Nate Latsch

> > why hasn't slu offered david schmich, the 7'0" center from >chaminade. we have to stop letting this good talent from st. >Louis slip away. he would be a perfect replacement for ian. >what's going on over there. we need a plan B just in case >Ian does get drafted. > >bad boyz for life Nice work, diddy.

>I heard this morning Gabe Dearmond on Bernie's show say that >Matt Lawrence who played at Lafayette will no longer be a >part of the BB program at Missouri. I just got off the phone with Gabe. He said as far as he knows Matt Lawrence is sticking around to play at Missouri and he hasn't heard anything about a possible transfer. So this must have been about Keon Lawrence. - Nate

Troop does a good job with this stuff. He's following in the footsteps of Graham Bensinger, the MICDS grad who started his own website at a very young age and is now doing stuff for ESPN.com as a freshman at Syracuse. Alex Tyus used to go to MICDS (before ninth grade), so I think he and Troop are friends. If Tyus trusts Troop I would think Alex would give CT some good info about his recruiting. - Nate

>The majority of the top impact pf's are rangy guys between 6'7 and 6'9 and between 200 >and 225 pounds. Athleticism is something that SLU is sorely lacking, particularly in the >frontcourt. And the kid you have been hyping forever, Powell, is probably 6-5 and 175 pounds. That's why I've been saying he needs to get bigger and stronger to fit into that mold. Tyus is bigger and stronger than Powell. - Nate

Matt Lawrence did have a basketball scholarship for this past year, his freshman year, at Missouri. He could be a good fit at SLU. He'd have to sit for a year, but he's a good perimeter shooter with size. Kind of like a taller Dustin Maguire with a nicer-looking shot. Depending on what SLU's other options are, I would think the Billikens would be interested. But if you bring in Lawrence, when he is eligible as a sophomore he'll be competing for playing time at the 2-3 with Maguire (who will be a sophomore or a redshirt freshman), Luke Meyer (who will be a senior), Danny Brown (senior), Kevin Lisch (junior), Tommie Liddell (junior) and whoever the Bills bring in next year. - Nate

>Nate, has said repeated that the athletic Powell wouldn't >fit SLU's system, so how does the athletic Tyus fit? I've said Powell needs to get stronger to have a chance to play the power forward spot at a school like SLU. I'm not sold on Tyus's game at the college level either — is he small forward with a suspect perimeter jumper or a springy under-sized power forward? — but Tyus is like a bigger, stronger, more dynamic version of Powell. - Nate

If I remember correctly, I believe a couple months ago there was some talk about Soderberg not being sure whether to offer Alex Tyus a scholarship or not based on how likely Tyus really was to sign with SLU. Basically, why should SLU offer the kid if he's not seriously going to consider SLU? That makes sense if, as someone pointed out, Soderberg only extends as many scholarship offers to potential recruits as he has available. Instead of offering a couple kids scholarships when you know you're not going to get all of them, you offer three or four kids and then wait and see what happens. I still don't really know why Tyus left the St. Louis area. Had he stayed at Hazelwood Central for his senior year, he would have played on a good team — with other Division I recruits Mo Smith and Marvin McNutt — and would be about to graduate and move on to a good D-1 basketball program. He still would have had several good options to choose from, though not as many as he'd have if we reclassified and graduated one year later. Tyus definitely had some interest in SLU — he went to midnight madness and I saw him at the Gonzaga game — but everything I've read on the recruiting sites seems to point toward him playing the recruiting game with big-time schools in a long, drawn-out process. - Nate

>People talk about me bringing up guys who SLU shouldn't be recruiting and Nate >Latsch says the best prospect in the 2007 class is a 6'11 big man who managed only 4 >appearance during his junior season, scoring a season total of 6 pts, and he says that >with weight, strength and grades, he'll have a lot of division 1 team DROOLING! Williams is a 7-footer who can run and jump. He is a prospect. He's not much of a player at this point, but he's shown improvement. I don't know why he didn't get PT at Edwardsville this year, other than he doesn't seem to fit into Waldo's slow-it-down-and-go-four-corners system on offense. Defensively, Williams could have blocked a couple shots a game. When he was a 6-10 or 6-11 sophomore, I thought Williams was one of the worst players in the area. Last year, he showed a lot of improvement. He probably had close to a triple double in the JV game against Alton — with a line close to 25+ points, 15-20 rebounds and 10 blocks. Williams would have played a lot more at Vashon this past season. - Nate

