Providence's Class of 2010 according to ESPN

ESPN has their rankings of the top 25 recruiting classes in the country for 2010 and Providence's class is nowhere to be found, nor are they "on the cusp."  But maybe they should be.

According to ESPN's own rankings both Gerard Coleman and Joe Young are top 100 players.  Coleman is graded a 94, Young a 93, and Ron Giplaye an 88.

Looking for a comparable class that did make the top 25?  How about Michigan?  ESPN has Michigan's three man class ranked 24th in the country with commitments from Evan Smotrycz, Tim Hardaway Jr, and Jon Horford.  Like PC's class, the three players grade out to a 94, 93, and 88.

What seperates Michigan's class?  It's unclear.  The grades mirror each other and if we're going on ESPN's national rankings it looks as follows:

54 - Coleman
80 - Smotrycz
92 - Hardaway Jr.
99 - Young

Oddly, they have both Giplaye and Horford showing as the 76th rated power forward in the country.  Perhaps Michigan gets the nod for bringing in more size.  It certainly wasn't because Smotrycz outplayed Coleman over their prep careers.

Purdue gets the nod for "on the cusp" for a four man class without a top 100 signee or a player ranked as highly as Coleman or Young.

16 of the top 25 classes in the country have two or less ESPN top 100 players, putting Providence in elite company with their recruiting efforts this year

NEPSAC Playoff Video

Providence recruits all over this awesome highlight video from Crusader22 at the NEPSAC playoffs.

• Outrageous Khem Birch swat at :27
• PC's own Naadir Tharpe to Will Barton on a sick alley oop at :35
• Tharpe and Gerard Coleman back to back starting at the 38 second mark
• :50 nice look by Coleman to Ryan Canty
• :55 Angel Nunez throw down
• 1:06 Birch tip dunk
• 1:20 Andre Drummond throw down
• 1:33 Tharpe to the basket
• Canty dunking on two guys in the Class B final at 1:38
• 2:00 Tharpe drills a 3
• Tharpe again to the hole at 2:15
• 2:22 Birch hammering back a Mo Walker attempt.  A glimpse into why FB.net wants him so badly
• 2:35 Coleman's speed on display

Quick Hit - Final Statistics

A few noteworthy stats in a transition year in Providence:

• Providence led the nation in offensive rebounds per game (17.3) grabbing nearly two more than number two West Virginia.  The offensive rebounding numbers were impressive and when Keno Davis took over he said he wanted this team to attack the offensive glass this year, but did they do it at the expense of getting back on defense too often this year?
• PC was 9th in the country in rebounding.  The style of play led to more rebounding opportunities, but still impressive for a team playing a 6'5 power forward and with only one center logging a majority of the minutes in the Big East.
• They tied for 229th in the country in 3 point field goal percentage nationally.  I've banged the shooter drum all season and still have worries about this number improving with the loss of Sharaud Curry, the best shooter on the team.  This is why it might not be a bad idea to take a flyer on a Bo Barnes type shooter.  If Joseph Young isn't the immediate shooter he is billed to be, and Duke Mondy doesn't improve his percentage, then where are the pure shooters on this team?  Marshon Brooks is more of a scorer and Greedy Peterson is a good standstill 3 point shooter, but struggles off of the dribble and in the corners.  For a team that shoots as many 3s as Providence, 229th nationally needs to improve and with Curry gone there is a void to fill there.  Shooters can be the great equalizer.
• Providence landed 4th in the country in points per game, but 179th in field goal percentage.  Will be interesting to see just how good this team can be offensively once the percentages get a bump.  4th in the country in points per game without a low post threat and few knock down shooters gives PC fans reason to believe this team can be very explosive once the talent is upgraded.
• They were 2nd in the country in shots attempted per game.
• PC was 234th in free throw percentage.  Further illustrating the lack of shooters, PC shot such a poor percentage with the school's all time leading free throw shooter on the roster.
• Suprisingly, the undersized Friars were 70th nationally in blocks per game.
• 82.2 points per game against and 47.1% defensive field goal percentage.  The most shocking aspect of the season was the team's inability to defend and will be the most scrutinized area from the opening tip next year.  Do the returning players commit to defense next year?  Do Young and Gerard Coleman provide an upgrade over Curry and Brian McKenzie?  How does additional froncourt depth help?   
• Providence shot 43% from the field in Big East play and allowed conference foes to connect on 50% of their shots.
• PC was 2nd in the BE in steals and 6th in blocks.

Player stats:

• Only Curry (41%), Peterson (37), and McKenzie (38) shot over 30% from 3 in Big East play.  Brooks went 29.6, Mondy 26, Council 25, Kyle Wright 15, Johnnie Lacy 17. 
• In a somewhat unheralded note, Greedy was the first Providence player to average a double double for the season since Michael Smith dominated the glass in the early-mid 90s.  From 4.7 ppg and 2.9 rpg to 19.6 and 10.2.  He was 4th in the Big East in points per game and 2nd in rebounds - one of only two conference players to average double figure rebounds.  Incredible stuff that would get a lot more credit had the team not ended the season on a losing streak.  The next step for Peterson is becoming more of a presence on defense and making better decisions with the ball.
• Imagine what Greedy could have done had he not shot 47% from the free throw line.  What is his stat line next year if he shoots 70%?  23 and 10?
• The only returning regular to shoot over 70% from the line is Marshon Brooks. 
• Who replaces Curry's 17 ppg in BE play next year? 
• Bilal Dixon led all BE freshman in rebounding and finished 11th in the conference in field goal percentage.  He was 4th in the conference in blocks per game.
• Vincent Council is the only BE freshman in the top 15 in assists, finishing 6th.
• Not a single Friar finished top 15 in 3 point percentage.

Part III: An Early Impact

In their first six months on the job Keno Davis' staff was challenged with learning about the talent that existed on the roster, implementing a style of basketball that meshed with a veteran group, and filling seven scholarships without having had any time to sell Providence to the seniors-to-be.

By the time the fall signing period ended, the results looked similar to what Friar fans had seen during the final few years of the Tim Welsh regime: a guard with a good, but not outstanding national appeal (Johnnie Lacy), two sleepers with vague interest from high major schools (Duke Mondy, James Still), a raw, but good looking big man prospect that was hearing from the likes of Boston College and Cincinnati (Kadeem Batts), and a junior college shooter who they hoped would provide stability once their cast of seniors left.

Given an additional few months to fill the final two scholarships in the spring, they landed another solid point guard (Vincent Council) prospect and took a flyer on a JUCO big man (Russ Permenter) as a short term solution to what was a glaring need.

The spring of 2009 brought groans in some of the more impatient corners about a Welsh-level recruiting class, but what followers of PC basketball didn't realize at the time was there was an all-conference point guard in the bunch and one of the highest rated juniors was on the verge of turning the tide.

The turning point

The verbal commitment of Gerard Coleman that June served notice that Providence would be a factor in the New England recruiting scene.  They identified Coleman early, had him on campus several times, and fended off the likes of Clemson and Connecticut for his services.

Ranked 64th by Scout.com at the time and in the mid-50s on ESPN, Coleman was the highest rated player to commit to Providence in six years and those worried about Keno not upgrading the talent at PC had to feel better about the level of talent coming in.

"There's a lot of good times to come," Gerard told Kevin McNamara at the Providence Journal in June.  "We can have one of the best backcourts around."

Swayed by the commitment of his good friend and AAU teammate at BABC, Notre Dame Prep bull Ron Giplaye followed suit a month later, giving Providence not only a well regarded duo (New England Recruiting Report has Giplaye sandwiched between Rod Odom and Tyler Olander in their class of 2010 rankings), but opened up a pipeline with a very good AAU program.

The sleeper

It's ironic now that Joseph Young out of Yates High School in Houston was a name few were aware of when he pledged his allegiance to the Friars in September.  Chris Davis spotted Young in Las Vegas, the summer before he became an ESPN top 100 player and his team turned into a national story in the ensuing months.

Young went from under the radar type who Big 12 teams weren't ready to jump on to best player on the most news-worthy high school team in the country. 

