tips off later today with Monroe (Quachita Parish) LA versus Miami (Northwestern) FL at 5:45 PM, Philadelphia (Bartram) PA versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL at 7:30 PM, and Corbin (H.S.) KY versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA at 9:15 PM.  Then, tomorrow, December 19th, it will be Barrington (St. Andrews) RI versus Pahokee (H.S.) FL at 1:00 PM, Jacksonville (Jackson) FL versus Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY at 2:45 PM, the loser of the game between Monroe (Quachita Parish) LA-Miami (Northwestern) FL versus the loser of the game between Philadelphia (Bartram) PA-Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL at 4:30 PM, the winner of the game between Corbin (H.S.) KY-Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL at 6:30 PM, Pensacola (Woodham) FL versus New York (Rice) NY at 8:15 PM, and Fairburn (Creekside) GA versus Washington (Dunbar) DC at 10:00 PM.  On Friday, December 20th, there will be three quarterfinals games at 10:25 PM, 12:10 PM, and 1:55 PM and four winners bracket games at 3:40 PM, 5:40 PM, 7:25 PM, and 10 PM.  Especially noteworthy is the fact that Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ gets a bye into this round, because New Jersey State rules prohibit teams from that state from playing more than a certain number of games during the regular season and, as a result, St. Patrick's first game will be against the Barrington (St. Andrews) RI- Pahokee (H.S.) FL winner.  And that game could be one of many great games in the tournament.  Remember, we have already gone on record saying that we think Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ is the best high school team in the nation.  If you will recall, St Patrick won the 2002 And1 High School National Championship in Philadelphia, PA in July and they won the 2002 Fall Jam Fest at Seton Hall University in September, which means they did it against the top high school teams in the nation last summer and against the top club teams in the nation last fall.  Currently Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ is ranked #3 and Barrington (St. Andrews) RI is ranked #24 in the latest USA Today poll, which came out yesterday, and whoever wins that game will advance into the final four on Saturday night.   And barring an upset the final four could be one of the highlights of the entire year, if Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, which is ranked #4 by the USA Today; Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, which is ranked #12 by the USA Today; and New York (Rice) NY is ranked #16 by the USA Today, all get past the first and second rounds of the tournament.  However, that might be easier said than done, because Philaddelphia (Bartram) PA and Washington (Dunbar) DC are also good enough to get national attention, Fairburn (Creekside) GA might be the best team in the state of Georgia, and Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL promises to have the best team that Western Florida has produced since the days of Teddy Dupay at Cape Coral (Mariner) FL.  This also promises to be the coming out party for 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, who is will play in his first high school game of his career in this tournament on Friday night.  If you will recall, Caracter finished ranked #5 at the NIKE All-American Camp by the HOOP SCOOP and is the consensus #1-ranked freshman in the nation.  He also has the talent and potential to become the next LaBron James.  As a matter of fact, our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio, whose team scrimmaged against St. Patrick recently, tells us that Caracter played all five positions and from the point guard spot late in the game proved that he can more than just keep you honest, as he hit three straight 3-pointers.  Getting back to the latest USA Today poll, it's noteworthy that I've already seen five of the top 25 teams - #1-ranked Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, #11-ranked Lexington (Catholic) KY, #15-ranked Memphis (White Station) TN, #18-ranked Maywood (Proviso East) IL, and #25-ranked Jackson (Lanier) MS - in this weeks poll and I plan to see #2-ranked Miami (Chrisitian) FL, #3-ranked Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, #4-ranked Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, #5-ranked Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, #6-ranked Columbus (Brookhaven) OH, #7-ranked Indianapolis (Pike) IN, #9-ranked Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH, #10-ranked Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, #12-ranked Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, #13-ranked Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, #16-ranked New York (Rice) NY, #17-ranked Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, #19-ranked Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, #23-ranked Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, and #24-ranked Barrington (St. Andrews) RI sometime this season.  In other words I expect to see at least 20 of the USA Today's top 25-ranked teams and I may also run into #8-ranked Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, #14-ranked Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, and #20-ranked Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ someplace along the way.  

We also got a chance to see 6'3 O.J. Mayo from Ashland (Rose Hill) KY, who is the consensus #1-ranked 8th grader, for the first time against Lexington (Catholic) KY four days ago and the reviews are mixed.  Mayo did score 15 points and was like a point/forward, as he brought the ball up the court, hit several 3-pointers, made some great passes, and got more than his share of rebounds.   However, he forced a lot of shots and seemed to be pressing as he went head-to-head against the #1-ranked team in the state and had CNN, which is doing a story on Mayo, filming his every move.  And what you see might be what you get.  Did you know that Mayo is at least one year older than his grade?  This is important, because, if Mayo was a freshman, instead of an 8th grader, he wouldn't rank among the top 10 freshmen nationally.  And I can say that with confidence, because I have already seen all 10 of our top 10-ranked freshmen nationally.  We do think Mayo is the best 8th grader in the nation, but, if he doesn't grow, and, as time moves forward, we suspect that a number of players in his class will move ahead of him.  In other words, Mayo will probably have an incredible high school career, but, when it is all said and done, he probably will project as a top 20 or 30 player nationally, instead of a top five player.   We do think Mayo is one of the top players in the state right now, along with 5'11 Jr Rajon Rando from Louisville (Eastern) KY, 6'3 Michael Bush from Louisville (Male) KY, 6'8 Ross Neltner from Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY, 6'7 Mike Brock from Independence (Simon Kenton) KY, and 6'7 Justin Doellman from Union (Ryle) KY.  Speaking of Rando and Neltner, we saw them both play in the Second Annual "Blue Chip" Basketball Shootout at Bellarmine University last Friday night.  Rando impressed us with passing and ability to get to the basket and Neltner played a lot harder than he did the previous week when we saw him in Benton, KY, but neither player separated himself from the rest of the pack, as the race for Mr. Basketball and top player honors in the state is truly up from grabs.  We haven't seen Bush play yet this season, but he appears to have picked up where he left off after an incredible football season, as he's already had several 30-point plus games on the hardwood this season.  We also understand that the University of Louisville is now in hot pursuit of 5'11 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, who is ranked #4 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP and has been ranked as one of the top five players in his class since he was in 4th grade.  Apparently Telfair showed up at Louisville's practice last weekend when the Cardinals were in New York City to play Seton Hall and there is no question that the interest is reciprocal, as is evident by the fact that when the Cardinals practice was over assistant coaches Mick Cronin and Vince Taylor both went to watch Telfair practice with his high school team.  However, getting Telfair might be easier said than done, because schools like Georgia Tech, Pittsburgh, Iowa State, Duke, and North Carolina are also showing interest, plus there is the usual cast of characters and street agents in New York City who are already telling him how good he is and that he should go straight to "The League."  Louisville also is very much involved with 6'8 Jr Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL, who is ranked #11 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'6 Soph Tyler Smith from Pulaski (Giles County) TN, who is ranked #6 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP.  And the connection is important, because both players play for the same AAU program that Marvin Stone, who becomes eligible to play for the Cardinals tonight when they play Manhattan, played for in high school.  Williams was once believed to be a near lock for Alabama, just like 6'4 Glenn Miles from Birmingham (West End) AL, who who is ranked #23 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP and appears to still be lock for the Crimson Tide.  However, it now is appears to be a real horse race for Williams, as Alabama, Louisville, Florida, Duke, Mississippi State, and Texas are all serious contenders.  Smith also likes Alabama, but Tennessee may be tough to beat because the Volunteers have already made him their #1 recruiting priority in the Class of 2005.  Speaking of the Southeast Pump 'N-Run Club Team program for which Williams, Smith, and Miles all play, it appears they should be better than ever, next spring and summer, despite the fact that 6'10 Jackie Butler from McComb (H.S.) MS won't be back.  Not only will all of these players have an addition year of experience and maturity, but Stone's former high school coach Ron Stapler has retired from teaching after 33 years and has agreed to coach the team.  And this is extremely noteworthy, because Stapler is widely regarded as one of the top high school coaches in the state of Alabama.  We also understand that Butler, who verbally committed to Mississippi State earlier this fall, but didn't sign a National Letter-of-Intent with the Bulldogs during the Fall Signing Period, does plan to sign with Mississippi State in the spring.  In other words, anybody who is trying to read something into the fact that Butler didn't sign is looking for something that isn't there.  We also find it interesting that neither Duke nor North Carolina is at the top of the list for 6'7 Jr Roy Bright from Durham (Northern Durham) NC.  Instead, according to our North Carolina/South Carolina Editor Brian Clifton, the early favorites for Bright, who is ranked #17 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP and #1 in the two-state area by Clifton, are Connecticut, Tennessee, Alabama, and Illinois.  Right now Bright is an academic question mark, but even more important is the fact that the Tar Heels only have two scholarships available for the both the current recruiting class and next year's recruiting class and they need to sign a pair of big men.  And right at the top of their list are 6'8 Brian Johnson from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, 6'10 Mohamed Tongara from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, and 6'10 Jr Ra'Sean Dickey from St. Matthews (Marlboro County) SC.   In Duke's case, the Blue Devils have Daniel Ewing in the sophomore class; J.J. Redick, Sheldon Williams, Shavlik Randolph, Sean Dockery, Micahel Thompson, and Lee Melchionni all in the freshmen class; 6'7 Luol Deng from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ and 6'8 Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN in their current recruiting class; and 6'2 Jr DeMarcus Nelson from Vallejo (H.S.) CA, who is ranked #7 nationally in the junior class  by the HOOP SCOOP; already in the fold.  So they only have three more scholarships to give in this year's and next year's recruiting class as well and our guess is they will target somebody with size, like Johnson and Williams and/or another point guard. 

