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Wednesday, December 31, 2003

It did not come as a surprise when we heard that Houston (Milby) TX had beaten Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA in the title game last night at the Academy National Invitational in Houston,TX.  What did surprise us was the 80-53 final score.  However, if you had told me that 6'5 Josh Shipp would hit only 6-25 field goals and 0-7 pointers en route to only 15 points, I would assume that Fairfax would be in trouble.  And making matters worse was the fact that nobody else picked up the slack, as Fairfax hit only 21-66 (31.8%) field goals and 2-19 (10.5%) 3-pointers.  In contrast, Milby hit 32-69 (46.4%) field goals and 8-23 (34.8%) 3-pointers.  Add a 25-point, 13-rebound, seven-assist, and three-steal performance by 6'5 Jawann McClellan into the equation and it's not hard to figure out why Milby won big.   It also comes as no surprise that Chris Monter of CollegeBasketballNews, who covered the tournament from start to finish, thinks McClellan should be named the tournament MVP.  This Arizona-bound wing player with incredible athleticism and excellent skills who has been described as "Hassan Adams with a jump shot," finished third in the tournament's National Division in scoring with 22.7 ppg, third in rebounding with 9.6 rpg, 4th in assists with 4.6 apg, tied for 7th in steals with 1.6 spg, and 2nd in blocked shot with 2.3 bpg.   In other words, McClellan not only should move even higher than where we currently have him ranked at #20 nationally in the senior class, but he also should be a near lock to make the McDonald's All-American Game.  Also named to Monter's unofficial All-Tournament Team were Shipp, 6'7 Jr Jamal Boykin from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, 6'7 Marcel Jones from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'0 Jr Michael Garrity from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'8 Jr Uche Echefu from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'1 Antwan Hardy from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'3 Jr Maxwell Dubois from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 6'0 Jr Walter Hodge from Melbourne (Florida Air Academy) FL, and 6'11 Alexander Kaun from Rockville (Montrrose Christian) MD.  After watching him play on Monday, December 29th, we thought there was no way Kaun should have been on the all tournament team, but after a quick look at the statistical leaders, which show that he finished tied for 7th in scoring with 14.0 ppg, tied for 4th in rebounding with 9.0 rpg, and 1st in blocked shots with 2.6 bpg, it's hard not to put him on the team.  The leading scorers in the National Division were Hodge with 32.0 ppg, Jones with 23.7 ppg, McClellan with 22.7 ppg, Shipp with 21.0 ppg, Boykin with 19.0 ppg, Dubois with 17.3 ppg, Kaun with 14.0 ppg, Echefu with 14.0 ppg, Garrity with 13.0 ppg, and Hardy with 12.7 ppg.  The leading rebounders in the National Division were Boykin with 14.3 rpg, 6'6 Soph Eualdas Baniulis from Melbourne (Florida Air Academy) FL with 10.0 rpg, McClellan with 9.6 rpg, Kaun with 9.0 rpg, 6'7 Chris Rawls from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL with 9.0 rpg, 6'7 Frosh Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 7.0 rpg, 6'5 Larry Posey from Houston (Milby) TX with 6.0 rpg, 6'8 Jr Rashad Austin from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA with 6.0 rpg, 6'11 Tunji Sorye from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD with 6.0 rpg, and 6'5 Leon St. Rose from Houston (Milby) TX with 6.0 rpg.  The assist leaders in the National Division were 5'10 Soph Taishi Ito from Rockville (Montrose Christian) TX with 7.0 apg, 5'11 Carlos Chevres from Melbourne (Florida Air Academy) FL with 6.6 apg, Gerrity with 5.3 apg, McClellan with 4.6 apg, 5'5 Tramaine Webster from Houston (Milby) TX with 4.0 apg, Dubois with 4.0 apg, Hodge with 3.3 apg, Boykin with 3.3 apg, 5'10 Frosh Nic Wise from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX with 3.3 apg, and 5'11 Aaron Bell from Los Angels (Fairfax) CA with 3.3 apg.  The leaders is steals in the National Division were Dubois with 2.6 spg, Hodge with 2.6 spg, 6'6 Jacques Jones from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX with 2.3 spg, 6'4 Pat Sims from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL with 2.3 spg, Webster with 2.0 spg, and Wise with 2.0 spg.  Speaking of Wise, everybody told us how overrated Wise was at #5 in our rankings of the top players nationally in the freshman class the day we were in attendance at the Academy National Invitational, but apparently he was closer to his normal self (Wise is recovering from mono) on the final day (yesterday) when he had 18 points, nine assists, and four steals against Sugar Land (Hightower) TX.  Houston (Kingwood) TX beat Houston (Jones) TX, 65-61, to win the championship in the Texas Division and Jim Hicks, who is the foremost authority on high school basketball in Houston, TX, has to be happy about this because he had Houston (Kingwood) TX pictured, along with Houston (Milby) TX, Sugar Land (Hightower) TX, and Houston (Jones) TX, on the cover of the first issue of his RCS Sports DA Magazine.   Ironically, Milby and Kingwood won the championships in the National and Texas Divisions, Jones finished second in their Texas Division, and Hightower finished 5th in the Texas Division.  The leading scorers in the Texas Division were 6'3 Daniel Gibson from Houston (Jones) TX with 24.0 ppg, 6'2 Lamario Kersee from Houston (Aldine) TX with 21.3 ppg, 6'0 Jr David Devezin from Sugar Land (Clements) TX with 21.3 ppg, 6'3 Jonas Brown from Houston (Aldine) TX with 14.3 ppg, 6'5 Frosh Mike Singletary from Houston (Kingwood) TX with 12.3 ppg, 5'11 Jr Nicholas Walker from Houston (North Shore) TX with 12.0 ppg, 6'8 Jr Obi Ikeakor from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX with 12.0 ppg, and 6'8 Jr Jeremy Barr from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX with 11.0 ppg, 6'3 Matt Caplan from Sugar Land (Clements) TX, and 6'4 Jay Jenkins from Houston (Jones) TX with 10.7 ppg.  The leading rebounder in the Texas Division were 6'6 Tyrell Williams from Houston (North Shore) TX with 8.3 rpg, 6'7 Frosh Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX with 7.9 rpg, 6'6 Chris Henton from Houston (North Shore) TX, Singletary with 6.0 rpg, Ikeakor with 6.0 rpg, 6'7 Jr Wes Christensen from Houston (Kingwood) TX with 6.0 rpg, 6'6 Jordan Harris from Houston (Kingwood) TX with 6.0 rpg, and 6'4 Soph Stephen Tyree from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX with 6.0 rpg.  The assist leaders in the Texas Division were Devezin with 6.0 apg, 5'11 Charles Jones from Katy (Cinco Ranch) TX with 5.3 apg, 5'10 Kendrick Bob from Houston (Jones) TX with 4.3 apg, 5'10 Soph Monice Garrett from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX with 4.3 apg, Kersee with 3.9 apg, and Brown with 3.9 apg.   The leaders is steals in the Texas Division were Brown with 3.7 spg, Jones with 3.3 spg, Gibson with 3.3 spg, 6'1 Jeremy Lewis from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX with 2.6 spg, 6'4 Jr Kevin O'Brien from Sugar Land (Clements) TX with 2.6 spg, Caplan with 2.6 spg, and Williams with 2.6 spg.  The leaders in blocked shots were Singletary with 2.0 bpg, Barr with 2.0 bpg, O'Brien with 1.3 bpg, Kersee with 1.3 bpg, and Harris with 1.3 bpg.  Especially noteworthy is fact that Johnson was the second leading rebouder in the Texas Division and Singletary finished ranked #5 in scoring, #4 in rebounding, and #1 in blocked shots.  That's pretty good for a pair of freshmen.  And now you know why we think they are two of the top four freshmen in America, along with 6'7 Frosh Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA and 6'3 Frosh O.J.Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH.  In other words, Johnson and Singletary are to the freshmen class what Hal Pastner, who is the tournament director for the Academy National Invitational, is to the high school basketball tournament business (as good as there is).  Pastnor also already has high school basketball fans excited about the sport in Houston, TX, as was evident by a sell-out crowd on Saturday night and another packed house last night.   However, with players like Johnson, Singletary, et al. on the horizon, they best is yet to come!

The two big stories at Slam Dunk to the Beach, which concluded last night with the championship game in Lewes, DE, involve 6'11 Dwight Howard from Atlanta Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, who is the #1-ranked senior in the nation, and the Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA team, which upset Reserve (Christian) LA, 71-65, in the championship game.  And Southwest Atlanta Christian winning the championship was no fluke, as this was the team that also knocked off Provo (Timpview) UT, which was ranked #24 nationally in the latest USA Today Super 25 Poll, in the first round, and Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which was ranked #2 nationally in the same USA Today poll, in the semi-finals.  Howard does get some help on the perimeter from 6'5 Soph Jarvis Crittenton and 6'3 Aljamon Alexander, but the big reason why this team is good is Howard's presence inside.   As a matter of fact, Howard is to Southwest Atlanta Christian what LaBron James was to Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH a year ago.  Speaking of James, our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz hasn't been this excited about a player since he saw James put on that incredible performance at Slam Dunk to the Beach two years ago.  Not only did Howard have 26, points, 21 rebounds (nine offensive and 12 defensive), seven blocked shots, and two assists against Reserve (Christian) LA, but he also had 25, points, 21 rebounds (eight offensive and 13 defensive), nine blocked shots, and five assists versus Provo (Timpview) UT and 23 points, 24 rebounds (nine offensive and 12 defensive), five blocked shots, and two assists versus Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.  In other words, in three games Howard averaged 24.7 ppg, 22.0 rpg,and 7.0 bpg.  He also almost averaged a double-double on the boards at both ends of the court, which is truly amazing, because only a handful of times have most people ever seen a player get 20 or more rebounds in a game.  But Howard had more than 20 rebounds in all three games, more often than not double and triple teamed and with defenders doing everything but trying to tackle him.  "Not only does Howard get every rebound and take away the inside, but he also never tires and plays hard at both end of the court all the time," says Schultz.  "I didn't get to see a lot of Kevin Garnett when he was in high school, but I would compare Howard to Rasheed Wallace at the same stage.  But Wallace couldn't score like this kid can.  Every time the ball comes off the rim, Howard is there.  Southwest Atlanta Christian is almost better off when they miss the free throw, because Howard is usually right there to get the rebound and convert it into an easy basket.  Some have questioned Howard's outside shot, but I'm glad I don't know whether he can hit it or not, because he's so dominant in the paint.  The way he attacks the offensive glass, I don't want him out on the perimeter, even if he hits a high percentage.  Instead, I'll take my chances with him inside.  To see him play this way three games in a row was incredible."  Howard obviously took home tournament MVP honors, but some of the other choices weren't quite so obvious as the rest of the all-tournament team, which included only players from the eight-team Slam Dunk to the Beach Division, included Crittenton, 5'10 Soph Demond Carter from Reserve (Christian) LA, 6'6 George Brozos from Reserve (Christian) LA, 6'5 Gabriel Pruitt from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'1 Da'Shawn Dwight from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ, 6'10 C.J. Giles from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, and 6'4 Jr David Huertos from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL.  Schultz and our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin, both of whom covered the tournament from start-to-finish, rank the top 40 players, which includes all 34 teams in the tournament, are as follows:  1) 6'11 Dwight Howard from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, 2) 6'3 Jason Rich from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 3) 6'3 Gabriel Pruitt from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 4) 6'9 Soph Derrick Caracater from Scotch Plains (H.S.) NJ, 5) 5'11 Sean Singletary from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA 6) 6'9 Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 7) 6'6 Roy Bright from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 8) 6'3 Tasheed Carr from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 9) 6'9 Jerome Habel from Washington (Marriott Charter) DC, 10) 6'9 D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, 11) 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL, 12) 6'7 Deron Washington from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, 13) 5'10 Demond Carter from Reserve (Christian) LA, 14) 6'8 Soph Kevin Durant from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, 15) 6'7 Jr Brian Grimes from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) MD, 16) 6'6 C.J. Anderson from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 17) 6'4 Jr David Huertos from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 18) 6'3 Keith Benjamin from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 19) 5'11 Steve Harley from Washington (Marriott Charter) DC, 20) 6'6 George Brozos from Reserve (Christian) LA, 21) 6'9 Ra'Sean Dickey from Bennettsville (Marlboro County) SC, 22) 6'7 Soph Jonathan Mitchell from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 23) 6'1 Jr Anthony Farmer from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 24) 6'10 Longar Longar from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 25) 6'10 C.J. Giles from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 26) 6'6 Rogdrick Craig from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 27) 6'4 Frosh Kevin Branch from Reserve (Christian) LA, 28) 6'5 Richard Hurd from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 29) 6'7 Alex Galindo from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 30) 6'5 J.R. Smith from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 31) 6'8 Rob Kurz from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA, 32) 6'5 Soph Jarvis Crittenton from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, 33) 6'5 Jr Maurice Joseph from Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) ON, 34) 6'3 Jr Devon McLendon from Chester (H.S) PA, 35) 6'7 Trey Elzey from Laurel (H.S) DE, 36) 6'7 Soph Lance Thomas from Scotch Plains (H.S.) NJ, 37) 6'8 Ben Nwachakwu from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 38) 6'1 Da'Shawn Dwight from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ, 39) 6'5 Travis Lay from Potomac (Bullis) MD, 40) 5'11 Jr Jacobie Poe from Bennettsville (Marlboro County) SC.   Two other players who don't make the list, but need to be mentioned are 6'6 8th Grader Martez Walker from Reserve (Christian) LA and 5'10 Frosh Corey Fisher from Elizabeth (St. Patrick's) NJ, who is ranked #15 nationally in the freshman class by the HOOP SCOOP. Fisher only played 28 minutes in the first two games against Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL and Provo (Timpview) UT, but, in the third game against Bloomfield (Tech) NJ, he played 33 minutes and had 22 points, 9-18 field goals, seven rebounds, and seven assists.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that St. Patrick scored 37 and 42 points in their two loses, but rallied to win the 7th Place Game with 86 points.  Another interesting note involves 7'0 Soph Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, who had zero points, three rebounds, and five fouls in only 13 minutes while trying to match-up against Dwight Howard.  Obviously Bennett, who is ranked #43 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP, has a long way to go and, as a result, may drop some more in our rankings.  Remember, we rank players the old-fashioned way.  You have to earn it!  We also have to mention the shocking upset when Reserve (Christian) LA came back from a 15-point half-time deficit to knock off Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 79-76.  In the last eight minutes of the game Reserve Christian shot the lights out, as 6'6 George Brozos did his Larry Bird imitation and 5'10 Soph Demond Carter, 6'4 Frosh Kevin Branch, and 6'6 8th Grader Martez Walker from Reserve (Christian) LA simply reinforced what we'd already seen in the previous game.   And obviously the rest is history. 

Tuesday, December 30, 2003

For the second straight day I caught a 5:45 AM flight and arrived in Myrtle Beach, SC in time to watch the first game of the final day at the Beach Ball Classic, which featured 6'8 Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD against 6'7 Jr Kevin Swinton from Greensboro (Dudley) NC and 6'6 Soph William Graves in what turned out to be one of the most interesting match-ups of the entire Holiday Tournament season.   Gay, who is ranked #8 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds, but 18 of those points came in the first half, as he put on a show from both mid-range and beyond the arc (7-15 field goals and 4-8 3-pointers).  Swinton and Graves combined for 35 points and 13 rebounds, but Graves was the more aggressive of the two inside, plus he impressed us with his ability to handle and shoot, as he hit 2-5 3-pointers and handled the ball some on the perimeter.  In other words, Graves, who is ranked #23 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP, proved that he's the better of the two, even though Swinton is ranked higher (#21 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP).  Remember, the sophomore class is much better than the junior class, plus Swinton already had a reputation for being a dominant force against lesser competition, but not as tough when matched up against better players his own size.  And, while Swinton didn't back down and he did show some flashes, he still did not step up and take the game over the way he had hoped he would.  And that's why Archbishop Spalding never got closer than five in the second half.  Also stepping up for Archbishop Spalding were 6'5 Jr Lawrence Dixon, who finished with 14 points, 12 of which came in the second half, and 6'0 Jesse Brooks, who finished with eight points, 11 assists, two steals, and three turnovers.  Final Score:  Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD 64, Greensboro (Dudley) NC 53.  Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA didn't have 6'5 Jr Marcus Ginyard, who was out with a sprained ankle, but  that didn't prevent them from Bishop O'Connell from playing Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY even in the first half and making it a one-point game with nine seconds left in the other consolation game.  But 5'8Wesley Wicks hit a pair of free throws to make the final score, 61-58.   We also find it interesting that 6'7 Gavin Grant is ranked #56 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and 6'5 Brian Laing is ranked #79 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, but today Laing was the better player for St. Raymond's, as he finished with 31 points and hit 15-19 field goals.  In contrast, Laing finished with only five points and five rebounds.   Actually we think it's almost too close to call with regards to whether Grant or Laing is the better high school player, but when projecting for the next level, Grant gets the nod, because he has more size and the perimeter skills necessary to project as a wing forward at the next level, while Laing runs the risk of falling into the tweener trap if he doesn't develop a better jump shot and perimeter skills.  St. Raymond's also got a strong effort from 6'4 Jr Ricky Torres, who scored 16 points, hit 3-4 3-pointers, and combined with Laing to score 47 of St. Raymond's 61 points.  Wicks only scored two points, but he made everybody else better, as he dished out six assists.   6'8 Jr Dave Neal scored four of Bishop O'Connell's first six points and finished with 14 point,eight rebounds, and three blocks, but their best player was 6'5 Freddie Stanback, who finished with17 points, six assists, and was one of the top competitors in the tournament.  Unfortunately Stanback lacks the quickness and athleticism to get it done at the high major level, but we think he shoots it well enough to be a mid-major steal.  Also chipping in with 16 points and five assists for Bishop O'Connell was 5'10 Erik Smith.  Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX beat Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI, 71-59, in the Third Place Game, thanks to the primarily to the efforts of 6'2 Jason Horton and 6'1 Jr Roderick Adams, who combined for 37 of their team's 71 points.  Horton didn't shoot well, as he hit only 6-15 field goalsand 0-5 3-pointers, but Adams more than made up for it as he was 7-8 from the field and 1-3 from beyond the arc.  In other words, we're talking about a strong physcial athletic slasher who is a legitimate mid-major player.  And, if he grows an inch or two, then we would probably have to find a spot for him on our list of the top 240 juniors nationally.  Rufus King was led by 6'0 Dupree Fletcher and 6'1 Matt Goodwin, who combined for 8-29 field goals and 5-14 3-pointers en route to only 25 points.  And that was the big difference in the game, as Cedar Hill hit 55.3% from the field, while Rufus King hit only 36.2% of their field goals.  So all that is left to do here in Myrtle Beach, SC is cover the championship game between Orlando (Edgewater) FL and Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, which will tip-off at 8:00 PM.  Obviously we're looking forward to the big match-up between 5'11 Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, who is ranked #26 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'0 Darius Washington from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, who is ranked #26 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  However, we're afraid the game will not be that close, because Cardinal Dougherty has too many other weapons, like 6'6 Jr Shane Clark, who is ranked #20 nationally in the junior class, 6'7 DeSean White, who will be ranked among our top 100 nationally next time we update our rankings of the top seniors nationally, and 6'5 Bilal Benn, who is ranked #11 in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area by Allen Rubin.   Edgewater jumped out to an early 6-2 lead on a 3-pointer by 5'10 Jr Omar Qazi and a three-point play by 6'8 Jr Quinton Thornton, but then Cardinal Dougherty went on a 12-0 run and led by as many as 11 points late in the first half, thanks primarily to the efforts of White inside.  White not only was dominating the game inside, but he also had 16 of his team's first 28 points.  Another key was the fact that Washington only had two points on 1-4 field goals and 0-3 3-pointers.   However, late in the half Washington finally got on track, as he hit a pair of 3-pointers and Edgewater went on a 12-4 run to close the gap to 32-29 at the intermission.   White had 18 points, 9-12 field goals, and five rebounds, Lowry had seven points and three assists, and Benn had five points and four rebounds in the first half for Cardinal Dougherty, while Washington had nine points, 6'3 Josiah Perkins had six points, Thornton had five points and three rebounds for Edgewater.  In the first half the game was not as close as the score indicates, but all that changed when Edgewater went on a 8-2 to run to start the second half and never trailed again en route to a  66-61 victory.  Washington finished with 24 points, but failed to hit another 3-pointer in the second half.  However, 6'2 Brandon Johnson who finished with 13 points, really stepped up in the scond half.  Thorton added 10 points and 10 rebounds.  White tied Washington for top scoring honors with 24 points, but he only had six points in the second half.  Lowry added 13 points, five rebounds, and four assists and Clark had 11 points and six rebounds.  6'0 Darius Washington from Orlando (Edgewater) FL was named the tournament MVP.  The Most Outstanding Player was 6'7 DeSean White from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA.  The Mr. Hustle Award went to 5'11 Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA and the Sportsmanship Award went to 5'10 Erik Smith from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) PA.  Also named to the all-tournament team were 6'8 Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, 6'2 Zam Fredrick from St. Matthews (Calhoun County) SC, 6'4 Sidney Rice from Gaffney (H.S.) SC, 6'4 A.Z. Reid from Gaffney (H.S.) SC, 7'0 Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, 6'3 Marquie Cooke from Suffolk (Nansemond River) VA, 6'0 Dupree Fletcher from Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI, 6'1 Jason Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, 6'2 Ramon Sessions from Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC, and 6'6 Jr Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA.