Before the season started he was the son of a former college star, a kid who reportedly found time to shoot 1,500 jumpers a day.  By season's end Rick Reilly wrote a feature article on his coach, his team was highlighted on SportsCenter for running through everyone, while Young was the on-court story, leading Yates to the Texas Class 4A title for the second year in a row.  He also managed to land MVPS of the T Mobile Invitational and Iolani Class along the way.

Keno's crew had landed a sleeper just before he could wake up the rest of the country.

Confirmation

Coleman, Young, and Giplaye round out a solid second class (first true class according to this site) for Davis and his staff.  It was a haul as good as any since 2004.

Perhaps the loudest statement came last week when Naadir Tharpe committed to Providence in March of his junior year.

Coming off of a long losing streak to close the season, Providence fans needed a pick-me-up and got just that with the news of the highly rated point guard's plans to come to Smith Hill.

Two years into the job, Keno Davis has proven that he and his staff can identify under the radar talent, but more importantly win recruiting wars for the most sought-after talent in New England.  Coleman was the eye-opener, Tharpe was the justification.

With Council, Coleman, Young, and Tharpe on the roster Gerard is starting to look like a prophet - PC will have one of the best backcourts around.  Not sure if his definition of "around" meant across the United States, but the potential is there.

The days of excuses for why Providence can't recruit with the big boys are gone and big time players are buying into the notion of a Providence basketball revival.

Tharpe Commitment Pt. II: Opening of the Floodgates

The 1996-97 Providence College Friars had four players that played in the NBA.  While chemistry was a problem that cropped up throughout the season, talent never was.  The result: one of the most memorable tournament runs in PC history, ending with an overtime loss to eventual National Champion Arizona (featuring Mike Bibby, Jason Terry, and current Memphis head man Josh Pastner) in the Elite 8.

That team mounted the monster Arizona comeback with an NBA lottery pick watching from the bench for the final 15 minutes of the game. 

The best Providence team of the past decade, 2003-04, was led by two 2nd round draft picks, Ryan Gomes and Marcus Douthit, eventually peaking at #12 in the country.  PC defeated Connecticut, the eventual national champions that year, behind the 26 and 12 performance of Gomes, who exploited the nation's top interior defender, Emeka Okafur.

Gomes was a force all season, but the roster didn't have the depth of talent of the '97 team.  With Gomes looking on for the final 15 minutes, Ben Gordon, Okafur and the rest of the Huskies would have run Providence out of the Hartford Civic Center.

This has been the problem for Providence over the past five years and Keno Davis is taking major steps towards solving it.

Talent Infusion

Providence has always been great at finding under the radar types, with Gomes serving as the perfect example, and finding sleepers will continue to play a role in building the program, but with the explosion of recruiting information it is becoming increasingly more difficult to find really good ones.

Simply put, this staff must win recruiting battles if they want to win on the court, and they are doing just that. 

To win in today's Big East, Providence has to combine finding the sleeper types with bringing in top 75-100 talent on a yearly basis.  In the past two years PC landed Vincent Council when few projected him to be an All Big East freshman and found Joseph Young before the rest of the country took notice of a Yates team regularly winning by 50 points.

They've landed two top 60 kids in Gerard Coleman and Naadir Tharpe.

They've scored commits from the two powerhouse AAU programs in New England: Leo Papile's long-time New England power BABC (Coleman, Ron Giplaye) and now TJ Gassnola's rising New England Playaz (Tharpe).

With a monster class of sophomores in New England, the commitments of Coleman and now Tharpe could potentially set a precedent.  Don't understimate the impact of Coleman and Tharpe staying in New England. 

Let the floodgates open

Khem Birch was on the other end of Gerard Coleman's amazing 46 point effort at Winchendon.  He went up against Tharpe on three seperate occassions during this past season and had to take notice of Tharpe's play-making skills.

Andre Drummond twice went toe-to-toe with Brewster.

Ricky Ledo saw Coleman lead Tilton back from 9 down against St. Andrew's, as part of a 28 point effort.

Nerlins Noel is part of Giplaye and Coleman's AAU program.

For kids who have visited Providence's campus on numerous occassions, seeing talents like Coleman and Tharpe take the plunge before them sends a loud message to these underclassmen.

Prior to Tharpe committing to PC, Birch said Providence was his leader.  Maybe the Providence-native Ledo is more inclined to come to PC as a hometown kid who is joining a solid team, rather than a native son turned program savior.

Coleman's commitment was the eye opener in New England, Tharpe's was the confirmation that Providence can become a destination spot for big time local recruits.  The snowball effect may soon begin, and if it does then Providence could be looking at having the depth of talent of the 1996-97 team. 

Strong rumors are already circulating about the next big-time New England domino to fall.

Naadir Tharpe Commitment Part I: A breakdown

Less than 24 hours after he verbally committed to Providence, the buzz around Naadir Tharpe's commitment and what it means to the future of Providence basketball is deafening. 

From the start, Keno Davis has said his top priority is to upgrade the talent level at Providence.  In the past year Keno landed a guard that many thought was out of Providence's grasp (Gerard Coleman), identified a sleeper before he became an ESPN top 100 (Joe Young), and proved that the Coleman commitment is a trend, not an anomaly with this most recent commitment.

How quickly a season-ending losing streak can become a distant memory.

This is the first in a 3 part series on the commitment of Tharpe.  The articles will break down Naadir's game, the immediate impact of this coaching staff on the recruiting trail, and the possibility of the New England floodgates opening and Providence becoming a destination spot.  Gerard Coleman and Naadir Tharpe is a heck of a start.

Naadir Tharpe - a breakdown

During the layup line of the Brewster and Winchendon epic, the NEPSAC Class A final that was as exciting as any prep game this year, a gentleman sparked up conversation and told me he was familiar with Brewster's names, but hadn't seen them this year.

When the conversation turned to Tharpe I told him he was as good as any point guard playing in New England.  He responded with, "but can he shoot?  I heard he's just an okay shooter."

"He can shoot, trust me.  It seems like he goes 2-2 or 3-4 from 3 every time I watch him."

Minutes later Tharpe shook Winchendon's Anthony Ireland, launching a tough 3 off of the dribble, which splashed through.  The shot highlighted a fantastic opening half from Naadir, who set the tone early in leading Brewster to a double digit lead.

"Yep, he can shoot," the gentleman agreed.

The Floor Leader

Focusing on his outside shot or points per game would be to miss what makes Tharpe special.  Yes, he can shoot, and he could probably score more if necessary, but on the most talented team in the country someone had to keep everyone involved and that responsibility landed in Naadir's hands.

Will Barton might be the best shooting guard in the country.  CJ Fair can score from inside and out.  Mo Walker dominates in the paint.  Austin Carroll is deadly from deep.  Melvin Ejm is strong taking it to the hole.  Ashton Kahn is good enough to take and make the biggest shots in the Class A finals.  That's a lot of mouths to feed, but Tharpe did so brilliantly this year, while understanding when and where to look for his own offense.

In the opening round of the New Hampton Tournament, he led the team in scoring against Winchendon, in a game in which Barton was held to 13 points and Fair was quiet as well.  A night later he poured in 30 in the invitational's final, a drubbing of South Kent, taking home the MVP.

With Brewster struggling to score against a St. Thomas More 3-2 zone in the National semifinals, Naadir put the game out of reach with a high-arching runner over the top sophomore in the country with two minutes to go.

He's effective making plays in the halfcourt set and a blur in the open court.  Tharpe gets into the paint at will and makes great decisions once there - you can win with a point guard who can do only that.

Intangibles

What Providence has lacked of late has been the intangibles that Vincent Council flashed this year, Coleman has shown time and again throughout a prestigious prep career, and now Naadir is the latest to bring great intangibles to Providence.

He rarely takes a bad shot (having a hard time remembering even one), has a tremendous sense of how to bait defenders and dish, and knows when to score.  Barton has a big personality, and a lot of cache as the top shooting guard in the country, but there were numerous occasions in which Naadir was quick to pull him in and provide direction.

Brewster's offense always seemed to perfectly time when to dump it in to Walker when they had an advantage, find Carroll for the back-breaking 3, or let Barton do his thing.  Tharpe was the distributor through it all. 

