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Former Marist hoopster Menelik Watson a hidden gem for Florida St.

Saturday, 04 February 2012

SI: The Canarias Basketball Academy, a prep school team from Spain's Gran Canaria Island, had many curiosities on display during its tour of the United States this week. A 7-foot-3 center from Slovakia; lesser giants from across the European Union and Great Britain; an Israeli point guard who just committed to Seton Hall; a few Americans studying hoops abroad; and a former U.S. college coach of Peruvian heritage whose shouting on the sideline alternated between English and Spanish. But when the tour stopped at Irvington's Chris Gatling Recreation Center on Tuesday for a game against the postgraduate Robinson School that was attended by six current college assistants, the most curious presence was a member of Canarias' entourage.

He was a mammoth man in black sweats, wore a black skullcap and had a gold cap on his left front tooth. When he gathered the Canarias players around him for a pregame pep talk, it was delivered in a booming British accent. Canarias head coach and founder Rob Orellana was standing nearby, identifying a few of his Division I prospects for a reporter. Orellana pointed at the oversized Englishman and said, "That guy, you'd probably be interested in. One of my original captains. He's signing with Florida State tomorrow -- to play on their offensive line."

That guy, whom Orellana calls "Men," is Menelik Watson, who just might be the biggest wild card of college football's 2012 recruiting class. A few thousand players faxed in their National Letters of Intent on Wednesday, but it's unlikely that many of them will have played less football than Watson. He suited up for the first time in August 2011 and has appeared in just eight career games, all at the junior college level.

Lehigh Valley Hoop Group Showcase 2012

Friday, 03 February 2012

Ja'Quan Newton

By Bill Martin
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This past Sunday we took in the games that went on at Parkland High School in Allentown, PA for the Lehigh Valley Hoop Group Showcase.

There were four games on the day, but we missed the first one. The second game of the day pit Philadelphia power Neumann-Goretti against South Shore from Brooklyn. This was a hard fought contest but South Shore pulled off the upset 58-54.

Game three featured the always formidable St. Benedict's of New Jersey and Constitution of Philadelphia. St. Benedict's would be a tough matchup for any team in the country and Constitution was overmatched in this one, with the final score of 83-60.

The day's Final game was between the home team Parkland and Scranton. This was close contest throughout but when the final buzzer sounded Scranton was the victor 54-49.

The following are player evaluations from this event.

Siena’s Burdine “probably” won’t play this season

Wednesday, 01 February 2012

Times Union: Siena sophomore forward Trenity Burdine, out all season following right foot surgery, is unlikely to return this year, head coach Mitch Buonaguro said at his media luncheon on Tuesday.

“At this point, it’s probably unlikely he’s going to play,” Buonaguro said. “We’ve only got three weeks left. We can hold out hope, but I’d say right now it looks like he’s not going to play because of his physical problems.”

Siena has hoped Burdine might come back to add depth to a team with only eight available scholarship players.

Although Burdine has returned to practice, Buonaguro said Burdine doesn’t feel as though he’s physically ready to help the team.

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Marko Gujanicic commits to George Mason

Monday, 30 January 2012

GMUHoops: Recruiting prospect Marko Gujanicic recently attended a George Mason home game and with him currently being in California we knew it was probably a big deal. Turns it out he has officially committed to come play for Paul Hewitt next season.

A few people close to the program have emailed me this and there is talk at CAAZone as well. Gujanicic is a 6'8" small forward currently playing at Stoneridge Prep in California but is originally from Serbia. He caught the coaching staff's eye when he played against the USA U19 team that Paul Hewitt coached over the summer. He isn't a post player but has great shooting range and excellent passing skills.

He also drives to the basket with authority and certainly seems like he would fit into what the Patriots are doing now.

Ernie Duncan verbals to the Purple Aces

Monday, 30 January 2012

Ernie Duncan

By N.D. Kendrick
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On Sunday afternoon, 2014 6-foot-2 point guard Ernie Duncan of Evansville Harrison in Indiana committed to the Evansville Purple Aces in what came as no surprise to people that have followed his recruitment closely. Duncan announced his decision on Twitter and confirmed the news shortly after.

