More on Aaron Brown's Commitment

After Dave Telep of Scout.com published an article yesterday that Penn Wood's 6'5 rising senior Aaron Brown officially committed to West Virginia, I put a brief article with a few links up here. Since that point, a number of other media outlets, including ESPN.com, have confirmed the decision. One of the better articles on Brown and his decision is written by Chris Vito of the Delaware County Times. In the article, which is linked below, Brown explains his rationale behind the decision. Ultimately, Brown chose West Virginia over Temple, having narrowed his choices to two. Penn Wood head coach Clyde Jones explained Brown's decision, saying that the challenge of playing in the Big East conference was a major factor.

Brown's commitment to West Virginia shows that there is only so much that local coaches like Temple's Fran Dunphy and Saint Joseph's Phil Martelli can do when Big East and ACC schools come calling. Members of the Temple and SJU staff were fixtures at Penn Wood games throughout this season.

Brown is the third Philadelphia-area 2011 star to make his college decision. John Johnson and Jaylen Bond are both headed to Pitt, choosing the Big East program over serious local A10 interest. Saint Joseph's was heavily involved with Johnson until he made his decision, and Temple was heavily recruiting Bond. Brown is now the third local star to choose the Big East route, picking West Virginia over heavy interest from both Temple and Saint Joseph's. Devin Coleman, Juan'ya Green, and Malcolm Gilbert are three more local 2011 players with serious interest from local A10 schools and Big East, Big Ten, and ACC programs. Will they go the route of Brown, Johnson, and Bond or not? We will find out over the coming months.

Chris Vito Article on Aaron Brown's Commitment to WVU

2011 Recruiting Target- Malcolm Gilbert

While the majority of the names on this list are guards, including the first two previewed on here, there are a few frontcourt players as well. The biggest name (yes I mean in terms of size) is Malcolm Gilbert. Gilbert, a 6'11 center, played last season on a high school team with an NBA-sized frontcourt. Sophomore Savon Goodman is considered one of the best small forwards in his high school class, while junior Roc Christmas is also considered an elite-level recruit. While Gilbert does not have quite the national name of his teammates, he is still receiving a significant amount of recruiting interest.

Gilbert's college interest is wide-ranging, from the Ivy League to the Big East. At the beginning of May, Malcolm was interviewed by Rivals.com, and he listed over a dozen schools as being involved. Among the schools listed was Saint Joseph's. During the interview, Malcolm explained that he was giving serious consideration to the Ivy League, stating that academics come first, and basketball second. Big East and ACC schools like Pitt, Florida, Georgia Tech, and Georgetown were also listed.

Malcolm has a reputation as a defensive stopper, with shot-blocking as his specialty. I got to see Malcolm play twice this year, once during the Gym Rats Midnight Madness event and once against Plymouth-Whitemarsh. In both games, Malcolm faced off against highly-regarded centers. At Gym Rats Midnight Madness, he went head-to-head with 2010 Syracuse commit Fab Melo. Against Plymouth-Whitemarsh, he faced off against 2010 Saint Joseph's recruit CJ Aiken.

Gilbert plays a smart brand of basketball, which makes sense considering his Ivy League interest. Over the coming months, he will have an interesting decision to make. While most high school prospects are more interested in the basketball side of things, Malcolm's decision will be more complex. Will he choose a school like Penn or Harvard due to the academics, a school like Florida or Pitt for the national recognition as a basketball powerhouse, or possibly stay local at a school like Saint Joseph's, La Salle, or Temple?

Whatever school Gilbert selects will be getting a shot-blocking presence in the paint with a developing offensive game.

For more information on Gilbert's game, check out the two links below. They will take you to the game recaps from when I saw Malcolm over the winter.



Gym Rats Recap- Malcolm Gilbert

Plymouth-Whitemarsh Bests Savon Goodman, ANC


Photo Courtesy of Scout.com

Penn Wood and Plymouth-Whitemarsh Roll; Friends Central Beats ANC

The Pennsylvania Boy's Basketball playoffs got underway today. In the AAAA bracket, the number one and two seeds cruised into the second round. Plymouth-Whitemarsh, the number one overall seed, blew out West Chester East 70-28. According to Philly.com, PW got 20 points from senior bigman CJ AIken and a triple-double (16 points, 11 boards, 10 blocks) from junior forward Jaylen Bond. PW will play the winner of tomorrow's Spring Ford- Upper Dublin game on Tuesday night at PW in the second round.

