Projo College Hoops

By KEVIN McNAMARA

Another day, another recruit for Keno Davis and the Providence College basketball program.
For the second straight day and fifth time this fall, the Friars have secured a verbal commitment from a recruit for the 2009-10 season. This time it's a big one. James Still, a 6-10 forward at Detroit Community High School, has verballed. Still is the tallest of the PC five so far.
Still joins 6-8 forward Kadeem Batts, junior college shooter Kyle Wright and guards Antoine Allen and Duke Mondy in Davis' first recruiting class.
``I asked James last week, `Who is the best player in the state?' He said `I am,'' said Anthony Woods, Still's high school coach. ``I know that I am taking James Still.''
Still is rated as one of the premier recruits in Michigan although the U of Michigan and Michigan State did not offer scholarships. MSU did recruit Still but Woods said Tom Izzo felt he didn;t fir the Spartans' bruising style. Still is a more versatile big man, capable of running the floor, stepping away from the hoop and making plays.
Still visited PC several weeks ago and was recfruited by new assistsant coach Chris Davis who owns strong ties in the Midwest. Still is hoping to lead what is a very good high school team deep into the Michigan state playoffs in his senior season.

Here is a scouting report on Still published by ESPN.com last December.
``Another player that just oozes potential. He's a tall drink of water that just keeps improving. He runs really well and can make plays high above the rim on both ends. He's a young colt in terms of development and he's on his way to becoming a STUD! One thing that's already developed is his touch from the outside as he can consistently drill 15-17 foot jumpers all day long. His biggest room for improvement is that he needs to spend a lot of time in the weight room to add some muscle to his thin frame. Once he gets some beef on those bones he could become one of the best post prospects in the Midwest by summers end.
James is a thin and active combo post. He is still raw and weak but has a great upside. He can shoot the ball to 12-14 feet. With added strength James will be a real force on both ends of the court. He runs fairly well and has nice hands and feet though they need strength. James does have the ability to block shots. He is athletic and long. He is a top 75 player in the 2009 class nationally.''

By KEVIN McNAMARA

PROVIDENCE - The Friars have struck again on the recruiting trail, this time dipping into the junior college ranks for swingman Kyle Wright.
A 6-6 native of Hartford, Wright is enrolled at Monroe Junior College in the Bronx. Wright has made stops at Stony Brook and the University of Colorado but will play in New York this season and enroll at PC next fall.
Wright is the fourth recruit to verbally commit to the Friars and are expected to sign with PC next month. The others are guards Antoine Allen of Baltimore, Duke Mondy of Michigan and forward Kadeem Batts of Atlanta.
Wright play at STONY BROOK in 2006-07 and averaged 2.8 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. He scored a season-best nine points against Vermont. Wright sat out at Colorado last season but left that school last June.
Wright played at Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H. and averaged 13 points, six rebounds and three assists per game in his final season. He lettered all four years.
This summer, Wright played in the Hartford Summer League against several URI and UConn players and earned rave reviews.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) - West Virginia basketball players Joe Mazzulla and Cam Thoroughman have pleaded guilty to charges stemming from a July scuffle with police at a Pittsburgh Pirates game.

The two were charged with disorderly conduct and public drunkenness Monday in Pittsburgh Municipal Court. Other charges were dropped. Each player was ordered to pay $222 in fines and court costs.

Both players can request to have their records expunged after paying their fines.

Mazzulla, a Hendricken High School graduate from Johnston, is a junior and is expected to be the starting point guard this season. Thoroughman is a redshirt sophomore.

