Pittsburgh

SETON HALL, VILLANOVA COMPLETE SERIES OF 1ST ROUND BLOWOUTS IN BIG EAST TOURNAMENT

By Lauren Kirschman

After the opening session of the 2012 BIG EAST Tournament saw a pair of 14-point wins registered by Connecticut and Pittsburgh (Big East Tournament 1st Session Recap), the evening session produced even less suspense as Seton Hall and Villanova scored resounding wins to close the first day of action at Madison Square Garden. Here is a look at last night’s results, the schedule for the rest of the BIG EAST Tournament and your links to secure tickets to the remaining games…

No 10 Seton Hall 79, No. 15 Providence 47

Seton Hall is one of several Big East teams trying to earn their way off the bubble and into the NCAA Tournament this week. The Pirates started on the right track, defeating Providence 79-47 on Tuesday night.
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THADDEUS HALL ADDS OFFER FROM ST. JOHN’S; MORE SCHOOLS ON ’12 SCORING MACHINE

Thaddeus Hall can score the basketball. Nobody would need to look any further than his second round of the PSAL Class AA playoffs performance last week. The 6-foot-5, 195-lb senior for Thomas Jefferson High School scored 34 first half points to lead his team to to an 86-76 win over Robeson. Hall finished with a career-high 39 points, including six three-pointers, in the contest. Like a true leader, Hall praised his teammates in the aftermath, although he still admitted the first half outburst has been the highlight of his year so far.

“My season is going great,” Hall told NBE. “[I] can’t believe how much the underclassmen [are] stepping up [and] playing this good. My highlight of the season is scoring 34 in the first half on Paul Roberson [last Wednesday].”

Hall followed up the 39-point explosion with 25 more in Sunday’s win over Wadleigh in the quarterfinals. The back-to-back performances has led to a scholarship offer that has really gotten his attention.
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UCONN, PITT EARN OPENING ROUND BIG EAST TOURNAMENT WINS

By Lauren Kirschman

Big East Tournament Day One

No. 9 Connecticut 81, No. 16 DePaul 67

Last season, Kemba Walker carried the Connecticut Huskies to five wins in five days and a Big East tournament championship. Whether or not the Huskies can move through the gauntlet to earn another title remains to be seen. But if they do win five consecutive contests again, it’ll likely be thanks to Jeremy Lamb.

Lamb led Connecticut with 25 points, four assists and five rebounds in the Huskies’ 81-67 win over DePaul in the first round of the Big East tournament on Tuesday afternoon. Connecticut, the No. 9 seed, started 7-7 from beyond the arc and didn’t miss a 3-point shot until Roscoe Smith was off the mark with 4:40 left in the first half.

The Blue Demons consistently left Connecticut players open on the perimeter, seeming willing to chance the Huskies beating them from the outside. Connecticut took advantage and, after letting DePaul hang around early, closed the half on a 6-0 run that gave the Huskies a 46-33 advantage
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2012 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT TIPS OFF TODAY – - CAN UCONN DO IT AGAIN?

The bright lights of Broadway will begin shining today at high noon as the 2012 BIG EAST Tournament will get underway. Leading off the action will be the #9 seeded UConn versus the #16 seed DePaul. These very two teams opened the tournament last season and the Huskies began their improbable March run of 11 straight wins with a 97-71 win over the Blue Demons. Do they have it in them again?

“Last year we did the impossible,” Alex Oriakhi told the Hartford Courant. “So we know anything is possible.”

Of course, last year the Huskies had Kemba Walker, who had a March run that will live on through the ages. Even without Walker UConn is a team stocked with talent. Sophomore Jeremy Lamb and freshman Andre Drummond could be lottery picks in the NBA Draft this June. Shabazz Napier and Alex Oriakhi played key roles throughout last year’s March run.
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MELO, COOLEY, WAITERS & CLARK EARN BIG EAST BASKETBALL AWARDS

Courtesy of BIG EAST conference

NEW YORK – Fab Melo, Syracuse’s sophomore center, has been named BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year by a vote of the league’s head coaches who were not permitted to vote for their own players.

