WVU FOOTBALL LOOKS AT PAIR OF FL PROSPECTS

June 23, 2008


According to The State, South Carolina's Home Page, the West Virginia Mountaineer football program continues their storng push in Florida and are among the favorites for a pair of highly recruited prospects from the Sunshine state.

Linebacker Jon Bostic (6-2, 225) of Wellington, Fla., might take an unofficial visit to South Carolina this summer, according to the State. The Gamecoacks were the first of the 27 schools to offer Bostic, some of the others include Clemson, Southern Cal, Michigan, LSU, Miami, Florida, Auburn, Florida State and West Virginia. He visited Miami and will visit Florida and LSU.

Defensive back Kayvon Webster (5-11, 180) of Miami camped at South Florida over the weekend. He also camped at LSU and Mississippi and will go to Alabama in July. USC also has offered, and he is in regular contact with recruiter Robert Gillespie. Auburn, West Virginia, Florida, Tennessee and Miami are some of his other offers.

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WEST VIRGINIA LOOKS TO NYC IN 2009

“Right now, I’m considering Marquette, UConn, West Virginia, Memphis, [and] Arizona. Schools like that,” said Omari Lawrence told Alex Schwartz at the Rumble in the Bronx recently. “…nobody stands out to me right now. I’m just wide open still.”

“I don’t have [any] dream school right now,” Lawrence continued on the subject of a school leader. “I’m just waiting for the perfect fit for me.”

While Omari Lawrence and Kevin Parrom Lead the NY Panthers (NBE Basketball Report) on the AAU circuit, they both have their suitors at the college level.

Lawrence is not the only one from New York City seeing interest from Bob Huggins and the Mountaineers. While Durand Scott is Set to Prove Doubters Wrong (NBE Basketball Report), there are certainly college coaches that believe in him.

Right now, Scott’s recruitment is wide-open with a multitude of schools courting the confident youngster. He told Jeff Borzello at the Rumble in the Broinx that Pittsburgh, Louisville, Connecticut and West Virginia and other schools are looking at him from the Big East, while Virginia, Miami and Xavier are also interested in him. He said he is not leaning in any particular direction just yet.

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TARAN BUIE: 2010 PG HEARS FROM WEST VIRGINIA

Buie, a 6-foot guard out of Bishop Maginn High School in Albany (NY) and standout for the City Rocks AAU program, is a name that has not generated a lot of attention nationally in the media to date. However, judging by the coaches that have reached out to him the first chance they were allowed to, college coaches are VERY aware of his talents.

“This week I’ve talked to Boston College, Notre Dame, Clemson, Rutgers, Cincinnati, Penn State, Miami, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, Virginia, Georgia Tech, Syracuse, Florida, Xavier, West Virginia, Marquette, and Maryland,” Taran Buie relayed to the NBE Basketball Report, doing the best he could to recall all of the coaches that have placed calls to him this week.

“He is a great kid,” City Rocks Vice President Carmen Maciariello stated. “Respectful and hardworking. His personality is a big attribute. He makes a difference on the floor not only in the scoring column but in the hustle categories as well. Deflections, loose balls, charges, rotations etc.,” Maciariello, a former standout at Siena college, said in describing Taran’s impact on the floor.

Maciariello continued to note how well-rounded Buie is off the court, too. “He is a no-brainer for the high majors because he gets it done in the classroom as well!” It was a sentiment echoed by Bishop Maginn coach Rich Hurley as well, “Taran carries a B+ average in the classroom and his involved in many school activities aside from basketball.”

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2008-2009 WEST VIRGINIA SNAPSHOT

June 17, 2008


Head Coach: Bob Huggins
2007-2008 Record: 26-11 (11-7 Big East) NCAA Sweet 16

Returning Players:
Alex Ruoff, Senior (Guard)
Da'Sean Butler, Junior (Guard)
Joe Mazzulla, Junior (Guard)
Wellington Smith, Junior (Forward)
Jonnie West, Sophomore (Guard)
Cam Thoroughman, Sophomore (Forward)
John Flowers, Sophomore (Forward)
Will Thomas, Sophomore (Guard)


Incoming Players:
Devin Ebanks, Forward
Darryl Bryant, Guard
Kevin Jones, Forward


Graduated Players:
Darris Nichols, Senior (Point Guard)
Jamie Smalligan, Senior (Center)

Early NBA Declaration:
Joe Alexander, Junior (Forward)

Open Items/Issues:
West Virginia has been in the news a lot this spring. Bob Huggins was able to secure a commitment from Devin Ebanks, one of the top recruits in the nation in the 2008 class. Ebanks had backed out of a prior commitment to Indiana when Kelvin Sampson was terminated for repeated NCAA recruiting violations.

