Projo College Hoops

By KEVIN McNAMARA
Journal Sports Writer

Catching up on a few fronts while waiting for the Maui Classic to tip off...

First, a big shout out to the Bryant and URI teams for theri wins on Saturday. The weight lifted off first-year coach Tim O'Shea, his staff and the players was huge in the team's 59-50 win over Quinnipiac at a Columbia Tournament in New York. The Bulldogs' first-ever Div. 1 win (sorry about the error from the Associated Press that we printed that called it win No. 2) relieves any pressure the program was feeling to grab a win heading into what is a brutal December schedule.

Bryant built an 11-point lead with seven minutes left but led by only two (51-49) with 2:27 to go in the ballgame. The Bulldogs got a huge basket on a pick and roll with Chris Birrell finding Barry Latham for a lay-up as the shot clock expired and a layup by Jerrann Wright gave Bryant a five point lead with 1:26 to go. Cecil Gresham, Bryant's one legit scorer, made the all-tourney team.

The win made the bus ride back from New York Saturday night a sweet one and also made O'Shea and his assistants, Dwayne Pina, Mike Kelly and Kevin Kurbec, popular men the next day at the National Prep Showcase on Bryant's campus.

The other coach receiving backslaps at the prep school event was URI's Jim Baron. Rhody's gritty win over Virginia Commonwaelth could come in very handy come March. The Rams are showing that their athleticism is tough to deal with for any opponent, including a good one like VCU. Those Rams are the favorites to win 20-plus games and capture the title in the competitive Colonial Athletic Association.

Rhody has learned that it can score with anyone and several players (like Keith Cothran and Marquis Jones) are getting better with each passing game. That will come inhandy this week when the Rams run up against Penn State on Friday and (if they win) most likely Villanova on Saturday. Winning either of those games will not be easy but the Rams are clearly dangerous in every game that they play.

The Friars board a flight to Los Angeles tonight in preparation for Thursday's game against Baylor. Keno Davis wanted to block off a full day for travel in order to get used to the time change and, more importantly, clear the decks for good practices on Tuesday and Wednesday. PC may be the best team in the 76 Classic field or it could be fifth or sixth. The field is that deep with nationally ranked Arizona State and Wake Forest headlining a field that includes a Baylor team that could be ranked by the end of today and St. Mary's, which is led by flashy point guard Patty Mills. We'll certainly learn an awful lot about the Friars over the next week.

Before the PC staff jetted West, they drove up to Bryant for the aforementioned National Prep Showcase. So did I, a few times. Here are a few observations, recruiting junkies.

First, I like PC signeee Johnnie Lacy. He's a dead-ringer for Sharaud Curry size-wise and when we talked he looked me in the eye. So I'll call him 5-9, 5-10 on a good day. Lacy is super quick with the ball, handles it with speed and quickness and is a willing passer. He is small and has trouble scoring amongst the trees but he has nice form on his jumper and it is clear why this kid put up some huge scoring numbers back home in Milwaukee last year.

Now at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Lacy is surrounded by a lot of talent but is clearly the best guard. This year will help him get better, for sure. It'll also be his ticket to get cleared academically, which is all-important. Against Patterson (N.C.) on Friday, Lacy faced a 1-3-1 defense and didn't handle it well. His teammates handled it worse, choosing to lauch ill-timed threes instead of penetrating the gaps. Always wonder why more coaches don't slap the 1-3-1 on. John Beilein's pet defense makes kids pass, catch and dribble with skill, three traits that are lacking in the game today.

Did not see Lacy play Saturday against Massanutten but his team bounced back and won by 20 points. He turned the ball over 8 times, which raised an eyebrow, but unlike most recruiting geeks I refuse to comment on a game (or a player) I didn't see first-hand. Bottom line? I'd sign this kid in a minute to potentially run my team and having him learn alongside Curry next year is a blessing.

One of Lacy's teammates, Antoine Allen of Baltimore, was a summer verbal for the Friars. He has since run into trouble with his transcript and although he still likes Providence, it would be a surprise to me if he signs with the Friars in April. In fact, Keno Davis, Pat Skerry and Rodell Davis all were at the tourney at certain points and finding another (bigger) point guard is a priority. The one who stuck out the most this weekend was Vincent Council, a 6-2 Brooklyn native. He played at both Xaverian (with Brian McKenzie) and Lincoln (with Lance Stephenson) and was deemed a solid prospect.

I sat with Tom Konchalski, the legenday NYC talent scout, and he's seen Vincent numerous times. He said that he wasn't a top performer at Eastern Invitation camp over the summer (like most Big East-level recruits would be) but said ``he's clearly gotten stronger and a lot better since. It looks like Patterson will really help him.''

Patterson School is coached by Chris Chaney and was the best team I saw through the weekend. PC was recruiting Council before this weekend and has a head start on him but he cannot sign with a school until April. The chase is on. Another PG the Friars will monitor is Malik Stith, a one-time St. John's commit.

Other Prep observations: URI signee Ryan Brooks looks like he's 28 years old. He is truly a combo forward who can run the floor, is strong enough to bang a little and handles himself well. He lacks explosion and didn't finish well in South Kent's loss to Patterson but I'd sign him if I was Jim Baron...The biggest steal in the country could be Hassan Whiteside, a slim 6-9 big man who is somehow headed to Marshall. He is a Big East/ACC level recruit...Smithfield's Mike Marra can get his own shot much better than a year ago. That was my only concern with him. He'll make a lot of 3's for Rick Pitino...Erik Murphy's work on his body has really helped his game. The 6-10 Florida signee could always step out and shoot but now he is a factor in and around the hoop, too. DeShawn Painter, another Florida signee who plays at Hargrave Military, is a big-time athlete and nothing more. I'll take Murphy all day long over that kid...Rick Barnes gets it done. The best scorer of the weekend was Avery Bradley is Findlay Prep. While not an eye-popping athlete, this kid knows how to play and makes shots...If Omari Lawrence is St. John's best signee, the Storm is in trouble. He looked like a typical New York guard. Good on the drive, no outside game. His South Kent teammate, Kevin Parrom (Xavier signee) is much better...Lee Academy's 7-3 Chinese center Steve Sun (like that's his name) isn't bad...Bryant is actively chasing New Hampton Prep's John Daniels, a 6-7 banger from Iowa...Speaking of New Hampton, junior Evan Smotrycz is clearly a prospect (for PC, URI, Michigan, Virginia, others) but not a must-have recruit. He's a skilled 6-9 kid who doesn't get a lot done right now...If I'm Syracuse, I'd have my doubts about Notre Dame Prep's James Southerland....PC is wise to continue chasing junior Ron Giplaye of Notre Dame Prep...Brown got a good one in Northfield Mt-Hermon's Andrew McCarthy. His teammate, junior Hector Harold, is going to be very good.

Great win for the Atlantic 10 last night with Xavier out-toughing Memphis in a real street fight. What fans needd to know about the Muskies is Sean Miller has more good players than anyone in the A-10, by far. He has players no one has seen who can get it done.

Also a tip of the cap to Bobby Gonzalez and Seton Hall. Great wins in Puerto Rico over Southern Cal and Virginia Tech. The Pirates aren't deep (8 players) but I'll take all 8 guys and run. The Big East improved to 44-5 out of the gate with the Hall's win.

 Tags  Johnnie Lacy PC Basketball Tim O'Shea URI men's basketball Vincent Council

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