Tuesday, December 17, 2002

After the all the faxes, emails, and phone calls I've gotten about 5'11 Durann Neil from Pleasantville (Pleasant Tech Academy) NJ, you'd think we were dealing with the next Kobe Bryant.  Instead, we're talking about a good  8th grader who was left off Allen Rubin's list of The Top High School Players in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area earlier this month.  And it still hasn't stopped, because, when Neil's name was added to the list, his name was misspelled and he was listed at the high school he attended a year ago (the fact that he was held back and changed schools was a major part of the confusion).  And the inaccuracies about Neil are going to remain until Rubin updates his next report several months from now.  Not only are changes after the fact are very time consuming, but I've already spent a ridiculous amount of time talking with Rubin, talking with Neil's people, and adding Neil, who is ranked #1 among 8th graders in the area, back onto the list.  Remember, we're talking about an 8th grader, which means we've got four years to get it right.  I bring this up, because the ranking of players at a younger and younger age has suddenly become a hot topic among the mainstream media and this illustrates my point perfectly.  As a matter of fact, I've gotten calls recently from  Sports Illustrated, CNN, ABC News, National Public Radio, and numerous newspapers and radio stations from around the country about this very subject.  And while I agree that too much attention for players at a young age can be a problem, I'm not too worried about kids in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade getting a little recognition.  While it's nice have the perspective of where a player came from at an early age and it's good for your credibility, if you discover a future great one at this age, it really is not all that important where a player is ranked until he gets into high school.  Obviously it's a starting point, as we continue to track players and refine our list, but where a player is ranked in junior high school will not have any impact upon whether he gets a college scholarship, becomes a McDonald's All-American, or gets drafted in the NBA Draft.  Certainly there are a lot of variables that are part of the equation, as a player matures, grows, and continues to develop, but, for the most part, I have come to the conclusion that players at the pre-high school level handle the added attention and notoriety surprisingly well.  Ironically, it's usually the coaches and parents that can't handle it.  They also are the ones who make us pause and sometimes even consider eliminating player rankings at the grade school and junior high school level altogether.  Instead, the real problem from the player's prespective comes from all the hype and exposure they get once they get into high school.  Not only has the recruiting process been speeded up dramatically in recent years, but once a player has gotten a lot of earlier exposure at someplace like the NIKE All-American Camp or adidas ABD Camp as a freshman, sophomore, or even a junior, all too often he falls into the trap, whereby, he thinks he has nothing more to prove and, as a result, his game suffers when he becomes a senior in high school.   Another problem is that players with great size are often overrated based on potential.  Add the fact that the NBA contiunes to rob the cradle and street agents get their hooks into players and often steer them in the wrong direction and the   problem is more like an epidemic.  While all this is clearly troubling and there don't appear to be any clear cut answers, it does make it easier than ever to separate the good players from the truly great players.  And right at the top of the list is 6'7 LeBron James from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH, who not only is the consensus #1-ranked player in the nation regardless of class, but almost always seems to live up to all the incredible hype and hoopla, as he clearly is on the path of becoming the next Michael Jordan.  And James certainly did this last week when he scored 31 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, and dished out six assists, as he led St. Vincent-St. Mary to a 20-point upset nationally televised win over Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, which previously was the #1-ranked team in the nation.  Making the story even more incredible is the fact that EPSN2's 2.0 rating (1.77 million homes) means that the game attracted the largest audience for a regularly scheduled event in the cable network's nine year history.  It also was the highest rated show since February 18, 2001 when RPM Tonight had a 2.15 rating due to the death of Dale Earnhart.  This is not surprising, because, at the high school level, the game still hasn't been totally corrupted, as players still have something to play for and winning is still more important than individual statistics, the next contract, and potential endorsements.  In other words, it's about basketball, not big business, and James is arguably the best amateur basketball player in the world today.  He also is like a man among boys and he appears destined to enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring.  And, when he does, he likely will be the #1 pick.  There also is talk about James playing on the 2004 Olympic Team, but this too has drawn criticism.  Apparently there are people who don't think a player fresh out of high school should be playing this summer for the Olympic Qualifying Tournament before he's ever plays a game in the NBA.  However, find the whole idea very refreshing.  Not only is James better right now than a lot of the NBA players who will be trying out for the team, but he also is young, hungry, and eager for new challenges.  And that's exactly what basketball in this country needs.   Remember, America is now falling behind the rest of the world and a player like this not only would be a step in the right direction in our quest to turn things around, but he also would be an important role model for the next generation of players.  In other words, James has done it the old-fashioned way!  Unlike Kwame Brown, Tyson Chandler, and Eddy Curry, all three of whom were drafted among the top picks in the NBA Draft a-year-and-a-half ago due to their size and potential, James is more like Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady, and DaJuan Wagner.  Remember, these guys always have always been able to their game to another next level and be more than up to the task of meeting and often surpassing expectations.   

Saturday, December 14, 2002, Sunday, December 15, 2002, & Monday, December 16, 2002

I remember one of our competitors telling me recently that he was going to take an afternoon and compile his rankings of the top recruiting classes from the fall signing period.  I bring this up, because this provides just one more illustration of why we are so far ahead of our competition in terms of covering basketball recruiting on a national basis.  Instead of one day, I've spent the better part of the last two weeks working our recruiting wrap-up, which now includes our 18-page list of National Commitments, our 8-page list of the Top 118 Recruiting Classes for the Fall Signing Period, our 20-page list of the Top Recruiting Classes-by-Conference, and our 12-page list of Different Ways to Look at Recruiting. That's 58 pages, which obviously is by-far-and-away the most comprehensive analysis of the fall signing period available anywhere.  It also the perfect complement to our archives, which provides you with our ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes from each of the last four years in the fall and the last five years in the spring.  There is no question that this important reference material when we compiled our talent ratings prior to the start of the current season, but it also important information for you to have at your finger tips, especially if you want to understand why certain programs have been successful and why others have not.  And right at the top of those that are successful is Duke, which has followed up on the #1 recruiting class with a class that includes only two players - 6'7 Luol Deng from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ and 6'8 Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, but is ranked #20 nationally on our list of the top recruiting class.  However, that only begins to tell the story, as the Blue Devils are also ranked on in terms of Talent Rating Average Per Recruit; #1 in terms of who signed the best two players; #12 in terms of who signed the best three players, even though they only signed only two players; and #1 in terms of who signed the best four players in the last two recruiting classes (this fall and last year).  While this comes as no surprise, it probably comes as a major surprise that Florida State, which landed 6'5 Vakeaton Wafer from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'10 Diego Romero from Lon Morris (JC) TX, and 6'7 Antonio Griffin from Scottsdale (JC) AZ, checks in with the second highest Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  And this is at least part of the reason why the Atlantic Coast Conference is why ahead of the pack with a 6.400 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit when we break it down conference-by-conference.  Florida State also checks in at #6 on our list of the top recruiting classes, #1 on our list of the Highest Talent Rating for the Top Three Recruits, and is tied at #5 on our list of the Highest Talent Rating for the Top Three Recruits.  We also find that Louisville and Mississippi State, both of which are quickly moving into the very elite category on the Division I spectrum, are tied for eight on our list of the top recruiting classes and are tied for third in terms of Talent Rating Average Per Recruit and Highest Talent Rating for the Top Three Recruits.  However, we still find plenty of evidence that the rich continue to get richer in college basketball, as Arizona is tied for #1 with Duke, Illinois and Cincinnati are tied for third, and Oklahoma, Kansas, and Michigan State are tied for #5, along with Arkansas, Memphis, and Arkansas, in terms of who signed the top two recruits.  We also break it down to see which conferences signed the most top 100 players nationally and the big winner is the Big East, which finished with 154 points and 26 top 100 players (0 top five players, 0 top 10 players six top 40 players, 13 top 70 players, and seven top 100 players).  However, the Atlantic Coast Conference once again is the big winner, if we look at who signed the most top 10 players nationally.  Obviously we're talking about Deng, Humphries, Wafer, and 6'0 Chris Paul from Clemmons (West Forsyth) NC, who signed with Wake Forest.  In other words, there are numerous different ways to look at recruiting and nobody does a better job of laying it all out for you.  And while our list is probably 99% accurage, we're out of time (for us the holiday tournament basketball season starts tomorrow) and, as a result, any late additions will be added onto our list of Recent Commitments, which will include everything that is reported to us from this point forward.  And the first player to be added to the list is 6'0 Nate Sudlow from Brooklyn (Tildon) NY, who has verbally committed to Bryant College.  Sudlow is a combo guard and prolific scorer who is good enough to play at the mid-Division I level, but Max Good appears to have stolen another one, as he attempts to build Byrant College into a Division II powerhouse.  However, that's easier said than done, because Bryant College has only had two winning seasons in the last 20 years.  Currently Bryant is 5-4 on the season and Good, who previously was the head coach at UNLV, Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, and Eastern Kentucky and now is in his second season at Bryant, already has stocked the cupboard with a lot of young talent. 

Friday, December 13, 2002

The week after Christmas we plan to start on Thursday, December 26th, at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE; then get the first flight out of Washington, DC, on Friday, December 27th, to Houston, TX, where we'll see the first two days of action at the Academy National Invitational; and then return for the last two days of Slam Dunk to the Beach on Sunday, December 29th, and Monday, December 30th.  So let's take a closer look at both tournaments.   The Academy National Invitational not only has seven of the top 20 high school teams, according to the USA Today's pre-season poll, in #1-ranked Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, #2-ranked Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, #4-ranked Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, #6-ranked Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, #15-ranked New York (Rice) NY, #18-ranked Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, and #20-ranked Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, but also features some incredible match-ups.  And right at the top of the list is the game on Friday night between Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX and Houston (Jones) TX.  That's 6'1 Jr Jason Horton versus 6'3 Daniel Gibson!  In other words, the top two juniors in the state of Texas will be battling it out for bragging rights.  And the rest of the opening round games that day also appear to be terrific, as it will be Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX versus Port Arthur (Memorial) TX at 9:30 AM, Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA versus Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN at 11:00 AM, Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX versus Houston (Aldine) TX at 12:30 PM, Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA versus Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC at 2:00 PM, Aldine (Nimitz) TX versus Houston (Westfield) TX at 3:30 PM, New York (Rice) NY versus Los Angeles (Westchester) TX at 5:00 PM, and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ versus Houston (Westbury Christian) TX at 8:00 PM.  And the list of top players in at the Academy National Invitational is equally impressive, as the list includes Horton, Gibson, 6'10 Ndudi Ebi from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'5 Vakeaton Wafer from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'8 Ivan Harris from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Trevor Ariza from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'4 Rodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'1 Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'11 Grant Billmeier from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'7 Reyshawn Terry from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, 6'4 Lodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'2 Marcus Williams from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'2 Jr Isaish Swann from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'3 J.R. Reynolds from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 Blake Adams from Aldine (Nimitz) TX, 6'8 Cartier Martin from Aldine (Nimitz) TX, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY, 6'6 Scott Cutley from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'5 Jr Richard Hurd from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'1 Jr Brian Waters from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'10 Jr Chester Giles from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 5'10 Jr Andre Allen from Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN, 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY, 6'9 Byron Joynes from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Warren Scott from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'4 Parker Pinkalla from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX, 6'10 Elijah Miller from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'5 Soph Marcus Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'5 Ugo Ihekweazu from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'8 Keith Foster from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, 6'6 Dion Dacons from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'9 Eddie Green from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, 6'8 Justin Bolander from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, 6'8 Frosh Curtis Kelly from New York (Rice) NY, 6'0 Soph Justin Edward from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'5 Soph Rashard Woods from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'5 Soph Steven Jones from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, and 6'1 Frosh Quetin Guidery from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX.  For even more information about the Academy National Invitational, go to there website at visionsports.com.  And the field for Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE is equally impressive, as it includes Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, Amityville (H.S.) NY, Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ, Bloomfield (Bloomfield Tech) NJ, Potomac (Bullis School) MD, Lewes (Cape Henlopen) DE, Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, Beaumont (Ozen) TX, Greenbelf (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD,  Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, Washington (Gonzaga) DC, Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, Laurel (H.S.) DE, Laurinburg (Institute) NC, Miami (Christian) FL, Oakland (Tech) CA, Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD, Pateron (Catholic) NJ, Reno (H.S.) NV, Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, Newark (St. Benedict's) NY, Wilmington (St. Mark's) DE, Hockessin (Sanford) DE, Washington (Spingarn) DC, Starkville (H.S.) MS, and Camden (Wilcox Central) AL.  The top players include at Slam Dunk to the Beach will include 5'10 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, 6'3 Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 6'8 Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, 6'7 Sean Banks from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ, 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) DE, 6'9 Travis Outlaw from Starkville (H.S.) MS, 6'10 David Padgett from Reno (H.S.) NV, 6'10 Jr Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, 6'11 Darryl Watkins from Paterson (Catholic) NJ, 6'7 Regis Koundjia from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'8 Leon Powe from Oakland (Tech) CA, 6'8 Will Sheridan from Hockessin (Sanford) DE, 6'8 Jr Stanley Branch from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'3 Art Bowers from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'6 Jr Earl Smith from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'7 Barbacar Thiem from Washington (Spingarn) DC, 6'3 Soleheim Frazier from Washington (Spingarn) DC, 6'8 Jr D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, 6'8 Jr Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'7 Demetrius Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'0 Jr A.J Price from Amityville (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Omari Israel from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, 6'9 Oumar Sylla from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'8 Boubacour Coly from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'1 Guillermo Diaz from Miami (Christian) FL, 6'9 Konimba Darra from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'4 Jesus Verdejo from Miami (Christian) FL, 6'3 Marquis Webb from Paterson (Catholic) NJ, 6'11 Will Bowers from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, 6'3 Abid Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'0 Jr Emery Outland from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Jr Nick Matone from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Rashard Nixon from Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD, 6'8 Daniel Coleman from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, 6'7 Keena Young from Beaumont (Ozen) TX, 5'11 Jr Roy Hibbert from North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, 6'9 Jr Davis Nwanko from North Bethesda (Georgetown Prep) MD, 6'8 Jr Jerome Johnson from Potomac (Bullis School) MD, 6'9 Jr Jarrett Gaither from Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD, 6'7 Jr DeSean White from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 5'11 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'8 Jr James Gist from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, 6'0 Jr Lorenzo Miles from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'6 Soph Shane Clark from from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'4 Jr Bilal Benn from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'3 Jr Antwan Harrison from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'6 Soph Paul Johnson from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, and 6'1 Jr Courtney Nelson from Bloomfield (Bloomfield Tech) NJ.  For even more information about the Slam Dunk to the Beach, go to there website at Slam Dunk to the Beach.

