Alex Schwartz

RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (4/16/2013): COMMITMENTS CONTINUE AS LATE SIGNING PERIOD NEARS

by Alex Schwartz

Two of the top uncommitted players in the nation made their commitments while in Chicago for the McDonald’s All-American Game and numerous other 2013 prospects also pledged in the past several days.

Elite frontcourt prospect Aaron Gordon of Archbishop Mitty (CA) announced his intentions to attend Arizona for his college ball, per multiple reports. A 6-foot-8 power forward, Gordon is one of the top ranked players in America in the class of 2013. He selected the Wildcats over Kentucky, Oregon and Washington. Gordon is the second McDonald’s All-American in Arizona’s recruiting class, joining 6-foot-7 small forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson of Chester (PA).

Keith Frazier of Kimball (TX), the best available shooting guard in the nation, committed to SMU, per his Twitter account. The 6-foot-5 class of 2013 prospect is the first ever McDonald’s All-American for the Mustangs, according the game broadcast. Frazier was also considering Texas A&M and Texas Tech, according to Scout.com’s Evan Daniels.

The top available class of 2013 guard in the nation, Rysheed Jordan of Vaux (PA), took his name off the board and pledged to St. John’s, per multiple reports. Jordan is a 6-foot-3 point guard who selected the Red Storm over Temple and UCLA.

Chris Peak of Panther-Lair.com had the news that Jamel Artis of Notre Dame Prep (MA) committed to Pittsburgh. Artis is a 6-foot-7 combo forward and a fifth-year class of 2013 recruit.

Dominique Hawkins announced his commitment to Kentucky at a press conference at his school, per multiple reports. The 6-foot point guard from Madison Central (KY) is the eighth member of UK’s 2013 recruiting class, the second of whom is an in-state prospect.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (4/1/2013): RECRUITING TRAIL HEATING UP ONCE AGAIN

by Alex Schwartz

There has been a lot of news in the world of high school hoops in the past few weeks, including a few talented juniors making early commitments, an elite senior ending his recruitment and some high-profile players in setting announcement dates.

One of the best players in the nation, Julius Randle, declared his intentions to attend Kentucky. The 6-foot-9 power forward from Prestonwood Christian (TX) opted for the Wildcats over Florida, Kansas and Texas. Randle joins an absolutely loaded seven-man 2013 recruiting class for UK that many are calling the greatest group ever assembled.

Also, according to Jason Jordan of USA Today, Julius Randle has been added to the McDonald’s All-American game. He was initially ineligible since he missed more than half the season—he was injured—yet has been added anyway. Randle is one of six players in the game headed to Kentucky next year.

One-time Murray State commit Demarcus Croaker is now headed to Texas for his college ball, per Reggie Rankin. He also noted that the class of 2013 prospect selected Texas over Murray State this time around. Croaker is a 6-foot-3 shooting guard from Jones (FL).

Gavin Schilling of Findlay Prep (NV) became the first member of Michigan State’s 2013 recruiting class. The 6-foot-9 power forward tweeted his commitment to the Spartans. He selected MSU over Minnesota, UCLA and Villanova.

Rutgers landed a pledge from JuCo prospect Chris Griffin of Wabash Valley College (IL), according to Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com. Griffin is a 6-foot-7 small forward in the class of 2013.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (3/15/2013): CATCHING UP ON THE LATEST RECRUITING NEWS & NOTES

There has been a lot of news in the world of high school hoops in the past couple weeks, including a few juniors making early commitments and some high-profile players in multiple classes setting announcement dates.

First off, beginning with 2013 commitments as usual, Texas A&M landed JuCo point guard Chad Frazier, per Alex Kline of TheRecruitScoop.com. The 6-foot-4 prospect out of Gulf Coast Community College (FL) selected the Aggies over South Carolina. According to Dave Telep, Frazier is from North Carolina and is a former Oklahoma State commit.

Future150.com had the news that JuCo recruit Deville Smith of Southwest Mississippi Community College (MS) popped to UNLV. Smith is a 5-foot-11 point guard in the class of 2013 who began his college career at Mississippi State.

