ArchivePage 4 of 45

Scouting Matt Vogrich (12-18-2008)

Published
by
Dylan
on December 18, 2008
in Matt Vogrich and Recruits
. 9 Comments

Next in an ongoing series of recruiting scouting reports. This time it’s another Michigan commitment, Matt Vogrich. Thanks on this one go to Bill St. John for providing the report. I should have a Moses Morgan report up soon as well.

Other posts today: Scouting Darius Morris & Video and Mailbag.

—–

Matt VogrichJust returned from watching Matt Vogrich play Mundelein High School and thought I’d share some thoughts. To start here is the line from tonight’s game:

26 pts
9-21 from the field including 0-3 from behind the arc.
9 rebounds (4 off, 5 def)
2 assists and 8-11 from the line

Mundelein is a good not great team but played physical all night. I have seen Matt play two games this week and I get the impression he turns it on when necessary and chooses to be unselfish based on the competition. I must say it was the quietest 26 I’ve ever seen. He passed on several opportunities that I’m sure would drive Coach Belein crazy but again they had a comfortable lead most of the night (LF won by 20).

He is a fine athlete and has great body control on breaks and in the lane. My only concern would be the absence of a mid range game. I’ve yet to see him shoot from 10-15 ft opting instead to take it all the way to the hoop even forcing it at times. He either shoots a three or it’s a 2 foot layup (most times splitting two defenders). Of course he is the best player on the floor and from what I’ve seen one of the tallest so scoring from inside isn’t a bad thing they just aren’t shots he’ll get next year. I do look forward to watching him with great players around him. I’ve yet to see the stroke I’ve heard so much about but I’m sure it will come with better competition. Being a coach myself I love his vision. He had two excellent anticipation assists where he let the pass go before a cut was made leading his man to the bucket for an easy layup. He really feels the game and fits perfect in a Beilein system.

9 Comments

VIDEO: Darius Morris vs Cleveland High

Published
by
Dylan
on December 18, 2008
in Darius Morris and Recruits
. 2 Comments

To go along with the Darius Morris scouting report I posted this morning we have a short clip from the game. This isn’t really a highlight film and the video doesn’t start until about half time. It’s just a small sample of Darius’ game Wednesday night. Just don’t want people to be disappointed that it’s not a full fledged highlight film.
.

2 Comments

Mailbag: POTs, Scheduling, Fast Breaks, and Recruiting

Published
by
Dylan
on December 18, 2008
in Mailbag
. 8 Comments

If you have questions, e-mail them to me. Here is this week’s batch. If I didn’t get to yours I tried to reply over e-mail, if not shoot me another e-mail.

I noticed two M possessions in the 2H where we took a shot and did not have one single player inside the 3 point line to get an offensive rebound. Think about that, not one single person within 20 feet of the basket when a shot goes up. I was not actively looking for other instances of this situation, but wouldn’t be surprised if it happens more often. I understand that Beilein’s teams get outrebounded, but this approach is ridiculous and will start to burn us. We can’t expect to knock 3’s down at this clip against Big Ten teams on the road so we need people crashing the boards. An interesting analysis to look at would be number of times we take a shot and do not have anyone inside the 3 point line…..or anyone inside the paint. From my perspective, there should be 3 guys on the court assigned to crash the boards every single time a shot goes up, regardless where they may be.

I noticed these two possessions as well. I don’t think Beilein ever wants to have 5 guys outside the three point line but  here is a look at a possible explanation for our offensive rebounding woes.

The Big Ten Wonk first defined the perimeter oriented team or POT for short. Gasaway defined perimeter oriented teams as teams who shoot more than 38% of their shots from long range.

Gasaway’s conclusion was that teams of all different styles can be successful, they just have to do the right things very well. POTs don’t turn the ball over, they struggle getting offensive rebounds, and they don’t get to the free throw line much. His most important (and somewhat obvious) discovery was that to succeed as a POT you better make your shots. Any coach, certainly John Beilein, will trade offensive rebounds for three pointers.

As most of you would expect Michigan qualifies as a POT, 40.7% of Michigan’s field goal attempts this year have been three point tries. The only Big Ten team that shoots more three pointers is Iowa, who’s 47.7% ranks third in the country. Michigan also demonstrates the peripheral factors of POT, they rank 9th in the Big Ten in offensive rebounding percentage, fourth in turnover percentage, and ninth in free throw rate.

