Kearney pulls the trigger for Izzo, other updates...

As expected, the 19th best player in Mongreltopia for the 2011 class pulled the trigger for Tom Izzo's Michigan State basketball powerhouse on Tuesday. Brandon Kearney is a solid athlete who is impressive going to the bucket and he also is a very competitive player. The Spartans beat out Kentucky, Michigan, and Ohio State for Kearney. The Spartans have been on a roll after adding Adreian Payne to finish up their 2010 class. With two bigs from the '08, '09, and '10 recruiting classes who aren't exactly suited to guard a 3, look for Michigan State to focus on a point and another wing to finish out the 2011 class. Top candidates are Lucas-Perry, Jeremiah Davis, Anton Grady, and possibly Dwann Anderson if he keeps impressing and secures that coveted Spartans offer.

Kentucky:

Perhaps the biggest recruiting drama in the state of Kentucky right now surrounds 2011 forward Chane Behannon who is being targeted by Oklahoma State, Cincinnati, Kentucky, and Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers are not to be dismissed lightly as they landed a strong 09 class and have had Chane on campus for an elite camp and at least two unofficial visits. The Hilltoppers are also deeply involved with the second most intriguing recruiting battle in the state. Ge'lawn Guyn was close to verballing for WKU before originally choosing Charlotte. Two schools of thought around Guyn are floating out there. One is that he has blown up to a high major status and is close to offers from Texas, Georgia Tech, and Indiana. The other is that he still likes Western and might not wait to see who else offers.

Previously mentioned Kearney and Payne were notably UK targets. One of the quiet surprises across the country has been UK's difficulty in closing on most of their top 2010 targets after a near historic 2009 recruiting class. The Wildcats have secured one outstanding prospect in Stacey Poole from Jacksonville, Florida, but have missed on more than anyone could have imagined. I try not to comment much on UK recruiting because they have so many more fans than anyone else it overwhelms your inbox and everybody who follows recruiting has a half dozen good solid UK sources who seem to always think they are about to get whatever kid decides next no matter what the details are. But I keep hearing one theme reflected back from UK directions, several recruits UK goes after have the kind of potential to only play a couple of years in college before going pro and those kids will not choose UK over another good program if they are worried about getting on the floor. I believe several of UK's top targets have deliberately decided to wait until spring to get a feel for what John Wall, Orton, Liggins, and Cousins will look like under Calipari and if they will leave this year. How good Bledsoe looks at pg could be a factor as well. When you recruit kids who only want to play a year or two before going pro, you might have to continue going down the list like Calipari has done. If Bledsoe is human, Wall goes pro along with one of the freshman big kids, then expect UK to have their pick of the litter this spring and wind up with a Selby, Leslie, Poole, Jones type of class probably mixed in with a juco or two for stability since UK stands to lose so many seniors this year. However, if Bledsoe looks formidable for the next three years and UK returns both big freshmen UK might have a little more trouble getting a special class back to back than their fans expect.

Indiana:

Here is a look at five emerging prospects from Indiana from Indianapolis Star recruiting writer Kyle Neddenreip. http://www.indystar.com/article/20091101/SPORTS0615/91101014/1361/SPORTS0615/Under+the+recruiting+radar++but+ready+to+soar
Jared Drew, Nick Osbourne, Kellon Dunham, and Michael Ramey are four candidates to make Mongreltopia's exlusive top 50 list for 2012 prospects while Colin Hartman is a wonderful early bet for a nationally ranked top 50 player. The Good Mongrel likes VJ Beachum and Daryl Baker the most in Indiana in the 2013 class so far, but Hartman along with the Scott twins in Ft Wayne are among the highest profile kids in the class this early.

Another Neddenreip article updates Princeton, IN point guard Jalen Packer's recruitment. Packer is getting recruited by Butler, Southern Indiana, Purdue, and has offers from Evansville and others. The article also takes a look at mountainous Carmel center AJ Hammons' recruitment. Indiana and Purdue are among recent visitors to see the slimmed down Hammons. Avon is best known for Kendall Griffin and Austin Burgett, but Juan Sarver has his own following from area coaches including offers from Wright State and Morehead State.
http://www.indystar.com/article/20091030/SPORTS0615/910300376/1361/SPORTS0615/Its+2010+class+filled++Butler+looks+ahead

Purdue has already overcommitted for its 2012 class. With only 2 rides scheduled to come open, they have commitments from Kyle Molock (ESPN's 65th highest graded prospect), Raphael Davis (59th), and Jay Simpson (98th). Matt Painter has a well earned reputation for being a shrewd talent evaluator, and with the depth of talent available in Indiana for 2012 you can bet those three kids are going to be worth the gamble. It might leave Glenn Robinson Jr wandering what he's going to be doing with his college years however, the little dog had a big July for the 15U SYF players! Purdue has a lot of offers out in 2011, but seems to be best positioned with Chason Randle and Brandon Dawson right now. If Jujuan Johnson goes pro as expected Purdue should only have two rides available in 2011, and with overcommitments in 2010 and 2012 those two would be an ideal way for Purdue to finish their classes. Purdue basketball seems to be capturing its on the court momentum and finding the next wave of kids to compete for Big Ten Championships after Hummel, Johnson, and Kramer leave.

Ohio:

Thad Matta has wasted no time after landing a top 2010 class. OSU is always looking for a point guard to emerge, and the Good Mongrel expects William Buford and Walter Offut to help guarding that spot this year, but the future is currently in the hands of Aaron Craft, a 2010 commitment. OSU has hosted Chason Randle and Quinn Cook from the class of 2011, two kids who certainly would stop the bleeding at the point. Another point targeted by OSU is Yogi Ferrell, a 2012 star from Park Tudor, Indianapolis. OSU has also targeted Georgia guard Shannon Scott who seems to favor Clemson but lists OSU as his second favorite.

Many of the top prospects in Ohio participated in the Nike All-Ohio City Series in Columbus. The event was put on by All-Ohio's Jerry Watson and included top performances by 6'5 Bowling Green commitment Craig Seely from Columbus Brookhaven who won MVP (pictured above), as well as Dublin Coffman's Christian Heine and Michael Green, Columbus Beechcroft's Leo Delvin, Teays Valley's Nate Anderson, and Jake Forrest of Hilliard Bradley among others. The underclassman MVP was Harvest Prep pg Adam McCall (2012) and others on the all tournament team included Northland's 6'8 Devon Scott (2012) and 6'4 KeChuann Lewis, along with Brookhaven's 6'6 Kahlid King, Liberty's 6'6 Nick Archer, and Terry Hopewell of Independence. Previously mentioned recent Purdue commitment Kyle Molock was a participant. http://www.jjhuddle.com/news/articles/2009/11/2/first-annual-nike-all-ohio-city-series-top-40-a-success