HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION FOR OCTOBER 2001

Wednesday, October 31, 2001

Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that Cornell has gotten a verbal commitmment from 6'4 Lenny Collins from Rancho Santa Margarita (H.S.) CA and that 5'10 Carlos Rivers from Long Beach (Poly) CA will make an official visit this weekend to Montana.  Rivers also is considering UC-Riverside, Sacramento State, St. Mary's, and Southern Utah.   Trigonis also tells us that one of the best kept secrets in the junior college ranks right now it 6'2 Marquis Poole from Mt. San Jacinto (JC) CA.   "Poole has good size, long arms, and of lots of athleticism," says Trigonis.  "He also can score and defend."  We also understand that 6'4 Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA was spotted at a UCLA practice on Sunday, which means the Bruins chances are looking better and better all the time.  If you will recall, Adams was supposed to make an official visit to UCLA in October, but that visit was postponed until the weekend of November 10th. 

Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin is finally finished making changes to his report and, as a result, we are finally in a position to publish what always is the most comprehensive report available on any state found anywhere.  Don't believe it?  Well, his list includes his rankings of the top 559 seniors, top 464 juniors, top 269 sophomores, top 157 freshmen, top 54 8th graders, and top 13 7th graders, all of which can be found by clicking on Rubin Ranks Em:   The Top Players in Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey.  That's a total of 1,516 names and they are ranked in order by class! He also provides us with his all area teams, which includes his ranking of the top 40 players in the area regardless of class, as well as the information for an article that provides some interesting comments about each class, including the Class of 2005, which promises to the next great class in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area.  To get all this click on Philadelphia; Eastern Pennsylvania; South Jersey.  In the senior class it comes as no surprise that 6'2 Gerry McNamara from Scranton (Bishop Hannan) PA is ranked #1 in the area.  He's followed in order by 6'6 Matt Walsh from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'7 Lee Melchionni from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'1 Mike Lasme from Burlington (Life Center) NJ, 6'11 Ted Skuchas from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'6 Mike Blackshear from Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA, 6'4 Dominic Mejia from Voorhees (Eastern) NJ, 6'8 Nana Mensah-Bonsu from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'4 Mike Cook from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 6'4 Kenell Sanchez from Pennsauken (Bishop Eustace) PA, 6'7 Mike Haddix from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'2 DeWayne Spencer from Harrisburg (Susquehanna Township) PA, 6'3 Tommy Baker from Millville (H.S.) NJ, 6'5 Zakee Boyd from Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA, 6'5 Zach Martin from Medford (Shawnee) NJ, 6'3 Raheem Scott from Philadelphia (Martin Luther King) PA, 6'6 Terrance Mack from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 5'10 Scott Greenman from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'4 Maurice Collins from Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA, and 6'5 Dahliek Powell from Philadelphia (Roxborough) PA.    Nine of Rubins top 11 seniors list above are already verbally committed, but Blackshear and Cook are both still available and both could be a steal for the right mid-to-high major program.  Blackshear is considering Temple, Towson, and UNC-Greensboro, but his recruitment could increase dramatically if and even he makes it academically.

Tuesday, October 30, 2001

Already 6'7 Derrick Character from Scotch Plains, NJ and 7'1 Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, who are widely regarded as the top two 8th graders in the nation, are receiving a lot of national attention, but our Texas Editor Wes Grandstaff tells us there is another player in the class who is just as good.  He's talking about 6'6 Durrell "Slim Shady" Arthur from Dallas (Brown Middle) TX.  "I haven't been this excited about a player in a long time," says Grandstaff.  "He's very already fundamentally sound, doesn't miss free throws, and is almost unstoppable with his baby hook shot and good turnaround jumper."  But that doesn't even begin to tell the story.  However, 20 points, 15 rebounds, and 16 blocks for Team Texas against the Top Achiever Pistons in the championship game of a 15-Under Tournament last weekend in Texas does give you an idea of how dominant this aggressive shot blocking athlete is inside.  And Arthur was playing up a year against 9th Graders.  Team Texas lost the game, but that was after Arthur fouled out with four minutes remaining.  Arthur also helped the Team Texas 13-Under team achieve a 150-11 record last summer, as well as a 3rd place finish in the 13-Under AAU National Tournament.  Is Grandstaff, who is the director of the Team Texas AAU program, just trying to overhype one of his players?  He could be, but his track record is pretty good.  Remember, he told us how good 6'10 Frosh Kendrick Johnson from Morton, TX was a year ago and, after watching him last spring in the Houston Kingwood Classic, we have to concur.  We also bring this up, because the comparison is especially interesting.  Johnson is physically a lot bigger and stronger physically, but Arthur is a lot more athletic and polished offensively.   He also might be better than Johnson, who is ranked as the #1 freshman in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, right now.  The only other important news that Grandstaff has to pass along involves 6'9 Ike Diagu from Garland (H.S.) TX, who burst onto the national scene at the adidas ABCD Camp, where he finished ranked #12 in camp by the HOOP SCOOP, and, as a result, was a guy everybody tried to get involved with the rest of the summer.  However, Arizona State has been there the longest and strongest, so it makes sense that the Sun Devils are among the final three, along with Connecticut and Illinois.  And Grandstaff thinks a final decision could be forthcoming at any time. 

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson has a number of signings and commitments to pass along, but the most interesting commitment involves 6'2 Jason Haas from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ, who has verbally committed to Stanford.    Sure, The Cardinal could have taken somebody right out their own backyard, like 6'1 Patrick Hadden from Woodbridge) CA, if they wanted a backup point guard.  However, Hadden doesn't have somebody like 6'8 Jr Luol Deng from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ, who will be ranked #3 among juniors nationally when we update our junior list next month, as a teammate.  If you will recall, the new regimes at Rutgers and Seton Hall were hoping to convince Deng to stay home, but all that changed last summer when Deng's value went off the Ricketier Scale.  Now Deng's list includes schools like Duke, North Carolina, Ohio State, Villanova, and Stanford.   Another very signficant commitment comes to today from 6'1 Frank Richards from Olney Central (JC) IL, who is the #4-ranked point guard in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  Richards picked Kansas State, where he will join a three other highly touted junior college players from a year ago in 6'5 Gilson DeJesus from Trinidad State (JC CO, 6'6 Janerio Spurlock from Chipola (JC) FL, and 6'9 Pervis Pasco from Pensacola (JC) FL.  In other words, second year head coach Jim Wooldridge already has most of the pieces in place and, as a result, it wouldn't surprise us a bit if the Wildcats were one of the sleeper teams in college basketball a year from now.   The University of Buffalo has gotten a commitment from 6'4 Mario Jordan from Cleveland (Benedictine) OH, Siena has a steal in 6'9 Paul Williams from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, and Utah State has beaten Brigham Young for 6'11 Steve Cobbley from Pocatello (Highliand) ID.  Instead, Brigham Young got 6'11 Rafael Araujo from Arizona Western (JC) AZ, who is ranked as the #2 center in the junior college ranks in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  This too was a two-horse race, but when UNLV got 6'8 J.K. Edwards from Indian Hills (JC) IA over the weekend, that pretty much was the deciding factor for Araujo.  And the same thing appears to have happened with 6'8 Cody Horning from Longmont (H.S.) CA when he picked Pepperdine over Wichita State.  If you will recall, Wichita state recently got a commitment from 6'10 Sasa Mijajlovic from Hutchinson (JC) KS.  Johnson also tells us that 6'6 Jr LaBron James from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH, who is the consensus #1-ranked player in the nation regardless of class, is still at least paying lip service to attending college for a year or two.   The six schools being mentioned by James are Ohio State, North Carolina, Duke, Florida, California, and Cincinnati.   However, if by some chance he does attend college, it's really only a two-horse race between the Buckeyes and the Tar Heels.   Speaking of James, somebody recently asked me if James did indeed play football this year?  If you will recall, we reported several months ago, that James was supposed to play both sports, but never followed up.  Well, Johnson tells us that James missed the first two games, but in the last nine games has caught 45 passes and scored 13 touchdowns.  He also is averaging about 20 yard per reception.  All this could become important, if his team keeps winning in the state football playoffs, because James and four of his girdiron teammates also play important roles on the basketball team, which promises to be ranked among the top five nationally pre-season.

Monday, October 29, 2001

We told you on Friday that the tide had turned in the sweepstakes for 6'8 Sean May from Bloomington (North) IN and boy does it look like we were right.  We still haven't confirmed it as official, but by all accounts it appears that May is a done deal for the University of North Carolina.  Obviously this is huge for the Tar Heels, because they had already lost out on a number of their prime targets this fall, including 6'10 Shavlik Randolph from Raleigh (Broughton) NC, who picked Duke; 6'9 Sheldon Williams from Midwest City (H.S.) OK, who picked Duke; 6'9 Torin Francis from Marion (Tabor Academy) MA, who picked Notre Dame; 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX, who picked Texas; and 6'10 Alou Kane from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA, who picked Minnesota.  Our first reaction is that May was probably the least likely of the bunch to pick the Tar Heels.  Remember it's tough to beat Indiana for a player right in their own backyard.  However, North Carolina head coach Matt Doherty and his staff may have had an unfair advantage on this one, because Doherty was the head coach at Notre Dame for a year prior to taking over a North Carolina a year ago.  Not only did they recruit May when at Notre Dame, but they obviously also benefited from the exposure and familiarity that comes from being at another program in the same state.  Getting May moves North Carolina's recruiting class from #19 to #4 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date, but, even more important, it give the Tar Heels the coveted big man they need to go to war with in the Atlantic Coast Conference.   It also means that North Carolina has three probable McDonald's All-American's in the fold, plus it gives the Tar Heels the highest talent rating average per recruit (8.7) in this recruiting class and it moves them into a tiew with Duke for the best three players who are committed to any school this fall.  And they aren't done yet, as they are still among the final four for 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY and they're in the hunt for 7'0 Keith Butler from Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA.

A verbal commitment that slipped right past us was 6'2 Quincy Douby from Brooklyn (Grady) NY, who recently made it official for Hofstra.   We think this is very significant, because first year head coach Tom Pecora has to get his share of the top players in New York City.  Remember, the Flying Dutchmen are entering the Colonial Athletic Association, which is one of the fastest rising conferences in the nation (we predict it will be on the same level as the Atlantic-10 Conference within a couple of years), and Douby should provide the perfect complement to the great recruiting class that Hofstra landed a year ago.  If you will recall, that class, which included 6'4 Chris McRae from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'8 Kenny Adeleke from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY, 6'7 Wendell Gibson from Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY, and 5'9 Woody Souffrant from Brooklyn (Grady) NY, is totally home grown and already several of these guys are pushing the returning players, like 6'3 Jr Rick Apodaca, 6'11 Jr Lars Grubler, 6'6 Jr Danny Walker, and 6'8 Jr Marc Petit, for starting spots.  This group is picked #1 in the conference by the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, but the big key will be the maturation process and how quickly Pecora, who is widely regarded as one of the bright young head coaches in the business, finds the right the chemistry.  Getting back to Hofstra's recruiting, the Flying Dutchmen are also in the hunt for players, like 6'7 Omar Alston from Carteret (H.S.) NJ, 7'1 Michael Doe from Ft. Walton Beach (Choctawhatchee) FL, 6'8 Shakiem Mitchell from New York (Rice) NY, and 5'11 Gary Ervin from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY, but it will likely come down to whoever commits first (Hofstra has two remaining scholarships, but the word we get is that other scholarship will likely be saved until spring in case the right transfer pops up).  Holy Cross head coach Ralph Willard also appears to be the process of reloading with several players from the New York Catholic League, as the Crusaders have verbal commitment from 6'9 Kevin Hyland from White Plains (Archbishop Stepanic) NY and 6'4 Kevin Hamilton from Jamaica (Archbishop Molloy) NY.  Hyland was ranked #45 in New York City when Ron Naclerio last updated his New York City Report last spring, but it appears that this long armed shot blocker with a great upside has grown several inches since then.  Hamilton also has grown four inches in the last year and, as a result, is capable of playing either guard spot and putting up prolific numbers. 

The best place to get a handle on the top young talent in the state of Florida is at the adidas Rookie Sensations Exposure Camp and Jim Haley, who is the director of the camp, provides us with the following rankings and comments about the Top 22 All-Stars (First 10 are ranked in order) from this year's 10 annual camp:
(1) Alex Gorden, 5'11, Soph, Pensacola (H.S.) FL - Has all the tools to play PG.  You won't believe he's only a soph.
(2) Derrick Simmons, 6'5, Soph, Lake Wales (H.S.) FL - Great athlete who can score.
(3) Zaronn Cann, 6'6, Frosh, Brandon (H.S.) FL - Powerful with great hands.
(4) Taurean Green, 6'0, Soph Ft. Lauderdale (Westminster Academy) FL - Quick and savvy. 
(5) Michael Lee, 6'6, Soph, West Palm Beach (Wellington) FL - Great agility and body control.
(6) Marquis Johnson, 6'4, Frosh, Longwood (Lyman) FL - Will be a varsity scorer as freshman.
(7) Ron Larris, 5'9, Soph, Gainesville (H.S.) FL, Athletic and strong combo guard.
(8) Jermonte Bush, 5'10, Frosh, Tallahassee (Rickards) FL - Best freshman guard in camp.  Handles, sees, floor, defends.
(9) Lewis Lampley, 6'1, Frosh, St. Petersburg (Boca Ciega) FL - Scoring point guard.
(10) Luke Postorino, 6'0, Soph, Clearwater (H.S.) FL - Leader on the court who can score.
----- Blake Young, 6'0, Soph Orlando (Oak Ridge) FL - Great anticipation.
----- Derrick Williams, 6'0, Frosh, Tallahassee (Rickhards) FL - 2nd half of talented young backcourt at Rickards.
----- Malcolm McGriff, 6'5, Soph, Panama City (Bay) FL - Forward with great potential.
----- Greg Carr, 6'3, Soph, North Mation (H.S.) FL - Great combination of slashing and power.
----- Eric Sorenson, 6'4, Soph, Bartrum Trail (H.S.) FL - Shooter/scorer.
----- Jordan Carrier, 5'10, Soph, Ocala (Vanguard) FL - Quick and very skilled.  Great finesse scorer.
----- Antonio Wilson, 6'2, Soph, Pahokee (H.S.) FL - Slasher with varsity experience.
----- Benny Clyde, 6'3, Soph, St. Petersburg (H.S.) FL - Smooth scorer with great genes.
----- Reggie Burnett, 6'0, Soph, Eustis (H.S.) FL - Lots of talent and potential. 
----- Clifford Floyd, 6'5, Soph, Ocala (Vanguard) FL - Finesse Forward with good court awareness.
----- Jeff Brown, 6'2, Frosh, Gainesville (H.S.) FL - Great athlete who plays hard.
----- Jason Bennett, 7'1, 8th, Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL - Continues to improve...and grow.
Other top prospects include 6'4 Soph Jason Daniel from Jacksonville (Wolfson) FL, 6'2 Soph Tommy Lampley from St. Petersburg (Boca Ciega) FL, 6'0 Soph Casey McNeil from Belleview (H.S.) FL, 6'6 Soph Antoine Dade from Orlando (Jones) FL, 5'10 Soph E.J. Murray from West Melbourne (Brevard Christian) FL, 6'1 Soph John Mason from Panama City (Bay) FL, 6'4 Soph Calvin Wilson from Eagle Lake (Lake Region) FL, 6'1 Soph Denver Cobb from Delray Beach (Atlantic) FL, 6'4 Frosh Maurice Toolie from Leesburg (H.S.) FL, 5'10 Frosh Greg Anderson from Gainesville (P.K. Yonge) FL, 6'0 Soph Chauncey Lampkin from Gainesville (P.K. Younge) FL, 6'2 Frosh Billy LeBlanc from West Melbourne (Brevard Christian) FL, 6'7 Frosh Leslie Doucette from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 5'6 Soph Landon Baize from Lecanto (H.S.) FL, 6'0 Soph Taylor Gangis from Brandon (H.S.) FL, 6'1 Soph Cory Miket from Gainesville (Eastside) FL, 6'1 Soph Will Sanders from Jacksonville (Ribault) FL, 6'4 Soph Pat Calathes from Winter Springs (Lake Howell) FL, 6'5 Frosh Andy Hampton from Winter Springs (Lake Howell) FL, 5'10 Soph Tim Ryan from Clearwater (H.S.) FL, 6'2 Soph Jonathan Banks from Brandon (H.S.) FL, and 6'0 Soph Janoris Rittman from Shanks (H.S.) FL.

Sunday, October 28, 2001

It happened a week ago, but it wasn't made public until this morning.  We're talking about the verbal commitment that UNLV has gotten from 6'8 K.J. Edwards from Indian Hills (JC) IA.  This is huge, because Edwards is the #1 ranked center in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  And at 6'8, 250 lbs, Edwards also is the best low post scorer in the junior college ranks, which means new head coach Charlie Spoonhour is already well on his way towards restoring the Runnin' Rebels into the powerhouse they once were during the Jerry Tarkanian days.   If you will recall, earlier this fall UNLV also landed 6'8 James Peters from Butler County (JC) KS.  He too will provide a physical presence inside, but didn't get the notoriety he deserves, as he didn't attend any camps last summer.  This second commitment moves UNLV's recruiting class into a tie, along with UNC, Charlotte, Kansas, and Georgia, at #27 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  It also comes on the heels of a recruiting class, which included 6'1 Marcus Banks from Dixie (JC) UT, 6'2 Ernest Turner from Sterling (Somerdale) NJ, 6'5 Lamar Bigby from Schoolcraft (JC) MI, 6'7 Louis Amundson from Louisville (Monarch) CO, 6'9 Jamal Holden from Westark (JC) AR, that was ranked #21 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP last spring.  Bigdy, Amundson, and Holden all promise to be good players, but Banks, who was the best point guard in the junior college ranks last winter, and Turner, who was ranked #59 nationally in our final rankings of the top players in the Class of 2002, should make the same kind of impact this year in the backcourt that Edwards and Peters make inside a year from now.