The league also announced that Notre Dame junior forward Jack Cooley is the BIG EAST Most Improved Player. Syracuse sophomore guard Dion Waiters has won the BIG EAST Sixth Man Award and Georgetown senior guard Jason Clark has been named the winner of the BIG EAST Sportsmanship Award.

Melo, who came to Syracuse from Sagemont, Fla., led the BIG EAST in blocked shots in league play with a 3.7 average. He also averaged 6.1 rebounds. The 7-0, 244-pound Melo is a valued member of the Syracuse lineup. In the team’s only loss of the season, a defeat at Notre Dame, Melo did not play. He is the second straight Defensive Player of the Year winner from Syracuse. Rick Jackson was the 2010-11 honoree.

Cooley emerged as one of the BIG EAST’s best big men this season after making modest contributions a season ago. As a sophomore in 2010-11, he averaged 3.7 points and 3.1 rebounds while playing 10.3 minutes per game. This season, the 6-9 Cooley is averaging 12.5 points and owns a rebounding mark of 9.2, which ranks fourth in the BIG EAST. Cooley is a native of Glenview, Ill.
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BIG EAST RELEASES 2011-2012 MEN’S BASKETBALL ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS

Courtesy of BIG EAST conference

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Forward Jae Crowder and guard Darius Johnson-Odom of Marquette were two of six players named to the All-BIG EAST First Team, the league announced. The conference’s head coaches choose the all-conference teams. The coaches are not permitted to vote for their own players. The league announced the All-BIG EAST First, Second and Third Teams in addition to the BIG EAST All-Rookie Team.

The BIG EAST Player of the Year will come from the All-BIG EAST First Team. The conference will announce Player of the Year, Oppenheimer Funds/BIG EAST Coach of the Year, BIG EAST Rookie of the Year and American Eagle Outfitters BIG EAST Scholar-Athlete of the Year on Tuesday, March 6. The announcement will be made between sessions of the first day of The BIG EAST Championship Presented by American Eagle Outfitters at Madison Square Garden. The press conference will begin after the postgame interviews of the afternoon doubleheader have been completed. The other league individual awards will be announced Monday, March 5.

In addition to Crowder and Johnson-Odom, the other first-team selections are: Jeremy Lamb of Connecticut, Jason Clark of Georgetown, Kris Joseph of Syracuse and Kevin Jones of West Virginia.

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2012 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE & TICKETS (TOURNAMENT OVERVIEW)

The 2012 BIG EAST Championship Presented by American Eagle Outfitters will be the 30th straight at Madison Square Garden, the World’s Most Famous Arena. More than 3.2 million fans have gone through the turnstiles to watch the longest running conference basketball tournament at the same venue. Eleven different schools have taken home the crown. The Championship begins Tuesday with teams seeded ninth through 16th competing. Last year, it was ninth-seeded Connecticut that made it to the Saturday night championship game and took home the trophy. With Saturday’s topsy-turvy action, the Huskies find themselves in a familiar place…the #9 seed opening up the tournament with DePaul. Do they have it in them again?

On the heels of a historic regular season in which it won 30 of 31 games, including a 17-1 mark in conference play, Syracuse has earned the 2012 BIG EAST regular-season title and the No. 1 seed in the 2012 BIG EAST Championship presented by American Eagle Outfitters. Syracuse enters the tournament in search of its sixth BIG EAST Championship title.

Syracuse joins Marquette, Notre Dame and Cincinnati as the top four seeds in The BIG EAST Championship, which begins Tuesday, March 6 at noon Eastern at Madison Square Garden in New York. Those four schools receive byes through two rounds of the tournament and won’t play until Thursday’s quarterfinals.

The Championship begins Tuesday with four first-round matchups. Connecticut and DePaul kick things off with a battle between the Nos. 9 and 16 seeds at noon, while No. 12 St. John’s takes on No. 13 Pittsburgh at 2 p.m. to complete the afternoon session. Those games will be televised on ESPN2 and ESPN 3D.