Thursday, December 12, 2002

It came as no surprise that 6'6 Jr Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'6 J.R. Giddens from Oklahoma City (John Marshall) OK, 6'4 Rodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, and 6'5 Nick Brooks from Robinson (H.S.) IL all turned in great performances earlier today at the 22nd Annual Shop 'N Save/KMOX Shootout in St. Louis, MO.  However, it comes as a major surprise that 6'4 Jr Justin Cerasoli from Aurora (West Aurora) IL turned in what arguably was the second best performance of the entire day and, as a result, now must be regarded as one of the top four juniors in the state of Illinois, along with Livingston, 6'8 Jr Shaun Pruitt from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, and 6'4 Jr DeAaron Williams from Bartonsville (Limestone) IL.  Not only did Cerasoli finish with 27 points, four rebounds, and three steals, but he also impressed us so much with his ball handling and passing skills that Shaun Livingston comparisons are in order.  Cerasoli is not as creative nor is he as good a passer as Livingston, but he shoots it better than Livingston, as was evident by his 4-6 3-point shooting, plus he's just as athletic and he's gets to the hole just as well as Livingston.  Cerasoli also is similar to Livingston in appearance and build and he needs to continue to get bigger and stronger physically, just like Livingston.  However, right now Livingston is stronger and more polished, which is why Livingston finishes better when he challenges the big guys inside.  Speaking of Livingston, he not only led Peoria (Central) IL to a 73-66 overtime win against St. Louis (DeSmet) IL, but he finished with 26 points and six assists, as he turned in what was easily the best performance of the day.  How good was Livingston?  Dan Owens, who is the chairman of the selection committee for the Derby Classic All-Star Game, called Livingston the best player he's seen at the high school level in at least the last several years.   "He makes great decisions and has such a great feel for the game," says Owens.  As a matter of fact, Livingston was so good that even Roy and Harv Schmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report would probably have come around, if they'd been in attendance at this year's event.  If you will recall, the Schmidt's are way out on a limb, because they have currently Pruitt ranked as the #1 player in the junior class in Illinois, ahead of both Livingston and Williams, who is totally unknown nationally, but off the hook, according to a number of people who have seen him in Illinois.  And the Schmidt's may still turn out to be right, but, if Pruitt is better than Livingston, we're talking about a potential 10-year all-star in the NBA.  In other words, in our mind, Livingston must receive serious consideration, along with 6'9 Jr Al Jefferson from Prentiss (H.S.) MS, 6'0 Jr Darius Washington from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, and 5'10 Jr Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, and 6'9 Jr Josh Smith from Powder Springs (McEachern) GA, for the #1 ranking in the junior class nationally next time we update our rankings.  Giddens led Oklahoma City (John Marshall) OK to a 59-51 victory over Hazelwood (Florrisant Central) MO, but really the game wasn't that close, as Giddens scored John Marshall's first seven points and 12 of his teams first 14 points.  I heard somebody talking about Giddens needing to become a more consistent 3-point shooter, but 4-7 from beyond the arc, including several early to help set the tone of the game, was enough to convince me.  Giddens finished with 23 points and six rebounds, but this incredible athlete easily could have scored 40 points, if he had continued to play with the same intensity level throughout the entire game.   We also thought 6'8 Jr Kalen Grimes from Hazelwood (Florrisant Central) MO played much better than when we saw him a week ago at the Kentucky Hoopfest in Benton, KY.  Apparently Grimes has been slowed by injuries, but this time the effort was there, as he finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds.  Maybe the time of day had something to do with it (a week ago his team played in the morning after traveling half the night the previous night), but the fact that Illinois head coach Bill Self and Missouri head coach Quin Snyder both stayed around to watch him play in the final game of the evening also may have been a contributing factor.   Speaking of Illinois and Missouri, those two schools are always the first two schools mentioned when anybody talks about Grimes' recruiting.  However, Kentucky, Saint Louis, Michigan, Indiana, North Carolina, and Kansas are also showing a lot of interest and this probably explains why Kansas head coach Roy Williams was also in the house to see the final game of the evening, which featured both Grimes and Giddens.  Remember, Giddens signed with Jayhawks during the fall signing period.   We also were impressed by the Stewart twins, but clearly 6'4 Rodrick Stewart, who finished with 30 points and eight rebounds was better the better of the two.  They both thrive in an uptempo setting and they both seem to have a sixth sense with regards to where the other one is one the court (i.e. several great passes for layups in transitions).  However, the Stewart twins also are still turnover prone, as was evident by their combined 17 turnovers against West Aurora.  Still they combined for 40 of Rainier Beach's 69 points, as the USA Today's #2-ranked team beat West Aurora in overtime, 69-62.  And except for Cerasoli, we thought West Aurora was disappointing.  Pruitt didn't even play, because he's sidelined with a broke leg, but six points and six turnovers by 6'2 Jr Jaeh Thomas from Aurora (Aurora West) IL and 6-16 shooting by 6'5 Dameon Mason from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, both of whom are ranked among the top 100 nationally in their respective classes, illustrates our point.  Earlier in the day Buchanan (Troy) MO beat Hempstead (H.S.) TX, 52-50; Florissant (McCluer) MO beat O'Fallon (H.S.) IL, 63-50; St. Louis (Gateway) MO beat Baton Rouge (Capitol) LA, 44-36; and Robinson (H.S.) IL beat De Soto (H.S.) MO, 59-43; and Springfield (Kickapoo) MO beat Portland (Jefferson) OR, 77-61.  The Jefferson- Kickapoo game was especially interesting, because 6'9 Anthony Tolliver, 6'1 Spencer Laurie, and 6'5 Deven Mitchell, who combined for 52 points, more than offset 6'5 Thomas Gardner and 6'3 Isaiah Allen, who combined for 38 points for Portland Jefferson.  Tolliver has already signed with Creighton, but he's a lot better than that level.  Not only is he active on the boards (13 rebounds) and fluid around the basket (17 points), but he's an explosive leaper with good hands, great timing, nice skills, and an excellent feel for the game.  In other words, if Tolliver is not a top 100 senior nationally, he's darn close to it!  Laurie also deserves top 100 consideration, because he's deceptively quick off the dribble, is an excellent outside shooter, and a tremendous competitor.   Mitchell also gets a lot done, as was evident by his 7-11 field goals and eight rebounds, but this slasher/athlete does most of his damage in transition and around the basket, which makes him a tweener for the next level.  Gardner is a big time athlete, but he never quite seemed to get into the flow, as he hit only 6-23 field goals and was only 2-11 from beyond the arc.  However, maybe the fact that this was his team's first game of the season had something to do with it.  Instead, Allen, who hit 9-16 field goals and grabbed nine rebounds, was the best player for Portland Jefferson.   Allen also showed a nice looking 3-point shot (1-1 from beyond the arc), but we have to question whether he has an outside shooter's mentality and whether he can create for himself off the dribble.  In other words, we think Allen, who  also is a big time athlete, excellent defender, and  excellent rebounder, could be a definite sleeper for somebody at the high major level or an absolute steal for somebody at the mid-to-low level.  We also were very impressed once again with 6'5 Nick Brooks from Robinson (H.S.) IL, who finished with 30 points, including 10-16 field goals.  However, we still can't move Brooks into our top 100 nationally, because his outside shooting is still a question mark, as was eivdent by the fact that he was only 1-4 from behind the 3-point line.  We also have to mention 6'8 Brandon Bass from Baton Rouge (Capitol) LA, who finished with 20 points, 12 rebounds, and five rebounds.  But this was not one of his better efforts, as he tried to do too much out away from the basket, as was evident by his 6-17 field goals and 1-3 3-pointers, plus he didn't get much help for the guards, as his team finished with a grand total of only four assists.  Still, Bass is the best unsigned senior still available nationally, so we made sure that we got an updated list of schools, which includes Connecticut, LSU, Mississippi State, Alabama, USC, and Miami-FL, right from the horse's mouth.  Bass also said that he's still wide open and has no plans to sign until spring.  There is even speculation that he's going to wait until April 28th, so he can sign on his birthday.  However, the word on the street is that LSU is still the team you have to beat, despite the fact that Bass didn't sign with the Tigers in the fall.   Speaking of LSU, we also believe the Tigers are already the heavy favorite over schools like Duke, Kentucky, LSU, Kansas, Florida, and Indiana for 6'6 Soph Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, who is the #1-ranked sophomore in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP.  Remember, LSU assistant coach Butch Pierre is Mitchell's godfather. 