Oregon also dipped into the JuCo ranks to land Elgin Cook out of Northwest Florida State College (FL), per Eric Bossi of Rivals.com. Cook is a 6-foot-6 small forward in the class of 2013. Per Dave Telep, Cook is the son of ex-NBA player Alvin Robertson and has three years of eligibility left.

Dezmyn Trent of Foss (WA) has pledged to Boise State, according to Jason McCleary of LeftCoastRecruiting.com. Trent, a 6-foot-4 small forward, is a class of 2013 prospect.

Yet another JuCo prospect, Skyler Halford, has committed to BYU, per Greg Wrubell of KSL Radio. Halford is a 6-foot-1 class of 2013 combo guard from Salt Lake Community College (UT). Jay Drew of The Salt Lake Tribune tweeted that Halford began his career as a walk-on at Utah State before going on a mission.

Alex Kline reported that Jordan Gleason of Watervliet (NY) took his name off the board and pledged to Sacred Heart. Gleason is a 6-foot shooting guard in the class of 2013.

According to the Twitter account of his AAU program, Team Loaded, Jerome Simmons committed to North Carolina A&T. Simmons, a class of 2013 recruit, is 6-foot-8 power forward out of Massanutten Military Academy (VA).

JuCo recruit Marquel Curtis opted to end his recruitment and commit to Tulsa, according to Brad Winton of JucoRecruiting.com. Curtis is a 6-foot-3 class of 2013 shooting guard out of Williston State College (ND).

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (3/6/2013): JUSTON JACKSON POPS FOR NORTH CAROLINA

by Alex Schwartz

While the last few days have not had too much news, some of what has happened has involved a few of the nation’s top players and high-major programs.

First off, beginning with 2013 commitments as usual, Texas A&M landed JuCo point guard Chad Frazier, per Alex Kline of TheRecruitScoop.com. The 6-foot-4 prospect out of Gulf Coast Community College (FL) selected the Aggies over South Carolina. According to ESPN.com’s Dave Telep, Frazier is from North Carolina and is a former Oklahoma State commit.

Another JuCo prospect, Skyler Halford, has committed to BYU, per Greg Wrubell of KSL Radio. Halford is a 6-foot-1 class of 2013 combo guard from Salt Lake Community College (UT). Jay Drew of The Salt Lake Tribune tweeted that Halford began his career as a walk-on at Utah State before going on a mission.

Alex Majewski out of Brother Rice (IL) has popped to Texas-Pan American, per Victor Agapay. A class of 2013 prospect, Majewski is a 6-foot-7 small forward.

Alex Kline reported that Jordan Gleason of Watervliet (NY) took his name off the board and pledged to Sacred Heart. Gleason is a 6-foot shooting guard in the class of 2013.

Owens Community College (OH) head coach David Clake tweeted that a member of his team, Justin Edmonds, committed to Marshall. Edmonds, a class of 2013 JuCo prospect, is a 6-foot-4 shooting guard.

The biggest news of late came from the 2014 class, as Justin Jackson of HCYA (TX) made the decision to attend North Carolina, according to Scout.com’s Evan Daniels. A 6-foot-7 small forward, Jackson is one of the top players in the nation in the junior class. He officially visited UNC this past weekend and opted to pledge to the Tar Heels on Monday night. He joins Joel Berry of Lake Highland Prep (FL) in a big-time early duo for Roy Williams in the class of 2014.

Another quality 2014 prospect to make his decision of late is Jarvis Calhoun, who popped to UAB, per Shun Williams of On the Radar Hoops. Calhoun is a 6-foot combo guard out of Hewitt-Trussville (AL).

Continuing with the theme of talented 2014 prospects making commitment, Jonathan Williams of St. Benedict’s (NJ) pledged to VCU, in news that looks to have been first mentioned by @DistrictBaller on Twitter. The future Ram is a 6-foot point guard.

Julius Randle, one the best players in the nation in the class of 2013, tweeted that he will make his college choice on March 20. Randle, a 6-foot-9 power forward, is considering six schools. Those in the mix for the Prestonwood Christian (TX) star are Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, and Texas.