The worrisome thing is that their three point shooting percentage is only 34.8% which ranks 7th in the conference. Luckily Michigan has shot 44.8% from long range in their last three contests compared to 28.6% in their first 6. If they can keep shooting the ball as they have they should be in good shape.

I took a look at Beilein’s 2006 team which was arguably his best and certainly had the best regular season résumé to examine. They shot 45.9% of their shots from long range, 7th in the nation. Their offensive rebounding percentage of 21.3% ranked dead last in the Big East, their turnover percentage of 13.2% was first, and their free throw rate of 17.5 was last. They appear to be a prototype of a perimeter oriented team however they only hit 34.9% of their three pointers, ranking 10th in a 16 team Big East. It worked for that team though, they went 21-11 and posted an 11-5 conference record before being knocked off by Texas in the Sweet 16.

Overall I thought effort on the boards was lazy at times against Eastern but I think Beilein has proven that you can win while getting out-rebounded. I think the bigger issues for me are hitting our shots and not giving up too many offensive rebounds to the other team.

It’s a high risk high reward system so when we have cold days I would expect a couple questionable losses. However if we hold on to the ball and hit our three point shots at a good clip I think we can beat anyone.

Continue reading ‘Mailbag: POTs, Scheduling, Fast Breaks, and Recruiting’

8 Comments

Scouting Darius Morris (12-18-2008)

Published
by
Dylan
on December 18, 2008
in Darius Morris and Recruits
. 8 Comments

One of our commenters, WTHEF, made it to Darius’ game last night. Here are his thoughts about Darius’ play and some video is here.

Darius Morris

Saw Darius play tonight - below are a few thoughts from the game. Keep in mind that I don’t watch a lot (or normally any) high school basketball and am far from an expert. While I’ve been to a ton of Michigan games - I began following them just in time for the entire Ellerbe and Amaker tenures - so I may be dumber for having seen that.

Background:
Darius plays for a small private school (less than 500 total students in grade 7-12) that is in a nice part of West LA, fairly close to UCLA. There are only 3 players on their roster over 6’3 – Darius (looks to be a legit 6’3/6’4), Anthony Stover (6’10 going to UCLA) and a 6’5 sophomore. Their opponent, Cleveland High, had a lot of 6’2-6’3 guys but nobody taller than that so Morris was often one of the tallest guys on the court. He did often have a 6’2 defender on him though so it wasn’t a huge mismatch. A sidenote – Denzel Washington’s son, Malcolm, starts alongside Darius in the backcourt and Denzel was among the crowd of about 150.

Basics:
They won by a dozen or so and led by 20+ but the other team got it closer when Stover and Morris spent a stretch on the bench with foul trouble. Morris probably had about 15 points (ED: He might have had a few less. Morris and Stover combined for 13) – he could have been well over 20 but had some trouble finishing. Stover didn’t look impressive, especially since he had 7 inches on the biggest guy from Cleveland. I think with big guys you have to really know what to look for and if UCLA offered he must have it, but I wasn’t seeing it.

Observations:
I watched Darius in warm-ups when they took the court and he led all the drills and acted like the captain. Seemed relaxed and friendly with teammates but was still focused. After introductions, he took off his shooting shirt to reveal a Block M long sleeve t-shirt over his jersey.

All game I was trying to think of who to compare him to and I can’t really come up with anyone. Jamal Crawford or Sean Livingston was all I could come up with but he isn’t as rail thin or quite as tall as them and while his game is flashy – it’s not that flashy. He has a great handle and dribbled his way through a press and multiple defenders several times – but also had the awareness to pass it to get out of trouble at times instead of just putting his head down and forcing his way through. Denzel’s son who is about 5’9, shared the role of bringing the ball up.

Darius could get to the basket at will and made some incredibly athletic moves but a lot of them just didn’t fall. He had one sick move that he did finish – before I figured out how to record with the camera. Some of them looked a little forced but he’s so athletic that for him they could be high percentage shots. He also threw some beautiful passes off his drive but his teammates couldn’t always finish. I talked with him briefly after the game and he mentioned that he had been injured and had only been back for a couple weeks so he is probably a little rusty. He mentioned that he needs to get his conditioning back which may also have affected his ability to finish. His mechanics looked good on his shot and he knocked down a couple threes.

