2010 Mongreltopia Top 50

1. Deshawn Thomas - OSU commit from Ft Wayne, IN will likely finish his career as Indiana's highest scorer in state history. 6'8 forward is a bit of a tweener in college but more ideally suited as an NBA 3. He is the best player I've seen nationally in the class, but didn't see him playing with the kind of passion I'm used to this last summer in AAU. He's been committed for a long time and has proven his passion in more meaningful games though. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #8, ESPN #13,

2. Jared Sullinger - OSU commit and Ohio native Sullinger has outplayed every big man he's come up against. He's the quintessential winner, and shows leadership from the power forward spot, not as flashy as some other top big kids but strong, smart and consistent. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #1, ESPN #2,

3. Keith Appling - MSU commit and Michigan native gets the the hoop with ease and will be a big time scorer in college. I want to see a little more point out of him to be a better pro prospect and maybe a little more defensive acumen but he's quick and always attacking. National Rankings: ESPN #36,

4. Adreian Payne* - Michigan State commitment is a pretty strong 6'9 kid with great length and athleticism. He's a long power forward from Ohio and is not as consistent as Sullinger but shows more upside. National Rankings; Hoopscoop #100, ESPN #24,

5. Ray McCallum Jr - I saw a lot more of him when he was younger but was reminded this summer just how savvy the kid is. He's athletic enough to be a pro but he plays with the kind of coach's-son heady nature that he'd make it if he had a prosthetic foot. He's a bit of a combo guard and is considering Detroit, UCLA, and a few other schools. National Rankings: ESPN #37,

6. Trey Zeigler - Zeigler is also the son of a mid major coach and like McCallum is considering UCLA, Michigan, and a few other schools. Zeigler has a natural fit at the 2 and is a deadly outside shooter with some strength to finish inside. National Rankings: ESPN #27,

7. Myers Leonard - This Robinson HS (IL) star and Illinois commit is a very athletic 6'11. He plays with some inconsistency still but is versatile while still having the frame to get it done on the low blocks. He'll continue to fill out and bulk up and have a huge career for Bruce Weber. National Rankings: ESPN #53,

8. Jerome Richmond - UI commit was very inconsistent as his loaded Mac Irvin Fire team leaned more heavily on other guards quite often in July. But Richmond is a big time athlete and has the kind of tangibles that are significant even when the intangibles aren't quite as far along. National Rankings: ESPN #18,

9. Terone Johnson - Purdue commit is the best guard in Indiana in his class. He's only about 6'2 and I was once worried he would be between positions in college but his good 3 point shot has become outstanding and his effort on the defensive side is almost college ready right now. The North Central product plays with the strength of a bull much like former NC alum Eric Gordon but lacks the kind of explosion Gordon had. He'll be a good 2 guard in the big ten. National Rankings: ESPN #116,

10. Cameron Wright* - 6'3 Cleveland Benedictine star and Pittsburgh commitment was once committed to Ohio State, but he got the cold shoulder from Matta in the year he sat out recovering from an injury so he opened it up and found himself pursued by Michigan State, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Pittsburgh. The Cleveland product made a huge splash in July as his explosion has finally returned and looked a lot better than the other guards still committed to OSU. He's a shooting guard with the quickness to guard the 1 or 2. Edit to add that Anonymous in the comments added " I like the fact that you have Cameron Wright at #10 he deserves it. hard working on both ends of the floor and one of the quickest first steps I've seen in a while. very good midrange shooter. at 6-5 210 has the ability to guard and play the 1-3 positions. PITT really has a unique player that will just keep getting better and better. YOUR LOSS OHIO STATE!" National Rankings: Hoopscoop #131, ESPN #112,

11. Crishawn Hopkins is a 6'0 Butler commit who moved up from 14 to 11 on the back of some Mongrel readers getting threatening. Anonymous makes a good point saying they are both freakishly athletic (comparing Hopkins to Smith) but Hopkins is a better point but I think some people underestimate how much point Reggie has. I have to give Hopkins seperation over Smith because his outside shot is awesome too. Hopkins plays high school for Manual (Indianapolis).