The inquiry sign is up with regards to our counting 6'11 Brian Brown from Richmond (Henrico) VA recently with Hampton's recruiting class.   But it has been disallowed, despite the fact we don't normally count Prop 48 casualties when ranking recruiting classes.  You see, Brown's case is different, because he didn't make it academically a year ago when he signed with Duquesne.   Instead, he falls into the 5th year category, whereby, he can either enroll at a prep school or sit out a four-year school while he attempts to get his grades in order.  Not only is there a clear precedent, but it also helps us decide what to 6'5 JaQuan Hart from Flint (Northern) MI, who signed with the University of Michigan a year ago, but failed to get admitted into school academically and, as a result, ended up enrolling at Ohio State this fall.  Hart was ranked #31 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP last spring, but we've been uncertain whether Hart's commitment should be counted with Ohio State's recruiting class a year ago or their recruiting class this year.   The problem with counting him with last year's class is that's it's too late (we've already long since moved onto this year's class) to start making a major changes.   However, due to the fact that Hart is a partial qualifier, which is the equivalent of being a 5th year player, we've decide to count him with this year's recruiting class.   Suddenly this becomes very important for several reasons.  First it moves Ohio State's recruiting class up from #29 to #16 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  Second, it establishes that the Buckeyes are not just strong in their own backyard, but also in the state of Michigan.  Remember, Ohio State also got a commitment this fall from 6'5 JaQuan Hart from Flint (Northern) MI.  They also landed 6'8 Aaron Spears from Chicago (Dunbar) IL and 6'9 Charles Bass from Crete (Crete-Monee) IL this fall and had a recruiting class last spring, which included 6'1 Brandon Fuss-Cheatham from Beaver Falls (Black Hawk) PA, 6'7 Matt Sylvester from Cincinnati (Moeller) OH, 6'7Clark Williams from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA, and 6'9 Terrance Dials from Youngstown (Boardman) OH, that was ranked #10 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  Unfortunately Williams didn't make it academically and, as a result, had slipped through the cracks.   However, earlier tonight our Georgia Editor Linzy Davis, who also is the editor of GeorgiaEliteMagazine.com, called to tell us that Williams is at Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT.  Williams was rnaked #67 nationally in our final ranking of the top players in the Class of 2001, so naturally we have to add him to our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players.  We've also added Hart and Brown to our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players.   As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes probably won't get 6'6 Jr LaBron James from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary) OH, because he already appears to be a lock to enter his name into the NBA Draft at the end of his senior year in high school in the spring of 2003.  Instead, the Buckeyes will have to depend upon what already appears to be a tremendous nucleus of great young talent, as well as the great coaching of Jim O'Brien, who is one of the best in the business, to develop into one of the powerhouse teams in college basketball for years to come. 

Brian Merritt of the Elite Scouting Service in Baltimore, MD has the scoop on what's happened to 6'10 Jermaine Bell from Rochester (Franklin) NY.  If you will recall, Bell was supposed to transferred to Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA this fall, but it never happened.  Instead, Bell has surfaced at Virginia Beach (Coastal Christian) VA, where he will be reclassified as a sophomore.  Apparently Boo Williams is the one who placed Bell at Coastal Christian, so we expect Bell to play for the Boo Williams AAU team, where he will provide an excellent complement to 6'3 Soph Marquis Cooke from Suffolk (Nansemond River) VA, 6'9 Jr Darren Townes from Alexandria (T.C. Williams) VA next summer.  Our Georgia Editor Linzy Davis tells us that UAB has gotten a commitment from 6'5 Derrick Broom from Cartersville (Woodland) GA and 6'7 Clark Williams from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, who is now ranked #14 on our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players, is being recruited by Boston College, St. John's, East Carolina, and Massachusetts.  However, Davis adds that Williams wants to sign with a school that is as close to home as possible.  Georgia and Georgia Tech are the first schools that come to mind, but the Bulldogs landed 6'4 Arnold Wayne from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA earlier this fall and the Yellowjackets signed Isma'il Muhammad and Barry Elder a year ago.  What Williams does best is shoot the basketball, but he also rebounds well enough and is big enough to play some inside.  Unfortunately Williams had a bad summer prior to his senior year and, as a result, he's been getting underrecruited ever since.  Another player who appears to have slipped through the cracks is 6'2 Jabulah Murray from Toronto (Eastern School of Commerce) ON, who signed with St. Bonaventure last spring, but didn't get admitted into school.   However, he has since been cleared by the clearinghouse and Ro Russell, who is the co-director of the Grass Roots Canada AAU team, tells us that he is looking for a school where he can enroll either in January 2002 or in September 2002.  If you will recall, Murray attended the adidas ABCD Camp a year ago and could be a steal for the right mid-to-high major program. 

Saturday, October 27, 2001

I have received several phone calls this week from people who wanted to know when we were going to update our calendar of Future Events. Well, thanks primarily to the efforts of Eddie Oliver, who is the editor & publisher of HoopsUSA.com, we have published the most comprehensive list that is currently available anywhere.  While this list does a great job of giving you the basics, like the name, city, and date of each event, we haven't gone into the incredible detail that Oliver always does.  And you get it all in his 2001-2002 HOOPSUSA Tournament and Events Report, which is a must for anybody who is trying to figure out where they need to be this winter (are you listening scouts and college coaches?).    This report feature the teams, players, dates, sites, and more for nearly 100 events that are scheduled from late November until early March.  Printed out this report is 19 pages and the best way to receive it is via email for only $35.  Oliver also has contact names, phone numbers, and email addresses for the director or person running each event that is available to college coaches for $100.  To reserve your copy, send your email address and billing information to ozone@sccoast.net or mail a check to HoopsUSA, P.O Box 15403, Surfside Beach, SC   29587.    Or you can call Oliver at 1-(843) 650-5422.   Obviously having all this information at our fingertips has been extremely valuable as we attempt to figure out what events we plan to attend this winter.    Tentatively our schedule looks like this:  Morgan Wootten Invitational in College Park, MD on December 1st; KMOX Shootout in St. Louis, MO on December 6th; Blue Chip Basketball Invitational in Louisville, KY on December 7th;  Adolph Rupp Classic in Lexington, KY on December 14th-15th; King of the Bluegrass at Fairdale, KY on December 18th-19th; City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL on December 20th-22nd; Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE on December 26th-28th; Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX on December 29th; Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC on December 30th; the National Hoops Classic in Columbus, OH on January 19th; the Dream Classic in Azusa, CA on January 21st, Mater Dei/NIKE Prep Classic in Long Beach, CA on February 2nd, the National Prep School Invitational in Smithfield, RI on February 7th-8th the Prime Time Shootout in Trenton, NJ on February 9th-10th, and the St. James Invitational in St. James, MD on February 14th-16th.  

Friday, October 26, 2001

If you had told me yesterday that North Carolina was the leader for 6'8 Sean May from Bloomington (North) IN, I would have thought you were nuts.  But things can change quickly in the recruiting game and we now have reason to believe the Tar Heels are the favorite over both Indiana and Louisville.  As a matter of fact, we have a source, who over the years has always been very reliable, telling us that the word on the street in Bloomington, IN is that May is going to North Carolina.   We also have a source in North Carolina who is telling us the same thing.  One thing is certain.  Both of May's parents appear to be pushing him away from Indiana and the driving force behind this former IU head coach Bob Knight, who is pissed off at current IU head coach Mike Davis.  This doesn't come as too much of a surprise, because Knight, who is now getting a second chance at Texas Tech, is usually pissed off at somebody.  However, in this case he's doing the best he can to sabotage Indiana's chance and it appears he has enough influence over May's parents to be successful.  Remember, May's father, Scott May, was one of the best players to ever play for Knight at Indiana and, as a result, it should come as no surprise that Scott May is one of the Knight's biggest allies.  So the million dollar question is whether Sean May, who has grown up around IU basketball, will be strong enough to stand up to his parents, if he indeed wants to stay home.  If you recall, one of the big reasons why 6'2 Marshall Strickland from Sykes (South Carroll) MD and 6'3 Bracy Wright from The Colony (H.S.) TX both committed to Indiana was because they thought May would also be part of the recruiting class.  And they had to have gotten that idea from someplace.  We've also heard that Knight was pushing May to Louisville (Knight and Rick Pitino have been friends for a long time).  So North Carolina may be the compromise choice.   The Tar Heels are also desperate for a quality inside player, especially after already having lost out on 6'10 Shavlik Randolph from Raleigh (Broughton) NC, who picked Duke; 6'9 Sheldon Williams from Midwest City (H.S.) OK, who picked Duke; 6'9 Torin Francis from Marion (Tabor Academy) MA, who picked Notre Dame; 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX, who picked Texas; and 6'10 Alou Kane from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA, who picked Minnesota, this fall.  And there is a precedent for this dating back to the 1989-90 season when Eric Montrose picked the Tar Heels over the Hoosiers.  However, this all may be a smoke screen.  Remember, most people thought, 6'9 Jared Jeffries, who was May's high school teammate at Bloomington (North) IN two years ago, was a lock for Duke.  But we told you not to bet against Indiana and we turned out to be right.   No, we didn't have any more first hand knowledge than we do right now.  The key is when in doubt bet on the local school, because 90% of the time we'll turn out to be right. 

Yesterday we told you that we had heard 6'11 Jabbar Young from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD had verbally committed to West Virginia, 6'4 Charlie Bell from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD had committed to Loyola-Maryland, and 6'10 Dakin Braddick from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD had left school and returned to North Charleston, SC.  However, at the time we also added that all this was unconfirmed.  Well, now you can tell you that all three of these things are official, because we talked with National Christian head coach Trevor Brown today.   Obviously Brown is excited about Young deciding to go to West Virginia, because he will be following in the footsteps of one of his former players - Jonathan Hargett, who is doing extremely well this year for the Mountaineers during the pre-season.  He also has to pleased about Bell's decision, because this athlete wing player has the talent, skills, and 3-point shooting range necessary to develop into one of the bettter players in the Metro Atlantic Conference.   But he has to be disappointed, because Braddick, who one of the top 10 players we saw at the Charlie Weber Invitational Tournament a month ago and, as a result, is ranked #13 our list of the top Top 5th Year & Prep School Players.  However, if you're going to run a successful program there can only be two ways a player can go - the coach's way or the highway.  In addition to confirming the information about Young, Bell, and Braddick, Brown also tells us that 6'0 Lionell Edwards from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD has verbally committed to Dickinson, which is a Division I school, and 6'4 Donnell King from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD will be visiting Sacret Heart this weekend.  All the players mentioned above will be important contributors this season, but the future is even brighter, because 6'2 Soph Earl Rigby, 6'6 Jr Keith Blanks, and 6'9 Soph Anthony Ivory are all underclassmen.

Thursday, October 25, 2001

It comes as no surprise that 6'6 Eric Hicks from Greensboro (Dudley) NC has verbally committed to the University of Cincinnati.  Actually it happend several days ago and, as a result, the Bearcats recruiting class, which also includes 6'2 Chadd Moore from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and 6'7 Armein Kirkland from Tyler (Lee) TX,   moves into a tie with Kentucky at #22 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  Hicks is not ranked among our top 100 nationally, because he falls into the undersized inside player category.  However, that will change next time we update our national rankings, because the word we're getting is that Hicks just keeps getting better and better.  He also is the protoypical player that Bob Huggins has been extremely successful with over the years at Cincinnati.  Sure, Hicks doesn't have a true position, but he's a tough hardnosed aggressive athlete who doesn't take any prisoners inside.  And the Bearcats aren't done yet.  As a matter of fact, they are in the hunt for three of the top big men still available nationally in 7'0 Keith Butler from Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA, 7'0 Julius Lamptey from Oklahoma City (Northeast) OK, and 6'11 Alexander Johnson from Albany (Dougherty) GA.  Yes, it looks like Johnson has opened things back up, as is evident by the fact that he is planning on making an official visit to Cincinnati in the near future.  Actually he was supposed to visit Cincinnati this weekend, but he cancelled that visit yesterday due to a death in the family.  Cincinnati also appears to be right there with Butler, although North Carolina and Miami-FL have suddenly become a serious players, Illinois has been there the strongest and the longest, and Temple has the advantage of the kid being right in their backyard.  If you will recall, Butler transferred this fall from Winchendon (School) MA to Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA.  Cincinnati is believed to be a long shot with Lamptey, but they are on his list, along with Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Washington, Illinois, and Georgia.  Wouldn't it be ironic if Georgia lost Johnson to Cincinnati, but ended up getting Lamptey?

The University of Houston has gotten a commitment from 6'3 Dwight Jones from Kline (H.S.) TX.  If the name sounds familiar, it should, because Jones' father, Dwight Jones Sr, also played for the Cougars. This athletic 2-guard with good speed and quickness should provide an excellent complement to 6'4 Cedrick Hensley from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX, who is playing so well this fall that he deserves national top 100 consideration, and 6'4 Kevin Gaines, who is sitting out the first semester after transferring from Michigan last winter.  Houston also added some coveted size earlier this fall when they got a commitment from 6'4 Anwar Ferguson from Lee (JC) TX, but the Cougars coaching staff is still are hoping to add another inside player in this recruiting class.   Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin called last night to tell us that Rhode Island has landed 6'6 Terrance Mack from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, who is ranked #17 among seniors on Rubin's updated player list, which currently is in the process of being finalized.  Right now Mack is more of a power forward, but Rubin thinks he will be able to make the transition to the wing forward spot.  And if he is successful, Macks' value could go way up.   Lavel Johnson, who is the Mississippi Editor for both the HOOP SCOOP and MidSouth-Hoops.Com has several scoops to pass along.  First, he tells us that Mississippi has gotten 6'8 Lonnie Jackson from Okaloosa-Walton (JC) MS.  This interesting, because Jackson was a qualifier coming out of high school and, as a result, can transfer to a four-year school after only one year of junior college.  In other words, he will have three years to play.  Jackson apparently was part of the package that was also supposed to have also included 6'8 Brandon Vincent from Okaloosa-Walton (JC) FL.  However, a week ago Vincent surprised everybody and committed instead to Mississippi State.  Second, Southern Mississippi has landed its first recruit in 6'10 Geoffrey Brown from Sheridan (JC) WY.  This too is an attention grabber, because Brown was ranked as the #6 center in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook. 

Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that Pepperdine could be on the verge of getting two of the best unsigned seniors in Southern California, as 6'8 Adam Zahn from Redondo Union (Redondo Beach) CA has it narrowed to Pepperdine and San Diego State and 6'6 Bobby Jones from Long Beach (Poly) CA has narrowed it Pepperdine, New Mexico, and Boston College.  Trigonis also tells that UCLA head coach Steve Lavin is getting pressure to offer 6'7 Matt McKinney from Santa Yrez (H.S.) CA, who is one of the best volley players in the nation, a basketball scholarship.  If you will recall, NCAA rules prohibit a player from playing basketball or football, if he is on scholarship in a minor sport.   In other words, Lavin doesn't want to tie up a valuable scholarship on a player who doesn't even figure to be a good role player.  As a matter of fact, McKinney couldn't even get quality playing time while playing for the Pump N Run All-Stars last summer.  And this isn't the first time this type of problem has arisen for the UCLA coaching staff this fall.  Remember, 6'8 Kevin Bookout from Stroud (H.S.) OK, who may have a future competing in the Olympics in the discus and shotput, has been considering UCLA for track.  However, we think UCLA's chances of getting Bookout are slim and none, despite the fact UCLA has one of the best track and field programs in the nation.  Obviously Lavin doesn't realize how good Bookout, who is ranked #24 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, is in basketball.   But it may not matter, because Lavin already has a free player at Bookout's position.  If you will recall, we recently reported that 6'7 Mercedes Lewis from Long Beach (Poly) CA, who is one of the top football prospects in the nation, has already verbally committed to UCLA in football.  Lewis isn't real skilled, but he's good enough on the hardwood to give UCLA the blue collar athlete it needs to bang people and take care of business inside.

We are getting reports that 6'11 Jabbar Young from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, who is ranked #45 on our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players, and 6'4 John Winchester from Raleigh (Bonner Academy) NC, who is ranked #6 on our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players, both have verbally committed to West Virginia. Well, the Young commitment may be legit, but Winchester's commitment to Tennessee appears to be as solid as a rock.  So solid that he is returning home to North Jersey in order to get away from the people who want him to renege on his original commitment.  Obviously this opens up another very interesting question, which is where Winchester will surface in terms of prep school?  How about Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ?  First year head coach Danny Hurley is one of the most legitimate guys in the business and it's close to home.  Remember, Winchester attended high school at Bayonne (Marist) NJ.  We also have gotten several other reports (all of which are unconfirmed, because we haven't been able to get a hold of the right people) regarding 6'4 Charlie Bell from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD and 6'10 Dakin Braddick from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD.  The word we get is that Bell has verbally committed to Loyola-Maryland and that Braddick is no longer in school at National Christian.  Apparently he has had off the court problems and returned to North Charleston, SC. 

North Carolina's recruiting class, which featured 6'1 Raymond Felton from Latta (H.S.) SC and 6'4 Rashad McCants from New Hampton (Prep) NH is currently ranked #17 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  It also is second to none in terms of who has signed the best two players.  However, the Tar Heels have struck out with most of the big men, including 6'10 Shavlik Randolph from Raleigh (Broughton) NC, who picked Duke; 6'9 Sheldon Williams from Midwest City (H.S.) OK, who picked Duke; 6'9 Torin Francis from Marion (Tabor Academy) MA, who picked Notre Dame; 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX, who picked Texas; and 6'10 Alou Kane from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA, who picked Minnesota, they'd been recruiting during the summer and fall.  North Carolina is still in the hunt for 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY and 6'8 Sean May from Bloomington (North) IN, but they are not the leader in either race.  Certainly things can change, but as things stand now, Villanova and St. John's appear to be out in front of Louisville and North Carolina in the Jason Fraser-sweepstakes.  We still think May will end up at Indiana, but, if the rumors are true that he has a press conference scheduled for early next week, it may favor Louisville.  Remember, we guessing that the longer this one goes, the harder it is going to be for May to say no to all the pressure to stay home.  As for North Carolina, we've already mentioned that they're making a strong push for 7'0 Keith Butler from Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA, plus we have heard the Tar Heels are involved with 6'9 Jamar Smith from Allegany (JC) MD, who was ranked as the #4 power forward in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook. 

