By Alex Kline

By Alex Kline

Not since the 2009-2010 Cornell squad that made the sweet sixteen has there been a more interesting storyline in the Ivy League; and while the Harvard Crimson’s 2010-11 season ended on a bitter note, the future is bright in Cambridge.

By Alex Kline

Chris Walker, a 6-foot-9 2013 small forward out of Holmes County High School in Bonifay, Florida, has set a date for his college decision.

The Sunshine State product will choose between Florida, Florida State, Memphis, Baylor, Kentucky, Ohio State, Kansas, UConn and Kansas State on November 15th. Walker, who has more than fifteen scholarship offers, has seen himself transform into an extremely athletic and agile player on the court. Someone who runs the floor extremely well for his size, he is one of the ten most coveted players in his class and hopes to bring a few players with him to his college destination.

“After I commit, I’m hoping to get someone like Nerlens Noel, Brannen Greene, Andrew and Aaron Harrison, Julius Randle, Kasey Hill or Jabari Parker to come with me,” he stated. A majority of Walker’s schools are in play with these players, including in-state star Kasey Hill, a point guard from Montverde, who is being pursued heavily by Florida and Florida State.

As for the date of Walker’s commitment, he has had it in the back of his mind since freshman year.

“I’ve wanted to announce my decision before the first game of my year,” he said. “I’ve thought about doing that since my freshman year.”

With a decision looming in less than two months, the only school who has yet to offer are the Kentucky Wildcats. While head coach John Calipari’s top target in the class of 2013 is 6-foot-7 Simeon (IL) forward Jabari Parker, he will likely watch the talented Chris Walker play in a few weeks.

The local Floridian has made a few trips to Florida State and Florida, recently, which could boast well for both the Seminoles and Gators. On the other hand, Walker hopes to visits Kentucky, Ohio State, UConn, Kansas, Kansas State, Memphis and Baylor in the near future. Kansas State was the first school to watch him at workouts this fall. He has favored Ohio State and a number of other schools before. The next two months of Chris Walker’s recruitment could get very interesting, very soon.

(Photo courtesy of Rivals.com)

By Alex Kline

Coming into the summer, all Ronny Paden needed was one scholarship offer. One offer to provide for his mother. One offer to get to the next level in life.

“To get where I’m at now wasn’t very easy,” said Paden. “A lot of ups and downs and distractions that took me off the right path to where I really needed to go. I obviously got myself here through hardwork, dedication, learning and listening to others while have to remain disciplined.”

On Tuesday, the 2012 6-foot-4 guard from Willingboro in New Jersey, accepted a scholarship offer when he verbally committed to St. Peter’s. The former Trenton Catholic guard of three years took an unofficial visit earlier in the day and decided to take his only offer.

“My visit with St. Peter’s went very well this evening,” he said. “I liked the campus and have a real good connection with the staff and some players, as well.”

Paden, who was appreciative of Peacocks’ coaches John Dunne and Bruce Hamburger recruiting him hard, will join his former teammate from Trenton Catholic, Markese Tucker. Tucker spent his freshman year as a Prop-48 but will be playing this year.

An explosive combo guard who can score the ball in various ways, Paden spent his summer with Team NJABC and played extremely well at numerous Hoop Group events. An offensive threat who plays good defense, Paden has the ability to play the 1, 2 and 3 in the MAAC.

“I got what I wanted, which was to have my my mother pay nothing for me to go to school,” he stated. “She’s been through double the trouble and pain I’ve had to go through. Succceeding from this point here on out is what I intend to do.”

(Photo courtesy of Hoop Group)

By Alex Kline

Arguably the top player in the class of 2012, coaches have salivated over Kyle Anderson’s ridiculous skill set since he was in the seventh grade.

On Monday night, he made his college decision. The New Jersey native will head to the west coast where he will play in the Pac-12 at UCLA.

“I chose UCLA cause I feel they can help me improve my defense and we will have a good chance of winning a National Championship,” said Anderson. “Coach Howland says that I will be fighting for the point guard spot, as long as I’m on the court I’ll be good.”

After visiting the California school multiple times throughout the summer, and often before due to events, it was Ben Howland and the Bruins who came out on top. The 2012 star guard/forward combo chose UCLA over Seton Hall, St. John’s, Georgetown and Florida. He joins Jordan Adams, a 2012 forward from Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, as well as Dominic Artis, a 2012 point guard from Findlay Prep in Nevada, both of whom previously committed to the Bruins back in the summer.