The Tuesday evening session begins with No. 10 Seton Hall and No. 15 Providence at 7 p.m., followed by No. 11 Rutgers against No. 14 Villanova at 9 p.m. on ESPNU and ESPN 3D.

No. 8-seed West Virginia will await the Connecticut/DePaul winner Wednesday at noon in the first of four second-round games. No. 5 Georgetown has the Pittsburgh/St. John’s winner at 2 p.m., while No. 7 Louisville takes on the Providence/Seton Hall winner at 7 p.m. No. 6 USF closes Wednesday’s action against the Villanova/Rutgers winner.

Friday’s semifinals are scheduled for 7 and 9 p.m., while the championship game tips at 9 p.m. Saturday.

Georgetown and Connecticut have won a conference-record seven BIG EAST Championships. The Huskies made history last season by winning five games in five days to take the conference crown on their way to an NCAA Championship.

The 2012 BIG EAST Tournament is already a sell out, but fans can still get their tickets. This is the last appearance in the Men’s BIG EAST championship for West Virginia and SU and Pitt are not far behind…so this year’s event promises to be one to remember!

Below are ticket links to all the sessions for this year’s event. Hundreds of seats for $10 or less are available right now so check out the links and get your seats to one of the great events of college basketball.

Here are your 2012 BIG EAST Tournament seeds:

1) Syracuse, 17-1
2) Marquette, 14-4
3) Notre Dame, 13-5
4) Cincinnati, 12-6
5) Georgetown, 12-6
6) South Florida, 12-6
7) Louisville, 10-8
8] West Virginia, 9-9
9) Connecticut, 8-10
10) Seton Hall, 8-10
11) Rutgers, 6-12
12) St. John’s, 6-12
13) Pittsburgh, 5-13
14) Villanova, 5-13
15) Providence, 4-14
16) DePaul, 2-15 (vs SHU)

We have also included a source to get tickets for the entire tournament or for each individual session as the NBE Basketball Report has partnered with TicketNetwork.com to help put fans in the stands this March. So, buy your tickets with complete confidence that you will be there (follow links to purchase tickets for each session) for the 2012 BIG EAST Tournament or Tickets to All Sporting Events!

2012 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE (with ticket purchase links) – IF TOURNAMENT BEGAN TODAY:

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JENKINS, BRITT HAVE GONZAGA POISED FOR WCAC PLAYOFF RUN

By Matt Whitfield

Gonzaga Head Coach Steve Turner feels good about his team with the playoffs in the WCAC set to begin this week.

“I think we’re having a tremendous season. I’m excited where we are. I think what a lot of people don’t understand is we’re sitting at 24-4 and in 28 games I haven’t played one game with my whole arsenal.”

Nate Britt, Gonzaga’s star Class of 2013 point guard who is verbally committed to North Carolina is one of the players who has sat out some games due to an injury this season, however when he has played he has often been lights out.
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MERNAGH: HUGGS IS RIGHT – - BACKYARD BRAWL HOOPS EDITION PREVIEW

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By Ray Mernagh

Bob Huggins is always refreshing to listen to for the following simple reason — he always speaks honestly to the media in a world where people in his position might cause a polygraph machine to explode if they were attached to one during press conferences. One memorable quote, which threw the opposing fanbase into a tizzy a few years ago, came after West Virginia had lost a multi-overtime game at Pittsburgh after being in a position where they had the game in hand but played stupidly down the stretch, allowed it to go into overtime, and eventually lost to their archrival.

Huggins told reporters afterwards that the Mountaineers had given the game away, that they never should’ve allowed it to go into overtime. He was right. He was being honest. And that’s why I prefer his brand of media relations to most of his peers. On the way into work today I heard a Huggins clip on the radio that included a simple answer to a question that others involved in the WVU/Pitt rivalry have either been passing on, or expressing doubt when it’s posed to them.
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KAZA KAJAMI-KEANE LOOKING FOR RIGHT FIT IN CLASS OF 2012

Canadian point guard Kaza Kajami-Keane has made another move. With many of the schools in on his recruitment looking for backcourt help to finish their Class of 2012 recruiting, Keane has scrapped plans for a post-grad season and is now looking to sign this spring and help one of those schools find their solution to their 2012 recruiting.

