The Southern Invitational AAU Basketball tournament was held this past weekend at the Boo Williams Complex in Hampton, Virginia, with Mark Watson on site covering the event for Blue Devil Nation.
Semi-finals action saw all three 2010 Duke commits in action against each other as Boo Williams, featuring Andre Dawkins, defeated DC Assault, featuring Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton, 63-54.
Dawkins led Boo Williams by scoring 26 points with 23 coming during the second half. In the first half, Tyler Thornton played shutdown defense on Dawkins limiting him to three points. Foul trouble caught up with Thornton so he was unable to keep up the defensive pressure. Highly touted 2011 prospect James McAdoo scored 16 points for Boo Williams.
Josh Hairston was limited to three points in the contest. Hear all the details from Mark in this audio update over at Roundballrecruiting.com.
In the Championship Game, CP3 made a statement via a dominating 93-70 victory over Boo Williams. This is a game everyone expected to be close but it was anything but close. CP3 was led by UNC bound Reggie Bullock, Wake Forest bound Melvin Tabb, 2011 player PJ Hairston, and a relatively unknown point guard named Chapman. Hear all the details here.
News from the earlier action is here and here. Be sure and check back as Blue Devil Nation will be providing much additional coverage of the Southern Invitational over the next several days.
BDN deals in facts, not rumors. Everybody wants to know the latest on John Wall and what is going on in his camp. I talked with Brian Clifton last evening and he broke down the process of the hottest recruiting battle in the nation. If you are not a member of BDN Premium, then you're simply missing the best Duke subscription service available.
Will John Wall trim his list? [private] Maybe not according to Clifton. At this point all the teams may be in there until the end.
Baylor - That's where Clifton preferred John Wall to go. The reasoning was that he could be with his brother, but Clifton admitted that it would raise some eyebrows and that Wall is not seriously considering them.
"I will go where John Wall goes," said Clifton. No matter where John Wall goes, Clifton will be there with him. This has already been discussed with Wall's Mom, who gave her blessing.
How will Wall's choice affect his D-One program? Clifton said he had a good staff and could run it from afar, but he also mentioned that it would be nice to stay in the area and that he preferred that. Still, he would go wherever he needs to go for the benefit of Wall.
"The process is flawed," said Clifton. He mentioned that coaches could only meet with John one time officially and that all they could do now was send e-mails and such. He feels a prospect needs more time to evaluate what a coach is really like, meaning he might realize more from extended contacts bettering relationships.
"He's what's important and it is important that he feels that," said Clifton. This means he wants to support Wall's decision.
Making a wise choice - Clifton wants to make sure that Wall examines all angles of the possibilities at hand.
How important is proximity to home for Wall? It's not at the top of the list. Wall knows he will have Clifton no matter where he goes.
Kentucky - Wall loves Calipari and has talked to him the most, but there is a question as to whether it's the best situation for John.
Florida - Glowing reviews for Florida where Clifton knows Donovan personally and his brother played for Larry Shyatt.
Miami - "They have some good players down there," said Clifton. He admitted there were worse places to spend a year than South Beach.
Duke - "They've got some good players," said Clifton, who then rattled off the names on the roster. Also mentioned was Ryan Kelly who is a D-One product. Wall and Kelly were a one-two punch last season.
Will Wall visit Duke again? "Maybe, we'll see," said Clifton, who then went on to say that John feels like he has enough information to make a decision. They have gathered a lot of information and continue to go over it.
Tough question - Would Wall have already committed had you not been involved as a mentor? "John is an emotional guy. He would have probably committed twice already."
Tough question two - Would Wall have already committed to Kentucky if it were not for taking a long look at the process? "Probably."
Another fact about Wall - He likes to please the people around him.
When will a decision be made - "Who knows," said Clifton.
SAT Scores - "We feel real good about the test he took this past Saturday," said a confident Clifton.