Aside from the National Prep Invitational game against NIA Prep, where he seemed quiet, he is a vocal kid who isn't afraid to lead.

Finally, I was lucky enough to watch a few of the playoff games with very nice folks from Brewster who really raved about the kind of individual he is.

If this sounds like raving on my end, it should.  There isn't a thing not to love about this commitment for Providence.  He's a great all-around point guard and a solid person, from all accounts.

Recruiting Bombshell: Naadir Tharpe a Friar

Friarbasketball.net caught Naadir Tharpe on seven seperate occassions during his junior season at Brewster Academy.  I saw him take home the MVP in the New Hampton Invitational and lead his team to a National Prep Championship and NEPSAC title, but it only took one viewing to realize just how good Naadir is.  Here is what I wrote after seeing him tear apart Tilton's defense in December:

"The complete package at point guard and cause for celebration if Providence can land him.  With so much talent on this roster his box scores won't wow you, but this site now has a number 1 target and will follow his recruitment closely."


It's time to celebrate in Providence.  For the second year in a row Keno Davis and his staff identified a top 60 talent and landed him, winning what looked like an uphill battle early in the process.  For the second year in a row this staff has landed the player I wanted more than any.  This is a huge day in Friartown.

Friarbasketball.net will write more throughout the weekend on this signing, breaking down Naadir's game, and what landing a top 60 player for the second year in a row means for the future of Providence basketball.

You'll read about Tharpe's shot needing work, but that scouting report is dated.  His shot has come a long way and he's a dangerous shooter now.

You can expect A LOT more on Naadir in the coming days, but for the time being, here are a few articles from throughout the season.

Brewster coach Jason Smith on Naadir - Jason talks about his strengths, why he's underrated, and the possibility of Tharpe and Gerard Coleman teaming up

Live from the Brewster Invitational: Day 2 - first impressions of Tharpe

Brewster vs. Tilton Highlights - featuring a ridiculous spin and over the shoulder dish and bounce pass from half court.

A comparison to Shabazz Napier - classic scoring point guard versus pass first point guard debate

MVP effort in New Hampton - Tharpe's hot shooting leads Brewster to Invitational title

NEPSAC semis - Naadir put up a solid effort

Brewster Wins NEPSAC - Tharpe sets the pace in a thrilling win

External Links:

Adam Finkelstein, my favorite recruiting source in New England, does a great job breaking down the recruitment in both the NERR and Cox's blog.  The NERR article features a conversation with Naadir in which he talks of looking forward to playing with Coleman and Ron Giplaye.  Let the New England branches continue to grow.

All NEPSAC Teams Announced

The NEPSAC players of the year and all conference teams were announced this weekend and it's hard to argue with the selections of Will Barton (Memphis), Gerard Coleman (Providence), and Nate Lubick (Georgetown) as top players in their respective divisions.

Coleman was joined by Syracuse-commit Mike Carter-Williams on the Class B 1st team, and PC target Ricky Ledo landed on the 2nd.

The Class A selections were more debatable, as Naadir Tharpe was named Honorable Mention after leading the Class A and National Champions, while bringing home the MVP at the New Hampton Invitational (a tournament featuring four of the five 1st teamers).

Notably, the first team featured two mid-major commits, in Winchendon's Anthony Ireland (Loyola-Marymount) and Eric Ferguson (Georgia Southern), besting a number of high major targets.

Apparently, the voters agree with the Providence coaching staff's thoughts on Bryon Allen, who was named to the 2nd team, ahead of Tharpe and Jordan Laguerre.

How deep is the NEPSAC's Class A?  High major talents Austin Carroll (Rutgers), Dashun Wiggins (Seton Hall), Evan Smotrycz (Michigan), Markus Kennedy (Villanova), Russ Smith (Louisville), and Angel Nunez (undecided top 40 junior) were not even named honorable mention.

For more detail, check out the New England Recruiting Report's recap.

Now that the prep season has wrapped up, here is the list of the top 10 prep players Friarbasketball saw this year.  This is not a list of how these players project in college, rather their on-court production when I saw them this year.

1. Will Barton, Brewster: Noted scorer can also defend when he wants to.  Just ask JJ Moore, Coleman, and Tony Snell, who he shut down.  MVP of Class A and National Championship.  Reminds me of another Baltimore talent, Reggie Lewis-like build and game.
2. Nate Lubick, St. Mark's: Total package offensively with heart to match.
3. Gerard Coleman, Tilton: Close third behind Lubick.  Scored at will in a season in which he was named Class B player of the year and Class B playoff MVP.  Twice saw him go for over 28 points in a 2nd half.
4. Shabazz Napier, Lawrence Academy: Gifted scorer and willing defender led LA's undefeated season, highlighted by Class C championship MVP performance and monsterous effort in a win against National Champion runner up Northfield Mount Hermon.
5. Mike Carter-Williams, St. Andrew's: MVP performance at National Prep Invitational served as a coming out party for this rising junior.  Missed early games due to injury.  Slender, but able to score off of the bounce and from beyond the arc.
6. Naadir Tharpe, Brewster: Distributing to a number of stars didn't help his points per game, but Tharpe kept a team of stars happy and stepped up his scoring when he needed to, most notably in the first half of the Class A championship and in an MVP performance at the New Hampton Invitational.
7. Anthony Ireland, Winchendon: Undersized stature with an oversized heart.  Tremendous ball handler and big-time shot maker - caught Winchendon seven times this season and he never disappointed.
8. CJ Fair, Brewster: Solid two way player who went under the radar a bit, especially as Barton exploded during the postseason.  Athletic finisher, good shot blocker, with a nice looking jump shot for a big man.

9. Eric Ferguson, Winchendon: Sung Ferguson's praises all season, Eric first caught the attention of Friarbasketball with a big time effort versus Marianpolis in the St. Andrew's Christmas tournament.  Clutch scorer who made huge plays in the final minutes of the Class A final, combining with Ireland to nearly bringing Winchendon all the way back after struggling early to score.
10. Tony Snell, Westwind Prep: A dud of a performance when matched up with Barton in the quarterfinals of the National Prep Championship weren't enough to override a strong National Invitational.  A one time 6'3 prospect, who shot up to 6'8 at a late age, the New Mexico commit went Oscar Robertson and nearly averaged a triple double this year at last check (20-11-8).  Mans the point at 6'8.  Think Marquis Daniels.

Feeling Good and Feeling Bad about 2009-10

What a divisive year in Friartown.  There are those that see a team that has the ability to put 67 on the board in the 2nd half of a Big East Tournament game, light up Syracuse in the first half at the Dunk, watch a bit player with little offense game turn into a 19 & 10 guy, and see major inroads being made on the recruiting trail and think that once Keno Davis shores up his defense (even just a little) and brings in better players to run his offense things will be looking great on Smith Hill.

There are others who are horrified by a defense that allowed over 90 points 12 times this season and broke a Big East record for points per game.  They see points being put on the board, but clutch and smart offense not always being played when Providence needs it the most.  They think that it's fantastic that Providence is bringing in a higher caliber player, but recognize that a couple top 100 players is par for the course in the Big East.  It's going to take both a talent and on court upgrade for this team to not just compete, but consistently win in the best conference in college basketball.

Friarbasketball falls somewhere in the middle, after having leaned towards optimistic all season, but showing signs of concern after watching layup drills break out in so many games late in the season.

Top 3 Things that have Friarbasketball feeling good

Recruiting efforts: Yes, landing top 100 talent in what I deem their first real recruiting class is a great sign and Providence's heavy involvement with underclassmen like Naadir Tharpe, Khem Birch, and Shabazz Napier gives Providence fans reason for hope, but it also signifys something greater - this coaching staff gets it.  They get that they have to really upgrade the talent here, but more importantly they understand that they have to work very hard to do so.  And they are.

One of the most discouraging things about the old regime was seeing them set the bar low and all but rule out top 75 recruits by the end.  This staff is aggressively going after these types, because you have to in order to win against teams landing mega-classes.

