Just got back from the Federer-del Potro U.S. Open final and I’m still a little shocked at what transpired…also a little sad that the Open is over. I’m a big tennis guy and these are two of my favorite weeks of the year.
Props to my boy Chris Chaney, the former Patterson (NC) School coach, who predicted del Potro earlier Monday (maybe before that). Someday I plan to cover Wimbledon and maybe even the Australian Open. So stay tuned for that…
Anyway, here are the hoops highlights of the night:
**Dallas Episcopal point guard Phil Pressey confirmed to me via text tonight that he committed to Missouri.
“Yes, I did,” he said.
The 5-foot-10 Pressey is ranked No. 13 among point guards in the Class of 2010. He chose Mizzou over LSU, Baylor, UCLA and Arizona.
“After I played with the guys and saw the campus and the football game and interacted with all the players, I thought Missouri was the place,” Pressey told Powermizzou.com . “I pretty much knew where I wanted to go. With the family atmosphere and knowing I had a chance to play right away, I just felt like there was no point in taking any other visits.”
Pressey averaged 18.3 points, 9.8 assists, 5.3 rebounds and five steals per game as a junior while earning all-state honors from the Southwest Preparatory Conference.
**Kansas head coach Bill Self met Monday night with the parents of Oak Hill (Va.) guard Doron Lamb, a Queens native.
“It was good,” Calvin Lamb, Doron’s dad, said by text. “He talked about how Kansas will be a good fit for Doron.”
Self had previously met with Doron himself last week at Oak Hill.
Arizona head coach Sean Miller and Kentucky coach John Calipari have also visited with Calvin Lamb. Oklahoma coach Jeff Capel is due in on Tuesday.
**Texas A&M head coach Mark Turgeon had an in-home with Elizabeth (NJ) St. Patrick coach Kyrie Irving.
“Texas a and m in home was splendid,” Tweeted Kyrie, who now has more than 2,000 followers.
A&M associate head coach Scott Spinelli played college ball with Dred Irving at BU, so don’t count out the Aggies.
Kyrie will trip to Duke officially Sept. 25, Indiana Oct. 2 and A&M Oct. 9.
UConn, Seton Hall, Georgia Tech and Kentucky are also in the mix for the supremely talented PG whom Celtics coach Kevin Boyle told me will be the best guard ever to come out of the Garden State.
**The Tobias Harris Sweepstakes continues and UConn is still in the mix. Jim Calhoun and the UConn coaches met with Tobias at his school last week.
“We met earlier in the week and had a good visit,” Torrel Harris said by text.
**Tobias also had a home visit Monday with Oklahoma’s Capel that went very well. You can bet that Oklahoma mentions that Blake Griffin was the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft in every home visit.
“Oklahoma visit was awesome,” Torrel said by text. “We really like the presentation from Jeff Capel and his staff. We like the direction Coach Capel is leading his team to the next level and winning. He spoke about academics, his basketball program, development workouts and getting his players better.
“His basketball staff is strong and understands helping players improve their skill level. Very impressed by the future. Three years at Oklahoma, three first-round draft picks. Many NBA prospects to follow from his program.”
**6-8 Concord (Mass.) Middlesex wing Rod Odom had breakfast with Harvard coach Tommy Amaker and his wife and then dinner with Vandy coach Kevin Stallings and his staff Sunday night at the school. Stallings and company had an in-home with the Odoms Monday night.
New York Panthers AAU coach Gary Charles previously said Odom “loved the fact that Vandy had a pre-law and medical building plus immediate playing time.”
**Harrison Barnes, the wing out of Ames (Iowa) High ranked No. 2 in the Class of 2010, says he won’t release his in-home visit but is slated to visit Duke Oct. 23.
**Seton Hall Prep junior PG Sterling Gibbs visited Maryland unofficially over the weekend and had a good talk with Gary Williams.
“The visit went real well,” Gibbs said by text. “I was able to sit down with Coach Williams and all of the assistant coaches and talk about my future if I were to come to Maryland and then we took a tour around the campus and met with the academic director and later on in the night we went to the football game with the players.”
Gibbs, whose brother, Ashton Gibbs, plays at Pitt, may also visit Notre Dame Oct. 19 for the football game.
He previously said Villanova was his leader.
**Jesse Morgan, a 6-4 postgrad shooting guard at South Kent, has interest from UConn, Florida, Seton Hall, Temple, UMass, Georgia and Pittsburgh, according to South Kent coach Kelvin Jefferson.
**Marist men’s basketball head coach Chuck Martin will host the 2009 Hudson Valley Coaches Clinic on Sept. 26 at the McCann Center. Coaches who will speak at the event include Kentucky’s John Calipari, Drexel’s Bruiser Flint, UMass’ Derek Kellogg and Norm Roberts of St. John’s.
The pre-registration fee, which must be received by Sept. 23, is $70. A flat rate of $200 will be charged for three coaches from the same school who attend. A free gift from Anaconda Sports will be given to those who pre-register. The walk-up registration fee is $85.
The clinic includes breakfast and lunch. Registration is scheduled to begin at 8:15 a.m., and the program is scheduled to end at 3 p.m. The schedule for the clinic goes as follows:
8:15 a.m.: Registration
9-10 a.m.: Norm Roberts – Ballscreen Options
10:10 -11:10 a.m.: Bruiser Flint – Pressure Defense
12:30 -1:30 p.m.: John Calipari – Dribble Drive
1:40 – 2:40 p.m.: Derek Kellogg – Transition Offense
(Photos courtesy Rivals / Kelly Kline, Nike)
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