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MAURICE HARKLESS NEARING DECISION

2011 forward has plenty of Big East schools in pursuit as he looks to make early commitment

Forest Hills (NY) small forward Maurice Harkless, one of the top players in the country in the class of 2011, is expected to make his college commitment this month . According to Nathan Blue, Harkless will narrow his school list to six schools this weekend and then visit as many as he can before making a commitment.

“Harkless will be looking at the pros and cons of all the schools on his list,” Blue told NBE in an email.

According to Blue, the current list of schools Harkless is working to pare down this weekend includes Seton Hall, St. Johns, Florida State, Arizona, Pittsburgh, Providence, Kentucky, Connecticut, Hofstra, Cincinnati, Villanova and Rutgers.

Harkless is a very unique talent, standing at 6-foot-7 and possessing a wingspan of 7-foot-2, he first impressed NBE last April at the Hoop Group Elite NY Top 100 event where he proved he could get to the rim on anyone at the event. A great ballhandler for his size with length and athleticism, Harkless does not dominant the basketball, showing a very good basketball IQ at a young age. New York talent evaluator Tom Konchalski has compared him to West Virginia’s Devin Ebanks, a comparison Blue agrees with.

“As a player, he’ll be a SF/SG on the next level,” said Blue. “He fits the build of Devin Ebanks, Rudy Gay, or if he continues to grow, something scarier.”

Harkless is a NY Post 1st-team All City and Pre-Season Queens Player of the year. In the classroom he maintains an A- average according to Blue.

“Harkless is coming back from a stress fracture in his left foot and will visit as many schools as possible before his decision is made before Christmas,” added Blue.

Recently, Harkless was at UConn for their ‘First Night’ festivities and has also taken in games at Seton Hall (vs. LIU) and St. John’s (vs. Brown).

NBE will continue to follow the recruitment of Harkless as he works towards a decision this month.

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