Penn Wood, the overall number two seed, pummeled Oxford 80-36 at home earlier tonight. According to Philly.com, Dequan Parker paced the Patriots with a career-high of 20 points. Junior Hawk target Aaron Brown had 17 points. Penn Wood center Shawn Oakman, another SJU target, had 8 points and 11 rebounds in the victory. Penn Wood plays Bensalem at home on Tuesday evening in the second round.

The sophomore class in Philadelphia has three elite level recruits in Friends Central's Amile Jefferson, Academy of the New Church's Savon Goodman, and Westtown's Daniel Ochefu. Two of those sophomores met this afternoon when Friends Central and Academy of the New Church took the court. Amile Jefferson's Friends Central team got the best of ANC despite trailing 14-3 at the end of the first quarter. Friends Central got 14 points from junior guard Devin Coleman and super-soph Amile Jefferson. Both players are receiving recruiting interest from the Hawks. Savon Goodman, as he has all season long, paced ANC. He was the game's high-point man with 16 points. Malcolm Gilbert had 4 points for ANC and elite-level 2011 center Roc Christmas was limited to 6 points.

Links to the Philly.com scores are below:

Friends Central beats ANC

Plymouth-Whitemarsh Pounds West Chester East

Penn Wood Beats Oxford

Savon Goodman Can Play

Yesterday Hawk Hill Hardwood gave you a recap of Wednesday's Academy of the New Church game against Plymouth-Whitemarsh. Plymouth-Whitemarsh was led by MVP CJ Aiken, junior forward Jaylen Bond, and senior guard Whis Grant. Today we will look at three of Academy of the New Church's players: junior center Malcolm Gilbert, junior big Roc Christmas, and sophomore forward Savon Goodman.

Malcolm Gilbert- Malcolm is a 6'11 center for Academy of the New Church who I had seen twice prior to this game. He did not get much in the way of touches or minutes in this game. Malcolm's offensive game is raw at this time but he is already quite a defensive presence. In this game, he scored a bucket, had a few rebounds, and at least one big-time block. Again, Malcolm's minutes were limited in this game. He is a player with all kinds of college options. The Hawks are involved with Malcolm, as are a number of other schools. This game was not a particularly strong performance, but the talent, size, and athleticism are certainly there for Malcolm to be a legitimate college center.

Rakeem Christmas- Roc is one of the most highly-regarded post players nationally in the junior class. Christmas is currently looking at five colleges: Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, Georgetown, and Florida International. In this game, he showed glimpses of the talent that has so many college coaches salivating. First of all, Roc looks more like a college junior than a high school sophomore. He is already built to play in the post at the college level. Toward the end of the game, he had a block on the fast break that demonstrated his athleticism and tenacity. He plays with a bit of a mean streak, one that you are likely to either love or hate. Roc was very frustrated throughout this game, and that is reflected in the fact that he only scored five points in the outing. Christmas is likely to be one of those players that is much better at the college level than the high school level due to the very nature of the game.

Savon Goodman (pictured above)- While Christmas gets most of the attention for Academy of the New Church, it was Goodman who starred in this game. Goodman, a 6'5 sophomore forward, won MVP honors for his team in this game, scoring 20 points. Goodman scored most of his points at the rim in this outing, either on dunks or acrobatic layups. Like Christmas, Goodman looks nothing like a high school player. Goodman likely projects as a 3 at the college level, and like Plymouth-Whitemarsh's Jaylen Bond, he will have to continue to work on his perimeter skills. He did demonstrate an ability to put the ball on the court and drive past his man. A number of college coaches, including SJU's Phil Martelli, Rutgers' Fred Hill, and La Salle's Dr. John Giannini, were in attendance. Goodman has a while to go before making a college decision, but it is likely that he will have nearly every school in America interested in his ability. Savon has elite level athleticism and showed an understanding of the game, both offensively and defensively. On one play in this game, he met PW's CJ Aiken a good six inches above the rim. Keep in mind that Aiken has hops and is a solid four inches taller than Savon. The only player in Philadelphia in the junior class that will give Savon a run for his money for top billing was also in attendance. Friends' Central's Amile Jefferson was in attendance for the game although his team was not playing. Savon and Amile are two names that you are likely to hear for a long time.

