August 2009

JAYVAUGHN PINKSTON RECRUITING UPDATE

Pinkston looking like a spring decision on his college choice

By Zach Smart

Kimani Young can’t call it. Not even close. Too many visits, too many coaches drooling like Pavlov’s dog over Jayvaughn Pinkston, a jumbo power forward from Bishop Loughlin High School in New York City.

Young, a New York native who played at Texas-El Paso, is currently a coach with the New Heights AAU program after a one-year stint as the video coordinator at St. John’s. He’s been instrumental to Pinkston’s success, having coached and evaluated him on the New Heights AAU circuit since Pinkston was 12.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK: KEALA KING TRIMS LIST, DERRICK WILSON ADDS OFFERS, AARON BODIE INTRO

BY JEFF BORZELLO

One of the most impressive players of the spring and summer AAU season was Keala King, a smooth 6-foot-5 swingman for California Supreme.

Not highly rated coming into the spring, it seems that King made an impression at nearly every event he attended, and is now considered one of the top-25 recruits in the country.

Although he didn’t take visits in August, choosing instead to work on his game, King has trimmed his school list.

“I narrowed it down to Arizona State, Arizona, Stanford, Cal and Harvard,” King said on Friday. “There are other schools I’m looking at, but those are the ones I like the most.”

King, who is transferring from Dominguez (Ca.) to Mater Dei (Ca.) this year and holds better than a 3.6 GPA, seems to have a leader – Arizona State.

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GEORGETOWN SUMMER REPORT

Hoyas hope to pass chemistry class during 2009-2010 season

By Zach Smart

After jumping out of the gates sizzling, the Hoyas faltered and stumbled, eventually teetering on the edge of aseason explosion. Needless to say, the high note the season started out soon evolved into an afterthought in a down year for the program.

Georgetown rolled out to a 10-1 start, one they capped off with a marquee 74-63 over previously untouchable UConn on the road. It was a performance that saw freshman wunderkind Greg Monroe stamp his imprint to the Big East world. Monroe dropped 16 points, including two timely treys, in a yardstick game that turned out to be an on-the-road thumping.

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CLASS OF 2012 INTRO: TARIQ CAREY

Garden state soph is one college coaches are watching already

BY JEFF BORZELLO

The state of New Jersey has several of the top players in the classes of 2010 and 2011 this season in the high school ranks, namely Michael Gilchrist, Kyrie Irving, Rakeem Christmas, Dion Waiters, Myck Kabongo and more.

But what about 2012? Who is the next to wear the crown as the marquee prospect from the Garden State?

Paterson Catholic prospect Kyle Anderson gets more attention, but Tariq Carey might be the best player in the state.

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BIG EAST RECRUITING UPDATE: CINCINNATI

Commitment Alert: Justin Jackson, 6-foot-8, 210-lb power forward out of Montverde (FL) Academy

Earlier this week Cincinnati and Mick Cronin picked up their first commitment for the class of 2010 with the news that Justin Jackson, a Power Forward, Chooses the Bearcats (Cincinnati Enquirer)over Missouri.

Projected 2010-2011 Roster:

Seniors: Larry Davis (SG), Rashad Bishop (G/F), Anthony McClain (C), Darnell Wilks (F)
Juniors: Yancy Gates (BF), Dion Dixon (G), Ibrahima Thomas **(C)
Sophomores: Sean Kilpatrick (G), Cashmere Wright*** (PG), Jaquon Parker (G), Lance Stephenson (G)
Freshmen: Justin Jackson (PF)

**- a transfer from Oklahoma State, Ibrahima Thomas will sit out the spring (09) and fall (09) semesters and be eligible in December of 2009. He will have 2 1/2 tears of eligibility.

***- Wright tore an ACL in the fall of 2008 and is sitting out the 2008-2009 season as a medical redshirt. He will have four years of eligibility beginning in 2009-2010

For more on the commitment of Jackson and a synopsis of the Bearcats recruiting efforts, please visit our Cincinnati Team Blog Page and see the latest update.

PREP SHOWCASE SERIES: FINDLAY PREP

by RAY MERNAGH

It’s six in the morning and the guys at Findlay Prep are paying the piper (coach Michael Peck) by running in the already sweltering Vegas heat.

Preseason conditioning?

Well it is preseason, and running a few miles as the sun appears definitely is conditioning the body for Peck’s grueling practices — but this run is a punishment. It seems a few of the guys forgot to make their beds in the house the team shares with assistant coach Todd Simon and his wife Kati. “Four out of six actually did but two didn’t,” says Simon, “so all six of them had to run, that’s how we do things here.”