On defense he spent some time out front but also played down low a lot because of his size. I wonder if that will make him even better prepared to play along the baseline in the 1-3-1. I think he’ll be fast enough to play down there and his long arms and added height will be a real asset. He did a nice job challenging shots and his body control saved him from some fouls. He worked hard on defense and has all the tools to be an excellent individual defender.

Overall I think he will be a great complement to our current roster as there is nobody on our team that has his skill set. He brings athleticism, quickness, size, and he showed an ability to penetrate and finish it himself – but often looks to kick it out or drop it off to a big man. On top of that, he also seems to be a really nice kid that will fit in well and does not bring an ego or arrogance with him.

8 Comments

Holiday High School Hoops Guide

Published
by
Dylan
on December 17, 2008
in Darius Morris, Matt Vogrich and Recruits
. 7 Comments

There are plenty of opportunities to get out and see some of Michigan’s recruiting targets and commits over the Holidays. This is a list of some tournaments I dug up that have Michigan targets and/or good local teams. Shoot me an email or leave a note in the comments if I missed something. If you make it out to any of the games send me an email or leave your thoughts in the comments section.

Motor City Roundball Classic

Location: Chandler Park Academy, Harper Woods, MI
Dates: Dec 26th-Dec 30th
Schedule

There are ton’s of big name teams and players in this years Motor City Roundball Classic including Saginaw, Detroit Finney (Isaiah Sykes - ineligible), Detroit Country Day, Flint Powers Catholic (PLP), Hartland (Matt Poches), and Detroit Southeastern (Kearney and Gibson) among many others. Check out the schedule because there are tons of games worth checking out if you want to get an early look at some U-M prospects.

Meijer Holiday Hoops Invitational

Location: Breslin Center, East Lansing, MI
Date: Dec 27th
Information, Schedule, and Tickets

The highlight of the East Lansing tournament is Detroit Country Day. Country Day is the best team in the state this year and is loaded with high-major division one talent.

Arthur Hill Pre-Holiday Classic

Location: Saginaw Valley State University
Information

The Arthur Hill Classic is moving to Saginaw Valley this year and the marquee matchups are Arthur Hill vs Muskegon Heights and Saginaw vs Orchard Lake St Mary’s.

Across the Country

If you want to follow some other Michigan targets over the holidays there are plenty of opportunities.

Darius Morris’ Windward team will play in the Torrey Pines Holiday Classic (12/26-12/30) as well as the loaded Pangos Dream Classic (1/3). They are also hosting the Windward Winter Classic which is taking place right now and runs until Dec 20th.

Matt Vogrich will be playing in the State Farm Holiday Classic (12/26-12/30) in Bloomington, IL.

Will Regan and Nichols Academy will be playing in the NHSCA High School Basketball Festival (12/26-12/30) in Salisbury, MD.

Cameron Ayers and Germantown will be playing in the PBP Scholastic at Widener Unversity on Dec 27th.

7 Comments

Wednesday Notes & Links

Published
by
Dylan
on December 17, 2008
in Links
. 2 Comments

2 Comments

“A Watershed Event”

Published
by
Dylan
on December 16, 2008
in 2008-2009 Season
. 27 Comments

Michigan Fans Rush Court after Win over DukeIn only his second year at Michigan Tommy Amaker managed to knock off a Michigan State team that had beaten Michigan 8 times in a row and won the last three contests by an average of 31.5 points, including a 51 point drubbing in 2000. Amaker arrived in 2001 and inherited a program that was left in ruins by Brian Elerbee. Similarly to John Beilein, he built it from the ground up and didn’t take shortcuts. The 2003 win over Michigan State was Michigan’s 13th in a row and it was a statement that Tommy had this program headed in the right direction:

“It’s exceptional,” Michigan Athletic Director Bill Martin said. “Tommy (Amaker) has done exactly what we wanted him to do, and a lot sooner than I expected. And to have the rivalry with (Michigan) State, it’s very exciting.”

Michigan was ineligible for the tournament that year but it appeared clear that Michigan was headed back in the right direction. Amaker had another top 20 freshman class locked up for the next year and four days after Michigan’s win over Michigan State, all-american Joe Crawford gave Amaker his verbal commitment. The consensus at the time was clear: Michigan had started to turn the corner:

All the bad memories this rivalry has given Michigan basketball fans were washed away with yesterday’s win, and, more importantly, with the thought of what this team can do in the next few seasons. All people could see was Daniel Horton being hoisted up at center court following the buzzer, one finger pointed straight into the air, as fans rushed toward him to celebrate what seems to be a changing of the guard.