The junior class in the St. Louis area is a little shaky to me. The top three players are probably Leon Powell, Lucas O'Rear and Josh Harrellson, but I'm not sure any of those is a good fit at SLU. Powell is a skinny 6-5, 6-6 or 6-7 power forward. He's been productive at Vashon for the last two years, even though he's kind of streaky where he'll disappear for stretches when he probably shouldn't. I think he could be successful in the Missouri Valley Conference or in the right system, like at a Missouri where he can run and jump and score in transition. He lacks post moves and a perimeter game and needs to get stronger if he's going to be effective as a power forward somewhere. Hopefully he makes the kind of jump that Bobby Hill did between his junior and senior seasons. A lot of people think Powell leveled off from his sophomore to junior seasons. I haven't seen him have success in the post against bigger, stronger kids. Yes, he scored a lot at the Nike Hoop Jamboree, but those games are all about getting up and down the floor and scoring in transition. Powell does that very well. I think O'Rear is kind of in the same boat as Powell. He's similar sized, height-wise, though stronger and heavier. I think O'Rear could be a good fit in the MVC, though I heard one MVC coach question his ability to score against bigger players — which at his height means almost everyone he'll be facing. I don't think he's developed into the Matt Shaw-type that people envisioned when O'Rear was a high-scoring freshman. He does have some nice post moves and good hands, but how does that translate from small-school Illinois basketball to college basketball? If he was 6-8, I think he'd have several options at the next level. At 6-5 or 6-6, I don't know. Harrellson is 6-foot-8 (supposedly) and looks like a 22-year-old rather than a high school junior. He'd probably be my top prospect for a school like SLU, though I have questions about how much he cares about the game. I got a bad vibe from watching him in warm-ups a couples times this year, where he was more interested in taking bad shots and messing around instead of getting prepared to play. If he cares about basketball and wants to get better, he could be a good fit for SLU. He's got enough size to play inside (I don't know if he's still growing or not) and a good feel around the basket. I've heard great things about Harrellson this summer, and two people close to me whose opinions I value really like the kid as a prospect. If you add Harrellson to a mix that includes Obi Ikeakor and Adam Knollmeyer I think he can fit in. There are a couple other juniors I like that I'm not sure fit in at SLU. Hazelwood Central's Marvin McNutt is an unbelievable athlete (he has scholarship offers for football and basketball) but I think if he goes into the right program he can develop into a solid NFL prospect as a quarterback. I like Borgia's Paul Eckerle. He's athletic, smart, can shoot and comes from a program that has produced several Division I players (Luke Meyer, Sky Frazier and Alex Moosmann most recently). But is Eckerle too small (6-0 or 6-1?) to be a shooting guard in college? He's probably the kind of player SLU would try to get as a walk-on, which if I remember correctly is what the Billikens tried to do with Moosmann. My guess is Eckerle goes to a school in a smaller conference, following in the footsteps of Moosmann (Miami-Ohio) and Landon Shipley (Austin Peay). Lutheran North's Rolandis Woodland is similar to McNutt. He's getting a lot of looks as a wide receiver and I think he should take that route. He's a productive basketball player, but he's like a 6-4 or 6-5 power forward. That's great size for wide receiver or, if he bulks up, tight end. Not so much in college basketball. He might have a better perimeter game than I'm giving him credit for, but if you're a two-sport guy I don't see much good in going to a school like SLU. There are other kids who could be Division I mid-major players, like Duchesne's Zack Plackemeier, Miller Career Academy's Chris Stokes, Alton's Kavon Lacey (maybe football), Cardinal Ritter's DeAndre Gilmore (maybe football), Vashon's Alburey Doss, Mascoutah's Robbie Rudy, Whitfield's Mike Baker and Chaminade's Alfred Nelson. But I think all of these juniors have a lot to work on and have to improve. The best prospect in the class is probably Edwardsville's Terrence Williams. He's 6-foot-11 or 7-foot, but he's a major project. He did not see much time on the Tigers' varsity this season, though he has improved enough that he could dominate at the J.V. level. A year earlier, in my limited exposure, I didn't see him contribute much on J.V. He is very long and can jump. He needs to get stronger and gain weight, but if he's got the grades he'll have a lot of Division I teams drooling. - Nate

I know you have said and others on this board have said they have seen Brad out at a lot of games. I'm sure BS saw a lot of Kevin Lisch's games over his four years at Althoff, as you did. But I find it strange that with the large amount of high school games I cover every season — this is covering the best teams and players in the St. Louis are, not the worst like tseugnekillib has suggested — that I've only seen him a couple times in three years. I did say he could be spending all his time at Linn High School or somewhere else. Maybe he's in the Pacific Northwest region recruiting Bigfoot to play power forward. He could be out watching a game every night — maybe even games that Kramer isn't playing — but I'm surprised I haven't seen him much in the last three years. We'll see what happens in the next few years. Soderberg's hard work with recruiting obviously paid off in getting Kevin Lisch and Tommie Liddell. If he's able to build on that with the next few recruiting classes, he'll have a lot of success and all of the Billiken fans will rejoice (led by VTIMe in his Dwayne Polk jersey). If he's not, he'll be out of a job. - Nate

