Bruin Recruiting: Prep News Roundup (8/23)

By Bruin Basketball Report

Prep News Roundup is published every Monday.

Recruits

Armed with 10 scholarships for the 2011-12 season, Lavin is now reaching out to recruits far and wide, including many on the West Coast, trying to sell them on the appeal of playing at the Garden. "It's still as a strong a selling point for St. John's as any of the other key factors, like tradition and heritage and a great city and a great school," Lavin said. "I think coast-to-coast, Madison Square Garden still represents the grandest stage that there is to play basketball." St. John's is involved with numerous top prospects in the Class of 2011, including Rivals.com's No. 13 Jabari Brown of Oakland, Calif.,; No. 23 Quinn Cook of Prince George's County, Md.; No. 37 JaKarr Sampson of Akron, Ohio; No. 44 Norvel Pelle of Compton, Calif. SNY 8/17

Following a game at the Fab 48 tournament last month in Las Vegas, a local reporter asked Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep guard Nick Johnson about where UNLV factors into his recruitment. Johnson did his best impression of a politician dancing the line on a hot topic and went with, “Well, I wouldn’t say I’ve ruled them out. They’re still recruiting me. I still hear from them every now and again. …” Johnson then looked my way knowing that I covered UA athletics — it was only me and the Las Vegas Sun reporter talking to him — and he said, “I mean, I’m not sure right now. If I get one (program) that I feel like it will be best for me, I might commit right there. But who knows?” He then smiled. Turns out he got this urge and committed right there — to Arizona on Wednesday. Tucson Citizen 8/19

Jahii Carson may or may not fit in the same backcourt with Nick Johnson, but Josiah Turner already has. The two paired together on the Drew Gooden (Oakland) Soldiers over the summer, and it remains possible that Turner could join Johnson at Arizona. A 6-foot-3 point guard, Turner is scheduled to visit Louisville and Oregon next month, then go to Kansas for Late Night in the Phog and for the Red/Blue Game at Arizona the following weekend. Turner said Arizona's recruiting picked up considerably over the summer, and multiple UA coaches routinely attended the Soldiers' games. Turner said he has not decided what his last visit will be, though he is also considering Connecticut, Oklahoma and UCLA. He said last month he likes the weather and location of Arizona so the Wildcats could have an advantage there over the others. Arizona Daily Star 8/20

As the No. 1 shooting guard in the Class of 2011, Austin Rivers' elusiveness on the hardwood is one of the skills big-time college coaches marvel at; they admire his quick first step, his confidence and control. But as his recruitment intensifies and heads into a climactic fall, Rivers' talent in dodging all the curiosity about his college plans has heightened the intrigue. Four elite college basketball programs remain in the running: Duke, North Carolina, Florida and Kansas. Which means message boards for all four sets of fans frequently buzz with informed chatter and wild speculation. Fay Observer 8/20

DeAndre Daniels, considered one of the top power forwards in the Class of 2011, recently backed off his commitment from the University of Texas. Now it appears Daniels might reclassify into the Class of 2010 and enroll at a college some time in the next week. Multiple scouting sites reported last week that Daniels is eligible to make the move into the Class of 2010 and play this season. “He qualified, and he's cleared by the NCAA,” Woodland Hills (Calif.) Taft coach Derrick Taylor told Scout.com. “They want him now. The coaches want him in on Monday. He's been getting offers.” Daniels is expected to visit Southern California and UCLA this weekend and is also considering UK. Courier-Journal 8/21

Oak Hill Academy guard Quinn Cook has narrowed his list to seven schools: UCLA, Arizona, Duke, St.John's, Georgetown, Rutgers and North Carolina. Courier-Journal 8/21

Coach Herb Sendek provided more evidence that the Sun Devil basketball program will continue to be perennial conference contenders when he received a commitment from Mesa High School guard Jahii Carson on Saturday. Carson is an explosive 5’11” point guard who will be staying in-state after he de-committed from Oregon State after a junior season in which he set school records with 23.5 points and 7.2 assists per game. He was ranked in the top 12 nationally among all point guard recruits in the class of 2011 by numerous scouting services. He also attracted interest from Arizona, St. John’s, Washington and UCLA. Phoenix Examiner 8/22