7/31/09

New Offers, Interest, Happenings in AAU world


* Northstar Blog has done some great work getting word out on several tournaments this July as well as talking to several kids and getting quotes on their interest and offers. This link has breakdown for several kids from Ohio and Kentucky as well as several kids claiming offers and interest from area schools. Its from AAU Nationals Day Three: http://blog.northstarbball.com/2009/07/29/aau-super-showcase-day-three--u17-action-gets-underway-nyarsuk--reese-stand-out.aspx Some of the updates include:

* Northland, Ohio's JD Weatherspoon has offers from Xavier, Ohio State, and Maryland and seems to favor Xavier right now. You may recall he decommitted from Xavier after Miller left.
* Ball State has offered Devonte White from Centenial, Georgia.
* Indiana has offered 2011 Team Takeover's Michael Gbinijie.
* Xavier has offered Dezmine Wells of Word of God Academy.
* Westerville South and All-Ohio Red's 2011 Travaeon Jackson has offers from Ohio, Akron, Cleveland State, and Miami. He is Jimmy Jackson's son.
* Teays Valley and All Ohio Red 2011 player Nate Anderson has offers from Ohio and Penn State.

* And here's the day four http://blog.northstarbball.com/2009/07/31/aau-super-showcase-day-four-rundown-the-miracle-of-st-patricks.aspx with offers from Notre Dame to Jerrian Grant, from Wright State to Jordan Downing, Purdue, Illinois, and Minnesota offers out to Bradley Beal as well as Beal plans to go to Purdue and Illinois camps, some praise for Indiana, Kentucky, and Louisville target Stacey Poole's defense.
* Demling has been doing a great job as well, his latest update includes Scott County's Chad Jackson getting a James Madison offer, Princeton, Indiana point guard Jalen Packer getting offers from Tennessee Chattenooga and Southern Illinois. Demling is also looking for Austin Rivers to get Indiana involved in his re-recruitment. Hoopsreport's Coach Blevins spoke with Rivers and said he's going to visit "at least" Duke and North Carolina. http://www.hoopsreport.com/news/eventreports/austinriverstovisitdukeandnorthcarolina

* Another link on some Orlando Nationals tournament success for Illinois Old Gold and Rising Stars from Illinois Prep Bullseye has updates on several players recruitment including Dekalb 6'10 senior Jordan Threloff who wants to decide soon and might favor Illinois State according to the link. Brehm Prep 6'6 athlete James Siakhem has drawn Southern Illinois, Purdue, Illinois, Indiana, Northwestern, Dayton, and Vanderbilt coaches recently. His Illinois Titans teammate Bruce Barron has interest from Vanderbilt as well. Barron impressed me earlier this month at the Hoosier Shootout, few college level point guards play with the kind of strength and athleticism he commands at a young age. Purdue, Northern Iowa, Ohio, Illinois, and Notre Dame are also very interested in Barron. The photo above is Barron from an Endtoendscouts.com article discussing his cousin Justin Dentmon among other things. Finally, Jay Harris from Illinois Old School received an offer from Duquesne. http://ilprepbullseye.com/page33.html

* According to Demling the Derek Smith All-Stars made it to the semi-finals (final four) of the Double Pump tournament in Los Angeles and had to leave for travel arrangements. Indiana Elite (Fox) without Ge-lawn Guyn made it to the elite eight of that tournament.

* All Ohio Red beat Nike Team Florida to win the AAU National tournament in Orlando. Bowling Green's Elijah Macon had 16 points. All Ohio Red 17U are in the quarter finals in Orlando as well.

* Coach Weber, Illinois State assistant Paris Parham, and Purdue assistant Jack Ray were the only coaches present for the championship victory Mac Irvin Fire 15U team which had Jabari Parker and Travis Hamilton playing up on it. http://blogs.suntimes.com/hoopsreport/2009/07/a_whole_lot_more_from_las_vega.html

* The Illinois Wolves beat the Mac Irvin Fire 17U team yesterday in Merrillville. Chicagohoops listed the following head coaches as being in Merrillville on Thursday; Weber, Painter, Beilein, Brey, Craig Robinson, Todd Lickliter, Greg McDurmott, Travis Ford, Jim Les, Rick Majerus, Jim Molinari (W Ill), Billy Taylor (Ball St), and Kevin McKenna (In St). http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/endseason5.html The playoff teams are listed in the link but it doesn't say who is in the gold, silver, and bronze brackets. I'll update later in the day.

* GoldandBlack.com twittered that North Central shooting guard Terone Johnson had a huge game in Merrillville today finishing with 45 points! I'd be pretty surprised if Terone doesn't end up ranked in the top 50 with an expert or two after this summer.

* Mark Miller of Wishoops.net says Paul Jesperson has received an offer from Loyola and UW Green Bay and Port Wahington's John Gasser has added Maryland and Airzona State offers to his Northwestern, St Louis, Bradley, Butler, and several other existing offers.
* ESPN has a great review on Xavier Jones from Gary, Indiana from the Desert Duel.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/news/story?id=4365943
* Another ESPN link, former Majerus assistant Paul Biancardi really likes the Rising Stars team from Illinois and gets the dirt, all four Rising Star senior to be studs have great academics. Ohio State bound Lenzelle Smith, Iowa bound Ben Brust, Cal bound Alex Rossi, and William and Mary bound Fred Heldring all have 3.0 or higher and the link also a review of Trey Lewis from Garfield, Ohio. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/news/story?id=4363230


7/30/09

USSSA Nationals 7/30


The Spiece Fieldhouse was home to some of the best talent in the country on Thursday and the Lucky Mongrel got to take in some of it and get lots of pictures, all of which taken about a quarter of a second after the players turned around. So it goes, but the basketball was not disappointing at all. There were ballots for the all-tourney team for the coaches and since I was denied the pleasure of a secret ballot, let me make mine publicly (with apologies to the guys i didn't get to see).

