Early October Quick Hitters
A few quick hitters from the recruiting world:
- After last Saturday’s New England Top 75 Elite – Frosh/Soph Edition last Saturday, I had the chance to take in a Boston Amateur Basketball Club (BABC) practice. With primarily freshmen and sophomores, the program is as stacked with talent as ever, and it didn’t hurt having a few more players come just for the workout. There’s plenty of athleticism with young guards like Chris Sherwood (6’3″ So. SG-SF, Canton (MA) High) and Domonique Bull (6’2″ Fr. SG, Worcester (MA) Cushing Academy), the latter of whom could one day transition to the point guard spot. There’s developing talent inside with the hard-working and steadily improving James Kennedy (6’5″ So. SF-PF, Dorchester (MA) Cushing Academy) and Egi Gjikondi (6’8″ So. PF-C, Malden (MA) High), who has a good motor and always battles inside. There’s also more versatility, which is never undervalued in this program, with players like newcomer Zach Auguste (6’5″ So. SF, Marlborough (MA) High) and Marcus Grant (6’2″ So. PG-SG, Groton (MA) Lawrence Academy), the latter of whom was not at the workout due to football. All told, the program could legitimately field two 16-under teams come next spring.
- At a recent open gym, Rod Odom (6’8″ Jr. SF, New York (NY) Middlesex School) drew a host of college coaches from a few different levels, a sign of what his play in the month of July did for him. An excellent student, coaches on hand included head coaches Sydney Johnson (Princeton) and Bill Herrion (New Hampshire), along with a slew of assistants from schools like Boston College, Boston University, Georgetown, Penn, Seton Hall and West Virginia. Odom didn’t shoot well from long range on the day, but handled and passed well and looked the part of a leader, encouraging his teammates. That’s something Middlesex coach Jamie Gallagher has talked to Odom about doing now that he’s a junior and easily the best player on his team.
- Brimmer & May School, located not far from Boston College, is headlined by energetic forward Kyle Casey (6’6″ Sr. SF-PF) and super shooter Derek Retos (5’8″ Jr. PG-SG). But the player to keep an eye on with this team might be Eric Alleyne (5’10” Jr. PG), who impressed at an open gym on Thursday. Alleyne has a solid body and loves contact, finishing well even when he absorbs contact en route to the basket. The lefty also showed a good ability to go to his right a couple of times, and may be the X-factor on this team.
- Friday night’s Hoop Mountain Fall Classic New England drew plenty of Division II and III coaches at Stonehill College, not surprising since that was the level of most players there. Among the best prospects there was the aforementioned Zach Auguste (6’5″ So. SF, Marlborough (MA) High), who continues to look good as he shows a feel for the game and lots of potential as his body matures. Also catching our eye were Roshard Bryant (6’7″ Sr. PF, Bronx (NY) Suffield Academy), a plus athlete with a good body but doesn’t know the game, speedy point guard Mike Rivera (5’11” Sr. PG, Durfee (MA) High), intriguing athlete Cliff Desravines (6’6″ Sr. SF, Lexington (MA) Taft School) and Matt Gibson (5’9″ Sr. PG, Lexington (MA) Christian Academy), who has improved nicely since the end of last season and looks better each time out.