12. Reggie Smith Mac Irvin point is great athlete with some pg skills (seen above in ST shot).
13. Travis Carrol Danville HS (IN) star is a Purdue commitment that is fundamentally sound and tough. He's a 6'8 power forward that works hard. National Rankings: ESPN #122,
14. Jesse Berry high flying Dayton commit is sensational scorer, explosive personality. He's a 6'2 star from Laffayette (IN) who scored over 45 six seperate times last year. National Rankings: ESPN #173,
15. Ge'lawn Guyn is a 6'2 point for Scott County who has long arms and wonderful athleticism and is looking at some impressive schools after re-opening his recruitment (read my reader comments he has a legion of fans making some really good arguments so I gave him a big jump from 24 to 15). National Rankings: ESPN #166,
16. Juwan Staten is a standout guard from Dayton who committed to Dayton. National Rankings; Hoopscoop #109
17. Josh Sewell Miami commit is athletic off guard with good ball skills.
18. Russell Byrd Michigan State commit is a sensational shooter for Ft Wayne Blackhawk at 6'6 but skinny. National Rankings: ESPN #58,
19. Curtis Washington 6'10 forward is a long, athletic late developer committed to USC. * Had to edit to add some reader input, anonymous says "He's not even the fifth best player on his own AAU team." and I had another suggest Rick Bolus and I were the only ones who liked him. Well, just to remind my readers about late blooming big men its for a reason he's the only high major commitment in KY from 2010. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #130,
20. Justin Martin Xavier commit is a 6'7 forward with great range can play inside and out. He was an outstanding defender for Lawrence North High School (Indianapolis) as well. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #122
21. Lenzelle Smith is an Ohio State commit. He is also a combo guard for Zion-Benton Township High who gets by with strength, guile more than quickness. National Rankings: ESPN #78,
22. Ahmad Starks is commited to play for Oregon State next year. He was an excellent floor leader for the Warriors and Fire over the summer. He's a 5'8 point for state champ Whitney Young (Chicago). National Rankings: ESPN #170,
23. Griffin McKenzie 6'9 Xavier commit is a big man from Cincinnati who can stroke the 3. He missed almost a year with a broken back but came up big in July. Ask him about his phone bill. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #163
24. Jon Horford* 6'9 forward prospect from Gran Ledge (MI) is the younger brother of former Florida star Al. National Rankings: ESPN #115,
25. Brandon Spearman is a 6'3 shooting guard for Simeon (Chicago) who is a Dayton commit. National Rankings: ESPN #152,
26. JD Weatherspoon is a 6'6 kid who played for All-Ohio Red in the summer. He is committed to the Buckeyes after initially committing to Xavier. He's also an athletic wing who is from Northland HS (OH). National Ranking: Hoopscoop #146, ESPN #169,
27. Ricardo Johnson Ohio commit is a winner, cut down the nets in KY state tournament for Covington Holmes. He made waves shutting people down, scoring, rebounding, and with leadership last year in the tournament. Thanks to reader who corrected me I thought I remembered Johnson verballing to Miami. National Rankings: ESPN #185,
28. Levonte Dority* Chicago Foreman point is big time 6'2 scoring pg with nice three point shot. He is going to play in the Big East for Stan Heath's South Florida squad. National Rankings: ESPN #198,
29. Aaron Craft former Tennessee commit now with Ohio State as long awaited point. He's 6'2 and plays for Liberty Benton HS (OH). National Rankings: Hoopscoop #129, ESPN #124,
30. Anthony Johnson Purdue commit is fine off guard for state champ Chicago Whitney Young. His ranking is a bit guesswork as he was an obviously talented prospect and got hurt at the wrong time to make a splash with the rankings.
31. Ben Brust Iowa commitment is one of the best shooters in his class.
32. Jordan Sibert* This 6'4 wing played for All-Ohio Red in the summer and Princeton HS (OH) for school. He is an Ohio State commit coming off an injury. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #50, ESPN #72,
33. Ethan Jacobs 6'11 Ohio commit has put on a lot of strength last year making strides. He was rail thin in school last year for Tipton (IN) but was clearly stronger in the summer.
34. Khristian Smith is a nice 6'5 athlete with good size on the wing is a late blooming kid for Pike. He played summer with the Spiece Indy Heat squad that sported several four and five star kids and looked like he belonged with them in July.
35. Roy Marble Jr* Iowa commit and 6'4 wing is son of former Hawkeye star.
36. Chad Jackson is a 6'4 point guard for Scott County (KY) with nice size plays upright and plays well off the ball.
37. Rayvonte Rice led his Rising Stars teams to some big time finishes in July.
38. Dre McCamey* Baby brother of Illinois star Mike is fine point in his own right.
39. Alex Guana is a 6'8 Michigan State commitment from Eaton Rapids (MI). He has great length, good shot blocking instincts but can be stiff. National Rankings: ESPN #188,
40. Xavier Jones emotional defensive minded point guard can attack the rim. He's a tough kid might need to work on the outside shot a little but can hit it. Transfered from Gary, Indiana to Wayne HS in Ohio for his senior year. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #119, ESPN #110,
41. Eric Fromm Butler commit is versatile 6'7 forward who can put the ball on the floor.
42. Nick Kellog youngest son of Clark is nice shooting wing guard.
43. Alex Dragecevich* Notre Dame commit is sweet shooting 6'6 wing.
44. Crandal Head is a Rich South (IL) star and Illinois commit. He is younger brother of Luther and fine scorer. National Rankings: ESPN #75,
45. Duje Dukan is a 6'8 sweet shooting forward who played with Dority on Chicgao Elite. He committed to Bo Ryan's Wisconsin program where he seems like a great fit. http://ilprepbullseye.com/page24.html
46. Kennis White is a 6'2 WMU wing talent with big time athleticism and leadership skills.
47. Walter Pitchford* is a 6'9 power forward committed to Depaul from Team Detroit.
48. Jordan Manual is a 6'8 skinny forward from Indianapolis with a sweet three point shot.
49. Mike McCall* Chicago Foreman guard is selfless point guard.
50. Jordan Threloff* 6'9 strong forward anchored Rising Stars last July.
50. Elijah Pittman is a 6'7 forward and jumping jack for Kentucky state champs. He has outstanding talent but might be heading for juco as he's behind academically. National Rankings: ESPN #199,
50. Eric Gaines 6'3 Kent State commit has good balance, athleticism, and works baseline well.
50. Donnie Hale is a 6'7 forward from New Albany, Indiana who is committed to Purdue. He's a traditional post up and has outstanding reach and shot blocking ability but will need to learn to guard laterally and be quicker with his developing outside shot in college. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #39, ESPN #149,
50. Dakotah Euton is a 6'8 forward for Scott County, Kentucky who had originally been committed to UK under Billy Gillespie but wound up committing to Akron after the coaching change. Euton is a strong forward with good passing ability.

Honorable Mention:

Julian Boatner,
Ian Chiles,
Brian Fabrizius,
Donovan Gibbs,
Kevin Gray is a 6'3 guard from Reynoldsburg HS (OH) who was once Hoopscoop top ranked 7th grader. He signed an LOI with Morehead St. http://buckeyeprep.blogspot.com/2009/11/kevin-gray-signs-national-letter-of.html
Andre Hampton,
Jay Harris is a 6'0 pg from Oswego East (IL). National Rankings: ESPN #69,
Jon Harris,
Michael Harris,
Ralph Hill,
Juann Howard,
PJ Hubert,
Jack Isenberger,
Phillip Jackson,
John Michael Jarvis,
Garon Johnson is an outstanding wing from Dayton. Hoopscoop #139, ,
Maurice Jones is a 5'7 point for Arthur Hill HS (MI) who is committed to USC. National Rankings: ESPN #134,
Elisha Justice,
Matt Kaminiecki,
Jake Kitchel,
Kenny Knight,
Karl Madison,
Enique Mason,
Devin Oliver,
Allen Payne is an outstanding 6'6 wing from Winton Woods HS (Cincinnati) who committed to Auburn. http://highmajorscoop.com/2009/11/auburn-picks-up-payne/ National Rankings: ESPN #193, Hoopscoop #178,
Corey Petros,
Quinten Rollins,
Ronald Ross,
Alex Rossi is a 6'5 guard from New Trier (IL). National Rankings: ESPN #117,
Storm Stanley,
Isiahh Sykes,
Colin Voss,
Nate VanArendonk

Let me know what you think, I'll include your comments on whomever you advocate for weather or not I move the rankings for the player in question. I think a lot of these players are close calls, the difference in most of these players is less their own potential and more the work ethic and attitude since they are so close in terms of talent. I'll be getting to work on 2011 this week also.

More Commitments and Recruiting Buzz.

* The good Mongrel has served fair warning that Crishawn Hopkins was close to committing to Butler, and today Hoosier Hoops Report has confirmed he committed to the Butler Bulldogs. http://hoosierhoopsreport.com/

* The above link to Hoosier Hoops Report also has a story on TC Howe (Indianapolis) senior 6'8 small forward Jordan Manual as well as sophomore 5'7 point guard PJ Boutte both committing to Ray McCallum and University of Detroit. Here's a little more from the Indy Star's recruiting blog. http://blogs.indystar.com/recruitingcentral/2009/08/howe-duo-decide.html Boutte is pictured above in an Indy Star photo.