Wednesday, December 11, 2002

Tomorrow the world will get a chance to tune and watch on television the big match-up between 6'7 LeBron James from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH, who is the consensus #1-ranked high school player in the nation and potentially the next Michael Jordan, and Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, which is the #1-ranked high school team in the nation.  However, for us it will be business as usual tomorrow, because we'll be at the 22nd Annual Shop 'N Save/KMOX Shootout at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, MO and the schedule is as follows:  Hempstead (H.S.) TX versus Troy (Buchanan) MO at 10:30 AM, O'Fallon (H.S.) IL versus Florissant (McCluer) MO at Noon, Baton Rouge (Capitol) LA versus St. Louis (Gateway) MO at 1:30 PM, Robinson (H.S.) IL versus DeSoto (H.S.) MO at 3:00 PM, Peoria (Central) MO versus Creve Coeur (DeSmet Jesuit) MO at 4:45 PM, Portland (Jefferson) OR versus Springfield (Kickapoo) IL at 6:15 PM, Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA versus Aurora (Aurora West) IL at 7:45 PM, and Oklahoma City (John Marshall) OK versus Florissant (Hazelwood Central) MO at 9:15 PM.  Top players will include 6'6 Jr Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'8 Brandon Bass from Baton Rouge (Capitol) LA, 6'6 J.R. Giddens from Oklahoma City (John Marshall) OK, 6'4 Thomas Gardner from Portland (Jefferson) OR, 6'4 Rodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'4 Lodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'8 Jr Kalen Grimes from Florissant (Hazelwood Central) MO, 6'9 Tyrone Nelson from Hempstead (H.S.) TX, 6'4 Jr Xavier Price from O'Fallon (H.S.) IL, 6'5 Nick Brooks from Robinson (H.S.) IL, 6'2 Blake Ahearn from Creve Coeur (DeSmet Jesuit) MO, 6'1 Spencer Laurie from Springfield (Kickapoo) MO, 6'5 Dameon Mason from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, 6'2 Jr Jaeh Thomas from Aurora (Aurora West) IL, and 6'4 Jr Justin Cerasoli from Aurora (Aurora West) IL.  We also are getting ready for our annual trip next to the 2002 City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, where, if everything goes true to form, we will have a final four that includes Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, and New York (Rice) NY.  The tournament will tip-off on Wednesday, December 18th with Monroe (Quachita Parish) LA versus Miami (Northwestern) FL at 5:45 PM, Philadelphia (Bartram) PA versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL at 7:30 PM, and Corbin (H.S.) KY versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA at 9:15 PM.  Then, on Thursday, December 19th, it will be Barrington (St. Andrews) RI versus Pahokee (H.S.) FL at 1:00 PM, Jacksonville (Jackson) FL versus Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY at 2:45 PM, the loser of the game between Monroe (Quachita Parish) LA-Miami (Northwestern) FL versus the loser of the game between Philadelphia (Bartram) PA-Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL at 4:30 PM, the winner of the game between Corbin (H.S.) KY-Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Lehigh Acres (Lehigh) FL at 6:30 PM, Pensacola (Woodham) FL versus New York (Rice) NY at 8:15 PM, and Fairburn (Creekside) GA versus Washington (Dunbar) DC at 10:00 PM.  On Friday, December 20th, there will be three quarterfinals games at 10:25 PM, 12:10 PM, and 1:55 PM and four winners bracket games at 3:40 PM, 5:40 PM, 7:25 PM, and 10 PM.  Especially noteworthy is the fact that Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ gets a bye into this round, because New Jersey State rules prohibit teams from that state from playing more than a certain number of games during the regular season and, as a result, St. Patrick's first game will be against the Barrington (St. Andrews) RI- Pahokee (H.S.) FL winner.  The schedule on Saturday will feature the consolation semi-finals at 11:15 AM and 1:00 PM, the Fifth Place Semi-Finals at 2:45 PM and 4:45 PM, and the Semi-Finals at 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM.   Sunday is a dead day in the state of Florida, so the tournament will resume on Monday, Januar 23rd with four loser bracket games at 8:30 AM, 10:15 PM, 12 Noon, and 1:45 PM, the Consolation Championship at 3:30 PM, Fifth Place Championship at 5:30 PM, Third Place Game at 7:15 PM, and the Championship Game at 9:00 PM.  Obviously this is the place to be the week before Christmas, as the City of Palms Classic has seven teams - Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, and New York (Rice) NY, Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, Philadelphia (Bartram) PA, and Washington (Dunbar) DC - that have been nationally ranked.  As a matter of fact, the only thing that this tournament is missing are two of the most talented teams from the state of Florida in Jacksonville (Arlington County Day) FL and Miami (Christian) FL.   Some of the top players at the City of Palms Classic will include 6'9 Frosh Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'1 Soph Eric Price from Washington (Dunbar) DC, 5'10 Daon Merritt from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'4 Louis McCroskey from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'4 Jr Brian Laing from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'4 Jr Gavin Grant from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'8 Demetrius Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Wesley Washington from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 5'10 Mike Woodard from Fairbanks (Creekside) GA, 6'1 Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'9 Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY, 6'11 Grant Billmeier from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'3 Abid Lidonde from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'0 Jr Emery Outland from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'3 Jr Nick Matone from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'1 Tre Kelley from Washington (Dunbar) DC, 6'2 Jr Earl Risby from Washington (Dunbar) DC, 6'3 Jr Russell Robinson from New York (Rice) NY, 6'8 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (Bartram) PA, 6'2 Jay Jackson from Monroe (Ouchita Parish) LA, 6'6 Cedric McGowan from Miami (Northwestern) FL, 6'7 Devon Pearson from Miami (Northwestern) FL, 6'2 Zabian Dowdell from Pahokee (H.S.) FL, 6'9 Isaiah Mills from Corbin (H.S.) KY, and 6'8 Frosh Curtis Kelly from New York (Rice) NY

Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin checks in with an early list of schools for six of the top 11-ranked juniors in his area. plus he tells us that the race for top player honors in the area in the Class of 2004 is extremely close between 6'7 Jr Rob Kurz from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA and 5'11 Jr Sean Singletary from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA.  And making the story even more intriguing is the fact that Kurz and Singletary both are excellent students, which is evident by the fact that Vanderbilt heads Singletary's list and Stanford is right at the top of Kurz's list.   Singletary also is being recruited by Rutgers, Virginia, St. Joseph's, Texas, Ohio State, LSU, and Connecticut and Kurz also mentions Notre Dame, Villanova, Wake Forest, N.C. State, Indiana, and Penn State.  Villanova, Providence, Syracuse, Xavier, Texas, and Connecticut are all in the hunt for 6'7 Jr DeSean White from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA likes Villanova, Providence, Syracuse, Xavier, Texas, and Connecticut; 5'11 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA is getting the most attention from Ohio State, Providence, Texas, Virginia, Temple, La Salle, and Stanford; and 6'4 Jr Bilan Benn from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA likes Siena, Duquesne, St. Joseph, La Salle, Boston University, Temple, Marist, Canisius, Rhode Island, Providence, Delaware, and Central Connecticut.  The early favorites for 5'8 Jr Rich Cunningham from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA are St. Joseph's, Connecticut, Syracuse, Drexel, and La Salle.  Rubin also tells us that Temple, which already has landed 6'3 Mario Taybron from Norfolk (Ryan Academy) VA and 6'10 Wayne Marshall from Philadelphia (Martin Luther King) PA, and Drexel, which already has landed 5'11 Bashir Mason from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'7 Matt Stevenson from Towson (Catholic) MD, and 6'8 Chaz Crawford from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, in this recruiting class are both done and, as a result, are focusing exclusively on the sophomores and juniors.  La Salle, which already has 6'8 Sean Neal from Salisbury (School) MA and 6'8 Mike St. John from Weston (Rivers School) MA in the fold, has one scholarship remaining, and St. Joseph's, which doesn't have any verbal commitments to-date, has two scholarships remaining.  In both cases, St. Joseph's and La Salle are focusing primarily on big men and right are at the top of both of their list is 6'10 Roman Narmbaye-Mbainas from Burlington (Life Center) NJ, who is one of the top unsigned big men still available nationally.   However, they also are getting competition from Massachusetts, Colorado, and Rutgers, although we'd be surprised if he went to Rutgers.  Remember, the Scarlet Knights already have signed 7'3 Shagari Alleyne from New York (Rice) NY and are still believed to be the heavy favorite for 6'11 Darryl Watkins from Paterson (Catholic) NJ. 

Tuesday, December 10, 2002

Within the last 24 hours I have continued to add names and make adjustments to our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Fall Signing Period and one of my best sources of reference is the list of signings that Chris Monter has on his website, which can be found by clicking on CollegeBasketballNews.com.   There is no question that Monter's list is second to none, but there are several important distinctions between his list and our list.  First, we include players who have verbally committed but have not signed, like 6'9 Charlie Villanueva from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ, who, when counted with Illinois' recruiting class, gets the Fighting Illini ranked #2 in Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Fall Signing Period.  Second, we include verbal commitments from underclassmen who have already picked a four-year school.  We also find that we've been missing some important junior college signings, like 6'1 Filiberto Rivera from Southeastern Iowa (JC) IA, who is ranked #3 among point guards in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, picking Florida International; 6'2 Roy Booker from Allen County (JC) KS, who is ranked #3 among shooting guards in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, picking Montana; 6'2 Chris Huber from Dixie (JC) UT, who is ranked #4 among point guards in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, picking Utah State; and 6'1 Eddie Withers from Seminole (JC) OK, who is the #2-ranked point guard in the Lindy Pre-Season Yearbook, picking Florida A&M.  As a result, each of these programs made significant jumps in our rankings today.  And so did programs like Utah, Georgia State, Miami-OH, Texas A&M, and Ohio University, as we found additional players to add to their recruiting classes.  We also have made major strides on our List of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference, and, as things stand now, we are done with the top seven conferences.  And it comes as no surprise that the Big East edges out Conference USA, the Big-12, Southeastern, Big-10, Atlantic Coast, and Pacific-10 when we come up with a cumulative point total for each conference.   Remember, the Big East and Conference USA both have 14 teams, which is a two more than any other conference.  However, if you look at what conference signed the highest Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, the the Atlantic Coast Conference is the big winner with an amazing 6.4 Talent Rating Average Per Average.  In other words, the average player signed by a school in the Atlantic Coast Conference this fall is the equivalent of a player who is ranked in the 41-70 range nationally.  If you will recall, based on our 1-10 rating system 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.   We also have are finished with Colonial Athletic Association, plus we've add to the conference rankings all of the teams that are already listed in our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Fall Signing Period.   However, I'm going to need some more time to include the rest of the teams in each conference and, as a result, I will continue to update the List of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference on a daily basis.  So stay tuned!