“There was a lot of thinking that went into me going to college this up coming year, but the main ones were how I already have the right grades and right academic habits to go forth and go to college,” Kajami-Keane told NBE over the weekend, “so there wasn’t really a need academically to stay in high school. Also another reason was because a lot of schools that were recruiting me were really interested in getting in a [Class of] 2012 point guard, so I felt that I would jump at the situation when it arose.”

Kajami-Keane hopes to find that right situation because he feels the time is now to move on to college and take his game to that next level.
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2012 NATIONAL PREP SCHOOL INVITATIONAL — TOP PERFORMERS

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By Brian Bosworth, National Recruiting Analyst

Now that the National Prep School Invitational has come to close and I’ve had a few days to process all the basketball I watched it’s time to rank the performances from the weekend. Below are player rankings by class based on this past weekend’s performance only. These are not an overall opinion on these players but rather a snapshot based on how they played at Rhode Island College over the weekend. The top spot in 2012 came down to the nation’s two best big men and is a decision I agonized over before finalizing it.

Be sure to check out our daily coverage from a great weekend of hoops at the 2012 National Prep School Invitational:
’12 NPSI – Day Four Report
’12 NPSI – Day Three Report
’12 NPSI – Day Two Report
’12 NPSI – Day One Report

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2012 NATIONAL PREP SCHOOL INVITATIONAL — DAY THREE

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By Brian Bosworth, National Recruiting Analyst

With most college programs having games of their own on Saturday fewer coaches were on hand at Rhode Island College to take in the action but that didn’t stop the players from putting on a show. The best game of the day and arguably the weekend thus far was between New Hampton Prep and Canarias Basketball Academy. Canarias got out to a lead using their incredible size and strength but New Hampton came storming back to force overtime. New Hampton had lost stud sophomore Noah Vonleh to five fouls towards the end of regulation and it caught up with them in the extra session as Canarias prevailed 82-77. Despite coming up five points short on the scoreboard New Hampton had the top individual performance of the day from a somewhat unlikely source.

Top Performer of the Day:

Olivier Hanlon (New Hampton 2012) – committed to Boston College – Of the 10-12 times I’ve seen Hanlon play both with New Hampton and on the summer circuit with Albany City Rocks today clearly stands out as his best overall performance. The 6’2” physical point guard carried his team on his back for the entire 2nd half and overtime session by scoring and creating for others. Hanlon is at his best in screen and roll sets where he turns the corner aggressively and attacks the lane. In those situations he scored with the floater, got all the way to the rim, drew fouls on Canarias’ bigs, and found open teammates on the perimeter. New Hampton ran the same high ball screen seemingly every time down in the 2nd half and Canarias never found an answer for Hanlon’s fearlessness turning the corner. He also showed off his 3 point stroke as he played off the ball at times and knocked them down in catch and shoot situations. Just as impressive as his offense is Hanlon’s intensity and ball pressure on the defensive end. He never takes a possession off on that end and got multiple steals with his quick footwork and great hands. Boston College fans should look forward to a bulldog at the point guard for the next four years.
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2012 NATIONAL PREP SCHOOL INVITATIONAL — DAY TWO

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By Brian Bosworth, National Recruiting Analyst

The second day of the National Prep School Invitational featured nine games with tips starting bright and early at 9 AM. Things started off a bit slowly with the first couple of early morning games featuring sluggish, turnover prone play. Then at 1:30 PM everything changed when Notre Dame Prep took the floor against Canarias Basketball Academy. That’s when a 7 foot monster put his stamp on this tournament and in doing so earned top billing for the day from me.