PC fans will love Gerard Coleman, but even more important than what Coleman, Joe Young, or Ron Giplaye can provide in year one is the fact that the staff has a clear understanding of the need for a talent upgrade and the willingness to work hard to get it done.

Player development: Greedy Peterson goes from a guy who can't crack the rotation of an NIT team to the first player to average a double double since Michael Smith.  No matter what the style of play, no one expected 29 and 20 versus Rutgers, 24 and 18 at Pitt, and 38 and 14 in the BET.  He has flaws, but Greedy finishes the season 4th in the conference in points per game and second in rebounds.

Peterson deserves credit for improving this much in his year away, but it was done under this staff, so they get points here as well. 

Providence's other redshirt, Bilal Dixon, closed his freshman season with a 19 rebound effort and a 16 and 12 BET game.  It's no coincidence that they are putting up huge numbers after a year of strictly practicing.

The biggest challenge in front of this staff will be to turn Peterson into athletically freakish stat killer to athletically freakish stat killer who understands what is a good shot, how to get his teammates involved, and playing some semblance of defense.

Getting jumps in production from this year's freshman is equally important.

Scoring: While it wasn't always pretty, this team scored in bunches (82.4 ppg).  Most impressive was who they did it with.  Besides Sharaud Curry, who were the shooters on this team?  On a team of 7 newcomers, who gave them consistent offense aside from Vincent Council?  Without Bilal Dixon, who played center?

Without a big man to dump the ball into, with only one pure shooter (33% from 3 as a team), and without a top notch slasher this team finished second in the conference in points per game, while not shooting it all that well and not getting to the free throw line as much as they'd like. 

They didn't turn the ball over, hit the offensive glass hard for an undersized team, and finished first in the BE in 3 pointers made per game.  What will this offense look like with more shooters and play-makers?

Reason to watch in 2010-11

Athleticism: The addition of Coleman to a lineup including Peterson and Council gives Providence their most athletic team in recent memory.  Peterson is an elite leaper, Council surprised with his speed and change of direction ability, and Coleman is as fast as any Providence player brought in since God Shamgod.  Gerard is a blur in the open court.

The days of Donnie McGrath running the point with Sheiku Kabba are long gone and at the least Providence will have games when they wow PC fans with pure speed and athleticism.  When is the last time that has happened at the Dunk?  Coleman and Council give Providence the athletes to matchup up with any in the Big East and Friar fans should enjoy watching it start to come together next season.


Top 3 Things that have Friarbasketball worried about next season

Defense: Is there much to add to what Jay Bilas and Sean McDonough beat into the nation's head this week?  The rant may have been over the top, but there isn't much Providence fans can say to argue the fact that this team was poor defensively and didn't improve in that area as the season wore on.

The George Washington game was a bad sign, but teams fix flaws from December over the course of a season.  This wasn't a flaw, but a gaping hole that PC never filled.

Opponents shot a scary 47% from the field, while scoring 82.2 ppg.  To put that in perspective, Providence gave up nearly 600 more points than Pittsburgh this year and played one less game.

The underrated aspect of the poor defense was not having a big man who protected the rim.  Which leads us to...

Length: Finding talented big men is hard, but at this point PC fans would just take some servicable role players who can give Keno minutes off of the bench.  With the way they score Providence really only needs a player who can finish around the hoop, defend the rim, and rebound to back up Dixon and Peterson.

Russ Permenter provided little, Ray Hall is too limited physically, and James Still didn't have the body to hold up.

Hall is gone, Permenter might follow, leaving Providence with Dixon, Still, the redshirt Kadeem Batts, and 6'6 prospect Ron Giplaye as it stands today.  This is the make or break area for Keno heading into next season and one that stands as a large question mark today. 

Providence will have trouble winning playing as small as they did this year and they'll need Still or Batts to emerge or hope that Giplaye or a spring signee can play come November.  Look for PC fans to pin much of their hope on Batts, the 6'9 and bulking up redshirt freshman.  Anything close to a Dixon-like redshirt freshman season would be a smashing success and huge for this team's prospects.  A third redshirt jump in two years and even the biggest naysayers will have to notice a trend developing.

Still redshirting is not 100% guaranteed at this point.

Shooters: I'll bang this drum for a while.  With Curry gone, who is the true shooter on this roster?  Incoming Joseph Young out of Houston will look to fill the void Curry left as the knock down shooter, but that is putting a lot on a freshman. 

Duke Mondy could help in this regard if he regains his stroke (have a hunch he will), but between Peterson, Marshon Brooks, Council, and Coleman there isn't a knock down shooter in the bunch.

Does using a scholarship on a zone busting, but limited in other areas, sniper make sense?

---------------

Next year will be fascinating in Providence as Davis enters his third year at Providence.  Recruiting will continue to be something to follow and the team should be more athletic, while questions about this coaching staff's ability to teach defense will become clearer.

Over the next couple of months Friarbasketball will head to AAU tournaments to provide updates on PC's top recruits and emerging players to keep an eye on, in an important offseason in Friartown.

Brewster Academy Wins National Championship

It was hard to watch Brewster this year and not see they were the best team in New England, and probably the country.  While prep fans didn't get to see a rematch of the classic NEPSAC Class A championship against Winchendon, or the long-awaited matchup with top ranked Hargrave Military Academy, Brewster capped the tournament with exciting wins over upstart St. Thomas More and a hot Northfield Mount Hermon team.

Northfield doesn't have the depth of high major talent of any of the teams they played in this one (Notre Dame Prep, Hargrave, Brewster), but they used a model that Providence could find success with: a smaller team with one very good big man (Majok Majok), a very good all around scorer (Hector Harold - Pepperdine), and a bunch of shooters who aren't simply spot up guys (most notably Harvard commit Laurent Rivard).  Outside shooting was the X-factor for a team that wasn't as physical as most at this level and probably only has one high major D1 player (Majok).  Until Providence begins to bring in consecutive classes of big time players (and I believe they will) the 3 point shot could be their X-factor.

From a Providence perspective, the Friars are in a solid position with Brewster's Naadir Tharpe, and if they are able to land him it will mark the second year in a row in which they grab the top junior on the National Champs.  The number of scorers on Brewster is staggering and all season Tharpe did a terrific job keeping them all involved and happy.  Not many point guards come to college having had the experience of keeping so many great teammates their shots.  Naadir is a point in the truest sense of the word and would be a monster get for the Friars.

Live from New Haven, CT: Gerard Coleman Closes Prep Career

Just hours before Providence raced back from a 29 point deficit, cutting it to 3 in the closing seconds, in the opening of the Big East Tournament, their prized recruit played in his own tournament game which mirrored PC's night, with Gerard Coleman playing the role of Greedy Peterson.

After playing a stacked Hargrave Military Academy team even for the opening nine minutes of the half, Hargrave raced out to a 50-32 1st half lead behind the amazing shooting of Arkansas commit Mardracus Wade who nailed nine 3 pointers in the first half.  One of which might have caught rim on the way down.

Like Providence, Tilton was scorched in the first half, giving up 55 points, and trailed heading into the locker room 55-40.  Within minutes the lead ballooned to 70-42 and the rout was apparently on.

Be like Greedy, but not that way

That night Providence fans saw the best of Jamine Peterson and the worst.  You won't find a Providence fan who would have dreamed Peterson would score 38 points and grab 14 rebounds in a BET game, nevermind a year after he was redshirted.  You won't find one today who wasn't horrified by the poorous defensive effort, with Peterson serving as one of the main culprits.  38 and 14 was amazing, but it felt a bit superficial because of how it came.

The same could be said about Coleman's night.  After a solid first half (14 points), Gerard exploded in the 2nd half, scoring 29 points over the final 15:44 of the 2nd half.  Hargrave let up a bit, and to Coleman's credit, he exploited numerous open court opportunities, repeatedly attacking the basket, getting Tilton back into the game, but Hargrave never felt truly threatened.

As ridiculous as it might sound to poke holes into a 43 point effort against a team of D1 players, there were signs of greatness (attacking the rim, dominating along the baseline, blowing by defenders in the open court, and finishing with contact), but there were trouble spots as well (struggled with the outside shot and from the free throw line).

