Brian Crownover spent Saturday of last weekend checking at the action at the Boo Williams Invitational and was able to check out much of the exciting young talent participating in the event. In his first installment, Brian takes a look at home some of the elite prospects of the event fared and several could be very serious Big East targets over the next couple months.

His review includes a pair of UConn commits from the class of 2009. Brian is the lead recruiting analyst for CAA Insider, where you can find more from Brian on the Boo Williams event where you can see his review on Ricardo Ratliffe who Rutgers is trailing for the class of 2008.

More from Brian on the Boo Williams Invitational coming soon.

BABC

Jamal Coombs (Committed to Connecticut)
Jamal had a strong game despite it being a close loss to Athletes First in the semifinals. This slasher can really get to the hoop and is exceptional at working his way through traffic. Among his many plays in the lane was a drive and one handed running hook shot while gliding away from the rim. He makes adjustments on the fly when he sees what the defense gives him. Jamal banked home a short jumper and hit several other shots while going at the hoop. He also stepped outside and hit a foul line jumper and three pointer. His shooting was a bit inconsistent in this contest though. Jamal battled on the boards as well. The UCONN bound Coombs put together a good outing.

Alex Oriakhi (Committed to Connecticut)
The other UCONN bound player didn’t have as big of a game. Alex did have an offensive rebound put back and a couple other close range baskets. He sat for a good portion of the first half and just never seemed to get back into rhythm. He did battle on the boards and block a couple shots too.

Phil Pressey
This young guard is very quick and can also shoot from the perimeter. He was most effective from behind the arc in this one, although his shot was streaky. Phil missed on a couple runners, but he seems to like that shot and he can certainly get into the lane off the bounce. He didn’t look comfortable going all the way to the rim though and that’s where his small stature could hurt him. The lead guard did distribute several nice passes though. Phil is certainly a talented young guard in the class of 2010.

Boo Williams

Deshawn Painter
Deshawn is a very long and athletic big man with some impressive physical gifts. He had a spin move and basket in the post as well as a follow-up basket. His best play was a hook shot. With his length, that shot is un-guardable. Deshawn crashed the boards in this one too. He struggled with a couple jumpers. He wasn’t as dominant as we had hoped, but he was still solid. Big East schools such as Louisville, Pittsburgh and Syracuse, among others, have been mentioned at times.

Marshawn Powell
Marshawn had a rough outing when we saw him. He struggled to convert from close range. He did score on an old fashioned three point play with a quick post turn around move. He ran the floor and made a couple plays, but other than that was rather quiet. Marshawn did attack the boards and flashed his athletic ability with a blocked shot.

Donte Hill
This team is certainly loaded, but we were surprised to see how little of an impact Donte had. He only played limited minutes. The lefty has good size and the ability to attack, but didn’t do so very often. He does need to get stronger too. The previous Marquette staff was one of the earliest schools seriously involves with Donte in recruiting.

Tristian Spurlock
Tristian put together a strong outing for his new team. The big wing can really stroke it from the perimeter. By my count, he hit three from beyond the arc. Tristian also was aggressive in attacking off the dribble and either finished or drew a foul on several attempts. The Montrose Christian star has seen Georgetown take an interest in his recruitment as well as much of the ACC.

DC Blue Devils

Joston Thomas
Joston was a workhorse inside. He made play after play near the goal. He followed up several missed shots, including a few of his own. He didn’t have a great game inside finishing, but Joston continued to work. He did have a beautiful spin and bank shot and seems to like to use the glass. He also drove from the perimeter several times, once drawing a foul. Joston is strong and he used that to his advantage on the boards. He put together a solid outing for the Blue Devils.

Markel Starks, JR
This youngster can flat out handle the rock. He first caught my attention with a nasty crossover move and step back jumper. He can stop on a dime. Markel got into the lane and caused problems. If he didn’t score, he did a good job of setting up his teammates. He hit three foul shots late in the contest after being fouled from beyond the arc. A player to watch closely from the class of 2010.

Team Melo

Andrew Fitzgerald
Andrew is a good sized post player. He can play with his back to the basket. He hit on a nice turn around and fade-away shot. He was aggressive on the glass and converted with several put backs. Andrew had a nice pass out of the post and another one on the break. He is pretty athletic to go along with his size. Andrew stepped out and hit a foul line jumper too in this one. Pittsburgh, Seton Hall, Marquette and others are very interested in this improving prospect.

SC Ravens

Ryan Kelly
This highly skilled big man didn’t put together his best outing. He used a nice ball fake to free himself for a pull up jumper. He also tipped the ball in with his left hand, drew a foul and converted for a three point play. Ryan grabbed some rebounds too. He blocked several shots as well. He isn’t the greatest leaper, but does have good timing. Ryan had trouble finishing his shots in this one. He’s often moving when he takes shots and at times it makes it more difficult for him to convert. When he’s on though, he can make these types of shots while in motion. Today wasn’t Ryan’s best day. Notre Dame is a school of interest in Ryan’s recruitment.

Karron Johnson
This forward was solid in the victory. Karron worked on the glass early in the contest. He showed some nice post moves, including an effective spin move which he used several times. He finished in a variety of ways off that move. He converted on a dunk, hit a jump hook and even laid the ball in with some contact. When I saw him last year, Karron had his perimeter game going. He really struggled from the outside in this one and didn’t attack much from the perimeter.

Xavier Humphrey
Xavier didn’t have put up a lot of points in the two games I saw, but he was still effective. He hit a pair of three pointers, including a very high arching one. He can handle the ball, but needs to get stronger to get more accomplished in the lane. Xavier does have some talent though.

Athletes First

Dan Orton
Daniel is a big body post player. He can score with his back to the basket. He had a sweet turn around post jumper as well as a ten foot hook shot to open the contest. Daniel added a nice up and under move. When he got in trouble and missed inside it was often because he didn’t work enough to get deep positioning. He can also handle the ball some and is a decent passer. Daniel showed explosive ability too and blocked several shots. He didn’t seem to always play with a lot of energy, but that is at least somewhat understandable as his team was cruising through pool play. He does have the bulk and skill to play inside at the next level.

Houston Hoops

Keith “Tiny” Gallon
Tiny Gallon is sure entertaining to watch. The massive post player is surprisingly nimble. He can back defenders down and use quickness or power to score inside. He had a beautiful catch, turn and nasty dunk on one play. He also is capable of driving from a few feet out and going to the rim. Tiny has pretty good hands and was able to pull down quite a few offensive rebounds. Despite being so big, he seemed to have some decent athletic ability. While conditioning isn’t a big problem is a short game like this, Tiny will have to drop a few pounds to be successful at the next level. He mentioned that he likes LSU and he certainly reminds me of Glen Davis.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 17th, 2008 at 4:40 am and is filed under Brian Crownover, Connecticut Recruiting, Georgetown Recruiting, Louisville Recruiting, Marquette Recruiting, Notre Dame Recruiting, Pittsburgh Recruiting, Rutgers Recruiting, Seton Hall Recruiting, Syracuse Recruiting. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.