Fast forward 5 years, John Beilein and this year’s team pulled off a similar upset against a Duke team that has absolutely dominated Michigan in recent years. It came on the heels of a win over UCLA and the common refrain is that Michigan basketball is back. Pete Bigelow of the Ann Arbor news wrote a column about Martin’s reaction:

“It’s been a long time with me and basketball,” he said.

…

That ragged list of history was on Martin’s mind when John Beilein beat Duke, the celebration ensued and the tears welled. Finally, a tangible reward. Finally, a taste of success. His long-awaited return of the Michigan basketball program to relevance certainly merited his reaction. It was, after all, what Martin called, “a watershed event.”

John Beilein has shown that he has Michigan headed in the right direction but are the circumstances really that much different than they were 5 years ago? You can point to his proven track record but his teams were never dominant in the Big East, only once did he post a conference record better than Amaker’s 2003 tally of 10-6.

What happens to this year’s team if Manny Harris or DeShawn Sims get hurt? How does this team deal with losing a couple games in a row? Can they win on the road in the Big Ten? Can they avoid upsets? What about the lack of post depth?

Daniel HortonClearly the disappointment of the Tommy Amaker era makes it hard to remember the positives but there were several times when it appeared Michigan had turned the corner or at least were close.

  • In 2004 Michigan was just left out of the dance and went on to win the NIT.
  • 2005 appeared to be the year Michigan would finally make the tournament until the season was marred by injuries and suspensions. Only Dion Harris, Ron Coleman, and Courtney Sims played in every game.  Lester Abram missed the whole season and Daniel Horton was suspended for the 2nd half. Chris Hunter, Graham Brown, and Brent Petway all missed games and Dani Wohl, John Andrews, and Sherrod Harrell all started games that year.
  • In 2006 Daniel Horton scored 39 points to lead Michigan past Illinois, the #8 team in the country, and a tournament berth looked imminent.

I am just as confident as the rest of you that Beilein has this program on the right track but I am still scared to jump the gun. There are so many games left this year that I think it’s too soon for Martin to call this a “watershed event”. The goal isn’t one or two big upsets every year, the goal is to establish a program that can compete for Big Ten championships and be a contender year in and year out.

There are still myriad issues surrounding this basketball program and two marquee wins in November and December aren’t going to make them disappear overnight. Some much needed improvements to Crisler Arena have been implemented since Beilein has arrived but faciltiies still rank among the worst in the country. I think it’s clear that Martin is putting more work into the basketball program but the reasons behind this are up for debate. Maybe he made promises to Beilein when he hired him or maybe he’s just realizing the necessity of facilities upgrades. Regardless, it appears that a practice facility is waiting in the wings and may go before the regents as soon as January.

The bottom line is that while this program is headed in the right direction, it would be crushing to not make it over the top yet again. I just hope everyone remembers there are 22 more games left to be played and anything can happen.

These two wins along with the addition of Laval Lucas-Perry have changed expectations from “the NIT would be nice” to “NCAA or bust”. Expectations can wear on a team, especially a young one that hasn’t dealt with them before. The next four months are when contenders are separated from pretenders and when Michigan needs to truly make their mark.

As Michigan fans we know all too well that it only takes a few mental lapses, injuries, or bad losses to ruin a season that once looked so promising.

27 Comments

Who is Laval Lucas-Perry?

Published
by
Dylan
on December 15, 2008
in 2008-2009 Season and Laval Lucas-Perry
. 27 Comments

Laval Lucas-PerryFor a guy that hasn’t even played a game in Ann Arbor, Laval Lucas-Perry is getting plenty of buzz. Tim McCormick predicted that Laval will be the best point guard at Michigan since Rumeal Robinson. Dick Vitale has called him one of the top 5 impact transfers in the country. Jeff Goodman calls him the #4 mid season addition (Michigan will face #1 (Legion) and #2 (Stanley Robinson, UConn) on the list). It’s almost impossible to watch a Michigan broadcast without hearing his name. But the questions remain… Who is Laval Lucas-Perry? Where did he come from? How good is he?

Most people who don’t consider themselves basketball recruitniks probably don’t know much about Laval Lucas-Perry other than the fact that he’s been sitting at the end of the bench for a bout a year now and has pretty good taste in suits.