One of the top players in the 2014 class is also set to make his decision soon. Dwayne Morgan of St. Frances Academy (MD) tweeted that he will declare on April 5. Morgan is an athletic 6-foot-7 small forward.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (3/1/2013): RIP JOSH LEVEL

by Alex Schwartz

Before getting into the recruiting news, we want to send our condolences to the family and friends of Josh Level. A standout basketball player from North Carolina in the junior class, Level sadly passed away last week, far too young. The guys over at Ball is Life put together a nice “Josh Level Tribute Mix,” which can be found Here.

On the trail, one of the biggest pieces of news involved a star dual-sport athlete. Derrick Griffin of Terry (TX) committed to Miami for football, in news that looks to have been broken by Peter Ariz of Canesooks to have been broken by Peter Ariz of CanesInSight.com. The class of 2013 prospect, who has signed a Letter of Intent, is expected to play basketball at Miami as well.

Griffin, who checks in at 6-foot-6, is a wide receiver/tight end on the gridiron and a power forward on the hardwood. He had been committed to Texas A&M for a long time, but did not sign with the Aggies due to reported academic issues.

Tyrek Coger of Word of God Christian Academy (NC) tweeted that he pledged to Middle Tennessee State. Coger is a 6-foot-8 center in the class of 2013 and he is a former Missouri commit.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (2/20/2013): RECAPPING THE LATEST RECRUITING HIGHLIGHTS

While the recruiting world focused its attention on football’s National Signing Day recently, things have also been quite active on the hoops recruiting trail as well.

Rutgers landed its second commit of 2013, as JuCo prospect Craig Brown of Broward College (FL) popped to the Scarlet Knights, per Jerry Carino of NJ Hoops Haven. Brown is a 6-foot-5 class of 2013 small forward who began his college career at Lynn University, a DII school.

Travis Jorgenson of New Hampton (NH) is off the board, according to Scout.com’s Evan Daniels. A 6-foot point guard in the class of 2013, Jorgenson is a Missouri native who was originally committed to Missouri.

Soon-to-be Big East member UCF went the JuCo route for a class of 2013 big man, landing Eugene McCrory, per Brandon Helwig of UCFSports.com. McCrory is a 6-foot-8 center out of Central Florida College (FL) who is originally from Maryland.

JuCo prospect KJ Bluford of Northeast Community College (NE) committed to Iowa State, according to Chris Williams of CycloneFanatic.com. Bluford is a 6-foot-2 shooting guard in the class of 2013.

Malik Muller has committed to Virginia Tech, according to Will Gunter of The Big Spur. Gunter reports that Muller is a 6-foot-3 class of 2013 point guard out of Germany.

Cornelius Elder, a 2013 prospect from the Ensworth School (TN), tweeted his commitment to Miami. Elder pledged to and signed with the school’s football program, but according to Jerry Meyer of 247Sports, he is going to walk-on at Miami as well. Elder is a 5-foot-10 point guard on the hardwood.

Adam Finkelstein of the New England Recruiting Report had the news that Marcelo Deschamps of Lee Academy (ME) committed to Monmouth. A 6-foot-10 center, Deschamps is a class of 2013 prospect.

Chris Braley, a 6-foot-4 class of 2013 prospect, committed to Stony Brook, in news that looks to have been first reported by HoopRootz. Braley is a small forward who attends Phillips Exeter Academy (NH).

Rodney Hawkins of Mt. Zion Prep (MD) is off the board to St. Peter’s, according to Alex Kline of TheRecruitScoop.com. Hawkins is a 6-foot-7 class of 2013 power forward.

JuCo prospect Vic Adams of Dodge City Community College (KS) has taken his name off the board and he too has pledged to St. Peter’s, per Alex Kline. Adams is a 6-foot-3 shooting guard in the class of 2013.
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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (2/5/2013): CINCINNATI PICKS UP BIG COMMITMENT

by Alex Schwartz

Several high-major programs landed commitments in the past week, including a couple from the Big East. That includes a program from the Midwest coming into the New York metro area to land a top 25 recruit.

Jermaine Lawrence, a New York native who attends Pope John XXIII (NJ), popped to Cincinnati, per his Tumblr account. Lawrence, a 6-foot-9 power forward, is ranked No. 24 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125.

Lawrence selected the Bearcats over St. John’s and UNLV. He is the fifth member of Cincinnati’s 2013 recruiting class and is a significant addition.