Despite owning verbal commitments from three prep players already, Keno Davis and his staff continue to work the class of 2009 very hard.
The Friars are wrapping up an important weekend today after campus visits from two highly-regarded prospects: 6-9 forward Talib Zanna of Maryland and 6-2 guard Chris Colvin of Chicago. Both players were spotted on campus this weekend. Getting either of these two players to sign on in November would be a coup for the Friars.
PC is already expecting three high schoolers to sign letters-of-intnet: guards Antoine Allen and Duke Mondy and power forward Kadeem Batts. Zanna, who plays at one of my favorite high schools in the land (Bishop McNamara), is also looking at Pittsburgh and Villanova. He'd be the promising big man that the class sorely needs. Colvin is being recruited at a very high level (hearing from Kentucky, Illinois, Southern Cal) but whether those schools have made him an absolute priority is not clear at this point.
We'll see if either Zanna or Colvin pops for the Friars in the coming days.

There are no weekends off in the recruiting game. We found out last night that PC had gotten a third verbal commitment, this one from big forward (6-8, 230) Kadeem Batts of Atlanta. But when your computer is an hour away, you can't do very much.

Anyways, just got off the phone with Batts and his high school coach. Two impressive guys who are focused on trying to win a state championship this season.

With Batts joining guards Antoine Allen and Duke Mondy, the Friars are off and running in the Keno Davis era. There is a report that another Michigan prepster, 6-7 shooter Ben Simons, will visit PC next weekend and we hear that the staff feels good about its position with Talib Zanna, a 6-9 post player from Maryland; Detroit's James Still and Connecticut's Jordan Williams.

Here is the story on Batts that will appear in Monday's Journal . . .

BY KEVIN McNAMARA
Journal Sports Writer

PROVIDENCE - First it was Maryland. Then Michigan. Now Keno Davis' first recruiting class as Providence College's head coach is growing again with an addition from Georgia.

Kadeem Batts, a 6-foot-8 forward from John McEachern High in Powder Springs, Ga., has committed to the Friars. Batts visited Providence this weekend and committed to Davis before he returned home to Atlanta yesterday. Batts joins two guards, Antoine Allen of Baltimore and Duke Mondy of Grand Rapids, Mich., in a class of recruits that can sign letters-of-intent in November and arrive on campus next summer.

"I don't know Duke but, I got to scrimmage with Antoine and he's a real good scorer and passer," Batts said. "Basketball-wise, it's a real good fit for me up there."

Batts, who is regarded as a tough rebounder and shot blocker and is only 17 years old, heard from a wide variety of colleges. Indiana, Marquette, Minnesota, Western Kentucky and the College of Charleston all offered scholarships, according to McEachern coach Mike Thompson.

Batts may live in Georgia but he's returning home by choosing to play in the Big East. The 230-pound forward grew up in Boston and attended Lincoln-Sudbury High for two years before moving to the Atlanta suburbs last summer. After hearing from Providence when Tim Welsh was coach, Batts continued to think about PC once Davis and assistant coach Pat Skerry contacted him last spring.

"I'm still a Boston guy," Batts said yesterday just before asking how the Patriots were doing. "We moved down there for family issues, but I'm looking forward to getting back."

Batts joined a powerhouse prep program at McEachern that plays in Atlanta's highest division (5-A) and boats alumni like NBA forwards Josh Smith and Shareef Abdur-Rahim. McEachern finished 22-8 last season and was knocked out of the playoffs last spring by Wheeler High, the alma mater of PC point guard Sharaud Curry.

Batts, Curry (Gainesville) and sophomore guard Marshon Brooks (Tucker) will give the Friars three Atlanta-area players in the program next season.

Batts was a key player for McEachern as a junior but averaged just 7 points and 5 rebounds a game. He was overshadowed by guard Trae Golden, who was one of the top sophomores in the country, and current University of Richmond freshman Darrius Garrett, but is hoping to share a much larger role with Golden this season. Golden is being recruited by high-profile colleges like Ohio State, Kentucky, Georgia and Georgia Tech.

"We've got five guys that will probably sign (with) Division One schools," said Thompson. "I don't look for his numbers to be gaudy but be can be a double-figure guy in points and rebounds and be our best defender. He understands that we can win a state championship."

Thompson added that PC is getting a high-quality prospect off the floor as well.

"In basketball you have a lot of self-centered, greedy kids but he's completely opposite of that. He's a very mature kid."