Saturday, December 7, 2002, Sunday, December 8, 2002, & Monday, December 9, 2002

On Friday evening we confirmed that 6'7 James White, who is transferring from the University of Florida, had the University of Cincinnati over Missouri and Syracuse.  Obviously this is big for Bearcats head coach Bobby Huggins, as he continues to stockpile players in this recruiting class who have a little more maturity and experience than the normal high school player.   If you will recall, earlier this fall Cincinnti landed 6'10 Robert Whaley from Barton County (JC) KS and 6'4 Nick Williams from Chipola (JC) FL, both of whom are consensus top five junior college players in the nation, and 6'8 Mike Pilgrim, who originally is Cincinnati, OH, but who is now a 5th year player at Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) ME.  Speaking of Pilgrim, rumor has it that he's not thrilled about the fact the Bearcats have already recruited over him, but he shouldn't be too worried about White transferring to Cincinnati for several reasons.  First, competition is good and, if Pilgrim has somebody like White to go head-to-head against everyday in practice for the next four years, they'll be turn out to be better players.   Second, Huggins is at his best when he has a number of players who are versatile enough to play several different positions and, as a result, are interchangeable.   Third, White is more of a wing forward/second guard and Pilgrim is more of a wing forward/power forward, so they should be on the court a lot at the same time.  White counts towards the five scholarships that Cincinnati has available, for our purposes he does not count towards Cincinnati's recruiting class.  Remember, it is our editorial policy not to count transfers when ranking recruiting classes.  As a matter of fact, Cincinnati's recruiting class will drop from #5 to #13 in our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Fall Signing Period.  If you will recall, Pilgrim did not play well two weeks ago when we saw him at the War on the Shore National Prep School Invitational and, as a result, we've dropped him in our rankings.  In other words, he's gone from being the equivalent of a player in the 11-40 range nationally to a player in the 71-100 nationally, if he were still a high school senior.  However, if White were to count, Cincinnati would have the #1-ranked recruiting class nationally.  We've also made a number of other changes to our Final Rankings of the Top Recruiting Classes  for the Fall Signing Period and the conference that benefits the most is the Big East Conference, as Boston College, Connecticut, Rutgers, and Providence have all moved up in our rankings.  Connecticut moved up four points on our list to #33, because we increased the value of 6'9 Josh Boone from Colora (West Notthingham) MD and 6'2 Marcus Williams from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA by two points apiece.  Boston College moved up three points to #34 on our list, because we increased the value of 6'1 Steve Hailey from Worcester (Academy) MA by two points and 6'6 Devon Evertson from Phoenix (Moon Valley) AZ by one point.  Providence moved into a tie at #35, because we increased the value of 6'5 Dwight Brewington from Worcester (Academy) MA and 6'4 Gerald Brown from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA by two points apiece.  Rutgers is also now tied at #35, along with Providence, Texas Tech, and Alabama, because 6'3 Quincy Douby from Oakdale (St. Thomas) CT also is a lot better than we originally thought and, as a result, the Scarlet Knights' class moves up two points.  Some other recruiting classes, like Iowa State's class, which includes 6'3 Curtis Stinson from Winchendon (School) MA, 6'0 Will Blaylock from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'7 Justin Holt from Tacoma (JC) WA and 6'9 Reggie George from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA - have moved up dramatically thanks to some late additions.  In this case, we're talking about Holt and George, who previously weren't included and, as a result, Iowa State's recruiting class moves up to #17.  And there are a few players, like 6'8 Reyshawn Terry from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC, that we had on our list of signings and commitments, but neglected to include in our rankings of the top recruiting classes to-date.  So North Carolina's one-man recruiting class moves into a tie at #86, along with Ohio State and Charlotte. 

When 6'3 Shannon Brown from Maywood (Proviso East) IL comes to play, there is no doubt in our mind that he is one of the of the top five players in the senior class nationally, along with 6'7 LeBron James from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH, 6'7 Luol Deng from Blairwood (Blair Academy) NJ, 7'0 Brian Butch from Appleton (West) WI, and 6'10 Ndudi Ebi from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX.  We mention this because Brown has a tendency to sometimes go through the motions, but he sensational at the Marshall County Hoop Fest on Saturday night in Benton, KY, as he scored 29 points, grabbed five rebounds, and played with tremendous effort.  He also made a number of incredible moves to the basket that ended with earth shattering slam dunks, including one that temporarily sent him to the sidelines with an injured hand.   However, by that time it didn't matter, because the score was 25-4 and Proviso East was on a 25-2 run.  And Brown had plenty of help from 5'9 Charlie Richardson from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, who finished with 15 points and three assists, and 6'1 Soph Phillip Perry, who finished with 10 points and four assists, as he showed why he's one of the top ranked sophomores in the state of Illinois.  And it was also status quo for Ballard, as 6'1 Sean Booker and 6'3 Soph Ravon Lee, both of whom are ranked among the top players in the state of Kentucky in their respective classes, finished with 12 points apiece and combined for 13 rebounds.  The other big game of the day featured Jackson (Lanier) MS against Lexington (Catholic) KY, which is ranked #10 nationally in the USA Today and returns four of its key players - 6'3 Jr William Graham, 6'3 Jr Demetrius Green, 6'3 Harrison Morton, and 5'11 Brian Smith, who combined for 54 points - from last year's state championship team.  Smith is smaller and isn't as naturally talented, but he's more of a pure point guard than either of his brothers (G.G. Smith and Saul Smith) and, as a result, is ideally suited to run the show, as Graham, Green, and Morton thrive in transition and 6'4 Jr Mark Balthrop, who finished with 21 points and double-digits rebounds, does most of the dirty work inside.  Lanier featured 6'3 Soph Monta Ellis, who is ranked #4 in the sophomore class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, but was missing 6'7 Jr Charles Thomas, 6'4 Jr Robert Clark, and 6'7 Jr Charles Rhodes, all three of whom transferred to Lanier this fall and, as a result, won't be eligible to play until January.   Instead, the player who stepped up and helped Lanier recover from a 27-10 first quarter deficit was 6'7 Jr Issac Wells, who finished with 33 points and impressed us with his explosive quickness and athleticism inside.   Our Mississippi Editor Lavel Johnson tells us that Wells, who is listed as a junior, is really a senior academically.  So Wells plans to go to summer school, graduate from high school, and enroll at a four-year school next fall.   Apparently Ole Miss is interested in taking Wells as a walk-on, but, if they don't land a quality big man, Wells is definitely worthy of a scholarship.  As a matter of fact, we like Wells just as well as 6'8 Warren Scott from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who currently is one of the Rebels' prime targets.  Wells is an inch smaller than Scott, but he plays a lot bigger, because he's more explosive, quicker afoot, and much more active on the boards.  Plus, Wells showed an ability to step away from the basket and keep you honest with his mid-range shooting.  In other words, we're talking about a legitimate top 150 player nationally in whatever class he's in and perhaps one of the best unsigned inside players still available.  Earlier in the day, Memphis (White Station) TN beat Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY, 77-54; Independence (Simon Kenton) KY beat Springfield (Lanphier) IL 57-34; Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY beat Bartlett (H.S.) TN, 61-55; Robinson (H.S.) KY beat Mayfield (H.S.) KY, 62-51; Florrisant (Hazelwood Central) IL beat Metropolis (Massic County) IL, 56-53; and Peoria (Richwood) IL beat Mayfield (Graves County) KY, 73-31, but all of the big name players were disappointing.   And right at the top of the list has to be 6'4 Richard McBride from Springfield (Lanphier) IL, who was suspended the previous night and didn't play.   6'8 Jr Kalen Grimes from Florrisant (Hazelwood Central) MO did have 12 points and six rebounds, but he's going to have to play a lot harder than he did here in order to be a top priority for Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas, Florida, Kentucky, and Saint Louis, which, according to Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report, are the top schools on his list.  And 6'5 Frosh Alex Tyus from Florrisant (Hazelwood Central) MO, who finished with only three points and three rebounds, has to do a lot more than just start the game with a 3-pointer, if he wants to recognized as one of the top freshmen in the nation.  Unlike some of our competitors, we don't rank 6'4 Dane Bradshaw from Memphis (White Station) TN among the top 100 seniors nationally, but we still expected more than six points, two rebounds, and zero assists.  We also didn't change our mind about 6'8 Ross Neltner from Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY, despite the fact he had 22 points against Bartlett (H.S.) TN.  Neltner is a great kid and an outstanding student, but he's not athletic enough nor is he tough enough (only five rebounds) to be more than a good role player at LSU, which is where he signed this fall.  Instead, the players who deserved the accolades were 6'4 Jr Jason Herring from Bartlett (H.S.) TN, 6'7 Mike Brock from Independence (Simon Kenton) KY, 6'5 Nick Brooks from Robinson (H.S.) IL, 6'3 Raphael Kendrick from Mayfield (H.S.) KY, and 6'5 Jr Dominique Petty from Metropolis (Massac County) KY.   Petty, who finished with 21 points and seven rebounds, is a slasher who finds ways to score in transition and rebounds extremely well for his size.  Kendrick is the heart-and-sole of the Mayfield team as he accounted for 28 his team's 51 points and nine of his team's 31 rebounds.  Outside shooting is still a question mark for Brooks, but he has the rest of the package, as he rebounds, handles, and has excellent moves to the basket.  In other words, he more than justified his #156 nationally ranking by the HOOP SCOOP and it appears that he's an absolute steal for Butler.  So is Brock for Eastern Kentucky.   As a matter of fact, we like Brock better than Neltner, despite the fact he's an inch shorter, because he's more athletic and physical inside.  Herring is a multi-dimensional athlete who handles the ball and rebounds well for his size.   However, most of his 26 points came in transition and, as a resuilt, he needs to develop more of a shooter's mentality, if he wants to get recruited higher than the mid-major level.  We also were disappointmented with 6'8 Brian Randle from Peoria (Notre Dame) IL and 6'8 Lorenzo Thompson from Chicago (Crane) IL on Friday night.  Sure, Randle finished with 22 points, and 10 rebounds, but he just went through the motions, as he led Notre Dame to a 64-50 victory over Paducah (Tilghman) IL.  Chicago (Crane) IL beat Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN, 80-66, but Thompson, who had only six points and four rebounds, didn't have much to do with it.  Instead, the big hero for Crane was 6'6 Florentino Valencia, who finished with 24 points and 12 rebounds.  Sure, Valencia is two inches shorter than Thompson, but he's the better propect, despite his tweener size.  However, Valencia will have make sure he picks the right school. 