This post will act as a primer for those fans who need to catch up on Laval before his Michigan debut this Saturday.

The Recruit

Laval floated off the radar a bit at Flint Powers Catholic high school, overshadowed by a star studded in-state class that included Manny Harris, Kalin Lucas, Durrell Summers, Dar Tucker, Alex Legion among others. Laval finished his high school career as a 3 star recruit (#138 overall) and rated as the #6 prospect in the state of Michigan.

Laval committed to Arizona over Boston College, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, and Wisconsin. His recruitment essentially came down to Arizona, Michigan, and Michigan State. Michigan appeared to have as good of a shot as anyone else until Alex Legion recommitted the day before Laval Lucas-Perry’s announcement. When Legion filled the last remaining scholarship in the class of 2007 it was pretty clear that Laval would be looking elsewhere. Michigan State also appeared to be eliminated when their 2007 class already included three guards as well, Kalin Lucas, Durrell Summers, and Chris Allen.

We don’t know if Laval would have gone to Michigan if Legion hadn’t recommitted but looking back it would have been much nicer to have Laval than Alex’s “commitment”. In the end Laval committed to Arizona because of his familiarity with the program (he camped there that summer and received an offer) and  most of all his respect for Lute Olson.

The Wildcat

Laval Lucas-Perry

Laval arrived in Tuscon alongside NBA point guard Jerryd Bayless, a phenom who averaged 20 points per game in his only college season. It is often mentioned that Laval was one of the hardest players to guard in Arizona practices, this is saying a lot because there was a lot of talent in Tuscon last year even if the team underachieved as a whole.

Laval played only 5 games in a Wildcat uniform before deciding he intended to transfer. The main reason for the transfer appeared to be the uncertainty of the coaching situation and the fact that Lute Olson didn’t coach the entire year. It’s hard to really take much from Laval’s stats last year considering that he never really got a chance for major playing time. In only 10 minutes per game Laval averaged 4 points, 1.6 boards, and 0.8 assists.

Arizona Open Gym Video Highlights

The Transfer

LLP didn’t have a lot of time to make his decision after deciding to leave Arizona because it was critical that he got enrolled in school before the Winter semester. The re-recruitment moved fast and it was clear that Beilein wanted LLP and LLP wanted Michigan. Laval and his family considered a couple trips including one to Wake Forest but decided to end his recruitment and stay close to home at Michigan.

“It wasn’t anything in particular about Arizona,” Lucas-Perry said. “It was just me not feeling comfortable there. I was just trying to find somewhere comfortable, where I can be myself.”

Laval and his family filed an appeal to the NCAA to regain his freshman eligibility (due to the coaching situation at Arizona) after only playing 5 games and it was granted. This makes LLP a redshirt freshman this year rather than a sophomore and means that he loses only a half year of eligibility rather than 1.5 years.

The Traveler

This summer Laval traveled to Taiwan to play with the Athletes in Action team in the Jones Cup. Playing in Taiwan was an opportunity for Laval to get some game action after sitting the second half of the 2008 season. The Athletes in Action/USA team took second in the tournament and Laval’s play was solid throughout. Laval’s averages were around  9.8 ppg (high of 22) on 40% (26% 3pt) shooting with 3.3 rebounds, .67 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.4 turnovers. He didn’t set the world on fire but for playing with a thrown together squad on the other side of the globe in Taiwan it’s not bad.

For plenty of video from the tournament go here (LLP is #7 on the AIA team).

The Wolverine

Laval Lucas-Perry Michigan

So how does Laval fit into this team? I think he gets his minutes at a combination of the 1 and 2 spots. This means he takes some combination of minutes from David Merritt, Kelvin Grady, Stuart Douglass, and Zack Novak.

Because he can play both the 1 and the 2 (which aren’t all that different in Beilein’s system offensively) I think he can play with any of those 4 guys on the court next to him. If he plays with one of the current point guards he’ll play up top in the 1-3-1, if he plays with one of the freshman he’ll run the baseline. I expect to see plenty of tinkering by Beilein over the next few weeks in an attempt to figure out where everyone is most comfortable offensively and defensively.

I don’t think it’ll be a situation where he takes all of Merritt’s minutes or anything like that, especially early on. I would expect Merritt to still get a few minutes every game. I also have seen a lot of people projecting that he will take CJ Lee’s minutes, I don’t see this right now because right now CJ backs up Manny almost exclusively. I don’t think Novak is ready to play the three and I would expect to see CJ still get those 5 minutes or so per game at the three.

