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Friday, August 28, 2009

BIG EAST RECRUITING UPDATE: CINCINNATI

August 28, 2009

Commitment Alert: Justin Jackson, 6-foot-8, 210-lb power forward out of Montverde (FL) Academy

Earlier this week Cincinnati and Mick Cronin picked up their first commitment for the class of 2010 with the news that Justin Jackson, a Power Forward, Chooses the Bearcats (Cincinnati Enquirer)over Missouri.

Projected 2010-2011 Roster:

Seniors: Larry Davis (SG), Rashad Bishop (G/F), Anthony McClain (C), Darnell Wilks (F)
Juniors: Yancy Gates (BF), Dion Dixon (G), Ibrahima Thomas **(C)
Sophomores: Sean Kilpatrick (G), Cashmere Wright*** (PG), Jaquon Parker (G), Lance Stephenson (G)
Freshmen: Justin Jackson (PF)

**- a transfer from Oklahoma State, Ibrahima Thomas will sit out the spring (09) and fall (09) semesters and be eligible in December of 2009. He will have 2 1/2 tears of eligibility.

***- Wright tore an ACL in the fall of 2008 and is sitting out the 2008-2009 season as a medical redshirt. He will have four years of eligibility beginning in 2009-2010



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With the 2009-2010 Cincinnati Basketball Roster showing seniors Deonta Vaughn and Stephen Toyloy, Mick Cronin and his staff have at least two scholarships at their disposal for the 2010 recruiting class. One of those two scholarships has been taken with the recent commitment from Montverde Academy PF Justin Jackson this week.

Jackson is an athletic power forward that likes to attack the rim off the bounce and will also do work on the glass. He is a very solid pick-up for UC and showed consistent effort on the AAU trail this summer with Team Stat/Reach 1 Teach 1 out of Florida.

With one scholarship open, the big target is Wheeler (GA) G/F Jelan Kendrick. While Kendrick's recruitment has been tight-lipped, UC has long been considered to be solidly in the mix for the versatile star that had a tremendous summer on the AAU and camp scene.

The commitment of Jackson might take UC out of the mix for additional frontcourt help, but the Bearcat staff has also been involved with Patterson School 7-foot center David Nyarsuk and 6-foot-10 Maine Central Institute center Waverly Austin who told NBE he expects to make an official visit to Cincinnati in the near future. Griffin McKenzie, a 6-foot-9 power forward out of Cincinnati (OH) - Moeller was another big man that mentioned interest in UC this summer.


In the class of 2011, UC got a visit recently from Jeremiah Davis a very highly-touted guard. UC remains very involved with Chane Behanan, who was previously a UC verbal commitment. The 6-foot-7 Behanan has re-opened his recruitment since moving from Cincinnati to Kentucky.

The scholarship situation for Mick Cronin and his Cincinnati Bearcats for the 2009-2010 season was a little unclear with a potential waiver for Mike Williams to apply for to receive a 6th year from the NCAA. The Bearcats looked to be at the 13-player limit with the incoming additions of Sean Kilpatrick and Jaquon Parker, who committed to UC earlier in the spring. However, the waiver request was withdrawn and with that opening Cincinnati makes a big splash in the college basketball world by adding a commitment from the mega-talented Lance Stephenson.

Stephenson, nicknamed 'Born Ready' on the NYC playgrounds, has been a basketball prodigy groomed to be a high NBA draft pick since his early teens. However, the NCAA/NBA rule forcing kids to attend at least one year of college basketball after high school has delayed the Stephenson gravy train. Previously, schools such as Kansas, Arizona, Maryland, St. John's, Memphis, Florida International and others seemed poised to add Stephenson to their programs, but one-by-one each moved in other directions as questions on Stephenson's amateur status and the pending legal case where he and a Lincoln HS teammate allegedly groped a female classmate this past year.

Stephenson's talent is unquestioned and adding the physically gifted and chiseled 6-foot-5 guard to the mix will make the Bearcats a very interesting club in 2009-2010. With senior Deonta Vaughn and sophomore Yancy Gates, suddenly UC has a very potent offensive trio. They also have a deeper pool of complimentary players to fill in around the trio and they could be a team to watch climb the Big East standings this season if the chemistry fits.

Stephenson is very used to having the ball in his hands often. The ability for him and Vaughn to gel together is a big key in their potential success. In the past, Stephenson has been easily frustrated when things are not going smoothly and his expresses his displeasure to teammates, coaches and officials. He will be seeing top defenders each and every game in college, so his personality will be tested and with that will come the test of the team's chemistry.

Now, with a commitment out of the way, fans will watch the NCAA's move as they will undoubtedly look deep into his eligibility, both from an academic side (which most likely should be in order) and from an amateur side. As a basketball prodigy, many have tried to get close to Stephenson and his family, so we will see how diligent the NCAA is in the wake of recent questions around OJ Mayo, Derrick Rose and others...

Parker, who committed earlier in June, had originally committed to Old Dominion earlier this spring. The 6-foot-4, multi-talented guard help lead the King's Fork Bulldogs to the to the Group AAA state championship and was named the Associated Press State Player of the Year. Parker averaged over 18 points and about 10 rebounds and three assists as a senior for his 31-1 squad.

It was believed that Parker would be headed to prep school for the 2009-2010 season. He had decided to re-open his recruitment after several high majors began to inquirer, including Marquette, UConn and Georgetown, this spring. However, after performing well enough on his SAT exam, Parker realized he could qualify for college by taking just two summer courses. Once those are completed, he will join the Bearcats for next season.

Parker is a physically powerful 6-foot-4 guard that will also mix it up in the lane. He has the ability to play all three backcourt positions, but most likely will play the 2/3 in college.

The Bearcats received a quality commitment last fall when Notre Dame Prep guard Sean Kilpatrick made a commitment following a visit to the school back in October.

Kilpatrick was a hot commodity last spring among Big East schools as he attempted to become eligible after his senior season at White Plains (NY) High School where he was an offensive machine, lighting up the scoreboard on many occasions and often in front of college coaches. Kilpatrick made a brief verbal commitment to St. John's at one point in the recruiting process and also has had Providence high on his list of interested schools, but after a visit to UC this past weekend, he felt it was time to end the recruiting process. Next up is a commitment to his academics to make certain there are no more hold-ups in getting his college career going. Kilpatrick was an AAU teammate of SU freshman Mookie Jones and WVU frosh Kevin Jones with the Westchester Hawks.

'Born Ready', Kilpatrick and Parker will not be the only new faces in the UC program on the court next season as mid-year Oklahoma State transfer Ibrahima Thomas throws a little more size into the line-up.

Thomas had played in seven games for Okie State this past season, averaging 8.3 points and 3.9 rebounds in a little over 20 minutes a contest. As a freshman Thomas averaged 6 points and 4 rebounds a game playing in 33 contests. He had a career high of 19 last year against Texas and scored 18 in a game earlier this season against Tulsa. Even though Thomas stands at 6-foot-11, he is not afraid to step outside and shoot from the three-point arc (made 11 last season). He is not a physical player, but there is definitely a lot to work with as he has room to grow his game more.

The native of Dakar, Senegal had prepped at Stoneridge Prep in California before signing with the Cowboys and coach Sean Sutton. After playing in seven games under new coach Travis Ford this year, Thomas decided to look for a new school and settled on Cincinnati quickly, despite interest from Rutgers and others.

Mick Cronin is adding talent and depth to the UC program with very good recruiting, putting the UC program back into position to challenge for an NCAA Tournament bid in 2009-2010 and beyond, something the program became very used to under one of Cronin's mentors, Bob Huggins.


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