* Detroit has also offered 6'5 wing Kyle Clevenger of Urbana HS. http://midstatehoops.com/v5/2009/08/07/clevenger-picking-up-offers/

* Another Midstate Hoops article with mention of Culver Military Academy's (Indiana) Travis Britt drawing recruiting interest from Dayton, Indiana, Purdue, Illinois, and Drake. http://midstatehoops.com/v5/2009/08/07/culvers-travis-britt-very-happy-with-summer-basketball/

* Another move the good Mongrel warned about went down. Cameron Wright committed to Pittsburgh. Wright had been recruited heavily by Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan State, Cleveland State, and other programs after being given the cold shoulder from Thad Matta who needed a ride for Adriene Payne. Payne recently cut OSU from his list. OSU is thought to be in good shape with Xavier decommitment JD Weatherspoon to fill that ride. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/08/10/pitt-adds-cameron-wright-to-2010-class/

* While on the subject of decommitments, 2012 superstar Chase Behanon recently moved to Bowling Green, Kentucky from Cincinnati. This last week he has attended new hometown Western Kentucky University's elite camp and decommitted from Cincinnati. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/2009/08/doors-open-for-behanan.html Cincinnati will still be considered. Apparently there is poor communication from Behannon's Bowling Green camp to his family in Cincinnati as there are disputed opinions on his decommitment. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/08/11/chane-behanan-rayvonte-rice-updates/

* The last NBE blot link in the Behannon blurb mentions Ravonte Rice will be visiting Drake on Wednesday.

* The Xavier Muskateers accepted a commitment from Jay Canty. http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=blog05&plckController=Blog&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3afdda4dab-ab39-43a7-8ba8-36da2f75a889Post%3a585f6ebb-be07-42a3-b03a-7dd0cb31be4a&sid=sitelife.cincinnati.com

* Bowling Green picked up a commitment from Cameron Black, a 6'9 kid from Roosevelt HS in Kent. http://highmajorscoop.com/2009/08/bowling-green-adds-black-to-list/

* Another High Major Scoop artricle, this time Rob Brandenburg update. Brandenburg is a 6'2 shooting guard from Gahanna, Ohio. He played with the Mustang Ballerz in the summer. According to the link, he is a 2010 prospect who is going to be taking visits this fall to his school list which includes Butler, Akron, Wright State, and Loyola. http://highmajorscoop.com/2009/08/1-word-rob/

Crishawn Hopkins and Cameron Wright close to verbals? Other updates...

* Mongrel favorite Crishawn Hopkins appears close to committing to Butler according to an Indy Star article. Hopkins is back playing for Manual (Indianapolis) and should have a huge senior year. He's about 6'0 and thin but has amazing hops (for you readers older than 35 that is a leaping reference not a brewing reference). Hopkins can shoot, handle the ball, distribute, he is explosive and should give Terone Johnson a run for his money as best player in Indianapolis in the 2010 class. I'm not sure he can defend like Johnson, but Hopkins is a talent and should have a big year. According to this Kyle Neddenriep article he has 15 offers and is still considering Wright State and Virginia. http://blogs.indystar.com/recruitingcentral/2009/08/another-butler.html I set the video bar at the side to search "U.S.S.S.A. Nationals Slam Dunk" and there is a lot of video from the slam dunk competition there which Hopkins won. Photo from right is from USSSA Nationals last week.

* In any game, the counter-punch is critical. Big serves get all the attention, but the guy who puts the ball back in play is the one who is consistent. Louisville was planning on landing Fab Mello but that ship sailed. According to Mike Hughes of Editor and Publisher Louisville has turned to Rod Odom as a big in the 2010 class and offered this week. It is a premium article so I won't go into more detail, but check it out if you are a Card fan. Lots of times the guys who are juniors and seniors leading teams to the elite 8 or final four were not the first kid on the recruiting list. http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=2&c=885079 Odom is a 6'8 forward from Middlesex (Mass) School.

* NBE Blog has an update on Cleveland star Cameron Wright who is visiting Pittsburgh on Saturday and might be close to verballing with them. Wright told NBE that he had a good feeling about Pittsburgh but wanted to see it for himself. Michigan State, Indiana, and Wisconsin watched Wright quite a bit in July. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/08/06/big-east-visit-on-tap-for-cameron-wright/

* Redhawkinsider.com has an excellent free story on fast rising Ohio senior to be Jon Harris. Harris has grown six inches the last year and has found himself 6'7 with guard skills and several nice D1 scholarship offers. He plays for Twinsburg North High School and has starred for MBA Elite this summer. He says Miami is his leader right now but he also has offers from IUPUI, Loyola, Central Michigan, Kent State, Youngstown State, Wright State, Morehead State, and Northeastern. He is solid academically and very interested in Miami's business school. http://miamiohio.scout.com/2/885184.html

* Speaking of Miami, they also have offered Wisconsin forward Chip Rank. Rank visited Miami last weekend and plans on deciding before his first football game August 29th. He also has offers from Loyola, Northern Iowa, UW-Green Bay and UW-Milwuakee. http://www.wissports.net/sports/hoopsb/blog/blog.aspx?f=123

* Scroll down to the second entry on that last link to Mark Miller's Courtside blog if you are interested in Loyola (Chicago) recruiting. He lists four players in the class of 2011 with Loyola offers in his top ten Wisconsin player rankings. Milwuakee Hamilton's trio of Darnell Harris, Charles Lee, and Elgin Cook along with Merrill's Paul Jesperson have received scholarship offers from Loyola.

* Scroll down one more entry (I can't figure out the perma-links I'm limited) for some information on local schools involvement with Wisconsin 2010 players as well. St Catherine's 6'2 point guard Steve McWhorter has offers from Eastern Ky, Ball St, Eastern Ill, Indiana St, and others. Reid Koenen, a 6'7 wing forward from the Prarie School also has an Eastern Kentucky offer.

* Kenny Stevenson of Seton Academy (Illinois) committed to UI-Chicago today. Stevenson is a 6'2 shooting guard for First Step in the summers. http://ilprepbullseye.com/page22.html

* Jody Demling twittered that Mason County's Treg Setty has been offered by the University of Southern Illinois.

* Will Triggs of Edwardsville (Illinois) committed to Austin Peay today.
http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/willtriggs.html Triggs is a 6'6 senior to be who averaged 16 and 11 last year.

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.

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.

Commitments, De-Commitments, Offers, and Favorites 7/17

July is not only the busiest recruiting month of the year with AAU tournaments galore and open evaluation periods for the coaches to get out and see and be seen but kids are committing, de-committing, and schools who have been aggressive on the recruiting trail are filling up their rides and moving on to evaluate younger players.

Yesterday's biggest commitment was Simeon's Brandon Spearman going ahead and pulling the trigger to join Dayton's loaded 2010 class. Berry is an extremely talented kid from Lafayette Jeff and early favorite to lead Indiana in scoring this year and Spearman and Staten are ranked among the nation's top 100 players by several evaluators. Brian Gregory is landing one of the finest recruiting classes in the country in 2010 and isn't done yet.

Zach McCabe of the All Iowa Attack Red squad committed to Todd Lickliter's Iowa Hawkeyes after outperforming many of the nation's top players at a few July events and drawing the attention of the rest of the big ten and many other schools.