Wednesday, October 24, 2001

For the second consecutive day our Texas Editor Wes Grandstaff has the scoop on a verbal commitment made by a Texas player.  Actually 6'10 Alou Kane attends Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA, but he plays AAU ball for Team Texas, so we associate him with from that state.  Kane, who is ranked #52 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, has picked the University of Minnesota and we think this comes as somewhat of a surprise.  Sure, Minnesota was among the final three on Kane's list, along with SMU and North Carolina, but we thought he would either follow 6'1 Bryon Hopkins from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, who was his teammate last spring and summer on Team Texas, to SMU or remain in ACC country and pick the Tar Heels.  However, in terms of developing against great competition a year from now as college freshman, Kane couldn't have made a better choice.   Remember, the Golden Gophers landed two outstanding big men a year ago in 6'10 Jerry Holman, who was one of top junior college players in the nation two years ago, and 6'10 Rick Rickert, who was a McDonald's All-American last spring and has been frequently compared to former Duke star Christian Laettner.   Right now Kane is raw offensively, but he does have good hands and a natural feel around the basket.  He also is a physical specimen with surprising athleticism, shot blocking, and rebounding skills.  But what we like the most about Kane are the intensity and effort he brings every night.  In other words, he doesn't take any prisoners.  The fact that he's also a great kid and outstanding student are just the icing on the cake.  Yes, the sky is the limit for Kane and, assuming he continues to develop the way we expect, Golden Gophers head coach Dan Monson should have one of the best inside one/two punches in the Big-10 for years to come.  Minnesota also recently landed a talented wing forward in 6'7 Stanley Gaines from Chicago (Providence-St. Mel) IL, but that should not effect their ability to land 6'7 Jr Kris Humphries from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN, who is one of the top 10 juniors nationally according the HOOP SCOOP, a year from now.  We've also heard that Texas and UCLA are high on Humphries early list, but when it is all said and done, we'd be surprised if Humphries leaves home. 

Yesterday we talked with Ray Miller, who is one of the assistant coaches at Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, and he brought us up-to-date on the recruitment of 6'9 Paul Williams, 6'5 Mawel Soler, 6'10 Jr Grant Billmeier, and 6'1 Jr Michael Nardi.  Williams is coming on like gangbusters and, as a result, would be a steal for Siena, Drexel, or Cleveland State, which are the schools that have shown the most interest to-date.  However, Pittsburgh is getting involved and, if Williams waits until spring, you can bet a lot of other Big East schools will also start calling.  The top three for Soler are Fairleigh Dickinson, Central Connecticut State, and Wagner.  Billmeier's favorite school is Duke, but Villanova, Rutgers, Seton Hall, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, and Virginia are the schools that have been showing the most early interest.  Nardi has a similar list that includes Seton Hall, Rutgers, Maryland, and Virginia.  Especially interesting is the fact that Rutgers is mentioned for both Billmeier and Nardi.  Remember, new Scarlet Knights head coach Gary Waters and his staff are from the Midwest and building a strong foundation and establishing the right connections in their new backyard is essential for their future success.  And so far it looks like he's doing a good job.  Remember, they recently landed 6'3 Dominick Mejia from Voorhees (Eastern Regional) NJ and now we're hearing they've made major in-roads with the good young players at St. Patrick's.  Speaking of good young players who are expected to play for head coach Kevin Boyle at St. Patrick's, Miller didn't want to touch the question about whether 6'7 Derrick Character from Scotch Plains, NJ, who is the #1-ranked 8th grader in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, will enroll at St. Patrick's next fall.  However, just about everybody else we've talked with assume it's already a done deal.  If you will recall, Character has been attending the St. Patrick's basketball camp since he was in elementary school and, as a result, he already has a strong pre-existing relationship with Boyle.  Sure, we've heard the speculation about Character opting to attend four years of high school at a basketball factory, like Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA or Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, but we've also heard that there is no way he's going to leave the North Jersey area due to the close relationship he has with his grandmother. 

Several days ago somebody was asking me whatever happened to 6'7 Omar Weaver?  You remember him!  He's the guy who shot the lights out for Washington (Coolidge) DC at the City of Palms Classic three years ago, but who has had academic and eligibility problems that prevented him from going the Division I route.  Well, it appears he's surfaced at Riverside (JC) CA and it's still feast or famine depending on whether the outside shot is going down.  All this becomes significant, because our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that Weaver has verbally committed to Fresno State.   However, that is contingent upon Jerry Tarkanian, Danny Tarkanian, or John Welch being the head coach next year.   Remember, there are rumors about Tarkanian retiring after this season.  If he does, and one of his assistants gets the job, then Weaver says he will honor his commitment.  But if the administration looks elsewhere for a head coach, then all bets will be off when it comes to Fresno State getting Weaver.  Trigonis also tells us that Fresno State is a lot stronger than most people realize with 6'9 DeAngelo Collins from Inglewood (H.S.) CA.  Although Collins will likely by-pass college and enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring, it is interesting to think about his winding up at Fresno State.  If you will recall, Collins has the heart, desire, and talent necessary to become a great player, but most people haven't given him the credit he's do due to his troubled past and off the court questions.  Tarkanian has made living with players like this over the years.  As a result, we think this might be the perfect fit.  It also will be huge for Tarkanian.  Collins is a legitimate top five senior nationally, but also because he's a tough hardnosed competitor, like the players Tarkanian used to have during the glory days at UNLV. 

Tuesday, October 23, 2001

Our Texas Editor Wes Grandstaff tells us that we'll be able to finally write it down later today.  He's talking about 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX, who has a press conference scheduled for this afternoon and the word is that he will announce for the University of Texas.  This comes as no surprise to us, despite the fact that North Carolina made a serious run in the end.  If you exclude 6'9 DeAngelo Collins from Inglewood (H.S.) CA, who is believed to be a near lock to enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring, Buckman was the highest ranked player still available.  He is ranked #15 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, but, even more important, he gives the Longhorns an extremely talented blue collar banger with skills and athleticism inside.   And you can bet he will make a living getting easy baskets from Terrance Ford, who was ranked as one of the top five high school seniors by the HOOP SCOOP last spring in our final ranking of the Class of 2001.  Buckman's commitment also is important, because it reaffirms the fact that the Longhorns can keep their share of the top players in their backyard at home.  If you will recall, Texas features six players among our top 30 ranked seniors in 6'10 Chris Bosh from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, who recently committed to Georgia Tech; 6'1 Bryan Hopkins from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, who has verbally committed to SMU; 6'3 Daniel Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, who made it official for Michigan last June; 6'3 Bracy Wright from The Colony (H.S.) TX, who has picked Indiana; Buckman; and 6'2 Deron Williams from The Colony (H.S.) TX, who will sign with Illinois.  But really this one was never in doubt, because Longhorns head coach Rick Barnes and Buckman's father a long time friends and business partners.

We also have confirmed that Indiana University has got a verbal commitment from 6'7 Darryl Pegram from Worcester (Academy) MA, who is ranked #37 on our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players.  Pegram is best described as an athletic combo forward, but he needs to get bigger and stronger physically to play inside or develop better perimeter skills to become an impact player in the Big-10.  In other words, we're talking about a good role player who should provide an excellent complement to a recruiting class that already includes 6'3 Bracy Wright from The Colony (H.S.) TX, who is ranked #10 on our list of the top high school seniors nationally, and 6'2 Marshall Strickland from Sykes (South Carroll) MD, who is ranked #3 on our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players.  However, the icing on the cake would be if 6'8 Sean May from Bloomington (North) IN, who is ranked #35 nationally in the senior class, but who will likely move a lot higher once he gets back into playing shape this winter, elects to stay home.  In other words, head coach Mike Davis appears to be on the verge of landing three McDonald's All-American in this recruiting class.  He also has what is potentially one of the best backcourts to ever play at Indiana with Wright and Strickland.   Potentially right up there with Quinn Buckner and Bobby Wilkerson, Isiah Thomas and Randy Wittman, and Steve Alford and Keith Smart.  Getting Pegram moves Indiana's class up from #18 to #14 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date and, if they get May, their recruiting class would move all the way up to #3 behind Duke and Florida and ahead of Tennessee, Memphis, and Iowa State.  Pegram also gives the Hoosiers a great kid and an excellent student.  As a matter of fact, the school they beat to get Pegram was Princeton.  Pegram's commitment may also be significant, because Wocester Academy head coach Morgan Cassara has some great young talent in the program, including 6'0 Jr Stevie Hailey and 6'8 Nick Stafford, and, as a result, this may provide a great in with one of the top prep school programs in New England for years to come. 

Boston University has gotten a pair of commitments from 6'8 Richard Bagby from Richmond (Collegiate) VA and 6'2 Shawn Wynn from Brooklyn (Xaverian) NY.  Wynn was ranked #32 in New York City last spring by the HOOP SCOOP, but we think he's a lot better than that.  Not only is he a great defensive player, but he's a tough hardnosed kid who excels in transition and can play either guard spot.  We also think Bagby is a major sleeper, as he falls into the undersized power forward or oversized wing forward category.  As a matter of fact, he's a physical specimen who is built like a defensive end or a strong physical linebacker, which he is.  He's also a wide receiver and he'll even get a chance to fill in for the injured starting quarterback on his high school team this weekend.  Bagby picked Boston University over George Mason.  Speaking of George Mason, the Patrioits also have gotten a pair of commitments from 6'4 Mark Davis from Palm Beach (JC) FL and 6'8 Trent Wurtz from Sheboygan (North) WI and they should be just as pleased as we know Boston University is about their commitments.   As a matter of fact, after a quick check of Rick Ball's list of the top shooting guards in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, which includes in order 6'4 Antwain Barbour from Wabash Valley (JC) IL, 6'1 Nate Johnson from Penn Valley (JC) IA, 6'2 Les Norman from Long Beach City (JC) CA, 6'4 Derrick Tarver from San Francisco (JC) CA, 6'5 Jerome Harper from Indian Hills (JC) IA, 6'4 Tony Bobbitt from Southern Idaho (JC) ID, 6'2 Junior Matias from Southeastern Iowa (JC) IA, 6'1 Chris Young from Daytona Beach (JC) FL, 6'3 Andre Joseph from Lee (JC) TX, and 6'5 Brandon Sims from Johnson County (JC) KS,   we have to conclude that the cat isn't out of the bag yet about Davis.  The word we're getting is that he's one of the top 2-guards in the junior college ranks.   Wurtz played in the shadow of 6'8 Andy Freud from Wauwatosa (East) WI and 6'5 Dan Grunfeld from Glendale (Nicolet) WI last spring and summer on Friends of Hoop, but he's like a poor man's Mike Miller.  With these two commitments, plus the commitment they received last week from 6'7 Jai Lewis from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, George Mason is done recruiting in this class and, as a result, will now turn their focus onto juniors and sophomores.  Boston University still has one more scholarship to give in this recruiting class and they would like to land a power forward/center to complement Bagby, who is a four/three. 

Early last week we reported that 6'7 Kennedy Winston from Prichard (Blount) AL was on the verge of verbally committing to the University of California.  Well, he did, but he also let it be known that he still planned to go on an official visit to another school.  So we never counted Winston with the Golden Bears recruiting class.  More recently we confirmed that Winston did indeed make an official visit last weekend to Alabama.  He was even quoted as saying that that it is too close to call among Alabama and California.  Winston also says Auburn is still is on his list, but nobody else will be added to the list.  We also are still waiting to see happens with 6'5 Rashad Anderson from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL.  If you will recall, two weeks ago we told you that the University of Connecticut was on the verge of getting a commitment from Anderson.  Well, they did, but Florida has turned the heat up and split the family.  Apparently Anderson still wants to go to play for the Huskies, but his father is pushing the Gators.  Our guess is that when the dust has cleared Anderson will honor the commitment he originally made to Connecticut and, if that happens, the Gators may be in line to get 6'5 DeAngelo Alexander from Midwest City (H.S.) TX.  That's right!  Greg Swaim of GregSwaim.com confirms the reports about Alexander reneging on the University of Oklahoma and it appears the Gators are making a strong push.  Swaim also believes it's only a matter of time before 6'6 Kelenna Azubuike from Tulsa (Victory Christian) OK reneges on his commitment to the Sooners and the big reason why is Azubuike's brother, who was a walk-on for the Oklahoma basketball team.  Believe it or not he quit the team after only several days of practice.  Swaim also has confirmed that 6'5 Seneca Collins from Duncanville (H.S.) TX picked the University of Tulsa late last week and 6'6 Anthony Price from The Woodlawns (H.S.) TX picked the Golden Hurricane yesterday.

Saturday, October 20, 2001, Sunday, October 21, 2001, and Monday, October 22, 2001

Hampton University pulled off one of the biggest upsets in NCAA history last March, but, even more important, Pirates head coach Steve Merfeld and his staff have been able to capitalize on their success on the recruiting trail.  If you will recall, a year ago Hampton's recruiting class finished ranked #1 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference by the HOOP SCOOP when they landed 6'5 Devin Green from Columbia (Beechcroft) OH and 6'3 Tihon Johnson from Columbus (East) OH, both of whom were ranked among the top 200 nationally and were good enough to attract some Big-10 attention.  And this fall Hampton has stockpiled size, as 6'9 Bakary Konate from Cincinnati State (JC) OH, 6'7 Rodney Hughes from Owens (JC) OH, 6'7 Troy Washington from Denmark (Denmark-Olar) SC, and 6'11 Brian Brown from Richmond (Henrico) VA all recently have made verbal commitments.  Konate is a big time athlete with good ball skills, excellent 3-point shooting range, and the ability to run the court like a deer.  This explains why schools like Louisville, Cincinnati, Memphis, East Carolina, Iowa State, and Marquette were all showing interest a year ago.   However, Konate needed another semester in order to graduate from junior college and, as a result, he slipped through the cracks.  The same situation applies to Hughes, who at 6'7, 250 lbs., is a physical presence and a warrior inside.  In other words, Merfeld will have two players who will transfer in and enroll second semster.  This is important, because they will be able to practice every day with the team.   And Merfeld will have another player who is already in school.  That's right!   Brown, who was a top 300 senior nationally when he originally signed with Duquesne a year ago, is a Prop 48 casualty.  Although NCAA rules prohibit Prop 48 casualties from practicing with the team, this physical specimen with great hands and mobility should emerge into one of the best big men in the league down the road.   Washington, who is a consensus top 200 senior nationally, is another outstanding athlete and he can play either forward spot.  None of these players is the equivalent of top 100 senior nationally.  However, collectively they move Hampton's recruiting class into a tie at #29 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  And they aren't done yet, as the final piece to the puzzle is a point guard who will play both behind and along side of Johnson in the backcourt. 

The HOOPS SCOOP has confirmed that Loyola-Chicago has gotten a commitment from 5'11 Terrance Whittier from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, who is ranked #46 nationally on our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players.  Obviously this is a major step in the right direction for Larry Farmer and his staff in their quest to rebuild the Ramblers program.  If  you will recall, Whittier is the athletic point guard originally from Brandywine (Gwynn Park) MD who stepped in and helped solve the backcourt problems for the Atlanta Celtics this summer.   As a result, he convinced us that he would be ranked among our top 200 nationally, if he still was a high school senior. 

For years our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio has refused to include players from Westchester County in his rankings, but Peter Abraham of The Journal News fills the void:   "6'9 Hilton Armstrong of Peekskill (H.S.) NY has become a hot name.  The thin big man has been offered scholarships by Texas A&M, La Salle, South Florida, and Niagara.  Armstrong comes from the same program that produced Elton Brand and likely will wait to sign in the spring.  He played well at Five-Star Honesdale.  Virtually unknown Alexi Korolev is a 6'10 Russian kid who came over last spring and will play for Panas High in Cortlandt Manor, NY.  Phil Martelli, who has had success with Russian kids, has already offered Korolev.   A lot of other schools are starting to ask about him.  Like a lot of European players, he's more of a shooter than a banger.  Adidas ABCD camper Rashard Tucker from Peekskill (H.S.) NY has academic questions, but the University of Maine is chasing him hard.  This 5'9 speedy point guard is also hearing from Iona and South Florida.  Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY guard Jomo Belfor will wait until spring.  He has been offered by Iona and Hofstra.  Iowa State also is following him closely.  Belfor is a a strong 6'1 point guard who played in Ben Gordon's shadow last season.  Westchester had two other players already make commitments:  6'3 Donnie McGrath from Somers (John F. Kennedy) NY to Providence and 6'7 Dave Ryan from Eastchester to Siena."

Friday, October 19, 2001

We have already mentioned on several different occasions that Danny Hurley has surfaced as the new head coach at Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ.  But we haven't gotten a chance to tell you about all the talent he has stockpiled at what promises to be one of the fastest rising high school programs in the nation.  His best player will be 6'3 Jr Art Bowers, who already is getting early interest from school like Maryland, Wake Forest, Villanova, Connecticut, and St. John's.  Bowers needs to work on his ball handling and decision making in order to become a pure point guard, but at 6'3 he also can play the two.  As a matter of fact, Bowers' explosiveness and ability to score remind Hurley of a smaller version of Dahntay Jones.  His best inside player right now is 6'7 Emmanuel Massey, who is ranked #25 on our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players.  Right now Fordham, La Salle, Massachusetts, Arkansas, and New Mexico are showing the most interest in Massey, but assuming he signs late, he'll probably also get some Big East attention.  The two best prospects in the program are 6'8 Soph Stanley Branch and 6'7 Soph Keving Palacios.  Branch is an explosive athlete with excellent 3-point shooting range and a chance to play 10 years in the NBA, assuming that Hurley is a chip off the old block.  Remember, his father, Bob Hurley, Sr, has for years been regarded as the best high school coach in America at Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ.  Palacios is a multi-dimensional offensive player who can shoot the three, post up, and put the ball on the floor.  He also comes from the an ideal basketball environment, because both his parents are tall and his father played professionally in Venezuela.  Hurley also will go to war with 6'0 Jr Bashir Mason, 6'4 James Mathis, 6'3 Al Ishmal, and 6'6 Eric Hazard.  Hazard is a really skilled combo forward with an 1100 SAT.  Mason is a lefty point guard who makes a living beating you off the dribble.  Mathis has an excellent body and knows how to score.  He also was getting underrecruited prior to making a verbal commitment to Niagara earlier this week.  Ishmal is a wing player with athleticism. 

The HOOP SCOOP has confirmed that 6'4 Stanley Asumnu from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA has verbally committed to the University of Tennessee and this is huge for several reasons.   First, Asumnu is ranked #9 our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players.  However, that doesn't begin to tell you how good Asumnu is or how much he's improved when most people saw him playing with the Houston Hoops during the spring and summer of 2000.   Remember, we were among those singing his praises when Asumnu shot the lights out as a high school senior for Houston (Westbury Christian) TX last December in the King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic.  Second, this moves Tennessee's recruiting class, which also features 6'4 John Winchester from Raleigh (Bonner Academy) NC, 6'1 C.J. Watson from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'6 Justin Albrecht from Iowa Western (JC) IA, and 7'0 Just Herndon from Nashville (Donelson) TN all the way up to #3 behind Duke and Florida and ahead of Memphis and Iowa State on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  Third, getting Asumnu will likely enhance Tennessee's chances of getting future players out of the state of Texas.  As a matter of fact, that's the place where they're focused the most in their quest to land two big men and a point guard in the Class of 2003.  If you will recall, 5'11 Jr Dez Willingham from  DeSoto (H.S.) TX, who is the top junior point guard in the state of Texas, was recently at Tennessee on an unofficial visit.  And, even more important, Asumnu's commitment gives the Volunteers an another in with 6'8 Jr Ndudi Ebi from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, who was the highest ranked underclassmen by the HOOP SCOOP last summer at the NIKE All-American Camp. 