RJ Curington of Oak Hill Academy (VA) pledged to DePaul, according to Brian Snow of Scout.com. A 6-foot-5 shooting guard, Curington was among the better available players in the nation in the class of 2013 and is a nice late pickup for the Blue Demons.

Scout.com’s Josh Gershon had the news that Dion Wade of Findlay Prep (NV) came off the board to Auburn. A 6-foot-7 small forward, Wade is the second player from Findlay Prep in the class of 2013 to pick the Tigers. The other is Benas Griciunas, a 6-foot-10 power forward.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (1/25/2013): BERRY GIVES TAR HEELS HEAD START ON ’14 CLASS & MORE RECRUIT NEWS

by Alex Schwartz

While the last week or so has not been crazy on the recruiting trail, it has certainly not been as slow as the holiday season. The rundown includes a few high-major programs adding 2013 commitments, a powerhouse getting a 2014 pledge, USA Basketball releasing some big news and more.

We begin with the 2014 pledge, which came from Joel Berry, the No. 20 prospect in the NBE Sports Class of 2014 Post-July Top 75. Berry, a 6-foot-1 point guard from Lake Highland Prep (FL), has popped for North Carolina, per Alex Kline of TheRecruitScoop.com. He is a major pickup for the Tar Heels and is the highest ranked committed player in the NBE Sports 2014 rankings.

Amida Brimah, a 6-foot-11 class of 2013 center committed to UConn, per Coast 2 Coast Hoops. Brimah attends Archbishop Carroll (FL), after transferring over from Monsignor Pace (FL). He is a bit under the radar and fairly raw, but has some definite upside and can really impact the game when he is in the groove.

Jerron Wilbut of St. John’s Northwestern Military Academy (WI) is off the board to Seton Hall, according to Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com. Wilbut is a 6-foot-3 class of 2013 shooting guard who is in a post-graduate year after attending Downers Grove South (IL).

Sticking with the news on ZagsBlog.com and the current BIG EAST, Rutgers picked up a commitment from South Kent (Conn.) point guard Shane Rector.  The 6-foot-1 Rector is the first commit in the 2013 class for Mike Rice and the Scarlet Knights.

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DR. MLK ‘STOP THE VIOLENCE’ BASKETBALL CLASSIC RECAP

by Alex Schwartz

MIAMI – The 18^th annual Dr. MLK “Stop the Violence” Basketball Classic took place at Miami Central (FL) High School over the past couple days. NBE Sports was in the gym for five of the games on Saturday to see some of the top teams and players from South Florida.

TOP PERFORMER

Wadley Mompremier of Miami Senior was the leading scorer in the five games NBE Sports saw, but that is not the only reason he garnered Top Performer honors. A 6-foot-9 power forward who has signed with Ohio University, Mompremier has made some impressive strides in his game since the summer. The class of 2013 prospect is still a bit raw, but the strides in his game are quite evident. He scored off some nice alley-oop plays and consistently used his height to his advantage. Mompremier has superb length to go along with a body that can still add some muscle. The future Bobcat rebounds the ball pretty well and can even grab some boards at the offensive end. Mompremier also displayed the ability to step out and knock down a shot from 3-point range with a pretty nice looking stroke. It was clear on Saturday that Mompremier has a chance to be a superb player down the road in the MAC and Ohio fans should be excited about this pickup.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (1/14/2013): ACTION HEATING UP ON RECRUITING TRAIL

by Alex Schwartz

After a long swoon during the holiday season, things have picked back up in a hurry on the recruiting trail. One of the nation’s best big men made his pledge and several, as did a top-notch junior guard and several other players.

Dakari Johnson of Montverde Academy (FL) became yet another part of the star-studded Kentucky recruiting class. The 6-foot-10 class of 2013 center picked the Wildcats over Georgetown and Syracuse.

Johnson had been ranked No. 3 in the NBE Sports Class of 2014 Post-July Top 75, but he has since reclassified up to 2013. UK already has four additional top-15 commits in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125, as John Calipari is putting together his, if not the­ best class yet.

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NEW YEAR’S JUMP-OFF EVENT RECAP

by Alex Schwartz

HACKENSACK, N.J. – Eight teams made their way to Hackensack (NJ) High School on Sunday for the New Year’s Jump-Off. The quartet of games featured only teams from the Garden State, but there was a great deal of talent on display, including a few players headed to high-major programs.

