Here and There in Friartown

By Craig Leighton
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Updated: August 15, 2015

News, notes, and opinions on Friar basketball while waiting for the Friars to return to campus.

1. Quentin Jackson, a class of 2016 point guard, has included the Friars on his final list of five schools. Jackson is a Jeff Battle recruit who some consider one of the more underrated players in his class.

2. I was able to attend the PC Elite Camp last weekend and once again the PC coaching staff brought in several high school players they are looking at. Some of those prospects include:

Sedee Keita, 6’11 PF, Putnam Science Academy: Although he played only briefly, Keita demonstrated that he was the best big man at the camp. He combines a post up game with an outside shooting touch and runs the floor extremely well for a man his size. ESPN currently has him ranked as the 82nd best player in the class of 2016. Friarbasketball.com did a Closer Look at Keita in early June.
Wabissa Bede, 6’0 PG, Cushing Academy: Bede is one of the most improved players in New England’s class of 2017, and he was probably the top point guard prospect at the camp. The Friar coaching staff gave him a lot of attention and he was selected to run drills against members of the Friar team. Here is an article on Bede from shortly after the Friars offered him a scholarship.
Preston Santos, 6’5 SF, Bishop Hendricken High School: Santos is extremely young (class of 2018) but his upside is tremendous. He already possesses great athletic ability and has a solid feel for the game. With continued improvement he could wind up being one of the top players in his class by the time he graduates.
Aaron Wheeler, 6’7 SF, St. Andrew’s School: Wheeler must have really impressed the Friar coaching staff, as he was offered a scholarship at the end of the camp. A 6’7 class of 2017 small forward, Wheeler is already an elite athlete who is just scratching the surface of his basketball ability. It will be interesting monitoring him at nearby St. Andrew’s over the next couple of years.
A. J. Reeves, 6’4 SG, Brimmer & May: Reeves showed glimpses of why he is ranked as the number one prospect in New England for the Class of 2018. Already possessing a good shooting touch and elite speed, it will be fun to watch him develop over the next three years.

3. No player in the country saw his stock rise more during the July Live Period then Wenyen Gabriel, but when it came time to narrow his list to five Gabriel did not forget who was after him long before his meteoric rise. PC was the first high major to offer him a scholarship and the Friars are one of five schools he is still considering along with Duke, Kentucky, Maryland, and UConn.

What does PC have that these schools don’t? In a Coxhub article the New England Recruiting Report summed it up quite nicely. At PC Gabriel will be the star and not run the risk of the school bringing in players who could relegate him to being a role player or even being recruited over. PC may not be one of the favorites but they do have things to offer that these others schools do not.

4. The Friars may not have to travel very far to do their recruiting over the next couple of years. There are going to be several players, particularly in the class of 2017, with strong Rhode Island ties who are going to wind up being high major players in college. Between Wheeler, Justin Mazulla (Bishop Hendricken), Tomas Murphy (a South Kingstown native), and Kimani Lawrence (a Providence native) the Friars could fill their entire 2017 class without having to leave the state. They could then follow that up by nabbing Santos out of Hendricken in the 2018 class.

5. Last weekend I was fortunate enough to attend the PC players reunion at Ed Cooley’s house. It was a dream come true for this lifelong Friar follower. At one table Billy Eason was reminiscing about the time his team played Magic Johnson’s Michigan State team in the NCAA Tournament, while at another Ray Johnson was telling Nehru King about the time he had to face UCLA and a guy named Lew Alcindor. Former players from seven decades were in attendance as well as former coaches Tim Welsh and Pete Gillen. It was great seeing so many Friar players coming back and getting involved in the current PC program. All in all a night I will never forget.

Email Craig at craig.leighton@friarbasketball.com

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