Photo Courtesy of Scout.com

More From the Jameer Nelson Classic

The Jameer Nelson Classic continued on Monday and was highlighted by a resounding win by the Penn Wood Crusaders over Academy of the New Church. Pat Leonard of the Philadelphia Inquirer has a great article about the day's games linked below.

In a game that featured at least 3 recruiting targets for the Hawks, Penn Wood beat Academy of the New Church 53-41 at Widener University. Academy of the New Church boasts one of the best high school frontcourts in America, with Roc Christmas, Savon Goodman, and Hawk target Malcolm Gilbert. Gilbert was limited to 5 points while being guarded by another Hawk target, Shawn Oakman. Oakman, a 6'9 250 pound presence in the paint, scored 8 points in the winning effort. Another target for Saint Joseph's, small forward Aaron Brown (pictured above), notched a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Pat Leonard Recap of JNC Day 3

Photo Courtesy of Maxpreps

Jameer Nelson Classic Gets Underway Today

The sixth-annual Jameer Nelson Classic will tip-off later today, marking a start to four great days of high school hoops in the greater Philadelphia area. The tournament features a number of players with bright college futures ahead of them. One of the players, Plymouth-Whitemarsh's CJ Aiken, will be suiting up for Jameer's alma mater, Saint Joseph's, next fall. Jameer's younger brother, Chester guard Maurice Nelson, is another of the top-level talents playing in the showcase. Below is a list of some of the highlight games.

Saturday at Widener College:

1:00- Strawberry Mansion vs. Girard College- Strawberry Mansion stars one of the best unsigned seniors in the area in 6'4 guard DJ Newbill. Girard College lives and dies with the success of junior guard, and Pitt Panther commit, John Johnson.

4:30- Archbishop Carroll vs. Bartram- This game features two of the best guards in the Philadelphia area in Carroll's Juan'ya Green and Bartram's Tyrone Garland. Garland is an ACC-bound senior, headed to Virginia Tech next year. Green, on the other hand, is a junior who has yet to make a college decision. Many of the Philadelphia schools, including Saint Joseph's, have exhibited interest in the 6'3 shooting guard

6:15- Friends' Central vs. Life Center Academy- This game features two players considered elite talents in their respective recruiting classes. Life Center Academy, out of Burlington, New Jersey, stars Syracuse-bound college-ready senior guard Dion Waiters. Friends' Central has plenty of D1 talent, with sophomore forward Amile Jefferson being the most well-known name on a national level. Rivals.com has Jefferson as the number 5 player nationally in his class. Another player to keep an eye on on Friends' Central is junior guard Devin Coleman.

8:00- Plymouth-Whitemarsh vs. Chester- As the younger brother of Jameer Nelson, Maurice Nelson inherently has great expectations placed upon him. The 6'1 guard for the Chester Clippers doesn't seem to let that bother him though. Maurice, who recently stated that his dream is to play for the Saint Joseph's Hawks, is coming off a 38-point outburst earlier this week. The Clippers are always one of the best in the state, and they face a Plymouth-Whitemarsh team tonight with one of the best frontcourts in the area. That frontcourt features SJU-bound 6'9 senior CJ Aiken as well as hotly-recruited junior Jaylen Bond. The nightcap to the Saturday games is sure to be a great one.

Monday at Widener University:

6:00-Penn Wood vs. Academy of the New Church- When I looked at the schedule for the tournament, this is one of the two or three games that stood out most to me. Academy of the New Church features a frontcourt that many actually consider one of the elite in all of America. 6'11 junior Malcolm Gilbert, 6'9 junior Roc Christmas, and 6'6 sophomore Savon Goodman have size and athleticism usually reserved for college rosters. They will be tested tonight by a Penn Wood team that has some size and athleticism of their own. Penn Wood throws junior multi-sport standout Shawn Oakman at you in the post. Small forward Aaron Brown is coming off a monster effort at the City of Palms Tournament that garnered him national praise from the likes of recruiting sites Rivals.com, Scout.com, and ESPN.com. The 6'5 Brown and the 6'8 Oakman are both receiving recruiting interest from the Hawks, along with numerous other programs.

