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SoCalHoops College News

Stuff: College Stuff, Recruiting Stuff,
Player Stuff--(Mar. 6, 2000)

Remember that great George Carlin routine on "stuff". . . well, we've got plenty of it today:

We've been focused on the high school playoffs for so many weeks now that we've almost lost track of what's happening in the world of college hoops, but now that March Madness is about to start, it's time to look again at a few recent happenings:

UCLA Stuff: UCLA picked up a verbal commitment from Josiah Johnson (6'-7" Sr. PF/SG) from Montclair Prep in Van Nuys. Josiah is the son of former UCLA and NBA great Marques Johnson and he's the brother of former UCLA player Kris Johnson. UCLA also picked up a commitment during the fall signing period from TJ Cummings, who is the son of NBA player Terry Cummings. . . and they're still continuing to look at Josh Moore (7'-1" Post Grad C/PF) who is the closest thing to Shaq this side of the 405. There are still questions about whether Josh will qualify academically, but he's working on improving his chances by taking some JC classes. . . . in the point guard department, UCLA is now actively looking for a point guard for next season to relieve some of the pressure on Earl and Moose Bailey, and there are a number of names that have been thrown into the hat, including Brandon Brooks (6'-0" Sr. PG) from Portland Jefferson. . . notwithstanding these rumors, we'd say it's almost a lock that Brandon won't end up in Westwood next year, and instead he'll be counting cactus somewhere in Arizona. . . As we've also reported, and this is certainly not news, JaRon Rush is back, and the Bruins are also back in contention (or so it seems) for an NCAA bid, especially after the huge win over Stanford on Saturday and the win over Cal last Thursday. . . which means that one of the funniest and most creative websites to hit the net since, well, we don't know when, might be coming down soon, and so we'd suggest that everyone click over to FireLavin.com. . . . really, that's the name of the site, and it's just hilarious. And what a great logo. We're pretty sure that Steve Lavin hasn't found it so funny, but then a little irreverent humor in the face of adversity never really hurt anyone. . . besides, Coach Lavin has one hell of a sense of humor anyway. . . Seriously though, if you haven't visited this site, you really have to.

Spring Exposure Stuff: The Double Pump "Unsigned Seniors" Shootout is this weekend at Cal State Dominguez Hills. It's an NCAA-certified event, and this is an NCAA "open-evaluation" period, so college coaches can and will be in attendance, including lots of coaches who have no chance to make the NCAA tournament this season, who are actively looking for whatever unsigned talent is still out there. We can't promise who is going to be there and who won't, but if you're a senior and looking for one more opportunity to have college coaches take a look, it couldn't hurt. Contact Double Pump for further information, at (530) 256-2862 or through their website.

LMU Stuff: Loyola Marymount will, or so our sources tell us, soon announce that they've found a replacement for Charles Bradley, who resigned the head coaching job a few weeks ago. Reportedly Mike Dunlap from Metro State in Denver has gotten the job, but we haven't actually spoken with anyone at the school or with coach Dunlap, so this is strictly rumor-based stuff.

CSUF Stuff: Cal State Fullerton head coach Bob Hawking also resigned the head coaching job at Cal State Fullerton at about the same time Bradley resigned at LMU. Word is that the job has been offered to Donny Daniels, assistant coach at Utah, and an alum of Fullerton, and speculation is that he'll take the job shortly.

More Spring Exposure Stuff: The first weeked of Rockfish Spring League took place on Saturday (a half day) and Sunday (full day), and it's clear that a lot of the guys playing need to get back into the groove. . . it's also clear that a lot of teams had some real studs out there playing really well. A lot of guys weren't there, still being involved in the playoffs, or out of town on official visits, or otherwise occupied. We're not going to write about everyone but these are some of the guys who we made some mental notes about. . . we'll have more on other guys as the league progresses:

Robert Abreu (6’-4" Jr. SG) from Sonora HS (La Habra)--Robert was a scoring machine in the one game we saw him play for the Barracudas on Sunday. Good quickness, nice shooting and a lot of inside presence against guys who were bigger and seemingly stronger.

Darryl Pegram (6’-8" Jr. F) A.B. Miller HS (Fontana)-- Darryl is going to be a major player. Sort of wiry right now, but agile, quick and he can shoot the ball and rebound. John Romagnoli has a great prospect on his hands at Miller, which should be much improved next season.