Eventually I think Laval can be a double digit scorer and give Michigan that scoring threat at the guard position they are lacking. We have seen what the emergence of DeShawn Sims as a consistent threat down low has done to open up the offense and Laval is just going to open it up even more. He will be one of the only guys on the team comfortable driving in the lane and taking it to the hole but who can also stick the perimeter jumper.

From what I have heard about Laval’s game, it breaks down something like this:

  • More of a combo guard or shooting guard but with the size of a point guard.
  • Solid athlete and very strong which should allow him to be a very good rebounder for a guard. He is probably a little under his listed 6-3 height.
  • Very good shooter from mid-range and should also be solid from three point range.
  • Able to get in the lane to enable the mid range game.
  • Average passer and still learning the system.

There will undoubtedly be some small issues and adjustments that have to be made by adding a player to the rotation in the middle of the season but I think it will mostly be a non-factor. Laval has been practicing with the team since last winter so it’s not like he just showed up in Ann Arbor.

I think Beilein will work him a long slowly and build his minutes up. I don’t think he will start right away and hopefully games against Oakland, Florida Gulf Coast, and North Carolina Central will act as good warmups. The question of whether he starts is one we can ask on New Years Eve.

While I’m not ready to proclaim him the greatest point guard since Rumeal Robinson, Daniel Horton, and maybe even a point guard at all. I am definitely excited about adding Laval Lucas-Perry to a team that has already exceeded expectations over the first month and a half.

We’ll find out a lot more Saturday afternoon. Get tickets!

A couple random notes from Mark Snyder:

  • John Beilein is starting to feel better, this from SID Tom Wywrot: “Coach Beilein is feeling better and progressing well to regain his strength as U-M physicians continue to monitor his status on a day-to-day basis.”
  • The agenda for the regents meeting Thursday night has been released and there is no formal proposal for a practice facility. According to Snyder’s sources “it still remains a viable plan, and active meetings with coaches and others affiliated with the project are continuing.”

27 Comments

Moving Up

Published
by
Dylan
on December 15, 2008
in 2008-2009 Season
. 6 Comments

Michigan moves to #26 in the new AP poll and #28 in the Coaches Poll. There are plenty of chances for movement this week near the bottom of the poll. Davidson (22) plays at Purdue, Memphis (23) plays Syracuse, Marquette (24) at Tennessee, Clemson (25) plays at Miami (would probably swap if Miami wins), and Arizona State (20) plays undefeated BYU (would also probably swap).

I still think the polls are pretty irrelevant and as long as Michigan keeps winning they will get their props in the national media. I think this one is mostly for the fans, who seem pretty set on getting back into the top 25 for the first time since Daniel Horton’s senior year.

6 Comments

Recruiting Roundup (12-15-2008)

Published
by
Dylan
on December 15, 2008
in Brandan Kearney, Cameron Ayers, Darius Morris, Eso Akunne, Jordan Morgan, Matt Vogrich, Moses Morgan, Recruits and Trey Zeigler
. 23 Comments

Commits

Darius Morris

Windward got off to a slow start with a 2-2 record but they bounced back with a 64-44 win over Inglewood last week. Morris seems to have really gotten going as well, he scored 31 points and added 5 assists and 3 steals for Windward.

I got an e-mail from the folks at Ball Is Life and they told me that the Westchester team that beat Windward has been dominant early on in California. Westchester is 9-0 with an average margin of victory over 25 points and has handled all challengers including Michael Snaer’s (#11 in class of 2009) Rancho Verde squad. Beyond the Westchester game people in California basketball circles feel that Darius has been playing better than last year thus far. Windward is also ranked #12 in the latest LA Times poll.

The holidays will be big for Darius and Windward as they head to two big tournaments, the Max Preps Classic at Torrey Pines as well as the always loaded Pangos Dream Classic.

Matt Vogrich

Matt Vogirch

As I touched on earlier this week, Vogrich had a huge game Wednesday, scoring 39 points and adding 9 rebounds against Illinois bound Brandon Paul.

Lake Forest rolled over Palatine Friday night with a 65-29 win. Palatine was not in the same league as Lake Forest and Vogrich put up an easy 20 points in the win. Matt and his teammate Mitch Hopfinger had every Lake Forest point until the 3 minute mark of the 3rd quarter.