The National Prep School Invitational has become one of our favorite events to cover in recent years, so we were excited to get a fax yesterday from Mike Procopio, who is the tournament's director.  This year's tournament will take place at Bryant College in Smithfield, RI on Thursday through Sunday, February 7th-10th, and will include Winchendon (School) MA, Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, Milford (Academy) CT, Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, Laurinburg (Institute) NC, Homestead (Berkshire) MA, Long Island (Our Savior) NY, Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME, Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, Toronto (West Hill Prep) ON, Creedmore (Faith Christian) NC, Groton (Lawrence Academy) MA, Salisbury (The Salisbury School) CT, Andover (Proctor Academy) NH, Worcester (Academy) MA, Marion (Tabor Academy) MA, Springfield (The MacDuffie School) MA, Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, Hamden (H.S.) CT, and Troy (Redemption) NY.  In other words, the field is loaded and the number of great players is ridiculous, as 6'11 Martin Iti from Winchendon (School) MA, 6'7 Antoine Wright from Groton (Lawrence Academy) MA, 6'9 Torin Francis from Marion (Tabor Academy) MA, 6'7 Francis Garcia from Winchendon (School) MA, 6'3 Jarrett Jack from Worcester (Academy) MA, 6'9 Terry Licorish from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'6 Denham Brown from Toronto (West Hill) ON, 6'8 Jr Lawrence Carrier from Salisbury (The Salisbury School) MA, 6'7 David Bell from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'8 Almamy Thiero from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'8 Jr Nick Stafford from Worcester (Academy) MA, 6'7 Jr Demetrius Nichols from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'4 David Teague from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME, 6'6 J.R. Morris from Creedmore (Faith Christian) NC, 5'11 Jr Steve Hailey from Worcester (Academy) MA, 6'6 Cortez Davis from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'8 Luis Clemente from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, 6'6  Demario Eddin from Winchendon (School) MA, 6'7 Kelly Whitney from Creedmore (Faith Christian) NC, 6'9 Kevin Young from Homestead (Berkshire) FL, 5'11 Darryl Hill from Milford (Academy) CT, and 6'7 Jack Jenkins from Andover (Proctor Academy) NH head what promises to be a star studded cast. 

Thursday, October 18, 2001

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson has the scoop on 6'4 Derrick Tarver from San Francisco (JC) CA, who is ranked as the #4 shooting guard in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  Believe it or not Tarver has picked Akron over schools like Texas, Fresno State, Cincinnati, and Alabama.  Actually this is not that big of a surprise for several reasons.  First, Tarver's former high school coach at Akron (St. Vincent-St Mary) OH is Keith Dambrot and he was hired as an assistant coach last spring at Akron.  Second, one of Tarver's best friends is Maverick Carter, who transferred this fall from Western Michigan to Akron.  Our Baltimore Editor Paul Bowden tell us that 6'7 Jai Lewis from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME has picked George Mason over Virginia Commonwealth, Drexel, Robert Morris, James Madison, Rhode Island, La Salle, Ohio University, Youngstown State.  Lewis is ranked 50th on our list of the Top 5th Year & Prep School Players, but he is exactly what the doctor ordered for the Patriots.  Remember, they are still trying to replace George Evans, who was one of the best rebounders in the league during each of the last three seasons.  And at 6'7, 260 lbs., Lewis will provide the inside presence they need in the future.  The fact that he has good hands, good feet, and has the ability to score around the basket are just an added bonus.  So is that fact that Lewis has developed into Carl Hendrickson's best low post player this fall at MCI.  Bowden also tells us that 6'4 Jr Gerald Brown from Baltimore (Douglas) MD was at Providence on an unofficial visit last weekend and 5'10 Terrance Whittier from Laurinburg (Institute) NC will be at Loyola-Chicago this weekend.  Whittier also will visit Marshall and Youngstown State.  

Lavel Johnson, the Mississippi Editor for both the HOOP SCOOP and MidSouth-Hoops.Com, also has a major scoop, as he tells us that 6'8 Brandon Vincent from Okaloosa-Walton (JC) FL has committed Mississippi State.  Obviously at least part of the connection is 6'9 Kei Madison from Okaloosa-Walton (JC) FL, who committed to the Bulldogs several weeks ago.  Apparently Vincent visited Starkville, MS last weekend and things went so well that he decided to go ahead and make it official.  As a result, Mississippi State's recruiting class will move up from #22 to #17 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.   Our Deep South Editor Mark Komara tells us that Birmingham Southern as a major steal in 6'3 B.J. Spencer from Starkville (H.S.) MS and the big reason why is Panthers assistant coach Scott Stapler, who is widely regarded as one of the top young assistants in business.  Some SEC schools, like LSU, Mississippi, and Auburn, even showed some interest after Spencer showed what he's capable of doing for the Southeast Raptots last summer when 6'2 Chadd Moore from Huntsville (Lee) AL got hurt, but Stapler was there from start to finish.  Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis informs us that 6'10 Ryan Hollins from Pasadena (Muir) CA has picked Saint Louis over Oregon, Southern Cal, and Arizona State.  Obviously Billikens head coach Lorenzo Romar is taking advantage of his West Coast ties, but he also may turn out looking like a genius on this one down the road.  Trigonis tells us that Hollins is a legitimate top 250 senior nationally, but after watching him at the Full Court Press All-West Camp last summer, he's sold on his potential and upside.  Trigonis also believes that Southern California may have gotten an early commitment from 6'8 Jr Nick Stigger from Memphis (Melrose) TN, who is ranked #37 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  And, if that indeed is correct, the Trojans have to be pleased, because Stiggers is an aggressive athlete who is active on the boards and fluid offfensively around the basket.  We also have confirmed that 6'7 Kennedy Winston from Prichard (Blout) AL has committed to the University of California, but we're not going to put him on our commitment list just yet.  Moral to the story, how can you be verbally committed, if you're still making visits to the other schools?

Did you know that 6'7 Stanley Gaines from Chicago (Providence-St Mel) IL recently committed to the University of Minnesota?  We didn't until tonight when we talked with Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report.  Gaines is a big time athlete with a lot of natural talent and potential, but it's hard to get real excited about this one.  Remember, Gaines put up prolific numbers in middle school and, as as result, was ranked as one of the top five 8th graders in the nation.  However, Gaines has been a disappointment ever since and, as a result, doesn't even get a sniff on most national top 100 senior lists.  Instead, the player in the state of Illinois who gets us excited is 6'7 Andre Igoudala from Springfield (Lanphier) IL, who ranks #73 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  "Igoudala is a big time athlete who locks his opponent up defensively, makes pressure shots, and has unlimited potential," says Schmidt.   "He's the prototypical type player Nolan Richardson has made a living with over the years.  And, if I had to bet on where he's going to college, I think it will Arkansas.  But I also like the chances of Arizona and Boston College."  In hind sight, the Illinois coaching staff may wish they'd gone after Igoudala harder earlier, but, at the same time that leaves the door open for the Fighting Illini to lock up all three of the top juniors - 6'2 Jr Shannon Brown from Maywood (Proviso East) IL, 6'6 Jr  Brian Randle from Peoria (Notre Dame) IL, and 6'2 Jr Richard McBride from Springfield (Lanphier) IL - in the state early.  Schmidt actually thinks that's already on the verge of happening.  "They're in great such great shape on McBride that a commitment could be forthcoming in the not too distant future.  Brown will probably go through the recruiting process to some extent, but remember how early his teammate (Dee Brown) committed to Illinois.  Randle will definitely go through the recruiting process, as school like North Carolina, Kansas, Notre Dame, and Duke all will give it their best shot, but, in the end, it will be tough for that kid to leave the state."

We've had our Kentucky Report on hold for almost a week, as we continue to add to our list of the top young players in the state.  The problem stems from the fact that our Kentucky Editor Larry Kihnley, who is a long time assistant coach at Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY is unable to attend any middle school game and, as a result, is uncomfortable providing us with those rankings.  So we have always had to rely on other sources for those rankings, but this time they have been slow getting back to us.  However, we are going ahead and publishing our report, which includes our ranking in order of the top 65 seniors, top 50 juniors, top 36 sophomores, top 18 freshmen, top two 8th graders, and top two 7th graders, but we reserve the right to add additional names as they are made available.  And keeping track of all the good young players promises to be one of the highlights of the season, because the sophomore class, which features 5'10 Soph Rajon Rondo from Louisville (Eastern) KY, 6'8 Soph Robbie Simpson from Louisville (Eastern) KY, 6'3 Soph Demetrius Green from Lexington (Catholic) KY, 6'4 Soph Shawn Ballard from Richmond (Madison Central) KY, and 6'8 Soph Terrance Farley from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY is loaded.  In sharp contrast, the junior and senior classes are that down after you get past 5'9 Brandon Stockton from Glasgow (H.S.) KY, who is the only serious candidate in the senior class for Mr. Basketball, and 6'3 Jr Michael Bush from Louisville (Male) KY and 6'7 Jr Ross Neltner from Ft. Thomas (Highlands) FL.  We also right in the middle of  updating Allen Rubin's Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Report and upon the publication of that report, we will start working on Chris Johnson's Ohio Report, which should also be published sometime next week. 

Wednesday, October 17, 2001

Did you know that that 6'9 Jacob McCartney from Oak Ridge (H.S.) TN has verbally committed to Towson?  At least that's what our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Allen Rubin is telling us.  Not only is McCartney a major steal for the new regime, but it also establishes that first year Towson head coach Michael Hunt will be able to go back into his old stamping grounds to get players.  Remember, Hunt was an assistant coach at Tennessee during the Kevin O'Neill days and at Georgia for Ron Jirsa and Jim Harrick.  Ohio Editor Chris Johnson has the scoop on 6'6 Beckham Wyrick from Cincinnati (Roger Bacon) OH, who has picked UNC-Wilmington, 6'5 Andrew Burleson from Wheelersburg (H.S.) OH, who picked Wright State, and 6'0 John Floyd from Toledo (St. John's) OH, who picked Oakland.  Johnson thinks the commitment by Burleson is of particular significance, because this 6'5 athletic white kid who is the top player in the senior class in Southeastern Ohio is like a poor man's Luke Recker.  Burleson played for All-Ohio last spring, but switched to the Raleigh Heat at the beginning of the summer.  Johnson thinks this might have been the reason why Wright State was able to steal him.  "Mid-American schools aren't going to spend a lot of time watching the Raleigh Heat," says Johnson.  "So it looks like they missed the boat."  And that's good news for Wright State head coach Ed Schilling, who may end up looking like a genius down the road.

We also continue to hear that conflicting things about where 6'5 Rashad Anderson from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL is leaning.  One source swears up and down that Anderson is still a lock for Connecticut, but we also are getting strong indications that it might turn out to be the University of Florida.  Apparently Anderson wanted to go to Florida all along, but the Gators didn't know how good he was last spring and, as a result, didn't offer him a scholarship at the time.  Then, Anderson had a terrific summer, which was highlighted by his performance at the NIKE All-American Camp, where he finished ranked #2 in camp by the HOOP SCOOP, and the Gators lost out on several of the big men the were targeting, like 6'10 Chris Bosh from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, 6'10 Shavlik Randolph from Raleigh (Broughton) NC, and 6'9 Torin Francis from Marion (Tabor Academy) MA.  So Florida turned heat up on Anderson and it looks like it has worked with his father who is putting a lot of pressure on Anderson to stay home.   However, it appears Anderson feels like the Gators snubbed him and that his word is important.  Did you know that he secretly committed to the University of Connecticut coaching staff the first week in October, but, due to increased pressure to stay home, is now struggling with the decision?  We also are still waiting to see if 6'7 Kennedy Winston from Prichard (Blount) AL is going to make it official for California and, if he does, what it will do to the Golden Bears chances of getting 6'4 Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA.  Speaking of Adams, he visited Arizona last weekend and is scheduled to visit California on the weekend of October 27th, which was supposed to have been his final official visit.  However, we have gotten word that Adams has cancelled his visit to UCLA, which was originally scheduled for this weekend, and rescheduled it for the weekend of November 10th.  In other words, it looks like the Bruins are positioning themselves perfectly to turn up the heat at the most opportune time. 

Tuesday, October 16, 2001

Well, it looks like the University of Kansas has hit the jackpot, as the Jayhawks have gotten verbal commitments from two of the top big men who are still available.  We're talking about 6'9 Moulaye Niang from El Cajon (Christian) CA, who is ranked #91 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'9 Jeff Graves from Iowa Western (JC) IA, who is ranked #4 among junior college centers by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  Instantly this moves the Kansas' recruiting class into a tie at #25 nationally, along with UNC-Charlotte, Oklahoma, and Georgia, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  However, that's way too low, if you factor in Niang's potential.  If you will recall, when we first saw Niang at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions last spring, we thought the sky was the limit.   Right now he's a skinny shot blocking athlete who runs the court like a deer, possesses excellent 3-point shooting range, and is a tremendous competitor.  But he's only just begun to scratch the surface.  The fact that he's a terrific student and a wonder kid are just added pluses.  We also have confirmed that 6'2 Ashanti Cook from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA has committed to New Mexico, which means that the Lobos now have landed eight players from California since the Fran Fraschilla era began two years ago.  We're talking about 6'9 Patrick Dennehy, 6'11 Chad Bell, 6'6 Jamaal Williams, 6'4 Senque Carey, 6'4 Ruben Douglas, and 6'2 Marlon Parmer, all of whom are already in the program, and Cook and 6'9 David Chiotti from Mountain View (St. Francis) CA, who committed to the Lobos several weeks ago.  Chiotti is 6'9, 250 lbs and is ideally suited to play in New Mexico's high/low post offense, because he's got the wide body necessary to play inside and the jump shot necessary to step away from the basket.  Cook, who is like a jack-of-all-trades, has grown to 6'2 and has improved his athleticism, which means he will get plenty of playing time as a freshman as a combo guard backing up Marlon Parmer and Ruben Douglas.   And just like Chiotti, Cook is extremely young for his class, as is evident by the fact he turned 17 this fall. 

After Temple recently landed 6'7 Antwyane Robinson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin told us that the Owls focus had turned exclusively to big men.  However, Rubin left us hanging, because he failed to provide us with any names.  But now Rubin has finally come up with some names, like 6'9 Reggie George from Palos Heights (Shepard) IL, 6'6 Mike Blackshear from Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA, and 7'0 Keith Butler from Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA.  Speaking of Butler, Rubin tells us he was at Temple yesterday and today for an official visit.  And that's not the only place Butler has been lately.   Rubin also tells us that Butler was at Cincinnati for an official visit last weekend.  Blackshear doesn't have a true position, but he's a killer on the boards.  George is an enigma, except for the fact that Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report and All-Star Sports told Rubin in late July that George is a top 400 player nationally.  Hopefully Schmidt will be closer on that prediction than he will be on 6'9 Aaron Spears from Chicago (Dunbar) IL.  Actually, I had never heard of Spears before late June, but, after watching him at the NBA Players Association Camp, I remember telling Roy and his brother Harv that this was a guy they were missing on.  However, the Schmidt's held the ground, as they assured me that Spears was not even a Division I player.  In sharp contrast, some people in our business (not us) will now tell you that Spears is a high Division I player, because he has committed to a Big-10 school.  Actually, Spears, who made it official yesterday for Ohio State, is probably someplace in between.  Spears has dropped 20 lbs. this fall and can score around the basket, but he is still best described as a wide body and, as a result, is the perfect complement to 6'8 Charles Bass from Crete (Crete-Monee) IL, who needs to get bigger stronger if he wants to be effective down the road in the Big-10.  Remember, Bass also recently committed to the Buckeyes.  So did 6'4 Ricardo Billings from Detroit (Rogers) MI, plus the Buckeyes got 6'5 JaQuan Hart from Flint (Northern) MI, who was ranked #31 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP in our final rankings of the Class of 2001, after he failed to get accepted into school at the Michigan.

Saturday, October 13, 2001, Sunday, October 14, 2001, & Monday, October 15, 2001

Sometimes it's funny how things turn out.  Last winter 6'2 Chadd Moore from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA appeared to be a lock for Auburn and 6'9 Terry Licorish from Laurinburg (Institute) NC was a lock for the University of Louisville.  However, when Auburn head coach Cliff Ellis saw Moore play last summer he decided that Moore wasn't the point guard of the future for the Tigers.  Instead, Moore verbally committed to Cincinnati in August.  The only thing holding Licorish back from going to Louisville was academics and, as things turned out, he needed another year to get the grades and test score necessary to become eligible to play as a college freshman.  But when the coaching staff changed Licorish became less of a priority for the Cardinals, which enabled Auburn assistant coach Mike Wilson to sneak in the back door and get this one done.  Licorish is ranked #10 on our list of the top 5th Year & Prep School Players, but don't let that deceive you.  If Licorish were a high school senior, he would be ranked among our top 30 nationally.   Licorish is listed as a power forward by the HOOP SCOOP, but he also has excellent 3-point shooting ability and perimeter skills.  "Combine that with his ability to block shots, rebound, and play defense and he reminds you of Glenn Robinson, but without the toughness," says Ro Russell, who is the co-director of the Grass Roots Canada AAU team.  Wilson also took advantage of the fact that Licorish's teammates Laurinburg promises to be the ultimate role player at the big time college level.  We're talking about 6'4 Steve Leven, who checks in at #38 on our list of the top 5th Year & Prep School Players.  Leven is an excellent outside shooter and surprisingly athletic, but what makes him so valuable is his tough hardnosed demeanor.  The commitments by Licorish and Leven move Auburn's recruiting class into the top 30 nationally on our list of the top 30 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date, but even more important they give the Tigers two excellent players to complement the #3 ranked class nationally, which included 6'5 Dwayne Mitchell from New Orleans (John F. Kennedy) LA, 6'8  Brandon Robinson from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'4 Derrick Bird from Schoolcraft (JC) MI, and Marco Killingsworth from Birmingham (Central Park) AL, they signed last spring.  However, Auburn is still looking for a point guard and, if they sign another player in this recruiting class, that will be the position the player needs to fill.  As a result, it should come as no surprise that Auburn is out of the hunt for 6'7 Kennedy Winston from Prichard (Blount) AL, who is ranked #31 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  And so are Cincinnati and Alabama, which means it's now a one-horse race.  As a matter of fact, we think you can write it down for California and it may happen as soon as today.  