* I'll start my ballot off with 2012 Spiece Indy Star Ron Patterson (pictured on right). He was impressive as per usual. The 6'2 guard is a really dangerous scorer. He gets to the bucket on the drive and can jump up and shoot it quickly and he's usually on target. His athleticism around the basket can be really impressive. He seems to always have a few dunks or awe inspiring hang time plays and today was no different. His Spiece Indy Stars won their 10:30 bracket game 66-62 against the Fieldhouse Elite 2011 Knights. Patterson had 20 and was well on his way to another good game in the evening against Spiece Indy Heat (Felder). The Stars are playing up but still competing and winning. Jeremy Hollowell scored 11 and looked good as well.
*I'm not sure if I think he had one of the five best weeks there, but just off wow factor Marques Teague is probably gonna make my list. Teague has become a really strong leader on the floor. He makes some of the nicest plays I've seen a high school player make when he gets an angle to go to the bucket. He can take over offensively and defensively and is massively talented but might not be as consistently dominant as he could be. He has a decent looking shot, he is improving those two areas and be even better than he is already. I'll bet the high majors start recruiting him if he starts out his junior season strong. kidding, kidding... Spiece Indy Heat 2010 Betts defeated Team Southern Indiana ed 66-51. Ross, Wischmeier, Jeffersonville's AJ Adams were outstanding in defeat, and Teague was joined by an all star cast on his squad (Yogi Ferrel, DeJuan Marrero, Khristian Smith, Raphael Davis, AJ Hammons and more). I will double check on a couple of those TSI 17U names so as to avoid ridcule.
* I was just up there today so forgive me if the rest of the tournament went differently but Gary Harris was playing for a squad called Team Indiana. He is one of the 7 kids I'm calling the top prospect in the Indiana high school class of 2012 depending on day of the week. Harris is a superior athlete with long arms and is already becoming a special player. He could play point or wing, has a nice looking shot from three, and is young for his class if I remember correctly. The last time I caught him he got hurt for Up Tempo in a 15U game but was the best player on the floor. His game was at half time when I left so I don't have any stats for him. Harris, Patterson, Smith-Rivera, Hammons, and Marrero are on the rotation so far at least...vbg
* Ryan Taylor was outstanding for Spiece Indy Fastbreak and has to be on my first team ballot from today. The 2011 Lawrence North little power forward is well on his way to becoming the Louisville Cardinals wing forward. He has always been tough on the glass and fearless inside, but today I got to see him really attack the basket a lot more than I've seen off the dribble before. Taylor is handling the ball with more confidence than he was in the school year. Turner wound up with 22 points on the game. He was matched against a very impressive player Evan Cleveland wound up with 15 points and is probably was a little taller than Taylor but not quite as thick.
* Crishawn Hopkins was playing with the Blaze Select again. They had a chippy battle with Fieldhouse Elite Hoosier Boyz. Need to look up rosters, but #5 was good and competitive for the Hoosier Boyz and was probably a 6'4 kid with good length but Hopkins was in control. He elevates very high in the air when he shoots and it is a very smooth shot. He is a lot more than a leaper, the 6'0 Manual guard needs to put on some weight but he is fearless. Eastern Michigan and Ohio had coaches watching. I'll have to go with two points on my squad, put him on the first team.
* Other guys that were impressive included Yogi Ferrel was outstanding. He seems to be a little bigger but the urgent pace and intensity which he plays with is a real treat to watch. His recent Ohio State offer is well deserved. His teammate Raphael Davis looked good playing up. He had 16 points and played hard. He is always good, and consistently shows off some of his scoring prowess but today even though he was less dominant than he can be, he also did a much better job deciding when to pass the ball to a teammate and he limited the wild shots. Playing with a vocal point like Teague might be really good for the young Purdue star who looks to be 6'5 and strong. Bowman Academy's Dejuann Marrero was a treat to see as well. He controls the glass every time out and is an all effort kid with impressive ability in the paint and high major athleticism.
* Kenny Enoch scored 9 points and Evan Blackman had 14 for the Spiece Indy Fieldhouse who were eliminated 63-61.
* Travis Carrol and Donnie Hale were imposing for Spiece Indy Heat Down against Spiece Gym Rats Tolson. The Mongrel is a big fan of both players. Carrol particularly will be a very good power forward for Purdue. Unfortunately I just looked in a bit on this game and didn't get any stats.
* The NEO Ballers 16U squad were very impressive. A Michigan State assistant was on hand to see them crush the Illinois Predators. He most likely was watching Anton Grady, a 6'7 shot blocker who really got off the floor quickly. #14 Brian Burdine from Lutheran East High School is class of 2011 and is a very quick but thin 5'9 skinny point guard with amazing body control. They beat the Predators 81-41 and just terrorized them defensively. Thanks to coach Tom Coleman for getting me the updates on the roster.
* A sophomore to be Spiece Gym Rats Davis squad was in action on the adjacent court. They were led by #13 Jason Kalongi I believe who is going to be playing varsity for Bishop Leuers this year. #50 was about a 6'6 strong forward who had good form shooting to 15 feet for the Gym Rats. #52 Gregory for Fieldhouse Indy Impact was really impressive, he is about a 6'6 forward who likes to play defense with attitude. Nick Nimtz was another big kid who played well for the Impact.
* 2013 super phenom Daryl Baker scored 21 in a loss Wednesday to Team Indiana (Gary Harris). Logan Bailey (Bedford North Lawrence) added 20. This HoosierHillsHoops.com update has several other notes on Hoosier state prospects in the event. http://www.hoosierhillshoops.com/index.php
* Coaches were looking a little less bright eyed and busy tailed than they were on day one of the evaluation period a few weeks ago. IPFW Coach Dane Fife was on hand as were coaches from Evansville (straddling Spiece Indy Heat games at one point), Gardner Webb, Ball State, Michigan State, Northwestern, and others.

7/28/09

Mac Irvin Fire coming up big at Desert Duel and other updates.


Desert Duel

* The Mac Irvin Fire had two squads in the final eight of the Desert Duel in Phoenix. The 17U squad made it to the semi-finals and the 16U squad played up and made the final eight in a brutal field. Several players came up big for the Fire on the road trip out west to Vegas and Phoenix. The 17U squad is led by Ahmad Starks at point guard. Starks is an Oregon State commitment and has been arguably the most consistently good player on the squad this July. Uncommitted super athlete Reggie Smith is being recruited by Marquette, Butler, and Indiana among others. He's a 6'0 point who can jump out of the gym and shoot some. The Sun-Times named him first team all state this year, that is their photo on the right from January of 08. Illinois commitments Myers Leonard and Jerome Richmond are among the Fire's better players and are even better college prospects. Its a pretty loaded team who had a chance to go out to Vegas and answer some critics by playing hard and making their mark on some good tournaments and they did exactly that. No hardware for the Fire on the west coast swing, but coming off fine efforts where they competed very well the Fire are set up well to finish strong at the End of Summer Classic in Merrillville this weekend. They can join the Illinois Warriors, Illinois Titans, Rising Stars, and maybe one or two other squads as the best from Illinois this summer. The Illinois Wolves have a lot of talent and will be at the End of Summer Classic also.

* Here's a nice feature from the Hendrickson Blog in the Sun Times on the Fire, particularly 2011 big wing Wayne Blackshear who is being recruited by Louisville, Illinois, Indiana, and other teams. http://blogs.suntimes.com/hoopsreport/

* Petersberg Elite (Justin Coleman) defeated Nike Team Florida to win the tournament.

USSSA Nationals:

* Team Southern Indiana Red 17U went 1-1 in Pool play, beating Lithuania and losing to Spiece Gym Rats (Tolson). TSI was led by Garret Ross who scored 15. Hoosierhills twittered earlier that the 2012 squad lost to Northwest Ohio basketball Club 64-58 despite 14 from Max Clemons.


* The TSI 2011 squad includes 2013 star Daryl Baker. Jody Demling's blog said he had 28 points in a pool game yesterday. Hoosierhillshoops twittered that an Indiana assistant was on hand for one of his games yesterday. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/blog.html

* I'll be up in Ft Wayne Thursday morning and afternoon and either back there on Friday or in Merrillville for the End of Summer Classic on Friday depending on the brackets. Let me know if there is someone I need to see. I'll be taking photos for the blog and might get some video.

Double Pump Best of Summer (LA)

* Ohio Basketball Club 17U went undefeated in pool play at the Double Pump tournament in LA per Buckeye Prep twitter. The 17U club is being watched by Akron, Bowling Green, Cleveland State, Ohio, Notre Dame, and other schools.

* Indiana Elite (Fox) is 3-0 in pool play without Ge-lawn Guyn who hurt his ankle. No word on the injury yet other than it is getting x-rayed. Best of luck to a Mongrel favorite. Guyn is a long armed competitive athlete who will be a good player at Charlotte in the Mongrel's opinion. Indiana Elite (Fox) will probably focus more on the inside game with 6'8 Bloomington South forward Eric Fromm. Fromm is versatile and has a little range and will be a lot of fun for Butler fans to watch for four years.
* The Derek Smith All Stars 16U team (Abel, Fant, others) went 3-0 in pool play per Demling blog (link above).

Orlando Nationals:

* Shining Star MacFarland went undefeated in pool play yet again. They did not loose a pool game all summer long, a unique but cool accomplishment. Shiningstarsportsblog has results from several Shining Star games from different squads and age groups. Josh Sewell and Chad Jackson are the two most impressive players on the team in the good Mongrel's opinion. They are both big guards who can score and distribute the ball and both have the athleticism to help a team in a lot of ways. Miami got a steal in Sewell.

* Coach Blevins got a good look at Elisha Justice, he's one of Kentucky's hidden gems at point guard. He is playing for Derek Smith All Stars and the link says he is interested in Morehead State and other schools. Hoopsreport.com has rundown on several players including him. Something is amiss with my cut and paste function so I'll have to remember to come back and edit in the link but chase it down if you have to. Entry is called "Tuesday Morning and Afternoon Notes".
















7/27/09

Desert Duels, Double Pumps, and more AAU action.


