Some interesting news items for Friday

Here's a bunch of assorted news items that you may find interesting...


In many of the pro-am and summer basketball leagues, plenty of virtual unknowns are still putting up tremendous numbers.
This is obviously because nobody plays defense and everyone gets uncontested shots.

Here are just a couple examples...
in almost any week, you can find names like
--Eric Washpun putting up 31 points
--Kyle Schlaak putting up 24
--Chip Rank going for 19
--Joey Woods (Upper Iowa College) hitting for 24 pts
--teams hitting 15-29 on 3-pointers and scoring 120 points in a game with a running clock!
-and other total unknowns putting up 39 points in a game
http://primetimeleague.com/6-19ptlstats.htm
http://primetimeleague.com/7-5ptlstats.htm
http://primetimeleague.com/6-28ptlstats.htm

And yet -- there's a similar league over in Indianapolis, and surprisingly some of the very good and even very experienced Indiana Hooiser players are having trouble even scoring a SINGLE POINT -- gotta wonder...

"IU's Tom Pritchard (2 rebs), Matt Roth were scoreless for Team Green, which beat Gray 70-67 in OT."
http://twitter.com/#!/JeffRabjohns/status/88385990560972800


A discussion on the Indiana board about their guys not even being able to score a single point in one of these total no-defense summer games results in people saying those guys ought to be Creaned!!
http://indiana.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=731&tid=160048058&mid=160048058&sid=942&style=2

BTW -- look for some more news on Matt Roth as the summer drags on........


Here's one other interesting video of an Indiana 5-Star recruit -- Hanner Perea in some summer competition -- note how easily he gets his shots -- absolutely NO defense and yet -- if you watch the video -- he, as well as his teammates, flub the ball all over the place, miss numerous wide open bunnies, and even dunks, and this is a hand-picked assortment of plays on a freaking HIGHLIGHT video - for gosh sakes!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEXr1of-RUM



Michael Beasley caught with dope again - and speeding at 84 mph...
He's his own worst enemy, and watch for Beas to give this alibi....
"I didn't know I was going that fast and the dope wasn't mine....I don't know who left it in my car..."
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=6743344



Ex-Missouri State coach Cuonzo Martin - now at Tennessee apparently feels a little pressure from and is taking some heat from some recent articles criticizing his recruiting and citing that he's still bringing in low level, mid-major caliber recruits...
So -- Cuonzo feels compelled to address those rips at him that he's under-recruiting and landing only 2- and 3- star kids and mid-major level recruits....

Cuonzo says...
"It's funny, I've heard a couple of times people wonder if I can recruit big-time players,'' he said. "I recruited in the Big 10 for eight years. I've seen talent, and I know what I'm looking for.''

...then he goes right into a discussion of how you get the guys who are under the radar that nobody's heard of!!!
Ha, ha.....indeed he's still using mid-major and low-major techniques...and does NOT endear himself to his fan base by saying this....they believe he should be recruiting the top names and 4- & 5-Star recruits...
"It never fails, 10 or 15 guys get under that radar going into their junior or senior year,'' Martin said. "So for us, we want to identify those guys and get those relationships built before that happens."

But -- there's ONE obvious big time reason why Cuonzo might not get many calls back from top recruits...
"UT is expected to be placed on probation and could lose scholarships and/or face additional sanctions as a result of NCAA recruiting violations committed by former coach Bruce Pearl and the previous coaching staff, all of whom were terminated on March 21 - six days before Martin was hired."
http://www.govolsxtra.com/news/2011/jul/07/martin-is-visible-to-recruits/




Thankfully the folks at SI keep their eye on all the college cheaters -- the NCAA sure doesn't...
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/andy_staples/07/05/cheating-for-dummies/index.html?xid=cnnbin



On campus arenas CAN be profitable...
http://www.slu.edu/x37788.xml

BTW -- Saint Louis head coach Rick Majerus has already named his starters --
http://twitter.com/#!/TheHoopsReport/status/89321305157021697

....and Majerus is skipping the busy July recruiting period...
http://heardthisblog.com/?p=462



Tom Izzo mocks college coaches who recruit middle-schoolers by telling a 7th grader that he's already too old...
Izzo also uses some interesting phrases...saying the 7th grader thinks he's an "asshole"....kind of an odd word to use in a conversation about what a 7th grader is thinking...
http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/26283066/30498530?source=rss_teams_Michigan_State_Spartans



More proof of something I have contended that the big time, expensive prep schools just don't seem to help kids make it at the next level...

Anyone remember Emmanual Ochenje?

This kid from Brehm Prep spent a LOT of time sitting atop the rankings as the #1 prospect in the entire STATE of Illinois...also ranked Top 100 NATIONALLY....and was hyped endlessly as a BCS recruit and University of Illinois was after him, etc...

I agree he's still good but is this proof of the overrating effect that those prep schools cause??

In the end -- the kid's offers dwindled, fell apart, and he's fallen to the back pages of the recruiting journals....
He verbaled to Tennessee-Chattanooga but even they rescinded their offer!!!

And in the end Ochenje has basically no place to go -- hardly an offer left and settles for a VERY low mid-major...
http://www.pepperdinesports.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/070711aaa.html

I am still waiting for someone to give me a single example of one of these kids who actually made it big a the next level coming from Boys to Men, Decatur Christian, Brehm, Culver, etc...
As I have said -- it makes no sense that they leave good high schools to go to those expensive and questionable prep schools..then never star anywhere at the next level.
http://bubravesblogger.blogspot.com/2011/06/prep-schools-revisitedare-there-victims.html