Monday, December 29, 2003

Our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz and Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin will be at Slam Dunk to the Beach for the duration, but early this morning I made the trip from Lewes, DE to Houston, TX and am now at the Academy National Invitational, where later today we will see four great semi-finals games with Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA versus Santa Ana (Mater) CA at 5:00 PM and Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD versus Houston (Milby) TX at 8:00 PM in the National Division and Katy (Cinco Ranch) TX versus Houston (Kingwood) TX at 3:30 PM and Houston (Aldine) TX versus Houston (Jones) TX at 6:30 PM in the Texas Division.  Earlier today in the first two consolation games 6'8 Jr Obi Ikeakor and 6'8 Jr Jeremy Barr combined for 14 rebounds and 11 rebounds, as Houston (Westbury Christian) TX beat Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX, 49-33, and 6'0 Jr Walter Hodge was terrific as he led Melbourne (Florida Air Academy) FL to a 67-59 victory over Ft Lauderdale (Dillard) FL.  Hodge, who hit 12-23 field goals and 5-9 3-pointers, finished with 39 points.  And, although 6'0 2-guards are a dime a dozen, he still more than made up for the fact that 6'11 Alexander Kaun, who missed the first three games of the season with an ankle injury and still is far from being 100%, was mediocre at best.  Kaun did have 14 points and 12 rebounds, but he hit only 5-13 field goals and looked slow and mechanical, which means any chance of moving up in our rankings (we currently have him ranked #37 nationally in the senior class) have gone right out the window.  However, we also won't drop Kaun due to the fact he's coming back from an injury.  The best player for Ft Lauderdale (Dillard) FL was 6'3 Jr Maxwell Dubois, who finished with 15 points, five rebounds, five assists, four steals, and 4-8 3-pointers.  Dubois also is very athletic and plays in one of the top programs in the state of Florida, which makes him a legitimate sleeper at the 2-guard spot for our list of the top 240 juniors nationally.  We also were intrigued by the size, athleticism, and potential of 6'7 Chris Rawls from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, although he does need to get bigger and stronger physically or become more of a perimeter player.  And apparently schools, like Syracuse, Clemson, and Florida State, agree, as they were mentioned by this active undersized four-man who finished with nine points, 4-6 field goals, and 13 rebounds.  Sugar Land (Clements) TX jumped out to 29-16 half-time lead against Houston (North Shore) TX in the other Texas Division consolation bracket semi-finals game, but 6'4 Jr Kevin O'Brien and 6'3 Jr Chris Pinkalla, who were 4-7 from beyond the arc and had a combined 16 points, cooled off in the second half and, as a result, North Shore came back and tied the game at 52-52 with 3:40 remaining.  However, at that point 6'0 Jr David Devezin, who is ranked #129 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, took over the game and Clements prevailed, 63-59.  Devezin finished with 21 points and six assists.  O'Brien and Pinkalla chipped in with 14 and 15 points apiece.  The leading scorer for North Shore was 5'11 Jr Nicholas Walker with 16 points, but key to North Shore's comeback was 6'6 Chris Henton, who scored 10 of his 12 points and had nine of his 12 rebounds in the second half.  The other National Division consolation bracket semi-finals game will tip-off in a few minutes with Sugar Land (Hightower) TX versus Tulsa (Booker T. Washington) OK and we're looking forward to seeing the 6'8 Quentin Chaney from Tulsa (Booker T. Washington) OK, 7'0 Soph Shawntell Norman from Tulsa (Booker T. Washington) OK, 6'8 Soph Darris Santee from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX, and 5'10 Soph Nic Wise from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX.  Hightower beat Booker T. Washington, 65-40, but the best player on either team was Chaney, who impressed with his explosive athleticism, high intensity level, and ability to dominant inside.  He also has the ability to play some out on the perimeter, but football is still his best sport, as is evident by the fact that he has already verbally committed to play wide receiver at Oklahoma.  We also liked Santee, who finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, and 4-7 3-pointers, because he too has an inside/outside game.  But Santee is not nearly as tough as Chaney and, as a result, lost the battle inside.  Wise, who is ranked among the top five sophomores in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, was a major disappointment.  Not only did he only score six points, but he also was not the same player we saw last spring prior to suffering an ankle injury and mono that sidelined him during both the summer and fall.  We also were disappointed with Norman, who finished with eight points and five rebounds.  However, in all fairness, Norman's coordination and mobility have not caught up with his body yet.   So make sure you check back in a couple of  years, because Norman may make the same type of improvement that Julius Lamptey did between his junior and senior year in high school three years ago.  The first semi-finals game in the Texas Division went right down to the wire, as 6'6 Jordan Harris scored 17 points and 6'5 Frosh Michael Singletary, who is ranked #4 nationally in the freshman class by the HOOP SCOOP, scored nine points to the led Houston (Kingwood) TX to a 45-43 win against Katy (Cinco Ranch) TX.  Cinco Ranch was led by 6'0 Charlie Jones, who finished with 13 points, five assists, and five steals, which provides just one more illustration of why we think he is both a winner and a major steal for Colorado State.  Unfortunately 5'10 Sean Morris, who is Jones' backcourt mate and future teammate at Colorado State, was sick and, as a result, came up empty, as he finished with only two points and was 0-8 from the field.  And that was the big difference in the game.  Thanks to the outside shooting of 6'5 Josh Shipp, who had 26 points and was 3-4 from beyond the arc, and 6'7 Jr Jamal Boykin, who had 21 points and 11 rebounds, Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA jumped out to 35-23 lead in the first half and never looked back en route to a 78-63 win against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA in the first semi-finals game in the National Division.   Boykin was especially impressive, as he dominated inside, hit the mid-range jumper, and appeared to be much more athletic than he was when we saw him in the spring, summer, and fall.  Boykins also played with more confidence and still does all the little things that help his team and, as a result, is probably better than where we have him ranked at #23 nationally in the junior class.  So it also should come as no surprise that Louisville, Georgia Tech, and Arizona have made him a recruiting priority.  The only player to score in double-digit for Mater Dei was 6'7 Marcel Jones, but he hit only 1-5 3-pointers.  And when you add 1-6 3-point shooting by 6'6 Frosh Taylor King and it's easy to see why Mater Dei was never able to get back into the game.  Speaking of Taylor King, he's not our choice as the #1-ranked freshman in the nation.  Instead, our vote now goes to 6'7 Frosh Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX.    Not only did he score 11 points and grab six rebounds in the second semi-finals game in the Texas Division, but he also impressed us with his great hands, an incredible wing span, big time athleticism, and a killer mentality on the boards.  Johnson also is very active away from the ball and is a tremendous competitor, which is what sets him apart from most big men this young.  We also suspect that he will grow another three or four inches and, if that happens, it scary just how good Johnson might become.  And, when it happens, remember where you heard it first!  However, the best player and leading scorer for Aldine with 26 points was 6'2 Lamario Kersee.  We're talking about a slasher/athlete who might be one of the most underrated players in the tournament.   Currently we have Kersee ranked #335 nationally in the senior class, but he's good enough to get top 100 consideration.  However  Johnson and Kersee, who combined for 38 of Aldine's 53 points, were not enough to overcome 6'3 Daniel Gibson and, as a result, Houston (Jones) TX broke the second semi-finals game in the Texas Division open in the second half en route to a 71-53 victory.  Gibson finished with 26 points and 6'4 Jay Jenkins chipped in with 18 points and eight rebounds.  Even without 6'6 Churchill Odia, who is out with an ankle injury, in the second semi-finals game in the National Divison, Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD had plenty of weapons with players like 6'11 Tunji  Sorye, 6'8 Uche Echefu, 6'1 Antwan Hardy, 6'2 Jr K.J. Matsui, 6'2 Tom Hammonds, and 5'10 Soph Taishi Ito.  However, they still were unable to overcome the incredible talent, athleticism, and versatility provided by 6'5 Jawann McClellan and the skill and toughness of the undersized UT-Arlington-bound 6'5 Larry Posey, who led Houston (Milby) TX to a 56-48 upset over the #7-ranked team in the latest USA Today Super 25 Poll.  McClellan finished with 24 points, six rebounds, and had numerous highlight-like film plays.  Posey chipped in with seven points and seven rebounds.   Echefu was the leading scorer and rebounder for Montrose Christian with 17 points and seven boards.  Hardy added 10 points, including a pair of big 3-pointers in the 4th Quarter that helped Montrose Christian get back in the game midway through the 4th Quarter.

Sunday, December 28, 2003

The highlight of the day today at Slam Dunk to the Beach was the big match-up between 6'8 Soph Derrick Caracter from Scotch Plains (H.S) NJ, who is ranked as the #2 sophomore in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'9 D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, who is ranked #4 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  Not only was this a battle between two of the top players in the nation regardless of class, but it also was an opportunity for both players to redeem themselves after failing to live up to expectations in their first games of the tournament.  In contrast, earlier tonight both players went to war and it appears that Caracter was the big winner, as he finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks, and three assists, plus he broke the game open with two assists and a 3-point play when the game was on the line. White finished with 15 points, eight assists, and five blocks, but he faded down the stretch, which also helped ensure that Caracter's team would win the game, 65-51. Neither Caracter nor Howard put up the kind of numbers that 6'11 Dwight Howard from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA did last night, but this should be the best head-to-head match-up of the entire tournament.  However, the irony of it all is that the leading scorer in the game was 6'7 Soph Lance Thomas, who finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds.  Not only did Thomas give Caracter the perfect inside/outside complement, but he also is a lot better than his national ranking, which is #78 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP.  The best game of the day was the game between Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA and Laurinburg (Institute) NC.  Not only did the smaller underdog Penn Charter team take the bigger, stronger,deeper, and more athletic Laurinburg team to the wire, but 6'8 Rob Kurz took his game to another level, as he scored 18 points, grabbed 19 rebounds, dished out three assists, and blocked three shots, and 5'11 Sean Singletary rebounded from his mediocre performance the other night.  Singletary had 22 points, six rebounds, and shot the ball much better, as he hit 9-19 field goals and 4-9 3-pointers, including a half court shot to end the half.   Also redeeming himself from earlier in the tournament was 6'5 Joe McCray, who led Laurinburg (Institute) NC with 13 points.  6'9 Longar Longar chipped in with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocked shots.  We also had a Richard Dorsey sighting tonight, as the 6'8 power forward finished with 10 points and seven rebounds and was intrumental in his team's victory in the 4th Quarter, as Laurinburg won the game 57-52.  Earlier in the day 6'8 Juan Diego Palacios set the tone early as he scored 14 of his team's first 20 points against Washington (Marriott Charter) DC and, as a result, Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY was up 28-25 at half-time.  However, Palacios only scored four points the rest of the way, as their team was outscored 27-15 in the second half.  Palacios finished with 19 points and nine rebounds, but he also had five turnovers and was 0-3 from beyond the arc.  And all but five of the rest of Our Savior New American's points were scored by 6'5 Gary Konate, who finished 17 points.  However, he too didn't hit his outside shots, as he finished with only 1-7 3-point field goals and, as a team, Our Savior New American hit only 1-15 3-pointers.  Our Savior New American also lost the turnover battle 24-13, but out rebounded Washington (Marriott Charter) DC, 41-28, which explains why the 52-43 final score of the game was close as it was.   The leading scorer for Marriott Charter once again was 5'10 Steve Harley with 14 points, but he also had five turnovers and only three assists.  Instead, we liked 6'9 Jerome Habel, who finished with 11 points and six rebounds, and 6'10 Anthony Ivory, who surprised us with his ability to score around the basket (4-6 field goals for eight points).  There is no question in our mind that 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL could be one of the premier big men in the senior class nationally, but, unfortunately he doesn't want it bad enough.  In other words, we're talking about somebody who is skilled, mobile, and athletic, but who doesn't play hard.  He also would rather drift around out on the perimeter, instead of mixing it up with the big boys inside.  However, we're still surprised that he had only five points and nine rebounds in his team's 56-47 win today against Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU.   Remember, Sharpe was ranked among the top 10 in both scoring and rebounding last week at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  Instead, 6'1 Rod Smitherman and 6'5 Soph Cordell Pope, who is ranked #81 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP, were the big guns for Parker, as they combined for 38 points and hit 7-9 3-pointers.  And once again the best player - 6'1 Pierre-Marie Altidor-Cespedes - for Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU came up empty, as he finished with only five points, seven turnovers, 2-9 field goals, and 1-8 3-pointers.  Instead, Champlain St. Lambert's leading scorer and best player was 6'5 Negus McKenna, who finished with 18 points.  6'1 Jr Anthony Farmer stepped up once again to score 23 points, as Richland (St. Augustine) NJ beat Bennettsville (Marlboro County) SC, 57-51, but a number of other interesting things happened in this game.  First, St. Augustine jumped out to a 14-3 lead early and led 27-17 at half-time.  However, by the end of the third quarter Marlboro County had cut the lead to 35-29 and was in striking distance throughout the 4th Quarter.  Second, Farmer started off strong as he scored 17 of his 23 points in the first half.  In contrast, 6'9 Ra'Sean Dickey from Bennettsville (Marlboro County) SC came on strong in the second half, as he scored all but two of his 16 points after the intermission.  Dickey also had 11 rebounds, but he still didn't play with the intensity level that we'd expect from somebody who is ranked #43 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  Also playing better in the second half was 6'8 Ben Nwachakwu, who had 16 points and seven rebounds, which is interesting to note, because the match-up between Dickey, who is bound for Georia Tech, and Nwachakwu, who is bound for Columbia, was almost too close to call.  Third, we really liked the incredible athleticism, high energy level, and potential of 6'8 Jr Casaan Breeden from Bennettville (Marlboro County) SC, who is ranked #88 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  However, we didn't like his productivity (he had eight points and eight rebounds, but he also was 2-11 from the field and 1-5 from beyond the arc, had four turnovers, and was consistently off balance and out of control).  However, that hasn't stopped schools like Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Clemson, Georgia Tech, N.C. State, and Florida from showing early interest.  As a matter of fact, University of Kentucky assistant coach Scott Rigot was seen sitting behind the basket watching Breeden's every move.  Remember, Rigot used to be an assistant coach at South Carolina and was the head coach at Spartansburg Methodist (JC) SC prior to moving onto UAB, Hawaii, and Kentucky as an assistant coach.  So obviously Rigot's past history in the state of South Carolina is noteworthy.  Believe it or not, three players - 6'7 Deron Washington, 6'1 Abdul Jalloh, and 6'8 Soph Kevin Durant - had a double-double for Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD in their 79-51 win over Burlington (Life Center) NJ.  Washington, who finished with 19 points and 13 rebounds, did everything well for National Christian, except shoot free throws (only 1-6).  We're talking about a multi-dimensional athlete who just gets better and better every time we see him and, as a result, we think he is a major steal for Virginia Tech head coach Seth Greenberg, who was in the house today to see him play.  Jalloh finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds, but we didn't like his assist (one assist) to turnover (five turnovers) ratio against Life Center and, as a result, we question whether he will be able to challenge Dwayne Lee at point guard next year at St. Joseph's.  Still, Jalloh is very athletic and extremely talented, which means he could be a steal for the Hawks as a back-up combo guard who could potentially grow into the point guard position down the road.  Durant, who had 13 points and 10 rebounds, is a combo forward who has long arms, a nose for the ball, and big time athleticism, plus he handles it well and shoots it well enough to play out on the perimeter.  Durant also has dramatically improved since we saw him last summer, as is evident by the fact that he is currently ranked #109 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP, but will be ranked among our top 30 next time we update our rankings.  James Madison-bound 6'4 Chris Matthew, who finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, also just missed having a double-double for National Christian.  The only player in double-digits for Life Center was 6'4 Sherman Diaz with 15 points, but we also liked the potential of 6'9 Zeljko Egeric, who finished with six points, seven rebounds, and was very active inside.  One of the most consistent players in the tournamenbt has been 6'7 Jr Brian Grimes from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, who finished with 26 points, eight rebounds, and made a big play at the end (stole the in-bounds pass and went in and scored the winning basket), as he led his team to a 74-72 over time victory against Lakewood (St. Edward) OH.  Sure, Grimes will need to improve his perimeter skills and, as a result, right now is regarded as a tweener.  But that hasn't stopped schools like Kentucky, Arizona, St. Joseph's, Stanford, Pennsylvania, and Villanova from recruiting him.  Grimes was complemented by 6'6 Joe Gill, who had 15 points and eight rebounds, 6'7 Jr Ryan Ayers, who chipped in with 14 points and eight rebounds, and 6'9 Soph Andrew Ott, who had 12 points and 11 rebounds.  Ott's performance is especially significant, because he'd been injured and, as a result, this was only his second game of the season.  So obviously Ott more than justified his #8 ranking in the sophomore class by Allen Rubin in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey area.  Rubin also tells us that Ayers' early list of schools includes Duke, Notre Dame, Villanova, Maryland, and Wake Forest.  Also in this game UC-Santa Barbara-bound 6'8 Chris Moore led Lakewood (St. Edward) OH with 18 points and nine rebounds.  We also have to mention the fact that 6'9 Soph Chris Roquemore from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX redeemed with 20 points and 10 rebounds against Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ.   However, we're not sure what that means, because this was not one of St. Benedict's better efforts, as 6'7 Alex Galindo, 6'5 J.R. Smith, and 5'11 Soph Eugene Harvey only combined for 36 points and the St. Benedict's team just went through the motions.  Potomac (The Bullis School) MD beat Laurel (H.S.) DE, 63-46, and 6'5 Travis Lay from Potomac (The Bullis School) MD, who finished with 24 points, 10 rebounds, five steals, and 8-11 field goals, and 6'7 Trey Elzey from Laurel (H.S.) DE, who had 20 points, 11 rebounds, and four blocks, once again came up big when their teams squared off at 8:30 AM earlier today. 

Saturday, December 27, 2003

Potomac (The Bullis School) MD beat Lewes (Cape Henlopen) DE, 69-53; Washington (Marriott Charter) DC beat Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 84-60; Orlando (Dr. Phillips) FL beat Amityville (H.S.) NY, 68-53; Richland (St. Augustine) NJ beat Allentown (Parkland) PA, 63-52; Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY beat Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, 68-48; Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC beat Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU, 50-48; Jacksonville (Arlington County Day) FL beat Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 53-37; Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA beat Provo (Timpview) UT, 68-55; Los Angeles (Westchester) CA beat Bloomfield (Tech) NJ, 81-52; and Reserve (Christian) LA beat Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 78-61 which has to be one of the two biggest stories of the day today at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE.  Remember, Rainier Beach was ranked #8 nationally in the latest USA Today Super 25 Poll and making the story even more interesting is the fact that Reserve (Christian) LA pulled off this stunning upset with a sophomore, freshman, and 8th Grader playing key roles.  Everybody already knows about 5'10 Soph Demond Carter dating back to when he finished ranked #8 a year-and-half ago when he was a rising freshman at the NIKE All-American Camp.  But we'd never heard of 6'4 Frosh Kevin Branch and 6'6 8th Grader Martez Walker prior to the tip-off of tonight's game.  Carter is the guy makes this team go, as is evident by the fact he had 21 points, six assists, one turnover, and two steals, but he normally is a much better shooter than he was tonight, as he hit only 4-13 field goals and 2-7 3-pointers.  In other words, Carter scored over half of his points at the foul line, as he hit 11-13 free throws.  Branch opened the game with a pair of 3-pointers and finished the first quarter with the most impressive dunk of the day.  He went on to score 14 points, while Walker had four points and beat 6'11 C.J. Giles from Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA for loose ball and rebounds on numerous occasions.  Reserve Christian also got important contributions from 6'2 Dwayne Myers, who had five points and 10 rebounds, and 6'6 George Brozos, who had 17 points, and, as a result, jumped out to 20-17 lead at the end of the first quarter, had a 32-26 half-time lead, and  outscored Rainier Beach 26-8 in the third quarter to put the game away for good.  So this sets up a big match-up against Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which is currently ranked #2 in the USA Today's Super 25, on Monday night at 10:00 PM in the winners bracket of the Slam Dunk to the Beach Division of the tournament.   And the winner of that game should win the tournament,unless 6'11 Dwight Howard from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, who is ranked as the #1 senior in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, was even better than he was today.  Howard, who is a tremendous athlete with explosvie quickness, a great feel for the game, excellent post moves, unbelievable shot blocking ability, good passing skills, great hands, and an incredible wing span, made it all look easy, as he finished with 25 of his team's 46 points, 21 rebounds, five assists, nine blocked shots, and two steals against a good Provo (Timpview) UT team.  The fact that Howard also is a great kid, an excellent student, and potentially could be the #1 pick in the NBA Draft next spring is just the icing on the cake.  But right now Howard and his parents are still paying lip service to going to college.  As a matter of fact, Howard's high school coach Courtney Brooks told our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin that the three schools on his list are Georgia Tech, North Carolina, and Georgia.  He also confirmed that Duke is no longer involved.  However, when it is all said and done, we'd be surprised if anybody knocks off Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which won the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL on Tuesday.   Tonight 6'3 Gabriel Pruitt and 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson picked up where they left off earlier this week, as the combined for 31 points and seven rebounds.  Pruitt also had three assists, five steals, five rebounds, and continues to play well enough for us to think he's every bit as good as 6'2 Jordan Farmar from Woodland Hills (Taft) CA and 6'5 Arron Afflalo from Compton (Centennial) CA, who are the consensus top two seniors in the Los Angeles area.  Pruitt obviously is an incredible athlete, excellent ball handler and passer, and deadly outside shooter, although he was only 1-5 from beyond the arc earlier tonight against Bloomfield (Tech) NJ.   But the big reason why he's elevated his game so much is his increased level of intensity, which, at least in part, might be explained by the fact he thrives in Westchester's uptempo like setting.  Johnson also has really increased his intensity level, plus he's improved his outside shooting and perimeter skills, which makes him a threat both inside and outside.   However, Johnson's bread and butter is still getting to the hole and bringing the house down with a high flying alley-oops or earth shattering slam dunks.  Also putting one of the best performances of the day was 6'3 Jason Rich from Orlando (Dr. Phillips) FL, who finished with 27 points and nine rebounds against Amityville (H.S.) NY.  Rich, who is ranked #32 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, also is one of the most savvy players in the tournament.  He has a great mid-range game, plays with patience, has an excellent feel, and is a good ball handler and passer.  We also were impressed with 6'1 Jr Anthony Farmer and 6'8 Ben Nwachakwu, both from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ.  Farmer, who hit 3-6 3-pointers and finished with 21 points against Allentown (Parkland) PA, isn't big enough to be a 2-guard and, although he has good ball handling and passing skills, doesn't make good enough decisions to be a pure point guard.  But he does project as an excellent combo guard and, as a result, is a legitimate top 200 junior nationally.  Nwachakwu is an absolute steal for Columbia, because he combines strength, athleticism, and skills with a toughness that he used to dominate inside to the tune of 12 points and 17 rebounds against Allentown (Parkland) PA.  6'9 Jerome Habel from Washington (Marriott Charter) DC picked where he left off yesterday as he finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and three blocked shots and 5'10 Steve Harley from Washington (Marriott Charter) DC was better than he was yesterday as he finished with 26 points, five steals, and four assists against Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX.  One of the biggest disappointments of the day was 6'9 Soph Chris Roquemore from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, who is ranked #26 nationally in the sophomore class.  Sure, Roquemore passes the look test, because he's a big time athlete and he has lots of potential, but he didn't live up to the hype as he had only five points, six rebounds, six turnovers, and 2-10 field goals against Washington (Marriott Charter) DC.  Instead, the best player for Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX was 6'5 Richard Hurd, who finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds.  Hurd, who is being recruited by schools like Baylor, Columbia, Colgate, Miami-FL, Oregon State, and UT-San Antonio, is intriguing, because he rebounds and passes well for his size and he gets to the hole and shoots the three well enough to be ranked higher than where we have him at #249 nationally in the senior class.  The biggest disappointent of the day was 6'9 D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, who was totally shut down in the first half with zero points and only three rebounds and finished with 11 points and nine rebounds against Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY.  However, in fairness to White, his teammates did a lousy job of getting him the ball, plus we were impressed with his explosive athleticism, quick hands, and spectacular dunking ability when he did get the ball in scoring position  Also the excellent interior defense applied by Mount Vernon's 6'6 Dexter Gray and 6'7 Soph Jonathan Mitchell had something to do with why White didn't get many touches inside.  Gray and Mitchell also combined for 26 points and eight rebounds, but, once again the big hero for Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY was 6'3 Keith Benjamin, who led his team in both scoring with 20 points and rebounding with seven boards.  Also chipping in with 10 points was 5'11 Frosh Mike Coburn.   Not only did Coburn hit 5-6 field goals, but he impressed us with his poise, athleticism, ball handling skills, and willingness to take the charge.  Another disappointment was Brigham Young-bound 6'10 Chris Miles from Provo (Timpview) UT, who finished with only eight points and two rebounds. But you also have to take into consideration that Miles was matched up against 6'11 Dwight Howard from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA.  However, 6'5 Taylor Jackson and 6'0 Matt Pinegar picked up the slack for Provo (Timpview) UT, as they combined for 44 points and accounted for 16 of their team's 20 field goals.  We already knew that 6'7 Jr Brandon Rush from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC has a much talent as any junior in the nation, but he often lacks consistency.  But we still expected more out of him than six point and two rebounds.  Instead, 6'7 Glenn Dandridge, who is one of the best 3-point shooters in the nation, 6'6 Roy Bright, who did most of his damage inside with 14 points, and 6'3 Tasheed Carr, who had eight points, four assists, and scored the game winning basket, were the heroes for Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC in their game against Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) ON.  Speaking of Champlain St. Lambert, their best player 6'1 Pierre-Marie Altidor-Cespedes was a bust, as finished with only five points, four assists, five turnovers, and hit only 1-5 3-pointers.  However, 6'9 Oliver Lamoureux scored 16 points, grabbed six rebounds, and has really improved since we saw him at the War on the Shore National Prep School Invitational in November and 6'5 Jr Maurice Joseph had 16 points and impresed us with his athleticism and potential.  We also have to mention 7'0 Jr Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington County Day) FL, who had 13 points, 14 rebounds, and five blocked shots, and 6'8 Soph Caslem Drummond from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ, who had 14 points, 10 rebounds, and hit 7-9 field goals.  6'5 Travis Lay from Potomac (Bullis School) MD followed up on yesterday's 20-point/eight rebound performance with 25 points and seven rebounds today against Lewes (Cape Henlopen) DE.  However, Lay is a bottom of the list guy when you consider the lack of competion he's faced in the tournament and the fact that he's an undersized power forward who probably will project at the low Division I or Division II level. 

