Nike Global Challenge: Harrison Barnes and Daniel Orton
Harrison Barnes is playing for a loaded USA Team 1. That includes one time UK target Demarcus Cousins. Today Barnes and his talented squad enjoyed a victory over Senegal 81-68. Tomorrow they will go up against Team Canada.
Head Coach: Otis Hughley, LeFlore HS, Mobile, AL
Assistant Coach: Jeffrey Pope, LeFlore HS, Mobile, AL
Phil Pressy
G-5'10-160-2010
Episcopal School
Dallas, TX
Tommy Mason-Griffin
G -5'10-206 -2009
Oak Hill Academy
Mouth of Wilson, VA
Harrison Barnes
W-6'5''-1962010
Ames
Ames, IA
Rodney Williams, Jr.
W-6'5-180-2009
Robbinsdale Cooper
New Hope, MN
Royce White
F-6'7''-213-2009
De La Salle
Minneapolis, MN
Jamil Wilson
W-6'5''-203-2009
Horlick HS
Racine, WI
Roger Franklin
W-6'4''-203-2009
Duncanville HS
Duncanville, TX
Mason Plumlee
F-6'11''-210-2009
Christ School
Arden, NC
Alex Oriakhi
C-6'9''-224-2009
Titon School
Titon, NH
Demarcus Cousins
C-6'11''-269-2009
Le Flore HS
Mobile, AL
Daniel Orton will also be participating in the games. Orton is playing for an equally talented USA Team 3. Orton is teamed up with Jon Wall. Xavier Henry was also supposed to be on the team however is unable to participate due to an injury. Today Orton's team squared off against FMP-Serbia and as of now the results have not been posted.
Head Coach: Dwayne Bryant, Georgetown Prep, Kensington, MD
Assistant Coach: Renard Phillips, Georgetown Prep, Kensington, MD
Gary Franklin, Jr.
G-6'4-203-2010
Mater Dei
Santa Ana, CA
Aaron Dotson
W-6'3-194-2009
Rainier Beach
Seattle, WA
John Wall
G-6'3-188-2009
Word of God Christian
Raleigh, NC
Michael Gilchrist
W-6'6-199
2011
St. Patrick
Elizabeth, NJ
Dion Walters
W-6'3-214-2010
Roman Catholic
Philadelphia, PA
Jereme Richmond
W-6'7-191-2010
Waukegan HS
Waukegan, IL
Mike Moser
W-6'7-179-2009
Grant HS
Portland, OR
Milton Jennings
F-6'9-205-2009
Pinewood Prep
Summerville, SC
DeShaun Thomas
W-6'6-208-2010
Bishop Luers
Ft. Wayne, IN
Jeremy Tyler
C-6'9-240-2010
San Diego HS
San Diego, CA
Daniel Orton
C-6'9-258-2009
Bishop McGuinness
Oklahoma City, OK
Xavier Henry
W-6'6-214-2009
Putnam City HS
Oklahoma City, OK
Updates From Abroad
Lakeem Jackson has committed to South Carolina. Coach Horn seems to be doing a good job early on. Here are some things passed along to us via e-mail as well
John Wall, the No. 1 Rivals recruit in the Class of 2009, says he plans to be one-and-done or two-and-done for college in order to help support his family, including his mom and two sisters.
“My dad (John Sr.) passed when I was 10,” Wall told SI.com.
“After he passed, I was the man of the house. I realized I wanted to go somewhere and get my family in a better situation.”
“If I go one-and-done or two-and-done,” Wall added, “I’m going back to school and finish regardless. I promised it to my mom.”
Memphis, Kansas, Oregon, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Baylor and N.C. State are listed as Wall’s leaders at the moment.
Xavier Henry, the No. 2 prospect in ‘09, will visit Kansas, Memphis, UCLA and Texas but we hear it will come down to Kansas and Memphis.
Word is the 6-6, 214-pound Henry favors Memphis even though both his parents attended Kansas.
Kentucky is the favorite for Daniel Orton, a 6-10, 260-pound center from Oklahoma City (OK) Bishop McGuinness listed as the No. 2 center in the class.
