Rutgers gets a Gator (updated)

Florida transfer Jonathan Mitchell has made his choice, and it’s Rutgers.

The 6-7 sophomore forward picked RU over Seton Hall and Marshall. Here is Keith Sargeant’s story for Gannett New Jersey, with quotes from Mitchell:
Gannett New Jersey: Mitchell commits to Rutgers

Sarge also provides some additional insight and an interesting quote from Mount Vernon coach Bob Cimmino on our Scarlet Scuttlebutt blog. Keith also takes a look at how Rutgers' roster is shaping up and notes what we've suspected for a while now, that junior guard Courtney Nelson is transferring.
Here is the link. There's a lot of good stuff here:
Sarge on Cimmino, Courtney Nelson, etc.

HOOPS HAVEN SAYS: Even though Mitchell has to sit out a year, it’s a good catch for the Scarlet Knights on several levels.

First, he obviously has talent because Florida recruited him.

Second, this will further Rutgers’ ties with New York powerhouse Mount Vernon (from which Mike Coburn also hails).

Third, they beat out rival Seton Hall for the player, and the Pirates recruited Mitchell hard. It’s a sign that the wind is blowing in Rutgers’ direction.

What’s next?
Rutgers has one scholarship open for next year. Obviously the Scarlet Knights are waiting to see what Devin Ebanks does, but all signs point toward either West Virginia or Memphis for the coveted forward.

Even so, expect Freddie Hill to fill that last scholarship by Wednesday, the final day of the spring signing period.

Hitting the links

While we wait for the next recruiting dominoes to fall...

This is a short story about the increasingly competitive recruitment for Plainfield guard Isaiah Epps:
Recruiting for Epps heating up

This potential bombshell appeared in USA Today. I doubt Kansas will have to forfeit its national title but it definitely sheds more light on the cesspool side of college basketball:
Kansas player should not have been eligible?

Ebanks update?

Earlier today, rivals.com posted a story saying Rutgers recruit Devin Ebanks had narrowed his choices to West Virginia and Memphis.

Then the story disappeared.

Then it re-appeared with a vehement quote from Ebanks' AAU coach saying it was not true.

Now the story is available to rivals "insiders" only (in other words, paying members).

For the record, a source told Hoops Haven the same thing this morning, that it was down to West Virginia and Memphis, before the rivals story came out. Recruiting information is so shady, I wouldn't bet my house on anything until the paperwork is signed. But for those curious about the latest word on the street, there you have it.

TOO MUCH MAYO

Has more energy ever been wasted on a college player who accomplished less than O.J. Mayo? The kid, who has been overhyped from the beginning, didn't even win an NCAA Tournament game. All he managed to do was leave another black eye on the sport.

Here's Pat Forde's well-reasoned column calling for USC to get hammered by the NCAA:
Time to storm the Trojan horse

Scotch Plains' Dan Doherty stepping aside

Hot off the press. Doherty just came off his finest season, guiding the Raiders to their first Group III championship in boys hoops.

Here's the story from the Courier News website:
Dan Doherty going out on top

Hoops Haven Says: Doherty will be missed. He's one of the nicest and most well-liked guys in coaching. The bottom line is that high school basketball is a grind and Doherty is ready to move on to opportunities in other sports.

Gonzo speaks: A "big" signing for Hall

Now that all the paperwork is done and 6-foot-11, 340-pound Melvyn Oliver is on his way to Seton Hall, Pirate coach Bobby Gonzalez has emerged from hiding to heap lavish praise on the center from Mississippi Elite Christian Academy:

“We think that Melvyn Oliver has the potential to be the single-most important recruit we’ve signed since coming here,” Gonzalez said in a statement. “I feel that he has pro potential and with some hard work and conditioning, we believe the sky is the limit for him. Melvyn is a very unique type of player as his skill level is off the charts for a guy his size. I think he is one of the biggest sleepers in the country and now has a chance to come into the Big East Conference and really make some noise.”

Last year Oliver led Mississippi Elite Christian Academy to a 20-5 record, averaging 20.0 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game this past season.

Hoops Haven Says: There's a lot of bluster there, but the truth is that Oliver can be an excellent asset if two things happen: He sheds some serious weight and the Pirates adjust their offense to accomodate him when he's on the court.

By the way, this idea that Oliver's Letter of Intent got lost in the mail is a bunch of nonsense. It took a few days to get the letter out because the athletic department was doing its due diligence on the young man's academics.

With Oliver and Paterson Catholic guard Jordan Theodore set for the incoming class, the Hall has three scholarships to give. One will be held until the Michael Glover Clearinghouse saga gets resolved, leaving two open right now.

The spring signing period ends May 21.

Pirates docked a scholarship

The Seton Hall men's basketball program fell short of the Academic Progress Report's minimum standard and was docked a scholarship this past season by the NCAA, it was revealed today.

The APR is designed to penalize programs with too much turnover and/or poor academic performance.

The Pirates fell one point shy of the minimum standard for the period of 2003-04 to 2006-07. They were the only Big East men's hoops program penalized. In all sports, the only other Big East teams cited were West Virginia's men's soccer, wrestling and women's rowing.

The penalty was applied this past season. Apparently the NCAA informed the schools last summer. So the program is back up to the full complement of 13 scholarships right now.

"We anticipated the penalty last summer and we applied it to the 2007-08 season," Seton Hall spokesman Matt Sweeney said today.

Hoops Haven Analysis: It's not a program-wrecker, but bottom line, it's an embarrassment.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: This is an interesting bit of media philosophy from the blog of fellow scribe J.P. Pelzman involving Jets coach Eric Mangini and Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez: Does secrecy equal victory?

While we're waiting . . .

We're going to continue to blog until re-directed to the new website.

Tuesday was a busy day in Plainfield High School as coaches from Pittsburgh, Maryland and Seton Hall were all on hand to check out Plainfield sophomore guard Isaiah "Easy" Epps.

Maryland, Seton Hall and Rutgers have offered a scholarship to Epps, and Pittsburgh is coming on strong. "They are really interested in me," Epps said of the Panthers.

The Maryland coaches were doing their homework, talking to Epps' teachers and checking out his background. The Terrapins seem to have the rising star's attention at the moment. Epps, his mother and Plainfield coach Pete Vasil plan to visit College Park next month.

"They said they want to see another Juan Dixon at their school," Epps said. "They want a guard who can score and distribute to their players."

CULLINAN COMMITS
Jeff Cullinan, the senior forward who led Immaculata to its surprising Non-Public A championship, will attend Moravian (Pa.) in the fall.

The 6-foot-4 Cullinan will follow in the footsteps of former Spartan standout Mark Franzyshen, who led Moravian to a 20-win season this past winter as a senior forward. He will room with Bernards guard Shane Painter, giving Moravian a distinct Somerset County flavor -- and a very good recruiting class.

TWENTY more days in the spring signing period . . .

Hoops Haven is moving

Within the next couple of days this blog will be relocated to the new website mycentraljersey.com, which will be a combined site for the Courier News and Home News Tribune.

I am not exactly sure what the link will be yet. I will post it when I know.

Thanks to all the readers who make this blog worthwhile. I hope we can make a smooth transition together.