Double Pump Best of Summer

Several notable teams are participating in the Adidas Double Pump tournament being held in LA (the town not the bayou in case I had you craving crawfish etoufee...). Some big national names are there like I-5 Elite, Memphis Select, Louisiana Future, Playaz Basketball Club, DC Assault, I Can All-Stars, Pump N Run Elite, and many more. There will be plenty of mid-west-rust-belt-southish region teams are participating as well. Illinois Old School, Team Kentucky, D1E Derek Rose All Stars, Indiana Elite, Ohio Basketball Club, Derek Smith All STars, Reach Legends, and more.

Hoosierhillshoops is twittering that Evan Maschmeyer of Jeffersonville, Indiana had 15 in a pool victory over the West Coast All Stars. Maschmeyer is playing for the Derek Smith All Stars and is being recruited by Wright State and other solid programs. The photo is from a Courier Journal story that includes Evansville, Wisconsin, and Eastern Illinois as schools of interest for Maschmeyer as well. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/labels/Evan%20Maschmeyer.html

Buckey Prep says D1E All Stars have added Kenny Knight 2010 from Ohio along with Ryan Taylor and Michael Chandler who have also played with Spiece Indy Fastbreak squads this summer.

Desert Duel

Mac Irvin fire 16U opened with a 61-53 win against Full Court Athletes.

NBE blog has the scoop on several high profile kids including Dominique Fergeson, Trey Zeigler, Reggie Smith, and Brandon Kearney who has offers from Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State already. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/07/27/nbe-live-from-desert-duel-memorial/

Orlando Updates

Nationals have started and Shining Stars McFarland 17U won their first pool game and Scott County combo guard Chad Jackson had 15 points. They bounced back from a tough loss to end a nice Super Showcase run to the final eight.

Meanwhile the Super Showcase is wrapped up as Team Takeover won at the 17U and 16U level according to northstarblog.

Illinois Titans won the 17U Silver Bracket. They are mostly younger kids but have several big strong athletic kids such as Ochenje and Siakhem.

Here is a link to an article from NBE blog wrapping up the Super Showcase. It has some notes on Rising Stars games, including updates on Alex Rossi and Ravonte Rice. Rice has a long list of offers from mid-majors and a couple of high majors but is catching the attention of several Big Ten schools now (Illinois, Indiana, Northwestern, Minnesota) among other schools. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/07/27/sunday-at-the-aau-super-showcase/ There is also updates on Illinois and Purdue target Bradley Beal.

Look Back at Vegas (Yes the Town Turned off the Lights Sunday Night):

Hoopsreport has some updated school lists and scouting reports from Wayne Blackshear, Xavier Jones, Mike Shaw, Trey Zeigler, and several other top national prospects. http://www.hoopsreport.com/news/eventreports/vivalasvegasnewsandnotes

They also have a nice rundown on Sterling Gibbs recruitment (Indiana and Depaul offers per this article) and also Bishop Daniels who is a Xavier target. Both are 2011 recruits. Gibbs is planning on doing unofficial visits to Kentucky and Indiana among others this August. http://www.hoopsreport.com/news/eventreports/recruitingnewsandnotesfromreebok

More Tournaments Underway this week:

The Price Chopper gets underway Tuesday and will feature All-Iowa Attack Red, Meanstreets, Illinois Warriors, St Louis Eagles, and other fine squads.

USSSA Nationals in Fort Wayne will have a loaded field as will the End of Summer Shootout in Merrillvillle. Look for Hoopsmongrel to get some pictures and some game reports from Ft Wayne on Thursday and Merrillville on Friday.

7/26/09

Kentucky and Michigan squads win tournaments, more


Several teams of note made the semi-final round or more yesterday including a couple of championships worth mentioning.

* 17U Reebok Championships went to Dominique Fergeson and Ray McCallum and Team Detroit. Trey Zeigler had 16 points for the winners. They beat D-One Sports (Quincy Miller) 56-48 in the title game. (photo is Zeigler from Detroit News)

* The Ville won the Adidas Super 64 championship in the 14U division. Jody Demling has a nice rundown of some of their best players. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/blog.html When I got a chance to see them at the Kentucky Hoopfest I was pretty blown away by Daryl Hicks and Jason Hatcher. Demling said Hicks had 26 points in the championship game and Hatcher was the MVP with a boat load of rebounds. He and Hicks look about 20 years old, they're so much more mature than the other 14U players I saw. Hicks is the best player in the age group I've seen so far (2013). He has a nice three pointer to go with getting a layup whenever he wants. Hicks was also the leading scorer in the Top 150 camp held in Lexington in June for the country's top incoming freshmen. He'll play for Shelbyville. Hatcher is also pretty strong and a good athlete.

* 16U Indiana Elite/Team Indiana had to forfeit the championship game to Southern Kings Gold because they misunderstood when the game would be played if they made it that far. Jeremiah Davis and Austin Etherington continued picking up their games from many reports over the weekend.

* 16U Derek Smith All Stars lost in the final four to the Southern Kings Gold squad. Demling's link above has Remy Abel and George Fant continuing to have big months and more and more coaches trying to figure out if they are good mid major recruits or high major recruits. Demling said Fant added an Ohio offer to Western Kentucky and Oklahoma State. But those kids have a lot of good players. Elliot County's Tommy Knipp, Jordan Shanklin, Clark county's Robbie Stenzel, and Jeffersonville, Indiana's Evan Mashmeyer are all kids who can play.

* SYF Players have advanced to championship game in Center Stage event in Vegas, more on this one in the morning hopefully...

* Bloomington South made it to the final four of the Main Event. Hugh Kellenberger's Quick Hits blog has been all over this. http://blogs.heraldtimesonline.com/quickhits/ I also posted a link to Demling's story on them for the CJ on yesterday's tourney update.



7/25/09

Illinois Wolves Champs in KC, Other Tourney Updates


Hoops City Classic Completed

* The Illinois Wolves 16U squad came away from the Hoops City Classic as champions. They are one of the most talented squads in the age group nationally. Purdue, Illinois, and Wisconsin are among the many schools pursuing Chasson Randle and Nana Egwu who both made the all tourney team. Rock Island point guard Chasson Randle was MVP. http://ilprepbullseye.com/page11.html Photo is from QC Times article.
* Spiece Mokan out of Kansas City won the 15U division.

Adidas Super 64 (Vegas):

* The D1E Derek Rose Elite 17U squad is the only team from the Mongrel's radius (Ky, In, Il, Oh, MI) still active in the gold bracket. They play the Compton Magic Saturday evening to make the semi-finals.

* Indiana Elite/Team Indiana made it to the quarter-finals on the backs of a 24 point effort by Austin Etherington to beat DC Triple Assault per Mike Pegram twitters. They then beat 43 Hoops (Carr) by 1 to make the semi-finals.
* The above link from Illinois Prep Bullseye also mentions Chicago Elite sharp shooter Duje Dukan of Chicago Elite getting an offer from Loyola. Chicago Elite lost
* The Derek Smith All Stars 16U squad is in the semi-finals after beating the Michigan Mustangs. They'll meet the Southern Kings Gold squad for a chance to play in the championship at 1:00 Vegas time.
* Indiana Elite/Team Indiana 15U lost in the semi-finals against the Atlanta Celtics. Peter Jurkin had 15 points in an afternoon victory.
* Ohio Basketball Club 15U lost to Team Philly for a right to play in the semi-finals of the same bracket.
* The Ville 14U squad is playing for the championship of the 14U bracket in the morning. The Ville has Shelby County incoming freshman super star Daryl Hicks and got 25 out of Pruitt in a double overtime victory against Dream Vision earlier on Saturday.

Super Showcase (Orlando):

* Also from above Illinois Prep Bullseye link the 17U Illinois Warriors went 3-0 in pool play at the Super Showcase in Orlando. The Illinois Kings also went 2-1 in pool play and won their pool in a tie breaker.