Chicago Vocational stars Hollis Hill and Aaron Williams on the other hand de-committed from UW-Milwaukee. Their Illinois Old School squad was tracked heavily by several other good programs and plenty of high majors for Jay Price and some other players. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/uwm2.html Above photo of Hill is from Sun Times. The outlook isn't bleak for UW-M though, at the Triple S Mountan Slam Taevaunn Prince told Northstarblog UW-M was his favorite and has been showing him the most love to date. Prince is an outstanding player for Team Takeover (Canada) who has been one of the best travelling teams on the circuit this July and looked very good against Florida Future at the Kentucky Hoopfest in front of yours truly. http://blog.northstarbball.com/2009/07/16/triple-s-harley-davidson-hoop-group-jam-fest-days-one--two-news--notes.aspx

Commitment issues were not only the problems of the college coaches, AAU squads gearing up for Las Vegas have been harvesting players from other squads as well. Yesterday I mentioned the Eric Gordon All-Stars added Crishawn Hopkins to their roster for Vegas. Today word has tweeted out that Jeremy Hollowell of Spiece Indy Stars 2012 will be joining them as well. Hollowell unlike Hopkins was already on a team winning tournaments and drawing hordes of coaches and his improvement from May to July has seen him earn offers from Cincinnati, Indiana, Ohio State, and several others. Hollowell has not announced if he will be returning to the Stars after Vegas or playing with someone else next year.

Cameron Wright had been one of the high profile guards pursued by Brian Gregory of Dayton, but they might be focusing on a big kid such as Adreiene Payne or Jordan Manual for their last ride. Wright is having an enormous July after drawing great reviews at the King James Classic and NY2LA Summer Slam last week. He has added a Michigan State offer to his growing collection according to a Badgernation.com article from yesterday. Wisconsin, Indiana, Akron, and Cleveland State are the other schools listed as offers.

Chris Anderson of Reeths-Puffer, Michigan is an athletic 6'5 wing who made waves this spring when his Grand Rapids Storm team came up big in the Tulip Tree Classic and other tournaments. He has an offer on the table from Stoney Brook. http://www.westmiallstar.com/2009/07/11/whos-going-to-play-ball-in-college/#more-1301

The previous article mentions Kalamazoo's Jeff Hoskins of Camp Daryl All Stars has received a Moorehead State offer. I saw him at the Hoosier Shootout and he was very impressive making hustle plays to save the ball from going out of bounds and knocking down three pointers in rhythm while leading his team with poise at the point guard position. He has D1 athleticism.

The above link to Northstar blog has a few updates on offers to some outstanding players from local teams. Team Takeover's 6'10 300 pound center Maurice Walker is a 2010 prospect listing an offer from Depaul. And 2011 standout Grady Glaze is listing an offer from Xavier and Ohio State interest.

Northstar has updates on a few players of note as well. Ohio Basketball Club and Scott County (Kentucky) forward Dakota Euton (former UK commitment) has offers from Akron, Eastern Kentucky, Oregon State, and others. His AAU teammate Nick Kellogg from Columbus is also drawing a lot of interest this July. He lists Ohio as a favorite right now but said he has offers from Akron, Miami, and Wright State right now and is open to new interest in July before he decides. Several Big Ten programs are tracking him closely as he plans on visiting Northwestern and was at the recent Ohio State elite camp and has Iowa and Indiana keeping tabs on him.

Chicagohoops is also reporting that Sean McGonagill of the Illinois Kings has picked up an offer from North Dakota. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/kings2.html He plays school ball for Riversville-Brookside. You might recall McGonagill was co-mvp of the Hall of Fame Showdown in Chicago in April and he has continued his fine play into July. He also has interest in Eastern Michigan.

July 17 Recruiting Buzz aau re-shuffling for Vegas (Fergeson, Hopkins)

The Eric Gordon All-Stars are coming off their first tournament title at the Best of the Midwest Tournament. Indianapolis North Central and Purdue bound 6'2 shooting guard Terone Johnson was MVP of the tournament and continues to display a toughness and consistency that spells great things for Matt Painter. But Johnson is not the only star on this club.

6'10 Cincinnati Moeller forward Griffin McKenzie is fully recovered from his back injury and drawing offers left and right. I posted a link on his recruiting a couple of days ago, but since then the offers keep rolling in. Ohio State has offered and Indiana's head coach Tom Crean was at two of McKenzie's games at Best of the Midwest so don't be surprised if the offers keep rolling in for McKenzie. Peegs.com's Matt Weaver spoke with him on Thursday and he said he now has offers from Xavier, Cincinnati, Northwestern, Tennessee, and Providence. http://indiana.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=965279 The article is a premium article from the excellent Indiana rivals site run by Mike Pegram. Yesterday Moeller HS coach Carl Kremer told the Cincinnati Enquirer that McKenzie now has offers from Ohio State and Vanderbilt as well. We'll be watching to see where McKenzie visits before the Eric Gordon All Stars hit Vegas later in the month.

And when they do hit vegas, they will have a significant new addition. Indianapolis Manual's Crishawn Hopkins has been playing with the Bloomington Blaze but will be playing for the Eric Gordon All Stars in Vegas. Hopkins will be a huge addition for them. He is a 6'1 skinny point guard who can jump out of the gym. I saw the Blaze Select get waxed by Atlanta All Stars a couple of weeks ago and Hopkins was the best player on the floor and scored about 25 of his teams 32 points. Hopkins also is an impressive shooter with a nice three point shot. I haven't had the chance to see him play on a team where you'd want him setting up his teammates a great deal but he has a good handle and if he has the kind of feel for the team's offense that you want out of a point its hard to see how Hopkins won't wind up playing for a high major program. He already has good offers including Miami (Oh) and interest from Virginia, Indiana, and Arizona among others. The Eric Gordon All Stars will give him that opportunity for both exposure and to show how well he can play point when he isn't the only high level player on his squad. Johnson is a strong off guard with range and McKenzie and Indianapolis Howe forward Jordan Manual are big kids who can stroke the three. If Hopkins is a point guard he should have plenty of shooters to kick the ball out to. I know he can drive, dunk, and shoot. The Mongrel will be at the edge of his seat to see if Hopkins leaves Vegas with some new attention. He's got his grades back on track and believes he will qualify as a freshman if he has a good year in the classroom. And yes, he can dunk. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuhoC8C5LEw

The SYF Players will be losing Dominique Fergeson for a while at least (indystar photo of Fergeson trying to swat the Juice). http://twitter.com/Dferg23 He's going to be playing for Team Detroit in Vegas next week. SYF had a nice showing in the NY2LA Summer Jam last week. 17U Lafayette Jeff star Jesse Berry is committed to Dayton and he joins an already loaded back court with mid-major or better prospects Gary point guard Xavier Jones, East Chicago Central's Michael Harris, and Indianapolis combo guard Andre Hampton who really impressed me in May. The big kids for SYF are going to play D1 ball too. Jake Kitchell is a 6'9 forward who has offers from Oregon State and California and is being tracked by several Big Ten schools including Iowa, Minnesota, and Indiana where he attended an elite camp in June. He is a very prolific scorer and one of Indiana's leading rebounders and led the state in blocked shots. For SYF he takes a vocal leadership role and does the dirty work. It will be fun to see where he ends up. Enique Mason from Brownsburg is a 6'9 kid with a very strong developed body ready for trench warfare in college. He looked vastly improved this spring as well and really got after it on the boards and showed good hands finishing inside. With his size and coordination I expect to start hearing soon about some D1 schools knocking on his door, he should have a breakout year for Brownsburg.