Adding fuel to the fire regarding the rumors about North Carolina being on the verge of getting 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX is the fact that Buckman and his father were back in Chapel Hill, NC again over the weekend on an unofficial visit. And they weren't the only ones.  Did you know that the Tar Heels had 6'1 Raymond Felton from Latta (H.S.) SC, who committed to North Carolina last spring, and 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY, who also is considering Villanova, St. John's, and Louisville, on campus for official visits and 6'7 Jr Trevor Ariza from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'10 Jr Major Wingate from Florence (Wilson) SC, and 6'3 Soph Marques Cooke from Sulfolk (Nansmooth River) VA on campus for unofficial visits?  If the Tar Heels strike gold and get both Buckman and Fraser, their recruiting class, which currently is ranked #16 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date, would move up to #2 behind Duke and ahead of Florida.  Also high on North Carolina's list is 6'10 Alou Kane from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) NC, who also is still considering Minnesota and SMU.  If the Tar Heels get Kane and Buckman or Fraser, their recruiting class would still be ranked #2 nationally.  However, if they just get Fraser or Buckman, their recruiting class would be tied at #3, along with Memphis and Iowa State, and if they just get Kane, their recruiting class would be ranked #6 behind Maryland and ahead of Michigan.

We have confirmed that 6'9 Kevin Young from Homestead (Berkshire) FL has verbally committed to the University of Missouri and 6'6 Ismael N'Diaye from Homestead (Berkshire) FL has made it official for Kansas State.  Obviously the connection the Tigers used to get Young is former Berkshire player 6'6 Duane John, who signed with Missouri a year ago.  Young is far from being a finished product and, as a result, currently doesn't rank among our top 100 nationally.  However, he is a physical specimen who has improved by leaps and bounds since we first saw him last spring.  So he should get the time he needs to develop in the Missouri program, plus he should benefit dramatically under Quin Snyder, who is one of the best in the business in terms of individual instruction and developing talent.  Young also should provide the perfect complement to 7'2 Giedrius Rinkevicius from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME, who has more of a finesse game.  If you will recall, Rinkevicius picked the Tigers several weeks and 6'4 Jimmy McKinney from St. Louis (Vashon) MO picked the Tigers last spring.  So Young's commitment moves the Missouri's recruiting class into a tie at #22, along with Mississippi State, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  N'Diaye is an excellent catch for Kansas State, because he's a big time athletic and great defender.  And that is exactly what the Wildcats need.  N'Diaye joins 6'8 Justin Johnson from Merrillville (H.S.) IN, who picked Kansas State a week ago, and together they should provide an excellent complement to Kansas State's #19-ranked recruiting class, which included 6'6 Janerio Spurlock from Chipola (JC) FL, 6'4 Gilson DeJesus from Trinidad State (JC) CO, 6'4 Nick Williams from Mansfield (H.S.) TX,  6'9 Pervis Pasco from Pensacola (JC) FL, 6'6 Marcello DaBarrosa from Brazil, 6'9 Travis Canby from Fork Union (Military) VA, and 6'4 Marcus Hayes from Ovieda (H.S.) FL, a year ago. 

Friday, October 12, 2001

Long Island Panthers and the Tim Thomas Playaz had a lot in common last weekend at the Connecticut Select Hoop Challenge.   They both were late additions and, once they were added to the to the field, they both had to be regarded among the favorites the win this four-day basketball extravaganza.  But neither the Panthers nor the Playaz made it past the semi-finals.  Instead, the New Jersey Roadrunners knocked off Connecticut Select, 70-47, in the championship game and 6'4 Dewitt Maxwell from Newark (Science) NJ stepped up big with 23 points in the championship game en route to tournament MVP honors.   Randy Foye, the 6'3 guard from Newark (East Side) NJ, chipped in with 16 points and 6'10 John Kelley form Wayne (DePaul) NJ added 13 points.  But the most dominant player in the playoffs was 6'2 Charles Easterling from Hartford (Buckeley) CT, who had 17 points in the championship game, 27 points in the semi-finals when Connecticut Select knocked the Tim Thomas Playazz, 102-88, and 29 points in the quarterfinals when Connecticut Select beat the Broncos, 93-92.  Easterling was complemented by 6'1 Dan Oglesby from Hamden (Hamden Hall) CT with 12 points in the championship game, but the guy who really stepped up for Connecticut Select in both the semi-finals with 19 points and the quarterfinals with 21 points was 6'5 Jr Roosevelt Lee from New Britain (H.S.) CT.   Also playing extremely well  for the Long Island Panthers in both the semi-finals with 20 points versus the New Jersey Roadrunners and the quarterfinals with 27 points versus Metro Boston was 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY.  Our New England Editor Wayne Simone, who also was the tournament director, tells us that 6'3 Quincy Douby from Brooklyn (Grady) NY, 6'4 Mike Cooke from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, and 6'6 Jr Sean Banks from Oradell (Bergen Catholic) NJ also had impressive tournaments and, as a result, deserve special mention.  In addition to all the players mentioned above, the rest of the all-tournament team includes 6'1 Jomo Belfor from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'2 Craig Benson from Hamden (H.S.) CT, 7'0 Jr Fernando Bonfin from Bridgeport (Kolbe Cathedral) CT, 6'5 Jr Dwight Brewington from Lynn (English) MA, 6'3 John Cagianello from Windsor (Loomis Chaffee) CT, 6'2 Matt Cahill from Bridgewater (Bridgewater-Raynham) MA, 6'4 Mike Cook from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 6'1 Sean Cooke from Trenton (Notre Dame) NJ, 6'0 Jr Donald Copeland from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6'2 Matt Cushing from Ocean (H.S.) NJ, 6'4 Mamadou Diakite from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NJ, 6'4 Tim Doyle from Oyster Bay (St. Dominic) NY, 6'5 Soph Scott Draughn from Hamden (Hamden Hall) CT, 5'11 Jr D.J. Fields from Manhassett (St. Mary's) NY, 5'11 Darryl Hill from Bayside (Cardozo) NY, 6'6 Jr Robert Hinds from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 5'10 Jr Pat Kenney from Manchester (East Catholic) CT, 6'7 Nicholas King from Milford (Academy) CT, 6'6 Jr Jonathan Langston from Randolph (Brockton) MA, 6'0 Jr Ben Luber from Newtown (Council Rock) PA, 6'5 Rob Lucky from Waterbury (Sacred Heart) CT, 6'0 Mikial Malik from Washington (Spingarn) DC, 6'7 Samuel Manhanga from Greenwich (H.S.) CT, 5'8 Jr Deon Merritt from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'4 Darlington Okerula from Jersey City (Hudson Catholic) NJ, 6'5 Brian Ormond from Schenectady (H.S.) NY, 6'3 Jeremy Plekitas from Woodbridge (Amity) CT, 6'1 Soph Emmanuel Quezada from Washington (St. Albans) DC, 6'5 Jr Matt Ross from Huntington (Walt Whitman) NY, 6'3 Jr Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 6'7 Nyheem Shiggs from Newark (Westside) NJ, 7'0 Ted Skuchas from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'6 Jeff Street from Niagara Falls, NY, 6'6 Curtis Sumpter from Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY, 6'5 Ron Timmons from Washington (Wilson (DC, 6'4 Dave Tvardzik from Seymour (H.S.) CT, and 6'6 Jeff Viggiano from Suffield (H.S.) CT.

On Wednesday, August 22nd, we did some checking and told you that any reports that you might have heard about 6'10 Matt Haryasz from Page (H.S.) AZ making a verbal commitment to Stanford were premature.  Well, it looks like you can finally write it down.  If you will recall, this mobile big man with the ability to score and block shots emerged in late July at the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, NV and, as a result, is now ranked #58 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  He joins 6'5 Dan Grunfeld from Glendale (Nicolet) WI, who verbally committed to The Cardinal three weeks ago.  This is interesting, because Stanford currently has 13 players on scholarship and only one senior - 6'2 Tony Giovacchini - on the roster.  So our guess is that they are done recruiting and they will worry about potentially having 14 players on scholarship later.  The most likely scenario is that 6'6 Casey Jacobsen will declare hardship for the NBA next spring, but paying Grunfeld's way the first year wouldn't a problem for his father,  Ernie Grunfeld, who is the general manager of the Milwaukee Bucks.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that Lehigh has gotten a commitment from 6'1 Patrick Davidson from Melbourne (H.S.) AR and our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson believes that Ohio State may be on the verge of getting a verbal commitment from 6'9 Aaron Spears from Chicago (Dunbar) IL this weekend.  Apparently Spears will be in Columbus, OH on an unofficial visit and Johnson expects Spears to pick the Buckeyes over West Virginia while on the commit on the visit. 

It has been the editorial policy of the HOOP SCOOP for a number of years to rank players who are in their 9th semester or more of high school separately as 5th year players.  Obviously at times this can be a great source of confusion and controversy, but after a careful review of this policy we have decided to continue to rank 5th year players separately for several reasons.  First, most players who fall into this category are older than the rest of the players in the senior class nationally and, as a result, have an advantage of in terms of maturity both mentally and physically.  Second, it gives us a different perspective, just like when we combine our ranking from different states (i.e. Iowa/Kansas/Missouri/Nebraska/Oklahoma). Third, New York teams are not allowed to play against teams with players who are in their 9th semester of high school, although an exception appears to have been made recently with Marion (Tabor Academy) MA.   Apparently 6'9 Torin Francis didn't play basketball when he was a true freshman in high school and, as a result, has been reclassified, whereby, he is now regarded as a true high school senior by everybody but us.  This is important, because it means that Tabor Academy will be eligible to play in both the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL before Christmas and Slam Dunk to the Beach in Lewes, DE after Christmas against teams from New York.  However, for our purposes it is important to establish certain guidelines and, once we've done that, be consistent.  The best example is 6'9 Dermarr Johnson, who would have been the #1-ranked player in the Class of 1999, if he hadn't been a 5th year player (Johnson was a freshman in high school at two different schools in two years).  However, not all 5th year players fall into the academic risk category.  As a matter of fact, two of the top five ranked players on our 5th year list - Francis and 6'2 Marshall Strickland from Sykes (South Carroll) MD - are straight A students and first class people in every way.  Also listed among our top five 5th year players are 6'6 Leonard Cooke from Old Tappan (North Valley Regional) NJ, 6'7 Francisco Garcia from Winchendon (School) MA, and 6'11 Martin Iti from Winchendon (School) MA.  The situation involving Iti is especially interesting, because Winchendon head coach Mike Byrnes is telling people that It is only going to be a junior this year.  Apparently Iti plans to be in the program for not one, but two years.  However, before Iti returned to Australia for a year last fall, we reported that he would only have one year of eligibility left, which would have made him a senior in high school last season, according to our guidelines.  So for our purposes he'll be a 5th year player both this year and next year and sooner than later he may end up being the #1 player on our list, which includes the top 60 players ranked in order.  To get that list, click on 5th Year & Prep Shool Player Rankings.  Especially noteworthy is depth of 5th year players in this class, as the top five are all good enough to receivedserious McDonald's All-American consideration, the top dozen all would be ranked among the top 40 high school seniors, if they were ranked altogether, and the top 25 are all good enough to receive top 100 national consideration. 

Thursday, October 11, 2001

He's not as good as 6'4 Antwain Barbour from Wabash Valley (JC) IL, who verbally committed to the University of Kentucky yesterday, but he may have just as much natural talent, athleticism, and the ability to light up a scoreboard.  We're talking about 6'4 John Winchester from Raleigh (Bonner) NC and the comparison is extremely interesting, because Winchester has elected to play for one of the Wildcats biggest rivals - the University of Tennessee.  We've been expecting this commitment for some time, but it still is important, because Winchester is the marquee player around which the new coaching staff will likely to build this into one of the premier programs in college basketball.  And, unlike Barbour, Winchester  won't be looking to declare hardship for the NBA Draft any time soon.  However, Winchester is good enough right now to be regarded as a legitimate McDonald's All-American candidate and, as a result, he moves the Volunteers recruiting class up to #14 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date behind Iowa and head of Wake Forest.  If you will recall, Tennessee also recently got commitments from 6'1 C.J. Watson from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'6 Justin Albrecht from Iowa Western (JC) IA, and 7'0 Justin Herndon from Nashville (Donalson) TN and they also are hoping to get 6'8 Kevin Bookout from Stroud (H.S.) OK or 6'6 Eric Hicks from Greensboro (Dudley) NC.  The addition of Bookout would move Tennessee's recruiting class all the way up to #3 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date behind Florida and ahead of Memphis and Iowa State.  Hicks would move the Tennessee's class up to #8 behind Purdue and ahead of Louisville and Syracuse. 

Our Texas Editor Wes Grandstaff tells us that UNC-Wilmington has gotten a commitment from 6'8 Mitch Laue from Dallas (Bishop Lynch) TX, who is ranked #19 in the state of Texas by Mike Kunstadt.   Grandstaff probably won't even rank Laue that high even he updates his Texas Report later this fall, but he thinks Laue is an excellent get for the Seahawks.  Actually Laue reminds us of former Cincinnati player Bobby Brannen, because he's a good old-fashioned hardnosed warrior around the basket.  He's also physically strong and versatile enough to keep you honest with his jump shot from mid-range.  And this isn't the only player that UNC-Wilmington assistant coach Rod Terry has gotten out of his home state.  If you will recall, two years ago UNC-Wilmington signed 6'7 Anthony Terrell from Rollett (H.S.) TX, 6'6 Ed Williams from Ranger (JC) TX, and 6'0 Tim Burnett from Converse (Judson) TX and a year ago they landed 6'10 Aaron Combs from Ft. Bend (Dulles) TX.  Now they have a commitment from Laue and we also expect the Seahawks to get 6'5 Tim Mayes from Cleveland (Heritage Christian) TX.   In other words, we believe that UNC-Wilmington is the favorite over schools like Vanderbilt, Rice, and Texas Christian.  Mayes is best described as an athletic wing player who can beat you both with his outside shooting and ability to slash to the basket.  

Wednesday, October 10, 2001

It was more a question of when 6'8 Travis Garrison from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD would commit to the University of Maryland.  If you will recall, we told you two-and-a-half weeks ago when we were at the Charlie Weber Invitational Tournament in College Park, MD that we thought this was a done deal for the Terrapins.  Well, our Washington, DC Editor Steve Turner and our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson both tell us that Garrison made it official last night.  Currently Garrison is ranked #48 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, but he will move up considerably next time we update our national rankings.  If you will recall, Garrison and 6'4 Chris McCray from Capital Heights (Fairmont Heights) MD were two of the best players at Weber's Tournament and, as a result, will go a long way towards filling the void that will be created at Maryland when Juan Dixon, Bryon Mouton, and Lonnie Baxter graduate after this season.  The Terrapins also already have landed the heir apparent to Stephen Blake at point guard when the recently got a commitment from 6'2 Johnny Gilchrist from Virginia Beach (Salem) VA, plus they have 6'7 Nik Caner-Medley from Portland (Deering) ME, who isn't a finished product, but has a major upside.  So it should come as no surprise that the Terrapins recruiting class now moves into a tie, along with Iowa State and Memphis, at #3 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  Another program that already has successfully replaced players in the program who will either graduate or are expected to declare hardship after this season is the University of Kentucky, which did indeed get a verbal commitment this afternoon from 6'4 Antwain Barbour from Wabash Valley (JC) IL.  The players we expect Kentucky to lose after this season are Tayshaun Prince and Keith Bogans and the players who are already earmarked to take their place and who may turn out to be just as good down the road are Barbour and 6'4 Rashaad Carruth from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who signed with the Wildcats last fall.  Barbour, who is ranked as the #1 shooting guard in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, led Elizabethtown (H.S.) KY to the Kentucky State High School Championship two years ago and Wabash Valley (JC) IL to the National Junior College Championship in Hutchinson, KS last March.  So it should come as no surprise that he is widely regarded as the best junior college player in the nation.   In other words, he is expected to step in immediately and start next year, unless he instead opts to put his name into the NBA Draft next spring.  Yes, Barbour is that good!

We also have learned that Utah has gotten an early commitment from 6'10 Stefan Zimmerman from Orem (Mountain View) UT, who is ranked #29 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  Zimmerman has never played a high school varsity basketball game, because he transferred after his freshman year at Orem (H.S.) UT, where he played on the junior varsity two years ago, and, as a result, had to sit out last season at Mountain View.  However, we saw Zimmerman at the Spiece Run'N Slam All-Star Classic last May and he reminded us of a young Joel Pryzbilla.  And after watching Zimmerman score 34 points in the first round of the playoffs on Saturday night, we think he may have just as much potential.  Not only does he have great post moves, an incredible wing span, soft hands, and a nice touch from 15-feet, but he's also surprisingly mobile for somebody so big and so young.  In other words, it wouldn't surprise us if Zimmerman developed into the best player that Utah head coach Rick Majerus has ever coached.  And it's a good thing the Utes got this one done so early, because schools like Brigham Young, Colorado State, Pittsburgh, Michigan, and Seton Hall have already been showing a lot of interest. 

Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'6 J.R. Morris, who is ranked #77 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has verbally committed to Seton Hall.  This commitment comes as somewhat of a surprise, because Morris committed to Illinois last summer and to our knowledge had never reneged.  However, we did know that Morris' commitment was a soft commitment, because in all likelihood he would have to go the prep school route.  Acutally he already has, as this fall he transferred from Milwaukee (Washington) WI to Creedmore (Faith Christian) NC.  But Morris will not make our 5th year list, which should be completed within a few days, because he is a true senior in high school.  However, if he returns to Creedmoor next year, he will be listed as a 5th year player at the proper time.  As for Seton Hall, Morris gives the Pirates at least three commitments in their current recruiting class.  If you will recall, the Pirates also got commitments this fall from 6'7 Kelly Whitney from Creedmore (Faith Christian) NC and 6'9 Eric Davis from Raleigh (Bonner Academy) NC, plus they got a commitment last spring from 6'2 John Blackgrove from Winchendon (School) MA.  However, Blackgrove's commitment was made to the previous regime and, as a result, Rubin believes Blackgrove is still available.  "I know Seton Hall is still looking for another wing player," says Rubin.  "So I assume that Blackgrove doesn't count with the current class."  But, if he does, he would move the Pirates recruiting class into the top 25 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.   And Morris' commitment effects Illinois' recruting class, which suddenly drops from #3 into a tie with Purdue at #7 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date. 