* Rising Stars Gold won their pool and then stunned All Ohio Red in the first round of bracket play Saturday evening to eliminate Sullinger and company. I might have spoken too soon on the elimination thing, this ESPN link kind of suggests All Ohio Red has a golden parachute in this one because of the tv deal (ESPN will broadcast several games on Sunday from 5-9). I'm not sure if the writer was being presumptuous that All Ohio Red would make it or if they are carved into the schedule no matter what. http://sports.espn.go.com/highschool/rise/news/story?page=risegames/aaupreviews/4355375

Reebok Summer Championships:

* ESPN had some nice things to say about Ray McCallum Jr and Walter Pitchford from the Reebok Create and Finish. The Create and Finish Classic is just a mutated Super Pool type of arrangement and all the clubs are reseeded in the larger tournament afterward. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/news/story?id=4355793

* Despite having a useful web site, don't ask me to explain all the strange brackets that don't fit together in the Reebok tournament. Grand Rapids Storm is still alive (Anderson) and if they win Saturday Evening against Belmont Shores the Storm will be playing for the championship of the "A" bracket in the morning for a chance to play against another bracket champion for the "A" division championship.


Vision Sports Main Event (Vegas):

* The Main Event has been the hardest to track online as their web page is a mess, but Hugh Kellenberger of the Bloomington Herald Times has twittered that the Bloomington South High School Panthers have made it to the semi-finals in the 17U champions bracket (final 4). The Panthers are coming off an undefeated season and are led by 2010 Eric Fromm (Butler commit), 2011 Dee Davis (Xavier commit), 2011 Matt Carlino (Indiana commit), 2011 Spencer Turner, and 2012 TJ Bell who are also being pursued by high majors. Here's an update from Thursday morning, Demling did a nice story on them. http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20090725/SPORTS11/907250351/It+s+been+viva++Las+Vegas+for+Bloomington+South+basketball+team

* Mac Irvin Fire went 2-1 in pool play after loss to Seattle Rotary. The Fire have other squads playing on the "Center Stage" event which I'm currently wrapping my head around and will try to find information on it in the morning. This Chicagohoops link has some breakdowns of which of the 2 17U and 1 16U squads have whom on their teams. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/firevegas.html

* Also, the thorough Mongrel is trying to keep an update on which coach is watching who and where from free sources only (sorry no scout, rivals, hoopmasters stuff on this one). Email me if you saw somebody somewhere and Il'l update it. Its an earlier post that I keep editing.
http://hoopsmongrel.blogspot.com/2009/07/who-is-your-school-watching.html

All Ohio Red 17U Stumble, other AAU Updates 7/25.


* The summer's most dominant AAU squad just lost their final pool game in the Supershowcase in Orlando. All-Ohio Red has been an Ohio State future preview with several commits on the squad among All-Ohio Red's top players and with more targets on the roster. This morning the New Jersey Celtics upset them in bracket play. Kyrie Irving scored 22 of the Celtics' 57 points and controlled the ball most of the time against a much bigger and stronger All Ohio Red squad which has now lost 9 games in 3 years. He played yester day for the NJ Roadrunners so good luck to Indiana and Notre Dame and the other coaches chasing Irving in Orlando. Adreiene Payne and JD Weatherspoon have been priorities for the Buckeyes after they gave Cameron Wright the cold shoulder. But Wright is blowing up now that he is healthy and Payne just released a school list of Kentucky, Kansas, Arizona, Michigan State, and West Virginia. Ohio State has also made a move on Griffin McKenzie who is playing with the Eric Gordon All Stars in Vegas right now. The sorrowful Mongrel was rooting for Dayton to come out ahead with Payne to end up with a top 5 class with those amazing guards and Hill but it appears not to be in the cards. http://www.daytondailynews.com/dayton-sports/university-of-dayton-flyers/ud-eliminated-from-jefferson-stars-plan-220505.html Photo of Payne is from this Dayton Daily News Article.
* Spiece Select 2011 lost a one point game to Louisiana Select in the 16U semi-finals and will begin play in nationals. They have D1 prospects up and down the roster including Kendall Griffin, Tony Springmann, Tory Nibbs, Eric Harris, and Zach Van DeWater among others. They will be sticking around in Orlando for the 16U nationals which begins today.
* We've written a little about Common Bond's two 2010 squads a few times but yesterday it was their 2011 who beat the Spiece Indy Stars 2012 squad in bracket play at the Hoops City Classic. Patterson and Hollowell had huge games in the loss for the Stars. The Stars will finish up July with the USSSA Nationals in Fort Wayne next week.
* I followed illinoishsbball and a couple of other people doing twitter updates with the Mac Irvin Fire last night and they have apparently turned it on big time. They've been criticized for having a ton of talent but coming up soft in all the big tournaments when they go national. They did lose the game, but I've seen a lot of praise for their play in Vegas. Guards Ahmad Starks and Reggie Smith had big games again. Seattle Rotary is a pretty similarly loaded team who has yet to win a big tournament and they got big performances from point guard Troy Wroten (2011) and UK prospect Josh Smith who coming into the summer was being talked about as the top kid nationally for 2010. Smith dominated Myers Leonard in the game. The 6'11 skilled Leonard is one of several Illinois commitments on the squad, Mac Irvin Fire is as much an Illinois farm team as All Ohio Red is an Ohio State farm team this summer but despite his bulking up the last few months being matched up against big mean centers like Smith or All Ohio Red's Sullinger is not his forte. Leonard has a bright future but it might translate better to college ball. Mac Irvin has lacked a go to guy in the big games, Reggie Smith coming up big down the stretch in their last two games is a great sign for them if they are to finish with a bang.
* Indiana Elite (Fox) lost 61-57 this morning to Minnesota Pump N Run at the Adidas 64. The Fox squad has Butler commit Eric Frohmm who is playing double duty with his high school team in the Main Event. Indiana Elite was led by several big games from Charlotte commit Gelawn Guyn.
* The 16U Michigan Mustangs won big over Omaha Crusaders 80-52 at the Adidas Super 64.
* Also this morning at the Adidas 64 Grandy Glaze and the 16U Ohio Basketball club lost to Virginia Assault 57-53.
* The Derek Smith All Stars with Abel and Fant won their bracket game at the Adidas 64 by a score of 59-56 over Arizona Premier Black.
* 15U action at the Adidas 64 is finishing up as some people's top player in the class Shabazz Muhammed led his Dreamvision squad over Derek Rose All Stars 78-65.
* 17U Illinois Warriors beat the Georgia Blazers in a tight one this morning in Orlando as well.
* Louisville at 16U championship in Orlando between Spiece Indy Fastbreak 2011 and Each 1 Teach 1 game per Northstar blog twitters.
* KC Hoops City Classic wrapping up today. Semi-finals are set and Common Bond 17U squad is in the semi-finals. Dominique Pointer is a 6'5 guard for Common Bond who has been turning heads. http://theshiver.com/2009/07/day-2-3-highlights-from-the-hoops-city-classic-top-24/ Be sure to check out the Marques Teague highlights as well.
* Mike Pegram of Peegs.com is twittering that Indiana and Michigan target Moses Morgan had 28 points in a win against in front of Indiana and Oklahoma assistants. Pegram also posted that Indiana Elite One 2011 (Zeller, Plumlee, Carlino, Gant) won their morning game and will face the tough DC Assault this afternoon.
* Scout.com's Evan Daniels says Mick Cronin watching JJ Moore.
* Illinoishsbball is twittering that Alex Dragecevich has picked up his third major offer in three days. Notre Dame, Xavier, and Oklahoma State have stepped up and offered the Chicago swingman.
* Culver Millitary Academy point guard Travis Britt had 10 points for Indiana Elite/Team Indiana 15U in a morning win. They play the Derek Smith All Stars 15U to advance to semi-finals of 15U Adidas Super 64.
* Spiece Indy Fieldhouse Elite lost in the championship game of the 16U Super Showcase in Orlando.
* Spiece Indy Heat 17U (Felder) with Purdue commitments Donnie Hale and Travis Carrol is in the championship game of the gold bracket at Kansas City Hoops City Classic per Goldandblack.com twitter.
* Bennie Seltzer watching Indiana Elite Team Indiana 16U win to get into the quarterfinals at 16U Adidas 64 per Demling. He said Jeremiah Davis was great.
* Pitino watching Quincy Miller in Vegas as well per Demling twitter.
* Mike Brey and Indiana, Calipari among a host of schools watching Team Final, led by Gilchrist and Christmas, against NJ Celtics in Orlando with Kyrie Irving and the rest of Gilchrist and Irving's high school teammates per Northstar blog. NJ Celtics ended up winning the game in overtime, beating Team Final and All Ohio Red in the same day. Irving went 20/20 from foul line.
* Indiana Elite One lost by 21 to DC Assault.