When I saw Gerard score 28 2nd half points against Winchendon earlier in the season, the performance blew me away as the two teams went back and forth, fighting tooth and nail on every possession.  The 29 point 2nd half last night showed Gerard's awesome open court potential, but didn't bring that same sense of excitement as Hargrave pushed their lead to double figures whenever pressured in the final six minutes (as you'll see from the log below).  The game really opened up late and a kid as athletic and good in the open court like Gerard will put up huge numbers in this type of game.  Impressive, but not the statement that the Winchendon or ND Prep games were.

A look ahead

Where will Coleman help next year?  In a number of ways.  Most significantly, from a pure speed standpoint, Gerard is as fast as you'll find at the Big East level.  In the open court, paired with a push and find point guard in Vincent Council, this Providence team will be dynamic at times.  There will be times when this team is as exciting as we've seen in years on Smith Hill with first class athletes in Coleman and Peterson running with Council, the key will be getting out in the open court regularly (which means better defense and rebounding).  Ironically, solving their biggest flaw will allow them to exploit their greatest asset.

His lateral quickness will be an upgrade defensively over players like Sharaud Curry, Brian McKenzie, and Duke Mondy and Coleman will grab more than his share of offensive rebounds. 

The problem will be in a halfcourt set.  Davis will be best served making Coleman an 18 foot and in player in year 1.  He's outstanding along the baseline and pulling up from 15 feet, but his 3 point shot is dangerously close to that of Council right now. 

How does this offense run when they aren't able to run?  Say what you will about Curry, but he made big 3s when the offense stalled in the halfcourt.

Gerard Coleman brings another Council type of player here: explosive in the open court, intelligent, and competitive.  Providence needs more playmakers and even though his outside shot needs work, Gerard's strengths could fill major needs on this roster next season.  If PC can turn teams over they will get out and run, they will surprise, and Coleman will excel. 

Additional Notes:

• A loss for Notre Dame Prep and a subpar effort from Ron Giplaye.  3-7 from the field, 3-6 from the free throw line, and 6 rebounds (four offensive), while Northfield Mount Hermon big man Majok Majok dominated all afternoon (27 points).  I was really looking forward to seeing Ron match up with Majok, and while they weren't always paired up, Majok was once again very good.  Very impressed with Majok's development this season.  Giplaye sat out the first 9 minutes of the 2nd half.
• The Andre Drummond/Khem Birch matchup of sophomore studs fizzled.  Drummond may have more work to do offensively than Birch, but the sheer size and athleticism combo makes him the better prospect.  Shocked to see STM pull this one out, especially after a 20-2 Winchendon run in the first half.  How much did the loss to Brewster take out of them mentally?  Going to miss watching Anthony Ireland play.
• Hard to watch Naadir Tharpe and not want him in black and white - badly.  Providence and Boston College lead for this terrific point guard and the thought here is PC must land him by June or it will become very hard to do so.  A Coleman level recruit.
• Westwind Prep got smothered by Brewster, but Bo Barnes fought hard and shoots as well as anyone Friarbasketball has taken in this year.  Hit from from three steps inside halfcourt in garbage time.  A shooter who isn't afraid to get after it.  All NPSI team in February.
• Disappointed in Westwind's Tony Snell who impressed at the NPSI, but beat the ball into the ground last night, while being badly outplayed by Brewster's Will Barton.

Gerard Coleman's 2nd Half scoring log and notes

• 15:44 - and-1 on a hanging layup, misses the free throw.  70-44
• 14:30 - leans in for 2.  71-48.
• 13:30 - nice step back 3.  Good sign.  72-51.
• 12:50 - a swooping score for 2 more.  72-55.
• 12:11 - GC makes 1-2 from the line.  72-56.  Can they make a run?
• 11:31 - Coleman answers a sick dunk on the other end with a quick 3.  74-59.
• 7:56 - 0-2 from FT line.  Ugh.
• 7:26 - Gerard flies into the open court for 2 more.  78-63.
• 6:20 - a classic Coleman move that I've seen him use a lot.  He straightens up just enough so that his defender follows and the second he baits him into it he's gone.  Crafty.  80-65.
• 4:53 - two free throws.  84-67.
• 3:35 - another and-1 cuts it to 84-72.
• 3:05 - great crossover leads to a layup. 86-74.
• 2:32 - steal and layup cuts it to 10.  86-76.
• :42 - bombs a 3, but it's over.  95-82.

Live from Beverly, MA III: NEPSAC Championships

An afternoon that opened with MVP performances from a Providence commit and a Friar target were topped by a Class A championship game that more than lived up to the hype. 

In a season that Providence fans knew would be a rebuilding one, the silver lining has always been the efforts of Keno Davis and his staff on the recruiting trail.  It was impossible to watch the blazing speed of PC commit Gerard Coleman sandwiched between tremendous efforts by two Providence point guard targets in Shabazz Napier and Naadir Tharpe and not let the mind wander.  Pairing Coleman with either one of these point guards would not only be a statement for this coaching staff, but would give Providence the elite backcourt duo that they haven't had in a decade.

Class A Championship - Brewster holds on to defeat Winchendon in thriller

For a week I hyped this one as a dream matchup, but smothering early defense by Brewster combined with the superior efforts of Naadir Tharpe allowed Brewster to race out to an early 24-13 lead, a lead they would maintain until halftime (38-26).

 Tharpe was phenomenal in the opening 17 minutes, scoring 12 points on slick drives, leaners, and a pull up 3 off of a beautiful hesitation dribble that pushed Brewster's lead to 15 with three minutes left in the half.

 Winchendon continued to trail by double figures midway through the second half (52-40), but a huge run highlighted by a Khem Birch block leading to a break-away layup pulled Winchendon to within two with 7:20 to play.  The final seven minutes were as good as I've seen this season, with everything the line.

Two Tharpe free throws put Brewster up 58-53 with 6:00 to play, but the gritty Anthony Ireland canned a huge 3 pointer to pull Winchendon to within two.

Two Devon Saddler free throws tied the score and set the stage for Brewster backup point guard Ashton Kahn to carry a star-studden team home.

Here is my game log of the final 5:15:

• 5:14 - Kahn scores 9 seconds after Saddler tied it.  And-1 which pushes the Brewster lead back to 3, 61-58.
• 4:19 - Eric Ferguson nails a 19 footer in the face of Barton.  Kid is tough.  61-60 Brewster.
• 3:56 - Saddler with an open court dunk coming off of a Birch deflection.  Winchendon now leads 62-61.  What a comeback.
• 3:39 - Will Barton hits two free throws to put Brewster back up, 63-62.
• 3:21 - Birch dunks off of a great entry pass from Ferguson.  64-63 Winch.
• 3:03 - Kahn once again.  Kid is stepping up big.  65-64 Brewster.
• 2:45 - Gorgeous spin move by Ferguson for two.  Love this kid.  65-64 Winchendon.
• 2:29 - Nearly impossible fadeaway by Barton along the baseline.  What a scorer this kid is.  Back and forth they go.  Brewster up 1.
• 2:07 - Ferguson grabs an offensive rebound and hits 1-2 free throws.  Missed foul shots hurting Winchendon.  Tie game.
• 1:40 - Can't say I expected this.  Kahn once again with a big play, getting in the paint and kicking out to a wide open Barton for 3.  70-67 Brewster.  Back breaker?
• :45 - a swooping layup by Ferguson to cut it to 1.
• :16.8- Amazing.  Kahn once again off of the dribble.  Role player leading a team of stars in the biggest game of the year.  Would he be playing if Ejim didn't foul out?  Unreal effort. 72-69 Brewster.
• 0:00 - Barton plays Ferguson perfectly on a 3, Ferg caught in the air and desperately throws the ball way.  Brewster wins, kids charge the court.

PC recruit notes:

 What a huge night for both Naadir Tharpe and Khem Birch. 