There is more which I will discuss on the message board after this weekend's tournament coverage. To read too much into these statements would be unwise, but this is the very latest information out there on Wall from a person very, very close to him. [/private]
I will be on the AAU scene covering the Southern Invitational in Hampton, Virginia. Future Dukies Andre Dawkins, Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton will show off their skills and we'll update you throughout the event on Blue Devil Nation Premium. Check back in to hear the latest on the recruiting trail. Get on the inside by joining BDN Premium today! You will then be activated and will have full access to the site including our members only message board. We look forward to seeing you.
Sources close to the situation have told the Blue Devil Nation that Duke star Gerald Henderson has signed with Arn Tellem and that he will remain in the 2009 NBA Draft. Henderson leaves Duke after a successful junior season where he helped lead his team to an ACC Championship averaging 16.7 ppg. The Blue Devil Nation wishes Gerald the very best and will follow his progress in the future.
The Boston Celtics tripped the Orlando Magic last evening to even their series at one game apiece. Former Duke standout JJ Redick was ejected from the game after arguing a call which gave him his sixth foul.
Duke Baseball swept Presbyterian and prepares for a stretch run in hopes of gaining a bid to the ACC Baseball Tournament which will be held in Durham Athletic Park, home of the Durham Bulls. LINK
Zack Greer is a candidate for the Tewaaraton Trophy, the highest individual honor in collegiate lacrosse. He is the only one of the five finalists announced Tuesday by the Tewaaraton Foundation who will not be able to advance his case further in the upcoming NCAA tournament. Greer, who finished tied with former Duke teammate Matt Danowski with 353 career points, used his final season of eligibility to play for Bryant and former Duke coach Mike Pressler. He also owns the Division I record with 206 goals. He helped the Bulldogs to a 10-5 record, but the Bryant program is transitioning to Division I and is not yet eligible for the national championship. Greer was among the Duke players who lost a season when the program was shut down following rape allegations against three players. The players were later cleared and all the members of the team who had eligibility left were given another year by the NCAA. Greer chose to transfer to Bryant.
Blue Devil Nation Premium will cover this weekend's Southern Invitational where members will hear from Josh Hairston, Andre Dawkins and Tyler Thornton among other prospects. So, be sure to stay close to the message board and site this weekend.
Well, everything is a little quiet at the moment save the deluge of rain in the Triangle area. Let's talk a bit about the hot topics which will break the silence any day now -
Harrison Barnes had a nice tournament during this past weekend's Jayhawk Classic, where he led his team to the title. [private] One must keep in mind that this was a watered down event with concern to normal AAU talent. Still, Barnes once again put his All Iowa Attack team on his back. Not surprisingly, reports are mentioning how hard Barnes played, which I told you here after the Boo Williams Invitational. Barnes leaves it all on the court, giving 100% effort at all times, and that is a testament to his hard work. Being in Kansas country is nothing to be alarmed about, but it would be a huge mistake to count them out. I have said for some time now that Duke and Kansas are the big players, both schools getting in early. Keep in mind that Barnes will have taken his third visit to Durham before the end of summer, the last visit being a surprise for Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski's birthday. A lot of people want to think Barnes has given a silent verbal, but that is not true. While he likes Duke and has a great relationship with Coach K, this one will go on for a bit. Like many, I am hoping for a Kyle Singler-like situation. Singler was always considered a Duke lean, but he waited quite a while for his commitment. Provided Barnes does come to Duke, waiting it out will be a good thing in that the media attention will be at fever pitch. Look for other schools to try and become involved, but they'll have some ground to make up. One of those schools is, of course, North Carolina, who will get a visit in June but, as I have said before, don't be surprised if he takes in Duke that same weekend. Could the third time be the charm? We'll all have to wait and see.