7/24/09

AAU Tourney Update Friday


Here are a few Coach Tracking Tidbits (twitter unless otherwise mentioned):

* Setty1333 says UK watching Rakeem Christmas in Orlando.
* Dayton watching Clarkston Michigan's Matt Kaminiecki. http://dayton.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=968134
* Illinoishsbball says Oregon State watching Abdul Nader (Full Package), Jay Price also watching them (Ill asst), they also say Wainright and an assistant at a Mac Irving Fire game,

* Mike Brey all over Alex Dragecevich according to illhsbball twitters

* Ball St and Indiana St watching Iowa Barnstormers 6'11 Will Artino and others

* Rick Pitino watching JJ Moore and Quincy Miller per Demling twitter also says Crean in KC watching Teague

* Northstarbball says IPFW and Bowling Green at Ohio Prep Cavs/Showtime Ballers game

* CoachBlevins spoke to Sterling Gibbs from NYC who plans on visiting IU and UK

* rumbaughd1 says Dominique Fergeson to visit UK and AZ in August, also says Capel and Donovan watching him closely, UK, UL, and Duke watching Quincy Miller who plans on visiting UK and UL in August,

* Demling blog entry on day 1 http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/blog.html says UK and UL watching Damien Leonard, Joe Jackson says he is UK's #1 pg target, Pitino watching JJ Moore,

* The scores below show most of it, but 15U Indiana squads are fairing very well. Eric Gordon All Stars went undefeated in pool play at the Main Event, Spiece Select 2012 went undefeated in pool play in KC playing up a year, and Indiana Elite Team Indiana won their two matches yesterday (Devontes Smith-Rivera pictured above from a Courier-Journal shot).


Some Results and Scoring Numbers:

Adidas Super 64:
* 17U Chicago Elite won their final pool game, beating Bay Area Hoosiers 61-58. Dukan had 18 points.* 17U Full Package Elite beat LA Stars 74-53. Dragecevich had 28. 17U Full Package Elite beat Belmont Shores 62-47. Mikalous had 13.* 17U Detroit Stars beat Pump N Run 77 -52. Long had 18. 17U Mass Rivals beat Detroit Stars 74-49.* 17U Derek Smith All Stars West beat Los Angelas Rockfish 90-64. 17U Derek Smith All Stars lost to Gateway Bball Club 86-59.* 17U Playaz beat Michigan Mustangs 77-65. 17U Michigan Mustangs beat Dallas Mustangs Blue 70-68. Appling had 26 points.* 17U LV Prospects beat In Elite Red 87-80.* 17U Ohio Basketball Club beat Compton Magic Black 78-67. Parker had 19.* 17U Eric Gordon All Stars beat Houston Select Black 60-50. Terone Johnson had 15.* 17U Indiana Elite (fox) 74-65 over Colorado Select Blue. Guyn had 19. 17U Indiana Elite (Fox) beat IEBP All Stars 65-59. Hubert had 16.

* 16U Michigan Mustangs beat Grassroots Canada 63-58. Mustangs also beat Arizona Premier Black 61-42.* 16U DC Assault White beat Full Package (Preston) 70-60.* 16U Ohio Basketball Club beat Houston Hoops 61-54.* 16U Indiana Elite One beat Nashville Celtics 65-60. KC Pump N Run beat In Elite One 76-42.* 16U Derek Smith All Stars beat D Harris All Stars 69-65. DS All Stars beat Omaha Crusaters 64-49.* 16U Indiana Elite/Team Indiana beat Utah Pump N Run Red 68-57.* 16U Southern Kings Gold beat Aim High 79-35.* 16U Indiana Elite (Garland) beat Southern Kings Red 46-44.

* 15U Eric Gordon All Stars 65-49 over Valley Stars Pump N Run. Ingram had 21. EG All Stars then beat Utah Pump N Run 52-31. R Johnson had 10.* 15U In Elite/Team Indiana 53-30 over IEPB White. Devontes Smith-Rivera with 14. IE Team Indiana then beat Southern Kings 54-44. Smith-Rivera with 20.* 15U Ohio Basketball Club 76-52 over Idaho Select. Crays with 18. OBC over DC Assault White 65-50. Cuzzini with 26 points.

Hoops City Classic (KC):

* 17U Illinois Wolves, Spiece Indy Heat (Downs), Mean Streets, Common Bond, Spiece Indy Stars (Betts), King James Shooting Stars, and The Family are all alive in the top 20 bracket. Queen City Prophets are alive in the gold.* 16U Queen City Prophets are alive and will face Spiece Gym Rats (Matura) on Friday in gold bracket.* 16U King James Shooting Stars, NW Ohio Basketball, Illinois Wolves, Spiece Indy Heat (Felder), Spiece Indy Heat (says so on bracket, might mean stars) are also alive in the gold bracket on Friday.* 15U Derek Smith over Xplosion 46-43. Foster with 13.* 15U D Rose All Stars 59-56 over Conn Elite. Reacher with 20.* 16U Chicago Elite lost to Bay Area Hoosiers 64-34.

Reebok Summer Championships:

* Team Detroit 70 NY Panthers 52, MI Hurricanes 57-40 over Idaho Select Black, MI Hurricanes 80-74 over Wi Playground Warriors, Grand Rapids Storm 76 over Idaho Select White 52, Gr Rapids Storm 55-56 losers to IAD Select in 2 overtimes, Gr Rapids Storm (Whymer) 67-62 over Salt Lake Metro Prospects, Gr Storm (Whymer) 72-60 over Hawks, Dallas Mustangs 74-44 over Camp Daryl White, W Mich Lakers 66-40 over E Wash Elite Blue, W Mich Lakers 83-50 over Houston Cougars,

7/23/09

Sullivan Star Rhett Smith Coming up Big.


The Spiece Indy Stars 2012 team is attracting a lot of attention for a team in their age group. Ron Patterson and Jeremy Hollowell have offers from some of the top programs in the country before ever entering their sophomore year in high school. Austin Burgett continues drawing a crowd and has coaches from Indiana, Purdue, Cincinnati, Iowa, and other schools taking close notes. Kellon Thomas is a can't miss point guard prospect with a sweet shooting stroke and the mentality to score or distribute.


But today in Kansas City playing up against the powerful King James Shooting Stars in the 16U division it was Rhett Smith of Sullivan, Indiana who knocked in the three pointer at the buzzer to win the game. Smith often plays a key roll for his team. He has a nice soft shot, is good on the glass, and can put the ball on the floor some. I spoke with Stars coach Chris Hawkins from Kansas City today after Smith knocked down 18 points in the win and he indicated Smith has quite a bit of D1 interest already. Indiana State likes him and Southern Indiana is "looking hard".


The good Mongrel has seen this squad play several times, as has a host of college coaches. Tom Crean and Bruce Weber joined me to watch them play a couple of games on the first day of the evaluation period in July. Thad Matta, Matt Painter, Mick Cronin, and others were soon to follow. Right now Smith is about 6'5 or 6'6 and plays a wing forward role. He can put the ball on the floor but his athleticism is more up and down than lateral at this point as I've seen him block a few shots that got my attention. Smith has a good soft shot and is tough on the glass. At this level and age he is good guarding big kids and playing in the paint on offense.


Comparisons are always a little tricky for kids who just finished their freshman year, but if he can put on a couple of inches during the next couple of years I could see Smith having a style of play not unlike former Iowa Hawkeye Greg Bruner. Smith has a really good feel for the game and is seemingly always in the right place at the right time. His fundamentals and intensity always stand out.


