Headliner Recap – Breakout Underclass Invites Announced

New England Recruiting Report | Thursday, June 4th, 2009

The Reebok Breakout Underclass Camp, to be held June 19-21 in Dallas, is designed for the best freshmen, sophomores, and juniors in the country.  Six players earned invitations last week following their performance at the Reebok Headliner Try-Out Camp.  Here’s a look at who punched their tickets to Dallas:

Marco Banegas – Benegas has been making quite a name for himself this spring running the show for BABC’s seventeen-and-under team.  We saw glimpses of his talent this weekend as he showed a special ability to make plays with the ball in his hands.  He’s really only just beginning to scratch the surface of his potential and clearly has a very bright future in store for himself. 

Dennis Clifford – His game has progressed at a consistent rate over the last year or so, but we’re not sure we’ve ever seen him play better than he did this weekend.  He was making strong moves with his back to the basket, kicking and re-posting, and going to the offensive glass.  He’ll repeat his junior year at Milton Academy next year and so he was eligible for the Breakout Camp. 

Ricardo Ledo – Speaking of guys who have broken out this spring, no one has done that more so than Ledo.  He’s repeating his sophomore year at St. Andrew’s next year and he’s become a player that the high-major schools are now taking note of.  He’s got all the tools with great size and length for the backcourt, tremendous athleticism, a flare for making plays off the dribble and in the open floor, and a rapidly improving three-point stroke. 

Chris Sherwood – He’s the poster child for what Headliner is all about.  A player who came into the weekend without a lot of fanfare but proved he could compete with the top underclassmen in the region.  He’s an incredible athlete who commanded attention on the court because of his ability to make (and finish) plays explosively above the rim. 

Marcus Grant – Naturally a swingman, Grant was playing slightly out of position on Saturday as he was asked to bring the ball up the court for his team.  And although he wasn’t exactly a natural, it gave him the opportunity to show off another dimension to his game.  Evaluators paid attention and when he went back to the wing on Sunday he continued to impress, showing his all around game scoring the ball and locking down on the defensive end. 

Khem Birch – The Canadian native isn’t originally from New England but locals are quickly learning all about him.  His athleticism is absolutely off the charts and so he is able to change games on both ends of the floor.  His selection to the Breakout Camp was probably an easy one.