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BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (8/28/2009)

Taking a quick tour around the Big East to catch up on the latest news and notes shows that West Virginia has reinstated one of their two suspended point guards. Also, the Mountaineers part ways with a 2010 verbal commitment in the process. Also, a couple preview-related items, which include the latest Big East teams on CHN’s top 144 teams in 144 days and a pre-season power poll of the Big East.

Just when you thought things had quieted down on the Pitino-Sypher front, a Louisville televisions station (somewhat) and the UL coach (for the most part) bring the scandel back to the front page. On the recruiting front, an update on JJ Moore, Chane Behanan and a look at the Brett Roseboro situation at Marquette and at the Five-Star basketball camp legacy, whcih continues.

Read about these in our links below…

Also, don’t forget, you can follow NBE Sports on twitter at: http://twitter.com/NBESports

Also, for our Big East football fans, be sure to begin following the activity at the NBE Football Report. It is in the early stages, but the model will follow what we have created with the NBE Basketball Report over the years. Our 2009 football previews of Cincinnati and Connecticut are there to check out. More to come and we should have some recruiting tidbits as well over the weekend for the football fans to chew on!

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FLOWERS LOOKS TO BLOOM FOR WVU IN ’09-’10

by RON BAILEY

August 27, 2009 – The Jabbo Kenner League concluded this month, and afforded hoops aficionados in the Washington D.C. area an opportunity to see and assess many of their favorite college and pro basketball players. The pages of i95Ballerz.com and NBE Basketball Report carry some of that coverage.

One Big East player that competed was West Virginia 6-foot-7, 215-lb, junior forward John Flowers. What jumps out at you about Flowers is his development since attending high school at St. Mary’s Ripken (MD); both physically and skill set-wise.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK: JERIAN GRANT SETS VISITS; PE’SHON HOWARD UPDATE

by JEFF BORZELLO

Although Team Takeover (D.C.) didn’t get as much publicity as some of the top AAU teams this summer, the mid-Atlantic team was one of the most successful teams on the circuit, as well as one of the more entertaining teams to watch.

They went undefeated in pool play at the NIKE Peach Jam in North Augusta, S.C., and then won the U-17 (and U-16) championship at the AAU Super Showcase in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Team Takeover didn’t have a certain go-to-guy or superstar, but Jerian Grant could have been considered their key to success. His ability to score in a variety of ways as well as get after it on the defensive end spurred several victories.

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RUTGERS SUMMER REPORT

Critical season ahead for Scarlet Knights basketball program in 2009-10

By Zach Smart

In a matter of days, Mike Rosario went from callow freshman to scoring savior.

Without question, Rosario’s blink-quick evolution was a major silver lining of the Scarlet Knights’ dismal 2008-2009 campaign.

The first McDonald’s All-American to pen with Rutgers, Rosario led the team in scoring and became a surefire selection for the conference’s All-Freshman team.

He’s spent this summer on Puerto Rico’s national team and his dominance hasn’t halted. He’s been lighting up the scoreboard and recently shot 18-of-29 from the field, including nine-of-13 from behind the three-point arc, to score a tournament-best 54 points in Puerto Rico’s 90-89 defeat of France at the 2009 FIBA U19 World Championships earlier this summer.

Optimism might have been in the air, despite an abysmal 2-16 record in conference play and another season spent in the Big East’s lowest percentile. With a solid core coming back, headlined by a scoring cyborg in Rosario and a defensively active big man in Gregory Echenique and the addition of JUCO point guard target James Beatty, Rutgers could have potentially re-wrote the script of their losing ways under Hill.

However, just days before the fall semester began, the Rutgers’ program took a hit in personnel with the dismissal of guard Corey Chandler and a hit in perception with the ‘demotion’ of assistant Craig Carter. The local backlash has been intense and continues to keep RU in the news for the wrong reasons, making another lower-percentile finish for Hill, who is 8-41 in Big East play as a head coach, very tough to overcome under the watch of a new athletic director. Remember, Gary Waters was deemed unacceptable after winning 7 Big East games and reaching the NIT in his last season…

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RECRUTING NOTEBOOK: JABARIE HINDS UPDATE; WAVERLY AUSTIN, QUINN COOK NOTES

Hinds sees recruitment expand after solid summer; Austin visits Big East school; Cook excited about big visit

by JEFF BORZELLO

Hinds’ Recruitment Picks Up

After an excellent summer in which Jabarie Hinds cemented himself as one of the top guards in New York City from the class of 2011, he is seeing his recruitment increase quickly.

Hinds, a 5-11 point guard from Mt. Vernon (N.Y) who played with the Westchester Hawks for AAU ball over the past few months, picked up three new offers as well as increased interest from a variety of schools.

“I got 3 new offers,” Hinds stated in an e-mail message, adding Wake Forest, St. John’s and South Carolina to his previous list of James Madison, UNLV, Virginia, Louisville, Oklahoma State and Seton Hall.