But the big ticket for SYF's 17U squad this year has been Dominique Fergeson. Fergeson is a top 20 ranked prospect nationally and is being pursued by Kentucky, Arizona, Indiana, UCLA, and a virtual who is who in the college basketball world. Persistent rumors about his transferring have been brushed off as ridiculous all year by Fergeson and his father but he finally confirmed what all the Indiana coaches I talk to have been saying for a while. Fergeson will be leaving Lawrence North High School to attend prestigious Hargrave Military Academy in Massachusetts. Naturally his high school coach Jack Keefer is irate about this news. He says (publicly and yes Fergeson is a minor) Fergeson is not on track to qualify and is being used by Dye and his SYF program. http://www.insidethehall.com/2009/07/17/jack-keefer-sounds-off-on-dominique-ferguson/ This Inside the Hall article sums up some of my feelings about hearing Lawrence North's Jack Keefer sound off on Fergeson (originally a Franklin Central player) transferring away from Lawrence North on radio shows. I do not have the pleasure of knowing the coaches from SYF or Keefer himself so I will try to assume everyone has a good point here, but it is a shocker to hear a high school coach going after a player publicly like this, especially one he was getting criticized for recruiting from Franklin Central just a short while ago. And keep in mind that 09 Lawrence North big man Jeff Robinson did not get accepted into Purdue after staying eligible for Coach Keefer and playing and knowing ahead of time what he needed to get done in the class room. And 2010 Justin Martin is transferring away and like Fergeson is said to be in dire academic shape and in need of stronger academic structure to get ready to be accepted to college. And remember that 2010 6'10 center Jan Maehlen is a highly touted Lawrence North big man who plays for Dye's SYF program and is also transferring away from Lawrence North.

In other words, a pattern is forming for Lawrence North that will become downright ugly if 2011 prospects Michael Chandler and Ryan Taylor play ball all year for Lawrence North but end up not having the grades they need for college. Lets hope for a happy ending all around. Fergeson, Martin, and Maehlen can have good years and get into the schools they want to attend now that they chose stronger academic institutions (at least in Hargrave's case) that have a budget and expectations to monitor and pressure the kids into getting it done in the classroom. Hopefully Robinson fits in as well at Xavier as he thought he would at Purdue. And hopefully Chandler and Taylor lead Lawrence North to a huge season for the Wildcats and get it done in the class room vindicating Keefer's "addition by subtraction" stab. Meanwhile the Mongrel will keep an eye on the relationship between the powerful SYF Players program and Indianapolis school coaches and pass on what is fit to e-print.

7/14 Best of Midwest, Summer Jam, Peach Jam, Mntn Jam, any jam...

Kyle Neddenreip update from Indy Star from Best of Midwest Tournament with updates on Spiece Indy Stars 2012 last second Ron Patterson 3 pointer to beat 16U Team JSA as well as a Crishawn Hopkins update and Zac Van DeWater, Willie Rhodes, and more... http://blogs.indystar.com/recruitingcentral/2009/07/tuesday-update.html I've been out on the trail a lot this summer and seen Kyle's face a lot. Indystar seems serious about getting into recruiting coverage and Kyle is the man on point.

Another great update from Hoosier Hills Hoops on Monday's Best of Midwest action with updates on ... http://www.hoosierhillshoops.com/2009/07/14/best-of-the-midwest-monday-notebook/

And the 4-0 Kentucky Gators are on a roll at the Best of the Midwest tournament according to the Louisville High School Examiner. He mentions the good play from Orlando Rutledge, Chris Richard, and Tim Henderson who is being watched by Northwestern. They will play Spiece Select tomorow at 10:15. Bloomington South import TJ Bell will be playing at 10:15 for his Indiana Elite South squad. Griffin McKenzie, Kennis White, Donnie Hale, Travis Carrol, and Crishawn Hopkins get some mention in the Indystar update...
http://blogs.indystar.com/recruitingcentral/2009/07/wednesdays-sche.html

NBE blog has worked so hard and done so much great coverage of the Peach Jam and a couple of now finished tournaments that it wore me out trying to keep up with the work they did. Its like telling the bank to stop accepting anonymous deposits in your checking account. Here is their Peach Jam update with top 5 scorers from pool play (Barnes on top), top 5 rebounders (Sullinger) and updated the semi-finals which pits All Ohio Red against City Rocks in one match and Team Final against Team Florida in the other. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/07/14/nbe-live-at-peach-jam-tuesday-updated-940-am/

Day 3 of the Summer Jam is in the books. I'm still waiting on a couple of reports to add but the resutls are in and some great matchups will be featured tomorow. SYF Players (Branden Dawson, Mitch McGary, Marcus Crider) will match up against DTA Devin Harris 16U team and it will be a nice battle to make it to the semi-finals against the winner of Illinois Wolverines vs Illinois Old School. The 17U division has some key matcups as well. Dominique Fergeson and Jesse Berry will lead the 17U SYF Players against the DTA Devin Harris All-Stars. The winner would fave the winner of the Wisconsin Scholars (Flavien Davis and Dakotah Euton) vs Team Detroit which just survived a close match against the ICAN All-Stars (Moses Morgan). The other side of the bracket features King James All-Stars (Cameron Wright) vs Net Gain Sports and the Illinois Kings against 43 Hoops.

Mountain State Jam Fest is underway and Shining Star McFarland was 2-0 on first day with victories against Sam Rines and Dejuan Wagner Rising Stars. Miami commitment Josh Sewell and Austin Flannery led the way in both games and they are matched up against the New Jersey Roadrunners in a dynamite matchup. I love Chad Jackson and Josh Sewell as underrated kids but Kyrie Irving is a bit over their heads. The Shining Stars are much bigger with Washington and company so a slow pace might benefit them. http://shiningstarsports.blogspot.com/2009/07/triple-s-west-virginia-jam-fest-update.html Irving is a top target for Indiana, Notre Dame, and Kentucky.

Thursday July 9 AAU and Camp roundup.