Birch: Khem blocked big Mo Walker and Will Barton on back to back shots at the rim, setting the tone early. He caught Walker on a loud block again early in the second half and swatted a shot to trigger a key fast break during the comeback on his way to what must have been five or six blocked shots.  His activity and confidence increased as the game wore on.  The intensity level was high in this one and he played better as the plays became bigger.  Like the rest of Winchendon, Khem was very emotional after the game.  Love kids who winning means this much to.  The smiles after the 2004 tournament loss to Pacific in the waning moments bothers me six years later. 

Offensively, he made a hook shot, a tip dunk, and a few other dunks and layups, most notably a dunk on CJ Fair that he finished, was fouled on, and ended up on his back.  Oohs and aahs followed.

Tharpe: I've said it before, but the knocks on his jump shot are completely unfounded.  The kid knocks down 3s with regularity, but the strengths of his game continue to be his leadership, play-making ability, dribble penetration, and passing.  Couldn't have been more impressed with Tharpe this week and took note when he told Barton and other teammates where they belonged on the court.  Kid can lead.

I wrote in December that signing Naadir would be cause for celebration and stand by that.  Would be dominant with Gerard Coleman.

Game notes:

• On a team of stars, Ashton Kahn made the biggest plays late.  Nice to see for a kid who doesn't get the pub of his teammates.
• Barton was the Class A MVP and deservedly so.  His attitude can border on cocky at times, but he makes a lot of big shots.
• Big men Markus Kennedy (Villanova) and Mo Walker really beat each other up tonight, setting the tone for a physical game overall.
• If Winchendon had won, Anthony Ireland would have been MVP.  He can't be more than 5'9, but makes as many big plays as anyone I saw this weekend.  Tough, tough kid with great handle and good scoring ability.
• Barton and Ferguson went at it and each played very well.
• First quiet night I've seen from CJ Fair this season.
• Love Devon Saddler's spirit.
• Brewster has so many scoring options.  Would love to see them take on Hargrave next week in the National Championship.

Class B Championship - Future Friar the MVP

After falling behind 15-7 out of the gate, Tilton methodically worked their way back in the first half and led 33-24 at the half.  Marionapolis made a few surges to cut the Tilton lead to 5, but this game never felt in question as the Rams held them at bay to win 69-61.

PC recruit notes:

Coleman wins the Class B title for the second time in two years and takes home the MVP in 2010 after a 20 point finale (15 in the first half).  This game was not vintage Gerard though, as Marianapolis played a zone, negating his slashing drives to the basket.  He struggled to get his outside shot going, scoring a majority of his points in transition.

The transition buckets were impressed though.  On two seperate occassions Coleman flew into the open court with one or two Marianapolis defenders back, only they weren't back far enough to compensate for Coleman's speed.  He simply blew past defenders who were actually in good position, forcing Marianapolis head man Dave Vitale to call a timeout.  A guy sitting in the row in front of me quipped, "What's he going to tell them?  Be faster?"

What Coleman flashed today was an ability to find people.  He often broke down the defense and found teammate at the rim.  A solid effort from Gerard overall, but not as spectacular as he has been.  He didn't have to be today.

The only other PC recruit in this one might not be a PC recruit just yet.  Ryan Canty was a force under the basket, using his size advantage to finish at the rim and dominate the boards.  Ryan played with a lot more confidence today than when I saw him earlier in the season and with his size and surprising athletic ability will be one to monitor going forward.  Looked much improved, albeit against a smaller team.  Canty did attack the glass well against a big Winchendon team in January.  Played with a bit of swagger today and looked to enjoy being the target of Marianapolis fans.

Class C Championship - Shabazz leads undefeated LA

So much for my bright idea of putting St. Mark's in the National Championship. 

After seeing St. Mark's defeat Winchendon at the National Prep Invitational behind an extraordinary effort by Alex Murphy I did the simple math and figured an emerging Murphy and a neutral site gave St. Mark's an edge over a Lawrence Academy team they barely lost to in December.  I failed to factor in Shabazz Napier.

LA's guards were swarming defensively, while undersized interior players Sarkie Ampim and Clay Horne won the battle inside against Nate Lubick, Melsahn Basabe, and an ineffective Kaleb Tarczewski.

St. Mark's actually led 22-20 in a sleepy first half, but LA opened the 2nd on an 18-2 run, capped by a pretty wrap around pass by Napier giving Lawrence a 38-24 lead halfway through the 2nd half.

Napier flashed his play-making ability in this one, getting into the middle against the St. Mark's zone and repeatedly finding teammates for easy looks.  The crowd buzzed when he threw an over the shoulder pass late and rose up on a no look pass.  Typically known for his outside shooting, I had Shabazz down for only two 3 pointers, most notably a back-breaker with just under two minutes left, giving Lawrence an 11 point lead.
What impressed most was how many things he did tonight.  I had him down for four steals in the first half, he spun and scored in the paint, crossed over nicely, and really looked to set teammates up.

Naadir Tharpe or Shabazz Napier?  The answer is either.  There really is so little differentiating the two right now and Friartown should be THRILLED to land either.

Additional Notes:

•  A disappointing game for Murphy on the heels of his great performance at the National Prep Invitational.  He wasn't alone, Lubick, Basabe, and the rest of the team were out of sync, thanks in large part to the aggression of LA's defense.
• 7'0 Tarczewski has a ways to go before he is an impact player at this level.  He has some skills, but got pushed around a bit today.
• LA's Marcus Grant has been solid all year.
• The refs didn't do LA any favors.
• Lawrence ends the year 28-0. 

Live from Beverly, MA: NEPSAC Class A Semi-finals

Before getting into tonight’s prep action I would be remiss if I didn’t make mention of the nice bounce back effort of the Friars Thursday night in Pittsburgh.


It’s rare that you can glean anything positive out of a ninth straight loss, but this game was filled with positives. From Vincent Council’s return to picking apart defenses (8 assists, 0 turnovers), to an improved defensive effort, and of course, Greedy Peterson’s monster night (24 points and 18 rebounds) it was a good night for a developing team.

PC played Pitt even in the paint (36-34 points in the paint advantage for the Panthers), doubled them in points off of turnovers, and had more fast break points, points off of turnovers, and bench points. They deserved better, which happens when you shoot 13-23 from the free throw line in a gym that rarely sees a road team victory (131-11 all time in Peterson for Pitt).

Council shot 2-11 from the field, but was the second best Friar on the floor. The kid gets it. His 8 assists were huge, but on a team struggling defensively he came up with four steals and made two key defensive plays late: a steal on a long pass with 4 minutes to play after Pitt had taken a one point lead on a Wanamaker 3. PC converted that into a layup to grab the lead back and then Vincent took a charge in the paint with 2:44 left.

Peterson was the headliner. He’s driven Providence fans insane with lackadaisical defense and a tendency to shoot bad 3s, but he physically dominated a team that is accustomed to pushing around the Friars. A bit player his freshman year, Greedy is still on pace to become the first player at Providence to average a double double for the season since Michael Smith. He’s currently averaging 19.5 ppg and 10.2 rebounds (20.6 and 9.6 in BE play) while hitting 37% of his 3s in conference play.

The most encouraging sign for Providence was that Council and Peterson matched the physical play of a team that bullied the Friars around for so long. No matter what his offensive or defensive philosophies are, the success of Keno Davis at Providence is going to largely depend on his ability to find guards who can pull down rebounds in the middle of trees (rare for a guard under the old regime) and won’t have the ball ripped away in key moments. Finesse teams don’t find much success in the Big East.

NEPSAC Class A Semis

Speaking of finding the next generation of Friars, Friarbasketball took in the NEPSAC Class A semi-finals on Friday night to see the Winchendon/Northfield Mount Hermon and Brewster/St. Thomas More tilts.

Winchendon over Northfield Mount Hermon 91-79

The final score of this one is a bit misleading as neither team led by more than six throughout the first 32 minutes of action.  NMH's outside shooting ability kept them in the game early (I counted 6 3s in the first 12 minutes), but Brewster led 40-35 at the half.

The teams went back and forth over the opening 11 minutes of the 2nd half, as the game was tied at 63 all after Laurent Rivard (Harvard) drained a 3 pointer.  Seemingly every time Northfield looked to make a run Winchendon answered, this time with an Eric Ferguson three point play, pushing Winchendon in front 66-63.  Over the next seven minutes the lead ballooned to 10 and Winchendon cruised through the final three minutes.