8:00- Chester vs. Bartram- A chance to see Mo Nelson and Tyrone Garland go head-to-head.

Wednesday at Gwynned Mercy College:

6:15- Academy of the New Church vs. Plymouth-Whitemarsh- A battle between the two best frontcourts in the area. Bond and Aiken for PW against Gilbert, Christmas, and Goodman for ANC. Hawk Hill Hardwood will be on hand for this match-up. A detailed recap will be on the site on Thursday.


Check back in here throughout the week for updates on these games and more. It's a great week of Holiday Hoops in Philadelphia.

From Canada to Roman Catholic: Fortunate Kangudi

Philadelphia's Roman Catholic High School has produced a number of talented Division 1 basketball players over the past couple years. Current Villanova freshman Maalik Wayns starred at Roman Catholic before becoming a McDonald's All American and moving onto Nova. Current Pitt junior Brad Wanamaker is another Roman Catholic alum. As is Rider forward Mike Ringgold. Current Roman senior guard Rakeem Brookins will play college ball at Tulane next year.

While those are familiar names to people in tune with Philadelphia hoops over recent years, another name on the Roman Catholic roster is certain to become popular in the coming months. That name is Fortunate "Junior" Kangudi. Kangudi transferred to Roman Catholic this year from Montreal, Canada. He is a 6'7 forward just getting acclimated to playing ball in America.

I had a chance to speak with Roman Catholic head coach Chris McNesby about his new frontcourt player. First of all was the matter of the name. His name is Fortunate "Junior" Kangudi, although most websites and online resources list him as Junior Fortunat. Kangudi did not have a high school team in Montreal, so he instead focused on AAU and travel team ball. McNesby said that Kangudi's strengths include athleticism and playing up-tempo, while an area in need of improvement is his shooting range beyond the free throw range.

As of now, Kangudi is receiving recruiting interest from some A10 and MAAC schools. One of the schools already keeping tabs on the developing big man is Saint Joseph's. Coach McNesby said that it is difficult to project exactly what level Kangudi is capable of playing at because he has only played, literally, one high school game in America. In that game, against Coatesville, Kangudi had ten points. McNesby said that the work ethic and desire are there for Kangudi to be successful. As coaches get a chance to see Kangudi, and as he gets comfortable playing organized basketball, recruiting interest is sure to pick up.

Prior to ending up at Roman Catholic, Kangudi was slated to play this season at LeBron James' alma mater, Akron Saint Vincent Saint Mary. He actually played AAU ball for the Ohio Basketball Club and coach Ken Taylor. In an article linked below, Taylor had this to say about Kangudi. "Junior’s upside is crazy. He has great length, athleticism, and a 42-inch vertical. Athletically he is a professional, and that you can not teach. He is not afraid to mix it up inside, likes to talk and throw some elbows every now and again."

Kangudi Article.


As of now, the Hawks have been linked with a number of bigmen in the class of 2011. Among those are Academy of the New Church's Malcolm Gilbert, Paterson Catholic's Derrick Randall, and Pennwood's Shawn Oakman. It looks like Kangudi can be added to that list. He is certainly a name worth keeping an eye on over the coming year.

Hawks Begin 2009-2010 Campaign with a Win; Some Visitors in the House

Saint Joseph's began their 2009-2010 campaign with an overtime win over Bruiser Flint's Drexel Dragons. The Hawks, who trailed by double digits about halfway through the second half, got a clutch 3 pointer from Darrin Govens and a game-tying shot from Garrett Williamson in the final seconds of the game. The Hawks won the game 77-67 behind 23 points from Govens. Idris Hilliard also had an impressive outing, finishing with 16 points and 7 rebounds. The boxscore from ESPN is linked below:

http://scores.espn.go.com/ncb/boxscore?gameId=293172603

Hawk Hill Hardwood will have a more complete recap of the game tomorrow. Hawk fans got a nice glimpse into the future as Carl Jones (pictured above)scored 13 points in his collegiate debut. We will look at that among other things tomorrow.