Ebanks probably saw the writing on the wall with Joe Alexander and the NBA. The 6'8 WVU junior forward is now projected to be a lottery pick in the 2008 draft and decided to leave the Mountaineer program with one year of eligibility and cash in his lottery ticket.

West Virginia also is awaiting the final outcome of recruit Roscoe Davis to find out if he will be part of the 2008 class or the 2009 class. Reports of late seem to indicate he will return to Hargrave Military Academy for another year of prep school. However, with the NBA draft beckoning Alexander and Gus Gilchrist recently opting for South Florida, Davis could try more summer classes in hopes of qualifying for 2008, the Mountaineers have two scholarships open and Bob Huggins has been determined to add additional size to the line-up. Davis might not be a post player, but his 6'10 frame would help a team greatly that has nobody taller than 6'8.

Summary:
Joe Alexander leaving for the NBA and the graduation of Darris Nichols will definitely knock the Mountaineers back a peg or two this season. Nichols will be replaced by Joe Mazzulla, a player that Bob Huggins absolutely adores and the point guard position should be adequately addressed. Depth, though, in the back court is really thin. Shooting ace Alex Ruoff returns to the off-guard position and they will likely need seldom-used sophomores Will Thomas and Jonnie West to step up greatly this season. Incoming recruit Darryl 'Truck' Bryant brings the standard NYC toughness, ala his nickname, but he will have a learning curve ahead of him as he attempts to learn the point position full-time.

Alexander's loss is a tough one to overcome. His versatility allowed him to play much bigger on the boards and the strides he made last season with his toughness under Huggins was tremendous. Working to put himself in position to score in the Big East was what allowed his game to soar down the stretch. While Devin Ebanks has a lot of similar traits and at 6'8, he has the makings of an inside-out threat, it will be a little while before he plays defense, hits the boards and works to get in quality position to score like Alexander learned to do. The natural talent of Ebanks is tremendous and his potential is much higher, but it will take some time for him to hit that stride.

Actually, WVU has several players in the mold of Alexander and do not be surprised to see John Flowers pick up a lot of the slack with his inside-out abilities and a year under Huggins will help his game a lot. Wellington Smith also has those inside-out skills and is a player coach Huggins expects a lot from. It will be a key year for him to step up or be passed by with the newcomers. Another high-profile incoming recruit, Kevin Jones, will also play a key role on the boards and on defense at the forward position. Look for Jones to be a tremendous college forward who will be solid early on. Cam Thoroughman will add some toughness and is willing to do the dirty work off the bench.

At small forward, Da'Sean Butler returns and is one of the more well-rounded players in the Big East. If he would be a little more selfish with his own offense, he could be one of the league's top breakout performers this season.

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All in all this is a very good West Virginia team. Breaking in a new full-time point guard with limited depth is a concern, especially since neither Mazzulla nor Bryant have been full-time true point guards in the past. The lack of size is a little bothersome, but Bob Huggins has been able to get by in the past with smaller teams that rely on toughness and athleticism. Little by little, this West Virginia program is morphing into a similar make-up of his past teams at previous schools. With a tremendous home court advantage and a mix of veterans and exciting athletic youngsters, look for West Virginia to be in the NCAA Tournament mix, albeit, a notch below the top contenders of the Big East at this point.

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WEST VIRGINIA, BOB HUGGINS OFFER 2010 WING

June 17, 2008


Probably the marquee name attending this past weekend's West Virginia elte camps was class of 2010 small forward Tobias Harris out of Long Island (NY). Harris passed up the opportunity to play in the Rumble in the Bronx in New York City to get a chance to see the WVU campus.

Both sides were equally impressed with what they saw as Bob Huggins offered Harris a scholarship by the end of the camp and Harris, according to his father Torrel, has the Mountaineers high on his list.

With June 15th being the first day college coaches could call prospects from the class of 2010, it was an eventful weekend for Tobias Harris as the Big East Came Calling and WVU Offers (NBE Basketball Report). Coaches from schools such as Louisville, Syracuse, UConn, Rutgers, St. John's, Notre Dame, Providence as well as WVU made calls to Tobias.

With his time at West Virginia, the Mountaineers definitely improved their standing with the Harris'. "Coach Huggins has great coaching staff (and) his offense fits Tobias' style," Torrel told the NBE Basketball Report in an e-mail this morning.

As well as WVU, Tobias also stopped at Virginia for their elite camp. Both schools did well in showing Tobias what they had to offer, according to his father, "Tobias stated to me both schools rank very high on his list," Torrel said.


Do not forget, check out the NBE Basketball Report for all the latest on the Big East Basketball Conference.

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