Friday, December 26, 2003

Laurel (H.S.) DE beat Lewes (Cape Henlopen) DE, 80-75; Potomac (The Bullis School) MD beat Allentown (Parkland) PA, 52-48; Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA beat Burlington (Life Center) NJ, 68-54; Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY beat Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA, 74-52; Laurinburg (Institute) NC beat Washington (Marriott Charter School) DC, 91-60; Scotch Plains (H.S.) NJ beat Amityville (H.S.) NY, 73-72; and Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY beat Chester (H.S.) PA, 64-47; earlier today, but the most noteworthy story on the first day of action at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE were the individual performances by players like 6'8 Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'9 Jerome Habel from Washington (Marriott Charter School) DC, 6'6 Jr Brian Grimes from Ft.Washington (Germantown Academy) MD, 6'9 Soph Derrick Caracter from Scotch Plains (H.S.) NJ, and 6'10 Longar Longar from Laurinburg (Institute) NC,  Longar  finished with 22 point, five rebounds, six blocked shots, and 11-14 goals, nine of which came off spectacular dunks in transition.  As a matter of fact, Longar, who is already signed, sealed, and delivered for Oklahoma, had the most spectacular performance of the entire first day.  And right on his trail is Palacios, who finished with 23 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, two blocks, and was a more of a dominant force inside, but less of a 3-point shooting threat on the perimeter (1-2 3-pointers) than when we saw him at the War on the Shore National Prep School Invitational in Milford, DE in November.  Palacios, who is one of five unsigned/uncommitted players ranked among our top 30 seniors nationally, also told our Philedelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin that his list of schools now includes Texas, Pittsburgh, Louisville, and Kentucky.  And this is interesting for several reasons.  First, Pittsburgh and Louisville have been there the longest and the strongest and it's hard to imagine anybody sneaking in the backdoor and beating one of those two schools in the spring.  Remember, Louisville head coach Rick Pitino coached Jamal Mashburn when he was at Kentucky and Mashburn is the guy to whom Palacios is the most frequently compared.  Also remember that Pittsburgh head coach Jamie Dixon, who is one of the bright young head coaches in the business, and his coaching staff already have already filled their needs at the one, two, and three spots with 6'5 John DeGroat from Northeastern (JC) CO, 6'2 Keith Benjamin from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, and 6'0 Ron Ramone from Bronx (All Hallows) NY and adding Palicios to this class would be the perfect complement inside.  Second, Texas, which tied with Indiana with the #1-ranked recruiting class on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004, signed five players during the Fall Signing Period, but maybe they know something we don't.  If you will recall, there has been a lot of speculation with regards to whether 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge from Dallas (Seogoville) TX will by-pass college altogether and enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring.  In other words, if the Longhorns were to lose Aldridge, but get Palacios and/or 6'10 Michael Thompson, who is transferring from Duke and is considering Texas, Notre Dame, and UCLA, it would be more than just a great consolation prize.  Third, Kentucky is Kentucky and obviously the Wildcats need a player who can step in and make an immediate impact inside the same way Jamal Mashburn did during the Pitino-era in the early 90's.  Fourth, schools that were previously mentioned by Palacios, like Baylor, Florida State, Arizona, UCLA, and St. John's, didn't get mentioned.  Why St. John's wasn't mentioned is obvious, but we have to wonder about the rest.  Rubin says he didn't edit the list, but he also didn't full-court press Palacios for additional information.  Getting back to the business at hand, Grimes finished with 26 points, 13 rebounds, and showed signs of being able to step out and hit the 17-foot jumper, which is what he will need to do at the next level in order not to fall into the tweener trap.  Habel only scored 16 points, but he impressed us with a nice left-handed hook shot in the first half and an excellent turnaround jump shot from about 16-feet in the second half, plus he was athletic on the perimeter and active around the basket with eight rebounds and three blocks.  But Habel still needs to get bigger and stronger in order to make an immediate impact for the schools, like Cincinnati, Florida State, and Providence, that are recruiting him.  Caracter finished with 29 points and 16 rebounds, but, if he had played a little harder, he might have had 45 points and 25 rebounds against Amityville (H.S.) NY, which was very ordinary due to the fact it was missing 6'2 A.J. Price, who apparently didn't play due to a suspension.  Unfortunately this appears to be the norm for Caracter, who reminds us so many ways of former LSU All-Amercan John "Hot Plate" Williams.  Remember, Williams was extremely versatile and incredibly talented, but he didn't have the heart and desire necessary to achieve greatness at the highest level and, as a result, ended up eating his way out of a pro career.  However, in all fairness to Caracter, he did take the game over and scored 10 points in the 4th quarter and nine of his team's 11 points in the overtime, which explains why we still think Caracter is the best player in the sophomore class nationally when he wants to be (currently we have Caracter ranked second in the class behind 6'11 Soph Greg Oden from Indianapolis, IN).  Other players who need to be mentioned after the first day at Slam Dunk to the Beach are 6'4 Keith Benjamin from Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'6 Dexter Gray from Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY, and 6'7 Soph Jonathan Mitchell from Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY, 5'6 Jr Matthew Jones from Lewes (Cape Henelopen) DE, 6'7 Trey Elzey from Laurel (H.S.) DE, 6'6 Jr Randy Ayers from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'6 C.J. Anderson from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 7'2 Jr Kevin Mormin from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'5 Jr James Tchana from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'5 Jr Mark Johnson from Amityville (H.S.) NY, 6'5 Craig Stewart from Amityville (H.S.) NY, and 6'7 Soph Lance Thomas from Scotch Plains (JC) NJ.  If only Caracter played as hard as Thomas does all the time!  We're talking about an athetic combo forward who is very active, runs the court, and is great on the second effort.  Thomas does need to improve his outside shot, but this slasher/athlete finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds against Amityville (H.S.) NY.  Johnson, who finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, and Stewart, who finished with 23 points and 13 rebounds, get mentioned because they picked up the slack created by the absence of Price and they got it done inside against Caracter.   Tchana had 10 points and eight rebounds in 17 minutes, but we still question whether he's athletic enough with his tweener size to play at higher than the mid-major level.  Mormin's game is totally finesse, but he's 7'2 and very fluid and mobile inside for somebody so big and so young.  Mormin finished with 12 points, seven rebounds, and seven blocked shots, plus had a lot more stamina and was more active than when we saw him at the War on the Shore National Prep School Invitational in Milford, DE in November.  Anderson, who had 22 points 10 rebounds, and three assists against Washington (Marriott Charter) DC, is multi-dimensional enough to play four different positions and he's still unsigned!  Ayers had only one point at half-time, but he played great in the second half, as he finished with 17 points and six rebounds against Burlington (Life Center) NJ.  Elzey had 26 points and 16 rebounds and Jones had 30 points and hit 5-8 3-pointers in the first game of the day, which was an overtime thriller, but we're talking about two teams from Delaware.  Benjamin sat out the first 10 minutes, but still had 19 points.  However, the main reason why Mt. Vernon beat Chester (H.S.) PA was the strong inside play provided 6'6 Dexter Gray and 6'7 Soph Jonathan Mitchell, who combined 24 points and 16 rebounds.   We also have to mention 6'2 Soph Darrin Govens, who the leading scorer for Chester (H.S.) PA with 19 points against Mount Vernon, and 6'11 Alex Maric from Burlington (Life Center) NJ, who had 12 points, four rebounds, and three blocks before being sidelined early in the second quarter due to an injury against Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA.  The biggest disappointment of the day was 5'11 Sean Singletary from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA, who finished with 2-17 field goals and 2-12 3-pointers en route to only 10 points against Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY.  5'10 Steve Harley from Washington (Marriott Charter) DC scored 22 points against Laurinburg (Institute) NC, but he took 18 shots and was 1-5 from beyond the arch, plus he had seven turnovers, which is not good when you're a 5'10 combo guard.  However, Harley was still better than 6'5 Joe McCray, who never saw a shot he didn't like, as he hit a miserable 10-29 from the field and 2-16 3-pointers against Washington (Marriott Charter) DC.  And McCray did all this in only 27 minutes.  We also weren'tvery impressed with the athleticism and mobility of 6'10 Anthony Ivory, who finished with only eight points and five rebounds against Laurinburg (Institute) NC.  They list Ivory at 6'10, 290 lbs., but it's our guess is that he's more like 6'9, 330 lbs.

Thursday, December 25, 2003

With 15 of the top 100 juniors - 6'2 Jr Tiki Mayben from Troy (H.S.) NY to Syracuse, 6'9 Jr Josh McRoberts from Carmel (H.S.) IN to Duke, 6'2 Jr Greg Paulus from Syracuse (Christian Brothers) NY to Duke, 6'5 Jr Marcus Ginyard from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA to North Carolina, 6'6 Jr Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA to Villanova, 6'7 Jr Kevin Swinton from Greensboro (Dudley) NC to Wake Forest, 63 Jr Eric Devendorf from Bay City (H.S.) MI to Michigan State, 7'0 Jr Clarence Holloway from Chicago (Harlan) IL to Louisville, 6'8 Jr Julius Powell from Newton (Conover) NC to Clemson, 6'8 Jr Mike Davis from Brooklyn (Xaverian) NY to Pittsburgh, 6'9 Jr Joey Cameron from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL to Clemson, 6'2 Jr Jarrett Smith from Westland (John Glenn) MI to Michigan, 6'7 Jr Rashad Woods from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 5'10 Jr A.J. Abrams from Austin (McNeil) TX to Texas, and 6'8 Jr Justin Wilkerson from Greenville (H.S.) TX to Texas Tech - already having made early verbal commitments and absolutely nothing going on in the recruiting world today, now seems like a great time to put together our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  It should come as no surprise that Duke is ranked #1, because the Blue Devils have already landed two of the top three players who have made early verbal commitments, but we did not know that the top three recruiting classes, as well as four of the top nine recruiting classes, would belong to teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference.  And when you add Syracuse, Villanova, Pittsburgh, and Louisville into the mix, teams from either the Atlantic Coast Conference or teams that currently are or will be in the Big East account for almost two-thirds of the top 12 recruiting classes.  We also find it interesting that schools in the Big-12 and the Big-10 conference account for five of the other schools on the list, which means that 13 of the 18 schools that already have early verbal commitments are in these four conferences.  Obviously this is a perfect illustration of why we don't think there is parity, except among schools at the top, in college basketball, plus it really shows who has benefitted from both speeding up the recruiting process up dramatically and all the limitations on recruiting in recent years.  Later night tonight I will be flying to Baltimore, MD and driving the rest of the way to Lewes, DE for Slam Dunk to the Beach, on Friday, December 26th, Saturday, December 27th, and Sunday, December 28th.  Then, I will drive back to Baltimore, MD and catch at 5:45 AM flight to Houston, TX on Monday, December 29th, where I will attend a full day of action at the Academy National Invitational, and on Tuesday, December 30th, I will catch another 5:45 AM flight to Myrtle Beach, SC, where will attend the final day of action at the Beach Ball Classic.  See our previews from December 16th, 17th, and 18th for the times and schedule of games for these three outstanding events.  And, if that weren't enough to keep me busy during the next week, a week from today I will fly from Mrytle Beach, SC to Los Angeles, CA, where I will cover the Pangos Dream Classic on Saturday, January 3rd.   Speaking of the Dream Classic, the five games that tournament director Dinos Trigonis has scheduled includes Los Angeles (Price) CA versus Riverside (King) CA at 2:30 PM, Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA versus Bakersfield (H.S.) CA at 4:00 PM, Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY versus North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA at 5:30 PM, Compton (Dominguez) CA versus Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA at 7:00 PM, and Woodland Hills (Taft) CA versus Reseda (Cleveland) CA at 8:30 PM.  Obviously the big national draw will be 6'11 Dwight Howard from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, who is the #1-ranked senior nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'0 Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, who is the #1-ranked senior nationally by High School Hoops Magazine, but the touurnament also features many of the top players from the West Coast, including 7'0 Robert Swift from Bakerfield (H.S.) CA, 6'2 Jordan Farmar from Woodland Hills (Taft) CA, 6'4 Bryce Taylor from North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, 6'10 Chester Giles from Seattle (Rainier Beach) CA, 6'5 Nick Young from Reseda (Cleveland) CA, 6'4 Matthew Thomas from Riverside (King) CA, 6'7 Lamar Roberson from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'5 Jr Brian Harvey from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'5 Jr Terrance Williams from Seattle (Rainier Beach) CA, 6'7 Jr Titus Shelton from Bakersfield (H.S.) CA, 6'3 Jr Davon Lloyd from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'4 Jr Ed White from North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, 6'8 Soph Alex Stepheson from North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, 6'7 Soph Terron Sutton from Los Angeles (Price) CA, 6'6 Frosh Pierce Brooks from Woodland Hills (Taft) CA, and 6'5 Frosh Tim Shelton from Bakersfield (H.S.) CA, plus Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY will also have 6'6 Jr Antonio Pena and Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA will also have 6'4 Soph Javaris Crittenton.  As a matter of fact, just about the only thing missing is Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, which lost to Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH in the big game of this event a year ago.  However, taking their place is Compton (Dominguez) CA, where Russell Otis has returned as the head coach and is quickly rebuilding this into one of the top programs again in the nation.

Wednesday,  December 24, 2003

Among the more interesting fotenotes from the City of Palms Classic is the fact that Los Angeles (Westchester) CA is 14-0 in the tournament, but only 1-2 when it comes to having a player from their team named the tournament MVP.  If you will recall, Chris McRae from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY received the MPV award when Westchester won the tournament in 2000 and this year 6'9 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA was named the tournament MVP.  And he deserved it!  Not only was Davis the leading scorer with 29.0 ppg and the leading rebounder with 16.3 rpg, but he also put on one of the best performances last night in tournament history, as he finished with 35 points and 20 rebounds in the championship game.  And he scored 25 points and had nine rebounds in the second half.  He also kept from getting his fourth foul and kept his team within striking distance most of the way.  In other words, the player they call "Big Baby" is one heck of a competitor, as well as a winner in every since of the word.  Currently we have him ranked #19 in the senior class nationally, but we're seriously considering moving him up to #10 next time we adjust our rankings, behind 6'11 Dwight Howard from Atlanta (Southwest Christian) GA, 6'6 Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'9 Josh Smith from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'9 Al Jefferson from Prentiss (H.S.) MS, 6'10 D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA, 6'6 Malik Hairston from Detroit (Renaissance) MI, 6'8 Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, and 6'0 Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY.  The leading scorers in the tournament were 6'9 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 29.0 ppg, 6'2 Jr Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 26.3 ppg, 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA with 25.3 ppg, 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL with 21.8 ppg, 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL with 20.7 ppg, 6'4 Jr Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 20.3 ppg, 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge from Dallas (Seogoville) TX with 20.0 ppg, 6'3 Demetrius Green from Lexington (Catholic) KY with 19.8 ppg, 6'5 Jr Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 19.3 ppg, 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL with 19.3 ppg, 6'6 Jr Ben Raymond from Toledo (St. John's) OH with 18.8 ppg, 6'5 Gabriel Pruitt from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA with 18.6 ppg, 6'6 Jr Zaronn Cann from Brandon (H.S.) FL with 18.5 ppg, 6'5 Jr Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 16.5 ppg, 6'1 Soph Donald Sloan from Dallas (Seogoville) TX with 16.3 ppg, and 6'8 Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S) FLwith 15.5 ppg.  However, it should be noted that Aldridge only played in one game.  The leading rebounders in the tournament were 6'9 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 16.3 rpg, 6'6 8th Grader Michael Beasley from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL with 13.0 rpg, 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA with 11.7 rpg, 6'5 Jr Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 11.3 rpg, 6'6 Andre Brown from Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL with 10.3 rpg, 6'5 Jr Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 8.5 rpg, 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL with 8.3 rpg, 6'7 Jr Dwayne Collins from Miami (Senior) FL with 7.3 rpg, 6'8 Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 7.0 ppg, 6'7 Matthew Fields from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 6.5 rpg, 6'2 Jr Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 6.5 rpg, 6'1 Brian Roberts from Toledo (St. John's) OH with 6'5 rpg, 6'4 Jr Chris Fils from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 6.5 rpg, and 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL with 6.3 rpg.  In other words, the cream really did rise to top as Davis, Louis Williams, Marvin Williams, Sharpe, Rios, Louisme, Kitchen, and James finished ranked among the top 16 leading scorers in the tournament and top 14 leading rebounders in the tournament.  And Davis, Marvin Williams, and James averaged a double-double, but James was still left off the all-tournament team.  Instead, Kitchen, who scored 31 points in the Consolation Championship yesterday, was the player from Jacksonville (Raines) FL named to the All-Tournament Team.  However, James was more consistent throughout the entire tournament and, as a result, we feel like this was a gross injustice.  We also think it is worth noting that the player with the highest field goal percentage (61.9%) in the tournamet was 6'8 Robinson Louisme, but he did most of his damage in the double overtime thriller against Dallas (Seogoville) TX when he was 11-16.  In contrast, Louisme was mediocre in his other three games.  Louisme also finished ranked second in the tournament in blocks with 3.8 bpg behind 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, who had 6.0 bpg, and ahead of 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL, who had 3.3 bpg.  Ironically, Louisme, Aldrige, and Sharpe are all soft, as they often appear to lack the toughness and willingness to compete.  And when you throw in 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA, who had to do more than his coach might have liked on the perimeter, because his team was so bad, this was one of the only drawbacks of this year's tournament.  Leading the tournament in both assists and steals was 6'4 Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 4.3 apg and 3.3 spg.  6'2 Jr Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA finished ranked #2 in scoring with 26.3 ppg, tied for 10th in rebounding with 6.5 rpg, and ranked #3 in assists with 3.3 apg.  6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios finished ranked #4 in scoring with 21.8 ppg, #14 in rebounding with 6.3 rpg, 6th in 3-point shooting percentage with 16-38 treys (42.1%), and second in free throw percentage with 17-19 free throws (89.5%), which is absolutely incredible when one remembers that he's just a freshman. 

Tuesday, December 23, 2003

Brandon (H.S.) FL beat Camden (Wilcox Central) AL, 66-56; Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL beat Naples, 86-66; Birmingham (Parker) AL beat Dallas (Seogoville) TX, 75-68; and Miami (Senior) FL beat Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL, 67-59; earlier today in the Challenge Round and Jacksonville (Raines) FL beat Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 70-31, in the Consolation Championship of the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  Some of the top performances were turned in early today were by 6'6 Jr Zaronn Cann from Brandon (H.S.) FL, who had 21 points and six rebounds versus Camden (Wilcox Central) AL; 6'8 Mike Williams, who had 18 points and nine rebounds versus Brandon (H.S.) FL; 6'6 8th Grader Michael Beasley from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, who had 15 points and 17 rebounds versus Naples (H.S.) FL; 6'5 Jacoie Shivers from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, who had 18 points and five rebounds against Birmingham (Parker) AL; 6'1 Soph Donald Sloan from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, who had 20 points and seven rebounds against Birmingham (Parker) AL; 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL, who had 19 points, nine blocks, six blocks, and 9-10 field goals against Dallas (Seogoville) TX; 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL, who had 31 points, and hit 4-8 3-pointers against Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL; and 6'6 Jr Andre Brown from Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL, who had 18 points and 14 rebounds against Miami (Senior) FL; 6'5 Jr Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, who had 31 points and 11 rebounds against Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL.  Currently we're waiting on the start of the 5th Place game between Bremerton (H.S.) FL and Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, which will followed later tonight by the 3rd Place Game between Toledo (St. John's) OH versus Lexington (Catholic) KY and the Championship Game between Los Angeles (Westchester) CA versus Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA, so now is a good time to start thinking about how we'd rank the top players in the tournament up until this point.  Let's start with 6'8 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA, who is the second leading scorer in the tournament with 27.0 ppg, the leading rebounder in the tournament with 15.0 rpg, and has his team playing for the championship.  The battle for second on our list is still too close to call between 6'2 Jr Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, who is the leading scorer in the tournament with 27.7 ppg and #2 in the tournament in assists with 4.0 apg, and 6'3 Gabriel Pruitt from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, who ranks among the top 10 in scoring with 19.0 ppg and assists with 2.5 apg and top five in field goal percentage (.60.4%), 3-point field goal percentage (.44.4%), and steals (3.0 spg) on the team that is heavily favored to win the championship.  And rounding out the top five are 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA, who is ranked among the top five in scoring with 20.7 ppg and top 10 in rebounding with 7.7 rpg, and 6'4 Demetrius Green from Lexington (Catholic) KY, who is ranked among the top 10 in scoring with 19.0 ppg and was the best player on the team that knocked off Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 103-83, on Saturday night and almost upset Los Angeles (Westchester) CA last night.  The second five in the tournament ranked in order are 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL, 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'5 Jr Juwann Jones from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, 6'6 Jr Ben Raymond from Toledo (St. John's) OH, and 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL.  And rounding out our top dozen, which is how many players we have to pick later when I vote for the All-Tournament Team are 6'1 Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL and 6'6 Garrett Temple from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA.  6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge from Dallas (Seogoville) TX doesn't get considered for the All-Tournament Team, because he only played in one game, but he does get considered in the 13-25 range, along with 6'5 Jr Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL, 6'6 8th Grader Michael Beasley from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, 6'6 Andre Brown from Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL, 6'4 Jr Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'1 Brian Roberts from Toledo (St. John's) OH, 6'3 William Graham from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'6 Jr Zaronn Cann from Brandon (H.S.) FL, 6'1 Soph Donald Sloan from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, 6'4 Harrison Morton from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'8 Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 6'5 Soph Cordell Pope from Birmingham (Parker) AL, and 6'7 Soph Dwayne Collins from Miami (Senior) FL.

Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA jumped out to a 22-6 lead early against Bremerton (H.S.) WA in the 5th Place Game at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, but the game was still interesting because the three best players in the game - 6'2 Jr Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'4 Jr Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, and 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA - accounted for 44 of the 59 points in the first half, as South Gwinnett led 37-22 at the intermission.  Also noteworthy is fact that 6'9 Marvin Williams continued to play more on the perimeter than inside primarily because his teammates simply couldn't handle the ball against South Gwinnett's pressure.  However, even Williams can't do it all by himself, as is evident by the fact that he had seven turnovers and only one assist in the first half.   Still, Williams, who has tremendous skills and athleticism for somebody his size, accounted for 37 of his team's 53 points, which means he not only has the highest individual single-game scoring performance in the tournament, but he also is now the 3rd leading scorer with 25.3 ppg and the 4th leading rebounder with 11.7 rpg in the tournament.  He also must move up to #2 in our rankings of the top players in the tournament behind 6'8 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 27.0 ppg and ahead of Louis Williams with 26.3 ppg, despite the fact he had 10 turnovers in the game and, as a result, is also the leader in the tournament in turnovers with 5.0 tpg.  Louis Williams once against had a bad shooting night (6-14 from beyond the arc and only 1-5 3-pointers), but he still had 22 points for South Gwinnett.  And, when you combine that with the 1-8 3-point shooting by 6'4 Jr Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, it is easy to see why this was a game that we are glad is finally over.  Still, Williams and Mercer combined for 48 of their team's 58 points.   Speaking of South Gwinnett, City of Palms Classic Director Donnie Wilkie expects to have the heart and soul (Williams and Mercer) of this team back next year, along with teams like Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, Seattle (Prep) WA, Deland (H.S.) FL, Georgetown (Scott County) KY, Jackson (Lanier) MS, Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, and Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL in the field next year.  Getting back to the business at hand, Toledo (St. John's jumped out to a 20-14 first quarter lead, but Lexington (Catholic) KY went on a 17-8 run in the second quarter and it appeared that what happened on Saturday against Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA was also going to happen to Toledo (St. John's) OH.  However, St. John's outscored Lexington Catholic 8-5 in the final two minutes of the half to make it 34-33 in favor of Lexington Catholic and St. John's hung in their the rest of the way before losing 70-66.   Lexington Catholic was led by 6'4 Demetrius Green with 22 points and five rebounds and 6'3 William Graham with 11 points.  6'6 Jr Ben Raymond from Toledo (St. John's) OH redeemed himself after a mediocre third game with 24-point effort.  6'2 Brian Roberts also chipped in with 13 points and nine assists.  And this sets the stage for the City of Palms Championship, which will tip-off at 9:00 PM and will feature Los Angeles (Westchester) CA and Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA.  The big key to the game will be how good a job Westchester does getting 6'8 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA into an up-and-down pace.  Another key to the game will be whether 6'6 Garrett Temple from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA plays with the same intensity that he played with last night.  If he does, he hits his shots, and University Lab controls tempo, it could be a great game.  Our prediction is that this will happen for a while, but, by half-time, our guess is that it will be a rout.  We also think 6'3 Gabriel Pruitt will be named the tournament MVP, but our choice will be Davis, regardless of whether University Lab wins or loses.   So stay tuned!  Well, it looks like we were right on the money, as University Lab was only down 17-13 at the end of the first quarter.  However, with 1:51 left in the first half, Pruitt hit a 3-pointer to make it 30-19.  Then Westchester found 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson for an alley-oop dunk and Davis got called for his second charging foul of the quarter and third foul of the game.  The half-time score is 32-19 and it appears to be only a matter of time before Westchester puts the game away for good.  Davis has 10 points and Temple has seven points to account for all, but two of University Lab's 19 first-half points.  Davis also has 11 rebounds, but he's only 3-9 from the field and 4-7 from the free throw line.  Pruitt is the leading scorer for Westchester with nine points.  Johnson has six points and 6'7 Jr Ray Reese and 6'5 Jr Jerard Moret both have four point apiece, as Westchester appears to be only a half a way from winnings it's third City of Palms Classic Championship in four years.  Davis did an amazing job in the third quarter by scoring 11 points and not picking up his fourth foul, which explains why University Lab hasn't gotten blown out yet, but they also haven't cut the lead to single-digits, as the score at the end of the third quarter is Westchester 45-35.  University Lab cut the lead to six with 4:47 left in the game, but Johnson hit Pruitt for an alley-oop with 3:30 left and Pruitt hit 6'5 Jon Toliver for a lay-up that made the score 60-46.  Obviously the rest is history, as the final score was Westchester 70, University Lab 58.  And this makes Westchester 14-0 in City of Palms Classic Tournament history.  Davis, who was both the leading scorer and rebounder in the tournament, finished with 35 points and 20 rebounds and was named the MVP.  Also named to the all-tournament team were Pruitt, Green, Johnson, Mercer, Roberts, Louis Williams, Marvin Williams, 6'1 Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL, 6'6 Jr Ben Raymond from Toledo (St. John's) OH, 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL, and 6'5 Jr Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL. 

It appears that Christmas has come early for the University of Arkansas, because the Razorbacks have received a verbal commitment from 6'5 Dontell Jefferson from Atlanta Metro (JC) GA and it appears that he is the last piece to the puzzle as Stan Heath and his staff put together back-to-back top 10   recruiting classes.  If you will recall, a year ago Arkansas landed the #9-ranked recruiting class when they signed 6'5 Olu Famutimi from Flint (Northwestern) MI, 6'4 Ronnie Brewer from Fayetteville (H.S.) AR, 6'10 Vincent Hunter from Little Rock (Fair) AR, and Julius Lamptey from New Hampton (Prep) NH (Lamptey didn't make it academically and now is heading to Oklahoma State).  And with the addition of Jefferson, Arkansas' recruiting class this year, which already includes 6'9 Al Jefferson from Prentiss (H.S.) MS, 6'11 Steve Hill from Bronson (H.S.) MO, 6'7 Charles Thomas from Jackson (Callaway) MS, 6'10 Darian Townes from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, and 6'7 Marcus Monk from Lapento (East Poinsette) AR, who will sign to play football, but is expected to play both football and basketball in college, moves up to #3 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004, right behind Indiana and Texas and just ahead of Louisville.  In other words, it's almost too close to call among those four schools with regards to who actually does have the best recruiting class, because just like political polling there always is a point or two you have to factor in for margin for error.  Jefferson didn't play in any of the top junior college events last summer, but the word we get is that he's one of the better junior college point guards in the nation. And, looking at his statistics, one has to assume that he is super quick, extremely athletic, an excellent passer and ball handler, and a prolific scorer, which means he should be the perfect complement to all the good guards the Razorbacks already have in the program, like Brewer, Famutimi, 6'1 Soph Eric Ferguson, and 6'4 Soph Jonathon Modica.  The other big story that we're following involves all the speculation regarding who will be the next head coach at St. John's and it looks like we were wrong last week when we told you that former St. John's head coach Lou Carnesecca doesn't like Manhattan head coach Bobby Gonzalez and, as a result, will have no shot to get the job.   At least that's what Sam Albano of Redmen.com told us on our weekly radio show on Sunday night.  And this is important, because Carnesecca still has a lot of influence and you can bet that when everybody, including television analyst Dick Vitale, Louisville head coach Rick Pitino, Virginia head coach Pete Gillen, shoe company guru Sonny Vaccaro, Five-Star legend Howard Garfinkel, and most of the New York media, will be calling Father Harrington, who is president at St. John's, to push Gonzalez for the job.  And most of the people we've talked to in basketball, including Van Coleman, who was at the City of Palms Classic the first three days of the tournament, agree.  "It's a no-brainer," says Coleman.  "There are a lot of great candidates for the job, but Bobby Gonzalez and New York City are a match made in heaven."  And the big reason why this would be such a perfect fit are the Pitino-like energy that Gonzalez brings to the table and the numerous recruiting connections that Gonzalez has in New York City.  Remember, Gonzalez not only was an assistant coach at Bronx (Tolentine) NY and New York (Rice) NY, but he also coached New York Riverside Church and he gets along well with just about everybody, including the people from Riverside Church, the Gauchos, and the Long Isaland Panthers.  In other words, if Gonzalez doesn't get the job, somebody will be cutting off their nose to spite their face.  We also have ben tipped off a about all the great foreign players at Montverde (Academy) FL.  We're talking about are 6'0 Jr Vytaulas Valiulis from Lithuania, 6'3 Jr Mark King from Tampa (Robinson) FL, 6'8 Jr Giedrius Knysas from Lithuania, 6'9 Jr Arminus Urbutis from Lithuania, 6'7 Jr Luc-Richard Mbahamoute from Cameroon, 6'8 Jr Stephan Backinde from Cameroon, and 6'5 Jr Eugene Mubiligi from Rwanda.   Valiulis is a strong bodied point guard who can shoot, lead, and really play.   King is a strong bodied wing with great athleticism and a good stroke.  Knysas is long and lean, but he can really shoot.  Urbutis also is long, lean, and really skilled.  Mbahamoute is an explosive athlete with a really good stroke.   Backinde gets to the basket and will develop.  Mubiligi is an undersized post, but has a strong body.  Obviously this is the best team in the nation you've never heard of, but their coach Kevin Sutton is a former Stu Vetter assistant at Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD and was at Forestville (Bishop McNamara) MD a year ago.  And the perfect time to see them play is in eight-team tournament, which also includes Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL and Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, they will be hosting, February 12th-14th. 

Monday, December 22, 2003

Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL beat Dallas (Seogoville) NC, 63-58, and Jacksonville (Raines) FL beat Brandon (H.S.) FL, 66-47, earlier today at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL to set up tomorrow's Consolation Championship Game, which will be played tomorrow at 3:30 PM.  Seogoville was up by six with less than three minutes to play in the first game when they took the air out of the ball, killed their momentum, and eventually allowed Ft. Myers to win a double-over time thriller.  Ft. Myers also took advantage of their size as they had nobody to match-up against 6'8 Louisme Robinson.  Remember, 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge suffered a sprained knee in Friday's game against Lexington (Catholic) KY and, as a result, will miss the rest of the tournament.   So this paved the way for Robinson, who had to been disappointing earlier in the tournament, to put up big numbers (26 points, 11 rebounds, six blocks, and 11-16 field goals).  Robinson also made several big baskets down the stretch, but Ft. Myers still doesn't get it inside enough to this physical specimen with good post moves around the basket.  Instead, 6'2 Brett Messner and 6'4 Ricky Williams, who were a combined 5-15 from beyond the arc, were intent upon firing up 3-pointers.  However, they still shot the ball better than Seogoville's two big guns - 6'5 Jr Ryan Boyd and 6'1 Soph Donald Sloan, who were a combined 6-22 from 3-point land, and in the end that proved to be the difference in the game, as Sloan missed all of the key shots in the second overtime.  The other game was somewhat of a surprise, as Raines outscored Brandon, 17-8, in the second quarter to take a 32-21 half-time lead en route to a 66-47 victory.   Raines got 14 points and eight rebounds apiece from 6'3 Jr Derwin Kitchen and 6'7 Matthew Fields, but the big difference in the game was the battle between the two undersized inside guys.  We're talking about 6'5 Jr Juwann James, who finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds and was unstoppable inside, as he hit 9-11 field goals and convinced us that he'll be a steal for the right mid-major program a year from now, and 6'6 Jr Zaronn Cann from Brandon (H.S.) FL, who scored only nine points and grabbed only two rebounds.  Cann also didn't shoot like he did in his first two games.  If you will recall, prior to this game Cann was 6-6 from beyond the arc, but his 1-4 3-point shooting against Raines was probably more the norm.  Bremerton (H.S.) WA trailed by six points and 6'9 Marvin Williams sat out most of the first half in the first 5th Place Semi-Finals Game.  However, once Williams returned in the second half, Bremerton outscored Miami (Senior) FL, 40-17, to seal a 66-49 victory.  And Williams, who had 16 of his 22 points in the second half, turned in what was one of the top individual performances of the tournament.  But, even more important, is the fact Williams was a factor both inside, as he dominated the boards (13 rebounds) and scored around the basket, and outside, as he helped bring the ball up the court, found the open man (three assists), and hit 2-3 from beyond the arc.   He also did all this very efficiently as he hit 9-12 field goals.  Also redeeming himself was 6'1 Phil Houston, who chipped in with 13 points and 3-5 3-pointers.  This is the guy who hit only 3-17 field goals and 1-7 3-pointers in Bremerton's embarrasssing 69-32 loss on Saturday.  The other key to the game was the fact that Miami Senior shot 7-15 from 3-point land in the first half, but went 0-8 from beyond the arc in the second half.  And 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios, who finished with 20 points and 3-13 3-pointers, was 0-6 from beyond the arc.  So obviously Rios cooled off considerably after hitting 12-24 3-pointers in his first two-and-a-half games on the tournament.  6'2 Jr Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA finally had good shooting night in other 5th Place Semi-Finals Game, as he hit 10-19 field goals and 5-9 3-pointers en route to a 25-point/7-rebound/6-assist effort against Birmingham (Parker) AL.  In other words, we're talking about the most naturally gifted player in the tournament, as athletically he can do things that almost defy description.  Sure, Williams needs to improve his shot selection, but he's a much better ball handler and passer than most people give him credit for being and he has a flare for the spectacular, which is why we think he might be the most talented junior in the nation.  As a matter of fact, the game is almost too easy for him, as his biggest problem is keeping from getting bored.  It also is worth mentioning that North Carolina head coach Roy Williams was in the house to see Marvin Williams, who signed with Tar Heels in November, and Louis Williams, who obviously is one of the Tar Heels prime recruiting targets in the junior class.  6'4 Jr Mike Mercer, who finished with 10 points, six assists, and six rebounds, and 5'10 Soph Delano Howard, who hit 4-4 3-pointers, also were intrumental in South Gwinnett's 79-61 victory over Birmingham (Parker) AL, which sets up tomorrow's 5th Place Game between Bremerton (H.S.) WA and Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA.   Birmingham (Parker) AL once again was led by 6'9 Walter Sharpe, who finished with 16 points and eight rebounds and impressed us with outside shooting (2-3 3-pointers), ball handling and passing (three assists), and ability to get up and down in transition.  However, we still wish he was a little tougher inside.  Sharpe was complemented by 6'5 Soph Cornell Pope, who scored 11 points and hit 3-7 3-pointers, and 6'1 Jr Rod Smitherman, who scored seven points and hit only 1-9 3-pointers.  Speaking of poor outside shooting (6-24 3-pointers)by Birmingham (Parker) AL, this was another big difference in the game.  City of Palms Classic Challenge Round is almost complete, as Tournament Director Donnie Wilkie has announced that tomorrow it will be Brandon (H.S.) FL versus Camden (Wilcox Central) AL at 8:30 AM, Bradenton (Pendleton School) Fl versus Naples (H.S.) FL at 10:15 AM, Dallas (Seagoville) TX versus Birmingham (Parker) AL, which just tipped off, at Noon, and Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL versus Miami Senior) FL at 1:45 PM.  Lexington (Catholic) KY took Los Angeles (Westchester) CA right to the wire in the first semi-finals game, but with four second remaining 6'5 Jr Jerard Moret iced the game for Westchester with a pair of free throws.  Final Score:  Westchester 58, Lexinton Catholic 54.  Westchester jumped out to a 9-2 lead early, thanks to seven quick points by 6'3 Gabriel Pruitt and a pair of free throws by 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson.  However, Westchester failed to put the game away early, despite the fact Lexington Catholic hit only 4-26 field goals in the first half, as it was 12-7 at the end of the first quarter and 23-15 at half-time.  And as so often happens when you let a good team hang around, early in the second half 6'3 William Graham hit a 3-pointer, 6'0 Soph Brian Hewitt hit a 3-pointer, 6'5 Jr Rob Riddell hit a long two, and the Westchester head coach Ed Azzam picked up a technical foul, and suddenly Lexington Catholic was back in the game.   Lexington Catholic even took the lead 33-32 with 2:40 left in the third quarter and 45-44 with 6:24 left in the 4th quarter and tied the game at 48-48 with 3:00 remaining, but every time Lexington Catholic appeared to be on the verge of taking control of the game, Westchester showed why they are the #2-ranked team in the nation.  Pruitt finished with 23 points, 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson had 15 points and nine rebounds, Moret had 12 points, and 6'6 Craig Rogdrick had 12 rebounds for Westchester.  Lexington Catholic was led by 6'4 Demetrius Green with 18 points and six rebounds, 6'3 William Graham with 13 points and five rebounds, 6'3 Harrison Morton with nine points and seven rebounds, and 6'0 Soph Brian Hewitt with 6 points, including a long three that close the gap to two in the final 20 seconds.  But nobody else for Lexington Catholic scored more than two points, they shot only 34.6% from the field for the game, and they got beat on the boards 37-27.  In other words, it really should not have been as close as it was.  In the other semi-finals game 6'6 Garrett Temple scored the first 10 points for Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA and that helped set the tone of the game, as Temple and 6'9 Glen Davis combined for 32 of their team's first half points against Toledo (St. John's) OH. Temple also more than made up for his miserable shooting earlier in the tournament (he was 1-10 from the field on Saturday), as he hit 4-6 3-pointers in the first half.  He also had five rebounds and two assists.  6'6 Jr Ben Raymond blocked the first shot of the game and scored the first basketball of the game, but hasn't been heard from since.  Instead, 6'2 Brian Roberts, who had 10 points in the first half, is the guy who has stepped up for Toledo (St. John's) OH.  However, it not enough as Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA led 36-21 at half-time and is now up 44-24 early in the second half.   At the end of the third quarter, Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA leads Toledo (St. John's) OH, 56-39.  Davis now has 25 points and Temple has 18 points for University Lab.  Roberts now has 16 points and 6'3 Duke Keller has 13 points for St. John's.  Raymond now has four points in the game.  The Final Score was 78-54.  Davis finished with 29 points and 19 rebounds.  Temple had 20 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.  Roberts finished with 16 points, Keller had 13 points, and Raymond ended up with seven points.  Tomorrow in the 3rd Place Game it will be Toledo (St. John's) OH versus Lexington (Catholic) KY at 7:00 PM and it will be Los Angeles (Westchester) LA, which will attempt to win its 3rd City of Palms Classic Championship in four games, against Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA in the Championship Game at 9:00 PM.  

Sunday, December 21, 2003

As expected, Los Angeles (Westchester) CA beat Birmingham (Parker) AL, 63-42; Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA beat Bremerton (H.S.) WA, 69-32; Lexington (Catholic) KY beat Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 103-83; and Toledo (St. John's) OH beat Miami (Senior) FL, 61-47, in the quarterfinals yesterday at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL.  We'll start with Lexington Catholic-South Gwinnett game, because everybody in attendance at that game now knows that game between Westchester and Lexington Catholic on Monday night at 7:00 PM has the potential to be one of the all time great games in City of Palms Classic history.  Last night South Gwinnett jumped out to 20-13 lead with 1:34 left in the first quarter and 6'2 Jr Louis Williams had scored 12 of South Gwinnett's first 20 points.  However, Lexington Catholic outscored South Gwinnett 30-19 in the second quarter and led, 49-43, at half-time.  And during this stretch two very important things happened.  First, Williams shot South Gwinnett right out of the game, as he finished with 1-5 3-pointers and 14 points in the first half.  And, it got worse in the second half as Williams and 6'4 Jr Mike Mercer hit a combined 9-27 field goals, as Lexington Catholic coasted to 103-83 rout.  In contrast, Mercer shot the lights in the first half, as he hit 7-8 field goals and 1-3 3-pointers.  Also noteworthy is the fact that Williams is leading scorer in the tournament with a 29.0 ppg, but he needed 52 shots in two games to do it.  In other words, Williams is an amazing talent and a great kid, but he has never seen a shot he did not like.  He also doesn't hesitate to fire from anywhere, as he has Teddy Dupay-like range.  But in all fairness, number of his shots were right on the money, but rimmed out, which means he could just as easily been the hero, instead of the goat. Second, Lexington Catholic displayed incredible poise and they executed to perfection, as they made a living in transition and hit 21-36 field goals, 6-10 3-pointers, and got a combined 35 points from 6'4 Demetrius Green, 6'3 William Graham, and 6'3 Harrison Morton, who are Lexington Catholic's three best players.  Green, who finished 29 points and 13-19 field goals, put on one of the top performances in the tournament, plus he finally convinced us that he can shoot the three well enough to play at the big time level, which means he is a legitimate sleeper for our top 100 nationally.  And Green isn't the only one who has dramatically improved since we saw him last summer.  Graham, who finished with 11 points and two assists and two turnovers, has also improved his 3-point shooting (he's a combined 2-5 in two games) and is developing his point guard skills, which means he'll project as a combo guard at the next level.  Morton, who finished with 17 points, five rebounds, and 7-11 field goals, still does hit best work inside, but he handles it well enough and shoots it well enough (2-4 3-pointers) on the perimeter to project as a wing player.  So suddenly the senior class in the state of Kentucky looks a lot better, as Green, Graham, and Morton have all taken their game to another level and, as a result, are currently getting underrecruited.  As a matter of fact, Lexington Catholic head coach Bart Flener tells us that Western Kentucky is the only school that has shown a lot of interest in Green, while Graham and Morton are attracting some Ohio Valley Conference interest.  And, while Green, Graham, and Morton are Lexington Catholic's three best players, this is far from a three-man show, as 6'4 Mark Balthrop, who does all the blue collar work inside and has Ivy League-like grades, scored 14 points, grabbed six rebounds and 7-11 field goals, and 6'0 Jr P.J. Wilson scored 16 points and hit 4-6 3-pointers.  Also noteworthy is the fact that Lexington Catholic scored 103 points and hit 40-69 field goals and 12-22-pointers, which means Los Angels (Westchester) CA has their work cut out for them, if they are going to beat this team on Monday night.  Speaking of Westchester, the #2-ranked team in the nation has not been seriously challenged yet in the tournament, as they beat Naples (H.S.) FL by 51 on the first night, Brandon (H.S.) FL by 24 points on Friday, and jumped out to a 26-11 lead and never looked back yesterday.  The leading scorer for Westchester was 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson with 15 points, but the guy who makes this team go is 6'5 Gabriel Pruitt, who has been one of the top two players in the tournament based on performance, along with 6'8 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA.  Pruitt had 13 points and three assists yesterday, while 6'6 Craig Rogdrick and 6'5 Jr Jon Toliver added 10 points and nine points apiece, respectively.  And making the story-line for the big Lexington Catholic-Westchester showdown even more interesting are the reports that Toliver, who is one of Westchester's only 3-point shooters, and 6'7 Jr Jarrel Lake, who four points and four rebounds, both may not play due to disciplinary reasons.   In other words, we're starting to smell a major upset in the making.  Getting back to the game between Los Angeles (Westchester) CA and Birmingham (Parker) AL, 6'9 Walter Sharpe scored 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds, but the youth and inexperience of Parker's guards - 6'5 Soph Cornell Pope and 6'1 Jr Rod Smitherman - was especially evident, as they combined for only two points.   The big match-up between 6'8 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA and 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA also was every interesting as Davis scored the first five points for his team and Williams scored the first four points for his team.  However, after that Williams, who finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks, decided he wanted no part of going head-to-head with Davis inside and, instead, did his imitation of Kwame Brown and Jonathan Bender, as he spent too much of his time out on the perimeter.  Unfortunately Williams didn't shoot it like Brown and Bender, as he was 0-5 from beyond the arc.  And when you combine that with the 1-7 3-point shooting by 6'1 Phil Houston and the fact that Williams scored 17 of his teams 32 points, it's easy to figure out just how ugly this game really was.  In contrast, Davis had 26 points, 15 rebounds, and 11-20 field goals against Bremerton and he shocked everybody later in the evening when he hit 12 3-pointers in the 3-point shooting contest.  Also playing well for University Lab were 6'4 Shawn Bridgewater, who provides the perfect complement to Davis inside (10 points and seven rebounds), and 6'1 Anthony Kimble, who scored 19 points off transition.  But, once again, 6'6 Garrett Temple from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA, who is ranked #84 nationally in the senior class due to his athleticism, long arms, point guards skills, and huge upside, has yet to get on track, as he finished with four only three points and 1-10 field goals.  The final game of the day yesterday between Miami (Senior) FL and Toledo (St. John's) OH was the closest of the four semi-finals games, as Miami Senior led 15-11 at the end of the first quarter and was up 26-25 at half-time.   However, St. John's led by four at the end of the third quarter and went on a 17-6   run in the fourth quarter to beat Miami Senior, 61-47.  The big gun for Toledo (St. John's) OH was 6'6 Jr Ben Raymond, who finished with 28 points and 4-4 3-pointers.   Also chipping in with 12 points and eight points, respectively, were 6'2 Brian Roberts and 6'0 Jr Ted Heintschel.   Miami Senior got another stellar performance from 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios, who had 16 points and hit 4-7 3-pointers, but their youth and inexperience caught up with them in the second half.  As a matter of fact, this is a team that starts one junior, one sophomore, and three freshmen in 6'3 Jr Ariel Apolinario, 6'7 Soph Dwayne Collins, Rios, 6'1 Frosh Jorge Rubio, and 5'7 Frosh Eric Rodriguez, who happens to be Shaky Rodriguez's son.   Speaking of the former head coach at Miami Senior and Florida International, don't be surprised if he comes out of retirement to coach this team, if the opportunity arises in the next year or two. 

