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2009 TRAVEL TEAM PREVIEW: NY GAUCHOS

NY Gauchos 17-U team loaded with Big East prospects head on travel trail

By Zach Smart

The New York Gauchos are back. They’re ready to stake their claim as one of the top AAU programs in the country this season. That process begins in earnest this week at the Boo Williams Invitational and will continue throughout the spring and summer.

The storied New York-based AAU program that’s produced the likes of Geoff McDermott, LeVance Fields, Edgar Sosa, Curtis Kelly and Weyinmi Efejuku, to name just a few, has reloaded and is looking to make waves with a new, front-loaded 17U team.

“That team is going to be very talented,” said Rice HS (Harlem, N.Y.) coach Moe Hicks.

“The team is stacked with players like Shane Southwell, Doron Lamb, Jason Morris, Sandro Carrisimo…Some kids from Connecticut, they just have a school of other kids that are going to be major contributors.”

If Hicks sounds charged up about what the Gauchos–a traditional power on the AAU circuit–can do this spring and heading into this summer, it’s because players he bred are playing significant roles.

Southwell, a 6-foot-5 small forward who supplemented go-to-guy Durand Scott (who’s headed to Miami) on this year’s state title capturing team, has evolved into the face of the program.

Southwell, an ultra-athletic scorer who would be a staple in a high-octane, uptempo offensive system, has been playing for the Gauchos for as long back as we can remember, the tantalizing homegrown talent also improved his ball handling skills, though he thrives in the driving lanes.

Unlike Michigan State in the championship game, Southwell doesn’t turn the ball over like there was a grenade pumped up in it. His ability to put the ball on the deck, penetrate the teeth of the defense and catch defenses off balance with quick slashes to the basket is what makes him a high-major recruit.

Southwell also has a solid touch. He uses his wiry wingspan to his advantage, shooting over taller players and avoiding the threat of getting his shot muffed.

Just a junior, Southwell informed NBE last week that he has scholarship offers from St. John’s, Xavier, South Carolina, Marquette and a new offer from Providence. He is also receiving interest from schools such as Rutgers, Pittsburgh, Arkansas, Miami, Seton Hall, West Virginia and Georgia Tech.

He will shoulder the burden of leader for this talent-leaking 17U team that will need to answer to lofty expectations.

Another player, 6-foot-8 big man Kadeem Jack, can make an immediate impact this spring. Jack, who NBE recently had a profile on (Class of 2010 Intro: Kadeem Jack), is being pursued by a plethora of Big East schools, including Pittsburgh, Seton Hall and Rutgers.

“I’m trying to get him into some of these summer specialty camps,” said Hicks.

Among the prestigious camps Hicks referenced was the Amare Stoudemire camp.

While it’s unlikely Jack will catch an invite this summer, Hicks is confident that the Gaucho will stamp his imprint and make some coaches drool this off-season.

“(At the Amare Stoudemire camp), they only take like the top 20 big men in the country. I strongly feel that when it’s all said and done, he’ll be one of those top 20. They’ll see it later.”

‘They’ certainly saw it against Paterson Catholic, when Jack busted out with a career performance.

“He just dominated the game on the defensive end, he blocked about six shots but I think he altered about 8 more. He was just a major force in that game, you see the potential coming down the stretch when he gave us some big baskets.”

The aforementioned Lamb, who plays at the NBA/Division-I pipeline known as Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), is receiving steady interest and told Ron Bailey at the National High School Invitation (Part II of NHSI Review) that he has offers from Syracuse, Kansas, Pittsburgh, Marquette, St. John’s, Rutgers, Kentucky, Memphis, Miami and Xavier.

He’s rapidly morphing into one of the most highly sought after products on the nation’s recruiting marketplace.

Morris, who plays at the Lakeville Hotchkiss School in the woodworks of Connecticut, is a rangy guard who’s list includes just about every big-time college basketball school in the country. Back in February at the 2009 Primetime Shootout, Morris told NBE that he has offers from Georgia Tech, Georgia, Xavier, Clemson, Wake Forest, Georgetown, Virginia and Stanford. Duke is also showing a lot of interest, too.

Carrisimo, part of a potent nucleus that led a revived Iona Prep team this season, began to raise eyebrows this season.

The shooter with serious range dialed in from downtown during the Slam Dunk Challenge at the County Center (White Plains, N.Y.).

His good life from beyond the arc and polished skills off the ball impressed a number of onlookers, including NBE Big East All-Time Top 50 player selection John Wallace.

The former Syracuse star and NBA player lauded the 6-foot-4 guard, who’s being actively pursued by Davidson and others.

“He’s definitely a prized piece on a team that’s got at least four Division-I bound players,” said Wallace.

At the Conrad McCrae tournament–an event remembering the fallen Syracuse star who made a name for himself throughout the city’s playgrounds (there is an intriguing feature story about McCrae written in last month’s Bounce Magazine)–Carrisimo dropped 22 points.

Gaucho basketball continues to reel in the highly-sought after recruits. This year’s 17U team almost serves as a Division-I launchpad.