Anderson’s commitment to UCLA shakes the college basketball world in various ways. For Ben Howland, a coach whose had a bumpy road at UCLA, this helps his job security with an excellent class coming in that is not complete yet. That being said, it is a tough break for Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard, who was expected by many at the last second to land the in-state star.

“I hope Shabazz comes to UCLA too, but he has to make his own choice for what’s best for him. But my fingers are crossed,” he stated by email.

As the Arizona program has become a top-ten school in the country, the next question is whether Kyle Anderson, the 2012 UCLA recruiting class which could grow and the current team, an not only make a run at them for the Pac-12 title, but maybe a national championship down the line.

(Photo courtesy of ESPN)

By Alex Kline

Coming into his senior year, Charles Cooke decided it was time to give AAU a go. The 6-foot-5 wing from Trenton Catholic in New Jersey would start his first AAU season with Team NJABC and ultimately turn some heads with his long wingspan, shooting range and raw ability to play the game.

After taking an official visit this weekend to James Madison, Cooke verbally committed on Sunday morning to the Dukes.

“Charles Cooke, a 2012 6’5″ SG from Team NJABC/Trenton Catholic, just verbally committed to James Madison University while on an official visit,” said his AAU coach Matt Pauls.

“James Madison was a great fit for my family and I,” he said by phone. “We visited this weekend and I felt a connection with the campus and coaches. I look forward to playing at JMU next fall.”

After a short recruiting process that ended up lasting from April to September, Cooke chose James Madison over La Salle, St. Joe’s, Siena, Hofstra, Delaware and more.

A member of the 2009-10 Trenton Catholic team who defeated St. Anthony for the state championship, followed by winning the NJ TOC over Camden Catholic, Cooke stepped up his junior year and will play a pivotal role in the Iron Mikes success this year. That Trenton Catholic team now features Frantz Massenat (Drexel), Khalid Lewis (Delaware), Brandon Taylor (Penn State), Chazz Patterson (Mount St. Mary’s), Markese Tucker (St. Peter’s), Dondre Whitmore (Harcum JUCO) and Ronny Paden, who could commit next week, along with Cooke to JMU.

(Photo courtesy of Stephen Goldsmith)

By Alex Kline

After emerging onto the scene and becoming a well known name throughout his junior year, Quenton DeCosey’s fire and desire on the court has paid off. On Thursday morning, the rising senior made his college decision for the fall of 2012.

“I have verbally committed to Temple,” he said. “I am very excited about the opportunity.”

DeCosey is a versatile 2012 6-foot-5 wing from St. Joseph’s Metuchen in New Jersey. He runs with Sports University/Team Izod on the AAU circuit and proved just how talented he was during the month of July. With offers coming in from schools like Penn State, Richmond, Seton Hall, West Virginia, Virginia Tech and George Washington, among others, the future Owl knew where he would take his talents to when he visited campus officially last week.

“I picked Temple because of its academic program, coaching staff, family environment, players and distance,” he said. For DeCosey, he contemplated between going to Penn State and Temple. Now that he joins the A10, he will pair up with fellow 2012 Owls commit Devontae Watson of Pittsburgh. The two are both borderline high major players who will end up making a huge impact in the Atlantic Ten when all is said and done.

Coach Fran Dunphy and squad now look to land a combo forward and their third commit of the class in Daniel Dingle, a 2012 star from St. Raymond’s in New York.

(Photo courtesy of NJ.com)

By Alex Kline

On Tuesday morning, Jordan Chatman decided to follow in his father’s footsteps by verbally committing to his alma-mater.

The 2012 6-foot-4 point guard from Union in Washington chose BYU over Boston College, Portland, Stanford, Utah, Utah State and Washington State, according to his father, Jeff.

“I love their style of play,” he stated. “I love the up-tempo system that coach Rose runs. That was a big factor in my decision.”

While the two are very different players, the younger Chatman had a few AAU tournaments and is arguably one of the top players to come out of the state of Washington this year. Chatman hails from the the west coast, however he is all to fond of BYU’s storied basketball program. Since he was young, Chatman watched highlights of his dad. He would always hear stories of how his dad’s legacy as a BYU Cougar basketball player was so huge.

(Photo courtesy of Cougarsportsonline.com)

By Alex Kline

After much thought and a couple of local unofficial visits, TJ Warren has narrowed his list down to five schools.

The 2012 6-foot-8 small forward from North Carolina lists his, “final five is Georgetown, North Carolina, NC State, Florida and Kentucky, in no order.”