Cerroni and Patterson Dominate Hoosier Shootout is in the books. Spiece Indy Stars won the 15U game with big performances from Ron Patterson and point guard Kellon Thomas. Rhett Smith and Austin Burgette scored well and Wisconsin Playground Warriors super-star JP Tokoto was held in check with the Star's outstanding wings in Jeremy Hollowell and Drew. Drew is a 6'6 kid with a lot of the same length and versatility that gets coaches so excited about Hollowell but is a bit less farther along with his finishing at this point. He is an excellent athlete and will be a big time player one day in the not too distant future. Hollowell has been mentioned several times here and has offers on the table from Cincinnati and Iowa already and is in demand from Indiana, Ohio State, and other high majors. Tokoto and Popcorn Morris made the all tourney team for 2012 players for the Warriors squad.

Wisconsin Green Bay 2010 commitment Kameron Cerroni went hyper-nutso-ballistic in this tournament and set the tourney record for points scored in the event on the way to winning the title for the Wisconsin Playground Warriors. The Warriors are best known for their twin towers in Evan Anderson and Ben Mills and some of the younger players who play up sometimes such as Tokoto. But it was Cerroni who scored 48 points in a quarterfinal game and averaged 27.5 ppg in the tournament. He went for 18 this morning to beat the Shining Star Sports in the championship game.
http://www.wishoops.net/sports/hoopsb/blog/message.aspx?f=123&id=1042462
Here is a link to a HoosierNation.com story by John Decker on Burgette. http://indiana.scout.com/2/878026.html Burgette has a Cincinnati offer and strong interest from Indiana, Purdue, Illinois, and Xavier.

Another article from the Scout network, this time Redhawk Insider on Indianapolis (Manual) point guard Crishawn Hopkins who now has offers from Miami, Butler, and Wright State. He also has interest from Indiana, Virginia, and Arizona State. See earlier blog posts on Hopkins' game or do a youtube search on his dunks. You won't believe your eyes. He is under the radar because he missed some time in a couple of seasons for academics, but he is a bright kid and has turned it on and is taking summer school and making the grades now. http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=2&c=877991 Another article from their site updates Miami checking in on Covington Holmes star Ricardo Johnson who is my favorite unsigned senior in Kentucky. Johnson still only has the one offer from Bradley but he is being watched by several mid majors and some high majors.

Adidas It Takes Five was completed. The 17U champs was Triple Threat, the 16U champs were the Derek Smith All Stars, and the 15U champs was Indiana Elite/Team Indiana.

Here is a free recap from ESPN Scouts.inc writer John Stovall that gives good reviews to Indiana 2011 commitment Matt Carlino, Indianapoils North-Central 2012 combo guard Devontes Smith-Rivera, and 2013 Lansing Star Charles Tucker. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/news/story?id=4316431

Here are some comments on some Indiana Elite kids we've covered and Ricardo Johnson from hoopsreport.com. http://www.hoopsreport.com/news/eventreports/morefromthequeencity

King City Classic is on its final day. I've been pushing the NBE Blog and still suggest going there for info on many of the higher profile events and they were all over King City Classic. See link on my sidebar. For now, here is a link to a great recruiting update from U Michigan hoops. It has great links from the blog to information on the King City Classic and many of the players. One interesting link to follow is the Detroit News link and a blurb on there about how talented Jordan Crawford is even when compared to the other college players there. Xavier should be a tough out with Crawford added to an already strong roster after sitting out a year for transfer.
http://www.umhoops.com/2009/07/09/thursday-recruiting-bullets/ There is a lot of stuff on Bloomington South (Indiana) sharp shooter Spencer Turner and UM commit Evan Smotrycz.

Reebok All-Star Camp is in its second day in Philadelphia. I can't find a lot other than the NBE blog on this one. Most of what I'm hearing from there has to do with coaches visiting or how cheap Reebok went this year as they stopped keeping stats other than scoring. If I run across anything else tonight I'll add it later.

NY2LA Invitational in Milwaukee is wrapping up. Here is a day 3 report. http://www.ny2lasports.com/NextLevelDay3recap.htm Former Wisconsin commit Vander Blue was the headliner yesterday. He has offers from Marquette, Indiana, and Wisconsin on the table and is ranked top 50 nationally by Scout and Rivals. Other players of note included Flavien Davis (Wisconsin Scholars 2010), Zach McCabe (Iowa Barnstormers 2010), Xavier Jones (SYF Players 2010), Jordan Myrick (Grand Rapids Storm 2011) and Meanstreets 2013 6'9 center Milos Kostic.

Going into today the 2013 group had All Iowa Attack Red (Todd Friedman and Peter Jok) against Wisconsin Force (Nick Fuller) in one semifinal and Martin Brothers Select (Nick Zellar) against Meanstreets (Alex Foster, Milos Kostic, Nick Davidson) in the other. The 2012 division had Martin Brothers Select (Adam Woodbury) against Playground Elite (Arroyo Edwards) in one semi-final and Rising Stars Gold (Conner Boehm and Akeem Springs) against All Iowa Attack Red in the other. The 16U division had Rising Stars Gold (Michael Henry) against Iowa Barnstormers (Seth Tuttle and Rashawn Suarez) in one semifinal and All Iowa Attack Red against Wisconsin Playmakers in the other. And finally the 2010 grouping had All Iowa Attack Red (Josh Oglesby and Zach McCabe and Trayvon Wright) against SYF Players (Jones, Mason, Kitchell) in one semi and Net Gain Sports (Chase Creekmur) against the Milwaukee Spartans (Vander Blue) in the other.


Kentucky Hoopfest is underway already. Several of the better teams from the tournaments just completed in Cincinnati and Indianapolis will be there. The Spiece Indy Stars 2012 squad had to forfeit their first pool match and will play at 7:15 this evening. Spiece is sending several squads including Select 2011. Here are some early links from day one action including big games for Jeffersonville freshman Daryl Baker fresh off his standout performance at Indiana's elite camp. http://www.hoosierhillshoops.com/2009/07/09/kentucky-hoopfest-baker-leads-tsi-16u-to-win/

Team Pride had a strong Adidas Take Five tournament with Kenny Kaminski (2012) having a good tournament and drawing quite a crowd including some Big Ten coaches. The 16U team made it to the quarter finals. They had a great opening day at the Kentucky Hoopfest going 5-0. The Mongrel did a feature on Kaminski a couple weeks back, he is worth taking a look at. According to Team Pride's Twitter page Kaminski and 6'9 Matt Costello played well at the 2012 level. http://twitter.com/TeamPride

Shining Star Sports has several teams in tourney and starts 12-4, here's the rundown they most likely beat the team you're looking for and here are the scores for each of their teams.
http://shiningstarsports.blogspot.com/2009/07/kentucky-hoopfest-update-day-one.html

InsidetheHall has a good rundown of Spiece Indy Stars after their 15U victory against Indiana Swish Orange 2012 on day 1. After winning the championship in the Hoosier Shootout this morning the Stars had to forfeit their early game so they have no room for error in their pool and pull even to 1-1 including the forfeit. ITH has updates on Burgette, Patterson, Hollowell, Kellon Thomas, Darwin Davis, Austin Etherington, and Jeremiah Davis. http://www.insidethehall.com/2009/07/09/kentucky-hoopfest-day-one/ I should get a firsthand look at some talent at the Ky Hoopfest on Friday and Saturday in between some prior commitments and will have some observations to share late.

