NERR: New UMass Lowell head coach Pat Duquette picked up his first verbal commitment since taking over the River Hawks' program last month.
Jahad Thomas, a six-foot-two two-hundred-and-twenty pound swingman from Williamsport High School in Pennsylvania, committed to UMass Lowell over the weekend.
Thomas led Williamsport to back to back district championships in his junior and senior seasons and was also named 1st team All-State in Pennsylvania's 4A largest school classification.
NBC Sports: Recently graduated Monmouth forward Marcus Ware will use his final year of eligibility at Iona and will be eligible to play for Tim Cluess immediately, reported Adam Zagoria. The 6-foot-8 forward averaged 6.4 points and four rebounds per game last year at Monmouth.
This is the second transfer Iona has picked up this offseason as former Rutgers guard Mike Poole elected to take his career elsewhere following the Mike Rice fiasco.
Ware was an NEC All-Rookie Selection in 2010-11, but injuries have hindered him for much of his career. He injured his foot after just two games into his freshman season that sidelined him for the rest of the year, and he tore his ACL in a scrimmage at the end of his sophomore year causing him to miss the first eight games of his junior season.
WOUB: ESPN’s Jeff Goodman reported Saturday that Kansas transfer Anrio Adams has committed to play for Jim Christian and the Ohio Bobcats. The 6-foot-3, 190-pound guard, who just completed his freshman season with the Jayhawks, will be eligible to play for the 2014-15 season.
In 24 games last season, Adams averaged just 3.5 minutes and 1.1 points a game. The combo guard was on the bottom of Kansas’ depth chart last year, behind seniors Elijah Johnson and Travis Releford and second-team All-American Ben McLemore. Adams was frustrated with his lack of playing time last year, making headlines for his complaints over Twitter.
When Adams announced his transfer, Kansas coach Bill Self told AP, “Anrio is a very talented kid. We’ve enjoyed him being here.”
City of Basketball Love: After a bit of a slow start, Pat Chambers‘ Philadelphia ties are starting to pay off in Penn State’s recruiting. Four days after 2015 Imhotep forward Michael Watkins verbally committed to the Nittany Lions, Chambers and his staff got a big commitment from 2014 Roman Catholic guard Shep Garner.
“Very deserving, very proud of him, hardworking kid and I know he really connected well with the staff,” Roman coach Chris McNesby told CoBL by phone from Penn State, where Roman was playing at their team camp this weekend. “(Associate head) coach (Brian) Daly and coach Chambers both have Philadelphia connections and they recruited him hard throughout the process.”
Chambers, a Philly-area native, is an Episcopal and Philadelphia University graduate who also spent time as an assistant at Villanova in the last decade. He’s clearly focusing on Philadelphia, bringing in Pitt transfer John Johnson (Girard College/Life Center) and Southern Miss transfer D.J. Newbill (Strawberry Mansion), as well as Moore, Watkins and now Garner–though the latter says where Chambers is from didn’t play a role in his decision.
“I had a good connection with coach, we hit it off since Day 1 and our relationship just got better and better as time went on,” he said. “I don’t think it had anything to do with the Philly connection or anything like that.”
Journal News: Miami guard Allen Roberts, the team’s leading scorer last season, is transferring to Penn State for his final season of eligibility.
The 6-foot-3, 218-pound Roberts, who was redshirted as a junior, can play immediately because he’s already earned his degree.
The Middletown High School product averaged 12.9 points and shot 38.8 percent from the field and 79.8 from the foul line. He had the team’s second-most 3-pointers with 46.
“Obviously, we wish him the best. … Hopefully, it’s a chance for other guys to step up,” Miami coach John Cooper said.
NERR: Putnam Science Academy post-graduate forward Joel Angus will attend Stony Brook University next year on a full EOP, or Educational Opportunity Program, scholarship according to PSA head coach Tom Espinosa.
Angus will also join the Stony Brook basketball team, giving head coach Steve Pikiell a tremendous walk-on.
Angus came to Putnam Science Academy after graduating from Boys and Girls High School in Brooklyn.
The six-foot-six forward averaging over 10 points and six rebounds per game this year, helping PSA to arguably the best season in program history.
City of Basketball Love: When the perfect opportunity presents itself, it’s impossible to turn your back.
That’s what 2015 forward Michael Watkins realized, as he verbally committed to play for Penn State on Wednesday.
The 6-foot-8 forward believes that the opportunity the Nittany Lions presented was too good to pass up.
“Penn State is the right situation for me on and off the court,” Watkins said via text message. “The coaching staff fits my personality and the school allows me to the opportunity to play right away in the Big Ten, allowing me the opportunity to play on the biggest stage and be close to home.”
City of Basketball Love: Though many colleges are focusing their recruiting attention on the class of 2014 at this point with just weeks until the Class of 2013 arrives on campus, Drexel added a late addition to its incoming group on Wednesday.
Benedictine School (Va.) power forward Khris Lane verbally committed to the Dragons on Wednesday, giving Bruiser Flint another big young body on his roster.
“I can do a whole lot of different things,” Lane told CoBL about what he’s bringing to campus. “I’m a pretty good outside shooter, 15 feet out to the ’3′…I think I bring a lot of versatility–I can rebound, defend.”
Lane missed the second half of his senior season due to a bout of mono that caused him to miss a final in the fall semester–rendering him academically ineligible for the spring–but got to show off his skills in the April live period, playing with the Virginia Assault program.
Dayton Daily News: The Wright State men’s basketball team picked up another verbal commitment Monday when Iowa Western Community College announced 6-foot freshman guard Ryan Bowie had accepted a scholarship to play at Wright State.
Bowie, a native of Lewisville, Texas, averaged 9.8 points and 3.9 rebounds and led the team in 3-point percentage (44.0). He scored 20 or more points five times.
Bowie played in 32 games for a that reached the final eight of the National Junior College Athletic Association Tournament. Four of his teammates have also moved on to Division I colleges: Creighton, South Dakota, Western Kentucky and Milwaukee.
Indy Star:Maurice Creek will play his final season of college basketball about a half-hour’s drive from where he grew up.
But that’s not the most important thing to the former Indiana University player. He’s happy to have an opportunity to play anywhere -- and probably a lot if he stays healthy.
Creek announced via Twitter today that he will transfer to George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He graduated from IU last month and will be eligible to play at George Washington next season, his fifth and final year.
"They basically want me to come in and mentor the young guys and score and facilitate as a senior,” said Creek, who is from Oxon Hill, Md., a suburb of Washington. “They've been watching me awhile. They know that I can do it."