Smith first caught my eye in Sullivan's sectional loss to a strong Edgewood Mustangs 3A squad when he scored 23 points. His 7.6 rebounds per game was the second highest total in the state for freshmen and he also averaged about 12 points per contest.
The photo above is from a Goldandblack.com article on Smith from a few weeks ago. http://purdue.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=962589 They are an excellent Purdue rivals site which provided quite a bit of coverage of this squad from the Hoosier Shootout and Kentucky Hoopfest earlier in the month.

7/22/09

Vegas/Orlando Day 1 Rundowns


Adidas Super 64 is the easiest to find updates on partly because they have a web site that updates scores. Its great and timely. http://www.adidassuper64.com/Default.aspx The 17U scores even list top scorers. I'll list a few teams of interest to the good Mongrel's range and some scores.

Here is a link to Coach Blevins' notes on the tournament yesterday. http://www.hoopsreport.com/news/eventreports/othernotesfromvegas He has nice reviews on Crishawn Hopkins, Justin Martin, Ryan Boatright, Gelawn Guyn, and other kids of note.

17U: Full Package Elite 68 (Photo above is a Sun Times shot of Dragecevich who scored 22) - KC Cowboys 57; Chicago Elite 77 - Colorado Select White 51; Chicago Elite 66 (Dority 20) - Gameday Basketball 61; Detroit Stars 87 - High Intensity 56; Gym Rats Gold 84 - SoCal All Stars White 71; California Supreme 67 - Gym Rats Black 36; Regis Raiders 70 - Gym Rats Black 50; Net Gain Sports 74 - 2D1 Basketball Academy 52; Derek Smith All Stars West 89 - Rocklin Warriors Blue 45; Pump N Run W - D1E Derek Rose All Stars forfeit; Ohio Basketball Club 76 (Parker 19) - Eric Gordon All Stars 52; Team Philly 65 (Green 18) - Michigan Mustangs 59; Indiana Elite (Fox) 51 (Guyn 16) - D Harris Superstars 40; Utah Pump N Run Red 73 - Derek Smith All Stars 68; Team Access 78 - Indiana Elite Red 47; SoCal All Stars Red 57 - Indiana Elite Red 47; Compton Magic Select 68 -Eric Gordon All Stars 63; Atlanta Celtics 83 (Harrow) - D1E Derrick Rose All Stars 76; Ohio Basketball Club 65 - Houston Select 63;

16U: Michigan Mustings 50 - NorCal All Stars 32; Full Package Elite (Preston) 69 - Mass Rivals 67; Ohio Basketball Club 79 Valley Stars Pump N Run 58; In Elite/ Team Indiana 62 - HP Elite 49; Chicago Elite 53 - Colorado Select 47; In Elite One 77 - 707 Finest 44; Derek Smith All Stars 88 - BCA All Stars 45; Aim High 78 - French Hoops Two 36; IN Elite Garlets 67 - Team Phenom 61; Chicago Elite 69 - Compton Magic 62; Gateway Basketball Club 70 - Gym Rats 32; Gym Rats late game;

15U: Eric Gordon All Stars 62 - DTA Superstars 44; Bay Area Hoosiers W - In Elite South Forfeit; Net Gain Sports 60 (Marcus Shreider 24 pts) - Urban Elite 49; D1E Derek Rose All Stars 54 (C Jones 14) - Bay Area Hoosiers 38; Texas Assault 51 - In Elite / Team In 48 (Smith Rivera 14); Oho BBall Club 65 (Mollock 17) - LA Rockfish 57; Derek Smith All Stars 74 (T Saxton 19) - LA Rockfish 50; D1E All Stars 70 (S Taylor 12) - Arizona Gym Rats Elite 60;

14U: Las Vegas Prospects 69 - Aim High 64; Ohio BBall Club 66 - Bay Area Hoosiers 37; The Ville 89 (Quick 25) - Triple Threat 25; Houston Select 6 - Aim High 51;

Main Event (Vegas): Here are some 17U updates: Illinois Mustangs 57 (Belcaster 20) - Crossover Basketball 41; Air Force Rojo 54 - Illinois Mustangs 40; Dallas Showtime Black 76 - Fieldhouse Elite Team Indiana 52; Yakima Elite 55 -Illinois Old School 44; Terry Porter Elite 78 - SA Scorpions 51; CP3 All Stars 66 - Spiece Select 57 (Sneary 15); Salt Lake Black 66 - Windy City Spartans 64 (Guyton 22); Mac Irvin Fire 69 (Mills 13/12) - Team Texas 61; King James Shooting Stars 81 - California Supreme 72; Oregon Lords 53 - Terre Haute Jammers 47; Miami Tropics 52 - Spiece Indy Heat 50 (Thomas 19); So Nevada Powerhouse 82 - Aim High 81 (Daniels 18);

Here is a Demling update although I think he changed over to different tournaments. He has nice updates on Josh Selby, Griffin McKenzie, and many others. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/2009/07/las-vegas-day-one.html

Hoops City Updates (Kansas City) tourney got underway in afternoon. Spiece Indy Stars 2012 won 67 - 53. Ron Patterson had 19, Austin Burgett had 17, Kellon Thomas had 10, Hollowell and Rhett Smith had 9. They play again at 11:45 local time on Thursday.

Super Showcase (Orlando) is down to a final 8 at the 15U division. One matchup is the NY Gauchos vs YOMCA (Memphis club). Another squad in the final 8 is the Memphis Bearcats.

16U division: Spiece Select 2011 went 2-0 in pool play. Shining Stars (Mohman) went 0-2 including a 57-55 loss to the Boston Warriors and a 36-33 loss to the Birmingham Storm. Shining Stars (Grote) lost to MB Nation 51-34. They lost later to Team Florida Elite 73-43.


I'm not going to chase all the twitter feeds all day like yesterday afternoon, its just too time consuming with so many tournaments going on. I'll keep track of coaches out being seen and add them to the old "who is your coach watching" post and repost it in a few days when I'm caught up. I'm still good for a few edits, links, and updates though! See yesterday's entry for information on who might be twittering from each event.

7/22 AAU Tourneys, Coach Tracker and Twitter Updates


I'll be updating this post several times during the day. I'll be doing some coach tracking and be keeping an eye on NBE Blog and Demling's live blogging and doing a few twitter searches throughout the day. In Orlando the Super Showcase got underway with the 15U squads yesterday and 16U action heats up today. In Vegas the Supershowcase gets underway today. GrassrootsTV is set up for watching games for free from the Main Event as well but I most likely will not be catching any of that until late at night so any updates from my own observations will likely be tomorow. I'll publish this early but by the end of the day expect it to have been updated several times.

Adidas Super 64 Updates:

Scout.com apprentice recruiting guru Evan Daniels is watching 15U Atlanta Celtics vs Shabazz Muhammad who some say is top player in the class. Roy Williams and Ben Howland were there to greet Evan so you can assume that 2012 Muhammad is at the top of their wish list.

I'll also keep a close eye on Scout.com recruiting guru Dave Telep who is twittering updates from Vegas. He has had some nice things to say about Michigan and Purdue target Carson Desrosiers.

Northstar Basketball is doing twitter updates and starting off with a Rising Stars Gold game against the Central Jersey Hawks which is being watched by Michigan among other schools. Rising Stars won 57-38, I'll watch their website for updates on individual performances because they have a 15U team playing in Orlando and others to watch. Next game up for northstar is a 16U game with Chicago Demons vs NJABC, Michigan once again spotted in the crowd. They also have spotted Wright State, Evansville, Penn State, Lafayette, Creighton, and others in a Martin Brothers Select vs Garner Rd game (probably also 16U but not sure). Martin Brothers Select won 60-53. Northstar is watching a 15U playoff game between the Georgia Ballers and Garner Road Bulldogs. Not many coaches there but he loves 6'8 Chris Walker an incoming freshman in Georgia had at least 4 blocks and game went to overtime very close but Garner Road pulls away in the end. Walker ended with 19. TJ Warren and Mario Nixon with big games for the winners.