Matt Salinas (6’-9" So. F/C) Sonora HS (La Habra)-- Matt is a stocky, strong looking player, who has a fairly unorthodox style, but will begin to grow into his body this summer and as he gets stronger and develops more quickness he should be a definite prospect. First time we've seen him and he's got a lot of potential.

Reco Wright (6’-2" Sr. PG/SG) Alta Loma HS-- Reco is not really a point, although he played point for his team on Sunday in the absence of Russell Lakey (6'-0" Sr. PG) from Harvard-Westlake who was at Vanderbilt on an official visit. Reco is very quick, has good ball control, and makes decent decisions on the floor, but he's truly more of a combo from what we saw. Did we say very quick?.

Nashid Beard (6’-7" Jr. F) from Reseda HS--We first saw Nashid during some of the Rockfish fall workouts, and he looks like he's actually grown an inch or two. Active inside, but tended to float around the perimeter on Sunday in the two games we saw on offense but likes to crash the boards. He's another of those players with a lot of upside potential, big body, and if he can put on some muscle and get stronger, and work on catching the ball and turning, he'll be another one with a good future. Looks taller than 6'-7", but what do we know.

R.J. Bluitt (5’-11" Sr. PG) from Dominguez HS--RJ is in his xth year of high school (ok, so he's gotten around a bit), and he attended a prep school this fall (Redemption Christian Academy in New York) or as some affectionately call it, "The Bakery", and it seems to have helped his game somewhat. He's attending Dominguez but has no more eligibility left, but that's not important. He's quick, makes decent decisions, and had a couple of spectacular passes when some defenders were just sleeping on back door cuts. He says he'll be a qualifer, so college coaches should take a look during the league.

Tito Hill (6’-4" Jr. SG/SF) Chaminade HS (West Hills)-- Tito was previously listed on some lists as a point guard. . . after watching him a lot this season, we can say that he's not that, and definitely projects out as a three, more of a slasher with a long wing-span and good ball control that's getting even better. He can also shoot out to three point range and in the second game of the day, against the Swordfish (a new team that was thrown together at the last moment) Tito had some very nice drives to the hoop and some good outside shots too.

Peter McCaslin (6’-1" Jr. SG/PG) Chadwick HS (Rolling Hills Estates)-- Peter played two solid games this weekend, and he looks like he's having a lot more fun than he did this season, at least more fun than the one game we saw him play against Campbell Hall. He's got good speed and makes solid decisions on the floor, and also is one of those guys who's probably better described as a solid combo guard than a pure point. Has really worked on his game and it shows.

Desmond Newman (6’-6" Fr. F) from Los Angeles HS-- Desmond is just now adjusting to the Rockfish games (like everyone else). His team had a miserable season, but he's really a very talented player. Will get stronger and already has good quickness. It'll be nice to see him mature over the next three years.

Jon Todd (6'-8" So. F) from Chaminade HS--Jon played some solid games on Sunday, and he's developed better hands and footwork than we saw last season, probably the result of seeing more time this season when he played with the jv's, since there wasn't much chance of him getting a lot time to develop this season with Borchart and the rest of the others on varsity, so it was certainly a wise decision. Jon has improved his foot speed and made good adjustments this weekend to playing with faster and stronger players than he probably saw most of the season. He's built a lot differently than brother JJ, much more stocky, and he could be even bigger, so he might not need that redshirt season in a couple of years. Had some good rebounds around the offensively, and if he can get inside more on defense and develop an offensive drop step he could be scary.

Jordan Roberts (6’-4" Jr. SG) Alta Loma HS-- We would have liked to see more shooting from Jordan, but he played well considering this was the first weekend. Much potential as a shooter, good footwork and a good defender who runs the floor very well.

Wes Wardrop (6’-3" Jr. SG) from Loara HS (Anaheim)-- Wes is a shooting guard who played a lot of point on his high school team this year, which seems to have affected his shot a bit. . . or he was just having an off-day on Sunday because not many of his outside shots were dropping. . . but just watching you can see the form is still there and he's going to be an excellent combo guard.

David Gale (6'-0" So. PG) from Buckley HS (Sherman Oaks)-- Had two solid games, and according to some has become a much stronger and more skilled player than last year, and played excellent on and off the ball defense. For a point he spent a lot of time down low getting inside and rebound and he actually had several blocks on guys much bigger. Good on court decisions, and some good lob passes to the big men for dunks.

Michael Wilds (6’-7" Jr. PF) from Dorsey HS (Los Angeles)-- Why, oh why do the bigs always want to step out and take the three. . . Michael is a big, huge guy, who is very effective on the boards and down low, and he also has some nice touch on his shots, but even Mark Mayemura, the intrepid announcer at these games was tempted to tell Michael to lay off the threes. . . Runs very well for a big man, great hands. A little earthbound right now, but shows signs of developing good leaping ability with great rebounding.