• It will be a tall task, but if Winchedon can win on Sunday then Anthony Ireland is looking at tournament MVP.  The Loyola Marymount commit simply makes huge plays whenever Winchendon needs them and Friday night was no exception.  Extremely quick with perhaps the best handle in Class A, Ireland gets to where he wants and knows what to do when he gets there.  A pass-first point guard with the ability to score from beyond the arc, at mid-range, and in the paint, it's impossible not to like this kid.
• Quiet night for Khem Birch on the boards and offensively, but he pulled a Khem Birch with three very loud blocks.  Poor Rivard got pinned once and had to have been shocked when Birch extended way in the air to reject a shot in the paint.  Birch saw less minutes today due to matchups.  Quiet demeanor.
• Angel Nunez flashed more ability today, specifically with a loud dunk off of a baseline drive, but the outside shot is way off right now and his decision making is a liability at times.  Looks like he's thinking instead of just playing out there.  Looking forward to seeing him pull it all together. 
• Is it too late for PC to get in on Majok Majok?  He's a tough kid, who struggled a bit against the size of Winchendon, but still put up numbers.
• Great first half for Hector Harold, quiet second.  His line drive jumper fell short late.
• Vince Van Nes is a nonfactor at this level right now.

Brewster crushes St. Thomas More

How did this one go?  Let's put it this way, I stopped taking notes on the game with 10 minutes to go in the second half after 6'10, 280 lb Mo Walker canned a 3 pointer to give Brewster a 70-34 lead.  I stopped keeping track of the score once it got to 84-41 with 5:54 left.

How well is Brewster playing right now?  This St. Thomas More team enters next week's National Prep Championship as the 6 seed.  I'd argue that St. Mark's deserves a bid in the national tournament and would beat T-More head to head, but that's a different argument for a different day.

Playing without Providence recruit Trahson Burrell, STM fell behind early and was never really in this game. 

• Naadir Tharpe continues to impress.  The NIA Prep loss at the National Prep Invitational is looking more like a blip on a great season for Naadir.  The questions about his jump shot have been answered soundly.  Tharpe hit three more 3 pointers today and has hit more than he's missed in the last three times I've seen him.  The knock on the jumper simply shouldn't exist at this point.  Folks at Brewster tell me he is as good of a kid as he is a basketball player.
• Andre Drummond picked up two fouls in the first three minutes and never recovered.  I might have missed a bucket, but I had him scoreless in this one.  What stood out about Drummond more today than at URI was just the size of the kid.  He's enormous and was the first kid I've seen all year who looked equipped to match Mo Walker physically.  The offensive game is competely raw, but he's a fluid athlete with a large frame that has even more room to grow.  Had words with Will Barton at one point.  More like Will Barton had words with him.  Have a feeling few will have words with him in a year or two.
• Took a closer look at Bryon Allen tonight.  This was my third viewing of STM and nothing about Allen's game has jumped out at me as a must have guy.  Allen is a well built kid with a nice spin dribble, but the jumper is a work in progress and he's doesn't appear to be a great athlete (missed two fastbreak dunks).  Not sure how he fills a need in Providence, unless Johnnie Lacy departs.  That being said, I'd rather Lacy stay.
• CJ Fair continues to impress. 

Dream Matchups: Two out of Three Ain't Bad

When the NEPSAC playoffs started Friarbasketball had three dream matchups:

1. Brewster vs. Winchendon
2. St. Andrew's vs. Tilton
3. Lawrence Academy vs. St. Mark's

Two out of three isn't bad.  The only team that didn't reach the finals was Rhode Island's St. Andrew's who fell to a team Friarbasketball warned was dangerous in Marianapolis, who beat Tilton and St. A's when they played them last.

What a monster Sunday this will be for Friar fans.  Gerard Coleman, Naadir Tharpe, Khem Birch, Angel Nunez, Shabazz Napier, Alex Murphy, and Kaleb Tarczewski will all take to the court.

Lawrence Academy won a thriller in their only game against St. Mark's.  In their only matchup of the season Winchendon defeated Brewster by four at home.  Tilton narrowly lost to Marianapolis in the teams only meeting.

Looking for storylines and matchups?

• Does the speed and quickness of Lawrence Academy win out again over the size of St. Mark's?  Does a more assertive Alex Murphy make the difference this time around?
• Brewster is filled with stars in Will Barton (Memphis), CJ Fair (Syracuse), Melvin Ejim (Iowa State), Tharpe, Walker, and Austin Carroll (Rutgers), while Winchendon counters with great players, but not as many going to BCS schools next year.  Big man Markus Kennedy is headed to Villanova and Angel Nunez and Khem Birch will be on that level one day, but the core of this Winchendon team is made up of kids like Ferguson (Georgia Southern), Ireland (Loyola-Marymount), Devon Saddler (Delaware), and Marvin Dominique (Hofstra) who won't back down from anyone.
• Ireland and Tharpe were AAU teammates and may end up playing the deciding role in this one.  Winchendon is at their best when Ireland is creating and scoring.
• Kennedy and Walker will bang away underneath and Barton versus Ferguson could be great.
• Providence fans will get one of their last looks at Gerard Coleman before he steps foot on campus.  Enjoy it. 

Live from Beverly, MA: NEPSAC Class A Quarterfinals

A few notes on a night in which St. Thomas More, Brewster, Northfield Mount Hermon, and Winchendon advance to the Class A semifinals. 

With St. Thomas More v. South Kent and Brewster v. Brighton taking place during the day, I was only able to see the Northfield Mount Hermon/MCI and Winchendon/New Hampton games.

In the nightcap, Winchendon versus New Hampton was the premiere matchup for the day.  Winchendon won the teams' first two games in overtime and New Hampton defeated Winchendon in their most recent meeting two weeks ago.  The first half saw New Hampton grab an early 20-12 lead behind URI-bound Kyle Cain's inside scoring, with Winchendon coming back to take a 32-30 lead at the half.  Eric Ferguson scored 10 points in the first 3:30 of the 2nd half as Winchendon kept a comfortable double digit lead for a majority of the half, until New Hampton cut it to 5 with under 3 minutes to go.  Anthony Ireland went to work for the loaded Winchendon squad with key late drives and finishes when the momentum shifted.  Winchendon prevailed, 74-66.

• Ferguson and Ireland are two guys this site has been praising all season.  Ferguson blew the game open and Ireland closed it.
• Conversely, I've been less than impressed with Markus Kennedy (Villanova commit) and he was huge in the first 10 minutes, making big early baskets when Winchendon wasn't getting anything going.  It was the most assertive and aggressive he's been in games I've been to and will need to continue to be going forward.  Could have had an even bigger night if not for foul trouble.
• Not a huge night for Khem Birch.  He was pulled early by Mike Byrnes after Cain scored on him twice early, but as always, he provided two highlight blocks: one catching Evan Smotrycz from behind on an open layup and a late swat of a Jordan Laguerre layup.
• Smotrycz killed Winchendon in the win at New Hampton, but struggled with his shot tonight.  He was outplayed by Ferguson, but clearly has a bright future.
• Not quite the impressive performance of last time out for Laguerre either.  Winchendon's big men swallowed him up.
• What makes Winchendon so good?  Depth.  Kennedy is the only high major senior on the team, but they throw a ton of D1 kids at you, and they all know how to play the game and make huge plays.  Tonight's X-factor: 6'7 forward Marvin Dominique who hit HUGE shots in the first half when New Hampton controlled the pace.
• Dartaye Ruffin (Drexel) is great with his back to the basket.
• It's NFL combine season, which had me thinking, if the NEPSAC had a combine Angel Nunez would be a top 10 pick.  Long arms, explosive leaper, nice looking stroke.  Still a combine talent right now though.  Didn't score tonight.
• If Marshon Brooks or Greedy Peterson played with Devon Saddler's (Delaware) energy on both ends of the court we'd be thrilled.  Love watching a kid with such energy who gets after it on defense and looks to attack on offense.  Tough kid.