Doug Carr is reporting in Cat Tracks, which is the publication that covers Arizona basketball, that the Wildcats are the favorite for 6'5 Brandon Roy from Seattle (Garfield) WA, who is ranked #76 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, but who is regarded by several college coaches we've talked with as the most underrated player in the senior class on the West Coast.  And now we now why.  He was at the NIKE All-American Camp, but "was sent home after being diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament,"which apparently occurred in late June.  He also played at the adidas Big Time Tournament, but wasn't at "full strength because of the injury.  After the Big Time Tournament, Roy had surgery on the knee.   He's still recovering."  A distant second on Roy's list are Washington, Oregon, and Gonzaga.  Carr also reports that Arizona also has had 6'3 Chris Rodgers from Portland (Wilson) OR, 6'4 Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, and 6'7 Andre Iguodala from Springfield (Lanphier) IL on campus this fall for official visits.  Rodgers, who is ranked #21 nationally in the senior class and was ranked #4 overall at the NIKE All-American Camp last summer by the HOOP SCOOP, committed to Arizona last spring.    Adams, who is ranked #36 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, is also considering California, Boston College, Tennessee, Oregon, UCLA, and Kansas.   Iguodala, who is ranked #73 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, also has Arkansas, Boston College, and Maryland on his list. 

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson confirms that the University of Wisconsin has landed 6'3 Maurice Wade from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, who is ranked #80 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and this is important for several reasons.  First, it establishes that the new regime can get the top players in their backyard.  If you will recall, the Badgers also got a commitment in late August from 6'7 Ray Nixon from Milwaukee (Dominican) WI, who is ranked #82 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  So now the Badgers have two legitimate top 100 seniors nationally in this recruiting class.   Second, Nixon, Wade, and 6'4 Alando Tucker from Lockport (Township) IL, who committed to Wisconsin in September, will allow the Badgers to play at a much faster pace than they have in the past.  Remember, first-year head coach Bo Ryan was successful with an uptempo style in recent years at Wisconsin-Milwaukee.  These three players do not give the Badgers enough points to be ranked among our top 25 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date, but they do allow the Badgers to keep up with Marquette.  We mention Marquette is quietly developing into a potential powerhouse.  In addition to the three players in the Golden Eagles current recruiting class - 6'9 Steve Novak from Brown Deer (H.S.) WI, 6'10 Chris Grimm from Brighton (H.S.) MI, and 6'4 Joe Grimm from Chicago Heights (Bloom Township) IL, head coach Tom Crean also has five excellent freshmen - Travis Diener, Ron Howard, Dwayne Wade, Todd Townsend, and Kevin Menard - and three good sophomores - Scott Merritt, Odartey Blankson, and Terry Sanders - already in the program.  Johnson also tells us that Eastern Kentucky has gotten a verbal commitment from 6'0 Matt Whitt from Tipp City (Bethel) OH.  Whitt isn't ranked that high by most people, but Johnson thinks Whitt is one of the biggest sleepers in the state.  He also says that Whitt is similar to Travis Ford in many ways.  "Whitt is a powerfully built point guard with deceptive speed and quickness and the ability to drill the outside shot," says Johnson.  And just like Ford, Whitt is a winner, as is evident by the fact that he led his team to the Division IV Ohio State Championship last March and, in the process, averaged 26 ppg and 5 apg. 

Tuesday, October 9, 2001

Like so many other players who we're currently waiting on, it isn't done yet, but it's pretty close.  We're talking about 6'9 Terry Licorish, who was supposed to be heading to Butler County (JC) KS, but who has surfaced at Laurinburg (Institute) NC.  Auburn is the heavy favorite, according to Laurinburg head coach Chris Chaney, and it may get done by this weekend.  As a matter of fact, Chaney confirms that Tigers head coach Cliff Ellis will be in Laurinburg, NC tonight to make an in-home visit.  As usual, the connection appears to be Auburn assistant coach Mike Wilson due to his strong ties to Ro Russell, who is the co-director of the Grass Roots Canada AAU team and the editor of a soon to be web site, www.hoopscanada.fan.ca.  If you will recall, Licorish made his way to the United States via Canada.   And it could turn out to be a package deal, because Auburn also is the co-leader, along with East Carolina, for 6'4 Steven Leven from Laurinburg (Institute) NC.  Chaney also reports that Loyola-Chicago, Rhode Island, and South Carolina are all showing a lot of interest in 5'11 Terrance Whittier, South Florida is the favorite for 6'4 Sheldon Franklin, and it appears to be a three-horse race among Miami-FL, Florida State, and Miami-FL for 6'6 Cortez Davis.  Chaney also has 6'5 Christiano Johnson and 6'6 Kiel Butler on his prep school team, but the player who intrigues us the most is 6'8 Boubacar Coly, who made the move from Oak Hill to Laurinburg this fall.  If you will recall, Coly hardly played last year at Oak Hill for head coach Steve Smith, but apparently has come on like gangbusters, as he was terrific when we saw him this summer at the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, NV, while playing for the Atlanta Celtics.  Coly, who has been reclassified as junior, will join 6'2 Tristan Martin and 6'3 Jr Dwight Jones on the Laurinburg High School team.  We also talked today with Mike Byrnes, who is the head coach Winchendon (School) MA and it looks like this could be his best teams ever, despite the fact 6'9 Sani Ibrahim transferred to Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and 6'2 Marshall Strickland from Sykes (South Carroll) MD didn't return.   Instead, Winchendon's best player is 6'11 Martin Iti, who has been missing in action in Australia for the last year-and-a-half after being ruled ineligible to play at Villa Park (H.S.) CA.  We're talking about somebody who is half-Nigerian and half-Australian, but doesn't even begin to tell the story about this incredible shot blocking athlete with great foot work and timing who drew Lew Alcindor comparisons when we saw him for the first time in several years this summer.  So it should come as no surprise that Iti is ranked as the #2 player, behind 6'6 Leonard Cooke from Old Tappan (North Valley Regional) NJ, on our 5th year list, which will be published in several days.  And providing Iti with the perfect complement out on the perimeter will be 6'7 Francisco Garcia, who transferred from Cheshire (Academy) CT to Winchendon this fall, and 6'6 Demario Eddin, who is back for another year.  Garcia also has  superstar written all over him.  Remember, Garcia, who exploded onto the scene this summer as he continued to gain confidence and impress everybody with his intensity, outside shooting, versatility, and athleticism.  As a result, Reggie Miller comparisons are in order.   You may not remember Eddin, but he's the big time athlete we liked so much last winter at the prep school tournament in Worcester, MA.  And apparently the Arkansas coaching staff agreed with us, because they signed him last spring.  However, Eddin didn't make it academically, so he's back at Winchendon.  From there Byrnes will have lots of versatility and depth, as 6'5 Corey Herring, 6'2 Andres Sandovas, 6'0 Kyle Wade, 6'2 Curtis Stinson, 6'2 John Blackgrove, 6'2 David Reyes, and 6'2 Bryant Avant, and 6'10 Andrea Crosarios will all get mid-to-high major looks and 5'8 Kenny Minor has already committed Manhattan. 

It looks like we were right on the money when we told you that 6'5 Rashad Anderson from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL may not make it official for the University of Connecticut quite as soon as expected.  And, yes, it looks like the University of Florida is the big reason why he's put making this very important decision on hold.   We also haven't heard anything new about 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX making a commitment to either Texas or North Carolina.  However, our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that 6'4 Jayson Obazuaya from San Jose (Andrew Hill) CA has made it official for the University of Colorado.  And Trigonis thinks this is an excellent catch for the Buffaloes.  Obazuaya is an excellent athlete and defender, but he needs to work on his jump shot.  As a matter of fact, that's the only thing standing in the way of Obazuaya from being ranked among our top 100 nationally.  We also are looking for 6'10 Ike Diagu from Garland (H.S.) AZ to make is official for Arizona State in the near future.  If you will recall, Mitch Malone, who is Diagu's coach on the Texas Blue Chip AAU team, told us that the Sun Devils were the heavy favorite for this physical specimen prior to the start of the summer.  But after the Diagu's stock went through the roof at the adidas ABCD Camp in early July, a number of big time schools jumped in and, as a result, prolonged the process.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'0 Mike Lasme from Burlington (Life Center) NJ has committed to the University of Massachusetts again.  We say again, because Lasme committed to the Minutemen in July, but reneged on that commitment about a month ago.  Bob Gibbons of All-Star Sports is reporting that 6'8 Donte Mintor from Mt. Ulla (West Rowan) NC has committed to Appalachian State, 6'6 Robert Strickland from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA has picked Marshall, and Rhode Island has landed 6'2 Bam Harmon from The Colony (H.S.) TX. 

We also wouldn't be surprised if the University of California emerges as the winner in the sweepstakes for 6'7 Kennedy Winston from Pritchard (Blount) AL.  However, this would be a surprise to many, because most people believe that he will end up at one of the local schools, like Alabama, Auburn, and Cincinnati.   Yes, the Bearcats are now considered one of the local schools.  Remember, Andy Kennedy, who was hired at Cincinnati in mid-July, was previously a player and an assistant at UAB and, as a result, has incredible ties in the state.  As for the Golden Bears, this would be their second commitment from a player in the Class of 2002 from the Deep South.  If you will recall, California also got a commitment last spring from 6'7 Derek Burditt from Marrero (West Jefferson) LA.  However, more recently Burditt reneged on that commitment to California and, instead, committed to Tulane.  He also recently changed high schools.   Previously Burditt was at Marrero (John Ehret) LA.  We're also hearing that 6'4 Antwain Barbour from Wabash Valley (JC) IL will finally make an official decision tomorrow or the next day and, if that happens, we'd be shocked if he doesn't pick the University of Kentucky.  And assuming we're right, this would move the Wildcats recruiting class up to #20 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  And they could move up even higher, if they add another player in the spring - right now the most likely candidate appears to be 6'9 Kevin Young from Homestead (Berkshire) FL. The serious contenders for 6'9 Jeff Graves from Iowa Western (JC) IA, who is the #4-ranked center in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, are Kansas, Illinois, and Louisville.  Drexel, George Mason, Virginia Commonwealth, and Robert Morris appear to be the final four for 6'8 Jai Lewis from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, but our Baltimore Editor Paul Bowden tells us that James Madison and Rhode Island are trying to get in late.

Saturday, October, 6, 2001, Sunday, October 7, 2001, Monday, October 8, 2001

Anybody who is telling you that 6'5 Rashad Anderson from Lakeland (Kathleen) FL, who is ranked #27 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has made it official for the University of Connecticut is jumping the gun.  We do understand the press conference is scheduled for tomorrow and we assume that it will be the Huskies.  However, if by some chance the press conference gets cancelled and/or there is some kind of a delay making an announcement, then don't be surprised if the University of Florida sneaks and pulls off a major upsets.  Remember, the Gators still have one available scholarship and Anderson is an in-state kid.  Anderson is one of our favorite players in the class, because he is a tremendous competitor, big time athlete, and great outside shooter.  This was especially evident in July at the NIKE All-American Camp, where he hit everything in sight on the last day and finished ranked #2 in camp by the HOOP SCOOP.   He also was the heart and sole of the Tallahassee Wildcats AAU team, which quickly is emerging as of the top up-and-coming programs in the nation.  As a matter of fact, the Tallahassee Wildcats won the championship in the tournament that Bob Gibbons and the Hoop Group hosted over the weekend in Clemson, SC.  No official MVP was named, but, if there had been, Anderson would have easily been the choice, as he scored 22 points in the championship game and was the leading scorer in the tournament averaging 18 ppg.  Also playing extremely well for the Tallahassee Wildcats was 6'0 Soph Darius Washington from Orlando (Edgewater) FL, who averaged nearly a double-double for the tournament in both scoring and assists, 6'11 Jr Akini Adkins from Tallahassee (Leon) FL, and 6'8 Kevin Young from Homestead (Berkshire) FL.  Getting back to Anderson's expected commitment to Connecticut, this would move the Huskies recruiting class into the top 20 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  Remember, Connecticut also struck gold earlier this fall when they landed 6'5 Denham Brown from Toronto (Westhill) ON.  Talk about the perfect future complement at the wing spot.   Brown and Anderson are almost interchangeable at both the two and the three spots, because they both have lots of athleticism, can shoot the lights out, and still have plenty of untapped talent and potential.  Anderson's expected commitment also is significant, because there aren't very many of the top players left.  Let's take a closer look.  Right now only six players - 6'9 DeAngelo Collins from Inglewood (H.S.) CA, 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX, 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Kevin Bookout from Stroud (H.S.) OK, 6'7 Matt Trannon from Flint (Northern) MI - who ranked among our top 30 are still available.  Digging a little deeper, 6'7 Kennedy Winston from Mobile (Blount) AL, 6'10 Sani Ibrahim from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Sean May from Bloomington (H.S.) IN, 6'4 Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'5 Antonio Lawrence from Fresno (San Joaquin Memorial) CA, 6'9 Ike Diagu from Garland (H.S.) TX, 6'8 Travis Garrison from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, and 6'3 Randy Foye from Newark (East Side) NJ all are still uncommitted and ranked in the 26-50 range nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  So only 14 of our top 50 seniors are still available.  In other words, 72% of the top players in the class are already gone.  Also still available and ranked in the 51-100 range are 6'10 Alou Kane from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA, 6'7 Marques Hayden from Midwest City (Putnam City) OK, 6'10 Matt Haryasz from Page (H.S.) AZ, 7'0 Julius Lamptey from Oklahoma City (Northeast) OK, 6'1 Mike Lasme from Burlington (Life Center) NJ, 6'8 Charles Davis from Selma (Southside) AL, 6'1 Greg Brown from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 6'7 Andre Igoudala from Springfield (Lanphier) IL, 6'6 Brandon Roy from Seattle (Garfield) WA, 6'5 Alex Carmona from Troy (H.S.) OH, 6'5 Maurice Wade from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI, 6'6 Elliott Poole from Chicago (Farragut) IL, 6'8 Rashawn Freeman from Schenectady (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Brian Feeney from Gilbert (Mesquite) AZ, 6'10 Moulaye Niang from El Cajon (Christian) CA, 6'5 Maurice Petty from Shelby (Crest) NC, and 6'6 Bobby Jones from Long Beach (Poly) CA.  So only 31 players in our top 100 are still uncommitted, which means that 69% of the players ranked among our top 100 nationally are gone and at this time of the year, that's a staggering percentage.

It looks like the rumor about 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX making a verbal commitment to North Carolina just won't die, plus we are getting reports about 6'4 John Winchester from Raleigh (Bonner Academy) NC verbally committing to the University of Tennessee.  However, in Winchester's case it does not appear to be official yet, even though we've known for sometime that the Volunteers were the heavy favorite for this athletic wing player whose seen the value of his stock go through the roof this spring, summer, and fall.  As for Buckman, we've said all along that the University of Texas was a near lock and we see no reason to back off that statement now.  Instead, we think North Carolina could pull off a major coup by landing 6'10 Alou Kane from Dyke (Blue Ridge) VA, who is ranked #52 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.   Sure, Kane is still very raw, but he plays extremely hard and does an excellent job of combining athleticism and power around the basket.  Our Texas Editor Wes Grandstaff tells us that Kane cancelled his scheduled visit to the University of Minnesota due to the turbulent state of affairs in the world today.  Instead, it looks like a two-horse race between SMU and North Carolina.  If the Tar Heels pull this off, their recruiting class would move up to #6 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date behind Duke, Florida, Illinois, Memphis and Iowa State and ahead of Michigan.  It also would give the Tar Heels the highest ranked recruiting class to-date nationally among schools with less than four recruits in their recruiting class, which means they have done an excellent job of getting both quality and quantity.  If Kane decides to follow his teammate - 6'1 Bryan Hopkins from Dallas (Lincoln) TX - to SMU, it would move the Mustangs recruiting class into a tie at #19 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date, along with Notre Dame.  It also would give SMU a great player at each of the two most important positions (point guard and center), plus it would sent shock waves through the recruiting world.  Remember, it's hard for a lot of people to believe that a team in the Western Athletic Conference can beat teams in the Atlantic Coast and Big-12 Conferences for top ranked players. 

Reggie Tisdale, who is the Editor & Publisher of Indiana Basketball News, tells us that 6'8 Justin Johnson from Merrillville (H.S.) IN has picked Kansas State over Marshall and Southern Illinois.  While the coaching staffs for the Thundering Herd and Salukis both have a history of stealing more than their fair share of players who should be playing at a higher level, this time it appears to have caught up them.  That's right!  Johnson picked the highest level school left on his list.   Tisdale not only reminds us that the value of Johnson's stock was much higher last spring when schools like Michigan State and Xavier were offering.  However, those schools have since filled their inside needs and, as a result, it appears that Johnson was getting cold feet.  But that doesn't mean that Johnson doesn't have the potential to develop into an excellent player, as he continues to improve both his skills and confidence.  Tisdale also tells us that 6'8 Andregs Kregers from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN has verbally committed to Ohio University.  "What Kregers lacks in ability, he more than makes for with heart and desire," says Tisdale. " In other words, he's just a good old-fashioned blue collar player who is aggressive as hell."  Tisdale also tells us that Lipscomb recently got verbal commitments recently from 6'9 Charlie Jenny from Floyds Knobs (Floyd Central) IN and 5'10 Craig Schoen from Elizabeth (South Central) IN.  Lipscomb may also get Jenny's high school teammate - 6'8 Kyle Thrasher, if he doesn't opt for Youngstown State or IUPUI, both of which are Division I schools.  Tisdale also reminds us that Dayton picked off a good one when 6'4 Marquis Bennett from Indianapolis (Brebeuf) IN picked the Flyers a week ago.   "Bennett is like Bracy Wright without the jumper," says Tisdale.  "Bennett's father, who has coaching experience at the high school level, believes that the jump shot will come in time.  And, if that happens, Bennett will likely be a pro!" 