The Louisville Courier-Journal's Jody Demling has a day one rundown hits on several Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky players including Spencer Turner, Ken Kaminski, Jeremiah Davis, Matt Carlino, Aaron Thomas, RJ Hunter, and Taylor Epley among others.
http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/2009/07/kentucky-hoopfest-day-one.html

Chicago Summer Classic opened up today and I'm trying to round up some information on it. I read a report that 17U Mac Irvin Fire beat the Iowa Barnstormers in a close one. Alex Rossi had a big game but they lost in OT. Hearing some good twitters about Tavaras Heron and Travis Kellum as well as Michael Haynes.

I'll update later tonight if I find anything else from day one. All I can find so far is a premium article from Blackandgold.com who are doing a great job covering AAU events this summer. http://purdue.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=963733 They have reports on Nana Egwu, Chason Randle, and some 2013 prospects from Indiana and Michigan but nothing in depth on game action from the day.

Hoosier Shootout Day 1 Top Players:

2010:

Christian Kabongo Mt Zion Academy NC was the most dominant player I got to see on day one. He was playing with a team from Toronto called Scadding Court Ballhawks that I'm having trouble finding a roster for. He's a legit 6'5 and went coast to coast at will. He dribbles between his legs way too much but its impressive nonetheless and he pulls it off against some really quick players. He missed almost all of his deep shots but the people on hand assured me he usually hits them. He played great on defense for most of the game against one of the quickest points I saw yesterday. He took a lot of possessions off on defense too, but was extremely talented. He's the sort of guy who I'm sure will be a pro but I'm not sure if he'll make it to college. I was told he has a Nebraska offer on the table but is 19 already. He's an instant impact D1 talent if he makes it to a campus but might need reigned in a bit. He scored 30, had at least 8 assists and several steals and rebounds (and turnovers) as well.

Robert Wade from Team Nashville has to be one of the least talked about future college high major stars in the country. Here is a link I found while digging for more dirt on Wade. He was the player that all the kids from other teams gathered to watch and he kept going up strong on offensive rebounds and jamming the ball with one hand and having near misses. I didn't get to see enough of his game to get a feel for how good the little things are, but the big things are great, ask the Indiana Dawgz about him! Cincinnati and other schools were there watching and a couple of coaches were seen flipping through their $125 programs on the sidelines as they walked by. http://www.tnprephoops.com/content/view/1161/48/

Crishawn Hopkins from Indianapolis Manual was outstanding for Team Blaze but he was the only highlight for his team. He scored well over 20 of his teams 30 or so points. He is every bit of 6'0 tall but skinny, but the kid can jump out of the gym and has some range. He reportedly got a Miami (Oh) offer and did well at Miami and Indiana's elite camps recently. Coaches from Wright State, Eastern Illinois, Northern Colorado, Morehead State, and Princeton were on hand for his game against a loaded Atlanta All Stars team.

David Mason was the most impressive college prospect on the Atlanta All Stars. I haven't dug for their roster yet to see who some of his talented teammates were, but Mason was about 6'5 with good reach and had high major athleticism and some explosion to his game. This was one of the most talented teams I got to see in the 17U group yesterday and should be a tough out in the tournament. #34 was about 6'9 and played well as did #55 who was about the same size but a little bit stronger. Both looked like mid-majors or better to me.

Jeff Johnson was outstanding for the Peoria Irish 17U squad against Camp Daryl. #0 and #30 were both 6'8 forwards with nice games. I'm pretty sure Johnson was #0 so please correct me if I'm wrong. He had a shaved head and a headband and kept draining jumpers and defending well and being physical. #30 was also about the same size but more mobile and longer and made some nice plays with the ball and hustled. Let me know if you know who he was. Just found out Josh Piper was the other one. They both play for Champaign Centennial.

Eric Gaines was very impressive for Orange Crush. They had a very athletic team and the 6'4 rangy Gaines was chosen for his work on the baseline, he's quite an impressive athlete for his Hillcrest high school.

Jeff Hoskins is a 6'1 shooting guard from Kalamazoo who looked really good against the Irish for Camp Daryl. He was playing point yesterday and hustled all game long and showed off a nice 3 pointer even when well guarded. He was #10 unless the rosters have shuffled around.

Illinois Titans had some impressive athletes. I mentioned Siakhem and Ochenje from the younger class playing up with this squad and they were dominant. But the team was loaded with guys with muscles and mohawks. #32 and #23 were especially impressive physically.

Nashville Celtics Green #2 was big time as well. I'm not sure who he was, have three suspects so until I narrow it down somebody help me out. He was a 6'4ish kid who had a nice stroke, star level athleticism and had Vanderbilt and Michigan coaches among others watching he and his Nashville Celtics Green team. #1 and point guard #8 were good as well.

2011:

James Siakhem is playing up with the 17U Illinois Titans and was extremely impressive. He didn't look near the 6'7 height I'd seen him listed before but he's got to be one of the most physically imposing players in his age group. He hustled and is a special athlete. Word on him is that Depaul, Vanderbilt, and Southern Illinois have already offered. The 17U Titans had several other good athletes, check them out.

Khristian Smith from Indianapolis Pike has had a good summer. He led his Pike team to a victory at Purdue's team camp without Marques Teague and has picked up some D1 offers. If he continues to play alongside the special 2012 prospects who joined his team for the Shootout, the college coaches following them like a band of gypsies will continue to be impressed with him. He is about 6'5 with good length, athleticism, and a mature game. He plays hard on defense, cuts at the right time, and has a decent stroke. Keep an eye on him.

2012:

Emanuel Ochenje had the most potential of the 2012 kids I got to see yesterday. He is ranked #1 in the class by Chicagohoops and was playing up with the 17U Illinois Titans. He is an amazing athlete, you simply have to go see this team play if you are checking out the shootout. They have outstanding athletes at many positions and should be one of the favorites to win the tournament. When I saw them play they didn't get a challenge from the Kansas Express who were most notable for having a kid play who reminded me of Seth Rogen from Badass but kept sticking nice 12 footers off the glass nonetheless.

Ron Patterson keeps playing great ball. He plays for Broad Ripple in Indianapolis and is only about 6'2 but his arms are so long he plays with the length of a forward. He's a really impressive defender and can shoot some and make it to the hoop. Look for him to continue to improve his handle and be a star in the class of 2012.