Roy, I'm used to tsuegnekillib taking unwarrented shots at me on this board, but I'd expect more from you. - Nate

>Nate, I respect your opinion and I think you are an >excellent upcoming journalist but I am concerned with what >seems to be a new negative attitude about Brad and the >Bills. Did something happen between you and SLU? It seems a >little weird for someone to say that because he does not see >someone at a game that he attends that the person does not >go to games that he does not attend. What is up? Billikan, I don't have a negative attitude toward Brad and the Bills. In the past my main criticisms were that the team needed to focus more on St. Louis kids for the purpose of generating more local interest in the program and in turn making the team an attractive option to future local recruits. I think that's the only way this team can be successful over time. I think the program is now in good shape with this approach. There were mistakes made (Ahearn), but I can't fault Brad and Co. too much for their recruiting lately. I really like the Adam Knollmeyer signing. I think he will contribute for four years and could have an impact next season — whether its with positive minutes or by pushing JJ and Obi hard enough that they step up and become contributors. The Billikens missed on Stemler but that was because two much more popular options (Indiana, Marquette) presented themselves. For the rest of his life, Stemler will be able to say he played basketball at Indiana. I think he would have helped take the Billikens to the tournament next year, but instead he'll be playing for a team in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten. When Scott Suggs signs with North Carolina and John Brandenburg and Tyler Griffey sign with Duke, you won't hear me complain because the program just can't compete with those schools. I wouldn't be too shocked if two of those kids, or all three, are McDonald's All-Americans. They are going to have a lot of options. But SLU has a chance, if the Billikens are successful next year, to keep them at home. My only complaint now is that I don't see Brad at many high school games (fact). I think it's important for a coach at a school like SLU to be visible all over the basketball community when he can be (opinion). I think the more hoop fans see Soderberg around town at games, the more they feel like they have a relationship with the program and the more interested they become. That translates to the overall excitement about the team, increased ticket sales and possibly better odds for keeping the area's top talents from leaving for greener pastures. Like I've said before, Brad could be at a high school game every night and I just haven't seen him more than a two or three times in a few years. To recap, I'm pleased with a lot of things the Billikens have done in the last few years. My only complaint is that I don't see Soderberg out watching many local high school games. - Nate

>I'm sure VTime could find better local prospects than this if he really >tried. I mean other than the 4,873 threads he's posted about Leon Powell. Or the threads about offering scholarships to all of the tall kids who can't get off Vashon's bench ... or everyone who plays for Cardinal Ritter. At least Vtime hasn't done that in a while. - Nate

>The knocks you have on Powell his jumpshot, ballhandling >etc. are the same knocks you used against him saying he >wasn't division 1. Again. I never said he wasn't a D-1 player. >For his career he is 13 of 37 from beyond the arc, 35% which is about what >you would expect your power forward to shoot. Of all the inflated statistics area basketball coaches submit to STL Today Prep Sports, Vashon's three-point field goals made and taken and the percentages are probably the worst. What did Dwayne Polk shoot from 3 his senior year? 50 percent? You think that was accurate? >His jumper is ever improving and Big 12 schools want him. How many Big 12 schools have offered him? There's a big difference between schools being interested in a player and offering them. Haven't you learned that by now? I think Powell would be a good fit at Missouri because of Mike Anderson's system. Powell is probably a better fit at Mizzou than he is at SLU. He can get away with being a 6-6, 175-pound power forward at Mizzou when he's running and jumping and playing defense. But he still needs to get bigger and stronger to play PF at a school like SLU. - Nate

Roy, That is one of the two (or three) high school games I've seen Brad at. But I think he left at halftime. - Nate

When did I say Leon Powell wasn't a Division I player? I've never said that. I have said I don't know how good of a college player Powell will be. A lot of people have noticed that Powell didn't improve much between his sophomore and junior seasons. If he doesn't do the work this summer, he's not going to get better. He needs to get stronger, work on his shot, ballhandling and post moves. I'm surprised he's only got one scholarship offer (Bradley), but that's about the level I expect him to go. He's a 6-foot-6 (6-7 max) power forward who doesn't have any reliable post moves. Powell's been very productive at Vashon the last two years, but he's still not the player you have hyped him up to be for the last two years. That's not his fault. It's yours. - Nate

I've said this before, but it's been a while so I'll repeat it. One thing SLU definitely has going for it is that both of Suggs' parents work in the city and he's got a couple younger brothers. The family is pretty close, so that definitely works in SLU's favor. Of course, it probably doesn't take much longer to drive from Augusta to Columbia than it does from Augusta to the SLU campus. - Nate