Cooper HS (KY) Coach Blevins is there twittering and liked what he saw from 2011 Compton Magic player Wes Saunders as his Magic squad are playing up a grade and out-classing abyssinian New York in front of Missouri coach Mike Anderson. He is watching the game with rumbaughD1 who reports John Calipari and assistant Antigua showed up to watch Grassroots Team Canada (Joseph, T Thompson, Kabongo, Powell) against the loaded Atlanta Celtics (Golden, David Williams, Mobley, Cothran, McRae, Harrow). Grassroots Canada wins by 8 and Harrow impresses Coach Blevins.
Mike Pegram of Peegs.com is also at the event and says J-Smoove is on the bench chatting up fellow Indiana commitment David Williams (remember Mike Davis saying J-Smoove will always be in the Indiana family?). Indiana assistant Tim Buckley is at the game. Williams had at least 6 points and several steals helping get the Celtics back in the game in the second half but wilted down the stretch guarding Corey Joseph. Its hard to believe Harrow and McRae aren't guarding Joseph. Crean was spotted again at a close Indiana Elite Team Indiana loss. Purdue also had an assistant there and Devontes Smith-Rivera scored 15.
Here's a Garry Parrish article on the Selby decommitment, Worldwide Wes, Calipari, Pearl, and how coaches see this event. Selby will be playing at the Adidas 64 this evening. http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6271764/16182431
Full Package Elite 17U has beaten the KC Cowboys 67-58. Atlanta Celtics 16U (Ware) beat the SF Rebels 92-55. 43 Hoops 16U (Carr) beat Galveston Hornets 72-57. Michigan Musting 16U beat NoCal Outlaws 50-32. Full Package Elite 16U (Preston) beat Mass Rivals 69-67. Net Gain Sports 15U beat Joe Ward All-Stars 52-39. Eric Gordon All Stars 15U beat the DTA All Stars 62-44. 14U Aim High lost to as Vegas Prospects 69-64. 14U Ohio Basketball Club beat the Bay Area Hoosiers 66-37. 14U The Ville and Daryl Hicks is about to go big time as they tip off soon.

Some of the most well known kids nationally at the Adidas Super 64 will be: Tarik Black, Memphis Magic; Allen Crabbe, Compton Magic; Fabricio de Melo, Florida Rams; Trae Golden, Atlanta Celtics; Joshua Hairston, DC Assault; Joe Jackson, Memphis Magic; Bryce Jones, Compton Magic; Cory Joseph, Grassroots Canada Elite; Jordan McRae, Atlanta Celtics; Shabazz Muhammad, Dream Vision Basketball; Tristan Thompson, Grassroots Canada Elite

Star Vision Sports Main Event (Vegas):

Evan Daniels has jumped venues and is watching I-5 Elite star Terrence Jones have a big game against D-1 all-stars. Said Coach K had his whole staff in to watch Quincy Miller.
Some of the bigger name players in this event are: Tim Hardaway Jr., Mac Irvin Fire; Crandall Head, Mac Irvin Fire; Terrence Jones, I-5 Elite; Meyers Leonard, Mac Irvin Fire; Josh Smith, Seattle Rotary; Anthony Wroten Jr., Seattle Rotary; Royce Woolridge, Arizona Magic

Reebok Summer Championships (Vegas):

Jody Demling is starting off twittering and blogging from this event. He has spotted Roy Williams, Tom Crean, ?Florida assistant Richard Pitino, Matt Painter, and Bo Ryan among others watching Indiana Elite One (Carlino, Plumlee, Zeller, Gant). Demling says Plumlee and Zeller playing well. Demling said Indiana Elite won easily and he got to catch some Nashville Celtics 16U and Mason County's Treg Setty played well. Demling wathed Derek Smith 16U team (Abel, Fant) and said Jerry Eaves was on hand.

Some nationally well known players to watch in this one: Kyle Anderson, Playaz Basketball Club; Dominique Ferguson, Team Detroit; Gary Franklin, California Supreme; Deion Houston, Texas Blue Chips Navy; James Johnson, California Supreme; Tyler Lamb, California Supreme; C.J. Leslie, Worldwide Renegades; Ray McCallum, Team Detroit; Moses Morgan, I-Can All-Stars; LeBryan Nash, Dallas Mustangs; Godwin Okonji, Belmont Shore; Dwayne Polee, California Supreme; LaQuinton Ross, MBA Elite; Ben Vozzola, Branch West

Orlando Super Showcase Updates:

Highmajorscoop is in Orlando twittering updates. Rising Stars 15U started out pool play with a win over Team Takeover Orange. He is now watching All Ohio Red 16U.
Speice Select coach Jim Reamer has tweeted that his Speice Select 2011 are 2-0 including a good victory over the Richmond Squires.

Setty1333 is a Phog.net writer and she'll be updating on twitter from Orlando as well. The KC Cowboys (Ismail Wainright seems to be a Kansas target) are on their way to another pool victory. She spotted Kansas assistant Joe Dooley watching Martin Brothers 2012 beat Nike Team Florida 2013 to go 3-0 in pool play. Dooley was later seen watching Alabama Challenge.
Shining Star Sports (Grote) lost game one to MB Nation 51-34 and will play Nike Team Florida tonight at 7:50. Shining Star Sports (Moman) lost 34-31 to the Birmingham Storm.
http://www.shiningstarsports.blogspot.com/
Team NJABC has won their first game as well.
Team Pride 15U is in the finals in the gold bracket (Kaminski) and Team Pride's 16U squad lost to Grandy Glaze and Team Takeover.

Hoops City Classic:

This event will be attended by as many coaches as the Vegas tourneys. Arguably the top prospect in 2010, 2011, and 2013 will be attending. Harrison Barnes is there with Howard Pulley Black, Marques Teague is there with Spiece Indy Heat, and Peter Jok is there with All Iowa Attack Red. Spiece Indy Stars 2012 will be one of the favorites in the 2012 division.
Eric Bossi is doing some twitter updates.
The bballreport is there and says Chasson Randle of the Illinois Wolves is playing well.

Other Updates:

MILive.com had an article yesterday that caught my attention. Steve Bell is an excellent writer who covers Michigan prep hoops and he had a list of ten kids from Michigan in the 2010 class who have elevated their stock. He has comments on recent Iowa commitment Roy Marble Jr, the next in line of LeBron-in-your-face-dunking Crawfords in Oak Park's 6'0 Jalen Crawford, Detroit Pershing's 6'6 Juwan Howard Jr, 6'4 Inkster star Jerry Jones, 6'7 Granville Christian forward Tyler Kruis, 6'0 Dewitt star Andrew Lerg, 6'4 Detroit Southeastern star Johnnie Lindsey, 6'5 Aaron Olson from Traverse City West, 6'6 Julian Plummer from Muskegon Heights, and 5'11 Travis Schuba from Kalaska.

Speaking of Jalen Crawford (photo at top from dailytribune), big brother Jordan's now famously secret dunk on Lebron is supposed to surface today at 6:45 on TMZ!

Mark Miller's courtside blog is reporting Vander Blue didn't travel with the Milwuakee Spartans to Vegas and is planning on narrowing down to a top five in August. Wisconsin and Marquette are favorites among at least 20 schools being considered. I had fearlessly (and foolishly perhaps) predicted Blue would make it down to Arizona during his Vegas trip but once again, pay very little attention to the Mongrel when talking about where kids will end up. Its too much fun to avoid but not my strength...vbg. Now if Blue winds up at Zona later I'll still feel like crowing about my supernatural powers of prognostication.

Miller also reports Eastern Kentucky offered Racine Central Catholic 6'2 guard Steve McWhorter who is also being pursued by UW-Milwuakee.

7/21/09

Super Showcase under way, other recruiting buzz 7/21



I'll be monitoring twitter and combing a few online resources during the next week so check Hoopsmongrel for updates. Grassroots TV and Wazoosports are two ways to watch some Vegas AAU action if you are desperate. I won't go live until End of Summer Classic next week so I'll try to find different angles to cover as it goes on and get back to work on updating the coach tracker post from last week. I have a lot more in my notes for that and haven't gotten to it beyond what I originally posted but promise to warm that puppy back up with non-premium information, in fact I'll probably stop procrastinating tomorrow. vbg

Summer Showcase (Orlando):

The geeky Mongrel will be Twitter mining for AAU updates warms up today with Team Pride 15U (Ken Kaminski and others) defeating Birmingham Storm! 15U action underway and the rest starts Wednesday, I am fired up!!