Kyrie Irving's recruitment is taking off and every school in the country is trying to get in. I wouldn't be surprised to see Irving's list of ten change as time goes on. Kentucky is making a hard push and they have the Rod Strickland connection going for them, but Duke is still making Irving a priority recruit and Coach K will see him by July. Of course, K has to see a kid in person to offer a scholarship, but Irving knows one is there for him and has had good things to say about the Blue Devils. I will defer to Andrew for his thoughts on this one over on the message board. As strange as it may sound, I have yet to see Irving play in person, but that should be a thing of the past as summer moves in. Every now and then a player comes along who plays for an AAU team you just don't come across unless you live in the New Jersey-New York area.
Brandon Knight is playing it close to the vest, but he will get questioned until he decides to get serious about his recruitment. Knight is a really smart kid who values education, yet his future is in the NBA. Duke is still very much recruiting Knight and you cannot believe all of what you hear on the world wide web. In fact, take it from me and never read too much into any kid's comments.
Ray McCallum is another player the Duke staff covets, but I need to talk with Ray to get a good feel for where he is in the recruiting process. McCallum has a lot of suitors and he is moving up in the rankings by the day. Either Andrew of myself are sure to run up on him at an event soon.
Duke is still open to finding a bruising rebounding type kid in the class of 2010, but no legitimate names have turned up as of yet. At this time, the staff is going on what they hear of a lot of kids. It will be July before they can head to events and you can bet they will be out in force. At that time, names should start to emerge. As for the class of 2011, names are being taken, but it will be later this summer before serious ones emerge. In short, Duke is concentrating on finishing out the Wall recruitment and finishing up 2010.
Look for the recent John Wall situation to come to light by week's end. Wall didn't do anything that bad and it will be taken care of. Duke, like all others involved, are taking a wait and see approach. As for the recently announced date of May 20th for a decision date - don't hold your breath, for I haven't confirmed that as of yet. I told you that the trip to NCCU wouldn't happen when everyone else was saying it would. It then came to light in Adam Zangoria's blog that the visit didn't happen. As for Wall knowing where he is going, well, think again on that one too, for this one has a lot of dominoes which have to fall before there is a clear picture. I also told you that he may likely not trim his list, but I learned today that he actually could make a list shortly. This information was not from Wall but someone close to him. I can also tell you that his decision will be on a national network, likely ESPNU. One would have to cut the list to fit the hats in front, right?
With concerns to Eric Bledsoe, Duke couldn't touch him due to his grades. He will of course announce tomorrow between Kentucky and Memphis and anyone who tells you he is a lock one way or the other, is lying. Kentucky was the prohibitive favorite, but Memphis made quite an impression and Bledsoe was very comfortable on that visit. The Wildcats are going after every guard you can name these days and that may just scare Bledsoe off. However, the consensus says Kentucky, but I say, let's wait and see.
I would love to see Gerald Henderson return, but the reason he has not signed an agent is not what it might seem to some. I fully expect him to go to the league, but I will happily eat crow on this one.
I will be attending one of two AAU events this weekend, so you can look forward to coverage. [/private]
The Southern Invitational AAU Basketball tournament was held this past weekend at the Boo Williams Complex in Hampton, Virginia, with Mark Watson on site covering the event for Blue Devil Nation.
BDN deals in facts, not rumors. Everybody wants to know the latest on John Wall and what is going on in his camp. I talked with Brian Clifton last evening and he broke down the process of the hottest recruiting battle in the nation. If you are not a member of BDN Premium, then you're simply missing the best Duke subscription service available.
I will be on the AAU scene covering the Southern Invitational in Hampton, Virginia. Future Dukies Andre Dawkins, Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton will show off their skills and we'll update you throughout the event on Blue Devil Nation Premium. Check back in to hear the latest on the recruiting trail. Get on the inside by joining BDN Premium today! You will then be activated and will have full access to the site including our members only message board. We look forward to seeing you.
Sources close to the situation have told the Blue Devil Nation that Duke star Gerald Henderson has signed with Arn Tellem and that he will remain in the 2009 NBA Draft. Henderson leaves Duke after a successful junior season where he helped lead his team to an ACC Championship averaging 16.7 ppg. The Blue Devil Nation wishes Gerald the very best and will follow his progress in the future.
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