TOP PERFORMER

Reggie Cameron of Hudson Catholic is the easy choice of who turned in the day’s best performance. The 6-foot-8 small forward dropped 30 points and may well have had more if he shot more the fourth quarter had the game been close. Cameron, ranked No. 62 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125, also grabbed 12 rebounds, distributed the ball well and made his presence felt on defense. A big-time shooter from long range, the future Georgetown Hoya really had his shot going in this game. He has such a smooth stroke and possesses the size to get it off over most defenders. Cameron also scored from midrange and at the rim. The senior even displayed the ability to play the point, which is something he has not really done before. He blocked shots, found open teammates for buckets and was the best low post player in the game, despite being a three man. Cameron led his team to a 70-53 victory over Pope John XXIII and put on in absolute show in his home city of Hackensack.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (12/27/2012): HOLIDAY SEASON BRINGS A QUIET TIME IN RECRUITING NEWS

by Alex Schwartz

First off, NBE Sports would like to say Happy Holidays to all of our readers. Hopefully you all enjoy the season!

As for the hoops, there was one big-time commitment that came down in the past week as well as a few other pieces of news.

Jabari Parker, ranked No. 3 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125, committed to the Duke Blue Devils. Parker selected Duke over BYU, Florida, Michigan State, and Stanford. The 6-foot-8 small forward from Simeon (IL) is a huge pickup for Mike Krzyzewski and Co. and is the top ranked committed player in the nation not going to an SEC School.

Parker is the third member of Duke’s class in the top 45 of the NBE Sports rankings. He joins No. 29 Matt Jones of DeSoto (TX) and No. 41 Semi Ojeleye of Ottawa (KS).

Jevon Thomas of St. John’s Northwestern Military Academy (WI) committed to Kansas State, per ESPN.com’s Reggie Rankin. Thomas is a 5-foot-11 class of 2013 point guard from New York who is in a post-graduate year at SJNMA. He had originally committed to St. John’s, then decommitted and eventually pledged to Dayton. Instead of heading to Dayton, Thomas went to prep school and is now bound for KSU.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (12/20/2012): JABARI PARKER DECISION NEARING; DAKARI JOHNSON CUTS LIST TO THREE

by Alex Schwartz

There have not been many high-major commitments of late, but there has still been a fair amount of news in the high school hoops world lately. In addition, one of the nation’s top prospects is set to announce his choice today.

First off, Jabari Parker is set to announce his college choice today on ESPNU, as originally reported by Joe Henrickson of the Chicago Sun-Times. Parker is a 6-foot-8 small forward out of Simeon (IL) who is ranked No. 3 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125. KSL.com’s Greg Wrubell quoted Jabari’s father, Sonny Parker, as saying, “I think it will probably be between Duke and Michigan State.”

Samford landed a commitment from Jordan Capps, per Scout.com’s Evan Daniels. Capps is a class of 2013 small forward prospect from Peachtree Ridge (GA) who has some solid size at 6-foot-6.

St. Peter’s dipped into the JuCo ranks for a 2013 commitment, according to Brad Winton of JuCoRecruiting.com. He reported that the Peacocks landed Tyler Gaskins, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Lawson State Community College (AL).

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2012 VILLA CLASSIC RECAP

by Alex Schwartz

GLENSIDE, Pa. – Five teams from New York City, four from Philadelphia and one from New Jersey made their way to Arcadia University yesterday for the sixth annual VILLA Classic. Although most of the games ended with lopsided scores, there was still some nice talent on display.

TOP PERFORMER

There are several players who could stake claim to this honor, but we are going to go with Brandon Austin. The future Providence Friar was not amongst the players who dropped 20+ points, but he turned in the best all-around performance. The versatile senior from Imhotep Charter (PA) is capable of playing multiple positions, but, as he showed on Saturday, he is best suited at the point guard spot. Austin is capable of both scoring the ball himself—he finished with 18 points against Lincoln (NY)—and facilitating things for others. He runs the offense quite adeptly and is a superb defender. The 6-foot-6 Austin locked up and forced steals, but he was also able to block shots around the rim. His combination of size, skill and length allows him to impact the game in multiple ways. Additionally, the No. 47 ranked player in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Top 125 has a nice feel for the game.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (12/7/2012): TOWNS PICKS UK, CROAKER CHOOSES MURRAY STATE

by Alex Schwartz

Although not much happened in the high school hoops world in the past few days, there was one huge commitment that came down on Monday.