Adam Zahn (6’-7" So. F/G) from Redondo Union (Redondo Beach)-- Adam is a more athletic, more agile version of his older brother, who is still working on developing a style that he can call his own. Adam rarely saw the ball on his high school team and he had a lot of passes from David Gale, including one really nice flying lob for a slam dunk. A lot of potential to be a high major

Jimmy Goffredo (6’-0" Fr. SG) from Crescenta Valley HS (La Crescenta) -- we only saw glimpses of Jimmy's first game last night at 6:30 p.m. but he's got tremendous potential as a pure shooting guard. Great stroke from outside and most of them drop. Has a very bright future ahead of him.

Kalif Ford (6’-0" Fr. PG) from Diamond Bar HS-- This young man could be the best freshman point, or certainly among them, in his class in California. Quick, great feel for the game, excellent passer, and drives, penetrates and makes good decisions, knows when to kick it and when to take the shot. Good defender with excellent speed. A ton of potential and lots of time to develop it.

Kevin Stacey (6’-3" So. SG) from Santa Margarita HS (Rancho Santa Margarita)--Kevin didn't play varsity this year, electing to move back down to the jv's where he got more time with the ball and it's done good things for him. He had one of the most exciting shots of the day, an almost half-court shot which sent a game into overtime, and then he almost bettered that, when he rebounded the ball with just .8 seconds showing in the overtime, his team down by two, and he launched a full court shot from near the backcourt baseline which bounced off the heel of the rim. He's having fun, and it looks like he'll have a productive summer and spring.

Brennon Martin (6’-6" Sr. SG) Trabucco Hills HS (Trabucco Canyon)-- the big news from and about Brennan is not his game. . .that's solid. Brennon verballed to Texas A&M last fall (we were told that he hasn't yet signed a LOI), but he says that he'll attend prep school at Hargrave Military Academy next year. He says he and his parents and the Texas A&M coaching staff discussed it and decided it was the best way for him to improve and get stronger and more prepared for the college game, instead of burning a year redshirting. Asked if he was still solid for A&M, he said "Absolutely," so it doesn't look like it's just a move to reopen his recruiting.

Jordan Walker (6’-6" Sr. SG/SF) from Fontana HS--Jordan was lighting it up for IEBP on Sunday, and he's really a very talented player, and one who could definitely help some good D-I school in need of a shooter who also likes to play defense, rebound and block shots. Amazing that he's not getting many looks, but then that seems to happen to some guys out in the Inland Empire. . . we're not sure why, but probably with all the attention being showered on the "Fab" freshmen this season, Jordan tended to be a bit overlooked at times. A player.

Jesse Foster (6'-7" Sr. F) from Campbell Hall HS (North Hollywood)-- Jesse is one of those guys who you look at and say, "What are they feeding him?" and then you answer your own question with, "Not enough." But then you watch him play and realize that he's as good a three man out there right now as there is just about anywhere, and with a year redshirting with a good weight-training program he'll be a very good college player. He can shoot the three, slash to the basket, and is very deceptive. Definitely needs some weight, and with about 20 pounds of muscle on him, he'll remind us all of Tayshaun Prince. . . sorta kinda. Anyway he had a good game that we saw on Sunday. Check him out.

Anthony Locke (6'-1" Fr. PG) --Anthony had a good game on Sunday. Excellent handle, good passer, and in this kind of system of looser AAU play, he should have a productive and interesting summer and spring. Doesn't shoot the ball a lot, but is very good going to the basket. If he can learn to pull up take the 10' jumper he'll have a pretty complete game. The best thing is that he's got three more summers to mature and develop. No offense to his brother at Crossroads, who is a very good player, but we think he'll be an even bigger player.

Derrick Williams (6'-2" Fr. SG/SF) ---Derrick showed good athleticism and the same leaping ability we saw from him during the school season, and very good defensive rebounding. Very strong and developed skills for a freshman, he's certainly worth keeping an eye on. Perhaps the most interesting thing on Sunday was watching the three Campbell Hall guys, all on the same team playing at different times without each other and having to make adjustments to new players and different styles. Derrick is also one of those freshmen playing in the league with tremendous upside.

Again, we didn't get to see the Belmont Shore or Inland teams, or Dave Benezra's team, but the league is still young. . . .