Villanova and Georgetown are still recruiting 6-5 Montrose Christian small forward Terrell Vinson, but Duke is not.
Despite one recent newspaper report, Lance Stephenson is not considering Indiana and North Carolina is not recruiting him.
6-7 Birmingham (Ala.) forward Christian Watford likes Memphis and Louisville, but Kentucky, Indiana and Alabama are also in his Top 5, according to Jody Demling.
**Onetime Rutgers target Ricardo Ratliffe, a 6-8 power forward from Hampton (VA) Kecoughtan, is headed to prep school.http://www.zagsblog.net/
New Heights director Kimani Young checked in today to give an updated list of schools recruiting his top juniors.
JayVaughn Pinkston, Bishop Loughlin – Villanova, Rutgers, St. John’s, Fordham and Xavier have all offered.
QUOTE: “I feel like St. John’s and Villanova are doing the best job right now,” Young said.
Devon Collier, St. Anthony — Rutgers, St. John’s, Villanova, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Fordham
Ashton Pankey, St. Anthony — Rutgers, St. John’s, DePaul, Virginia, Fordham
QUOTE: “They’ll wait until next summer before deciding. They’re all continuing to improve. We’re going to be patient with this.”
USA DISMANTLES PUERTO RICO KEMBA SCORES 15
The 2008 USA Basketball Men’s U18 National Team (3-0) rolled over Puerto Rico, 106-64, Wednesday night at the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship in Formosa, Argentina.Five players scored in double digits, including University of Oregon freshman-to-be Matt Humphrey (Hales Franciscian H.S / Chicago, Ill.), UCLA freshman-to-be Malcom Lee (John W. North H.S. / Riverside, Calif.) and University of Connecticut freshman-to-be Kemba Walker (Rice H.S. / New York, N.Y.), who each scored 15; Travis Wear (Mater Dei H.S. / Santa Ana, Calif.) notched his third double-digit game with 13; while University of Alabama freshman-to-be JaMychal Green (St. Jude H.S. / Montgomery, Ala.) finished with 12 points.
The USA advances to the medal semifinals and will play Canada (2-1) today at 6 p.m., while Argentina (3-0) will play Puerto Rico for the right to advance to Friday’s gold medal game. All four of the medal semifinalists have qualified to compete in the 2008 FIBA U19 World Championship, slated to be played in New Zealand.In the day’s other games host Argentina defeated Canada 74-64, Venezuela (1-2) captured an 85-64 victory over the Bahamas (0-3), and Uruguay (1-2) earned a 63-51 win over Mexico (0-3).
“What really pleases me is that so many guys contributed to this,” said USA and Davidson College head coach Bob McKillop.
“Every guy on this roster played a role, had a part and was very instrumental to our success. It was a 40-minute effort. Our guys went from the opening tap to the end once again. For a coaching staff, we could want nothing more.”
TEAM USA ROUTS BAHAMAS ECHENIQUE POSTS 25 & 15
Team USA beat the Bahamas, 115-51, to win its second straight game at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship in Formosa, Argentina. 6-foot-10 Duke commit Mason Plumlee had a double-double of 14 points and 14 boards and North Carolina-bound forward Travis Wear was the leading scorer for the second straight game, scoring 15 points. Alabama freshman big man JaMychal Green tallied 13 points, Kansas freshman guard Travis Releford 11 and Villanova commit Maalik Wayns and UCLA frosh Malcolm Lee had 10 apiece. St. Anthony senior wing Dominic Cheek had 6 points on 3 of 7 shooting to go with 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 turnovers.
“Our teamwork and our toughness was there from start to finish,” said USA and Davidson College head coach Bob McKillop.
“We distributed the ball very well, we defended very well and the guys have really accepted the concept that defense wins championships.”
Next up for the USA is a date with Puerto Rico on Wednesday.Meantime, 6-9 Rutgers freshman Greg Echenique put up 25 points on 8-of-12 shooting to go with 15 rebounds and six blocks in a 94-76 loss to Puerto Rico.