Top Performer of the Day:

Steven Adams (Notre Dame Prep 2012) – committed to Pittsburgh – Adams was great in his team’s game on Thursday and nearly earned the top spot in my recap. He was noticeably better on Friday. Adams is a massive human being standing 7 foot, 240 pounds. Unlike most people his size though; he is an excellent athlete showing lateral quickness and powerful burst off the floor. Every time he got within five feet of the rim on Friday the back board was in jeopardy of being torn down. Adams dunks with such power whether he has time to set himself or has to go up quickly on an offensive rebound. The scary thing about the big kiwi is that he’s only scratching the surface of his massive potential. He still doesn’t understand the consistent aggression and energy that he can play with and the impact it will have on his game. Adams shows it in flashes and has incredible success every time he does but once a coach makes him realize that’s needed every play his impact will be off the charts. I don’t think I’m overstating it when I say that Steven Adams belongs in the discussion with the newly re-classified Nerlens Noel and Shabazz Muhammad for top player in the 2012 class.
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2012 NATIONAL PREP SCHOOL INVITATIONAL — DAY ONE

By Brian Bosworth, National Recruiting Analyst

The National Prep School Invitational kicked off Thursday morning at a new venue of Rhode Island College after a number of years at the University of Rhode Island. The shift was made due to new NCAA rules not allowing tournaments of this nature to take place in Division-I gyms but the always well run event didn’t miss a beat. Eight games filled the schedule on Thursday with the nation’s No. 1 team Brewster Academy facing off against St. John’s Northwest Military Academy in the headliner. Two players faced off head to head in that matchup and they share top billing today after fantastic performances.

Co-Headliners of the Day:

Jakarr Sampson (Brewster Academy 2012) – Sampson played as well as I’ve ever seen from him in Brewster’s victory this afternoon. He has always been potent using a couple dribbles to attack the rim and showcase his absurd athleticism. Today, Sampson punished defenders for playing off him by consistently knocking down mid range jumpers from 12-18 feet. When that shot is falling he becomes basically unguardable because combined with his driving ability leaves defenders to pick their poison. On top of all his impressive offense, Sampson was the catalyst for Brewster defensively playing the top of their full court press. His length and quickness caused turnover after turnover often leading to rim shaking dunks. Undefeated Brewster was frankly in a bit of trouble before going to the press and letting Sampson wreck havoc. He made it obvious why he is one of the most sought after uncommitted players remaining in the 2012 class.

Aaron Ross (St. John’s Northwest Military Academy 2012) – A onetime Arkansas commit, Ross played like one of the nation’s bet forwards against the loaded frontline of Brewster. He tallied 30 points and 9 rebounds by mixing 3 point shots (3-7) with hard drives to the basket. Ross has the quickness to take his man out on the perimeter but also the strength to go to work on the low block. This combination gave Brewster fits all day as they tried various defenders to slow down the big man. Only Jakarr Sampson had any success but even he gave up his share of hoops against Ross. Finding balance between inside and outside will always be important for Ross as he doesn’t want to hunt jumpers and ignore his physical advantages. He also needs to be more committed defensively and will have to define a roll on that end. He is a little bit between a 3 and a 4 right now but needs to be a 4 defensively in my mind. Regardless of position he’s a beast and showed that off today.

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MERNAGH: ADAMS WILL BE FINE

Steven Adams is almost 7 feet (6’11″ after checking with his coach).

Steven Adams runs like a deer and rebounds out of his area (he tracked one 17 feet before grabbing it). He has incredible raw instincts defensively, knowing when to keep his feet with his arms straight up, when to jump and when to body his man.

Steven Adams makes hard catches look routine.

Steven Adams threw a 75 foot outlet pass to Myles Davis that led the Xavier bound guard perfectly for a breakaway dunk.

Steven Adams attempts to dunk everything he catches within a foot of the rim.

Steven Adams has a nice stroke on his outside shot.

The things that Steven Adams has to grasp about basketball will be easily taught and learned by a kid with so much enthusiasm for the game.

Steven Adams will be fine.

Plus, he’s quite refreshing to talk to.

Rest easy Pitt fans, the kid can play.