Warren is satisfied with his final five and excited about the process. “I feel each of those five schools fits my style of play of a high scoring wing,” he said on Tuesday afternoon. “I will set up visits when I arrive at Brewster Academy and get my schedule.”

As he spends his senior year under Jason Smith at Brewster in New Hampshire, the athletic forward plans on attending Midnight Madness at Kentucky on the weekend of October 15th. For Warren, this will be an official visit. At Kentucky, he could take on the role of Terrence Jones once he declares for the NBA Draft after his sophomore season.

Florida, Georgetown, NC State and North Carolina all possess ideal fits for him, too. With the two home-state schools, Warren can stay local and play in front of his family. At Georgetown and Florida he can receive a solid education and play for two head coaches who have Hall of Fame resumes.

No decision date has been set yet.

(Photo courtesy of PackInsider.com)

By Alex Kline

When legendary Maryland coach Gary Williams decided to step down and retire from his position last spring, it left the Terrapin nation in shock. Both fans, players, recruits and the rest of the college basketball world were in dismay as Williams was done with coaching. After several 2011 recruits backed out of their letters of intent, it left Maryland’s new coach, former Texas A&M coach, Mark Turgeon, in an interesting position. With the location, academics and likability of the school in relation to the DMV area, would Turgeon and his staff be able to get the job done?

That is to be determined based on the fact that no games have been played yet. At the same time, recruiting and winning over your current players is instrumental and Turgeon has already done both.

Maryland sophomore Pe’shon Howard is one of those players who has been won over. A Williams recruit, Howard recently tweeted, “I think with our new staff they do a great job recruiting and the upcoming year we will have a top 3 recruiting class and top 5 after that.”

Whether Howard knew or did not know what would happen on Monday night is up in the air, but the Terps put themselves in contention to have a top-5 recruiting class. Jake Layman, a talented 2012 6-foot-8 small forward from King Philip in Massachusetts, verbally committed to Maryland. He chose them over national powerhouses Florida, Louisville and Syracuse.

“I just loved everything about the school,” Layman told the Boston Herald. “I met the players and they seemed like nice guys. I loved the coaches and the style of basketball they want to play really fits me. Plus, I get a chance to play in the Comcast Center. The places seats nearly 18,000 and I heard it is almost sold out for every game.”

He joins the talented class of 2012, which features two other solid verbals in Shaquille Cleare and Seth Allen. Cleare is a massive center from Texas, and Allen is a shooting guard from Virginia.

On top of that, Turgeon and his impressive staff of Bino Ransom, Dalonte Hill and Scott Spinelli, could add a fourth recruit this week. After having Jerami Grant, a 2012 in-state forward from DeMatha at their football game on Monday night, he could end up a Terp. According to the Washington Post, Grant is down to two schools, Maryland and Rutgers; both of which he attended football games in the past week. If Grant were to pledge, the Terrapins could end up as a top-three class on the recruiting front.

Lastly, it always takes a lot of strings to pull to get one impressive recruit on campus, but when you can get five on campus in the span of five days it helps. Amile Jefferson, Nate Britt and Kris Jenkins, along with Grant and Layman visited.

Whether the Terps finish off this big recruiting class is one thing, but if they can win some games this year and make some noise in the ACC. All around, Turgeon and company are giving hope to College Park; hope that has not been there since the Juan Dixon/Steve Blake/Tahj Holden days. Could Maryland be a Final Four contender in five years?

(Photo courtesy of the Courrier-Journal)

By Alex Kline

Brandon Taylor, a 2012 6-foot-7 power forward from Trenton Catholic in New Jersey, has made his verbal commitment.

After a tremendous spring and summer on the AAU circuit with Team Philly, the under the radar Taylor picked up loads of offers and publicity. On Monday, he came to a conclusion on where he would attend college for the next four years.

Taylor will join the Big Ten under Pat Chambers as he has committed to Penn State.

“The academics, coaching staff and location of Penn State were all part of my decision,” he said by phone on Monday. “Coach Chambers is a great coach and I enjoyed my visit to the school.”

He joins Akosa Maduegbunam, a 2012 wing from Winchendon (MA), who committed in the summer. The Garden State native chose the Nittany Lions over Richmond, Miami, South Florida, Drexel and others.

A versatile, big-bodied combo forward, Taylor can shoot it with a long and mid-range jumper. On top of that, he has established himself as a presence in the post with his size. Despite only possessing the height of 6-foot-7, he makes use out of every possession and is a lethal threat to score or get to the free throw line anytime the ball is in his hands.

(Photo courtesy of NJ.com)