Furthermore, Hinds also has interest from Ohio State, Rutgers, Vanderbilt, West Virginia “and more.”

“[I] didn’t take any visits yet but I’m planning on taking some in September, not sure what schools yet though,” Hinds said.

He also added that he will likely have a list of favorites sometime soon.
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Waverly Austin, a 6-foot-10, 245-pound center who is headed to Maine Central Institute this year, just completed an unofficial visit to South Florida.

“I liked the team, the academic advisor and the whole school,” said Austin of his visit. “The coaches are really down to earth people and they really care about the players.”

Next in the recruiting process for Austin is an official visit to Cincinnati.
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2011 point guard recruit Quinn Cook told Ray Mernagh that he is very excited to be visiting Ohio State for their football contest with USC next month. Cook is a priority for several Big East programs as we..

JOHN JOHNSON VISITS PITT, CONSIDERS OFFER

BY JEFF BORZELLO

After shoring up its 2010 class with the addition of Cameron Wright earlier this month, Pittsburgh could be on the verge of getting its first commitment of 2011.

John Johnson, a 6-foot guard from Girard College in Philadelphia, took a visit to the Pitt campus this week and might have a new favorite.

“It was beautiful, I loved it,” Johnson said. “[I'm] thinking about taking the offer from them.”

When NBE spoke to him at the Reebok U All-American Camp in July, Johnson named Virginia Tech (offer), St. Joseph’s (offer), St. John’s, Marquette, La Salle (offer), UCLA, Clemson and Notre Dame (offer) as the schools involved.

“It’s more I just can’t think off the top of my head,” Johnson added earlier today.

Johnson said that he doesn’t plan on taking any more visits, and he will likely make a choice soon.

“[I'll] probably decide around the 1st or 2nd week of school,” he said in a text message.

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (8/26/2009)

With a Rick Pitino press conference at Louisville slated for 3 PM, I put together some Big East News & Notes quickly ahead of it. Jeff Goodman runs down some of the nation’s impact transfers for 2009-2010 and there is plenty of Big East-related tidbits among his 20 transfers that will have the biggest impact this coming season. Also, WVU has released their non-conference schedule and it is very solid.

As for recruiting, there is quite a bit of interest in 2011 Michael Carter-Williams along with the Providence Friar staff being very busy hosting some of the top prospects in New England.

Check these out in the links below…

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MAURICE WALKER TALKS PITT VISIT, RECRUITING WITH NBE

Canadian big man checked out Pittsburgh campus on Tuesday for an unofficial visit

by RAY MERNAGH

The high school recruiting class of 2010 is regarded to be in short supply of big men. So, when a talented big man emerged this summer, many high-major programs were quick to throw their hats in the ring. That was exactly what happened with Maurice Walker as the 6-foot-10, 275-pound Canadian big man showed the skills necessary to excel in the world of high major college basketball in the future.

Walker took an unofficial visit to Pittsburgh on Tuesday and NBE caught up with him afterwards to get his thoughts on that visit and an update on his recruitment, which continues to pick up steam…

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NBE STAFF SUPPORT SERIES: ROB MURPHY, SYRACUSE

by RAY MERNAGH

Rob Murphy insists his job –he’s going into his fifth year as an assistant coach at Syracuse — isn’t all that hard. Especially the recruiting part of it.

“The program sells itself,” says Murphy, “Syracuse basketball, with all the program has accomplished under coach Boeheim, sells itself.” Murphy knows this is true because growing up in Detroit, he was a Syracuse fan.

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BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (8/24/2009)

There has alrerady been some good stories posted today with our Recruiting Notebook that updated the recruiting pictures of Rod Odom, Carson Desrosiers and Carlton Brundidge, and Jeff Borzello’s Nike TOC High School Showcase Recap from yesterday’s event at Gauchos Gym featuring some of the top high school talent in the NYC/NJ area, along with several recruiting updates from the players in the event. We also have a brief News & Notes update from some of the news items that caught our eye around the Big East, including a surprising re-instatement at USF of a player whose college career was thought to be over. Also, Scoop Jardine is ready for an increased role at SU this year and a look at some USF recruiting targets, a Josh Selby update as well as an update on Devon Collier as well.

Read about these in the links below…

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NIKE TOC HIGH SCHOOL SHOWCASE RECAP

by JEFF BORZELLO

After the more-hyped Boost Mobile Elite 24 was moved from Rucker Park to the Gauchos Gym because of rain, we should have known what to expect with the NIKE Tournament of Champions High School Showcase Game later in the weekend. Originally scheduled for Saturday at Goat Park on the Upper West Side, inclement weather forced it to be moved to Sunday at Gauchos Gym in the Bronx.