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that the University of Oregon has added two more verbal commitments.  If you will recall, the Ducks got a commitment last week from 6'3 Andre Joseph from Lee (JC) TX, who is ranked as the #9 wing guard by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, and now they have gotten a commitments from 6'4 Jordan Kent from Eugene (Churchill) OR and 6'4 Brandon Lincoln from Portland (Jefferson) OR.  The commitment by Kent comes as no surprise, because his father, Ernie Kent, is the head coach at Oregon.  However, it isn't clear in what sport Kent will focus on in college.  The younger Kent averaged 12.8 ppg, 4.9 rpg, and 2.5 apg on the hardwood last winter, but he also won the 200 meters, long jump, and 400 meters, while leading his team to the track and field state championship last spring.  Kent is expected to red-shirt in basketball, while he gets stronger and concentrates on track during his first year of college.  Then he will see where he is and make a decision on his career.  Lincoln is an excellent athlete with a lot of natural talent, but the last several years he has had to live in the shadow of a number of great players like Brandon Brooks, Antone Jerrell, Aaron Miles, and Michael Lee at Portland Jefferson.  He also hasn't gotten a chance to show that he can play point guard (Brooks and Miles have been ranked among the very elite point guards in the nation each of the last two years) and there may not be any end in sight, because 5'11 Curtis Lincoln, who really impressed us when we saw him at the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, NV, will be the guy running the show at Jefferson this winter and Luke Ridnour will be running the show at Oregon for the next three seasons.  Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that 6'3 Keion Kindred from Compton (Dominguez) CA has verbally committed verbally committed to UTEP.  Obviously the connection there is Silvey Dominguez, who previously was an assistant coach at Southern California.   Speaking of former USC's assistant coaches, Trigonis tells us that Dave Miller worked the Full-Court Press Freshman-Sophomore Camp over the weekend and it appears that he hasn't lost his recruiting touch.  That's right!   He already has an in-home visit set-up for three years down the road with 6'5 Frosh Jamaal Boykin from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA.  Unfortunately we are unable to even speculate on which school will receive the visit, because Miller currently is out of a job.  Johnson also tells us that South Florida has gotten a commitment from 6'1 Dan Oglesby from Hamden (Hamden Hall) CT and Boston College has landed 6'4 Jason Forte from Bay Springs (H.S.) MS.  Neither player is ranked among our top 100 seniors nationally, but Forte has enough athleticism and upside to get serious top 100 consideration and Oglesby, who is now a 5th year player, is much improved over when we first saw him a year ago.

Friday, October 5, 2001

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson is reporting that the University of Missouri has gotten a commitment from 7'2 Giedrius Rinkevicius from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME via Lithuania.  Obviously the connection is assistant coach Lane Odom, whose family has strong contacts with the right people who are involved with the top players from that part of the world.  We really have no idea how good Rinkevicius is, but he sounds like the typical player from Eastern Europe - needs to get bigger and stronger and become more aggressive, but can catch, pass, shoot, and has surprisingly agility for somebody his size.  Speaking of Missouri, like everybody else, we also are waiting to see if the NCAA clear 6'11 Uche Okafor from Southern Idaho (JC) ID to play this season.  Based on the previous precedent that has already been established with the other two Nigerians - 6'11 Muhammed Lesage and 6'8 Benjamin Eze Ndubuisi. who can showed up in Canada together three years ago, our guess is that Okafor won't be eligible.  However, in this case we are less sure how the NCAA will rule, because it appears that Okafor did not play in any games professional in Russia. 

We also are getting reports that 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX has verbally committed to North Carolina.   But we can't confirm it.  As a matter of fact, our Texas Editor Wes Grandstaff, who has sources close to both the Texas and North Carolina programs tells us nobody he's talked with knows anything about a verbal commitment.  Our guess is that Buckman still plans to bcome a Longhorn.  If you will recall, Texas head coach Rick Barnes and Buckman's father are in business together and, as a result, we assumed all along that the only reason Buckman was interested in schools like Kansas, North Carolina, and UCLA was to help enhance his chances of becoming a McDonald's All-American.  Remember, the state of Texas has five of our top 15-ranked seniors nationally in 6'10 Chris Bosh from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, 6'1 Bryan Hopkins from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, 6'3 Daniel Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, 6'3 Bracy Wright from The Colony (H.S.) TX, and 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX.  However, we don't think Buckman will be the guy who gets snubbed, despite the fact he came on like gangbusters this summer.   Unfortunately the people running the McDonald's All-American seem to have a quota to fill and a quick look at our post summer rankings shows that Buckman is the #2-ranked white kid in the senior class nationally behind 6'4 J.J. Redick from Roanoke (Cave Spring) VA and ahead of 6'10 Paul Davis from Rochester (H.S.) MI, 6'2 Gerry McNamara from Scranton (Bishop Hannan) PA, and 6'10 Shavlik Randolph from Raleigh (Broughton) NC. 

Yesterday we mentioned briefly that Rutgers had gotten a commitment from 6'3 Dominick Mejia from Voorhees (Eastern Regional) NJ and St. Joseph's had landed 6'0 Dwayne Lee from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, but we didn't get a chance to talk about the significance of these commitments.  Neither player is ranked among our top 100 nationally, but they both should get a lot of top 100 consideration.  Lee has always lived in the shadow of 6'1 Elijah Ingram at Jersey City (St Anthony) NJ, but he's an excellent point guard in his own right.  He makes excellent decisions, has excellent ball handling and passing skills, and isn't afraid to beat you with his 3-point shooting.  In other words, he is the stereotypical player who has gone to St. Joseph's and continued to develop under Phil Martelli, who is emerging into one of the best coaches in the game today.  Mejia is an excellent athlete and prolific scorer, but, even more important, he helps establish that the new regime at Rutgers can get the top players from in their own backyard.  Remember, pre-existing relationships are especially important when recruiting in New Jersey and this was one of the big questions that a lot of people had when Gary Waters and his staff took over as the head coach of the Scarlet Knights last spring.  With this commitment they obviously have made a major step in the right direction.  Another school that is making major strides in the right direction is the University of Louisville, which now appears to be one player away from being a legitimate NCAA Final Four contender in Rick Pitino's second year on the job.  We're talking about 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY or 6'8 Sean May from Bloomington (North) IN.   Louisville has only one scholarship remaining in this recruiting class and either player would provide the perfect complement to what the Cardinals will have inside a year from now with Brandon Bender, Ellis Myles, and 6'10 Kendal Dartez from Vincennes (JC) IN, who is ranked #8 among power forwards by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook. Louisville also figures to be very strong outside a year from with Carlos Hurt, Reece Gaines, Larry O'Bannon, Erik Brown, 6'7 Francisco Garcia from Winchendon (School) MA, and 6'2 Taquan Dean from Neptune (H.S.) NJ.  Fraser would bring to the table the defense and rebounding that Louisville that needs, but May also is intriguing, because he's so skilled and smart around the basket.  However, in both cases the Cardinals have their work cut out for them, because beating Indiana on May won't be easy and Villanova and St. John's have all the right contacts win the Fraser-sweetstakes.  

Thursday, October 4, 2001

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that it looks like Texas Tech is done recruiting, as the Red Raiders landed 6'8 Robert Tomaszek from Eastern Wyoming (JC) WY about a week ago and 6'8 John Ofoegbu from San Antonio (Taft) TX sometime within the last 48 hours.  We also have confirmed via Mark Smith of the Albuquerque Journal that 6'6 Bryson Kruger from Gilbert (Mesquite) AZ has verbally committed to Vanderbilt and that 6'4 Tony Skinner from Northeastern (JC) CO has picked Gonzaga over Baylor.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin is reporting that St. Joseph's has gotten commitments from 6'0 Dwayne Lee from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ and 6'4 Chet Stachitas from St. Augustine (Nease) FL, plus he's trying to confirm the reports we've gotten about 6'3 Dominick Mejia from Voorhees (Eastern Regional) NJ making a verbal commitment to Rutgers.  We also understand that 6'2 Eric Wilkins from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA has verbally committed to Miami-FL, which means that all of the seniors at Oak Hill Academy, except 6'9 Sani Ibrahim, have already verbally committed.  If you will recall, 6'5 Richard Joyce and 6'1 Justin Gray are both going  to Wake Forest, 6'9 Ian Johnson is committed to Davidson, 6'2 Chadd Moore has picked Cincinnati, 6'7 Antywane Robinson picked Temple earlier this week, and 6'7 Carmelo Anthony from Towson (Catholic) MD is the big prize in Syracuse's recruiting class.  Speaking of Anthony, there is no question in our mind that he's the #1 senior in the nation.   As a matter of fact, a college coach who was at Oak Hill in mid-September watching work-outs tells us that Anthony was absolutely sensational before he twisted his ankle.  At that point they wrapped up the ankle and let Anthony to continue to play, but told him to take it easy.  So he took his game exclusively outside where he hit 6-8 3-pointers.  Yes, Carmelo Anthony is that good and that versatile!  In other words, we are likely talking about the next Tracy McGrady.  We also have gotten a report from Greg Swaim of GregSwaim.com about 6'8 Kevin Bookout from Stroud (H.S.) OK cancelling his official visit to Tennessee this weekend.   Apparently Bookout is afraid to fly.  However, the same can't be said about 6'7 Jr Trevor Ariza from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, who will be on the East Coast next weekend taking an unofficial visit to both Duke and North Carolina.  Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that Ariza will attend the Tar Heels Midnight Madness on Friday night, the UNC-Virginia football game on Saturday, and practices at both Duke and North Carolina before heading home on Sunday.

Can you believe that we've never been to the DeMatha Invitational?  In the past the timing has always been wrong (it's always been much later in the year), but that will likely change this winter, because it promises to be one of the premier tip-off events in the nation.  And that's not only thing that has changed, as the tournament has a new name, new location, new date, and a new look.  The new name of the tournament is the Morgan Wootten Invitational, which is a tribute to the winningest high school coach in the history of the game.  The new location is the University of Maryland's Cole Field House and the new date is Saturday, December 1, 2001, beginning with the game between Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA and Bethesda (Georgetown Preparatory) MD at 3:30 PM.  This game is worth the price of admission, because it will provide a sneak preview of the future, as two of the top young players - 6'9 Soph Brian Johnson from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA and 6'10 Soph Roy Hibbert from Bethesda (Georgetown Preparatory) MD - in both the DC area and the nation go head-to-head.  Then at 5:30 PM it will be Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD versus Amityville (H.S.) NY and at 7:30 PM it will be Marion (Tabor Academy) MA versus Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA.  Speaking of Oak Hill, they should once again be the #1-ranked high school team in America by everybody but Eddie Oliver, who ranks the top high school teams throughout the seaon in HoopsUSA.com.  Oak Hill features 6'7 Carmelo Anthony from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who is ranked as the #1 high school player in America by the HOOP SCOOP, but the last two games also include five other players who will get McDonald's All-American consideration in 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY, 6'9 Torin Francis from Marion (Tabor Academy) MA, 6'9 Travis Garrison from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'9 Sani Ibrahim from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 6'2 Chadd Moore from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA.   The tournament is also for a worthy cause, as the proceeds will go to benefit the American Liver Foundation's Washington DC Chapter.  The ALF is the leading voluntary health organization dedicated to preventing, treating and curing hepatitis and other liver diseases through research and education.  Coach Wootten created the Invitational to raise awareness for organ donation after he received a life-saving liver transplant in 1996.  Advance tickets are $10 for all three games, while premium seats are only $25.   Tickets can be purchased by calling Brett Olson in the Morgan Wootten Invitational offices at 301-762-7100.

It looks like Wayne Simone is taking the opportunity of the upcoming holiday weekend to have a four-day basketball extravaganza at Sacred Heart University, the University of Bridgeport, and Fairfield University.  We're talking about the Connecticut Select Hoop Challenge, which begins tomorrow night with games exclusively at Sacred Heart University.  In the opening round at 7:30 PM in the 17-Under Division it will be Slamma Jamma versus Farmington Valley, Connecticut Select (NH) versus Connecticut Starters, and Waterbury NER versus Connecticut Flame East.  At 8:30 PM it will be the B-Ballers versus Jersey Jaguars, Connecticut Warriors versus Connecticut Gold II, and Swingtown Players versus Milford Academy and at 9:45 PM it will be 92nd Street Y versus Long Island Gaels, Long Island Lightning versus Connecticut Gold I, and Connecticut Comets versus Greater Boston.   Games in the 17-Under Division continue on Saturday morning with the New Hampshire Falcons versus the New Hampshire Peak at 8:30 AM, Suffolk (NY) versus Quebec Nomades at 9:45 AM, the New Jersey Wildcats versus Sam Rines I and the Long Island Lightning versus the Long Island Roadrunners at 11:00 AM, Sam Rines II versus Metro Boston and Sullivan Eagles versus SJ Select at 12:15 PM, Madison Broncoes versus the Long Island Roadrunners and the New Jersey Roadrunners versus Worcester West at 1:30 PM, the Central Jersey All Stars (Buff) versus Washington Heights Warriors and the Jersey State Warriors verus Rocafella at 2:45 PM, Newark Zoo Crew versus St. Paul's Crusaders and Monmouth Power versus Long Island Roadrunners (Fields) at 5:15 PM, Jersey State Cyclones versus Jersey City Heat, Willie Howe (NY) versus YABC (Mass), Connecticut Flame West versus B-Ballers (NY), and Positive Image versus Jersey Jaguars at 6:30 PM, Connecticut Warriors versus New Jersey Roadrunners, Connecticut Gold II versus Worcester West, 92nd Street Y versus Swingtown Players (Mass), and the Long Island Gaels versus Milford Academy at 7:45 PM, Long Island Lightning versus Madison Square Broncoes, Connecticut Gold I versus Long Island Roadrunners, New Hampshire Falcons versus Connecticut Select, Prime Time (Va.) versus NHA Peak, Waterbury NER versus Suffolk County (NY), and Connecticut Flame East versus Quebec Nomades at 9:00 PM, and Slamma Jamma versus New Jersey Wildcats, Farmington Valley versus Sam Rines I, Connecticut Comets versus Sam Rines II, Greater Boston versus Metro Boston, Sullivan Eagles versus Connecticut Select (NH), and SJ Select versus Connecticut at 10: 15 PM.  For the schedule in the 14-Under, 15-Under, and 16-Under Divisions on Friday and Saturday, as well as all the games on Sunday, click on ConnSelect.  The Quarterfinals for the 17-Under Division will be at Sacred Heart University on Monday at 9:30 AM, followed by the 16-Under Semi-finals at 10:45 PM, the 17-Under Semi-finals at 12:00 Noon, the 16-Under Championship at 1:15 PM, and the 17-Under Championship at 2:30 PM.  And Simone may have a surprise or two.  Right now the Long Island Panthers aren't on the schedule, but Simone can work them if they decide to show up.  Apparently Long Island Panthers head coach Gary Charles has told Simone that he plans to bring a team.   And if he brings the group, which includes 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY, 6'6 Curtis Sumpter from Brooklyn (Bishop Loughlin) NY, 6'8 Jr Charlie Villaneuva from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ, 6'6 Leonard Cooke from Old Tappan (H.S.) NJ, and 6'3 Taquan Dean from Neptune (H.S.) NJ, that was named Team of the Summer by the HOOP SCOOP, there would be no question who the favorite would be to win the Connecticut Select Hoop Challenge.  It looks like we were right on the money when we told that the Long Island Panthers would likely show at the Connecticut Select Hoop Challenge this weekend.  And they aren't the only late addition.  Simone also tells us that the Tim Thomas Playaz  have been added to the schedule, which obviously has undergone some adjustments.  And you can get those changes by clicking on ConnSelect. 

Wednesday, October 3, 2001

Among the things that separate us from most of our competition are our willingness to go out on a limb, make predictions, and state the obvious before it becomes too obvious.  And a great example is the current Duke recruiting class.  If you will recall, on Friday, December 29th, we wrote:  "The recent reports about 6'10 Jr  Michael Thompson from New Lenox (Providence) IL, who ranks #31 nationally among juniors by the HOOP SCOOP, making a verbal commitment to Duke appear to be premature.   However, our best Duke source tells us that it's not only a done deal, but it will likely become official in early January once school resumes after the Christmas break.   And Thompson isn't the only Chicago area player who appears to be destined for Duke.  As a matter of fact, this same source tells us that the Blue Devils will likely get 6'1 Jr Sean Dockery from Chicago (Julian) IL, who is ranked #9 in the junior class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and they already have a verbal commitment from 6'4 Jr J.J. Redick from Roanoke (Cave Springs) VA, who is ranked #10 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  If that weren't enough, our source also believes the Blue Devils will prevail in the big recruiting battle among N.C. State, Duke, and North Carolina for 6'9 Jr Shavlik Randolph from Raleigh (Broughton) NC, who is ranked #5 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and they also to have the early edge over Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Arkansas, and North Carolina for 6'9 Jr Sheldon Williams from Midwest City (H.S.) OK.  Obviously if Duke can pull this off, we'd be talking about a Fab Five recruiting class, as well as the best recruiting class in the nation a year from now."  Obviously when you put it on the line everyday, you're going to win some and your're going to lose some, but it is especially rewarding when you predict something nine months in advance and turn out to be right on the money.  With Randolph's commitment today, those are the five players that the Blue Devils will offer scholarships to in November.  Also counting in this recruiting class is a 6th player - 6'7 Lee Melchionni from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, who will walk-on and red-shirt next season.  However, due to current NCAA rules, which allow a school to sign a maximum of five players in one recruiting class and only three in the next, Melchionni will get a scholarship the following season when a scholarship becomes available.  Randolph was slowed by injuries during the spring and summer and, as a result, didn't live up to his best clippings.  So currently we have him ranked #20 nationally in the senior class, but he may move back up if he has a good senior year.  Remember, Randolph is incredibly skilled, extremely talented, and every versatile, which is why some publications had him ranked as high as #1 in the nation prior to the start of the summer evaluation period.  While Randolph's commitment comes as no surprise (we've been telling you for some time that it was a done deal), it does put the Blue Devils recruiting class well ahead of everybody else in our ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.

