College Hoops Video

The Kansas Jayhawks head Coach must  be wondering if he should be lighting votive candles due to the fact that he has secured one of the top high school prospects in the country. After all the hoopla surrounding Xavier Henry, the young man finally made the decision to become part of the 2009 Kansas Jayhawks Men’s Basketball Recruiting class. Bill Self must be waking up with a smile on his face every single day. Many basketball experts feel that with the signing of Xavier Henry and the returning players that Self will have at his disposal, Kansas now positions itself as possibly the team to beat in the upcoming 2009-2010 NCAA basketball season.

 

2009 Kansas Jayhawk Recruiting – Xavier Henry’s Background

 

This native of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, played 4 years for the Putnam City Pirates winning 2 state championships in the process. When all was said and done, he had received every All State and All American honor that could be handed out. He ended with a scoring average of over 28 points per game and for the longest time was considered the top basketball recruit in the country. His ranking may have suffered due to an accident that left him with a broken cheekbone before the start of his senior season, but those who had the pleasure of watching him play knew what a talent this young man truly was. Many times it looked like a man playing against boys, yes, he was just that dominant. 

 

 

2009 Kansas Jayhawk Recruiting – Xavier Henry’s Skill Set

 

Let’s face it, the 6ft 6in. tall and a solid 225lbs. Henry should create match-up nightmares for the opponents of the Kansas Jayhawks in the upcoming 2009-2010 season. Although he is listed as a shooting guard, he has the athleticism and the strength, yes, a body of a tight end, to play down low if he so chooses. With his excellent size and strength, he has the ability to overpower smaller defenders and score easily jn the paint. With his long range shooting ability, he also can spread out the defense to create open lanes for his teammates. He has shown consistency from 3 point range but still needs to develop a midrange jumper to keep his opponents guessing. What he needs to work on is his ball handling skills so he won’t be prone to the quick hands of smaller defenders. With his size, Henry showed excellent rebounding ability on both ends of the floor and wasn’t hesitant to go coast to coast if the defense was caught sleeping. Overall this young man has a solid game both offensively and defensively and look for him to start contributing for the Jayhawks right from the opening of the 2009-2010 basketball season.

 

 

Refs:

 

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Xavier-Henry-1324/

http://collegebasketball.about.com/od/recruiting/p/xavier-henry.htm

http://www.maxpreps.com/athletes/bgnDhsZ70E2LiwfKd8p0Yw/basketball-winter-07-08/stats-xavier-henry.htm

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiting/tracker/player?recruitId=43687&season=2009&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncb%2frecruiting%2ftracker%2fplayer%3frecruitId%3d43687%26season%3d2009

 

2009 UNLV Runnin Rebels Recruits

#1 UNLV Recruit – SG – Anthony Marshall

Ht: 6’3”

Wt: 195lbs

ESPN Ranking: #85

Most scouts categorized Marshall as one of the toughest guards in the country with a high basketball IQ. Although not overly explosive, Marshall has a good array of moves that allows him to attack and slash to the basket. His defensive skills are what makes this young man such a good fit for Coach Kruger’s system. Although Marshall is considered as a shooting guard, he has excellent passing skills that could also make him a candidate for the point. He shows no fear as a rebounder and plays the game with a passion on both ends of the floor.

#2 UNLV Recruit – C – Carlos Lopez

Ht: 6’9”

Wt: 200lbs

ESPN Ranking: n/a

Lopez, although not physically overpowering, has shown an acceptable offensive game in close to the basket. He currently is more fit to play away from the basket until he adds additional strength and muscle. His medium range jumper is above average but he still needs to work on his consistency. His athleticism allows him to run the floor well in the transition game and has shown at times that he is capable of the 3 point shot. Lopez will need to bulk up to take advantage of his size and to develop more of an inside presence.

#3 UNLV Recruit – C – Henry Buckley

Ht: 6’10”

Wt: 200lbs

ESPN Ranking: n/a

Buckley for his size, although athletic, is incredibly thin. Most feel he will need to add both strength and muscle in order to compete effectively on the next level. His offensive skills are average but Buckley has shown some nice shots around the basket. He is a good shot blocker due to his long arms and can also rebound well at both ends of the floor. The verdict on this young man is that of a “project”.