Karl Towns, Jr. of St. Joseph’s Metuchen (NJ) announced his commitment to Kentucky, as expected. According to Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com, Towns said that his final three were UK, Duke and Florida, with things really coming down to the Wildcats and Blue Devils.

The 6-foot-10 center played for Kentucky head coach John Calipari on the Dominican Republic National Team this summer. He is ranked as the No. 3 player in the NBE Sports Post-Summer Class of 2015 Top 25.

However, Towns will no longer be listed in the 2015 rankings. That is because in addition to committing, he also announced that he is moving to the class of 2014. The Garden State big man will remain highly ranked in the junior class.

We accidentally overlooked a big piece of news for Monday’s Recruiting Notebook. That would be Demarcus Croaker of Jones (FL) committing to the Murray State Racers. We first saw the news from Scout.com’s Evan Daniels.

The 6-foot-3 shooting guard is a major pickup for Steve Prohm and Co. Croaker is ranked as the No. 99 player in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125 and is one of the top players in the senior class not headed to a BCS conference school.

From the college ranks, Pitt’s John Johnson is transferring to Penn State, according to Richard Guillen, his former AAU coach with the Hunting Park Warriors. Johnson is a 6-foot-1 sophomore shooting guard from Philadelphia.

In other news, we have been looking over the athletic websites of all the BCS conference schools with 2013 commits to check for news releases on official signings. There are a few schools with verbal commits who have not released news on any signings. They are Boston College, Georgetown, Indiana, Seton Hall, South Carolina, and Texas Tech.

Of those, only two, Indiana and South Carolina, have more than one commit. Seton Hall’s lone commit, Aquille Carr, was not expected to sign in the early period.

In addition, there are some other schools who have released the news of some signings, but not all. Malcolm Allen (Stanford), Deng Deng (LSU), Derrick Griffin (Texas A&M), Xavier Rathan-Mayes (Florida State), Tyree and Tyrell Robinson (Oregon), and LJ Westbrook (Oregon State) are players whose schools have publicized signings of other commits, but not them. The Robinson twins and Griffin will probably sign with their schools’ football programs in February.

Note that just because no releases have been issued at some schools or that some names have not been mentioned does not automaticallt mean the players did not sign. There is also the possibility that there was just simply no release.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (11/26/2012): CLOSING OUT EARLY SIGNING PERIOD COMMITMENTS

by Alex Schwartz

Signing week is now in the books, but a number of other 2013 players made their college commitments since our last Recruiting Notebook on Monday. Some popped before the signing period ended and some after it.

The best senior to come off the board in the past few days is Brandon Austin of Imhotep Charter (PA). Austin is a 6-foot-6 point guard/small forward and he is now a future Providence Friar, per his Twitter account.

A long, versatile player with an impressive skill set, Austin was at one point committed to Penn State. Ranked No. 47 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125, Austin picked the Friars over Texas and UConn.

Manhattan got an incredibly huge coup in landing JUCO stud Chris Thomas of Chipola College (FL). The news was broken by Scout.com’s Evan Daniels. Thomas is a 6-foot-5 shooting guard who was at one point ranked amongst the top 10 players in high school in the class of 2012 before opting to take a unique route and enrolling at a junior college.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (11/19/2012): ROBERSON, ANYA, HAMILTON, MEEKS, MOSTELLA & MORE OFF THE ’13 BOARD

by Alex Schwartz

Friday was a huge day in the world of high school hoops. In a matter of about an hour on Friday evening, four of the top 50 players in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125 made their decisions.

The biggest coup of the bunch was UTEP landing Isaac Hamilton of St. John Bosco (CA). The 6-foot-5 shooting guard and younger brother of the Denver Nuggets’ Jordan Hamilton, Isaac has a chance to be an absolute star for the Miners.

Hamilton is ranked No. 7 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125 and he picked UTEP over schools such as UCLA and UNLV, amongst others. He announced his decision live on ESPNU.