The pure point guard has all of the tools to succeed at the college level. Duncan is a team first player that has outstanding court vision. He has great shot selection and is very polished with the ball in his hands.

Duncan, who informed me earlier on Sunday that Butler would be in the gym to check him and his younger brother Everett Duncan out this week, decided he did not want to wait any longer to make a decision.

"I picked UE because it's to good of an opportunity to pass up. I get to play for my hometown team and my family and friends will be able to come and watch me play."

Duncan picked the Purple Aces over the likes of Southern Illinois, Butler, Wright State and other programs had interest.

JaQuan Lyle beginning to pile up Big 10 offers

Sunday, 29 January 2012

JaQuan Lyle

By N.D. Kendrick
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One of the top players in the state of Indiana regardless of class is gaining interest at an astonishing rate. The 2014 6-foot-4 guard JaQuan Lyle out of Evansville (IN) is coming into his own as a player and is maturing at a high level and virtually all schools in the Midwest are taking notice.

After visiting the Ohio State campus today he walked away with his sixth offer (fifth from the Big Ten conference). Xavier has also extended Lyle and offer and he has visited the campus on a few occasions.

Other schools to offer Lyle are Indiana, Purdue, Michigan State and Illinois.

Lyle started off slow during his sophomore season. He struggled with injuries that carried over from playing football in the fall. Recently he has began to step his game up and become the leader of his talented high school team. He has at least two triple doubles this season and seems to come on strong when college coaches are in attendance.

Durrell McDonald pops for DePaul

Tuesday, 24 January 2012

ESPN.com: Class of 2012 combo guard Durrell McDonald committed to DePaul on Monday.

McDonald, who is 6-foot-2 and 165 pounds, visited DePaul's campus over the weekend and informed its staff of his decision before returning home Monday. McDonald attends Green Valley High School in Henderson, Nev.

"It's an extreme weight off my shoulders," McDonald said on Monday night. "Everything was perfect. I still feel like I'm dreaming right now."

McDonald was drawn to DePaul because of its up-tempo style, which he said fits his game perfectly. He's averaging about 21 points this season.

"Their style of play is fast-paced," he said. "That's how I've played with most of the teams I've played on. I feel like I can make a great impact on the program. I feel like I'm the missing piece they need."

Tuesday, 24 January 2012

CollegeFantasyHoopsInsider: Former Arizona State guard Keala King posted on his Twitter account today that he is transferring to Long Beach State.

The 6-foot-4 sophomore was dismissed from ASU earlier in the month for unacceptable conduct. He was averaging 13.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting 52% from the floor and 39% from deep.

Dos Santos decides on Detroit

Monday, 23 January 2012
By Bill Martin This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Late last week it was reported that the Detroit Titans had landed a fourth recruit for their 2012 recruiting class. This latest commitment was from Gabriel Dos Santos out of Impact Basketball Academy in Florida. Gabriel is a 6-4 guard and represents the first perimeter player in Detroit's 2012 class as their previous commitments were all from big men. We had a chance to catch up with Gabriel to find out more about his decision.
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Former Purdue commit Derek Willis opts for Kentucky

Friday, 20 January 2012

Indy Star: The toll of the recruiting process was getting to Bullitt East High School junior Derek Willis, talking with college coaches, worrying about who was coming to games and watching and answering the same questions over and over.

After a bad outing last weekend against Ballard, Willis told his family and Bullitt East coach Troy Barr that he needed to make a decision.

And this time, the 6-foot-9 top-30 prospect nationally in the Class of 2013 said it's his final decision. Willis, who committed to Purdue last summer only to later back off that commitment, announced on Friday that he committed to the University of Kentucky.

"It was kind of getting to me and stressing me out," Willis said. "I am glad that I got this off my chest and everybody knows where I am going.

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