#4 UNLV Recruit – SG – Justin Hawkins

Ht: 6’2”

Wt: 165lbs

ESPN Ranking: n/a

Although Hawkins will not wow you with highlight reel type plays, he will do the little things that help a team win. He has shown a great on court awareness both offensively and defensively. He can stretch defenses with his 3 point shooting or use his strength to post up a smaller opponent. He has a blue collar work attitude that will most likely get him floor time with the Rebels in the upcoming season.

http://www.coachkruger.com/Rebels/Default.aspx

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiting/tracker/school?page=commits&season=2009&schoolId=2439&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncb%2frecruiting%2ftracker%2fschool%3fpage%3dcommits%26season%3d2009%26schoolId%3d2439

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/teams/naj

The past season was one of 2 faces for

Coach John Pelphrey’s Razorbacks. Heading into the 2008-2009 campaign the team was young and enthusiastic but lacked experience in conference play. This didn’t seem to affect the Razorbacks during non conference play as they racked up an impressive 12-1 record that included stunning upsets of both the Oklahoma Sooners and the Texas Longhorns.

 

 

Unfortunately, the bottom fell out when it was time to start facing the opponents of the SEC. Struggling through the conference schedule, the Razorbacks ended up with a dismal 14-16 record and finished last in the conference. Coach Pelphrey will now look to his 2009 men’s basketball recruiting class and returning players to improve his team’s performance in the 2009-2010 season.

 

2009 Arkansas Razorbacks Recruits

 

#1 2009 Arkansas Recruit – PF – Marshawn Powell

Ht: 6’7”

Wt: 215lbs

ESPN Ranking: 67

 

Powell is just the type of player that should well into the Razorbacks scheme. He is a physically tough player with a blue collar mentality. What he lacks in athleticism, which in all actuality isn’t that much, he makes up for with intensity and desire. He has shown range with his jumper to the 3 point line but also has the offensive skills to play inside. His defensive skills are average but he is a tenacious rebounder on both ends of the floor. Look for this young man to be a solid contributor in the upcoming Razorbacks season.

 

#2 2009 Arkansas Recruit – PF – Glenn Bryant

Ht: 6’7”

Wt: 190lbs

ESPN Ranking: n/a

 

Bryant is another power forward that shows good athleticism and leaping ability. His strong suit to date has been his defense, rebounding and shot blocking ability. He has shown the ability to guard both small and power forwards but many scouts feel that additional bulk on his lean frame is needed to be effective over a long college season. His offensive skills are average although he has shown range out to the 3 point line. In order to become even more of a threat he will need to work on becoming a better ball handler in order to drive and attack the basket.

 

#3 2009 Arkansas Recruit – C – Anthony Borden

 

Ht: 6’11”

Wt: 230lbs

ESPN Ranking: n/a

 

Borden is young man with a great upside. He has shown outstanding promise for only playing organized basketball for 3 years. As the old saying goes, “You just can’t teach height”. The problem that Coach Pelphry will face is whether to red-shirt Borden to let him develop his skill set.

 

#4 2009 Arkansas Recruit – PG – Julysses Nobles

Ht: 6”0”

Wt: 160lbs

ESPN Ranking: n/a

 

 

Many scouts have described Nobles as a relentless attacker. He’s quick and he’s athletic. He shows no fear of driving into the paint either to score or to kick out to the open man. His ball handling and passing skills are above average and he has excellent on court vision for a player of his size. Defensively he uses his quickness to beat his man to the spot. The only drawback that many see is that he needs to add strength to defend the taller point guards of the conference.

 

 

 

Refs:

http://www.swtimes.com/articles/2009/06/13/sports/sports061309_04.txt

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/news?slug=teamreports-2009-ncaab-aas&prov=sportsxchange&type=team_report

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiting/tracker/school?season=2009&schoolId=8&page=commits&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncb%2frecruiting%2ftracker%2fschool%3fseason%3d2009%26schoolId%3d8%26page%3dcommits