After the first three days at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL the leading scorers in the tournament are 6'2 Jr Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 29.0 ppg, 6'8 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 26.0 ppg, 6'4 Jr Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 22.5 ppg, 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL with 22.0 ppg, 6'6 Jr Ben Raymond from Toledo (St. John's) OH with 22.0 ppg, 6'6 Jr Zaroon Cann from Brandon (H.S.) FL with 22.0 ppg, 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL with 21.0 ppg, 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge from Dallas (Seogoville) TX with 20.0 ppg, 6'4 Demetrius Green from Lexington (Catholic) KY with 19.5 ppg, 6'6 8th Grader Michael Beasley from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL with 18.5 ppg, 6'5 Jr Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 18.5 ppg, 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios from Miami (Senior) FL with 18.0 ppg, 6'3 Jr Ariel Apolinario from Miami (Senior) FL with 18.0 ppg, 6'5 Gabriel Pruitt from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA with 17.7 ppg, 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA with 17.0 ppg, 6'6 Andre Brown from Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL with 17.0 ppg, 6'3 Jr Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 16.0 ppg.  The leading rebounders in the tournament are 6'8 Glen Davis from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 13.0 rpg, 6'5 Jr Juwann James from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 12.5 rpg, 6'6 8th Grader Michael Beasley from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL with 11.0 rpg, 6'9 Marvin Williams from Bremerton (H.S.) WA with 10.0 rpg, 6'6 Andre Brown from Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL with 8.5 rpg, 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL with 8.0 rpg, 6'3 Jr Derwin Kitchen from Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 7.5 rpg, 6'4 Shawn Bridgewater from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 7.5 rpg, 6'7 Soph Dwayne Collins from Miami (Senior) FL with 7.5 rpg, 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL with 7.0 rpg, 6'6 Jr Ben Raymond from Toledo (St. John's) OH with 7.0 rpg, and 6'8 Jerome Johnson from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL with 7.0 rpg.  Especially noteworthy is the fact that nine players (Davis, Raymond, Sharpe, Beasley, James, Brown, Kitchen, Mike Williams, and Marvin Williams) are ranked among the top 17 scorers and top dozen rebounders in the tournament.  And Davis is second in scoring and first in rebounding, which explains why we rank him as the #1 player in the tournament based on performance after the first three days ahead of Pruitt, Green, Raymond, Marvin Williams, and Mike Williams.  The leaders in assists are 6'4 Jr Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA with 4.5 apg, 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios with 3.5 apg, 6'5 Gabriel Pruitt from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA with 3.0 apg, 6'1 Jr Anthony Price from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL with 3.0 apg, 6'6 Garrett Temple from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 3.0 apg, 6'4 Demetrius Green from Lexington (Catholic) KY with 3.0 apg, 6'2 Brian Roberts from Toledo (St. John's) OH with 3.0 apg, 6'2 Brett Messner from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 3.0 apg, and 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL with 3.0 apg.  And now you know why Williams is ranked among the top players in the tournament despite the fact his team is 0-2 in the tournament.  Also noteworthy is the fact that Pruitt ranks #3 in the tournament in field goal percentage (.647) and #3 in steals with 3.3 spg.  The leader in steals is 6'1 Anthony Kimble from Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 5.0 spg and the leader in 3-point shooting percentage is Cann with a perfect 6-6 from beyond the arc.  Also shooting the lights out from long range are Raymond with 7-8 treys and Rios with 9-17 treys, Pruitt with 7-14 treys, Apolinario with 6-12 treys, 6'0 Jr P.J. Wilson from Lexington (Catholic) KY with 5-10 treys.  The leader in blocks is Aldridge with 6.0 bpg, but he was injured late in the game against Lexington (Catholic) KY on the second day and is out for the remainder of the tournament.  Next on the list of leaders in blocks shots are 6'8 Robinson Louisme from Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with 3.5 bpg, Beasley with 3.0 bpg, and Marvin Williams with 3.0 bpg.  The line-up for tomorrow begins with Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL versus Dallas (Seogoville) TX at 11:15 AM and Brandon (H.S.) FL versus Jacksonville (Raines) FL at 1:00 PM in the Consolation Bracket; Bremerton (H.S.) WA versus Miami (Senior) FL at 2:45 PM and Birmingham (Parker) AL versus Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA at 4:45 PM in the 5th Place Semi-Finals; and Lexington (Catholic) KY versus Los Angeles (Westchester) CA at 7:00 PM and Toledo (St. John's) OH versus Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA at 9:30 PM in the Semi-Finals.  And on Tuesday there will be a Challenge Round with games at 8:30 AM, 10:15 AM, Noon, and 1:45 PM with the four teams - Naples (H.S.) FL, Punta Gorda (Charlotte) NC, Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, and Camden (Wilcox Central) AL - that are winless in the tournament versus the four teams that lose in the first four games tomorrow.  Then, the Consolation Championship will be played at 3:30 PM, the 5th Place Championship will be played at 5:30 PM, the 3rd Place Championship will be played at 7:15 PM, and the Championship Game will be played at 9:00 PM on Tuesday.   And we're predicting that Lexington (Catholic) KY will pull off the upset in the semi-finals against Los Angeles (Westchester) CA and knock off Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA in the championship.  Remember, Kentucky and Louisiana teams do historically well in this tournament!

Saturday, December 20, 2003

The highlight of the day yesterday at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL came when Brandon (H.S.) FL was up by six against Los Angeles (Westchester) CA with less a minute to in the first half.  However, Westchester scored two quick baskets to end the half and Westchester outscored Brandon 44-8 in the second half en route to 76-52 victory in what was the best game so far in the tournament.  And, once again, one of the key's to Westchester's success was 6'5 Gabriel Pruitt, who made tough shot after tough shot, as he had 23 points, hit 10-15 field goals, 3-6 3-pointers, and had three assists.  Another big key came in  the second half when Westchester head coach Ed Azzam moved 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson, who finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds, to center, which helped off-set Brandon's presence inside with 6'6 Jr Zaronn Cann.  Speaking of Cann, who finished with 21 points and five rebounds, he impressed with his toughness and athleticism inside, plus he surprised us with his ability to step out and keep you honest with his 3-point shooting.  But he still doesn't put it on the floor nor does he create his own shot, which means he's still stuck with the tweener tag.  We also liked the intensity, athleticism, and willingness of Cann's teammates - 6'2 Jr Aubrey Brown, 5'10 Soph Korri Ennis, 6'3 Jonathan Banks, and 6'0 Taylor Gangis - to take it right at Westchester, but, in the end, their lack of depth and fatigue eventually caught up with them.  Numerous NBA scouts were in the house to see 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, who finished with 20 points and six rebounds, but Lexington (Catholic) KY stole the show with its outside shooting in the first half (8-15 from beyond the arc) and, as a result, coasted to a 75-55 win against Seogoville, which lacked the guard play to handle Lexington Catholic's pressure and experience.  Remember, 6'4 Demetrius Green, 6'3 William Graham, and 6'3 Harrison Morton all played important roles on Lexington Catholic's state championship team two years ago, they're all extremely athletic, and have an excellent understanding of the game.  The only question is how well do they shoot it, which explains why they've been stuck with the tweener trag and, as a result, are getting underrecruited.  Green hit only 4-13 field goals and 2-7 3-pointers, but he just knows how to play and he's multi-dimensional enough to play inside and outside, as is evident by the fact that he had five rebounds and three assists.   Graham was their leading scorer with 13 points, Morton was their leading rebounder with six boards, and 6'0 Soph Brian Hewitt provided their outside firepower, as he hit 4-8 3-pointers.  We also thought Jacksonville (Raines) FL, which was up 33-24 at the half, might knock off Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, but 6'2 Jr Louis Williams, who 3-13 from the field and 0-5 from beyond the arc in the first half, turn things around in the second half, as he hit 6-12 field goals and 2-5 3-pointers in the second half en route to 28 points, five rebounds, three assists, and four turnovers.  However, we still have to rag on Williams for being lacksidasical compared to when we saw him in the spring and summer and, as a result, he was not finishing shots that he would normally make, plus his shot selection had a lot to be desired.  And while Williams, who is ranked #3 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP and has tremendous natural talent and incredible athleticism, probably still needs to be ranked among our top five or 10 juniors nationally, you have to know what you're getting (a scoring combo guard), if you recruit him.  So it should come as no surprise that Memphis head coach John Calipari was in the house last night to watch Williams play.  It also should come as no surprise that the first school Williams mentioned was Memphis, but he also told us that Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Wake Forest are on his list.  Williams also said that he'd like to attend the same college as his teammate - 6'4 Jr Mike Mercer from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA.  And Mercer proved last night that he's good enough to be part of the package as he scored 22 points and dished out five assists.  But we're still not convinced he's a point guard, as is evident by the fact that he also had six turnovers.  Mercer said he likes Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, and UCLA, so the two obvious common denominators here are the Bulldogs and the Volunteers.  The two best players for the Raines were 6'3 Jr Derwin Kitchen, who finished with 15 points and seven rebounds, and 6'5 Jr Juwann James, who finished with 19 points and 12 rebounds, but they both were shut down in the second half as Kitchen only had two points and James didn't get a single rebound after the intermission.  And this was the big reason why Jacksonville (Raines) FL lost 68-65 to Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA.  Kitchen, who is ranked #106 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, could move a lot higher on our list, if he improves his ball handling skills.  Kitchen is an explosive athlete who makes tough shots, has excellent skills, and is good defensively.  James does all of his damage around the basket and, as a result, is a total tweener, but there is a place for somebody like this at the low Division I level, so check back in a year.   In the final first round game of the evening last night 6'2 Brian Roberts and 6'6 Jr B.J. Raymond combined for 36 points and 15 rebounds as Toledo (St. John's) OH knocked off a pesky Punta Gorda (Charlotte) FL team, 63-53.   Charlotte, which trailed by only four at the end of the third quarter, was able to exploit the inside presence provided by 6'6 Andre Brown and 6'7 Kenny Brewer, who combined for 30 points and 20 rebounds.  But they didn't have an answer for Roberts and Raymond, who combined to hit 6-9 3-pointers and exploited Charlotte's guards out on the perimeter.  We were impressed with Raymond's multi-dimensional game, athleticism, and skills.  As a matter of fact, we heard one scout (Rob Harrington of the Recruiter's Handbook) calling Raymond a poor man's Ron Artest.  Roberts is an explosive athlete, a good outside shooter, excellent passer, and good ball handler, but we doesn't always make the best decisions.  In other words, Roberts is a true combo guard, but he'll fit in perfectly at Dayton, because the Flyers have also have landed 6'2 Trent Meachum from Champaign (Centennial) IL, who will run the point, in this recruiting class.   Unfortunately 6'6 Jr Zach Hillesland from Toledo (St. John's) OH, who is the #2-ranked in the state of Ohio by Chris Johnson, is injured and unable to play and, as a result, we question how far this team can go in the tournament.  If you will recall, we said last week that we thought St. John's was the team that would meet Westchester in the championship.  However, now we're not sure they will get past Miami (Senior) FL in the 9:50 PM game tonight.  In the other three quarter-finals games later today, it will be Los Angeles (Westchester) CAversus Birmingham (Parker) AL at 3:30 PM, Bremerton (H.S.) WA versus Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA at 5:30 PM, and Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA versus Lexington (Catholic) KY at 7:15 PM.   Westchester should beat Parker, University Lab should beat Bremerton, Lexington Catholic should beat South Gwinnett, and St. John's will probably beat Miami Senior, which should set up a pretty good final four on Monday night.  As a matter of fact, the highlight of the tournament will likely be the 7:15 PM semi-finals game between Los Angeles (Westchester) CA and Lexington (Catholic) KY.  In other words, whoever wins that game should beat the winner of the University Lab or St. John's in the championship game, which will tip-off at 9:00 PM on Tuesday night.

Friday, December 19, 2003

It was already almost a foregone conclusion that Mike Jarvis would be fired as the head coach at St. John's, but most people thought that it would not happen until the end of the season. However, after starting the season with 2-4 record and only beating Stony Brook, 72-61, and St. Francis-NY, 58-52 and losing to Fairfield and Hofstra, it appears that The President of St. John's, Father Donald Harrington, who is the one believed to be calling the shots, had seen enough to decide to make a change.  That's what our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio tells us and this is extremely interesting for several reasons.  First, when was the last time a prominent head coach at the high Division I college level was fired this early in the season for wins and losses?  Second, St. John's assistant coach Kevin Clark has been named as the interim head coach until the end of season and, if he can turns things around the rest of season, that would make him a hot item to get a mid-major job next spring.  Third, this only fuels the speculation that has already been intense in the New York media, especially on Redmen.com, will regards to who will be the next head coach St. John's.  Among the names we've already heard as potential candidates for the job are former North Carolina head coach Matt Doherty, Georgia Tech head coach Paul Hewitt, Manhattan head coach Bobby Gonzalez, Rhode Island head coach Jim Baron, Providence head coach Tim Welsh, Memphis head coach John Calipari, Villanova head coach Jay Wright, former New York Knicks player Mark Jackson, Boston University head coach Dennis Wolff, Richmond head coach Jerry Wainwright, former UCLA head coach Steve Lavin, and former head coach Georgia Tech Bobby Cremins.  Obviously getting the top players in New York City once again to stay home is a big prerequisite for the job, which is just one of the many reasons why we think it's a no-brainer that the Red Storm should hire Gonzalez.  Not only has he proven he can recruit like crazy, but Gonzalez also brings that Rick Pitino-like energy to the table.  In other words, if you want to get New York City excited again about St. John's basketball and turn the Red Storm into a NCAA Final Four contender, this is your man.  Remember, Gonzalez is one of the hottest young coaches in college basketball right now, as is evident by the fact Manhattan went 23-7 a year ago and with a 72-48 record in four-and-a-half years has transformed the Jaspers into one of the best mid-major programs in the nation.  And further evidence of this came just two days ago when Manhattan went to Syracuse just two days ago and led by eight points at half-time and lost by only six points against the defending NCAA Champions.  But the word we get is that St. John's will never hire Gonzalez.  The official party line is that St. John's doesn't want to hire another coach from Manhattan.  If you will recall, Jarvis's predecessor Fran Fraschilla came to St. John's from Fordham.  And the comparisons don't stop there, as the party line is that just like Fraschilla, Gonzalez is too tough to work and play for.  But we hear that the real reason is that former St. John's head coach Lou Carnesecca does not like Gonzalez and that a number of other people with the right political clout just don't get it.  So if St. John's doesn't hire Gonzalez, who should they hire?  Our choice would be Hewitt, because he's NewYork guy, he's a great coach, and his team is one of the big surprises in college basketball this year, as is evident by the fact that Georgia Tech is 8-0 and ranked #6 in the latest USA Today/ESPN Poll.  However, the bottom line is that Hewitt would be able to recruit like crazy in New York City and, as a result, will have an easier time winning a National Championship at St. John's than at Georgia Tech.  Editor's Note:  We plan to have Sam Albano of Redmen.com on our weekly radio show and you can listen to it live on Sunday night 10:00 PM to Mid-night or by going to our archives at HOOP SCOOP On-Radio.  Obviously the big topic of discussion will be the firing of St. John's head coach Mike Jarvis and will the leading candidates to replace him.

We told you last week in our preview of the City of Palms Classic that Naples (H.S.) FL would be the the sacrificial lamb on the opening night to Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which is currently ranked #2 in the USA Today's Super 25 High School poll.  However, we still weren't prepared for just how dominant Westchester would be in this game, as they jumped out to 14-2 lead early and led 30-5 at the end of the first quarter, 58-14 at the end of the first half, and 81-30 at the end of the game.  And this was without 6'9 Jr Amir Johnson, who recently transferred from Los Angeles (Verbum Dei) CA to Los Angeles (Westchester) CA.   If you will recall, earlier this week Johnson was ruled ineligible and currently his playing status is being appealed.  Westchester head coach Ed Azzam also told us last night that he hopes to have Johnson next week when his team travels to Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE.  Instead, Westchester was led by Gabriel Pruitt, who hit two 3-pointers to set the tone early.  Pruitt finished with 17 points, but, even more important, he was terrific in transition, he impressed us with his ball handling and passing skills, and it appears that he's grown several inches since we saw him last summer.  In other words, if Pruitt continues to play this well the rest of the tournament, we'll have to move him a lot higher than where we currently have him ranked at #74 nationally in the senior class.  Also scoring in double-digits for Westchester were 6'7 Jr Jarrel Lake with 12 points, 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson with 11 points, and 6'7 Jr Ray Reese with 11 points, but two of the most impressive dunks of the day were turned in by Westchester's 6'6 Rogdrick Craig, who finished with six points and is one of eight or nine players on this team who is capable of stepping up and making a big play at any given moment.   Earlier in the day Birmingham (Parker) AL beat Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, 74-58; Miami (Senior) FL beat 65-58; and Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA beat Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, 67-46.  And the University Lab-Ft. Myers game really wasn't that close, as 6'8 Glen Davis set the tone early by scoring several baskets and totally shutting down 6'8 Robinson Louisme.  As a matter of fact, when University Lab took Davis out late in the first quarter, Ft. Myers head coach Ed O'Brien put Louisme back into the game in order to take advantage of the match-up and get Louisme some confidence.  Davis, who, at 6'8, 330-pounds, is extremely mobile and active, finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds and he simply picked up where he left off last summer when he led his team to a runner-up finish in the 17-Under National AAU Tournament.  We also thought 6'4 Shawn Bridgewater, who finished with 11 points and eight rebounds for University Lab, played well, but we were somewhat disappointed with 6'6 Garrett Temple, who finished with nine points and only two assists.  Louisme finished with 11 points, four blocks, and three steals for Ft. Myers, but he also only had four rebounds.  Instead, the player who impressed us the most for Ft. Myers was 6'4 Ricky Williams, who scored 19 points and proved to be a deadly outside shooter when left open, as he hit 3-4 3-pointers.   However, Williams needs to get stronger physically and improve his ability to get his shot against quicker guards, if he's wants to get recruited higher than the low D I or D II level.   The leading scorer for Miami Senior with 25 points was 6'3 Jr Ariel Apolinario, but the guy who had everybody shaking their head was 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios, who hit 5-10 3-pointers and displayed excellent ball handling and passing skills, as he also dished out four assists.  In other words, Rios more lived up to his #12 national ranking in the Class of 2007 by the HOOP SCOOP.  And while Apolinario were taking care of business out on the perimeter, 6'7 Soph Dwayne Collins, who finished with 12 points and six rebounds, more than held his own inside against 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL and 6'10 Jr Yamene Coleman, who combined for 30 points and 14 rebounds.  When 6'6 8th Grader Michael Beasley from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL failed to play a minute in the first quarter, we thought it was a little strange.   However, Beasley still was the only player on his team to scored in double-digits, as he finished with 19 points.  He also had seven rebounds and was 7-11 from the field and 2-4 from beyond the arc.  But the reason why Beasley's upside so incredible and why he's ranked as the #2 8th Grader in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, is the likelihood that he will grow four or five more inches.  And, if that happens, it scary how good he could become.  Remember, we're talking about somebody who already possesses both inside and outside skills and is consistently getting it done against players at the 17-Under age level.   Also chipping in with eight points and 11 rebounds for Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL was 6'8 Jerome Johnson, who is one of the top unsigned seniors in the tournament.  Speaking of Johnson's recruiting, right now his list includes Rutgers, Penn State, Nebraska, Cincinnati, and Florida State.  The guy with the rep for Birmingham (Parker) AL is 6'9 Walter Sharpe, but his two teammates - 6'1 Jr Rod Smitherman and 6'5 Soph Cornell Pope, who combined for 14-28 field goals and impressed us with their outside shooting - were the big difference in the game.  Sharpe did hit 13-18 free throws en route to a 21-point/14-rebound effort, but he only was 4-13 from the field and he still doesn't play very hard.  However, that didn't stop Auburn assistant coach Charlton Young from keeping a close eye on Sharpe, as he attempts to determine whether he should turn up the heat on UAB, Georgia, and Alabama, which are currently the leaders for Sharpe's services. 

Thursday, December 18, 2003

When the tournament directors are saying that one of their competitors has the best field in the nation, it's time to step back and take notice.  Well, that's exactly what Donnie Wilkie, who invites the teams for the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, has said about the Beach Ball Classic, which will be held in Myrtle Beach, SC, December 26th-30th.  And to back up his opinion even further Wilkie reminds us that four of the participants - Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI, which is ranked #4, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, which is ranked #6, Greensboro (Dudley) NC, which is ranked #20, Orlando (Edgewater) FL, which is ranked #25, are nationally ranked in the latest USA Today Super25  Rankings and teams like Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, and Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA also are good enough to receive national consideration.  In other words, half of the teams in the field are capable of winning this year's Beach Ball Classic, as this is the strongest field they've had in at eight years.  And the list of top players also is very impressive it includes 6'8 Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, 6'0 Darius Washington from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 7'0 Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, 6'1 Jason Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, 5'11 Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'7 Gavin Grant from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'5 Brian Lainge from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'3 Marquie Cooke from Suffolk (Nansemond River) VA, 6'2 Zam Frederick from St. Matthews (Calhoun County) SC, 5'11 Dupree Fletcher from Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI, 6'7 DeSean White from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'2 Ramon Sessions from Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC, 6'7 Frank Elegar from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'5 Blal Benn from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'5 Fred Stanback from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, 6'1 Brandon Johnson from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 6'6 Kenny Ingram from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 6'6 Lonnell Dewalt from Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY, 6'8 Matt Maresca from Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY, 6'4 Arizona Reid from Gaffney (H.S.) SC, 6'1 Dejuan Morrison from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'6 Jr Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, 6'7 Jr Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, 6'5 Jr Marcus Ginyard from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, 6'7 Jr Kevin Swinton from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'5 Jr Rickey Torres from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 6'6 Jr Chris Bethel from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 6'1 Jr Justin Castleberry from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, 6'2 Jr Prince Bowden from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'5 Jr Quentin Thomas from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, 6'6 Jr Dave Neal from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, 6'11 Soph Mitchell Carter from Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI, 6'5 Soph William Graves from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'4 Soph Robert Johnson from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'8 Soph Rockwell Moody from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, 5'8 Soph Marquise Sullivan from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD, and 6'6 Soph Devon Epps from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY.  The Beach Ball Classic will tip-off on Friday, December 26th with Greensboro (Dudley) NC versus Suffolk (Nansemond River) VA at 5:00 PM, followed by St. Matthews (Calhoun County) SC versus Orlando (Edgewater) FL at 6:45 PM, Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD versus Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA at 8:30 PM, and Gaffney (H.S.) SC versus Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA at 10:15 PM.  Then, on Saturday, December 27th, it will be Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX versus Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC at 12:01 AM, the loser of the game between St. Matthews (Calhoun County) SC-Orlando (Edgewater) FL versus the loser of the game between Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD-Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA at Noon, the loser of the game between Greensboro (Dudley) NC-Suffolk (Nansemond River) VA versus the loser of the game between Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX-Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC at 1:45 PM, Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA versus Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY at 3:30 PM, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY versus Denham Springs (H.S.) LA at 5:15 PM, Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI versus Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC at 7:00 PM, the winner of the game between Greensboro (Dudley) NC-Suffolk (Nansemond River) VA versus the winner of the game between Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX-Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC at 8:45 PM, and the winner of the game between St. Matthews (Calhoun County) SC-Orlando (Edgewater) FL versus the winner of the game between Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX-Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC at 10:15 PM.  On Sunday, December 28th, it will be the loser of the game between Gaffney (H.S.) SC-Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA versus the loser of the game between Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY-Denham Springs (H.S.) LA at 4:30 PM, the loser of the game between Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA-Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY versus the loser of the game between Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI-Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC at 6:15 PM, the winner of the game between Gaffney (H.S.) SC-Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA versus the winner of the game Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY-Denham Springs (H.S.) LA at 8:00 PM, and the winner of the game between Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA-Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY versus the winner of the game between Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI-Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC at 10:15 PM.  Monday, December 29th, will begin with loser bracket games at Noon and 1:45 PM, followed by a pair of Consolation Championship Games at 3:30 PM and 5:15 PM, and the Semi-Finals Games at 7:00 PM and 8:45 PM.  And the final four games of the tournament, which I plan to attend on Tuesday, December 30th, will begin with winner's bracket consolation games at 1:45 PM and 3:30 PM, the 3rd Place Game at 4:45 PM, and the Championship Game at 8:00 PM.   You can get even more information by clicking on Beach Ball Classic.

