2013 Recruits - UPDATED 3/20: Gavin Schilling picks Michigan State

Amelia Rayno blog: Hankerson: "Minnesota definitely jumped to the top of my list."

He hasn’t officially visited anywhere else yet, but after his trip to the U of M campus last weekend, Cedric Hankerson said the University of Minnesota “definitely jumped to the top of my list.”

Where was it before?

“Well … before it rather like scrambled around but Minnesota definitely made a presence [over the weekend],” the 2013 recruit said.

The Miami native wasn’t QUITE impressed enough to commit right away – even though he has said an early decision is very possible. After all, he still has three, maybe four more schools to visit.

But the highlights stuck with him: the “beautiful, beautiful, beautiful” campus; the Carlson School of Management (Hankerson wants to major in business); and his experience at TCF Bank for the Gophers football game on Saturday.

One sticking point? The weather, although it wasn’t as bad as he thought it might be, apparently holding the all-too-common perception that Minnesota is just snowy all the time.

“I thought I would be freezing because you know, Minnesota is traditionally cold,” Hankerson said. “I thought the weather would have a bad effect on me, but I really loved it. But I heard it gets like 30 below.”

All of the schools he’s selected for official visits – he has yet to visit Boston University, Virginia Tech and Pennsylvania – would present something of a weather shock, but of course Minnesota would be the worst in that department.

“Down in Miami it barely even goes below 80,” said Hankerson, who doesn’t own a winter coat. “The players tell me I’ll have to get a snow cap and all kinds of stuff. They told me the snow gets up to a couple feet.”

Some notes from our conversation:

· Besides his other three planned officials, Hankerson said he could add a fifth into the mix: Oklahoma State, a school that offered him recently and which he hasn’t been able to thoroughly research.

· Researching academic programs has been a big point for Hankerson, who is academically very bright and has been courted by Stanford and Brown.

· Of course everything needs to feel right, but two aspects his decision could come down to are how he likes the head coach and the quality of the business program, Hankerson said.

· Hankerson on Gophers’ coach Tubby Smith: “Tubby is a great guy. He’s extremely down to earth, he presents himself well, he didn’t seem to put too much pressure on me to commit, he just treated me really, really well overall. I just felt really comfortable with him.”

· Hankerson said he took a “couple hundred” pictures from the weekend, particularly of the campus (“I don’t know how to say it, but you could feel the culture around … It was just like a positive energy like it was just like that sort of traditional setting that I’m interested in.”) and the football stadium (“I didn’t know that the football team gets that much support at their games.”)

· The decision to commit somewhere could happen before all of the visits are completed, Hankerson said, but he won’t put a finger on what could make him do that. “Me and my parents have been making lists of advantages and disadvantages and we’ve been talking about it daily,” he said.

· Minnesota only started recruiting Hankerson this summer and offered him a couple months later, in August. “Tubby called me and offered me the scholarship and then I started doing a little research and found out about the Carlson School of Management and how good of a business school that is and I considered the fact that I would be playing in the Big Ten. So that jumped pretty high on my list.”

· Hankerson on the Big Ten: “The intensity of that conference in itself, playing schools like Michigan, Michigan State, it would just be pheonomenal, and then having those crazy games with all the fans going crazy, I think that’s like every basketball players’ dream.


Hankerson is a 6-4, 195 guard from Miami, Florida. He plays for Coral Reef High School.
Academically, Hankerson is very bright. He scored a 1750 on the SAT and 25 on the ACT.
Defensively, Hankerson is solid. Offensively, has the ability to take over games.
In his junior season, Hankerson averaged 22.9 points and 11.4 rebounds.


http://www.startribune.com/sports/blogs/169625826.html

Go Gophers!!
 

Tweet: "@AmeliaRayno: #Gophers recruit Gavin Schilling (Chicago): "I like big cities. I don’t want to be locked in a small town where there’s nothing to do."

"Schilling (cont.): "I gotta have something around me, something always has to be going on. I can’t be living a boring life."

"Schilling doesn't have any other officials planned yet, but wants to make more visits. Said he likely won't commit anywhere until April."

Go Gophers!!
 

Gophers offer Ben Moore a PF from Illinois...This would be plan Z at PF or do we need to come up with a new system for what's past Z? Plan aa?
 

Tubby Smith does not recruit very coveted players. It's frustrating. Very frustrating. All these guys seem like fine future college players, but nothing to get excited about. Damn.
 