Friday, December 6, 2002

Earlier this week our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis published his Fullcourt Press/Pangos 2002-03 Pre-Season Southern California Top 25 High School Rankings and it comes as no surprise that Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, which also was ranked as the #1 team in the nation by Street & Smith Pre-Season Yearbook, is ranked as the #1 team in Southern California.  The rest of Trigonis' list in order includes Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, Bakersfield (Garces) CA, Los Angeles (Loyola) CA, Carson (H.S.) CA, Lakewood (Mayfair) CA, North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, Oceanside (El Camino) CA, Compton (Centennial) CA, San Diego (Horizon) CA, Woodland Hills (Taft) CA, Long Beach (Poly) CA, Torrance (Bishop Montgomery) CA, San Diego (Lincoln) CA, Los Angeles (Fremont) CA, Los Angeles (Price) CA, Villa Park (H.S.) CA, Riverside (King) CA, Moreno Valley (Canyon Springs) CA, Los Angeles (Crenshaw) CA, Palos Verdes (Rolling Hills) CA, Los Angeles (Verbum Dei) CA, Del Mar (Torrey Pines) CA, and Rialto (Eisenhower) CA and you can get his comments about each team by going to his website at www.fullctpress.net.   We also are intrigued with the fact that Russell Otis, who was forced out several years ago due to legal problems and, as a result, did not get to coach Tyson Chandler when he was a senior in high school, appears to be on the verge of getting his old head coaching job back at Compton (Dominguez) CA.  And if that happens, look for Dominguez to re-emerge as a West Coast powerhouse in a hurry.  And Otis isn't the only head coach who had been forced into exile in recent years who is ready to make a return for the 2002-2003 basketball season.  Did you know that the legendary Clarence Turner is also back at Camden (H.S.) NJ?  If you will recall, Turner was suspended as the coach at Camden four years ago and, as a result, only got to coach Dajuan Wagner during his freshman year in high school.  Speaking of Wagner, I hate to say I told you so, but since returning after suffering from kidney problems earlier this fall, Wagner is averaging 22.2 ppg in six games so far this season.  Let's take a closer look! Wagner had 17 points in this first game against the Sacramento Kings, followed by five points against the Milwaukee Bucks, 29 points against the Philadelphia 76ers, 28 points against the Miami Heat, 25 points and 10 assists against the New York Knicks, and 29 points against the Chicago Bulls.  In other words, Wagner has scored between 25 and 29 points in each of his last four games and is already drawing Allen Iverson comparisons.  I'm sure all the "so-called" NBA Draft experts will try and justify not drafting Wagner any higher in the draft last spring, but, if Chicago Bulls General Manager Jerry Krause had just listened to us, he'd have Wagner instead of Jason Williams.  And then he'd have another 20-plus point per game scorer to trade when the next Tyson Chandler comes along.  Remember, the Bulls traded Elton Brand, who was averaging 20 ppg and 10 rpg after only two seasons in the league, for Chandler, who will be hardpressed to ever average a double-double in the NBA, immediately following the 2002 NBA Draft.  Getting back to the return of legendary coaches, these things usually happen in threes.  So now might be a good time for former Lakewood (Artesia) CA head coach Wayne Merino, who has been seen about as much as Jimmy Hoffa has been in the last few years, to finally come back out of the woodwork.  If you will recall, Merino has been missing in action since Apolinar Fernandez and Jack Martinez, both of whom played for Merino at Artesia, developed visa and immigration problems several years ago.  It also looks like Florida's Matt Walsh has finally come back down to earth  If you will recall, Walsh, who started the season by scoring 26 points against Louisiana Tech, 20 points against Eastern Illinois, 19 points against Coastal Carolina, 17 points against Stanford, and 22 points against Kansas, was already been mentioned as a possible lottery pick for next spring's NBA Draft.  However, Walsh, who always was either feast or famine when we saw him in high school, only scored six points and had six turnovers in 34 minutes Tuesday night against West Virginia.  Instead, our leading candidate for Freshman-of-the-Year honors would have to go to either 6'7 Carmelo Anthony, who is averaging 27.3 ppg and 10.7 rpg for Syracuse, or 5'8 Keydren Clark of St. Peter's College, who started off the season with 17 points against Xavier and 14 points against Central Connecticut State, but has since scored 48 against Northern Arizona and 44 points against St. Francis-NY in his last two games en route to Metro Atlantic Player-of-the-Week honors.  Clark will probably never play in the NBA due to his lack of size, but he is the perfect illustration of a player who picked the right level in college and, as a result, already appears to be well on his way towards having a great four-year college career.  Anthony, on the other hand, appears to be ready for the NBA right now.   As a matter of fact, based on what we've already seen this season, we think Anthony should be the #2 pick in the NBA Draft next spring behind 6'7 LeBron James form Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH.  And once again, I hate to say I told you so, but we had Anthony ranked as the #1 player in his class since the adidas Big Time Tournament in July prior to his senior year in high school.  This is important, because nobody else had Anthony ranked as the #1 player in the class until February during his senior year (a full seven month after we'd come to the same conclusion).  We also had James ranked #1 in his class a full year before anybody else, plus we liked 6'9 Amare Stoudemire, who currently is one of the leading candidates for Rookie-of-the-Year in the NBA, so much when he was a junior in high school that we said we have taken him over Chandler, Eddy Curry, and Kwane Brown, all three of whom were drafted among the top five picks, in the June 2001 NBA Draft.  However, you can't be right all the time, so don't remind me about the fact that I was in total agreement with Charles Barkley with regards to Houston Rockets 7'5 rookie center Yao Ming not making it big in the NBA. 

Thursday, December 5, 2002

We are in the process of accumulating all the verbal commitments and signings to-date and you can see what we have so far by clicking on National Commitments.  Not only does this list provide you with the name, height, class, position, hometown, high school, state, and college choice of each player, but it also gives you an idea of just how good each player is based on our 1-10 rating system, 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 are factored in as if they were the equivalent of a high school senior.  Transfers from four-year schools have never counted when we've ranked recruiting classes in the past, so it would be a major surprise if we changed that now.  Obviously this an incomplete list, but by this time next week we will be in the process of finalizing our Rankings of the Top Recruiting Classes and, as a result, now is the perfect time to tell us who we're missing.  You can call me at 1-(502) 500-4667, email me at hoopscooponline@msn.com, or write me at P.O. Box 37122, Louisville, KY 40233.  Any help you can give us would be appreciated, but you need to do it sooner than later.  I also want to remind you that using this list for reference is something you are welcome to do.  However, please don't blatantly plagiarize our list like one guy did several years ago.  Did you know that the person I'm referring to took our complete list name for name and got it published by one of our competitors?  Unfortunately this person wasn't smart enough to figure out that we had included early verbal commitments from underclassmen on our list, so it was blatantly obvious what a fool he was when he had all these underclassmen on what was supposed to have been his list of senior signees.  Talk about poetic justice!  Moral to the story, if you're going to copy our list, at least be a little bit smart about it and find whatever mistakes we've made and make whatever changes need to be made for your own purposes.   

Wednesday, December 4, 2002

Since Thanksgiving we've published our Exclusive Talent Ratings For All 328 Division I Teams, our updated List of the Top 140 Players in the Class of 2005, and Allen Rubin's latest Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area Report.  That's right!  Rubin's report, which is widely recognized as the most in-depth report available for any state anywhere, is ready for your inspection and it includes his list, which you can get by clicking on Rubin Ranks 'Em:  The Top High School Players in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area, of the top 603 seniors, top 490 juniors, top 308 sophomores, top 207 freshmen, top 69 8th graders, and top 34 7th graders.  That's not as many names as his last report, which included 2,030 names, but the grand total of 1,711 names we've published this time is still pretty incredible.  And Rubin doesn't stop there, as he also provides you with his all-area teams, which are regardless of class and position, his list of the top 20 5th year players, and a list of the best shooters, best scorers, best rebounders, best shot blockers, best playmakers, best defenders, most improved, and best AAU/club team coaches in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area.  Speaking of these lists, 6'10 Roman Narmabaye-Mbainas from Burlington (Life Center) NJ is ranked #1 in shot blocking, #2 in defending, and #3 in defending; 6'10 Wayne Marshall from Philadelphia (Roman Catholic) PA is ranked #1 in rebounding, #2 in shot blocking, and #4 in defending; 5'11 Jr Sean Singletary from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA is ranked #1 in defending and #2 in playmaking; and 6'0 Maureece Rice from Philadelphia (Strawberry Mansion) PA is ranked #1 in scoring and #6 in playmnaking in Rubin's rankings.  Rice, Marshall, and Narmabaye-Mbainas also finished ranked among the top five seniors in the area, along with 6'7 Arnaud Dahi from Burlington (Life Center) NJ and 6'0 Ben Luber from Newtown (Council Rock North) PA.  Singletary was the #2-ranked junior behind 6'7 Jr Rob Kurz from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA and ahead of 5'11 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Dougherty) PA, 6'7 Jr DeSean White from Philadelphia (Dougherty) PA, and 6'2 Jr Cedric Jackson from Burlington (Northern Burlington) NJ.  Also very noteworthy for somebody like Donnie Wilkie, who always goes over our rankings with a fine tooth combine looking for potential future teams for the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, is Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA, which features the #1 and #2-ranked players in the area in Kurz and Singletary.  However, the team we think has the most potential a year from now is Philadelphia (Dougherty) PA with Lowry, White, 6'4 Jr Bilal Benn, and 6'6 Soph Shane Clark.  In other words, we're talking about a team that features the #3, #4, and #11-ranked juniors, as well as the #1-ranked sophomore in the area. 