Once Indiana withdrew from BeeJay Anya’s recruitment, it was nearly a foregone conclusion that the 6-foot-8 center would pick North Carolina State. However, that does not make the addition of the DeMatha (MD) star any less significant for the Wolfpack.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (11/15/2012): ’15 KARL TOWNS UPSTAGES SIGNING PERIOD OPENING

by Alex Schwartz

It is rare that the biggest news to come out of signing week involves a player who cannot sign a Letter of Intent for another two years, but one could argue that is the case thus far. That is partially due to the lack of major commitments and partially due to the fact that the news from the sophomore class is pretty big.

Here is a look at some of the bigger stories of the week, some from yesterday, the first day of the early signing period, and some from the days leading up to it.

We start it with the aforementioned sophomore who has grabbed the headlines. In news that looks to have been first reported by Joseph Thompson of SEC Basketball Recruiting, Karl Towns, Jr. has decided to announce his college decision on December 4^th. A 6-foot-10 power forward/center out of St. Joseph’s Metuchen (NJ), Towns is one of the best prospects in the nation regardless of class. He is ranked No. 3 in the NBE Sports Class of 2015 Post-July Top 25.

Towns has most of the nation’s elite programs coming after him and basically has his selection of schools. There has long been some chatter about Kentucky when it comes to Towns and the Wildcats could be the favorite here.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (11/9/2012): ORANGE CONTINUE TO SIZZLE ON RECRUITING TRAIL AHEAD OF ACC MOVE

by Alex Schwartz

The two biggest high school hoops stories to come since our last Recruiting Notebook are both out of the class of 2014.

First off, Chris McCullough became just the second player in the top 25 of the NBE Sports Class of 2014 Post-July Top 75 to make a college decision. The 6-foot-9 power forward from Brewster Academy (NH) pledged to Syracuse, in news that looks to have been first reported by CuseNation.com.

McCullough is a native New Yorker and a high school teammate of recent 2013 Syracuse pledge Ron Patterson. McCullough is ranked No. 22 in the NBE Sports 2014 Top 75.

The Orange may not be done in 2014 as NBE’s 19th best player in the class, Isaiah Whitehead, has narrowed his list to 10, per ESPN, and the Orange remain one of the leaders.  The final 10 for the NYC guard are:  Syracuse, St. John’s, Rutgers, Kentucky, Louisville, Arizona, Maryland, Florida, Kansas and UCLA.

Dakari Johnson was the other 2014 stud to make news this week, except, well, Johnson is no longer a member of that class. Johnson has made the decision to reclassify to 2013, per Garrett Tucker of Future150.com.

The 6-foot-10 center from Montverde Academy (FL) was ranked No. 3 in the NBE Sports 2014 Top 75. He is the third top-20 player to reclassify from 2014 to 2013 in the past few months, following Andrew Wiggins, Noah Vonleh and Wayne Selden.

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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK (11/5/2012): COMMITMENT FRENZY HEATS UP AS SIGNING PERIOD NEARS

by Alex Schwartz

We only had one Recruiting Notebook last week, so there is a lot to get through in this one. Thus, we’re going to go with a bit more of a quick, rapid fire style this time.

First off, Baylor picked up a pledge from 6-foot-9 center Dominic Woodson of Huntington Prep (WV), according to Scout.com’s Evan Daniels. The big man is ranked No. 37 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125 and is the second top-40 prospect to pop for Baylor in three weeks. Woodson’s other finalist was North Carolina State.

Earlier today Austin Nichols tweeted he had committed to Memphis.   Nichols, ranked #75 in the NBE rankings, is another major in-state coup for Josh Pastner and the Tigers over in-state rival Tennessee.

LSU landed a big-time commitment from Jarrell Martin of Madison Prep Academy (LA), per Ben Love of Tiger Sports Digest. The 6-foot-8 power forward is ranked No. 66 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125. He is the third player in the top 75 to pledge to LSU in this class.

ESPN.com’s Reggie Rankin had the news that Jajuan Johnson of Southwind (TN) had selected Marquette. The 6-foot-3 shooting guard is ranked No. 63 in the NBE Sports Class of 2013 Post-July Top 125 and joins two other top-75 ranked prospects in Marquette’s class. Johnson chose Marquette over Alabama and Miami.

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