Rivals.com now has a story on Washington sophomore guard Scott Suggs. http://mosports.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=540103 Among the highlights: "Washington and St. Louis have offered and have been in my school," Suggs said. "Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and Southern Illinois have also been to my school. Iowa is also showing me some interest. "I'd like to play in an up and down system. How well I get along with the players and coaches will mean a lot." xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Because of this story, Rivals reports Suggs as just having the two offers from Washington and St. Louis. But I've been told he has seven offers — including from Mizzou, Illinois, Southern Illinois and possibly Arizona. I know he and his family have talked to Arizona. Suggs was supposed to make unofficial visits to Washington and Arizona near the end of this past college basketball season. - Nate

Bernie M. just said on his radio show that Lance Stemler has announced he will sign with Indiana. - Nate

>i guarantee you that a coach that knows he is last of the visits wants to get that verbal >commit before they leave the campus. This is true any time a recruit makes an official visit to a campus. Schools pressure these kids to commit all the time, and try to prevent kids from making any other trips. You see it more in football recruiting, but it happens. Generally, the last school that a kid takes an official visit to has an advantage because that school has made the last impression. Schools try to position themselves to be the final official visit for a recruit for this reason. - Nate

>Suggs, Brandenburg, Soderberg, and Perry are the only one's >we are hearing about, but they are 16's playing on the 17's. > Are none of the seniors to be on the 17's producing or >worthy of an offer? Nate I'm asking you because you seem to >have some inside info. Are any of the seniors to be >performing and who are the legit division prospects in the >area for the class of 2007? Others are welcome to comment. The reason you're hearing more about those four kids, and Tyler Griffey, is because those kids are probably going to be heavily recruited, with the exception of Soderberg, and could make a big impact at the college level. Josh Harrellson (6-8 F/C St. Charles) and Leon Powell (6-7 F Vashon) are probably the top two juniors to keep an eye on for Billikens fans. There are a couple other players worth watching, like Borgia guard Paul Eckerle, but I'll have to come up with a longer list and post more on this later. - Nate

>Is it possible that in the long run Kramer Soderberg might >be the best recruit in his signing class? I remember >listening to Ryan and Troy Robertson say that Kramer is a >good D1 point guard right now, in the Brian Grawer vein but >better offensively. Kramer is looking more and more like a decent D-1 prospect. But Scott Suggs and John Brandenburg both have the potential to be excellent Division I players and play for money after their college careers are over. - Nate

http://www.prepstars.com/recruiting_news/2...evals042606.jsp From PrepStars after the Kingwood Classic: Scott Suggs (2008), 6-5 WG, Washington (MO) High- For the second time in a row, the sophomore star flourished in the open floor and made a strong impression. We really like his size and ability to handle the ball. He's an excellent passer who has a feel for when to shoot and is usually accurate when he does let it fly from deep or off the dribble. In fact, his decision making is good enough that we could eventually see him playing some point. He looks very confident and will be very hard to handle once he adds strength that comes close to matching his skill level. He has the potential to be a big time recruit. Marvin McNutt, 6-3 WG, Florissant (MO) Hazelwood Central- Talk about a big time athlete, this slender wing was one of the best pound for pound athletes we saw. He elevates for jams in traffic, knocks down some open looks and can really be a pest defensively. His ball handling skills leave a bit to be desired, however. Chances are we won't be talking about him as a basketball player on the next level ,as he's already attracting high-major offers for his skills on the football field, where he's one of the top QB prospects in the Midwest. - Nate

OJ, I just saw that on PrepStars and was going to post some excerpts. - Nate

>nate said, > >"An opinion would be that SLU hasn't done a very good job of >keeping St. Louis players home over the last few years, >though it's been better recently (with two kids)." > >1(lisch)+1(liddell)+1(polk)+1(meyer)=2? Roy, Of the five local players SLU has signed in the last few years (including Dustin Maguire - not including Adam Knollmeyer), how many had more than one or two scholarship offers at the time they committed? Polk was a good signing, but he wasn't in high demand when he committed. His only other offer was from Valpo. Luke Meyer was a good signing. It's questionable how many offers he had. Meyer had interest from several schools — Stanford, Nebraska, Penn, Princeton, Evansville and Santa Clara — but how many of those schools had offers on the table. Dustin Maguire I think will be a decent signing in time. But when he committed his only scholarship offer was from St. Louis U. Tommie Liddell and Kevin Lisch were both kids with a lot of options, especially Liddell after he went to prep school for an extra year. Both had several quality options and were major recruits for a couple years. Those were the two big gets for this program, two players who can change the fortunes of the team and who you can build around. The other St. Louis area recruits were good additions, guys you need to fill out a solid roster, but Lisch and Liddell were the two that everyone would be complaining about had they gotten away. - Nate