Wednesday, December 17, 2003

It should come as no surprise that we plan to spend the first three days after Christmas at Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE, which as usual is absolutely loaded, as the list of top players includes 6'11 Dwight Howard from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, 6'9 D.J. White from Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL, 6'8 Mike Williams from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL,  6'6 Earl "J.R." Smith from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'2 A.J. Price from Amityville (H.S.) NJ, 6'8 Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 5'11 Sean Singletary from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA, 6'2 Jason Rich from Orlando (Dr. Phillips) FL, 6'6 Roy Bright from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'11 Jackie Butler from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'8 Richard Dorsey from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'11 Longar Longar from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'3 Vincent Banks from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'10 Ra'Sean Dickey from Bennettsville (Marlboro County) SC, 6'9 Mohamed Tangara from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'7 Alex Galindo from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'2 Keith Benjamin from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'4 Albert Webber from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'3 Gabriel Pruitt from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'3 Tasheed Carr from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'7 Deron Washington from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, 6'8 Rob Kurz from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA, 6'1 Courtney Nelson from Bloomfield (Tech) NJ, 6'0 Maureece Rice from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'1 Pierre-Marie Altidor Cespedes from Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU, 6'5 Joe McCray from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'9 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL, 6'6 Glenn Dandridge from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'10 Chris Miles from Provo (Timpview) UT, 6'8 Robbie Simpson from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'11 Benny Sougetov from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'6 Kevin Palacios from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'9 Shawn Taggart from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'8 Jared Gaither from Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD, 6'8 Ben Nwachukwu from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'2 Earl Risby from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, 6'7 Loic Theophile from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'5 Richard Hurd from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, 6'6 Dexter Gray from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Olivier Lamoureux from Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU, 6'0 Abdulai Jalloh from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, 6'10 Keith Darden from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, 6'5 Negus McKenna from Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU, 7'6 Jerry Sokolowski from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'6 Jr Brandon Rush from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'5 Jr Ryan Ayers from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 5'10 Jr Eugene Harvey from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'9 Jr Yamene Coleman from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL, 6'3 Jr Anthony Farmer from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'7 Jr Brian Grimes from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'9 Jr Frank Tchuisi from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'7 Jr James Tchana from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'7 Jr Casaan Breedan from Bennettsville (Marlboro County) SC, 6'9 Soph Derrick Caracter from Scotch Plains (H.S.) NJ, 6'0 Soph Jawan Carter from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'6 Soph Jon Mitchell from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'7 Soph Tracy Smith from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'3 Soph Javaris Crittenton from Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA, 5'9 Soph Demond Carter from LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA, 7'1 Soph Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, and 6'7 Soph Lance Thomas from Scotch Plains (H.S.) NJ.  In other words, Jacobs has 20 players - Howard, White, Williams, Earl "J.R." Smith, Price, Juan Diego Palacios, Singletary, Rich, Bright, Butler, Dorsey, Longar, Rush, Caracter, Jawan Carter, Mitchell, Tracy Smith, Crittenton, Demond Carter, and Bennett - who rank among the top 40 players nationally in their respective class and, as a result, should be legitimate McDonald's All-American candidates when they are seniors in high school.  However, we won't be arriving until close to Noon on Friday, December 26th, because Bobby Jacobs, who is the Executive Director of the Tournament, was nice enough to schedule the only two Delaware teams - Lewes (Cape Henelopen) DE and Laurel (H.S.) DE - in the tournament in first game at 10:00 AM.  Then, it will be Parkland (H.S.) PA versus Potomac (Bullis School) MD at 11:30 AM, followed by Burlington (Life Center) NJ versus Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA at 1:00 PM, Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA versus Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY at 2:30 PM, Washington (Marriott Charter) DC versus Laurinburg (Institute) NC at 4:00 PM, Amityville (H.S.) NY versus Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ at 5:30 PM, and Chester (H.S.) PA versus Mt Vernon (H.S.) NY at 7:00 PM.  The action on Saturday, December 27th, will tip-off with Lewes (Cape Henelopen) DE versus Potomac (The Bullis School) MD at 8:30 AM, followed by Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX versus Washington (Marriott Charter) DC at 10:00 AM, Orlando (Dr. Phillips) FL versus Amityville (H.S.) NY at 11:30 AM, Richland (St. Augustine) NJ versus Parkland (H.S.) PA at 1:00 PM, Mt.Vernon (H.S.) NY versus Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL at 2:30 PM, Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU versus Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC at 4:00 PM, Jacksonville (Arlington County Day) FL versus Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ at 5:30 PM, Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA versus Provo (Timpview) UT at 7:00 PM, Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA versus LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA at 8:30 PM, and Los Angeles (Westchester) CA versus Bloomfield (Tech) NJ at 10:00 PM.  The action on Sunday, December 28th, will tip-off with Laurel (H.S.) DE versus Potomac (The Bullis School) MD at 8:30 AM, followed by Ft. Washington (Germantown (Academy) PA versus Lakewood (St. Edward) OH at 10:00 AM, Burlington (Life Center) NJ versus Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD at 11:30 AM, Bennettsville (Marlboro County) SC versus Richland (St. Augustine) NJ at 1:00 PM, Birmingham (Parker) AL versus Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU at 2:30 PM, Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY versus Washington (Marriott Charter) DC at 4:00 PM, Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL versus Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ at 5:30 PM, Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX versus Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ at 7:00 PM, Laurinburg (Institute) NC versus Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA at 8:30 PM, and Durham Mt. Zion Christian) NC versus Chester (H.S.) PA at 10:00 PM.  Games will resume on Monday, December 29th, with Camden (Wilcox Central) AL versus Lakewood (St. Edward) OH at 8:30 AM, followed by Birmingham (Parker) AL versus Bennettsville (Marlboro County) SC at 10:00 AM, the Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL-Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ loser versus the Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA-Provo (Timpview) UT loser at 11:30 AM, the Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA-LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA loser versus the Los Angeles (Westchester) CA-Bloomfield (Tech) NJ loser at 1:00 PM, Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY versus Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX at 2:30 PM, Laurinburg (Prep) NC versus Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD at 4:00 PM, Orlando (Dr. Phillips) FL versus Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ at 5:30 PM, the Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL-Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ winner versus the Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA-Provo (Timpview) UT winner at 7:00 PM, Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA versus Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC at 8:30 PM, and the Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA-LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA winner versus the Los Angeles (Westchester) CA-Bloomfield (Tech) NJ winner at 10:00 PM.  The final day, Tuesday, December 30th, begins with Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA versus Laurel (H.S.) MD at 9:00 AM, Tuscaloosa (Hillcrest) AL versus Lakewood (St. Edward) OH at 10:30 AM, the Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL-Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ-Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA-Provo (Timpview) UT loser versus the Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA-LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA-Los Angeles (Westchester) CA-Bloomfield (Tech) NJ loser in the 7th Place Game at Noon, Montreal (Champlain St. Lambert) QU versus Camden (Wilcox Central) AL at 1:30 PM, the winner of the Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL-Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ loser and winner of the Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA-Provo (Timpview) UT loser versus the winner of the Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA-LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA loser and the Los Angeles (Westchester) CA-Bloomfield (Tech) NJ loser in the 5th Place Game at 3:00 PM, Birmingham (Parker) AL versus Orlando (Dr. Phillips) FL at 4:30 PM, the loser of the Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL-Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ winner and the Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA-Provo (Timpview) UT winner versus the loser of the Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA-LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA winner and the Los Angeles (Westchester) CA-Bloomfield (Tech) NJ winner in the 3rd Place Game at 6:00 PM and the winner of the Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL-Scotch Plains (Fanwood) NJ winner and the Atlanta (Southwest Atlanta Christian) GA-Provo (Timpview) UT winner versus the winner of the Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA-LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA winner and the Los Angeles (Westchester) CA-Bloomfield (Tech) NJ winner in the Slam Dunk to the Beach Championship Game.  As always, we will cover Slam Dunk to the Beach with the help of our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin and our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz.  For more information about this tournament, click on their web site at SlamDunktotheBeach.org.

Tuesday, December 16, 2003

For the third consecutive year one of the must stops on our annual holiday basketball tour is the Academy National Invitational, which will be held December 27th-30th at the Adline ISD Campbell Center in Houston, TX and will feature a Texas High School Division and a National High School Division.  Opening round games will tip-off on Saturday morning with Katy (Cinco Ranch) TX versus Houston (Westbury Christian) TX at 9:30 AM, followed by Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA versus Melbourne (Florida Air Academy) FL at 11:00 AM, Houston (Kingwood) TX versus Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX at 12:30 PM, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) TX at 2:00 PM, Houston (Aldine) TX versus Sugar Land (Clements) TX at 3:30 PM, Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD versus Tulsa (Booker T. Washington) OK at 5:00 PM, Houston (Jones) TX versus Houston (North Shore) TX at 6:30 PM, and Houston (Milby) TX versus Sugar Land (Hightower) TX. at 8:00 PM.  Sunday will be an off day, but the tournament will follow the same format on Monday, December 29th, which is the day I will be there, with loser bracket games being played at 9:30 AM, 11:00 AM, 12:30 AM, and 2:00 PM and winner bracket games at 3:30 PM, 5:00 PM, 6:30 PM, and 8:00 PM.  Then, on Tuesday, December 30th, the 7th Place Game in the Texas Division will be played at 9:30 AM, followed by the 7th Place Game in the National Division at 11:00 AM, the 5th Place Game in the Texas Division will be played at 12:30 PM, the 5th Place Game in the National Division at 2:00 PM, the 3rd Place Game in the Texas Division will be played at 3:30 PM, the 3rd Place Game in the National Division at 5:00 PM, the Championship Game in the Texas Division will be played at 6:30 PM, and the Championship Game in the National Division at 8:00 PM.  Some of the top players who will be attendance include 6'3 Daniel Gibson from Houston (Jones) TX, 6'5 Jawann McClellan from Houston (Milby) TX, 6'6 Churchill Odia from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'11 Alexander Kaun from Melbourne (Florida Air Academy) FL, 6'5 Josh Shipp from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, 6'7 Marcel Jones from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'9 Chris Henry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'11 Tunji Soroye from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'0 Charlie Jones from Katy (Cinco Ranch) TX, 5'10 Sean Morris from Katy (Cinco Ranch) TX, 6'7 Chris Rawls from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 6'9 Jr Jeremy Barr from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'6 Jr Jamal Boykin from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, 6'0 Jr David Devezin from Sugar Land (Clements) TX, 6'7 Jr Rashad Austin from Santa Ana (Mater Dei)CA, 6'0 Jr Michael Garrity from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, and 6'6 Jr Quentin Cheney from Tulsa (Booker T. Washington) OK, 5'9 Soph Nic Wise from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX, 6'8 Soph Darris Santee from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX, 6'4  Soph Jerren Shipp from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, 6'7 Frosh Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'6 Frosh Mike Singletary from Houston (Kingwood) TX, 6'6 Frosh Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX, and 6'7 Frosh Herb Pope from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD.  Obviously we'll get another opportunity to see Kaun, who was missing in action with an injury during the summer, and Odia, who we haven't seen the NBA Players Association Camp last June due to the fact that was out of the country playing in the World Men's Junior Championship in Athens, Greece in July. However, the biggest story promises to be the emergence of several juniors, like Barr and Devezin, and all the great young players who will participating in the tournament.  As a matter of fact, I even went so far as to tell Academy National Invitational Tournament Director Hal Pastner that he will have the best junior varsity tournament in the nation.  Remember, Wise is ranked #5 nationally in the sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP and King, Singletary, and Johnson are ranked among the top dozen freshman in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP.  Speaking of Pastner, he's the best there is at running tournaments and events and we're also looking forward to all of the tournaments that he has scheduled for this spring and summer.  We're talking about the Las Vegas Easter Classic in Las Vegas, NV, April 7th-11th, which will be in its 24th year; the Las Vegas Spring Showcase in Las Vegas, NV, April 16th-18th, which will feature top 16-Under and 17-Under teams from around the nation; the Houston Kingwood Classic in Houston, TX, April 23rd-25th, which will be the largest weekend tournament ever; the Main Event - Las Vegas Summer Classic in Las  Vegas, NV, July 22nd-26th, which is going head-to-head against the Reebok Big Time Tournament and is expected to one of the premier events the entire summer; and the National Youth Basketball Championship in Las Vegas, NV, July 27th-31st, which will feature many of the nation's top young players ranging from 4th grade to 9th grade.  For more information about all of these events, as well as the Academy National Invitational, click on VisionSports.com

It appears that 6'8 Soph Chris Roquermore and 6'7 Jr Rashad Woods, both of whom are from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX and both of whom made early verbal commitments to Baylor University during the fall, have had second thoughts about their college decision.   Apparently their uncertainty stems from the potential NCAA sanctions which date back to the previous regime that the school potentially could receive from the NCAA.   Upon further investigation we find that Roquermore indeed has changed his mind and, as a result, has re-opened his recruitment.  In contrast, it appears that Woods reaffirmed his verbal commitment to the Bears, which means he will continue to be included as part of Baylor's 2005 recruiting class.  And, when it is all said and done, we would be surprised if Baylor is still not the team to beat with Roquermore, although it appears that schools like Connecticut and Texas are already once again are showing serious interest.  Remember, Baylor assistant coach Jerome Tang has already successfully recruited Roquermore and Woods once dating back to his days as the head coach at Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX.  However, this is not the biggest story involving Baylor recruiting.  Did you know that the Bears got a verbal commitment yesterday from 6'0 Jihad Muhammed from San Jacinto (JC) TX, who was ranked as the #1 junior college point guard by Rick  Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, the #2 junior college point guard by Van Coleman in the Lindy College Basketball Pre-Season Magazine, and among the top 10 junior college players in the nation by Street & Smith Pre-Season Yearbook?   Obviously this is huge, as Baylor's recruiting class, which also already includes 6'11 Mamadou Diene from the Senegal and 6'2 Aaron Bruce from Horsham, Australia, moves up to #14 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004.  Making the story even more interesting is the fact that Baylor is also one of the favorites, along with Louisville, Florida State, Pittsburgh, St. John's, and Arizona, for 6'8 Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, who is ranked #27 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  And, if Baylor gets Palacios in the spring, their recruiting class would move up to #4, behind Indiana, Texas, and Louisville and ahead of Arkansas, Memphis, Florida, North Carolina, Missouri, UCLA, and Duke on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004.  In other words, it looks like the Baylor coaching staff has done a tremendous job of overcoming whatever adversity has been thrown their way since taking over the program five months ago and, as a result, the Bears appear to be well on their way towards becoming one of the better programs in the tough Big-12 Conference year-in and year-out.  We also confirmed yesterday that Clemson landed an early verbal commitment from 6'8 Julius Powell from Newton (Conover) NC, who is ranked #44 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP and will be the #4-ranked junior in North Carolina/South Carolina when we publish Brian Clifton's report later this month.  And this is big for several reasons.  First, it gives the Tigers a great head start on the future.  Remember, earlier this fall Clemson also landed 6'9 Joey Cameron from Leeds (H.S.) AL, who is ranked #55 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  As a matter of fact, suddenly Clemson is in pretty fast company as the only other schools that have early verbal commitments from more than one player in the Class of 2005 are Duke with 6'9 Jr Josh McRoberts from Carmel (H.S.) IN and 6'2 Jr Greg Paulus from Syracuse (Christian Brothers) NY, Wake Forest with 6'7 Jr Kevin Swinton from Greensboro (Dudley) NC and 6'9 Jr David Weaver from Swannanoa (Owen) NC, and Texas Tech with 6'9 Jr Kendrick Johnson from Morton (H.S.) TX, 6'3 Jr Calvin Johnson from Morton (H.S.) TX, and 6'8 Jr Justin Wilkerson from Greenville (H.S.) TX.   Second, the addition of Powell gives Clemson not one, but two quality inside players to complement their current recruit class, which already includes 6'6 Cheyenne Moore from South Kent (Prep) CT, 6'6 Sam Perry from Piedmont (Woodmont) SC, and 6'9 James Mays from Garner (H.S.) NC.  In other words, the new regime has already landed five players who are ranked among the top 100 nationally in one or more rankings.  We also understand that 6'10 Michael Thompson, who is transferring from Duke, has a top three that includes Texas, Notre Dame, and UCLA and it appears that UNC-Charlotte has gotten an early verbal commitment from 6'6 Jr Mitch Mullis from Thomasville (East Davidson) NC, who will be ranked #21 in the junior class in North Carolina/South Carolina by Clifton.   We think this is a solid catch, because we're talking about an athletic white kid who is local and is willing to get his recruitment over with early.  Mullis also has good hands and the potential to develop into more than just a role player for the 49ers, if he develops an outside shot and/or develop some post moves, which he can use inside.   However, time is on his side, because the 49ers potentially should be one of the best front-lines in college basketball the next two years with 7'0 Frosh Martin Iti, 6'8 Soph Curtis Withers, and 6'8 E.J. Drayton from Colby (JC) KS.  

Saturday, December 13, 2003, Sunday, December 14, 2003, Monday, December 15, 2003

While most of competitors spend an afternoon once in the fall and once in the spring working on their rankings of the top recruiting classes, we provide you with an on-going list of our Top Recruiting Classes To-Date throughout the year, plus we spend about two weeks each fall and each spring compiling our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes, our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference, and Different Ways to Rank the Top Recruiting Classes.  Obviously this is one of the many things that separates us from our competition and, as usual, the 63-pages we've published is the most comprehensive look at recruiting found anywhere.  And you can get the 19-page list of Signing and Commitments from the Fall Signing Period, the 12-page Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes, the 20-page Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference, and the 12-page Different Ways to Rank the Top Recruiting Classes, in the Members Section of the HOOP SCOOP.  You also can make all kinds of comparisons and see what trends are developing with specific teams and within the certain conferences by clicking on Top Recruiting Classes and comparing this year's rankings with those from each of the past six years in our archives, which also are found exclusively in the Members Section.  It also is important to note that we have finished our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference on Saturday, December 13th, and our Different Ways to Rank the Top Recruiting Classes just today and, as a result, there are a number of things that we think are very interesting.  First, the Big-12 and Southeastern Conferences, both of which have only 12 teams, have a higher talent rating average per recruit than Conference USA and the Big East, both of which have 14 teams.  And this is important, because these are the four conferences that had the most cumulative points when ranking the top recruiting classes by the conference.  In other words, the Big-12 Conference with 191 points, 35 recruits, and a 5.457 talent rating average per recruit and the Southeastern Conference with 179 points, 36 recruits, and a 4.972 talent rating average per recruit were the big winners in terms of landing both quality and quantity.  However, they were both edged out in terms of quantity, as Conference USA landed the most players (37 recruits) and the Atlantic Coast Conference was the huge winner in terms of quality, as the league's Talent Rating Average Per Recruit is 5.875.  And when one remembers that we assign each player a rating on a 1-10 scale, whereby, a top five player nationally is worth 10 points, a top 10 player is worth nine points, a top 40 player is worth eight points, a top 70 player is worth six points, a top 100 is worth four points, a top 300 player is worth three points, a top 1000 player is worth two points, and anybody not ranked among the top 1000 is worth one point and factor in other things like experience and depth, this is really amazing, because the average player signed this fall by schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference is the equivalent of somebody in the 40-70 range nationally.  Even more amazing is the fact that Atlantic Coast Conference finished ranked #1 in the fall of 1998 with a 6.5 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, ranked #2 in the fall of 1999 with a 5.0 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, ranked #1 the fall of  2000 with a 5.4 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, ranked #1 in the fall of 2001 with a 6.2 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, and ranked #1 in the fall of 2002 with a 6.4 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  Obviously this provides the perfect illustration of why the Atlantic Coast Conference is widely regarded as the best conference in college basketball year-in and year-out.  However, there has been a lot of talk recently about the Big East Conference emerging as the best conference ever, so we we're going to go one step further right now and make the comparison by including the new members of the Atlantic Coast Conference, which are Miami-FL, Boston College, and Virginia Tech, and the Big East, which are Louisville, Cincinnati, Marquette, DePaul, and South Florida, and see who comes out on top.  Currently the Big East has 164 points, 36 Recruits, and a 4.555 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, but when you eliminate the 33 points and eight recruits that the Big East is losing and add the 92 points and 14 recruits that the Big East is gaining, the new Big East has a total of 223 points, 42 recruits, and a 5.309 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  In contrast, when you add the three new schools into the Atlantic Coast Conference, which currently has a 141 points, 24 recruits, and a 5.875 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, we find the new Atlantic Coast Conference has 174 points, 32 recruits, and a 5.438 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  However, the Atlantic Coast Conference's .437 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit decrease is still enough to keep it ahead of the Big East, which has registered a .754 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.  But this is now enough to keep the Atlantic Coast Conference ahead of the Big-12, which has a 5.457 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit compared to the new Atlantic Coast Conference, which now has a 5.438 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit, and the new Big East, which has a 5.309 Talent Rating Average Per Recruit.   We also find it interesting that the team with the highest Talent Rating Average Per Recruit is DePaul, followed by Connecticut, Duke, Cincinnati, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Florida State, Indiana, Texas, Florida, North Carolina, and Syracuse.  And you thought there was parity in college basketball.   Indiana, DePaul, Duke, North Carolina, Texas, Connecticut, and Louisville were the big winners in terms of who signed the best two players, but DePaul and Connecticut drop off the list when we look at the list of who signed the best three players, because the Blue Demons and the Huskies only signed two players.  The three schools that rise above the rest in terms of who signed the best four players when we look at both this fall and last year's recruiting class are Duke, Cincinnati, and Connecticut, but Arkansas, Florida State, Kansas, LSU, Louisville, and Oklahoma are close on their trail.  Obviously this reads like a Who's Who of both the best teams and the fastest rising teams in college basketball, which is just one more illustration of why people who follow recruiting have a tremendous understanding of is happening at the college level.