Not saying that Tubby should or shouldn't have offered this kid, but I really think we need to bank schollies for the Class of 2014. Tyus, Rashad, Travis, Wallace, and more. Plus, as others have mentioned, we'll most likely be better this year than in recent years which should help for the class of 2014 more than 2013.


Now, to Moore - I wouldn't be so down on him. Although we're his first non-mid-major offer, he has offers from nearly all the local schools, which is encouraging. He also plays for a very good AAU team.
 


Bolingbrook will need Ben Moore and more

Moore is a heralded 6-foot-7 prospect getting interest from several Division I mid-majors and the leading returning scorer in the area after scoring 17 points per game and adding 8 rebounds and 3.5 blocked shots per contest in 2011-12. Among the many state and local honors he captured, he was a Herald-News All-Area selection. Only four underclassmen made the 16-player list.

So when asked if he’s going to be a target among opposing defenses during the fall season, Moore pondered it and said, “Maybe ... I’m not sure ... probably.”

“Probably” is likely closest to the truth. Bolingbrook coach Rob Brost is bracing for opponents giving his star a lot of attention in the form of physical play and double-teams.

But after a summer session in which the Raiders compiled a gaudy 30-3 record showing solid teamwork, the coach is looking forward to November, when they figure to be a powerhouse in the area.

“We have a solid group coming back and with the exception of Ben, we have a younger group,” Brost said. “A lot will be how they adjust to the varsity level action and the constant grind of the season. Obviously, everyone talks about Ben — and rightfully so — but we have some other players who have played pretty well.”

Goss; Bolingbrook's Ben Moore a hot commodity

Some big names in college basketball are.

According to Bolingbrook coach Rob Brost, Moore has “around 20” offers, including Northwestern (maybe they have offered?). Illinois, Michigan, Purdue and Missouri all have coaches scheduled to come in during this hectic week.

Brost said SMU coach Larry Brown — yes, Larry Brown — “was at BHS (Tuesday) and absolutely loves Ben. SMU already offered, and I am sure there will be many more.”

Colorado State, which made the 2012 NCAA Tournament, has offered. Moore took an official visit there last weekend.

Moore averaged 17 points, 8 rebounds and 3.5 blocked shots as a junior. He helped the Raiders to a 30-3 record during the summer.
 

Not saying that Tubby should or shouldn't have offered this kid, but I really think we need to bank schollies for the Class of 2014. Tyus, Rashad, Travis, Wallace, and more. Plus, as others have mentioned, we'll most likely be better this year than in recent years which should help for the class of 2014 more than 2013.


Now, to Moore - I wouldn't be so down on him. Although we're his first non-mid-major offer, he has offers from nearly all the local schools, which is encouraging. He also plays for a very good AAU team.

Never a fan of banking scholarships for the sake of banking scholarships. If there are players you want, bring them in. Whether or not to stretch is a different question.


Gophers aren't Moore's first non-MM offer; Gophers aren't even Moore's first B1G offer.
 

Never a fan of banking scholarships for the sake of banking scholarships. If there are players you want, bring them in. Whether or not to stretch is a different question.


Gophers aren't Moore's first non-MM offer; Gophers aren't even Moore's first B1G offer.
I would have to agree with you. If the staff feels that they can work with the kid, a soph/red shirt freshman could help your team more. Plus I know first hand just hard it is to have a practice with a low numbers.
 

I would have to agree with you. If the staff feels that they can work with the kid, a soph/red shirt freshman could help your team more. Plus I know first hand just hard it is to have a practice with a low numbers.

I'd rather have a top 100 freshman than a sophmore/redshirt freshman who was borderline high major (not saying the players we're targeting are). Also, if we bank one scholarship it's not going to make practice difficult numbers-wie. There would still be 12 scholarship players (13 if Tubby temporarily gives one to a walk on) plus the walk-ons. If you're deciding between reaching for a player that probably won't be able to contribute versus banking it for a good player next year, bank it every time. Especially when the next class is the most talented in state history.
 



Tubby Smith does not recruit very coveted players. It's frustrating. Very frustrating. All these guys seem like fine future college players, but nothing to get excited about. Damn.

Perhaps you should sit down with him and give him your advice on his recruiting strategy. You can also show each other the national championship rings you've each won as the head coaches of your respective major college basketball teams.
 

Alex Kline ‏@TheRecruitScoop

RT @Corey_Rivals513: 2013 Bowling Green (OH) PF Vitto Brown has committed to Wisconsin
 

Alex Kline ‏@TheRecruitScoop

RT @Corey_Rivals513: 2013 Bowling Green (OH) PF Vitto Brown has committed to Wisconsin

This has been confirmed in a number of places. Solid get for UW, which really needed at least one frontcourt player in 2013.