Tuesday, December 3, 2002

A week ago the first school mentioned by 6'10 Alexander Johnson from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME when we talked with him at the War on the Shore National Prep School Invitational Tournament in Milford, DE, on Sunday, November 24th, was the University of North Carolina.   However, now it looks like Cincinnati is once again the "flavor of the day."  And this would make perfect sense, because the Bearcats came close to getting Johnson the first time around a year ago.  However, when it is all said and done, we still think the University of Georgia is the team to beat on this athletic big man who also has the skills, athleticism, and shooting range to move away from the basket.  And we say that, despite the fact the Bulldogs don't have any scholarships currently available.  If you will recall, Georgia already has landed five players - 6'9 Mohamed Abukar from San Diego (Ranchco Bernardo) CA, 6'8 Marcus Jackson from South Plains (JC) TX, 6'10 Cassiano Matheus from South Plains (JC) TX, 6'8 Corey Gibbs from Stone Mountain (Redan) GA, and 6'4 Jordan Howell from Madison (Abbeville) AL - in this recruiting class.   As a matter of fact, Johnson even mentioned this fact when he gave us his list of schools, which also included North Carolina, Alabama, Cincinnati, Duke, and Georgia, at the War on the Shore.  But it's still our guess that it will work itself out, if, in the end, Johnson once again decides he wants to become a Bulldog.  Remember, a year ago Georgia signed three big players - Johnson, 7'0 Julius Lamptey from Oklahoma City (John Marshall) OK, and 6'10 Larry Turner from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME, but all three fell short of the academic requirements necessary to enroll in school and/or be eligible as college freshmen.  In other words, the Georgia coaching staff, which took some heat about signing so many players a year ago who didn't make it academically, would probably like to just lay low on the entire scholarship question until it is determined whether Johnson is going to make it this time around.  We also had reported that 6'3 Rashaad Carruth from Indian Hills (JC) IA had interest in the Bulldogs, but, according to our Georgia Editor Linzy Davis, that interest is not reciprocal.   Instead, Florida State might be the favorite for Carruth.  And, if Carruth were to pick the Seminoles, it wouldn't surprise us if Florida State head coach Leonard Hamilton tried to put together a package that included both Johnson and Carruth.  Obviously, if they did this, Carruth wouldn't count, because we don't include transfers when ranking recruiting classes.  However, it really doesn't matter, because Johnson by himself would be enough to give the Seminoles the #1-ranked recruiting class on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2003.  If you will recall, earlier this fall Florida State landed 6'5 Vakeaton Wafer from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'10 Diego Romero from Lon Morris (JC) TX, and 6'7 Antonio Griffin from Scottsdale (JC) AZ.   In other words, Hamilton, who has been one of the top recruiters in the game dating back to his days as an assistant coach at Kentucky, not only appears to have not lost his touch, but also is building the Seminoles into a powerhouse in a hurry.  We have confirmed via Reggie Tisdale of Indiana Basketball News that 6'1 Todd Abernathy from Indianapolis (Heritage Christian) IN has signed with Wright State.  Ironically, Abernathy told all the other schools on his list prior to the beginning of the Fall Signing Period that he was going to Wright State, but Raiders head coach Ed Schilling didn't know that he was getting Abernathy until he received the signed National Letter-of-Intent in mail last week.  And this is an excellent catch for Schilling for several reasons.  First, Abernathy, who is ranked #266 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, is smart point guard who makes his teammates better and keeps you honest with outside shooting.  Second, Abernathy keeps Schilling's Indiana recruiting connection intact.  Third, this moves Wright State's recruiting class into a tie at #62 nationally, along with Marquette, Princeton, Hawaii, and Murray State, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2003.  It also looks like Maryland-Baltimore County head coach Tom Sullivan has reloaded this fall, as the Retrievers have signed 6'7 Cory McJimson from Pierce (JC) WA, 6'7 Seth Davis from Pierce (JC) WA, Christopher Pugh from Oxon Hill (H.S.) MD, and 6'6 Mike Housman from Langley (H.S.) VA.   McJimson is an excellent scorer and rebounder.  Davis is a big-time athlete, good rebounder, and excellent shot blocker.  Pugh is a great defender and knows how to run the show.  Housman has great hands and an excellent touch around the basket.  We also have confirmed that 6'8 Kitus Witherspoon from Seminole (JC) FL, who is ranked #10 at the center position by the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, has signed with Florida International. 

Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Bulle-eye Report called today to give us the pairing for the Proviso West Tournament in Hillside, IL, December 26th-30th, which is widely regarded as the premier holiday tournament in the state of Illinois.  The first game will tip-off at 9:00 AM on December 26th with Hillside (Proviso West) IL versus Flossmor (Homewood-Flossmor) IL.  Then, it will be Winnetka (New Trier) IL versus Chicago (Manley) IL at 10:30 AM, Schaumburg (H.S.) IL versus Northbrook (Glenbrook North) IL at 12:15 PM, Chicago (Whitney Young) IL versus Franklin Park (Leyden) IL at 1:45 PM, LaGrange (Lyons Township) IL versus Chicago (Steinmetz) IL at 3:45 PM, Maywood (Proviso East) IL versus Chicago (Von Steuben) IL at 5:15 PM, Evanston (Township) IL versus Hillcrest (Country Club Hills) IL at 7:00 PM, and Chicago (Farragut) IL versus Oak Park (Fenwick) IL at 8:30 PM.  "The Proviso East-Von Steuben match-up is potentially the best first round game in the history of the tournament," says Schmidt.  And he's probably right, because Proviso East features 6'3 Shannon Brown, 5'8 Charlie Richardson, and 6'1 Soph Phillip Perry, all of whom are ranked among the top players in the state in their respective classes, and Von Steuben features 6'0 Soph Angel Santiago, who is the #1-ranked sophomore in the state by Schmidt, and 6'5 Jr Ryne Hamblet and 6'5 Jr Demetrius Evans, who check at #8 and #13 on Schmidt's list of the top juniors in the state.  Other top big name players who will be showcasing their skills at the Proviso West Tournament include 6'7 Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, who is the HOOP SCOOP's top ranked sophomore in the state, 6'1 Anthony Harris from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL, 6'3 Shelby Jordan from Hillcrest (Country Club Hills) IL, 6'8 Dwayne Curtis from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL, 6'1 Jason Okrzesik from Oak Park (Fenwick) IL, 6'2 Mike McKinney from Evanston (Township) IL, 6'5 Dewitt Scott from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL, 6'5 Jr Gordon Watt from Evanston (Township) IL, 6'3 Jr Vince Humphrey from Oak Park (Fenwick) IL, 6'6 Jr Albert Reese from Hillside (Proviso West) IL, 6'7 Jr Cyrus Tate from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'3 Jr Zach Pancratz from Schamburg (H.S.) IL, 6'4 Jr Marcus Johnson from Chicago (Manley) IL, and 6'7 Jr Craig Reichel from Schamnurg (H.S.) IL.  Schmidt also has provided us with a list of the teams in the Pontiac Holiday Classic, which will include Aurora (West) IL, Bloomington (H.S.) IL, Chicago (Simeon) IL, Danville (H.S.) IL, East Moline (United) IL, Gurnee (Warren) IL, Joliet (Township) IL, Lockport (Township) IL, New Lenox (Providence) IL, Oak Park (H.S.) IL, Peoria (Manual) IL, Pontiac (H.S.) IL, Skokie (Niles West) IL, Springfield (H.S.) IL, Streator (H.S.) IL, and Westchester (St. Joseph) IL, and the Pekin Insurance Holiday Classic, which will include Arlington Heights (Hersey) IL, Bartonville (Limestone) IL, Champaign (Centennial) IL, Chicago (St. Francis DeSales) IL, Chicago (Westinghouse) IL, Dalton (Thornridge) IL, Jeneseo (Darnall) IL, Lake Zurich (H.S.) IL, Moline (H.S.) IL, Morton (H.S.) IL, Normal (West) IL, Pekin (H.S.) IL, Peoria (Richwoods) IL, Peoria (Woodruff) IL, Springfield (Lanphier) IL, and Washington (H.S.) IL.   Both of these tournament will be December 26th-28th.   Schmidt also has some recruiting information to pass along with regards to the top juniors in the state.   Illinois, Florida, Arizona, Duke, North Carolina, Indiana, Kansas, Iowa, and Kentucky are all being mentioned with 6'5 Jr Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL.  The early list for 6'8 Jr Shaun Pruitt from Aurora (West) IL includes Illinois, Marquette, Arizona, Xavier, Purdue, DePaul, Indiana, and Michigan State.  Illinois, Cincinnati, DePaul, Xavier, Purdue, Michigan State, Wyoming, UNLV, Iowa, and Bradley are all in the hunt for 6'4 Jr De Aaron Williams from Bartonsville (Limestone) IL.  Illinois, Marquette, and UNLV are the leaders for 6'3 Jr Jamarcus Ellis from Chicago (Westinghouse) IL.  The list for 6'4 Jr Justin Cerasoli from Aurora (West) IL includes Wisconsin, DePaul, Xavier, Indiana State, Northwestern, Valparaiso, Notre Dame, and Ohio State.   Missouri, Illinois, Marquette, St. Louis, Oklahoma, and Nebraska are showing the most interest in 6'2 Jr Xavier Price from O'Fallon (H.S.) IL.   Obviously we think Roy and Harv Schmidt are second to none when it comes to covering high school basketball in Illinois and now is the perfect time to subscribe, because their latest report previewing the upcoming season is due out almost immediately.  To subscribe call 1-(630) 910-1829, write P.O. Box 488, Downers Grove, IL, 60515, or email roy1harv@aol.com.  