Friday, December 12, 2003

Once again 6'6 Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Manual) IL, who finished with 14 points, 10 assists, five rebounds, and four blocks, meant more to his team than any other player at Shop 'N Save/KMOX Shootout and, as a result, was our choice as the best player yesterday at this single-day event in St. Louis, MO.  The only thing that Livingston didn't do well was shoot (5-14 field goals and 0-3 3-pointers), but he has the size, athleticism, versatility, and point guard skills necessary to draw Magic Johnson and Anfernee Hardaway-like comparisons.  In other words, Livingston is capable of stepping up and taking over the game whenever he wants, but normally he's willing to use his incredible passing ability to just make his teammates better and shut down his opponent's best player.   This time that was 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, who he held to only two points in the first quarter and only six points in the first half.  And this is important, because, by that time, the game was over as Peoria (Central) IL, which jumped early to a 19-7 lead, was up 40-19 at the intermission.   So obviously Aldridge's final numbers, which included 12-14 field goals, 31 points, 13 rebounds, and five blocks, are deceptive, as he padded his stats long after the game was no longer in doubt.  Instead, the second best performance of the day was turned in by 6'7 Jr Brandon Rush from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, who was unstoppable as he hit 10-13 field goals and finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds.   While Rush did most of his damage inside, 6'4 Albert Weber and 6'7 Glen Dandridge combined to hit 7-10 3-pointers, as Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC coasted to a 89-76 win against South Kent (Prep) CT in the final game of the evening.  Also shooting well in that game was 6'7 Dorell Wright from South Kent (Prep) CT, who finished with 24 points and  4-7 3-pointers.  However, Wright did not possess the same explosiveness that he has had when we've seen him in the past.  And it was until later that we found out that Wright has had back spasms all week and, as a result, couldn't even jump high enough to touch the rim in practice the day before the game.  So instead of drawing Tracy McGrady-like comparison, Wright impressed everybody with his ability to break his opponent down with his skills.  We even heard Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report say that Wright was the best player DePaul has signed since Mark Aquirre.  And we agree!  As a matter of fact, we think Wright is the best player in the nation that college coaches and recruiting analysts know about, but the average fan and mainstream media, especially in Chicago, IL, have not caught onto yet.   So when Wright steps in at DePaul next year and instantly becomes one of the best players in college basketball, just remember where you heard it first!  After Livingston, Rush, Wright, and Aldridge, whose performances at the Shop 'N Save/KMOX Shootout rank #1, #2, #3, and #4, there was a big drop to players like 6'9 Shaun Pruitt from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, 6'7 Corey Brewer from Portland (H.S.) TN, and 6'4 Jr Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS.   Pruitt, who finished with 19 points, 6-8 field goals, and 15 rebounds in his team's 56-49 win against St. Louis (Chaminade) IL, was the most efficient.  But Pruitt still doesn't play hard and dominate the way we would expect him to inside, which means he has the potential to be ranked a lot higher than where we have him ranked nationally in the senior class at #133.  However, he hasn't earned it, which means we'll stand by his current ranking.  Brewer, who finished with 34 points, was the leading scorer on the day.  But he also took 34 shots and finished with nine turnovers, as he had absolutely no help.  As a matter of fact, Brewer scored 20 of his team's 22 first-half points and 34 of his team's total 43 points, plus he had 15 of his team's 21 rebounds, as they were totally outmatched, 73-43, by Webster Groves (H.S.) MO.   Ellis' shot selection was even worse as he hit 6-22 field goals and 3-15 3-pointers.  But he still had almost half of his team's points (20 points) and was the main reason why Jackson (Lanier) MS, which lost to Belleview (West) IL, 54-44, was even in the game.  We were impressed with the 16 rebounds that 6'8 Kalen Grimes from Florissant (Hazelwood Central) IL had in a one-point loss against East St. Louis (H.S.) IL, but he too needs to pick up the intensity level and get more than eight shots.  Speaking of East St. Louis (H.S.) IL, their best player was 6'5 Tommie Liddell from East St. Louis (H.S.) IL, although he too didn't shoot very well, as he finished with 6-15 field goals en route to a 16-point/10 rebound/four assist effort.   We also have to mention 6'1 Brandon Lee from Peoria (Central) IL, who scored 19 points and made a living off passes from Livingston, as he hit 9-11field goals; 6'6 Vaughan West from St. Louis (Chaminade) IL, who more than held his own inside against Pruitt with 16 points and eight rebounds; 6'4 Jr Arthur Sargent from Belleville (West) IL, who was one of the best shooters we saw all day, as he hit 4-7 3-pointers; and 6'1 Soph Donald Sloan from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, who scored 15 points and easily was the best sophomore of the day.   The biggest disappointment of the day was 6'5 Justin Cerasoli from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, who scored only six points and never got into the flow of the game.  The most deceptive statistic of the day belonged to 6'2 Jason Thomas from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, because 10 of his 19 points came at the foul line.  And while Thomas hit 10-12 free throws, he only hit 4-12 field goals.  We also weren't very impressed with 6'4 Xavier Price from Belleville (West) IL, who scored 13 points, but hit only 4-11field goals and had nine turnovers. 

Thursday, December 11, 2003

In preparation to publish our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes from the Conclusion of the Fall Signing Period, we have crosschecked and made everything match between this list and our ratings on our list the Signing and Commitments from the Fall Signing Period and, as a result, are way ahead of the game as we continue to work on our Final Ranking of The Top Recruiting Classes by Conference, which will be published by the weekend, and Different Ways to Look at Recruiting, which will be published by early next week.  Ours is always the most comprehensive look at recruiting that can be found anywhere, but we have gone into even more depth, as this list now includes the top 183 recruiting classes ranked in order.  And any signings and/or commitments that we've picked up since we finalized our list of Signing and Commitments from the Fall Signing Period, which was published on December 1st, can be found by clicking on Recent Commitments.  So, if a player has signed or committed and is not on either of these two lists, we don't know about it yet.  In other words, now is the perfect time to email me at hoopscooponline@msn.com and tell me who we're missing, so we can include them on our list of Recent Commitments, which includes everything we've found out about since the conclusion of the Fall Signing Period.  We also find it interesting that the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big-12 Conference, Southeastern Conference, and Conference USA all have five teams ranked among the top 30 recruiting classes.  However, when you take into account the new conference realignments, the Big East appears to be the big winner.  Currently this league has four of the top 30 classes with Connecticut at #20, Pittsburgh at #21, and Virginia Tech and St. John's tied at #28.  And while the Big East will lose Virginia Tech to the Atlantic Coast Conference, it will add #3-ranked Louisville, #15-ranked Marquette, #17-ranked DePaul, and #24-ranked Cincinnati #24, which means that almost half of the 16 teams that will be in this conference beginning in 2005 had top 30-ranked recruiting classes this fall.  It also is important to note that the rich are getting richer in college basketball, as is evident by the fact that the highest ranked recruiting classes by teams that aren't in the ACC, Big East, Big-12, Big-10, SEC, CUSA, and Pac-10, belong to Dayton at #17, Richmond #33, Wright State at #38, and UTEP, Xavier, Wyoming, and Gonzaga all tied at #41.  And the race at the top is almost too close to call, as Indiana and Texas are tied at #1 and Louisville is only one-point off in third place.   In other words, if any of these three schools finesse the five-and-eight rule, whereby, they add another player to their current class or somebody really improves or drops in our rankings between now and the conclusion of the Spring Signing Period, that would be more than enough to tip the balance.  To keep up with all this on a daily basis, make sure visit our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004 on a regular basis.   Remember, our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes from the Conclusion of the Fall Signing Period is exactly that.   In contrast, our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004 will be updated on a continuous basis and, as a result, will change throughout the winter and spring.

Wednesday, December 10, 2003

Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin has the scoop on 6'4 Charron Fisher from Philadelphia (Roman Catholic) PA, who has verbally committed to Niagara.  And Rubin thinks this is big for a several reasons.  First, Fisher is the #6-ranked senior in the area and the #157-ranked senior nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.   Second, Fisher is a good athlete and tough hardnosed competitor who is an excellent rebounder and interior scorer for his size.  Third, Fisher is developing his perimeter skills and is good at stepping out and hitting the mid-range jump shot.  Rubin also points out that connection on this is Niagara head coach Joe Mihalich, who has strong Philadelelphia area ties dating back to when he played and coached at La Salle.  We also have confirmed via our Tennessee Correspondent Andre Whitehead that 6'4 Mykail Vibbert from Clinton (H.S.) TN has verbally committed to UNC-Asheville and he thinks this is a nice catch for the Bulldogs, despite the fact Vibbert is nowhere to be found on our list of the top seniors in Tennessee, which was published earlier this fall.  Apparently Vibbert played in Tennessee as a sophomore, but moved to Texas a year ago and now has resurfaced in his old-stamping grounds with an improved outside shot and a move better attitude.   Vibbert also has explosive athleticism and is strong and physical enough to take advantage of mismatches against both bigger and smaller players.  We also have finally added 7'0 Jr Clarence Holloway from Chicago (Harlan) IL to our list of Recent Commitments.  If you will recall, a week ago we scooped everybody when we reported that a verbal commitment by Holloway was imminent.  However, with the exception of the Chicago Sun-Times, which reported it as official on Friday, no official announcement has been forthcoming.  And, as a result, the local media has yet to pick up on the fact that this is a done deal.  Holloway joins 6'2 Jr Tiki Mayben from Troy (H.S.) NY, who has verbally committed to Syracuse; 6'9 Jr Josh McRoberts from Carmel (H.S.) IN and 6'2 Jr Greg Paulus from Syracuse (Christian Brothers) NY, both of whom have verbally committed to Duke; 6'5 Jr Marcus Ginyard from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA, who has verbally committed to North Carolina; 6'6 Jr Shane Clark, who has verbally committed to Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA; 6'7 Jr Kevin Swinton from Greensboro (Dudley) NC and 6'9 Jr David Weaver from Swannanoa (Owen) NC, both of whom have verbally committed to Wake Forest; 6'3 Jr Eric Devendorf from Bay City (H.S.) MI, who has verbally committed Michigan State; 6'8 Jr Mike Davis from Brooklyn (Xaverian) NY, who has verbally committed to Pittsburgh; 6'9 Jr Joey Cameron from Leeds (H.S.) AL, who has verbally committed to Clemson; 6'2 Jr Jarrett Smith from Westland (John Glenn) MI, who has verbally committed to Michigan; 5'10 Jr A.J. Abrams from Austin (McNeil) TX, who has verbally committed to Texas; 6'8 Jr Justin Wilkerson from Greenville (H.S.) TX and 610 Jr Kendrick Johnson from Morton (H.S.) TX, both of whom have verbally committed to Texas Tech; to bring the number of players ranked among our top 240 juniors nationally who are already off the board to 15.  So with the verbal commitment by Holloway to the Cardinals in the bag, the obvious next question is how this is going to effect their recruitment of 6'9 Jr Theo Davis from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, who is ranked #19 nationally in the junior class and has Louisville right at the top of his list?   Apparently not at all, according to our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio, who tells us that Davis is expected to be at the Louisville-Florida game this weekend while on an unofficial visit to Louisville, KY.  That's the good news for the Cardinals.  The bad news were the reports today about the tragic death of Francisco Garcia's younger brother, who was shot and killed Monday night in the Bronx, NY.   Naclerio also tells us not to be surprised if 6'9 Shawn James from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA and 6'2 Kojo Mensah from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA both end up at St. Peter's.  Wright State, St. Peter's, Fordham, and San Jose State are recruiting Mensah and James is attracting interest from schools like Auburn, South Florida, St. Peter's, and Niagara, but Naclerio thinks the fact that James and Mensah are extremely close and that the Peacocks are the only school recruiting both players will pay big dividends for St. Peter's head coach Bob Leckie.

Tuesday, December 9, 2003

The national media is focusing on the rematch that will take place live on ESPN2 at 7:00 PM at Fordham University in the Bronx, NY between 6'0 Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY and 6'0 Darius Washington from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, who ranked #9 and #14, respectively, in the senior class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  But we will be attending the Shop 'N Save KMOX Shootout in St. Louis, MO, which will feature the #1-ranked 5th Year Player in the nation in 6'7 Donell Wright from South Kent (Prep) CT, the #3-ranked senior in 6'6 Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, the #8-ranked junior in 6'4 Jr Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, the #12-ranked junior in 6'6 Jr Brandon Rush from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, the #17-ranked senior in 6'5 Justin Cerasoli from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, the #24-ranked senior in 6'7 Corey Brewer from Portland (H.S.) TN, the #28-ranked senior in 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge from Dallas (Seogoville)TX, the #10-ranked 5th Year Player in 6'6 Cheyenne Moore from South Kent (Prep) CT, the #33-ranked senior in 6'6 Roy Bright from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, the #39-ranked senior in 6'7 Kalen Grimes from Florissant (Hazelwood Central) MO, the #52-ranked senior in 6'9 Mohamed Tangara from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, and the #53-ranked senior in 6'8 Charles Rhodes from Jackson (Lanier) MS, as well as two of the best prep school teams in the nation in South Kent (Prep) CT and Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC and two teams - Peoria (Central) IL and Aurora (West Aurora) IL - that were ranked in the USA Today's Pre-Season Top 25.  The first game of the day between Kirkwood (Vianney) MO versus Lafayette (Wildwood) MO will tip-off at 10:30 AM, followed by a girls game at Noon, Portland (H.S.) TN versus Webster Groves (H.S.) MO at 1:30 PM, Jackson (Lanier) MS versus Belleville (West) IL at 3:00 PM, Aurora (West Aurora) IL versus Creve Coeur (Chaminade College Prep) MO at 4:30 PM, East St. Louis (H.S.) IL versus Florissant (Hazelwood Central) IL at 6:00 PM, Dallas (Seogoville) TX versus Peoria (Central) IL at 7:30 PM, and South Kent (Prep) CT versus Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC at 9:00 PM.  In addition to the dozen players already mentioned above, we also are looking forward to seeing 6'7 Soph Tracy Smith from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'4 Albert Weber from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'4 Glenn Miles from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'6 Tasheed Carr from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'10 Shawn Taggert from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'3 Xavier Price from Belleville (West) IL, 6'8 Shaun Pruitt from Aurora (West Aurora) IL, 6'5 Tommie Liddell from East St. Louis (H.S.) IL, 6'7 Tavon Nelson from South Kent (Prep) CT, 5'11 Jack McClinton from South Kent (Prep) CT, 6'5 Jr Ryan Boyd from Dallas (Seogoville)TX, 6'2 Soph Donald Sloan from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, 6'2 Soph Derrick Roland from Dallas (Seogoville) TX, 6'7 Soph Alex Tyus from Florissant (Hazelwood Central) MO, 6'2 Brandon Lee from Peoria (Central) IL, and 6'6 Jr DeAndre Miranda from Peoria (Central) IL.  In other words, the Shop 'N Save KMOX Shootout once again is loaded.  However, the event we're really looking forward to is the 2003 City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, which annually is the best pre-Christmas Holiday Tournament in the nation.  The first game will tip-off at 4:00 PM on Thursday, December 18th, with Birmingham (Parker) AL versus Bradenton (IMG Academy) FL and this should interesting for several reasons.  First, IMG Academy will be going to war in this tournament without all their 5th Year players.  Second, this will give 6'10 Walter Sharpe from Birmingham (Parker) AL, who is ranked #155 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, a chance to redeem himself after a mediocre summer.  Third, it will give 6'8 Mike Beasley from Bradenton (IMG Academy) FL, who is the #2 -ranked 8th Grader in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, a chance to step up and be the star on a team where he normally is just a good role player.  Next, at 5:45 PM, will be Miami (Senior) FL with 6'1 Frosh Edwin Rios, who is ranked #12 nationally in the freshman class by the HOOP SCOOP, versus Camden (Wilcox Central) AL with 6'8 Mike Williams, who is ranked #12 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'9 Jr Yamene Coleman, who is ranked #61 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  The third game of the evening, which is scheduled to tip-off at 7:30 PM, will feature Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA with 6'8 Glenn Davis, who is ranked #19 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'6 Garrett Temple, who is ranked #84 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, versus Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL with Tulane-bound 6'8 Robinson Louisme.  And in the final game of the evening, which is scheduled for 9:15 PM, Naples (H.S.) FL will be the sacrificial lamb for Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which was the #3-ranked team in the USA Today's pre-season rankings.  However, we're still not sure whether Westchester will have 6'9 Jr Amir Johnson, who is ranked#47 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  If you will recall, Johnson transferred recently from Los Angeles (Verbum Dei) CA to Westchester and, as a result, his eligibility status is currently being appealed.  But it may not matter, because Westchester, which also features 6'3 Gabriel Pruitt, who is ranked #74 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'6 Jr Marcus Johnson, who is ranked #57 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, once again goes eight or nine deep and is battle tested after having participated in numerous national tournaments in recent years.  On the second day, Friday, December 19th, tournament director Donnie Wilkie, has the loser of Game #2 versus the loser of Game #3 matched up in the first consolation game of the tournament at 3:30 PM.  Then, at 5:15 PM it will be the winner of the Los Angeles (Westchester) CA-Naples (H.S.) FL game, which should be Westchester, versus Brandon (H.S.) FL, which features 6'5 Jr Zarron Cann from Brandon (H.S.) FL, who is one of the top five ranked juniors in the state of Florida.  Next, at 7:15 PM, it will be Dallas (Seogoville) TX with 6'11 LaMarcus Aldridge, who is ranked #28 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, 6'5 Jr Ryan Boyd, 6'2 Soph Donald Sloan, and 6'2 Soph Derrick Roland versus Lexington (Catholic) KY with 6'3 Harrison Morton, 6'3 William Graham and 6'4 Demetrius Green, who are three of the top 10 seniors in the state of Kentucky.  At 9:00 PM, it will be Jacksonville (Raines) FL with 6'3 Jr Derwin Kitchen, who is ranked #106 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, versus Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, with 6'3 Jr Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnette) GA, who is ranked #3 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  And in the the final game of the evening, which is scheduled for 10:45 PM, it will be Charlotte (Punta Gorda) NC versus Toledo (St. John's) OH, which is the team we think Los Angeles (Westchester) CA will meet in the championship.  Remember, St. John's features three of our top 10-ranked players in Ohio in 6'6 Jr Ben Raymond, 6'1 Brian Roberts, and 6'5 Jr Zach Hillesland.  The first three games on Saturday at 10:15 AM, Noon, and 1:45 PM will be consolation games, followed by four quarterfinals games at 3:30 PM, 5:30 PM, 7:15 PM, and 9:50 PM.  Especially noteworthy is the fact that Bremerton (H.S.) WA, which features 6'9 Marvin Williams, who is ranked #6 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, gets a bye into the second round and, as a result, will play the winner of the Baton Rouge (University Lab) LA-Fort Myers (H.S.) FL game at 5:30 PM.  This also means that if Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, as expected, plays the Bradenton (IMG-Academy) FL-Birmingham (Parker) AL winner at 3:30 PM, it would be their third game in three days.  On Monday, December 22nd, the Consolation Semi-Finals will be at 11:15 AM and 1:00 PM, the 5th Place Semi-Finals will be at 2:45 PM and 4:45 PM, and the Semi-Finals are scheduled for 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM.   On Tuesday, December 23rd, all 16 teams will be in action, as the 0-2 and 1-2 teams will play at 8:30 AM, 10:15 AM, 12 Noon, and 1:45 PM in Challenge Round Games; the Consolation Championship will be at 3:30 PM; the 5th Place Championship will be 5:30 PM; the 3rd Place Championship will be at 7:15 PM; and the Championship will be at 9:00 PM.  

Saturday, December 6, 2003, Sunday, December 7, 2003, and Monday, December 8, 2003

The race for top player honors based performance over the weekend at the Marshall County Hoopfest in Benton, KY was almost too close to call among 6'4 Jr Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'6 Shaun Livington from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'9 Josh Smith from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 6'3 Ty Rogers from Eddyville (Lyon County) KY.  If we were basing it strictly upon who had the best numbers, Rogers, who finished with 42 points and 13 rebounds against Metropolis (Massac County) IL would be the winner.  However, the big reason why we seriously considered Rogers for top player honors was the way he took over the game, as he made all the big baskets and got all of the key rebounds down the stretch.  He also put the game on ice when he scored the first five points in the overtime, which allowed Lyon County to coast to 75-67 victory over Massac County, and drew a lot of comparisons to Patrick Sparks, who, just like Rogers, was ignored by all the high major schools, like Louisville and Kentucky, his backyard and, instead, signed this fall with Western Kentucky.  And just like Sparks, who was the Sun Belt Player-of-the-Year last season at Western Kentucky, but transferred to the University of Kentucky in the spring, Rogers appears to be an absolute steal for the Hilltoppers.  Rogers not only can shoot the lights out and rebounds extremely well for his size, but he also comes up with more than his share of steals and deflections, has deceptive footspeed, can get to the basket, and has good enough ball handling and passing skills to play the point.  In other words, Rogers picked up where he left off during the summer and, as a result, may be the best senior in the state ahead of 6'2 Chris Lofton from Maysville (Mason County) KY and 6'10 Terrance Farley from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY.   Ellis started slow in the game against Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and, as a result, several of the other scouts sitting next to us were wondering what all the hype was about (currently Ellis is ranked #8 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP).  But in the second half Ellis took over the game as he used his explosive athleticism and ability to hit the three to almost singlehandedly pulled off the upset.  Lanier lost of the game 80-75, but they were only down by three with a minute to go and Ellis, who finished with 41 points and hit six 3-pointers, had just as many highlight film-like plays as 6'9 Josh Smith from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who did most of his damage in the first half as he scored 31 points against Jackson (Lanier) MS.  Smith also scored 29 points on Friday night against Lexington (Catholic) KY and that's an awful lot when one remembers that his supporting cast includes 6'7 Dayshawn Wright, who finished with 12 points and 21 rebounds against Lexington (Catholic) KY; 6'9 Brian Johnson, who had 18 points against Jackson (Lanier) MS; 6'2 Rajon Rondo, who had 17 points and nine assists versus Lexington (Catholic) KY and 12 points versus Jackson (Lanier) MS; and 6'4 Jr K.C. Rivers, who is ranked #40 nationally in the junior class, but is nothing more than just a good role player on this team as he scored only nine points in the two games.   However, when it is all said and done, our vote for top player honors in the tournament has to go to 6'6 Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, who had 21 points, five rebounds, and three assists against Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA.   Sure, Livingston's numbers weren't as good, but his court-presence was just as important, as his team upset the #2-ranked high school team in the nation, he made everybody around him better, and provided numerous scoring opportunities for 6'0 Brandon Lee, who takes everything to the basket, and 6'6 Jr DeAndre Miranda, who does all of his damage inside.  The 5th player in our top five players at the Marshall County Hoopfest was 6'7 Jr Kevin Swinton from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, who finished with 27 points and 12 rebounds.  We're talking about a big time athlete/shot blocker/rebounder who has a killer instinct and excellent offensive moves around the basket.  The only drawback might be the Swinton is a little undersized at 6'7, but we don't see that being a problem when he gets to Wake Forest in two years, because plays like's 6'9 or 6'10.  Thus, explains why we think Swinton is better than where we currently have him ranked at #21 nationally in the Class of 2005.  Edging out Rando, who was terrific against Lexington (Catholic) KY on Friday night, but not nearly as good on Saturday against Jackson (Lanier) MS, as our #6-ranked player in the tournament was 6'0 Jr JaJuan Spillman from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, who suddenly has to emerge as the #1-ranked junior in the state.  Spillman scored 23 points, dished out five assists, and hit 4-6 3-pointers, plus he used his speed and quickness to play a key role in Pleasure Ridge Park's press, as the Panthers totally took Centralia (H.S.) IL out of their game and coasted to an easy 76-57 victory.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that both Rondo and Spillman would probably pull the trigger right now for the University of Louisville, if Cardinals were to offer.  But, unfortunately for Rondo, Louisville already has a point guard in the fold in 6'0 Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, who is ranked #9 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  However, we still believe there is a chance Telfair could be by-pass college altogether next spring and enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring.  And, if that happens, Rondo will probably get Telfair's scholarship.  And, if it doesn't happen, our guess is that Rondo will accept a scholarship from one of the other schools, like Illinois, Indiana, Arkansas, Boston College, and Georgia, that are actively recruiting him.  And that would open the door for Spillman to become the heir apparent point guard at Louisville when Telfair does eventually go pro.  In other words, the bottom line is that Spillman wants to go to Louisville and, if things don't materialize in basketball, he may follow in the footsteps of his older brother, who also played football for the Cardinals, and attempt to play both sports.  As for Rondo, he did a great job of running the show for Oak Hill.  As a matter of fact, he was their second best player behind Smith and, as a result, will be ranked among our top 50 seniors nationally next time we update our national rankings.  So obviously Rando has redeemed himself after a miserable summer when he teamed with 6'2 Chris Lofton from Maysville (Mason County) KY in the backcourt on the Derek Smith All-Stars.  But the jury is still out on Lofton, despite the fact Mason County upset Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 105-93.  Lofton did score 16 points, but what impressed us the most were his rebounding (five boards) and ability to make those around him better (seven assists).  Instead, the big guns for Mason County were 6'3 Jarrod Litzinger with 25 points, 6'3 Dustin Grutza with 22 points, 6'1 Jr Will Jones with 22 points, and 5'11 Jr Andrew Tibbs with 17 points.  And even more impressive is the fact that Litzinger and Grutza combined to hit 7-12 3-pointers and Jones and Tibbs didn't miss a shot all night, as they combined to hit 16-16 field goals.  Another one of the top performances was turned in by 6'7 Marcel Jones from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who had 30 points and 13 rebounds on Friday night against Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY, but the best player in both games for Mater Dei was 6'0 Jr Mike Gerrity.  Not only did Gerrity average 16.5 ppg and 8.0 apg, but this deceptively quick savvy smart point guard also hit 13-21 field goals as he made a living forcing tempo.  As a matter of fact, Gerrity, who also is a tremendous competitor and excellent ball handler and passer, made a living forcing tempo, which allowed him to get the basket and/or find an open teammate on the fastbreak.  One of the biggest sleepers in the tournament, as well as one to watch for the future is 6'4 Soph Randon Cavette from Benton (Marshall County) KY, who had 22 points and nine rebounds versus Louisville (Eastern) KY.  However the big key here will be how much he grows, because we're talking about a big time athlete with an undersized power forward-like game.   We also have to mention 6'7 Matt Shaw from Centralia (H.S.) IL, who had 17 points and 10 rebounds, but 6'2 Jr Jeremy Moss, who finished with 28 points and eight rebounds, was their best player against Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY.  Moss does need to get bigger and stronger and develop more of an outside shooter's mentality, but he'll play at the mid-major level or higher two years from now.  We also have to mention 6'3 Harrison Morton, 6'3 William Graham and 6'4 Demetrius Green, who combined for 42 points, but only hit 2-113-pointers against Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA; 6'7 Frosh Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who had 16 points and nine assists against Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY; 6'8 Charles Rhodes from Jackson (Lanier) MS, who had 14 points versus Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA; 6'8 Gerron Rogers from Metropolis (Massac County) KY, who had 22 points and 14 rebounds versus Eddyville (Lyon County) KY; 6'4 Ollie Hairston from Danville (H.S.) IL, who had 18 points versus O'Fallan (H.S.) IL; 6'9 Chris Henry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who had 16 points versus Peoria (Central) IL; 6'2 Jr Prince Bowden from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, who had 17 points and hit 3-6 3-pointers versus Mason Maysville (Mason County) KY; 6'6 Soph William Graves from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, who had nine points, seven assists, and 11 rebounds versus Mason County (H.S.) KY; and 5'11 Jr Jazz Neal from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, who had 15 points and hit 3-5 3-pointers against Centralia (H.S.) IL.