Think head coach Fred Hill isn’t excited about putting the St. Benedict’s big man on the floor with McDonald’s All-American Mike Rosario of St. Anthony?
http://emekanadavandcorny.blogspot.com/
Summer Roundup UConn incoming freshman Kemba Walker and hotly-recruited Class of '09 shooting guard Dominic Cheek have both made the cut and will play on the USA National Team that will compete in the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship tourney in Argentina later this month.Walker, the point guard from New York's Rice High, has developed a good rapport with Cheek, a 6-foot-5 shooter out of St. Anthony's High in New Jersey who's the No. 3-ranked shooting guard in his class, according to scout.com. The two know each other pretty well and have been teamed up quite a bit together during the U-18 trials.UConn is hot on the trail of Cheek, who has made an unofficial visit to North Carolina. Wake Forest and Villanova are thought to be high on Cheek's list, as well. Meanwhile, out at the LeBron James Skills Camp in Akron, Ohio, UConn commit Alex Oriakhi has raised some eyebrows with his intensity.
"His slide into the scout.com Top 25 was no accident, and he's bound and determined to remain there," wrote the website's national recruiting director, Dave Telep.
I Really Like Harrison Barnes...
The sensation of the AAU summer circuit this year has been none other than Harrison Barnes. With Kentucky, Indiana, and Iowa State leading the pack, and rumors that Duke, Kansas, and others are sure to follow, his recruitment is definitely one to keep an eye on.
Last week at the Kentucky Hoopfest, Barnes had some interesting words for Jodie Demling (as reported on his blog) that has instantly placed Barnes near the top of my most likeable recruits of all-time.
When asked about Indiana, Barnes responded:"With Indiana , I talk to coach (Tom) Crean a lot. We talk about Dwayne Wade and about how personally I stopped liking him. But he wants me to become a big fan."
Strong words, indeed! Any player that can tell a coach to his face that he stopped liking his franchise player, gets high marks in my book.Oh yeah, and by the way, Barnes also told Jody Demling, "I communicate with Kentucky frequently because I like talking to their coaches," Barnes said. "Coach (Tracey) Webster, he's a real good guy.Check the rest out on the Jodie Demling blog.
Thanks to contributing writer Brad King for some of the updates!
Harrison Barnes day 2: Three UK coaches on hand for 2 games
Barnes was aggressive in the second half having multiple attempts from the line. With 6 minutes left Barnes hit a shot to make it 60-52, then a few moments later Zach Mcabe sank a bucket and the bonus to push the lead to 67-63. With 20 seconds left left Barnes nailed to more free throws that sealed the win.
After watching his All Iowa Attack team play 3 games and go 2-1. I have seen firsthand why there is so much hoopla surrounding the versatile young man. The final game was his best showing and his ability to shoot from long range was on display. With a couple of seasons left before he puts on a college jersey Barnes could put up numbers comparable to Beasley or Durant as a freshman.
The Kentucky Gators and Jacob Jenkins 101: From the 08' Hoopfest
We were in attendance as Coach Travis Durham and his Kentucky Gators took on Team Vigilance. I didn't see any of the UK or UofL coaches in attendance at this one although there were assistants from LSU, Nevada, Georgia, Miami of Ohio, and Tulane. Travis Ford was personally on hand for the game. On the surface the Gator team looked outgunned, but they proved to be a game foe and almost held on to the game.
At one point early on Jenkins missed a contested layup, but hustled and helped to trap on defense slapping the ball away and causing a ten second violation. With just under 6 minutes remaining in the first half Jenkins forced a carry. On the next possession after drawing the double team he kicked the ball out to a wide open Richard for a three.
(Coach Durham left, assistant Jeremy Buckman right)
Harrison Barnes at the Hoopfest
Harrison Barnes Finished the game with 13 points, at least 4 or 5 assists and a huge blocked shot. Teammate 6'8 Zach Mcabe added a game high 27 points as the Iowa Attack put on the cruise control and beat The Players 81-37. Barnes is a well rounded young man, very articulate as well. Barnes did not force the action and is a very team oriented player, but was clearly a cut above the other players on the court. After the game Barnes was kind enough to field questions from everyone.
Coach Cox was in attendance. I saw scouts from Duke, IU, Memphis and a slew of Mid Major programs.
We will have more from the Hoopfest over the next couple of days
