Bruin Recruiting: Prep News Roundup (3/8)

By Bruin Basketball Report

Prep News Roundup is published every Monday.  

Commits

Incoming freshmen Josh Smith and Tyler Lamb (Mater Dei) are expected to enroll early at UCLA and be part of summer workouts. OC Register 3/2

Joshua Smith doesn't want to end his senior season with any regrets. So, in his final trip to the state tournament — his first since freshman year — he's doing everything possible to extend it as long as he can. Kentwood's senior scored the first seven points of the game, leading the Conquerors to the quarterfinals. The Panthers (19-7) didn't bring a double team against Smith in the post early on, so the UCLA-bound big man went to work right away. "It just kind of gave me a green light when they played man," said Smith, who finished with 28 points, 18 rebounds and five assists. "Then I thought, hey, if they're going to play man, I've got to go every time." Once Smith established himself inside, Kentwood (17-10) got hot from outside, with Tre Tyler hitting two first-half three-pointers. It was 20-4 after just one quarter, but the Panthers didn't quit and played a competitive second half. "No team's going to quit," Smith said. "This is state." Seattle Times 3/3

Joshua Smith again made it look so effortless. Smith, the Conquerors' 6-9, 290-pound center, tossed in 23 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and added two dunks as Kentwood moved into the semifinals for the first time since 2005. The Conquerors (18-10) won for the 12th time in 14 games and will try to beat tournament surprise Wilson (20-8) at 8:30 Friday night. Smith, who's headed to UCLA, left the game with 3:06 remaining, shortly after Eastlake fans chanted "USC!" as he shot free throws. Minutes earlier, Smith threw down a thunderous two-handed dunk. Seattle Times 3/4

Joshua Smith is an imposing figure at 6-foot-9, 290 pounds. But he's really just a big teddy bear. After Kentwood beat Wilson, 57-44, Friday night to get back into the Class 4A state championship game for the first time since 2005, the Conquerors' 6-foot-9, 290-pound center showed how soft his heart is. "This is really how every kid wants to end their senior year," said Smith, who had 20 points and 11 rebounds against Wilson. "I told them (Wilson players) to keep their heads up. They had a great season. Even though we won, we kind of felt bad for them." Smith, the nation's No. 1-rated high school center, left the court high-fiving a long line of Wilson fans on the way to the locker room. Seattle Times 3/5

For four days during the Class 4A boys state tournament, teams tried to slow down Joshua Smith. After a 67-58 victory over Jackson Saturday night, no team succeeded. He beat back double teams. He scored with players tugging at his arms and jersey. He set up teammates for open jump shots and they knocked them down. For the first time since his freshman year, the UCLA-bound Smith played in the state tournament. He ended his career a champion. "I told them, 'Hey, I'm going to put us on my back and we're going to go off on a good note,' " said Smith, who had 22 points, 16 rebounds and five assists. Seattle Times 3/6

So there was a little extra oomph in the top-seeded Monarchs' celebration Saturday after they held on for a 68-65 victory over Etiwanda in the Division 1AA championship for their first section title since 2006....The senior guard duo of Gary Franklin Jr. and Tyler Lamb came up big for Mater Dei, with Lamb scoring 22 points and Franklin getting 21. LA Times 3/6

Recruits

Josiah Turner, Sacramento. No one can produce instant offense like the 6-3 junior guard, who scored 37 points and led a 22-4 fourth-quarter run as Sac High pulled away from Lincoln in the D-III quarterfinals. Turner is ninth in the state in scoring at 27.8. SacBee 3/1

In a battle that is of significantly more consequence nationally, Ray McCallum Jr., a four-star player who checks in at No. 60 of the Rivals Top 150 (video here), is picking between a host of college hoops' blue bloods ... and Detroit Mercy. Something doesn't fit, right? Ray McCallum Sr. is the coach at Detroit Mercy, so the choice is simple: be another McDonald's All-American at one of the schools like Kansas, UCLA, etc. or go be the savior for an entire school -- and your dad -- at Detroit Mercy. The latter just doesn't happen. People fantasized about Harrison Barnes staying in Ames and saving Iowa State, but he picked North Carolina. Sporting News 3/2

James Arnold scored 21 points and pulled down 10 rebounds in Mount Pleasant's 75-50 victory over Gaylord on Tuesday night. Trey Zeigler added 18 points for the Oilers MLive 3/2

Although the Rams made a nice final-quarter run, it couldn't overshadow another spectacular performance by Josiah Turner, Sac High's dynamic 6-3 junior guard. He scored 32 points on an assortment of highlight-reel runners, jumpers, putbacks and twisting layups. He also had six assists, six rebounds and two blocks....Despite playing almost the entire game, Turner had 10 fourth-quarter points. Averaging 27.8 points entering the game, he finished 14 of 24 from the field and 3 of 5 from the foul line. "Josiah is just a natural," Swafford said. "If he ever gets serious and plays the kind of defense college coaches look for, he could be one of the top players in the nation next season."  Sac Bee 3/4

Our defense let us down a bit in the second half and they beat us on the boards. Those two things hurt us," said Mt. Pleasant coach Sam Taylor. Trey Zeigler registered 24 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, and three blocked shots in the losing effort. Morning Sun 3/5

Starting fast and building a 20-point lead at one point in the first half, the No. 2-seeded Hornets held on in the final quarter for a 58-51 victory over Hoover to claim the CIF San Diego Section Division II championship at the Jenny Craig Pavilion...Hoover's 6-10 junior center Angelo Chol took game-scoring honors with 25 points to go with 16 rebounds. NC Times 3/5

The Democrats mauled South Albany 122-78 to advance to the Oregon School Activities Association Class 5A tournament, which begins Thursday in Eugene. The two-time defending champions are attempting to become the first team to win three consecutive state titles in Oregon's big-school classifications.... "We never experienced a game like that, where we were playing that fast. We got kind of tired," said the 6-foot-9 Terrence Jones, who scored 31 points and blocked seven shots. Oregon Live 3/6