Wells, Wilson headline latest ‘16 pledges

New England Recruiting Report | Monday, May 9th, 2016

It was only five days ago that we published our last commitment catch-up and yet in the days since the decisions have continued to come in at a rapid rate.

Among the most notable within the last few days is that of Worcester Academy senior forward James Wells, who will head north to Canada to star at McGill University,

Ironically, Wells' decision will actually bring him closer to his home in Vermont than he has been in the last two years while starring for Worcester Academy. His high school career began at Rice Memorial High School in Burlington, where he was identified as one of the top prospects in the state of Vermont at a young age. He opted for a move to the prep ranks following his junior season and so he transferred to Worcester Academy, despite it being located almost four hours away.

McGill is located in Montreal, less than two hours north of Burlington, and is widely considered to be one of the premier academic institutions in all of Canada and also specifically known for their engineering program, which Wells plans to pursue.

The 6-foot-8 Wells, who ran with Metro Boston on last year's grassroots circuit, has made considerable strides in the last two years, not only adding more muscle and extending his skill set, but becoming a much more aggressive and confident player and earning a steady dose of scholarship level interest within the last few months as a result.

He joins Salisbury School guard Kendrick Jolin, a Canadian native, to become the second New England prep product to commit to McGill in the class of 2016.

In other recent commitment news:

• Suffield Academy recently announced the plans of seniors Elijah Wilson and Ellis Christmas who will both stay in New England to play their college basketball. Wilson, a powerful swingman with a college ready body, will head to the NESCAC to play for Wesleyan University. Beyond his power and physical tools he'll provide them with a high level, versatile defender and evolving scoring threat on the wing. Christmas, a playmaking southpaw guard, will continue his career at Wentworth Institute of Technology where he'll have a chance to earn immediate minutes at the point guard position. Both players were starters for this year's Tigers team and have been multi-year contributors for a Suffield team that advanced to last year's NEPSAC Class A final and returned to the Final Four this season;
• Also in Class A, Kent School post-graduate Jamil Gambari is on his way to the NESCAC as well and will continue his career at Amherst College. A long and athletic 6-foot-5 wing with the ability to slash, defend and get out in transition, Gambari brings the type of physical tools rarely seen in the Division III ranks. Prior to arriving at Kent, Gambari previously starred at Woodlands High School in New York where he was named to All-State in Class B;
• Another NESCAC commitment from the Class A ranks took place at Choate Rosemary Hall where post-graduate guard Ethan Schlager committed to Colby. A highly skilled guard who has added a significant amount of muscle to his frame in recent years, Schlager is a scoring threat in all three ranges and capable of plaing on an off the ball at the next level.
• Wachusett guard Tyler Dion, who came up the ranks with the Blackstone Valley Chaos AAU program and most recently ran with BABC City, is reportedly staying close to home next year to continue his basketball career at Nichols College. Dion is a skilled guard, capable of playing both on and off the ball, who recently completed a decorated high school career in Central Massachusetts. He averaged almost 22 points per game as a senior to lead Wachusett to a 15-7 record while also becoming the second all-time leading scorer in school history and earning a number of post-season accolades including his third consecutive Midland A MVP award.
• On Thursday, MacDuffie School guard and Springfield native Carlos Gonzales announced that he would continue his career at Eastern Connecticut State University next season. Gonzalez is a two-year product of the MacDuffie squad and grew into a leadership role for his senior campaign thanks his competitiveness, grit and ability to be a lockdown defensive player.