News & Notes
by Alex Schwartz
- According to ZagsBlog, Shaq Thomas '10 has transferred from Montclair (NJ) to Mountain State Academy (WV). The talented wing began the year at Paterson Catholic, but transferred early in the school year for academic reasons. Mountain State Academy is one of the best teams in America, featuring West Virginia-signee Deniz Kilicli '09, Nebraska-bound Vander Joaquim '09, Kofi Mensa '10, and West Virginia-commit Noah Cottrill '10. The addition of Thomas will help cement the team amongst the nation's elite.
- ZagsBlog has reported that St. Anthony's (NJ), the defending Garden State Tournament of Champions winner and undefeated consensus number one team in the nation last year, lost to O'Dowd (CA), ending a 30+ game win streak for Bob Hurley's squad. The Friars were without Derrick Williams '10, Ashton Pankey '10, and Devon Collier '10 due to transfer rules.
- Though this is a boys' basketball site, I cannot help but mention a major feat that I saw in girls' hoops today. I was at the Hopewell Valley (NJ) Holiday Tournament checking out some local action, and I caught a girls' game between Lawrence (NJ) and The Pennington School (NJ). Though Lawrence won 68-66 in 2OT, it was a Pennington Red Raider that stole the show. Guard Kaitlyn Kerr '10, a Duke commitment for soccer, dropped 49 points, almost single-handedly keeping her team—which had only 7 players today—in the game. Kerr's first sport is soccer, and she was key in Pennington's girls' soccer team's finish as the number one squad in the US by both ESPN Rise and NSCAA/adidas.
- The NJIT Highlanders have lost over 40 consecutive games and were winless in the 2007-2008 season, but expect that to change this year. The squad added a new freshman, Isiah Wilkerson, at the semester break, and he is going to be a huge part of the team, which is still new to Division I. In Wilkerson's first game he led the team in scoring with 12 points in a loss to Rutgers. While the team won't win 10 games, I do think that Wilkerson will help the Highlanders win a few and end their losing streak.
- I caught up with St. Patrick's (NJ) guard Derrick Gordon '11 recently, and the sophomore told me that Western Kentucky has offered him a scholarship. Gordon, who scored 27 points against Word of God (NC) at the City of Palms last week, informed me that he and Kelvin Amayo '11 of St. Benedict's (NJ) are both favoring WKU. The duo are teammates in AAU ball with Team Jersey Elite. Derrick let me know that the two have discussed going to WKU together, and he also informed me that he plans to make his college decision over the summer.
- According to ZagsBlog, Shaq Thomas '10 has transferred from Montclair (NJ) to Mountain State Academy (WV). The talented wing began the year at Paterson Catholic, but transferred early in the school year for academic reasons. Mountain State Academy is one of the best teams in America, featuring West Virginia-signee Deniz Kilicli '09, Nebraska-bound Vander Joaquim '09, Kofi Mensa '10, and West Virginia-commit Noah Cottrill '10. The addition of Thomas will help cement the team amongst the nation's elite.
- ZagsBlog has reported that St. Anthony's (NJ), the defending Garden State Tournament of Champions winner and undefeated consensus number one team in the nation last year, lost to O'Dowd (CA), ending a 30+ game win streak for Bob Hurley's squad. The Friars were without Derrick Williams '10, Ashton Pankey '10, and Devon Collier '10 due to transfer rules.
- Though this is a boys' basketball site, I cannot help but mention a major feat that I saw in girls' hoops today. I was at the Hopewell Valley (NJ) Holiday Tournament checking out some local action, and I caught a girls' game between Lawrence (NJ) and The Pennington School (NJ). Though Lawrence won 68-66 in 2OT, it was a Pennington Red Raider that stole the show. Guard Kaitlyn Kerr '10, a Duke commitment for soccer, dropped 49 points, almost single-handedly keeping her team—which had only 7 players today—in the game. Kerr's first sport is soccer, and she was key in Pennington's girls' soccer team's finish as the number one squad in the US by both ESPN Rise and NSCAA/adidas.
- The NJIT Highlanders have lost over 40 consecutive games and were winless in the 2007-2008 season, but expect that to change this year. The squad added a new freshman, Isiah Wilkerson, at the semester break, and he is going to be a huge part of the team, which is still new to Division I. In Wilkerson's first game he led the team in scoring with 12 points in a loss to Rutgers. While the team won't win 10 games, I do think that Wilkerson will help the Highlanders win a few and end their losing streak.
- I caught up with St. Patrick's (NJ) guard Derrick Gordon '11 recently, and the sophomore told me that Western Kentucky has offered him a scholarship. Gordon, who scored 27 points against Word of God (NC) at the City of Palms last week, informed me that he and Kelvin Amayo '11 of St. Benedict's (NJ) are both favoring WKU. The duo are teammates in AAU ball with Team Jersey Elite. Derrick let me know that the two have discussed going to WKU together, and he also informed me that he plans to make his college decision over the summer.
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