The new schedule also created some scheduling difficulties with several of the top players expected to participate – namely Kyrie Irving, Jayvaughn Pinkston, Myck Kabongo, Isaiah Epps, Ashton Pankey, Devon Collier and Corey Edwards – but there was still plenty of talent on hand.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK: ROD ODOM, CARLTON BRUNDIDGE, CARSON DESROSIERS

When you are 6-foot-9 and have the ability to handle, pass and shoot the basketball, college coaches are going to find you. That has been the case for Middlesex (MA) School’s Rod Odom. Despite missing most of the spring AAU season because of Saturday classes at his rigorous academic prep school, Odom used a series of open gyms to boost his stock and then played well in July with his Nike Xpressions Elite AAU squad.

“When I got back with Nike Xpressions I really feel that my game took off and I was able to start playing very well,” said Odom about his summer. “And I was able to pick up several offers from UConn, Louisville, Michigan, Vanderbilt and Miami.”

Odom informed NBE over the weekend that he is currently considering Boston College, Arizona, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Connecticut, Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Harvard and Miami. He has previously taken visits to Providence and Georgetown and also has unofficial visits to Louisville, Connecticut and West Virginia planned “this month” according to Odom and has two of his five official visits planned as well.

“I plan to take an official to Arizona and BC,” Odom told NBE. “Those are the only ones I have set so far.”

The visit to Arizona is scheduled for the weekend of September 18th with a plan to close out the month of September on a visit to Boston College. Georgia Tech, Arizona and Louisville have also scheduled in-home visits as well.

NBE will continue to monitor the recruitment of Rod Odom as he works through the process towards a college decision this fall.
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As we reported Friday night in our Busy Week at Marquette story, 6-foot-10 Lawrence (MA) Central Catholic PF Carson Desrosiers has narrowed his recruiting focus to three schools: Marquette, Arizona State and Wake Forest.

“No new schools have contacted me since July, but I have been pretty open throughout my whole recruitment process,” Desrosiers stated to NBE late last week. “Although, I have recently trimmed down my list.”

Desrosiers is a big man that can play inside and out and is also a force in the paint with his shot-blocking ability. His play with the Mass Rivals this spring opened many eyes and he continued the fine efforts through the summer. Now, it looks like he has narrowed his focus to three schools and will go see what each has to offer this fall.

“I am currently in the process of setting up three official visits to ASU, Marquette and Wake Forest,” said Desrosiers.

One lucky school will get a very versatile big man who will make an impact in a variety of ways in his college career.
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One of the more impressive offensive talents in the class of 2011 that NBE saw this summer was Southfield (MI) High School guard Carlton Brundidge. The 6-foot-1, 202-pound guard is a well-built, strong-bodied guard that can overpower peers going to the basket and also connect consistently from long-range, making him a very dangerous offensive threat.

That offensive game was on display in July at the Nike Peach Jam where Brundidge led The Family U-16 squad to the championship, beating the All-Ohio Red 16′s in the finale. Brundidge was nearly unstoppable in a semifinal win over Boo Williams with 36 points and he added 25 more in the finale.

“My highlight of the summer was winning the Nike Peach Jam,” Brundidge told NBE this weekend.

That performance in front of a virtual who’s who of college basketball coaches in North Augusta (SC) also led to additional recruiting interest from top schools around the country.

“Since July, new colleges such as Wake Forest, Oklahoma, Providence [and] Syracuse [are interested]”

Brundidge is planning to visit Michigan and Miami as those two, along with Wake Forest and Michigan State, are the schools he is hearing from the most. Those in need of a player that can score by taking it to the rim and on the break, there are not many, if any, better from the guard position in the class of 2011 than Carlton Brundidge.

MEET CHASE ADAMS

Adams set to utilize opportunity at Pittsburgh in senior year

by RON BAILEY

August 22, 2009 – Sometimes, life gives you a bonus, those opportunities that are just icing on the cake. They seem to happen rarely, and as the old-timers say, the recipient “Must be living right”. If that adage is true, Chase Adams is just such a guy, as the 5’10”, 190 lb guard gets to play his senior year in the Big East, transferring from Summit League school Centenary. Further illustrating his boon, Chase doesn’t have to sit out a year in doing so.

How is Adams capable of doing this, something he labeled by telephone this week “a dream of mine to play at the highest level”?

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BIG EAST TALENT SHOWS AT DC’S KENNER LEAGUE

Selected Kenner League review on Big East Guys

by RON BAILEY

August 21, 2009 – With the 2009 Jabbo Kenner League’s yearly closure, basketball fans have again lost the opportunity to see professional and collegiate players battle in the confines of Georgetown University’s McDonough Arena. Kenner is, and has been, one of the best places to see post-high school talent perform on the East Coast.

Of course present and past Big East athletes participate in league action. Several that played this year are evaluated below. (Click here for i95Ballerz.com All Kenner First/Second and Third/Fourth teams)

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