Jordan Morgan

I posted an update earlier in the week about Jordan’s first game, a matchup with Providence bound big man James Still. Morgan had a rough night and was ejected on a technical foul for hanging on the rim.

U-D Jesuit was back in action Saturday but took a loss to Renaissance, 77-62. Morgan was suspended from his ejection earlier in the week.

Blake McLimans

Worcester Academy lost to St Thomas Monday night by a score of 66-57 but came back and beat Brewster Academy on Thursday, 80-71.

Blake didn’t show up in the high scores but still seems to be adjusting to playing with a new team in a new system. The reports I have gotten are that Blake has played very good defense early on. I’m also working on getting some film so keep an eye out for that.

2009 Prospects

Michigan is out of scholarships in 2009 but I think they will keep recruiting a couple guys to some extent. Anything can happen and it’s worth it to keep options open. Riley is back on the market, Anali is a new name, and we have talked about Angus Brandt before. I think the odds are probably slim that any of these guys end up at Michigan but they are worth mentioning.

DaShonte Riley

DaShonte RileyRiley is a long shot in the class of 2009 but he’s worth mentioning. Country Day rolled past Ann Arbor Pioneer on Friday night by a score of 80-56 and Riley posted a career high 19 rebounds.

Anali Okoloji

Anali OkolojiNorthstar Basketball has an update on Anali Okoloji, a combo forward from New York. Okoloji seems to be a borderline high major player and his offers right now are from St. Bonaventure, La Salle, Albany, and Central Connecticut State. However Okoloji lists his favorite as Michigan and expects an offer:

“My favorite right now is Michigan. I am feeling [good about] Oregon State, Binghamton, and St. Bonaventure.”

Okoloji, who said his school “list is growing,” informed me that Oregon State, North Carolina State, Michigan, and Binghamton are the most recent schools starting to recruit him, and he added, “When I take my SAT and ACT, offers will start to flow.” Anali added that “Michigan is going to offer. They are just waiting on my SAT.” As well, he told me that there are more schools on his list, but he could not think of them all.”

Seems like a long shot, and maybe there is some outdated information in regards to the likely offer but it’s worth keeping an eye on.

2010 Prospects

Trey Zeigler

Trey ZeiglerThe talented wing is off to a great start this week and helped Mt. Pleasant knock off Bay City Western 63-61. Trey poured in 34 points as well as 15 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 blocks. Next Gen Sports on Zeigler’s performance:

Defensively he completely took away the smaller but faster Arnold, Western’s point guard. Zeigler scored with dunks, 3-pointers, and variety of mid-rage jumpers from every angle.

Definitely a great start for Zeigler who will look to really take his game to the next level after putting in time in the weight room this summer. The Free Press named him the #1 player in the state along with plenty of fluff. He’s had a couple of freak injuries over the last couple years that have limited him but worked out all summer with Central Michigan and is ready to go. Here’s what his coach had to say:

“He’s a high-quality young man. An awesome kid; his family and school are important,” Taylor said. “He’s respectful to the people that are around him. He’s definitely a coach’s son in the way he acts. I think he has been raised and encouraged in the way of how to treat people. As a player, his basketball IQ is very high. He has an understanding of where he needs to be on the floor. We can play him anywhere from point guard to in the post.”

Mount Pleasant fell to Saginaw Arthur Hill Friday night by a score of 73-51 although Trey came close to a triple double with 23 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists.

Scout has an update with Trey on his recruitment ($) as well. Trey was in East Lansing for Michigan State’s blow out of Alcorn State.

Moses Morgan

Morgan had a solid outing Friday night with 32 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks in a 78-71 win. Morgan hit all 16 of his free throw attempts including 6 in the last 30 seconds. Morgan’s solid play is not going unnoticed this year:

“You’ve got to live and die with a kid like that,” Palo Verde coach Jermone Riley said. “He means so much to the program and he means so much to the team with his leadership. Not only that, he’s just a great character kid. It’s always great to have a player like that.”

Will Regan

Will ReganWill Regan led Nichols Academy past Williamsville South in the AdPro Monsignor Martin-ECIC Challenge on Thursday. I’m not even going to try to explain the name. Regan had 21 points (10-11 FT) and 17 boards including two free throws with 35 seconds left that gave Nichols the win, 55-54.