Other early tweets from the event: Charlotte Storm 15U beat Tidewater. Martin Brothers 15U Jerel Moore impressing in his opening pool game. Hot 2012 prospect Marcus Paige is also impressing in that game according to a Kansas writer who is doing a few updates.


Other Recruiting Notes:

Usually I am all over the Demling blog but I missed a couple of good entries from the last few days on kids of note. Donovan Gibbs from Iriquois HS in Louisville is having a great summer for Shining Stars Sports. He is 6'6 and has offers from IUPUI, Bellarmine, and Easter Kentucky. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/2009/07/update-donovan-gibbs.html

Chicagohoops is saying Chicago media sweetheart Mike McCall of Foreman has picked up an offer from Drake. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/mccall5.html Photo is from cicbasketball.com. He plays school ball for Foreman alongside the talented Marquette and Indiana target Levonte Dority.

NWI Times confirms UCLA and Arizona offers for SYF Players 16U super athlete Branden Dawson from Gary. He already had offers from Purdue, Indiana, Minnesota, and Georgetown. Dawson is incredibly talented but is about 6'5 and will need to sharpen up the handle quite a bit or speed up his improving jump shot a little to be able to dominate when he gets to the next level. He is a gifted rebounder and a treat to watch. He plays with some talented teammates in Mitch McGary and Markus Crider but in May he stood head and shoulders above them. He was the show. UCLA had coaches in Milwuakee for the NY2LA Summer Jam to watch him and he made his way out to UCLA for an elite camp earlier this summer so the offer is not a big surprise. He has a lot of Purdue people around him and they are the early favorite from most accounts so it'll be interesting to see how his recruitment shakes out if Ben Howland starts showing up at SYF games. http://www.post-trib.com/sports/highschools/1675885,bkb-dawson-0721.highschool

NBE blog has a reveiw on Suttons Bay, Michigan star Dwann Anderson and also says Kentucky, Xavier, Marquette, and Cincinnati are among the schools in the running for NY Gaucho Shane Southwell. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/07/21/lookback-at-hoop-group-elite-camp/

Marquette, Indiana, and Xavier have offered Virginia wing Justin Coleman.
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiting/tracker/school?schoolId=120&page=briefingroom&season=2010&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncb%2frecruiting%2ftracker%2fschool%3fschoolId%3d120%26page%3dbriefingroom%26season%3d2010 Apologize for the wacky link, it goes to the espn "on the trail" feature so if you aren't clicking near the time I linked it you might have to scroll down a little. He is the guy who went from unranked to five star with a couple of recruiting services after having a huge top 100 NBA camp a few weeks ago.

7/20/09

Offers, Updates, and Link-O-Rama! July 19, 2009.


I spoke with Chris Hawkins, the Spiece Indy *STARS* 2012 coach yesterday and he said Jeremy Hollowell has decided to stay with the Spiece Indy Stars through July. Hollowell has seen his game and his offer list grow rapidly this summer and appears to be one of the highest recruited kids in the 2012 class at this point if offers are used as a barometer. He has offers from Illinois, Tennessee, Ohio State, Indiana, Iowa, and others despite not even beginning his sophomore year.


New offers keep rolling in. According to Chicagohoops Jeff Johnson of the Peoria Irish has received offers from American University and SIU-Edwardsville. He has a nice mid range shot and plays physical at 6'8, when I saw him against Camp Daryl in Indianapolis he looked like a solid mid-major to me. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/jeffjohnson2.html

A couple of nice features by the Indy Star's recruiting blog. Spiece Select 2011 teammates Kendall Griffin (scout.com photo mug-shot above) and Zach Van DeWater are both big guards with D1 attention and at least mid-major futures. I've seen the play a little although Griffin was out this spring and they are both really impressive players. Griffin is a versatile guard who can play some point or off the ball and has good length at at least 6'4. He has an offer from IPFW on the table and interest from several schools including Xavier, Purdue, Michigan, and Dayton.
http://blogs.indystar.com/recruitingcentral/2009/07/avons-kendall-g.html Here is an interview posted on P-Hoops.blogspot.com which is a wonderful site for position player rankings in Indiana from somebody who gets to see them quite a bit. http://p-hoops.blogspot.com/2009/01/one-on-one-with-kendall-griffin.html The interview is from January but has some information on Kendall's recruitment.

Van DeWater plays for Whitko and has interest from Butler, Ball State, and Indiana State among others. http://blogs.indystar.com/recruitingcentral/2009/07/vandewater-hear.html They have several D1 teammates to watch including 6'7 brute Tony Springmann who is also getting recruited at the highest levels as a tackle in football.

Albany has offered 6'2 shooting guard Blake Justice from Peebles, Ohio. He plays for CBIZ. HighMajorscoop is one of our favorite twitter links to follow during aau tournaments and they have some new content on their website including this link on Justice and some other Ohio recruiting buzz. http://highmajorscoop.com/2009/07/weekend-scoop/

Also according to the above link Bowling Green, Wright State, and James Madison have offered 2010 small forward Craig Seeley from Brookhaven, Ohio.

Back to the Indianapolis Star's Kyle Neddenreip with another blog entry, this time on the Mount Vernon trio the good Mongrel has blogged about a few times. Daniel Turner has offers from Wright State, Lipscomb, Navy, and UW-Green Bay. He's the 6'5 all hustle jack of all trades small forward. PJ Hubert is the big time shooter. He has an offer from IUPUI. DeAndre Davis is a 6'6 forward with offers from UW-Green Bay, IUPUI, and IUPFW.
The good Mongrel linked several updates of the NY2LA Summer Jam and should've updated some wrap up reports a couple of days ago but dropped the ball. Here are a few links talking up the performances of Cameron Wright, Vander Blue, Moses Morgan, Dominique Fergeson, Percy Gibson, Chasson Randle, Trey Zeigler, Branden Dawson, and several other players of interest. Here are the 17U standouts
http://www.ny2lasports.com/SummerJam17UTopPerformers.htm. And here are the 16U standouts
http://www.ny2lasports.com/SummerJam17UTopPerformers.htm. NY2LA had similar coverage of the NY2LA Invitational from the first week of July if you click on their home page the links are on the side. It didn't have as much talent as the Summer Slam but it had quite a bit of the same people.
Here is a similar rundown by ESPN Scouts.inc on the Triple S Mountain Slam last week. Western Kentucky commitment Derrick Gordon is mentioned along with Indiana target Tyrone Johnson and some updates on some mystery Canadians the good Mongrel was marvelling at in passing at the Kentucky Hoopfest. Kadeem Green was really impressive with his ability to handle the ball at 6'8 or so and the ability to drive consistently and shoot a pretty jumper. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/news/story?id=4338300
Are you a little depressed about not having a budget to get to Vegas or Orlando to see hoops? The frugal Mongrel's hoops budget this month is going to be limited. I'll make a trip to Merrillville to see the End of Summer Classic put on by Chicagohoops and I'm also hoping to get a chance to peek in at the USSSA Championships put on in Fort Wayne about the same time. I'll be catching much of the Reebok Championship on the web for free on Wazoosports.com. It is the best quality you'll find and they have real Kentuckians doing the play by play so you get to hear the latest gossip on the kids playing the game as well as feel like you aren't drinking alone if you're sipping a little bourbon. The video is superior to what you find elsewhere and the games are pretty random. My other pursuit will be Grassrootstv.com. It is run in cahoots with Maxxathlete.com and hoopmasters.com and I am not sure how much of it will be free and how much will require a monthly subscription. I'll foot the bill for a month if I have to, but I think last year a lot of it was free. They are doing the Las Vegas Main Event from the 22nd to the 26th and the Double Pump Best of Summer Tournament from the 27th to the 31st. You can watch replays so it is wise for the married readers to wait till the kids are in bed and the wife turns on Trueblood before checking in there. I also hear Jody Demling will be doing a lot of live blogging from Vegas so get him with questions if he is watching something you're interested in.