Bruin Recruiting: Prep News Roundup (7/3)

By Bruin Basketball Report

Prep News Roundup is published every Monday.

Commits

The best boys' basketball tournament of the summer gets under way Tuesday and runs through Sunday at Los Angeles Fairfax.Fairfax, which won the Watts Summer Games championship behind UCLA-bound Chace Stanback, will face competition from Santa Ana Mater Dei, Westchester, North Hollywood Campbell Hall, Woodland Hills Taft and Los Angeles Loyola. L.A. Times 6/27

Taft of Woodland Hills guard Larry Drew did his best to help the Toreadors win their Fairfax Tournament semifinal game Saturday night, but Fairfax's Chace Stanback was just a little better. Despite picking up his third foul midway through the first half, forcing him to sit on the bench for much of the half, Stanback was virtually unstoppable in the second half. The 6-foot-7 forward, bound for UCLA, scored 18of his 20 points after intermission to lead host Fairfax to a 66-58 victory over Taft and into today's final against Long Beach Poly. "He's good. Very good," Taft coach Derrick Taylor said of Stanback. "He's one of the top 50 players in the nation. He's a match-up problem for anyone." L.A. Daily News 7/2


Recruits

An impressive 14-team field was on display during the first-ever J Serra Classic (played in the South Orange County school’s stunning a new gymnasium in San Juan Capistrano) this last weekend. [...] But the most impressive individual on display in the event Saturday played for Canyon High (Anaheim Hills) – Class of 2008 point guard, 6-1 Jerime Anderson. Scout.com 6/26

Archbishop Mitty center Drew Gordon, who will be a junior, is an alternate to the U.S. under-18 national basketball team, after being cut Friday when the team was whittled from 16 to 14 players, from an original 32. "I wanted to prove a point to everybody that I could play,'' said Gordon, at 15 the youngest player invited to the San Antonio tryout camp. ``I doubted myself for the first day or two, especially my ability to shoot. But I improved by leaps and bounds every day.'' Mercury News 6/27

The 12th annual War on the Floor Tournament championship game Tuesday night featured a pair of of the area's top point guards in Taft of Woodland Hills' Larry Drew and Poly of Sun Valley's DJ Gay. And the two went at one another from the opening whistle to the final buzzer with Drew taking home most valuable player honors after finishing with 12 points, six assists and four steals to lead the Toreadors to a 66-58 victory at Taft. L.A. Daily News 6/28

Kyle Singler will pad his USA Basketball resume for a second straight summer after the 6-foot-9 forward was selected Monday as a member of the 12-man USA men's U18 national team.
The South Medford High senior-to-be proved himself to be a valuable commodity for his play on both sides of the court, as well as his willingness to share the basketball. His consistent play ranked Singler among the top scorers and rebounders in scrimmages over the past two weeks. Mail Tribune 6/28

Starting forward Kyle Singler scored nine points as the USA Men's U18 basketball team routed Uruguay 111-64 Wednesday in its debut at the FIBA Americas Championship for Men held at Bill Greehy Arena on the St. Mary's University campus. Mail Tribune 6/29

The second day of the Lute Olson Advanced Skills Camp began with another morning full of instruction and competition [...] The first game featured the two teams I’d see the most. On one side you had Jeff Withey, Chase Budinger, Zane Johnson, Luke Babbitt and Kamyron Brown. On the other side were Laval Lucas-Perry, Alex Jacobson, Jeremy Tyler, Nick Wise and Jamelle Horne. Wildcat Insider 6/30

The UCLA’s Advanced Skills Camp kicked off Wednesday, with plenty of advanced skills to see. Both from the players and from the UCLA coaches. About 80 campers participated Wednesday, with more to come today. Headliner Kevin Love, the 6-9 rising-senior post player from Lake Oswego (Calif.) High, and UCLA-committed Chace Stanback, the 6-6 forward from Los Angeles (Calif.) Fairfax, both didn’t participate Wednesday but are expected to Thursday. The Bootleg.com 6/30

UCLA's big target, Kevin Love, makes an appearance, but the rising junior guard, Jrue Holiday from North Hollywood (Calif.) Campbell Hall, arrives Thursday and shows why he should be considered a top five prospect in the country for 2008. BruinReportOnline 6/30