NEW INTEREST HIGHLIGHTS SEASON FOR TERRENCE SAMUEL

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South Shore (NYC) High School guard Terrence Samuel is one of the most intriguing prospects in the Class of 2013 nationally. The powerfully built 6-foot-3, 195-pound guard began to make a name for himself nationally helping New Heights AAU to five impressive tournament titles on the spring and summer AAU circuit.

The attention in his talents has continued into his junior season with South Shore and his recruitment has expanded. Some of the new schools that have become involved has been the highlight of his season so far.

“Highlight [of the season is] picking up [recruiting interest from] Kansas and Memphis,” Samuel told NBE Basketball Report over the weekend.
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FOUR SCHOOLS ON ISAIAH WHITEHEAD THE HARDEST

Lincoln (NYC) High School guard Isaiah Whitehead is just in his sophomore season but he already seems to have been a name we have been following for years. Such is life when your regarded as one of the top players, regardless of class, in New York City.

The 6-foot-4, 195-lb guard combines strength and athleticism into an impressive on the court package. Whitehead enters the stretch run of the 2011-2012 high school season with goals of a City and State title as well as Player of the Year honors.

This past summer with the Juice All-Stars playing top competition in Las Vegas, NBE saw Whitehead displaying his ability to get to the basket off the dribble. His athletic ability is apparent on both ends of the floor, and Big East and other teams from across the country have taken early notice of his talents.
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WOODALL: I GOT THIS

By Ray Mernagh

Travon Woodall has been the object of scorn from certain groups of Pittsburgh fans over his four years in the program.

Complaints have ranged from he didn’t start for his high school team to he’s too sloppy with the ball to he takes too many chances. Some have even gone so far as to say the redshirt junior isn’t a D-1 caliber player.

Woodall has almost always come through for his team. I’ve witnessed him win games by blocking a shot at the rim, hitting multiple three-pointers or by finding flying teammates for alley-oop dunks or cutters for layups. I’ve watched him guard a 6’8″ post player because nobody else was left to do it, purposely taking an elbow to the chops because it meant a foul on the man he was guarding. He’s always had a really good assist-to-turnover ratio and has never, ever, played with fear. He’s also always been Pitt‘s toughest player.
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MERNAGH: PITT KEEPS HOPE ALIVE HEADING INTO BIG MONDAY SHOWDOWN AT WEST VIRGINIA

Pitt 86 Providence 74 is what the scoreboard read when the buzzer sounded last Wednesday night. It remained there for maybe a half second before the board changed to reflect the record for Pittsburgh inside the Peterson Events Center since it was built. The loss side of that all-time record has grown more in the last month than in the last several years.

Wednesday evening’s result inside the Peterson Events Center brought relief to a program and fan-base in dire need of a fresh breath.

Now all of a sudden, in the span of 72 hours, relief has turned into, dare I say…hope?

What was a slightly encouraging win for Pitt against Providence parlayed itself into an actual conquest over a #10 ranked Georgetown team that came in sporting the resume of a soon-to-be top 3 seed. In movie terms the Pitt Panthers have quickly moved from Waiting to Exhale territory directly into the How Stella Got Her Groove Back neighborhood.
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STEVEN ADAMS DRAWS A CROWD IN PITTSBURGH DEBUT

By Lauren Kirschman

Steven Adams‘ abilities on the basketball court are unquestionable.

He’s 6-foot-11 and already built like a player headed for the NBA. In Notre Dame Prep’s 75-36 victory over Massanutten (Va.) Military Academy in the Pittsburgh Basketball Club Legends Classic at Ambridge High School, he finished with 12 points 14 boards and three blocks. He showed exceptional body control and rebounding ability, while also impressing with his capability to run the floor.

He’s already being billed by Pitt fans as a “savior”.

But by talking to him, you wouldn’t know it. That might be the most impressive thing of all.

Adams seemed genuinely surprised to find a sizable cluster of reporters — some with recorders and other holding cameras — waiting for him outside Notre Dame Prep’s locker room.

“Usually it’s only two people or one person with a notepad,” he said. “No cameras or anything.”
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