Northfield Mount Hermon pulled away from MCI in the second half thanks to increased defensive pressure.  They pushed the lead to 20 points before MCI cut it all the way down to 5 in the final minute, but NMH managed to hold on.  More thoughts:

• After an impressive shooting night against St. Andrew's at URI, I had my eye on Tyshawn Bell tonight.  He's a good shooter with size (a sturdy 6'7), but I'm not sure if he's a fit at PC.  He's not great putting the ball on the floor and didn't show great lateral quickness today.  A 6'7 shooter is a nice to have, but this team has greater needs right now.  Not sure what else he does well.
• URI commit Levan Shengelia taking on Majok Majok didn't materialize due to foul trouble.  Shengelia did manage to maintain his streak of altercations to three in three games.  I've seen him play three times this season and he got into a shoving match with Ron Giplaye, had words with St. A's Youri Dascy, and picked up a flagrant foul tonight with a forearm shiver.  His verticle is almost non-existent, but he is a great passer for a big man and has a great motor.  If the athleticism doesn't limit him he'll be a good one for the Rams, and an obvious target for PC fans when he lays out his first Friar.
• Not sure there is much for PC on NMH's roster.  Not hearing any buzz with Majok and not enamored with junior point guard Aaron Cosby.
• Hector Harold went on a scoring binge in the 2nd half, but I could have done without the shirt popping and mugging.

Looking Ahead

The guess here is we'll end up getting the dream Winchendon/Brewster final.  Winchendon and Northfield split their two games this season, winning on each other's home court, but I still think Winchendon is the better team.

Winchendon has a lot of bodies to throw at Majok, while a matchup to watch will be the small forwards: Ferguson and Harold. 

The depth of Winchendon's frontcourt will be key, while NMH will need good shooting nights from shooters like Laurent Rivard, Harold, and Joe Sharkey (Brown).  Rivard, the Harvard commit, was amazing in the win against Winchedon, with 30 points on 11-12 from the field, 7-8 from 3 and 11 rebounds and 5 steals.  Rivard followed that up with a 20 point, 4-5 from 3, performance in a 3 point loss to Winchendon a week ago.  Should be a good game.

After falling to Bridgton 70-67 a week ago, Brewster rolled in the rematch today, 94-59.  When they are on, there is no one better. 

In their only meeting against St. Thomas More on January 17, Brewster handed STM their first Class A loss of the season, as Naadir Tharpe led the way with 26 points in a solid defensive effort.  PC fans have four good reasons to watch this one: Tharpe, Andre Drummond, Byron Allen, and Trahson Burrell. 

How has St. Thomas More fared against the other three finalists?  0-2 against Winchendon and 0-1 against NMH, with an 11 points loss to NMH on 2/23 and a 16 point loss to Winchendon on 2/9.  They are the underdog from here on in.

Highlights (albeit from a Brewster perspective) are below.

Bridgton advances to face Brewster

They may not be the most talented team in Class A, but Bridgton is still the defending champions and no one wants to face a Whit Lesure coached team in the playoffs.

After scoring a 69-64 victory over URI-bound Billy Baron and Worcester Academy, Lesure noted that his team will be a big underdog playing a stacked Brewster team, but didn't seem all that concerned when quoted on Bridgton's basketball blog.

Following the game Lesure commented on the play of his team, "What a great win for our team. Out of the timeout down seven late we were tough and good. I like the fact we're still getting better." Lesure was complimentary of Worcester saying, "I have a lot of respect for how Worcester competes, and Billy Barron is my favorite player in our league." Barron finished with a game high 24 points. Harris lead BA with 21, Dick added 20 and Jones had 15.

Bridgton will now play Brewster Academy on Wednesday at Endicott College. Speaking of the upcoming match up Lesure said, "I am excited to play Brewster again. Jason (Smith) and I have become good friends. I think Brewster vs. Bridgton has become the best rivalry, and some of the big games have been in the tournament. This will be another," he went on to say, "We're underdogs, but that's fine."

NEPSAC Class B&C Playoff Preview

While lacking in Division 1 players in comparison to the NEPSAC Class A, the Class B and C playoffs won't be lacking on high major talent, or Providence targets.

Instead of breaking it down team by team, as I did with the Class A playoffs, I am going to preview the paths Tilton, St. Mark's, St. Andrew's and Lawrence Academy will take to get to championship Sunday.  The championships of all three classes take place on Sunday afternoon, in what should be a tremendous day of basketball at Endicott College in Beverly, MA.

The hope here is that we'll see St. Andrew's vs Tilton in the B final, and Lawrence Academy and St. Mark's in the C championship.  That would set up an afternoon of basketball including Gerard Coleman, Nate Lubick, Mike Carter-Williams, Ricky Ledo, Shabazz Napier, Alex Murphy and more.

Class B

Tilton School:

As the top seed, the defending champions get a bye in the first round, meaning a second round matchup with either Kimball Union or Hotchkiss awaits Gerard Coleman and Co. in round 2 Friday.

Those hoping to see Coleman in the championship on Sunday should pull for a Kimball victory on Wednesday night.  Tilton is 2-0 against Kimball this season, while Hotchkiss features the dynamic duo of Derrick Wilson (undecided junior) and Jason Morris (Georgia Tech) who give Tilton all they can handle in the semis.

St. Andrew's:

At 24-9 St. Andrew's is the second seed and will take on Brimmer and May in round 1.  Brimmer and May shouldn't be a problem, they've handled them easily twice, but a second round game against Marianapolis (#3) or Cushing Academy (#6) could present problems.  Marianapolis is hot, having beaten both St. A's and Tilton over the past month.  Cushing features well regarded sophomore Domonique Bull.

Dream Scenario:

In a dream scenario for Providence fans, Coleman and Tilton go head to head with Carter-Williams, Ledo and St. A's.  Tilton won the teams' first, and only, matchup of the season at the BABC tournament in January.  Trailing by 9 at the half, Tilton won by 10, as Coleman netted 28 points.  St. A's was held to a mere 19 points in the second half on the afternoon.

While Coleman, Carter-Williams, and Ledo will be the headliners, the X-factor could end up being Tilton's Georges Niang, an underrated inside-outside scoring sophomore who is emerging (36 versus Brewster Academy).

Class C

Lawrence Academy:

Anything but St. Mark's and LA meeting in the finals would be a shock.  Napier's squad is undefeated at 25-0 and won't come into this tournament cocky, as they were eliminated in an early shocker a year ago. 

LA pasted first round opponent Rivers, 61-39, a week ago.  Awaiting in round 2 would be Holderness, who LA beat by 21 in the season opener behind 21 from Napier, or Milton Academy who fell to Lawrence by 9 three weeks ago. 

St. Mark's:

In December St. Mark's fell to Lawrence Academy in Groton, their second of three straight losses.  After the losing streak St. Mark's record stood at 2-4.  Since then Alex Murphy has upped his level of play, and his team joined him, winning 17 of their final 18 games, with wins over St. Andrew's, Worcester Academy, Winchendon, and a 30 point drubbing of the same Marianapolis team that recently took out Tilton and St. A's. 

Since Nate Lubick's buzzer beater against Winchendon at the National Prep Invitational they've won their next 8 games by: 36, 60, 19, 27, 28, 46, 22, and 27 points.  This team is a buzzsaw right now.

Dream Scenario II:

How nice would it be to see LA and St. Mark's at 2, Tilton v. St. A's at 4, and Winchedon v. Brewster at 6? 

The Class C final seems the most likely.  If this were to occur it would be a classic guards versus bigs matchup.  In the first meeting Napier pressured St. Mark's point guard and forced Lubick to bring the ball up the court, taking St. Mark's out of their offense a bit.

Napier, Denzil Brito, Marcus Grant, and Sarkie Ampin make up an athletic LA team that is lacking on size and depth, while St. Mark's has Lubick, Murphy, a Friarbasketball favorite Melsahn Basabe (Siena), with sophomore Kaleb Tarczewski coming off of the bench. 

The biggest difference in this game might be a more assertive Alex Murphy, who didn't look to score much in December.  On paper, St. Mark's might be the favorite, but Napier plays his best in the biggest games and I'd never count a team out who has him.