Nichols Academy fell to Niagara Falls on Saturday night by a score of 57-56. Regan led Nichols with 21 points but they fell just short of pulling off the win. Regan hit a big three pointer that put Nichols ahead 56-55 with 1:48 remaining before missing a tough hook shot that would have won the game for Nichols in the closing seconds.

Cameron Ayers

Northstar Basketball has the latest on Cameron Ayers’ recruitment and it seems like he is still pretty open. Cameron says that he doesn’t have any offers yet but his favorite schools are:

I like Georgetown, Michigan, West Virginia, and Clemson probably the best, and I like Georgia Tech. I haven’t visited any yet though.” Ayers said he will take some visits, “whenever [he] gets some free time, which I hope is real soon” but he added, “but with basketball it gets pretty hectic, so whenever I get some available time.”

Ayers’ Germantown team was upset last week by Friends Central 53-40 but bounced back Saturday night with an overtime win over Mercersberg. Ayers had 17 points in the 60-53 victory.

Tim Hardaway Jr.

Hardaway Jr. had 23 in Palmetto’s 76-67 loss to Coral Reef on Tuesday night. Palmetto rebounded with a 74-58 win over Homestead on Thursday night (no stats).

Austin Carroll

See the above updates on McLimans and Worcester.

Josh Herbeck & Eso Akunne (pref. walk on)

Gabriel Richard is off to a hot start with wins over Divine Child (60-47) and Orchard Lake St. Marys (70-66).

Akunne was strong in both contests, he posted 22 points, 18 rebounds, 7 assists, and blocks against Divine Child and managed to out do himself against OLSM. Eso matched Dion Sims’ scoring total is 23 points but added 16 rebounds and 10 assists for the triple double.

Josh Herbeck, another Michigan target at Gabriel Richard, posted 15 points against Divine Child and added 20 against Orchard Lake.

Gabriel Richard moved up a division after making it to the Breslin in division 3 last year and they are already off to a good start.

2011 + Younger

Brandan Kearney and Percy Gibson

Sophomores Brandan Kearney and Percy Gibson led Southeastern past Central HS on Tuesday by a score of 50-37. These kids are only sophomores but they are already proving that they are big time prospects. My favorite place for PSL hoops info, City Hoops, was on hand and they have plenty. Here are some highlights.

Brandan KearneyBrandan Kearney:

Kearney got to the basket on a nice dribble-drive for the first points of the night, then got his own shot a few times and missed, and was relatively quiet shooting the ball the rest of the night. That’s not to say he wasn’t active. Kearney was everywhere on both ends, feeding teammates (five assists), grabbing boards (six), blocking shots (three) and scooping up loose balls. On a night where his shot wasn’t dropping early, Kearney helped his team extend its margin by setting up his talented teammates.

Percy GibsonPercy Gibson:

Gibson, 6-foot-7, was nothing short of a monster against an undersized Central team, grabbing 15 boards and blocking four shots. He scored six, and while some hyped big men are flagged more on potential, Gibson will have no trouble producing this year for his team.

Kearney led Southeastern past 2012 PG sensation Ray Lee and Robichaud Friday night. Kearney had 19 points and Gibson added 16 as well as 12 rebounds and 4 blocks. Robichaud went with the zone early in the game and Kearney made them pay by hitting some 3 pointers.

Kearney and Gibson have been to numerous Michigan football games, basketball games, and camps and they are definitely two to keep close watch of in the class of 2011.

Matt Poches

Matt Poches

Poches was in Ann Arbor for the Duke game Saturday but he was ready to get to work when Hartland’s season tipped off last week against Linden. Hartland dominated the game and Poches finished with 25 points, 14 rebounds, and 4 steals in only 20 minutes of work.

Patrick Lucas-Perry

Patrick Lucas-Perry

We talk plenty about Laval Lucas-Perry around here but one name that hasn’t gotten much play is Patrick Lucas-Perry. Laval’s younger brother helped Flint Powers to a win over Flint Northwestern last week. PLP added 18 points including 6 free throws in the final 31.5 seconds. Northwestern kept it close down the stretch and PLP kept his cool:

“I just tried to keep my composure out there, stay focused and just make sure I’m going to make these shots,” Lucas-Perry said. “I kept telling myself, ‘These are going in. These are going in.’”

PLP was held to 6 points in a 76-70 Friday night loss to Flint Carman-Ainsworth.

Right now I would definitely put PLP on my ones to watch list.

23 Comments