Look Who’s Coming to Town

New England Recruiting Report | Tuesday, November 18th, 2014

This weekend’s National Prep Showcase will bring the top prep programs from around the country to Albertus Magnus College in New Haven, Connecticut for a three day event that tips Friday morning at 10:30a.m.  

While local fans already know the New England programs, here’s a quick viewer’s guide to this weekend’s visitors:

Blair Academy (NJ) – The pride of the MAPL League, Blair is led by a pair of high-major big men in Elijah Burns and Tim Delaney, who are committed to Notre Dame and Villanova respectively. Matt Turner will also be making his return home as the former Trumbull (CT) guard repeated his sophomore year when joining Blair following last season and is now attracting mid to high-major attention.

Coastal Academy (NJ) – One of the premier Academies in the northeast, Coastal also features a couple of players who will be coming home to New England. Former Bunnell (CT) swingman Isaac Vann has been getting wide-ranging division I interest in his post-grad season while Tahj Eddy has also seen his recruitment grow. Tyler Kohl is the team’s best overall player and is being pursued by the likes of Minnesota, Rutgers, and Rhode Island among others.

Elev-8 Academy (FL) – Former Massanutten Military Academy head coach Chad Myers has moved to Florida and already transformed Elev-8’s roster into one of the best in the country. 7-1 center Trayvon Reed was a top 100 prospect in the 2014 class but is now headed to Auburn in 2015. Kobie Eubanks is another former top 100 national product who is committed to Baylor while the team’s point guard, J.T. Escobard, is off the board to Ole Miss. Rhody Rams fans can also get their first look at Leroy Butts, who signed with URI last week.

Fishburne Military Academy (VA) – They were last year’s homecoming story when they returned with Kuran Iverson and Zach Lewis, and while they might not have quite as much local fan support this year they still have a ton of talent. Seven players signed National Letters of Intent last week including Washington bound big man Devenir Duruisseau and Marcellis Perkins, a six-foot-five guard who will join Holy Cross next season.

Fork Union Military Academy (VA) – Another proud military school from Virginia, Fork Union has a talented club without a single committed player, and so they are bound to be a big attraction for college coaches. Kamou Stokes is a guard from Baltimore drawing high level recruitment as is seven-foot center Malik Kuwornu. Fork Union has no less than nine other players who are currently being recruited at the D1 level.

Hargrave Military Academy (VA) – One of the most storied prep programs in the country returns to New Haven this year. Hargrave had five players sign NLI’s last week including: Kejuan Johnson and Justin Goode (Rutgers); Tyrone Taylor (Wichita State); and top 100 national prospect Danjel Purifoy (Auburn). There’s still a plethora of available division I talent though including six-foot-three guard Jon Davis, who is pinging the high-major radar.

IMG Academy (FL) – They made their New England debut a year ago with Chris McCullough at the helm of the program. This year they have another notable star in former Huntington Prep guard and Oregon signee JaQuan Lyle. Under the direction of former West Virginia and Michigan assistant coach John Mahoney, IMG also has a pair of high-major prospects inside in seven-footer Satnam Singh and six-foot-nine power forward Andre Adams.

Max My Game (FL) – The official post-grad program of West Oaks Academy in Orlando, Max My Game is now under the direction of legendary prep school coach Chris Chaney, who previously coached the Patterson School in North Carolina. Six-foot-three guard P.J. Bruce is already committed to Oregon State but this program is going to be a major draw for schools still looking for size. They feature seven-footer Nikola Scekic, six-foot-eleven Davante Cooper, and six-foot-seven Khalil Fuller, all of whom have heard from various high-major schools.

Mt. Zion Prep (MD) – The Baltimore based prep school, not to be confused by the former high school powerhouse in North Carolina which went by the same name, is an up and coming prep program who had three players sign with D1 schools last week. Rokas Ulvydas is a six-foot-eleven big man from Lithuania drawing wide-spread interest heading into the late signing period as is power swingman Sean Lloyd. Quinnipiac is a local program who has interest in both players while Central CT has reportedly shown interest in Joe Bradshaw and Rhode Island in Tugay Balyan.

Our Savior New American (NY) – One of the top high school programs in the nation will be making their second straight appearance in the national prep showcase. Six-foot-nine big man Cheick Diallo is one of the top ten players in the country and still left on the board coming out of the early signing period while Damon Wilson, is another top 100 national prospect who is on his way to Pittsburgh next year. Kassoum Yakwe is a top prospect in the class of 2016.

St. John’s NW Military Academy (WI) – Another military school with a proud tradition, St. John’s will be making the trip east from Wisconsin with a roster that is led by future DePaul forward Raymond Doby. Ahmad Carver (Old Dominion) also signed a National Letter of Intent last week while six-foot-two guard Tevin King headlines some of the best available prospects left on the board.