One other quick note. Marcus Fuller tweeted that Brown's commitment takes UW out of the running for Nigel Hayes. That is not true, as UW could still have another opening in 2013 if they want. At the moment, Zak Showalter (recruited as a walk-on) has a scholarship this year but may or may not have one next year.
 




I'd rather have a top 100 freshman than a sophmore/redshirt freshman who was borderline high major (not saying the players we're targeting are). Also, if we bank one scholarship it's not going to make practice difficult numbers-wie. There would still be 12 scholarship players (13 if Tubby temporarily gives one to a walk on) plus the walk-ons. If you're deciding between reaching for a player that probably won't be able to contribute versus banking it for a good player next year, bank it every time. Especially when the next class is the most talented in state history.

The problem with that strategy, which I would have thought was obvious, is that you may ended up holding on to a scholarship and not getting the 2014 recruit. You make it seem like the solitary obstacle to all of those guys signing is a lack of scholarships. I'm guessing Vaughn, Jones, etc will take a long time to commit. You can't bank the scholarship until you know you need it.
 

Plus

Perhaps you should sit down with him and give him your advice on his recruiting strategy. You can also show each other the national championship rings you've each won as the head coaches of your respective major college basketball teams.

He can also tell how he has always done things in a right way with a very clean history. It is something that not many coaches can say these days even coach K.

Go Gophers
 

The problem with that strategy, which I would have thought was obvious, is that you may ended up holding on to a scholarship and not getting the 2014 recruit. You make it seem like the solitary obstacle to all of those guys signing is a lack of scholarships. I'm guessing Vaughn, Jones, etc will take a long time to commit. You can't bank the scholarship until you know you need it.

Doesn't have to be held for one specific player. You miss out on your top target, go after the next one. Our options will likely be much better next offseason. Notice I only said to bank it if the alternative is getting a player who isn't likely to contribute. What's the benefit to having an extra guy sitting at the end of the bench who never takes off his warmup? We'll have enough practice players. If we have the season that we're capable of having, recruiting should be much easier next offseason than it was this offseason and will more than likely be able to get some good players.
 

Perhaps you should sit down with him and give him your advice on his recruiting strategy. You can also show each other the national championship rings you've each won as the head coaches of your respective major college basketball teams.

And how many of the players on that championship Kentucky team did Tubby recruit? If you remember it was his first year as their head coach.

He definitely deserves all the credit for his coaching of that team. But it's a poor example to use when trying to praise his recruiting skills.
 

We can cross Hankerson off the list, per Dave Telep:

"Minutes before vows exchanged get a call. Cedric Hankerson to BU. that's gotta be a good sign for all!"

Go Gophers!!
 


I'm surprised.


GEricksonScout Grant Erickson
#Gophers RT “@EvanDanielsFOX: Cedric Hankerson to Boston U, per a source.”
104 minutes agoReplyRetweetFavorite


recruitrecon Recruit Recon
RT @TheRecruitScoop: Boston U has landed a commitment from 2013 SG Cedric Hankerson of Coral Reef (FL), per a source.
 

Another swing and a miss. It's a trend. Are we close on possible commit ?
 


Tubby Smith is a good/great basketball coach and a well below average recruiter. I think he old school to a fault. I'm not sure even mid level players get excited about the possibility of playing for him. He just wants the "good kid" with "solid work ethic." As a fan, I want the tremendous upside, difference making athlete. I've stated this many many times before, but I'll say it again: Tubby needs to take some risks in order to sign blue chip prospects (examples: Royce White, Trevor Mbakwe). 4 star recruits don't inherently want to play for Tubby/attend the U. Frustrating...
 

We've missed out on a bunch of our top targets. Here are some people we might/should consider going after:

- Monty Boykins is a shooting guard from Ohio that is a fantastic shooter. Boykins has 8 offers (1 BCS).
- Anders Broman is a smaller (6'1") shooting guard from Duluth who can snipe from deep, but has a fairly slow release. Broman has 15 offers, all of which are from lower-mid-major schools. Broman received many of these offers after he had a breakout AAU season with Howard Pulley, and will continue to get more offers if he has an excellent high school season.
- Jared Brownridge is a shooting guard from Aurora, Ill with offers from Creighton, Drake, Northern Iowa, and Bradley. Brownridge can shoot from range, and can also play the point, per ESPN's eval.
- Dontel Highsmith is a combo guard that sounds exactly like a player that Tubby would like. Highsmith is an excellent defender, passer, and takes good care of the ball. Highsmith has 5 mid-major offers.
- Vince Hunter is an extremely athletic, highflying 4-star small forward from Detroit who holds offers from UAB, Xavier, Rhode Island, and several other mid-majors. Hunter is a good redshirt candidate.
- Isaiah Johnson is a 6'9" power forward/center from Cincinnati with good interior defense and rebounding. Johnson holds from Xavier, Akron, Ohio, and Kent State.
- Peter Jok is a shooting guard from Des Moines with an offer from Iowa. I think Tubby will want to sign a shooting guard in this class, because Ellenson is more of a small forward.
- Milos Kistoc is a power forward from Indiana with offers from Northwestern and Fordham. We might be late to the party, as Kistoc already lists having "high interest" in Northwestern.
- Akolda Manyang is a 7 footer from Duluth. He doesn't hold any offers, but was impressive throughout the AAU season with Howard Pulley averaging 5 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 block during EYBL. The only reason I can't see Tubby giving Manyang a late offer is because I think the coaching staff would want to redshirt him. If we end up banking scholarships in this class, then redshirting Manyang would cause the classes to be more unbalanced.
- John Paul is a 6'11" center from Indiana with 9 offers (1 BCS). The only way I can see Tubby offering a center is if he thinks they can also play power forward.
- Alec Peters is a 3-star power forward from Washington, Ill. Peters holds offers from Washington State, Utah, Boston College, Butler, Drake, Saint Louis, and 12 more schools.
- Marquise Pryor is a 3-star power forward from Chicago with offers from Murray State, Colorado State, and Oakland.
- Cullen Russo is a 6'7" forward from Bloomington Kennedy with offers from Bowling Green, Drake, and St. Bonaventure. Russo will really have to have a huge senior year to get an offer from the Gophers.
- Carson Shanks has been committed to Utah State for a while, but he already had 8 offers (3 BCS) by November of his Jr. year in high school. Shanks is more of a center, and Tubby is looking for a power forward. Still, I think Shanks is a big man worth looking at.
- Jaylon Tate is a point guard that feeds that ball to Jabari Parker at Chicago Simeon. Tate holds offers from Northwestern, Xavier, and Providence. The only way I can see Tubby offering a point guard is if (a) Tyus gives a school an early commitment, highly unlikely, (b) Dre tears his ACL, also highly unlikely, or (c) we miss out on pretty much everyone and we go after Tate or Jok just because they are quality players even though we don't need a PG.
- Austin Torres is a 6'6" player from Indiana who can play power forward or small forward. Torres holds 7 offers (0 BCS).

As you can see, I think PF and SG are our biggest needs from the class of 2013.
 

Royal, thanks for the thoughts.. gotta go after some stronger options than those guys though.. yikes. Not too inspiring.
Some of that info looks outdated.. for example, I thought Kistoc kid is the guy that knew Mirkovic and committed a couple of years ago, but then Northwestern told him 'uhh, no thanks' this summer... a guy like that the Gophers could perhaps get.. but... hopefully the staff can work some magic from the juco ranks.
 

Royal, thanks for the thoughts.. gotta go after some stronger options than those guys though.. yikes. Not too inspiring.
Some of that info looks outdated.. for example, I thought Kistoc kid is the guy that knew Mirkovic and committed a couple of years ago, but then Northwestern told him 'uhh, no thanks' this summer... a guy like that the Gophers could perhaps get.. but... hopefully the staff can work some magic from the juco ranks.

Who knows, u might have said the same thing 3 years ago about brown, muscala, and wolters.
 



Out of Royal's list the most likely person to get an offer is Cullen Russo. He is in the similar to Buggs last year, that hybrid 3/4 kind of player. He is another player who can really bounce. If we see another PF come off the board, which is likely with Hayes, it wouldn't surprise me to see him get an offer.
 

Royal, thanks for the thoughts.. gotta go after some stronger options than those guys though.. yikes. Not too inspiring.
Some of that info looks outdated.. for example, I thought Kistoc kid is the guy that knew Mirkovic and committed a couple of years ago, but then Northwestern told him 'uhh, no thanks' this summer... a guy like that the Gophers could perhaps get.. but... hopefully the staff can work some magic from the juco ranks.

GW, I definitely hope that we don't have to pull from these ranks, as well. I also agree with you that it would be nice to pick up a JUCO. How many players do you think Tubby will sign this year? It would be comically idiotic to sign two "spring recruits" when we want to bank schollies for the class of 2014, right?
 




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