I did want a quick update tonight concerning some visitors in the house for the opening game at the Michael J Hagan Arena.

Daryus Quarles and CJ Aiken, who have both signed their National Letters of Intent, were seated behind the Hawk bench. Another familiar face was seated courtside as well. That was Saint Peter's Prep's Ronald Roberts, who was on Hawk Hill for at least the third time this fall. Roberts was not the only Saint Peter's Prep player in the house, as he brought 2011 big-time guard Myles Davis down with him. Davis is likely the Hawks top guard target in the 2011 class. Another name of interest in the 2011 class was in the house, and that was 6'11 Academy of the New Church center Malcolm Gilbert. Maurice Nelson was also in attendance.

Tay Jones picture courtesy of SJUHawks.com

2009 Eddie Griffin Challenge (Updated Wednesday)

Next Sunday, October 25th, the annual Eddie Griffin Challenge will take place in Conshohocken, PA. Full rosters are not completely set, but this is the information that I can pass on to you at this time:

The Philly seniors team will feature Syracuse commit Dion Waiters, Virginia Tech commit Tyrone Garland, Wake Forest commit Tony Chenault, Saint Joe's commit CJ Aiken, and Tyreek Duren, who is deciding between two A10 schools in LaSalle and Temple. This is a great chance to see Aiken against some solid competition.

The list of New Jersey seniors scheduled to play on Saturday has also been released now. The list is headlined by one of the top seniors in all of America, 6'2 Saint Patrick's guard Kyrie Irving. Saint Joe's 2010 target Ronald Roberts is also on the roster. Trenton Catholic guard and 2010 Drexel commit Frantz Massenat is also on the roster alongside Saint Anthony bigman and Richmond commit Derrick Williams. Fellow Saint Anthony bigmen Devon Collier and Ashton Pankey should also appear as well as 2010 Seton Hall commit Fuquan Edwin.

The New Jersey juniors team features a handful of players with SJU interest. Myles Davis (pictured above), who is teammates with Ron Roberts at Saint Peter's Prep, is one of the guards scheduled to play in the event. Two of the top big men in the state, both with offers from the Hawks, are scheduled to play. They are New Egypt's Desmond Hubert and Patterson Catholic's Derrick Randall. A trio of forwards with Hawk interest are also listed in Jarrelle Reischel, freak athlete Jarrod Davis, and Vaughn Gray. Also on the NJ juniors team are phenom Mike Gilchrist, Texas commit Myck Kabongo, and guard Sterling Gibbs.

Going against the NJ Juniors team is their Philly area counterpart. SJU target Malcolm Gilbert is on the roster. 2011 Pitt commit, and a player the Hawks recruited hard, John Johnson will get a chance to go up against the solid NJ guards. Talented guard Juan'ya Green is also on the roster. Long considered a Nova lock, Green may be looking elsewhere as Nova got a verbal from elite level 2011 guard Ashcraf Yacoubou on Wednesday. Friends Central guard and Plymouth Whitemarsh forward Jalen Bond are also on the roster.

The game will feature one SJU verbal commit in CJ Aiken and a 2010 recruiting target in Ronald Roberts. A number of 2011 targets are playing as well: Myles Davis, Malcolm Gilbert, Desmond Hubert, Derrick Randall, Juan'ya Green, Vaughn Gray, and a few others.

It should be an exciting day of basketball, with the sophomore game starting at 4, the junior game at 5:30, and the senior game at 7 pm.


NJ Hoops List of Philly Seniors

Gym Rats Recap Part One

Last night many top players from not only the Philadelphia area, but the country, descended upon Cherry Hill East High School for the annual Gym Rats Midnight Madness event. Hawk Hill Hardwood was on site to check out some of the big names participating. In this first installment, we will talk the Philly area products. Tomorrow we will report on some of the national names such as Syracuse commit Fab Melo, Cezar Guerrero, LaQuinton Ross, and North Jersey super-soph Kyle Anderson.