Batts, who says he weighs 230 pounds, is hoping to continue expanding his game this year and bring a variety of skills to the Big East next fall.

"I can step out and handle the ball and make shots and Coach Davis' system will let me do that," he said. "That's one of the reasons I think Providence is a good fit for me."

Keno Davis' staff continues to work in compiling a very important first recruiting class. PC is hosting two prospects this weekend, Antoine Allen and Kadeem Batts.
Allen, a guard from Baltimore, has already verbally committed to Providence and is expected to sign a letter-of-intent this November. Batts is a 6-7, 220 pound forward from McEachern High in Powder Springs, Ga. Batts, who is originally from Boston and was also recruited by PC when Tim Welsh was the coach, is regarded as an aggressive, rebounding forward. He's receiving widespread interest from college coaches, including those at Boston College, UMass, Cincinnati.
Allen and Michigan guard Duke Mondy have committed to PC. The Friars are still looking at some guards but the focus must be turned to big men since PC will lose Geoff McDermott, Randall Hanke and Jon Kale to graduation. Batts, Jordan Williams (6-8) and James Padgett (6-7) are three of the leading big forwards that Davis has been talking to.

KEVIN McNAMARA

By KEVIN McNAMARA
Journal Sports Writer

PROVIDENCE - First-year Providence College basketball coach Keno Davis is returning to his Midwestern roots on the recruiting trail.
Davis welcomed two Michigan natives to PC over the weekend and one of them, guard Duke Mondy of Grand Rapids, has committed to the Friars. Mondy, a 6-3 shooter who says he sees himself as `a playmaker' was also hearing from schools like Western Michigan, Ohio University, Central Michigan and Davis' former employer, Drake.
"Coach said he's on a mission to get the program back to the NCAA Tournament. I think I can help," said Mondy.
Mondy played for Catholic Central High in Grand Rapids last year and spent the last few summers with the Michigan Mustangs AAU program. While Mondy didn't attract the attention of in-state powers Michigan or Michigan State, he was known for his deep 3-point shooting range and athleticism.
"I think he can play at that level," said Mustangs coach Norm Oden. "They wouldn't have come after him if they didn't feel that way. I hope Duke can go up there to Providence and make us proud."
Mondy has played just one full year of varsity high school basketball because he transferred to Catholic Central in his sophomore season and played in only five games. Last year he led his team to an 18-5 record and averaged 17 points and broke the school record in steals.
"Duke's going to be a great combo guard for Providence," said T.J. Carnegie, the coach at Catholic Central. "Duke doesn't do anything spectacular but he does everything extremely well. He can shoot, he can defend, he really competes, he rebounds and he's the best passer I've ever had. He's an all-around basketball player."
Mondy is the second prep player to verbally commit to Davis. The Friars have five seniors on the current roster and need a deep and talented class to rebuild around. Antoine Allen, a Baltimore guard who is enrolled at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Mass., is the other player who's committed to PC and is expected to sign a letter-of-intent in November.
Mondy was joined on his official visit to PC by another Michigan native, forward James Still. A 6-8, 210-pounder from Detroit, Still is regarded as one of the better big men in the state. He is considering PC, Baylor, Duquesne and Xavier, among other schools. "He liked Providence a lot, too," said Mondy.
Mondy, Still and Ben Simons, a 6-7 shooter from Cadillac, Mich., have all been linked with Providence ever since Keno Davis became the new coach last spring. Chris Davis, one of the assistants who came to PC from Drake, has deep midwest roots and has recruited Michigan high schoolers for nearly 20 years.
In Mondy and Allen, PC may be set at the guard position in what will be an important recruiting class for the Friars. Allen is now at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Mass., where he is teaming with another PC target, 6-4 guard Sean Kilpatrick. Kilpatrick and Still are two of the recruits PC remains heavily involved with. Others include Connecticut forwards Jordan Williams and Tevin Baskin, New York forward James Padgett and Georgia big man Kadeem Batts.

kmcnamar@projo.com /401-277-7340