By MATT WHITFIELD
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — After cutting his list to eight schools last week, Huntington (W.V.) Prep small forward Miles Bridges is beginning to plan some more visits.
Bridges said Wednesday night at the NBPA Top 100 Camp that he intends to take an official visit to see John Calipari’s club.
“Just Kentucky right now,” Bridges said.
Incoming Kentucky point guard Isaiah Briscoe, who on Wednesday made the final cut for the USA U19 team, played a role in Bridges’ thought process.
“I talk to Briscoe and all of them and they said it was amazing there,” Bridges said. “I was on a unofficial [there previously] but he was talking to me about their officials and he was just telling me how crazy it was.”
Ranked No. 7 in the Class of 2016 in the new ESPN.com rankings, Bridges also lists Michigan State, Michigan, Indiana, North Carolina, N.C. State, Iowa State and Louisville.
A native of Flint, Mich., Bridges says he also feels pressure to play for Sparty.
“It’s a lot of pressure on me,” Bridges said, according to Ben Roberts. “Because everybody from Flint’s saying, ‘You gotta go to Michigan State. You’re from Flint.’ But I’m just going to make the best decision for me.”
DUVAL SAYS TWO SCHOOLS WORKING THE HARDEST
Trevon Duval, a 2017 point guard from Newark (N.J.) St. Benedict’s Prep and WE-R1, says two schools are recruiting him the hardest: Indiana and Oregon.
Duval also holds offers from N.C. State, UNLV, Villanova, Syracuse, Louisville, UConn and others. He really likes Louisville’s style of play.
“I like to get up and down and play with a lot of good guards and also coaches that are comfortable with their guards playing their game,” he said. “I’m interested in Louisville just as much as any other school, but they also play the same way I just described. They get up and down and Coach [Rick] Pitino believes in his guards.”
Duval took a visit recently to Villanova and has had Louisville and Cincinnati come out to his games, but he says now Oregon and Indiana are recruiting him the hardest.
FRANK JACKSON PLANNING DUKE, OTHER VISITS
Frank Jackson, the No. 4 point guard in the Class of 2016 out of Lone Peak (UT) according to 247Sports.com, is planning a Mormon mission at some point and is being recruited in both the classes of 2016 and 2018, he told ESPN’s Jeff Borzello.
Meantime, Jackson told Borzello he will visit Duke on Monday and also plans to trip to North Carolina and Maryland while at the NBA Top 100 Camp.
PLAYERS WHO MADE AN IMPRESSION
**DeAndre Ayton, the No. 1 player in 2017, is the real deal. The 7-footer who we profiled here should be a lottery pick eventually. He has rare athleticism, strength and a high basketball IQ for a guy entering his junior year. He’s a man amongst boys in this camp although. Aston has a good, soft touch, too. He went 4-for-6 in the 7:30 game vs the Cavs.
**Alex Barcello is a tough little guard who’s very scrappy and good on defense. He can slash to the lane at ease and us good at weaving his way through picks. He was one of the hardest workers on the court in his game.
**Thon Maker has great strength for his age and is a great athlete but he doesn’t wow for someone that was once that No. 1 overall player in his class. Maker is being courted heavily by Indiana and Arizona State, who are open to bringing him in in December. Kentucky and others remain in the mix.
**Hamidou Diallo, a 2017 combo guard from the NY Jayhawks and Woodstock (Conn.) Academy, continues to impress. He recently added offers from N.C. State and Indiana to go with St. John’s, Seton Hall, Maryland, Minnesota, UConn, Providence, Miami, Maryland and LSU.