Malcolm Gilbert (Class of 2011, undecided, picture above): When you first look at Malcolm, the first thing that you notice, beside his height, is his ridiculous wingspan. Malcolm stands a legitimate 6'10 with what looks like some room to grow. In the All American game Gilbert faced a daunting task- guarding one of the top 3 centers in the whole 2010 class in Fab Melo. Melo is a 7 footer with an offensive repertoire that has NBA written all over it. With that being said, Malcolm did a very respectable job. In the opening minutes of the game, Malcolm had a highlight reel dunk over Melo that sent the building into an uproar. He finished the game with roughly 18 points, all of which came on dunks. Malcolm runs the floor very well and is basically a goalie around the basket. He has athleticism that allows him to react quickly on both the offensive and defensive ends. While Malcolm, at this point, does not appear to have great hands, he is an extremely talented defensive player who has the tools to become a more-than-adequate offensive player. One of the biggest needs in the 2011 class for the Hawks is a talented center. Malcolm Gilbert certainly fits that bill and is receiving interest from the Hawks. It should be an interesting recruitment to follow. Malcolm was co-MVP for the Red Team alongside LaQuinton Ross.

Tony Chenault-(Class of 2010, Wake Forest): Tony won MVP honors at last year's Midnight Madness event, and from the get-go appeared determined to repeat. And repeat he did. Tony and Fab Melo were co-MVP's for the White Team. Although Tony has dropped significantly in the national rankings over the past couple years, when his jumper is falling like it was tonight, he is still a legitimate, big-time high major talent. Tony not only led the Red Team in scoring with around 28 points, but he did so efficiently. I didn't keep track of shots taken and shots made, but Tony was certainly making many more than he was missing. At one point in the first half, he absolutely took it to Memphis high school junior Bobby Parks Jr. Parks, a talented player in his own respect, looked like he wanted no part of Tony. On 5 or 6 straight possessions, Tony either took Parks off the dribble to the basket or pulled up and shot over him. Again, when Tony is on like he was tonight, he is a very dangerous player. And one that is certainly capable of contributing in the ACC.

Shaq Duncan- (Class of 2010, Niagara): This was the second time I've seen Duncan, and from what I can tell, he is a significant signing for Niagara. Standing around 6'8, Duncan is as thin as he is athletic. As he continues to put weight on, there is no reason to think he can't be a major factor in the MAAC. Duncan runs the floor very well and did not look at all out of place on the court with many top 100 players. Most of his points came off of dunks, but the same could be said for nearly every players in this run-and-gun style of play. A style of play where layups were met with groans from the crowd. While he may not quite live up to either of his namesakes, Niagara fans should be excited about this signing and the 4 years of basketball that you'll get out of him.

Savon Goodman- (Class of 2012, Undecided): When I arrived at Cherry Hill East and first looked at the rosters, this is one of the names that instantly jumped out at me. Goodman is generally considered one of the best prospects on the East Coast in the Class of 2012. About 4 minutes into his first game I could understand why. Goodman, who played in both the Junior All-American Game and the All-American game, won MVP honors in the Junior game. Savon is in that 6'4-6'6 range and only a sophomore, so there is time for him to grow. The first things about his game that you notice is his athleticism and general understanding of the game. He plays with a very calm and level-headed demeanor, just like his Academy of the New Church teammate Malcolm Gilbert (talk about a scary frontcourt when you have both of those guys alongside top 5 junior Roc Christmas). He showed an above-average handle, and ability to take the ball hard to the basket, and great athleticism. In this particular game, his jump-shot wasn't falling, but I know that is supposed to be one of his assets. He was dominant in the Junior All-American game with his jump shot a little off. The thought of him with a jump shot is scary for anyone that has to go up against ANC this year.


A couple other quick notes:

Roc Christmas was in the house but not playing. I don't know if he was scheduled to play and hurt or just there to watch his high school teammates Malcolm Gilbert and Savon Goodman.

Former SJU assistant coach and current New Jersey Nets assistant Doug Overton was there since his son was playing in one of the afternoon games.