It really is the calm before the storm, as we attempt to finalize Allen Rubin's Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Report and continue to update our list of all the players who have signed during the fall signing period.  However, as usual this time of year, we're running out of time, as a number of important events are just around the corner.  This weekend we plan to cover the Marshall County Hoop Fest, which tips off Friday, December 6th, with Murray (Calloway County) KY versus Madison (H.S. ) IL at 5:30 PM, Benton (Marshall County) KY versus Troy (Obion County Central) TN at 7:00 PM, Chicago (Crane) IL versus Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN at 8:30 PM, and Paducah (Tilghman) KY versus Peoria (Notre Dame) IL at 10:00 PM and continues on Saturday, December 7th, with Mayfield (Graves County) KY versus Peoria (Richwoods) IL at 11:00 AM, Metropolis (Massac County) IL versus Florrisant (Hazelwood Central) MO at 12:30 PM, Mayfield (H.S.) KY versus Robinson (H.S.) IL at 2:00 PM, Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY versus Barlett (H.S.) TN at 3:30 PM, Independence (Simon Kenton) KY versus Springfield (Lanphier) IL at 5:30 PM, Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY versus Memphis (White Station) TN at 7:00 PM, Louisville (Ballard) KY versus Maywood (Proviso East) IL at 8:30 PM, and Lexington (Catholic) KY versus Jackson (Lanier) MS at 10:00 PM.  And this tournament is absolutely loaded, as the list of top players includes 6'5 Jr Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'3 Shannon Brown from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 6'4 Richard McBride from Springfield (Lanphier) IL, 6'7 Brian Randle from Peoria (Notre Dame) IL, 6'8 Jr Kalen Grimes from Florissant (Hazelton Central) MO, 6'6 Frosh Alex Tyus from Florrisant (Hazelwood Central) MO, 6'2 Soph Monte Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'7 Jr Charles Rhodes from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'7 Jr Charles Thomas from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'3 Jr Bobby Clark from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'8 Ross Neltner from Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY, 6'4 Dane Bradshaw from Memphis (White Station) TN, 6'8 Lorenzo Thompson from Chicago (Crane) IL, 6'5 Florentino Valencia from Chicago (Crane) IL, 5'9 Frosh Sharron Collins from Chicago (Crane) IL, 6'5 Nick Brooks from Robinson (H.S.) IL, 5'8 Charles Richardson from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 5'11 Dan Ruffin from Peoria (Centra) IL, 5'10 Carl Marshall from Chicago (Crane) IL, 5'10 Jr Andre Allen from Memphis (Booker T. Washington) TN, 6'1 Sean Booker from Louisville (Ballard) KY, 6'7 Mike Brock from Independence (Simon Kenton) KY, 6'4 Jr Demetrius Green from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 5'11 Jr Brian Smith from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'2 Jr William Graham from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'4 Jr Harrison Morton from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'5 Leroy Wilson from Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY, 6'2 Soph Brandon Allen from Bartlett (H.S.) TN, 6'8 Perry Adams from Madison (H.S.) IL, 6'0 Derrick Parrott from Mayfield (H.S.) KY, 6'3 Jerome Sexton from Mayfield (H.S.) KY, 6'2 Raphael Kendrick from Mayfield (H.S.) KY, 6'1 Mitchell McClure from Murray (Calloway County) KY, 5'10 Jimmy Bynum from Murray (Calloway County) KY, 6'5 Chris Clarke form Paducah (Tilghman) KY, 5'10 Jr Jimmie Holder from Benton (Marshall County) KY, and 6'0 Michael Johnson from Mayfield (Graves County) KY.  Then, Thursday, December 12th, we will be off to St. Louis, MO for the Shop and Save Shootout Shootout, which is still widely referred to as the KMOX Shootout.  The first game will tip-off at 10:30 AM with Troy (Buchanan) MO versus Hempstead (H.S.) TX, followed by O'Fallon (H.S.) IL versus Florrisant (McClure) MO at noon, St. Louis (Gateway) MO versus Baton Rouge (Capital) LA at 1:30 PM, De Soto (H.S.) MO versus Robinson (H.S.) IL at 3:15, St. Louis (DeSmet) MO versus Peoria (Central) IL at 4:45 PM, Portland (Jefferson) OR versus Springfield (Kickapoo) MO at 6:15 PM, Aurora (West) IL versus Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA at 7:45 PM, and Florrisant (Hazelwood Central) MO versus Oklahoma City (John Marshall) OK at 9:15 PM.  We won't get to see 6'8 Jr Shaun Pruitt from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, who is the #1- ranked junior in the state of Illinois by Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report, but West Aurora still should be pretty good with 6'2 Jr Jaeh Thomas and 6'4 Jr Justin Cerasoli, both of whom are ranked among the top six juniors in the state by Schmidt, and 6'5 Dameon Mason, who is ranked #77 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  We also are looking forward to seeing 6'6 Jr Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, who is our choice as the #1 junior in the state of Illinois, 6'8 Brandon Bass from Baton Rouge (Capital) LA, who is the top player in the senior class nationally that is still available, 6'3 Shannon Brown from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 6'5 J.R. Giddens from Oklahoma City (John Marshall) OK, 6'4 Thomas Gardner from Portland (Jefferson) OR, 6'8 Jr Kalen Grimes from Florissant (Hazelton Central) MO, 6'6 Frosh Alex Tyus from Florrisant (Hazelwood Central) MO, 6'4 Rodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'4 Lodrick Stewart from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'10 Jr Chester Giles from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'9 Tyrone Nelson from Hempstead (H.S.) TX, 6'1 Blake Ahearn from St. Louis (DeSmet) MO, 6'1 Spencer Laurie from Springfield (Kickapoo) MO, 6'6 Anthony Tolliver from Springfield (Kickapoo) MO, 6'5 Nick Brooks from Robinson (H.S.) IL, 6'7 Randall Falker from St. Louis (Gateway) MO, 5'8 Charles Richardson from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 5'11 Dan Ruffin from Peoria (Centra) IL, 6'2 Jr Xavier Price from O'Fallon (H.S.) IL, 6'1 Jr Brandon Lee from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'1 Soph Phil Perry from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 6'6 Soph DeAndre Miranda from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'1 Brock Perkins from Troy (Buchanan) MO.  On Friday, December 13th, we'll return to Louisville, KY for the Second Annual "Blue Chip" Basketball Shootout, which will be held at Bellarmine University and will tip-off at 4:30 PM with Clarksville (H.S.) IN versus Louisville (Holy Cross) KY, followed by Nicholasville (West Jessamine) KY versus Louisville (DeSales) KY at 6:00 PM, Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY versus Georgetown (Scott County) KY at 7:30 PM, and Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY versus Louisville (Eastern) KY at 9:00 PM.  That last game will be especially interesting, because it matchs up two of the top seniors in the state - 6'8 Ross Neltner from Ft. Thomas (Highlands) KY versus 6'7 David Cornwell from Louisville (Eastern) KY, plus we'll also get to see the #1-ranked junior in the state - 5'11 Jr Rajon Rando from Louisville (Eastern) KY.   Other noteworthy players at the Second Annual "Blue Chip" Basketball Shootout will be 6'2 Cameron Jackson from Nicholasville (West Jessamine) KY, 6'3 Scott Tarvin from Nicholasville (West Jessamine) KY, 5'11 Jr Tyler Hicks from Georgetown (Scott County) KY, 6'5 Leroy Wilson from Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY, and 6'3 Bryan Miles from Louisville (DeSales) KY.   Then, on Saturday, December 14th, we will get our first chance to see the legendary 6'4 O.J. Mayo from Ashland (Rose Hill Christian) KY, who is the consensus #1-ranked 8th grader in the nation, against Lexington (Catholic) KY, which is the defending state champion, in a regular season game at Lexington Catholic High School.

Monday, December 2, 2002

I've been telling people for months that updating our rankings for the Class of 2005 was one of my top priorities, but, at the same time, I've continued to put it off, because I was never comfortable with our rankings of the top players once I got past 6'6 Soph Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, who clearly deserves to be ranked as the #1 player in the class.   However, I finally published our list of the Top 140 Players in the Class of 2005 earlier today and there is one major surprise in our top five.  We're talking about 6'1 Soph Austin Jackson from Denton (Ryan) TX, who, according to our Texas Editor Wes Grandstaff, has clearly surpassed 5'11 Byron Eaton from Dallas (Lincoln) TX as the #1 player in the state of Texas.  Rounding out the top five nationally in the Class of 2005 are 6'1 Soph Eric Price from Washington (Dunbar) DC, 6'2 Soph Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnette) GA, and 6'2 Soph Monte Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, but 6'6 Soph Tyler Smith from Pulaski (Giles County) TN, 5'10 Soph Andre McGee from Moreno Valley (Canyon Springs) CA, 6'7 Soph Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, 6'1 Soph Tiki Mayben from Troy (H.S.) NY, 6'10 Soph Luke Zeiller from Washington (H.S.) IN, and 6'6 Soph Josh McRoberts from Carmel (H.S.) IN also all received serious top five consideration.  In other words, it really is that close among the top dozen players in the sophomore class nationally.  In addition to Jackson, a number of players have risen dramatically since we last updated this list on May 23, 2002.  This list includes Hendrix, 6'7 Soph Kevin Swinton from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'7 Soph Julian Wright from Homewood (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'0 Soph La'Bres Barber from Decatur (Southwest DeKalb) GA, 6'4 Soph Ryan Boyd from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, 6'0 Soph Angel Santiago from Chicago (Von Steuben) IL, 6'8 Soph Justin Wilkerson from Greenville (H.S.) TX, 6'8 Soph Rousean Cromwell from Memphis (Fairley) TN, 6'7 Soph Cortez Johnson from Albany (Monroe) GA, 5'11 Soph Vic Morris from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, 6'9 Soph Amir Johnson from Los Angeles (Verbum Dei) CA, 6'8 Soph Desmon Adedeji from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'2 Soph Jeremy Pargo from Chicago (Robeson) IL, and 6'6 Soph Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, all of whom are now ranked among our top 50 nationally in the class.  In addition to Eaton, who has dropped from #6 to #18 on our current list, 6'8 Soph Joey Cameron from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL, 6'10 Soph Kendrick Johnson from Morton (H.S.) TX, and 6'7 Soph Jordan Wilkes from Los Angeles (Loyola) CA all of whom previously were ranked among our top 25, have dropped considerably. 

Sunday, December 1, 2002

Earlier this month we published our Exclusive Talent Ratings For The Teams in the Top 10 Division Conferences and now we've gone one step further, as we have put the finishing touches on our Exclusive Talent Ratings For All 328 Division I Teams.   In order to do this, we first had to assign each player on every Division I team a talent rating on a 1-10 scale.  Then we factored in depth by eliminating all but the top 10 players on each roster and experience by making each of the 10 players that we did factor into the equation worth a tenth of a point more for each they've been in school.  In other words, a top five player in the nation, who was worth 10 points as a freshman, is worth 11 points as a sophomore, 12 points as a junior, and 13 points as a senior.  And the results are very interesting, as we find that the 20 teams with the highest talent rating outside one of the top 10 conferences in college basketball are Western Kentucky, Manhattan, Valparaiso, Gonzaga, George Mason, Florida International, New Orleans, Middle Tennessee State, UNC-Wilmington, New Mexico State, Fairfield, Pepperdine, St. Mary's, Wisconsin-Green Bay, Oral Roberts, Creighton, Murray State, Hofstra, Iona, and Holy Cross.   Obviously this reads like a Who's Who of the teams at the lower Division I levels that have had tremendous success and/or have recruited exceptionally well in recent years.   Also interesting is the fact that the Sun Belt Conference finished ranked 11 based on talent among all Division I Conferences behind the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Big-12 Conference, the Southeastern Conference, the Big-10 Conference, the Pacific-10 Conference, the Big East Conference, Conference USA, the Mountain West Conference, the Atlantic-10 Conference, and the Western Athletic Conference.  Also surprising is the fact that the West Coast Conference edges out the Colonial Athletic Association for 12 on our list, followed in order by the Horizon Conference, Mid-Continent Conference, Mid-American Conference, Metro Atlantic Conference, Missouri Valley Conference, Big West Conference, Southern Conference, Big Sky Conference, Ohio Valley Conference, Atlantic Sun Conference, Southland Conference, America East Conference, Ivy League, Northeast Conference, Patriot League, Big South Conference, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, Southwestern Athletic Conference, and Independents.  We also have find that there is a big difference based on talent between the different divisions within a number of conferences.  Did you know that the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference is 1.8 points better than the Western Division?  And the discrepancy is even more dramatic in the Big East, where the East is 3.5 points better than the West; Conference USA, where the American Division is 8.0 points better than the National Division; the Atlantic-10, where the East is 7.8 points better than the West; the Sun Belt, where the West is 4.4 points better than the East; and the Southern Conference, where the South is 5.2 points better than the North.  We also have made one important adjustment to our rankings of the teams in the top 10 conferences.  We're talking about the University of Florida, which moves up #6 to #3.  Originally we thought that Anthony Roberson was going to be a Prop 48 casualty and, as a result, he previously had been left off our list of the players on the Florida's roster.

For Hot Recruiting Information from earlier in the month click on December 2002