Friday, December 5, 2003

Coming right on the heels of Allen Rubin's Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South JerseyReport, which we published last week, and our list of Signing and Commitments from the Fall Signing Period, which we published earlier this week, is Chris Johnson's updated Ohio Report, which includes his list of the top 115 seniors, 88 juniors, 66 sophomores, and 37 freshmen, six 8th Graders, four 7th Graders, two 6th Graders, and two 5th Graders and can be found by clicking on Johnson Ranks 'Em:  The Top High School Players in Ohio.  Johnson's report also includes his comments about the top players in each class and his All-State Teams, which provide a look at the top players 30 players in the state regardless of class and position.  And believe it or not, three of the top 20 players - 6'4 Frosh O.J. Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, 6'5 Frosh Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, and 6'8 Frosh Aaron Pogue from Dayton (Dunbar) OH - in the state are freshmen.  We also find that half of the top 30 players in the state are underclassmen, as Mayo was named to the First Team; Walker, 6'6 Jr Ben Raymond from Toledo (St. John's) OH, 6'5 Soph Dave Lighty from Cleveland (St. Joseph) OH, 6'5 Soph Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH were named to the Second Team; 6'5 Jr Zach Hillesland from Toledo (St. John's) OH and 6'2 Soph Marcus Johnson from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH were named to the Third Team; Pogue, 6'2 Jr John Wolf from Cincinnati (St. Xavier) OH, and 6'3 Soph James Dews from West Chester (Lakota East) OH were named to the Fourth Team; 6'7 Jr Ross Morin from Cincinnati (Princeton) OH and 6'7 Jr Jamelle Cornley from Columbus (Brookhaven) OH were named to the Fifth Team; and 6'0 Jr Korrey Spates from Warrenville Heights (H.S.) OH, 6'6 Soph JuJuan Jones from Sidney (H.S.) OH, and 6'2 Soph Chris Poellnitz from Maumee (H.S.) OH were named to the Sixth Team.  In other words, there not only is life after LeBron James, but there also is a plethora of great young talent in the Buckeye State, as the freshman and sophomore class account for almost one-third of the top 30 players in the state.  In sharp contrast, the senior class is average and the junior class is mediocre at best.  We also like the fact that 6'7 Josh Duncan and 6'10 Andrew Brackman provide a great one-two punch at Cincinnati (Moeller) OH; Raymond, Hillesland, and 6'1 Brian Roberts are a terrific trio at Toledo (St. John's) OH; and Dayton (Dunbar) OH with Cook, who is Johnson's #1-ranked sophomore in the state, and Pogue and Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH with Cook and Pogue should be good for the next three or four years. 

Thursday, December 4, 2003

Since we finalized our list of Signing and Commitments from the Fall Signing Period three days ago, we have been informed that 5'10 Bryan Geffen from Fresh Meadows (St. Francis) NY has gone to Boston University, 6'7 Jermaine Johnson from Winchendon (School) MA has gone to the College of Charleston, and 6'8 Stefan Pope from Atlanta (Banneker) GA, 6'8 Norris Arnold from Atlanta (Westlake) GA, 6'4 Joe Martin from Shelton State (JC) AL, and 6'9 Patrick Culver from Shelton State (JC) AL have all gone to Alabama A&M.  We also hear that Alabama A&M is close to getting a verbal commitment from 6'4 Bobby Norton from Headland (H.S.) AL and, if that happens, their recruiting class would move up #68 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004.  Currently we have Alabama A&M's class tied at #87 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004, but this won't be reflected when we finalize our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes from the Fall Signing, Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes By Conference, and Different Ways to Look at Recruiting in the coming days.  In other words, we have to draw the someplace with our final rankings from the Fall Signing Period and move on.  However, we are very impressed with Alabama A&M's recruiting class for a number of reasons.  First, we talking about four players who are good enough to step in and make an immmediate impact next season.   Culver is a big time athlete who uses his strong upper body to get it done inside and, as a result, has been ranked among the top 100 junior college players in the nation.   Arnold is good in the low post, Pope can play both inside or outside, Martin is a great scorer who can play the one, two, or the three, and Norton is a combo guard with good handling and passing skills.  We also have told by Mike Waters of the Syracuse Post-Standard that 6'2 Jr Tiki Mayben from Troy (H.S.) NY, who is ranked #14 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has a press conference scheduled for tomorrow and the smart money is on Syracuse.   The other two finalists appear to be Georgia Tech and Louisville, but Mayben has not visited either school and he's always been considered a near lock to be a near lock for the Orangemen.  Mayben is a pure point guard who is explosive off the dribble, makes excellent decisions and has great ball handling and passing skills, which means that Syracuse will have four great guards in the backcourt two years from now when Gerry McNamara and Billy Edelin are seniors, 6'1 Josh Wright from Utica (Proctor) NY is a sophomore, and Mayben is a freshmen.  And when you also remember that Syracuse has four outstanding freshmen in the program in 6'8 Frosh Terrance Roberts, 6'8 Frosh Demetris Nichols, 6'11 Frosh Darryl Watkins, and 6'5 Frosh Louis McCroskey, as well as 6'7 Dayshaun Wright from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who is ranked #46 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, in this recruiting class, it is easy to see why think we the Orangemen are two years away from having Jim Boeheim's best team ever.  And that's saying a lot when one remembers that Syracuse played for the NCAA Championship in 1987 and 1996 and won it all last March.  The addition of Mayben also puts Syracuse into the enviable position, whereby, they can extremely picky about who they sign in the future, as they will attempt to sign the best available player and/or another inside player, like 6'9 Jr Theo Davis from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, who is ranked #19 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'10 Andre Blatche from Syracuse (Henninger) NY, who is ranked #55 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, but, who is expected to go the prep school route.   Obviously Syracuse is taking advantage of the fact that they are the defending NCAA Champions, but Boeheim should give his assistantst - Mike Hopkins, Troy Weaver, and Bernie Fine - each big a raise, because no staff in America has done a better job recruiting during the last several years than this one.  Editor's Note:  Tiki Mayben, as expected, announced at 4:00 PM on Friday that he is verbally committed to Syracuse. 

Believe it or not, we're already starting to hear numerous rumors about potential coaching changes next spring, but right now the only one that we think it important to talk about is the possibility that Dan Monson will get the ax at the University of Minnesota.  Remember, we've been telling you for several years that Monson would like to get out of Minnesota, where the probationary status of the program makes it difficult to recruit, and return to the Pacific Northwest.  If you will recall, Monson was mentioned as a potential candidate for the University of Washington job a-year-and-a-half ago when the Huskies hired Lorenzo Romar and he would be a natural candidate for the Oregon job, if Ducks head coach Ernie Kent moved onto an even bigger and better job.  However, a lot of people question whether the current regime can recruit the top local players.   Sure, the three best in-state players - Rick Rickert, Adam Boone, and Kris Humphrey - during Monson's four-year reign all elected to play for the Golden Gophers.  But not before picking another school first.   Rickert originally verbally committed to Arizona, but then changed his mind when the local folks turned up the heat.  Boone played two years at North Carolina before transferring home a year ago.  Humphrey originally signed with Duke a year ago, but got out of his National Letter-of-Intent last spring and elected to stay home.   However, the beginning of the end may have come last night when the the Golden Gophers were knocked off 86-78 by Virginia and, as a result, their early season record now drops to 2-2 with a loss also to Utah, a near escape against Furman, and a win against Missouri-Kansas City.  A favorable schedule against Western Illinois, Long Beach State, Oral Roberts, Duquesne, Nebraska, Texas Tech, Wofford, and Penn State the rest of the month, should keep the wolves away for the next month, but, if Minnesota finishes near the bottom of the Big-10 Conference at the end of the season, don't be surprised if former UCLA head coach and current ESPN College Basketball analyst Steve Lavin becomes next head coach at Minnesota.  And, if this all materializes as expected, remember where you heard it first!  We also are way ahead of the curve by raising the possibility that 6'4 Frosh O.J. Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH and 6'5 Frosh Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH both could end up transferring to Georgetown (Scott County) KY.  And, if this happens, it would send shockwaves through the high basketball world, because we're talking about two of the top five freshmen in the nation.  And this wouldn't be the first time that the father of an outstanding player got a job at the Toyota Plant in Georgetown, KY and enrolled his son at Scott County.  As a matter of fact, that's exactly what happened when Rick Jones, who transferred from Corbin (H.S.) KY to Georgetown (Scott County) KY prior to the start of the 1997-98 season.  However, our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that it hasn't happened yet, as both Mayo and Walker are currently at Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH and are expected to play in their first high school game of the season tomorrow night against Hamilton (Badin) OH.   We also are monitoring the situation involving 6'10 Michael Thompson, who announced earlier this week that he is transferring from Duke, and we'd be surprised if Thompson doesn't end up at DePaul.  As a matter, Thompson isn't the only name that we've heard as a possibility for the Blue Demons, as Duke's Sean Dockery and Illinois' Aaron Spears also are local players who have been rumored to be thinking about transferring.  However, Thompson seems like the perfect fit, because the Blue Demons have nobody currently in sight who is good enough to step in and replace 6'9 Sr Andre Brown after this season.  And just imagine how much improved the Blue Demons would be a year from now with Thompson inside, 6'7 Dorell Wright from South Kent (Prep) CT, who is the #1-ranked 5th Year Player by the HOOP SCOOP, and 5'11 Aking Elting from Southern Idaho (JC) ID, who is one of the top junior college point guards national.  We also finally caught up with Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report last night and he tells us that it appears to be only a matter of time before the University of Kansas gets 6'7 Jr Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, who is ranked #5 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  Obviously this is a case, whereby, Jayhawks head coach Bill Self and assistant coach Norm Roberts have taken advantage of their strong Illinois ties, but the real connection appears to be their close connection to Illinois Warriors AAU coach Larry Butler, who is the one controlling Wright's recruitment. 

Wednesday, December 3, 2003

The press conference probably won't be until early next week, but we have confirmed that 7'0 Jr Clarence Holloway from Chicago (Harlan) IL, who is ranked #36 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, is already a done deal for the University of Louisville.  As a matter of fact, earlier today we talked with Andre Peavy, who is Holloway's former high school coach, as well as his mentor, and he confirms that the decision has already been made.  And this is huge for the Cardinals, because we're talking about a 7-foot 270 lbs. physical specimen who is exactly what the doctor ordered for a team that is currently void of strength inside.  The only problem is they will have to wait a two years before he ever plays a game.  However, when the Cardinals will have to replace Nouha Diakate and Ellis Myles, who is red-shirting this year, after the 2004-2005 season, promises to make an immediate impact.  And, if Holloway improves half as much as Nazr Mohammed, who played for Rick Pitino at Kentucky, did, then we could be talking about a potential lottery pick in the NBA Draft down the road.  Speaking of Mohammed, did you know that Peavy also was Mohammed's high school coach and, as a result, obviously doesn't have to be sold on the fact that Pitino is as good as there is in terms of player development, individual instruction, and  conditioning?  Peavy also tells us that the Cardinals have beaten schools like Marquette, Illinois, Purdue, Michigan State, Florida, and Kentucky for Holloway's services.  Holloway needs to getting into better shape, but he is surprising mobile for somebody his size, as was evident last summer at the adidas ABCD Camp, where he finished ranked #11 at the center position and #2 among junior big men, behind 6'9 Jr Theo Davis from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, who is another junior big man that Louisville is recruiting extremely hard.  In other words, Holloway, who has soft hands and a nice touch around the basket, is bigger and a lot further along that Mohammed, who was ranked #100 in our final rankings of the top players in the Class of 1995, was at the same stage.  Holloway didn't play last season due to injuries, but he is eligible after transferring from Chicago (Fenger) IL to Chicago (Harlan) IL this fall and is expected to play in his first game of the season tonight.  This also is huge, because there aren't that many quality big men available in the junior class nationally.  As a matter of fact, the HOOP SCOOP only has four centers - 6'11 Jr Luke Zeller from Washington (H.S.) IN, Davis, 6'11 Jr Eric Boateng from Middletown (St. Andrews) DE, and 6'10 Jr Bamba Fall from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA ranked ahead of Holloway, but it's Holloway's upside and potential that has to have Pitino excited.  This also comes on the heels of Louisville's current recruiting class, which is ranked #3 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004 and includes 6'0 Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, 6'7 Donta Smith from Southeastern Illinois (JC) IL, 6'9 Brian Johnson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 Lorenzo Wade from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, and 6'10 Terrance Farley from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY.  And the icing on the cake would be if Louisville also gets 6'8 Juan Diego Palacios from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, who is ranked #27 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, in the spring.  Currently Palacios has Florida State, Louisville, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Baylor, and Arizona on his list.

Tuesday, December 2, 2003

I've been telling people for a month that it's way too early to be drawing conclusions and putting a lot of emphasis on what college and high school teams have done thus far in the season.  As a matter of fact, except for attending the War on the Shore National Prep School Invitational Tournament a week ago in Milford, DE, I have not been to a college of high school so far this season.   However, all that will change this weekend when we make our annual pilgrimage to Benton, KY for the Marshall County HoopFest, which promises to be one of the premier events of the entire winter.  As a matter of fact, the field of teams will include the #1, #2, #8, #12, and #16-ranked teams, which are Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, Peoria (Central) IL, Maysville (Mason County) KY, and Greensboro (Dudley) NC in the USA Today's Pre-Season Boys National High School Rankings and five players who have been ranked among the top 10 players nationally in their respective classes in 6'9 Josh Smith from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'6 Shaun Livingston from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'9 Jr Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO, 6'5 Jr Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS,and 6'6 Frosh Taylor King from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA.  The event tips off on Thursday, December 4th, with a girls game scheduled at 6:00 PM, followed by Bardwell (Cardwell County) IL versus Cadiz (Carlisle County) KY at 7:30 PM, and Paducah (Tilghman) KY versus Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO at 9:00 PM.  Then, on Friday, December 6th, there will be another girls game at 5:30 PM, followed by Benton (Marshall County) KY versus Ullin (Century) IL at 7:00 PM, Lexington (Catholic) KY versus Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA at 8:30 PM, and Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA at 10:00 PM.  And on Saturday, December 7th, the first game between Eddyville (Lyon County) KY and Metropolis (Massac County) IL will tip-off at 11:00AM, followed by Louisville (Eastern) KY versus Mayfield (Graves County) KY at 12:30 PM, O'Fallon (H.S.) IL versus Danville (H.S.) IL at 2:00 PM, a girls game at 3:30 PM, Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY versus Centralia (H.S.) IL at 5:30 PM, Maysville (Mason County) KY versus Greensboro (Dudley) NC at 7:00 PM, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Peoria (Central) IL at 8:30 PM, and Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA versus Jackson (Lanier) MS at 10:00 PM.  In addition to Smith, Livingston, Hansbrough, Ellis, and King, the list of top players that we'll be watching includes 6'9 Brian Johnson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'7 Dayshawn Wright from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Charles Rhodes from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'7 Jr Kevin Swinton from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'2 Rajon Rondo from Louisville (Eastern) KY, 6'4 Jr K.C. Rivers from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'11 Jr Bamba Fall from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'3 Soph William Graves from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'3 Chris Lofton from Maysville (Mason County) KY, 6'10 Terrance Farley from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'7 Matt Shaw from Centralia (H.S.) IL, 6'2 Ty Rogers from Eddyville (Lyon County) KY, 6'7 Marcel Jones from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'8 Chris Henry from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'6 Lonnell DeWalt from Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY, 6'3 William Graham from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'3 Demetrius Green from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'4 Harrison Morton from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'1 Brandon Lee from Peoria (Central) IL, 6'7 Jr Rashad Austin from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'1 Jr Mike Gerrity from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'6 Jr DeAndre Miranda from Peoria (Central) IL, 5'11 Jr JuJuan Spillman from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'3 Jr Josh Tabb from Ullin (Century) IL, 6'1 Jr Prince Bowden from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'1 Soph Robert Johnson from Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 6'5 Dominique Petty from Metropolis (Massac County) IL, 6'5 Ollie Hairston from Danville (H.S.) IL, 6'5 Brandon Miller from Mayfield (Graves County) KY, and 5'10 Jamie Holder from Benton (Marshall County) KY.  For more information about the tournament go to their web site at Marshall County HoopFest.

Monday, December 1, 2003

We've spent the better part of the last three days finalizing our list of Signing and Commitments from the Fall Signing Period and, as a result, now have what we believe is the best list available for several reasons.  First, our list also includes early verbal commitments for the Class of 2005, Class of 2006, and Class of 2007, which means we provide you with a complete picture of every player who has already picked a four-year Division I college.  Second, our list also includes verbal commitments by players who intend to sign in the spring, but want to wait and make sure something strange doesn't happen like, the coach leaves, the school gets investigated by the NCAA, or they recruit somebody at the same position.  Third, we not only provide you with all the basic information, like the player's name, height, position, class, hometown, high school, state, and college, but we also give you an idea of how good each player is based on our 1-10 rating scale, whereby, a top five player nationally is worth 10 points, a top 10 player nationally is worth nine points, a player in the 11-40 range nationally is worth eight points, a player in the 41-70 range nationally is worth six points, a player in the 71-100 range nationally is worth four points, a player in the 101-300 range nationally is worth three points, a player in the 301-1000 range nationally is worth two points, and anybody not ranked among the top 1000 gets one point. Junior college and prep school are factored in as if they were the equivalent of a high school senior.  And based on this 19-page list we will finalize our Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes from the Fall Signing, Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes By Conference, and Different Ways to Look at Recruiting, which we'll be working on diligently as we attempt to wrap all this up within the next week-to-10-days.  And in order to do this any late signing and/or commitment that we pick up from this point forward will be added to our on-going list of Recent Commitments.  Obviously we have used numerous sources to compile this list, but our best source for cross-checking what we'd already compiled can be found by going to espn.com.  And it appears that we're also an important source for espn.com as is evident by the fact that they have 6'5 Jr Calvin Williams from Memphis (Hillcrest) TN incorrectly list as committed to Columbia.  To set the record straight, we reported on October 14th that Williams had verbally committed to Colorado in the Hot Recruiting Information Section, but incorrectly listed Williams as committed to Columbia and in Class of 2004, instead of the Class of 2005, on our list of Recent Commitments.  We also think it is important to point out that espn.com has 6'2 Cedric Jackson from Columbus (North Burlington) NJ in incorrectly listed as done for East Carolina.  Like everybody else, we were under the impression that Jackson had committed to the Pirates until our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin set the record straight a week ago.  The biggest thing that espn.com's list confirmed for us was the fact that Marquette did indeed pick up a late commitment from 6'10 Ousmane Barro from Chicago (Julian) IL.  If you will recall, we mentioned that this may have happened on Friday, November 21st, but, at the time, it was unconfirmed.  We also have added Barro, who is now ranked #12 and, as a result, would be the equivalent of a high school senior in the 11-40 range nationally, to our 5th Year List, and, as a result, Marquette's recruiting classes moves up to #15 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004.   However, even more important, the addition of Barro gives Golden Eagles head coach Tom Cream three inside players in this recruiting class.  If you will recall, earlier this fall Marquette landed 6'8 Ryan Amoroso from Burnsville (H.S.) MN and 7'0 Mike Kinsella from Minneapolis Community/Technical (JC) MN.  Amoroso promises to be an excellent role player and Kinsella, who was ranked as the #2 center in the junior college ranks by Van Coleman in the Lindy's College Basketball Yearbook, should be able to step in immediately and challenge Barro and 6'8 Jr Marcus Jackson, who was one of the top junior college centers in the nation a year ago, inside when the 2004-2005 season starts.  We also think it is important to point out that players, who sign a National Letter-of-Intent this fall, enroll in school right away, and are eligible to play beginning second semester, will count with a school's recruiting class this fall, but not when we finalize our rankings next spring.  The perfect illustration of what we're talking about is 6'8 Nick Stafford from Worcester (Academy) MA and, although we just confirmed this today, it is still very important, because it moves Dayton's recruiting class, which already includes 6'7 Norm Plummer from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, 6'1 Brian Roberts from Toledo (St. John's) OH, 6'2 Trent Meachum from Champaign (Centennial) IL, 6'6 Jimmy Binnie from Johnston (H.S.) IA, and 6'8 Chris Alvarez from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ up to #17 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2004.  This also moves Dayton's recruiting class into the #1 spot in the Atlantic-10 Conference and all this makes perfect sense when one remembers that Dayton assistant coach Mo Cassara was Stafford's head coach at Worcester (Academy) MA the last three years, plus Flyers head coach Brian Gregory has one of the hardest working and most astute coaching staffs in the nation.