We have been hearing for some time that Cincinnati was the heavy favorite over Texas Tech and Tennessee for 6'7 Armein Kirkland from Tyler (Lee) TX.  But we didn't get it confirmed until late last night.  Kirkland doesn't rank among our top 100 nationally, but some people, like Greg Swaim of GregSwaim.com, think he should be.  Kirkland needs to work on his outside shooting and get bigger and stronger, but this long armed versatile athlete does have a lot of potential.  Another player the Bearcats may steal is 6'6 Eric Hicks from Greensboro (Dudley) NC.  Right now it still appears to be a four horse race among Connecticut, Florida State, Tennessee, and Cincinnati, but when it is all said and done, our guess is it will be either the Bearcarts or the Volunteers.  Hicks doesn't have a true position.  But it may not matter, because he's so strong, athletic, and tenacious on the boards.  Tennessee also got a pair of commitments earlier this week from 6'6 Justin Albrecht from Iowa Western (JC) IA and  6'11 Justin Herndon from Nashville (Donelson Christian) TN.  Herndon impressed a lot of people when they saw him at the National 17-Under AAU Tournament in Orlando, FL in late July, but the real steal appears to be Albrecht.  A number of schools, including Tennessee, Indiana, and Wisconsin went in to see 6'9 Jeff Graves from Iowa Western (JC) IA, but came away liking Albrecht better.  Albrecht is an athletic white kid who can shoot, pass, jump, and take charges.  Tennessee also appears to be close to getting a verbal commitment from 6'5 John Winchester from Raleigh (Bonner Academy) NC, who is one of the top 5th year players available, and they appear to be one of the finalist, along with Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, for 6'8 Kevin Bookout from Stroud (H.S.) OK, who is expected to be in Knoxville, TN this weekend on an official visit.  And if the Volunteers get Bookout, he would count as a free player, because he would get a track scholarship.  Remember, Tennessee is the defending national champions in track and field and the fact that Bookout wants to compete in the Olympics in the discus and shotput certainly helps their cause. Also planning on being in Knoxville, TN making an unofficial visit to Tennessee this weekend is 5'11 Jr Dez Willingham from  DeSoto (H.S.) TX, who is one of the top junior point guards in the nation.  Getting back to Bookout, the other track option that he has, if he decides to go to UCLA.  But we don't look for that to happen, because the Bruins aren't interested in Bookout for basketball and now we know why.  UCLA has gotten a verbal commitment in football from 6'7 Mercedes Lewis from Long Beach (Poly) CA, who is one of the top football prospects in the nation.  Lewis also plans to play basketball and he is exactly what the Bruins need inside - a blue collar banger role player.  We stand corrected when we said that Bookout would be a free player, if he accepted a track scholarship to Tennessee.  NCAA rules prohibit a player from getting a scholarship in a minor sport and then also playing as a non-scholarship player in a major sport.  This also explains why UCLA doesn't want to offer Bookoout a basketball scholarship. Remember, Lewis, who is the #1 tight end prospect in America, is a free player in basketball, because football counts as a major sport. 

Did you know that George Washington landed 6'6 Michael Hall from Palos Heights (Shepard) IL about a week ago?  Neither we did we until got tipped off today.  Hall joins 6'6 Nana Mensah-Bonsu from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ and 6'9 Omar Williams from Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA to give first-year head coach Karl Hobbs what already appears to be an excellent recruiting class.   Hall and Mensah-Bonsu are both excellent catches, but Williams is the marquee guy in the class, as he appears to be one of the fastest rising players in the nation after his outstanding performance at the 2001 Gymrats Midnight All-American Madness in Cherry Hill, NJ last weekend.  And the best may could be yet to come if George Washington can also land 6'7 Ryan Lambert from Gaithersburg (Northwest) MD, who was terrific when we saw him at the Charlie Weber Invitational a week and a half ago, and 6'2 Janovey Weatherspoon from Odessa (JC) TX, who is ranked as the #2 junior college point guard by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  Speaking of the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, it is available on the newstand right now and their list of the top junior college players by position is the best list of junior college players for the current class that I've seen so far this fall.  The #1-ranked point guard is 6'0 Tim Barnes from Southeastern Illinois (JC) IL, who verbally committed to Iowa State just last week.  The #1-ranked wing guard is 6'4 Antwain Barber from Wabash Valley (JC) IL.  Barber has said he wants to go through the recruiting process and, as a result, Indiana appears to have entered the picture.  However, we think he's a near lock for Kentucky.  The #1-ranked wing forward is 68 Qyntel Woods from North Mississippi (JC) MS and 6'8 Jaime Lloreda from Dixie (JC) UT are also both off the board.  Woods committed to Memphis last winter and Lloreda picked LSU in July.  The #1 center is 6'8 J.K. Edwards from Indian Hills (JC) IA and, yes, he is still available. 

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson has been busy searching for some other verbal commitments that most people might not already have and he has come with 6'3 Andre Joseph from Lee (JC) TX to the University of Oregon.  This is pretty big, because Joseph is ranked as the #9 wing guard by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  And did you know that Iowa State has another commitment?  We're talking about 6'3 Jr Mike Henderson from Waterloo (East) IA, who is ranked #5 in the Iowa/Kansas/Missouri/Nebraska/Oklahoma five-state area in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  However, Henderson won't count with the current Cyclones recruiting class, which is already tied at #4 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  Virginia Tech has gotten a pair of commitments from 6'5 Shawn Harris from Fork Union (Military) VA and 6'9 Allan Calloway from Virginia (Coastal Christian) VA.  The commitment by Harris is especially noteworthy.  Not only did Harris have nine points in the Senior All-Star Game at the adidas ABCD Camp this summer, but he also finished ranked #8 in camp in scoring with 15.6 ppg and #8 in 3-point shooting with 44.4% accuracy.  Harris is best described as a jack-of-all-trades who doesn't do anything flashy and normally makes his living off what the defense gives him.  Johnson also tells us that 6'8 David Chiotti from Mountain View (St. Francis) CA has verbally committed to New Mexico and our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin has confirmed that 6'11 Ted Skuchas from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA has committed to Vanderbilt.

Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin finally checks in with reports from the two tournaments that he covered last weekend and he's pretty much in agreement with our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis, who told us yesterday that 6'7 Jr Trevor Ariza from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'5 Jr Olumuyiwa Famutimi from Flint (Northwestern) MI, 6'8 Jr Leon Powe from Oakland (Vocational Tech) CA, 6'5 Matt Walsh from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'5 Maurice Ager from Detroit (Crockett) MI, and 6'9 Omar Williams from Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA were the best players in attendance.   The only change Rubin would make is to drop Williams below 6'5 DeAngelo Alexander from Midwest City (H.S.) OK and 6'3 Dominick Mejia from Voorhees (Eastern) NJ.  Rubin tells us that Powe and Famutimi combined for 48 points in the  Underclassmen All-Star Game, as they led the White Team to a 98-68 victory over the Blue Team, which featured 6'7 Jr Jordan Ingram from Radnor (Archbishop Carroll) PA and 6'4 Soph Tim Pierce from Oakland (Fremont) CA.  And the score might have been even more lopsided had 6'8 Jr Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who also was on the White Team, hadn't gotten hurt early in the game.  Ariza, Famutimi, Powe, 6'9 Jr Ivan Harris from Springfield (South) OH, 6'1 Soph Jamar Butler from Lima (Shawnee) OH, and 6'4 Soph Tim Pierce from Oakland (Fremont) CA also played in the Senior game, but the upperclassmen did most of the damage, as Walsh had 28 points, Alexander had 27 points, Mejia had 26 points, and Ager had 21 points.  Seton Hall, Rutgers, and Massachusetts are the final three for Mejia.  The early list for Famutimi includes Missouri, Michigan, North Carolina, Michigan State, Cincinnati, and Syracuse.   California, Duke, North Carolina, Florida, Missouri, Louisville, and Kentucky are the early favorites for Powe.  Ariza likes Florida, North Carolina, Duke, Syracuse, Louisville, UCLA, Southern Cal, and Connecticut.  Rubin also tells us that it was a big weekend for Philadelphia Area teams at the Hoop Group Jam Fest in Allentown, PA, as Three on Three beat the New Jersey Roadrunners in the championship of the 17-Under Division, the Philadelphia Patriots beat Positive Image in the championship of the 16-Under Division, and Philadelphia MJC beat the Pittsburgh Jots in the championship of the 15-Under Division.  However, the big story was the play of a number of the outstanding underclassmen who were in attendance.  Unfortunately the New Jersey Demons didn't show up, so Rubin didn't get a chance to see 6'8 Jr Luol Deng from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ, who will be ranked as one of the top five juniors nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  Instead, the top underclassmen was 6'8 Derrick Character from Scotch Plains, NJ, who is widely regarded as the #1 8th grader in the nation.  Character, who won't be 14 until May, dominated against players who are three and four years older than he is.   Character, who already is a physical specimen and an excellent athlete who is mature well beyond his years, scored both inside and outside and displayed an innate feel for the game.   Rubin also got excited about was 6'6 Jr Arnaud Dahi from Burlington (Life Center) NJ.  As a matter of fact, Dahi was so good that he will be the #2-ranked junior on Rubin's next Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Report, which will be out sometime later this month.  Dahi, who has only been the country about a month after coming to the United States from the Ivory Coast, is a big time athlete with excellent slashing ability and 3-point shooting range.  Another player that most people don't know about, because he didn't play any last summer, is 6'9 Jr Wayne Marshall from Philadelphia (Martin Luther King) PA.   Marshall, who also will be ranked among Rubin's top five juniors, is a back to the basket player with very good low post moves.  Other undersclassmen worth mentioning are 6'11 Aaron Gray from Emmaus (H.S.) PA, 6'0 Jr Tyler Releph from Rochester (McQuaid) NY, and 6'7 Soph Kevin Palacios from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ.  Gray is similar to Marshall, Releph was the best 3-point shooter in the entire tournament, and Palacios does it all (shoots the outside shot, gets to the basket, gets off his feet quick, and is great rebounder). 

Tuesday, October 2, 2001

The HOOP SCOOP has confirmed that 6'1 Jonathan Burnett from Texas City (H.S.) TX has verbally committed to Lamar and 6'7 Richard Law from Houston (Clear Lake) TX recently committed to South Alabama.  Burnett, who is ranked as the #2 point guard in the Houston area by one scouting service, as well as #39 in the state by Mike Kunstadt, is best described as a combo guard.  He's too small to be a true 2-guard and doesn't make good enough decisions with the ball to be a true point.  Instead, what Burnett does best is score and, as a result, he should provide another piece to head coach Mike Deane's puzzle a year from now.  Speaking of Lamar, most of the pre-season basketball magazines are picking the Cardinals in the second half of the Southland Conference.  However, we think Lamar could be the sleeper team in the conference this year, as well as the team to beat in the conference a year from now.   Not only does Lamar return four starters, but since Deane took over two years ago, they have landed a number of excellent players, including 6'7 Damany Hendricks from Santa Rosa (JC) CA, who was one of the best junior college players in California last year, 6'6 Krunti Hester, who transferred to Lamar from Marquette, 6'6 Ben Jacobsen from Omaha (Central) NE, and 6'11 Brian Rowan from St. Paul (St. Thomas Academy) MN.  Law is a combo forward with with good skills and deceptive athleticism and, as a result, ranks among our top 150 nationally.  He also was the best player on John Eurey's Houston Superstars Team, at least until late in the summer when 6'9 Jr Tyrone Nelson from Hempstead (H.S.) TX really elevated his game at the adidas Big Time Tournament.  How good is this shot blocking athlete with big time athleticism and potential?  Eurey thinks Nelson is one of the biggest sleepers in the nation and is predicting that he's going to be his next McDonald's All-American.   I guess only time will tell.  Our Texas Editor Wes Grandstaff tells us that the three favorites for 6'9 Alou Kane from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA are Minnesota, SMU, and North Carolina.  And speaking of the Tar Heels, Grandstaff also confirms what we heard from several sources yesterday - that North Carolina is making a strong push from 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX.  However, we're still betting on the University of Texas, so stay tuned!

Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that 5'11 Antonie McGee from Mercersburg (Academy) PA recently verbally committed to the University of Colorado and 6'3 Wes Wardrop from Worcester (Academy) MA via Anaheim (Loara) CA has made it official for Loyola-Marymount.   And while we are waiting for our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin to check in with a full report, Trigonis, who was at Rick Barrett's 2001 Gymrats Mid-night All-American Madness in Cherry Hill, NJ on Saturday night, tells us that the best performances were turned in by 6'7 Jr Trevor Ariza from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'5 Jr Olumuyiwa Famutimi from Flint (Northwestern) MI, 6'8 Jr Leon Powe from Oakland (Vocational Tech) CA, 6'5 Matt Walsh from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'5 Maurice Ager from Detroit (Crockett) MI, and 6'9 Omar Williams from Philadelphia (Celestial Prep) PA.  Trigonis also tells us that 6'1 Patrick Hadden from Irvine (Woodbridge) CA, who was thought to be a near lock for Princeton a week ago, will officially visit Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo this weekend and may do likewise to Portland, which also is making a strong push, in the near future.   Trigonis also points out that Southern California is turning up the heat for 6'9 DeAngelo Collins from Inglewood (H.S.) CA.  Sure, Collins will probably by-pass college and enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring, but if the he doesn't and the Trojans pull this off, there would be hell to pay from UCLA fans.  Remember, Collins is ranked #8 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and he's a lot meaner and tougher and just as naturally talented as 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, who went #2 in the NBA Draft last spring, was at the same stage.  If that weren't enough, Trigonis also reports that 6'4 Hassan Adams from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA officially visited Oregon last weekend and that Arizona and UCLA are the early leaders for 6'1 Jr Marcus Williams from Los Angeles (Crenshaw) CA.  Most this and a lot more can be found on Trigonis' Tidbits page at FullCtPress.net.   Speaking of Trigonis, it looks like he might beat several others to the punch with his California Report, which will include the top players in the state in each class.  As a matter of fact, Trigonis is promising to have it in my hands within the two weeks.  We also are expecting to publish updated Ohio and Kentucky Reports in the immediate future.   So stay tuned! 

Monday, October 1, 2001

Over the weekend the University of Michigan landed a pair of big men in 6'11 Chris Hunter from Gary (West Side) IN and 6'10 Amadou Ba from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME and, as a result, they are done with this recruiting class, unless you include 6'7 Matt Trannon from Flint (Northern) MI, who is expected to make it official for the Wolverines in football in the near future.  While Hunter and Ba both have yet to prove they are ready to make in immediate impact in the tough Big-10 Conference, they both have a lot of natural talent, athleticism, and potential.  They also should provide a good complement inside to 6'9 Graham Brown from Milo (H.S.) MI, who committed to the Wolverines last spring.  But Michigan's recruiting class is now ranked #6 nationally on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date, because they also have commitments from 6'6 Lester Abram from Pontiac (Northern) MI, who is ranked #46 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'1 Daniel Horton from Cedar Hill (H.S.) MI, who is ranked #9 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.  And this recruiting has a chance to move all they way up to #2 behind Duke and ahead of Florida, when, and if, they get Trannon, who is ranked #25 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  The word is that Trannon will play both sports as a freshmen and he's probably one of the few players who can pull it off at this level.  Not only is he a world-class athlete and a tremendous competitor, but he also has the natural talent to play professional in both sports. 

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson appears to have the scoop on 6'4 Marques Bennett from Indianapolis (Brebeuf) IN, who has verbally committed to the University of Dayton.  Bennett becomes the 4th player to have made a commitment to the Flyers in this recruiting class, which also includes 6'6 Doug Scott from Reynoldsburg (H.S.) OH, 6'3 Logan White from Cleveland (University) OH, and 6'10 James Cripe from Reynoldsburg (H.S.) OH.  None of these players are ranked among our top 100 nationally, but they all are in the next group and, as a result, Dayton's recruiting class is ranked #25 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  Johnson also tells us that 6'9 Theodis Tarver from Monroe (Carroll) LA has committed to Georgia Tech and that 7'0 Adam Simons from Burlington (Williams) NC has committed to N.C. State.  The commitment by Simons is especially interesting, because Simons is not the dominating inside player the Wolfpack needs.  Instead, Simons' forte appears to be 3-shooting.   However, he should have a good understanding of the game, because his father is the head coach at Elon College.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'7 Antywane Robinson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA has verbally committed to Temple.  Robinson is the stereotypical athletic combo forward that head coach John Chaney has made a living off coaching over the years, but he doesn't solve Temple's future inside needs (Kevin Lyde and Ron Rollerson both graduate after this season).   So the Owls coaching staff will likely use their one remaining available scholarship on the best big man they can find. 

We also are getting reports that 6'10 Shavlik Randolph from Raleigh (Broughton) NC, who is ranked #20 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, has cancelled the rest of his college visits and will have a press conference on Wednesday to announce his college decision.  If this happens, we think you can write it down for the Blue Devils, which already have the #1 ranked recruiting class on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.  And assuming this happens, only three players who are ranked among our top 20 seniors nationally will remain unsigned.   We're talking about 6'9 DeAngelo Collins from Inglewood (H.S.) CA, 6'8 Brad Buckman from Austin (Westlake) TX, and 6'8 Jason Fraser from Amityville (H.S.) NY.  We'd be very surprised if Collins doesn't declare hardship for the NBA Draft next spring and if Buckman doesn't go to the University of Texas.  However, we're hearing that North Carolina is making a strong push for Buckman.  With Fraser anything is possible.  We still think Villanova and St. John's are the schools you have to beat, but North Carolina are both a lot stronger than a lot of people realize. It's not official yet, but our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'11 Ted Skuchas from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA will announce for Vanderbilt this afternoon.  Earlier we reported that 6'11 Alexander Johnson from Albany (Dougherty) GA may be close to reneging on the University of Georgia, but as it stands now his commitment is still firm and, as a result, the Bulldogs' recruiting class is ranked among the top 25 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date.

We have now confirmed that 6'9 Kei Madison from Okaloosa-Walton (JC) FL has made it official for Mississippi State.   If you will recall, we reported last Thursday that we though this had happened, but we didn't receive official confirmation until today.  We also raised the question about whether Madison would be eligible to play in the Southeastern Conference due to a rule that requires a player to remain at the same junior college for three semesters.   However, we're getting differing reports about this, so we'll count Madison with the Bulldogs recruiting class and let it get sorted out later.  We also have confirmed that 6'1 Steve Cowherd from Parkland (M.S. Douglas) FL made it official for the Bulldogs over the weekend.  Cowherd, who was the best player last summer for the Coast to Coast team, appears to be the final pieced to head coach Rick Stansbury's puzzle.  If you will recall, last week Mississippi State also got a commitment from 6'5 Sammy Richardson from Utica (Hinds County) MS, but Stansbury also wanted to bring in a pure point guard who was capable of running the show.  We also have confirmed that Alabama has gotten a verbal commitment from 6'8 Evan Brock from Marietta (Lassiter) GA, who impressed us when we saw him at the National 17-Under AAU Tournament in Orlando, FL in late July.  Brock isn't a finished product and, as a result, doesn't get top 100 consideration, but he's an excellent athlete with the ability to play both inside and outside.  Plus, Brock is expected to grow to 6'10 or 6'11.  So he shouldn't interfer with Alabama's plans to utilize 6'7 Kennedy Winston from Pritchard (Blount) AL at the wing forward spot.  Auburn and Cincinnati are also both still in hunt for this athletic wing-forward who is ranked #31 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, but our guess is that the Crimson Tide is way out in front for Winston.  Our Mississippi Editor Lavel Johnson also tells us that he thinks it's a two horse race between Boston College and Ole Miss for 6'4 Jason Forte from Bay Springs (H.S.) MS and we are waiting to see if Tennessee picked up a commitment from 6'6 Jeff Albrecht from Iowa Western (JC) IA, who was in Knoxville for an official visit over the weekend. 

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