Gary Harris from Huntington Southeast was with a new AAU team and word apparently hadn't spread beyond Bruce Weber and Tom Crean who joined the Mongrel and a few others to watch Harris go to work. Harris changes speeds well, can drive, and looks good going up for pull up jumpers. He got hurt early in the second half, I can't wait to see him again expect to see him rocket up the charts with the national guys and make the Mongrel stop talking about him. Up Tempo had a really long lanky kid who came off the bench and stroked some 3's and played really good defense that had Tom Crean walking over to the scorer's table, he was #32 but not sure yet who he was.

Austin Burgett from Avon, Indiana keeps getting better and better. He looks a legit 6'7 now and is getting stronger. He was very aggressive yesterday in front of legions of college coaches for the first time and really took over his team's second game on both ends of the floor. He's got a very nice handle and shot for a big kid.

Yogi Ferrel from Park Tudor in Indianapolis was outstanding yesterday playing against older kids. The teams the Indy Stars went up against were not offering the kind of competition he's likely to face as the tournament goes on, but he was easily the most impressive of the 2012 kids playing up with Quarles' Indy Stars. He was efficient and made great assists at times. I believe he had 20 points in the second game and was all over the glass, penetrating, and his shot keeps looking better. I also think he might have grown an inch or so since last time I saw him and his arms look a bit longer than you'd expect from a 5'9 point guard.

Jeremy Hollowell from Indianapolis was outstanding. He is about 6'6 and has a smooth 3 point stroke and was active driving to the basket as well as off the ball yesterday. He has great length and a good handle.

Raphael Davis is another outstanding prospect on that Indy Stars team. He is going to be big time in college. Right now he dominates the ball too much for a kid with a shaky handle and 3 outstanding point guards on his team and he tends to shoot the team out of rhythm from time to time. But he's got talent to burn and will be an extremely good small forward in college. What could be seen as shooting too much to some is probably a killer instinct to Matt Painter. This kid will score a ton of points in college. He might not have the handle and defensive quickness you want a shooting guard to have, but he is 6'4 with good length and I can't wait to watch him mature.

Brad Hartman, Kellon Thomas, Rhett Smith, and Larry Drew were also impressive for the 2012 Spiece Indy Stars. DeJuan Marrero was extremely impressive rebounding and getting put backs. AJ Hammons didn't play in the second half of the first game or at all in the second game presumably because of a minor injury but he looked fine. RJ Mahurin was an impressive floor general for Up Tempo.

2013:

VJ Beachum from Ft Wayne played a great game for his Spiece Indy Heat 2013 game playing up a year against Up Tempo and Gary Harris. Tom Crean and Bruce Weber got to take it in. Beachum is very long and can shoot, drive, and block shots. He's about 6'5 already and usually had the ball and didn't look outclassed against extremely underrated 2012 prospect Gary Harris. If anyone has a roster for his team I'd love to know who #9 and #12 were on his team as they have bright futures as well as #5 who appears to be a Matt Howard clone in the making.

Hoosier Shootout Update 2

Ok, back in between venues and sorry sorry Spiece Indy Stars for mislabeling you as Heat this morning (2012 anyway, I think the 13 was Heat at least for now)...

I missed the beginning of the 10:30 AM games at Sports of All Sorts so won't be able to offer stats yet. The program with all the rosters was also $125 so forgive me for using some numbers til I can double check a few things. Well, I suppose I'm a blogger and under some sort of organizational code to mess things up a little so I will jump in a little more than I should before I can look up some correct spellings.

10:30 games at SOAS first caught the Spiece Indy Heat (for real this time) Quarles team. They are a little different than last time I got to see them and some of the younger kids are playing up a year now. Purdue commit Raphael Davis, DeJuan Marrero, AJ Hammons, and Yogi Ferrel headline this group. I've been a little lukewarm on Yogi's potential as a high major player because of his size, but he continues to grow on me. The 2012 kids on the team were joined by some older kids. Brad Elam from Ben Davis handled point most of the game. I continue to be more and more impressed with Khristian Smith. He isn't the go for the jugular scorer that Raphael Davis is, but seeing them play next to each other I think Raphael can learn a lot from his game. Smith is about the same size and a good athlete and has good reach. I expect Smith to have a huge year this year for Pike. They won the recent high school summer shootout at Purdue University without Teague. Hammons didn't play at all in the second half, no word on why. Rangy combo guard Steven Jamison also handled himself well. The juniors have a year on the more hyped younger kids, and they played like it today. Bruce Weber and Tom Crean must be riding together because they were there at Arlington this morning and at SOAS later in the morning. They were joined by Mike Lewis from Eastern Illinois and coaches from Lipscomb, Drake, Southern Illinois, and other squads to watch the Indy Heat win this one 82-36 against the Runners.

Team Southern Indiana red beat Minnesota select 68-44, will have a little more on this one tomorrow after digging for some rosters.

The best player I've seen today so far is Christian Kabongo. He's the most talented certainly, I'm hearing he plays for Mt Zion Academy and he was on a team from Toronto and he is a gifted athlete and scored 30 points and had to be close to a triple double. He brought the ball up and has a great handle but goes between his legs constantly and overdoes it some. I heard he has some academic issues but has a Nebraska offer on the table, will find out more about him too.

Team Southern Indiana White beat the Wisconsin Force 60-56. More on this one later.

Over at Warren Central I was able to catch the Atlanta All-Stars dismantle Team Blaze. Team Blaze has hot 2010 recruiting name Crishawn Hopkins who reportedly has a recent offer from Miami (Oh) and was outstanding at Miami and Indiana's elite camps. He was outstanding, a gifted leaper with good range. I didn't catch his point total but he has most of the 30 or so points his team scored. Atlanta All-Stars had several impressive players which I will update later. Wright State, Princeton, North Colorado, Morehead State, and Eastern Illinois coaches were among the crowd gathered for this one.

Peoria Irish beat Camp Daryl 17U. The Irish had a couple of skilled big kids I will be getting back to you on as well.

The Illinois Titans had the most impressive athletes I've seen today as a group. Emanual Ochenje (Illinois offer) was very impressive physically but some of his older teammates were even better and almost as physically gifted. I look forward to seeing this squad again. They dismantled the Kansas Express.

Team Nashville has an extremely impressive player named Robert Wade. I was watching a different game, but I noticed a crowd gathering mostly of other players to watch the display he was pouting on. They were in a good game with the Indiana Dawgs when I left, Cincinnati and other schools had coaches on hand. More on this, you guessed it, later...

Back over at SOAS for the Spiece Select 2011 team (playing up with 2010) and Spiece Select won by 15. I didn't get to see the beginning of the game so I'll update the scores later. Coaches from Michigan and other schools were on hand for this one.

The Nashville Celtics Green had a few impressive players. They were beating the Michigan Mavericks when I left the building. The Mavericks point guard was very impressive and coaches from Vanderbilt and Michigan were on hand for the game among others.

More later, on my way to see the Spiece Indy Stars 15U team one more time at Arlington then back to Warren Central for another round of games before I retire for the evening...