The USA overcame a sluggish third quarter to overwhelm Brazil 90-66 on Friday at Greehey Arena in group play at the FIBA Americas U-18 Championship for Men. [...] Small forward Kyle Singler, not yet a senior at his Oregon high school, dribbled the length of the court before dropping off a no-look bounce pass to Hawes for a power dunk. SA Express-News 7/1

Most in attendance were talking, some admiring, others gushing, about the way Taft of Woodland Hills' Larry Drew took over the final four minutes of the quarterfinal showdown in the Fairfax Tournament against Campbell Hall of North Hollywood, guiding the Toreadors to a 73-66 victory and into today's semifinal clash against host Fairfax. "I've said this before, and I'll say it again, Larry is just one of those big-time players who makes big-time plays in big-time situations," Taft coach Derrick Taylor said. L.A. Daily News 7/1

It’s the first day of interviews at the Nike All-America Camp, and reporters are talking to some of the nation’s best recruits. [...] Kevin Love, Gerald Henderson, Nolan Smith and Spencer Hawes, among others, all come from rich basketball backgrounds. Still, it’s safe to say that living up to the legacy of Stan Love is a little easier than being the next Michael Jordan. The Online Wire 7/1

The Lute Olson Advanced Skills Camp wrapped up the on-court portion of the camp early Saturday morning. Although the players still had a question and answer session ahead of them, their last chance to strut their stuff on the court concluded with more drills and more scrimmaging. The team of the day was made up of Alex Jacobson, Laval Lucas-Perry, Luke Babbitt, Chase Budinger and Kamyron Brown. Wildcat Insider 7/1

Morrison has made Gonzaga a ‘cool’ spot: Elite recruits no longer write off Pacific Northwest school. [...] Small forward Austin Daye of Irvine, Calif., might become the most decorated high school recruit to choose Gonzaga. MSNBC 7/1

The new coaching staff headed by Herb Sendek has pursued blue chipper James Harden for several weeks now. Following an unofficial visit to Tempe, as well as a last-minute canceled visit to Tucson, the coveted Artesia High School (Calif.) guard has put the maroon and gold at the top of his list. The Devil's Digest 7/1

Drew can't rescue Taft: Taft of Woodland Hills guard Larry Drew did his best to help the Toreadors win their Fairfax Tournament semifinal game Saturday night, but Fairfax's Chace Stanback was just a little better. L.A. Daily News 7/2

The United States under-18 team defeat Canada 92-66 in the semifinals of the 2006 FIBA Americas U18 Championship Saturday. With a top-four finish assured, the Americans have earned a berth in the 2007 FIBA U19 World Championship.[...] Kyle Singler, a 6-foot-8 high-school junior from Medford, Ore., who is considering attending Washington, had 13 points and nine rebounds in 23 minutes. The Seattle Times 7/2

Zane Johnson is an in-state kid who has always wanted to go to Arizona. The 6-foot-6 Thunderbird High (Ariz.) shooter finally got his wish this past weekend after putting on an impressive performance at a skills camp in Tucson. When the offer finally came, Zane Johnson didn’t hesitate. WeAreSC 7/2

Playing with the type of effort and teamwork not normally associated with American basketball, the USA wore down overmatched Argentina 104-82 on Sunday night at Greehey Arena to claim the gold medal at the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship for Men. Center Spencer Hawes had 24 points and 10 rebounds and Taylor King came off the bench to score 14. Kyle Singler, who was on pace for a triple double at halftime before fouling out late, and Michael Beasley each finished with 13 points. SA Express-News 7/3

Kyle Singler showed Sunday the versatility that has made him one of the most coveted basketball recruits in the country.Singler, a senior-to-be at South Medford High, started and scored 13 points, dished out six assists and added five rebounds and two steals to help the USA Men's U18 basketball team romp to a 104-82 victory over Argentina in the gold-medal game at the FIBA Americas U18 Championships.The 6-foot-9 Singler shot 5-for-8 from the field before fouling out midway through the fourth quarter. Mail Tribune 7/3

(BruinBasketballReport.com)

(photo credit: scout.com)