Fastbreak Friday: Tar Heels take advantage
The visit tour continues on this weekend now that basketball season is officially under way.
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A couple of programs saved the season tip-off fun for this weekend, and there are a few teams that are hoping to use the weekend as a major recruiting tool.
Who is visiting where this weekend? Find out inside this week's edition of Fastbreak Friday.
TAR HEEL TRADITION
North Carolina always knows how to take advantage of the preseason tip-off festivities. This year's group of visitors is star-studded, and included a number of talented underclassmen.
James McAdoo, a five-star sophomore from Norfolk (Va.) Christian School, will be back in town for another unofficial visit. He'll be joined by good friend and AAU teammate Travis McKie of Richmond (Va.) John Marshall.
Michael Gbinije, a 6-foot-5 sophomore from Christchurch (Va.), is also slated for a visit. He'll be joined by friend C.J. Barksdale, an emerging 6-7 sophomore forward from Danville (Va.). Shaq Patterson, a class of 2012 wing from Martinsville (Va.) Magna Vista, will also make the trip.
P.J. Hairston, one of the top players overall in North Carolina, is on the visit list. The Greensboro Dudley guard is a big-time scorer out of the 2011 class.
Alpharetta (Ga.) Milton teammates Dai-Jon Parker, Julian Royal and Shannon Scott will all make the trek to Chapel Hill. Scott is the son of former Tar Heel great Charlie Scott. All three are some of the top players in Georgia's impressive 2011 class.
The future of the Carolina program will all be in town, too. Class of 2009 commitments Dexter Strickland, John Henson, Leslie McDonald, Travis Wear and David Wear are all scheduled to be in town. So are class of 2010 commitments Reggie Bullock and Kendall Marshall.
FIVE-STAR FRENZY
Florida Gators fans have been waiting for this weekend for quite some time. Kenny Boynton, a five-star guard from American Heritage School, will make his fourth visit to Florida since the end of the travel period in July. The Gators are a major player for his services down the home stretch of his recruitment.
Five-star prospect Dominic Cheek will make a visit to Villanova. The 6-5 super scorer from Jersey City (N.J.) St. Anthony has always been high on the Big East school, and coach Jay Wright will have another shot at trying to woo Cheek this weekend.
Five-star junior Harrison Barnes of Ames, Iowa, is getting out to the elite programs in the country. Last weekend he was at Kansas. This weekend he is at Duke for an unofficial visit.
Sources have indicated to Rivals.com that five-star standout Derrick Favors is scheduled for an official visit to Memphis. Neither Favors nor his coaches, however, have confirmed to Rivals.com that he is visiting the school this weekend.
MARQUETTE MADNESS
Marquette is having its version of Midnight Madness this weekend, and there will be a good list of visitors for the event.
Chicago (Ill.) Whitney Young point guard Chris Colvin, the second-best point guard still left uncommitted in the class of 2009, is taking a quick trip up to Marquette for the weekend.
He'll be joined by Sasa Borovnjak, a 6-8 forward from Fletcher (N.C.) Veritas Christian.
The class of 2010 will be well represented as Tobias Harris of Glen Head (N.Y.) Lutheran, Lavonte Dority of Chicago (Ill.) Foreman and Shane Southwell of New York (N.Y.) Rice are scheduled to be on campus for unofficial visits. All three are Rivals150 prospects in the class of 2010.
OH MY, OHIO
The state of Ohio has proven to be one of the best in the nation for high school basketball talent. So it doesn't come as a big surprise that the in-state schools are trying to land local products on the recruiting front.
Ohio State is taking full advantage this weekend. Never mind the fact that one of the biggest games of the football season will be taking place at The Horseshoe when the Buckeyes play host to Penn State on Saturday in a prime-time battle of top-10 teams.
Class of 2010 commitments Jared Sullinger, Cameron Wright and Jordan Sibert are scheduled to be at OSU.
J.D. Weatherspoon, Sullinger's high school teammate at Columbus Northland, is heading to campus for an unofficial visit.
Class of 2011 prospects and Dayton (Ohio) Wayne teammates Markus Crider and Travis Trice - as well as Lawrence North (Ind.) teammates Ryan Taylor and Michael Chandler - are scheduled for visits to Ohio State.
Class of 2012 prospects Devonte Smith-Rivera and A.J. Hammonds are also expected in town.
Down in Cincinnati, Xavier is doing it up big, too.
Class of 2010 targets Alex Gauna of Eaton Rapids (Mich.), Justin Martin of Indianapolis (Ind.) Lawrence North and Ricardo Johnson of Covington (Ky.) Holmes are all scheduled for a visit to Xavier this weekend.
Underclassmen Traevon Jackson, a class of 2010 guard from Westerville (Ohio) South, will be in town as will 2012 prospect Jalen Robinson, also of Westerville South. Cincinnati Roger Bacon 2012 prospects Orlando Berry, Dwayne Stanford and Joshua Lemons will also be on campus.
RIVALS150 PROSPECTS SEEING SCHOOLS
Mississippi State will get a crack at Keith Gallon, the mammoth center from Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy. The 6-8 Houston native is very familiar with the program. His sister, Donnisha Tate, is a senior on the MSU women's basketball team.
New York (N.Y.) Rice guard Durand Scott is scheduled for a visit to Miami this weekend. He's one of the top overall players still left on the class of 2009 recruiting board.
Despite the shake-up of the coaching staff, Arizona will still play host to Mike Moser out of Portland, Oregon. The Rivals150 prospect has de-committed from the Wildcats but will still visit as originally planned this weekend.
Georgia Tech will have commitment Brian Oliver on campus this weekend for his official visit.
NC State will have Richard Howell, also a 2009 commitment, in Raleigh for the weekend.
BIG PROSPECTS VISITING BIG SCHOOLS
Making his first visit of the fall is Patterson (N.C.) forward Arsalan Kazemi. The bouncy 6-8 forward is headed to Seton Hall for an official visit.
Markhuri Sanders-Frison, one of the top performers from the Dallas Blowout junior college jamboree earlier in the month, is visiting Cal. Sanders-Frison, a Portland, Ore., native who is at Levelland (Texas) South Plains C.C., is a very similar player to Keith Gallon - a 2009 high school standout at Oak Hill.
Arizona State is bringing in Montverde (Fla.) Academy center Ruslan Pateev for an official visit. Class of 2010 forward DeAndre Daniels, a Rivals150 prospect, and Jonathon Davis, a 2011 combo forward, will be in Tempe unofficially, too.
Michigan will have a pair of skilled big men from upstate New York on campus. Blake McLimans, a 6-9 senior forward from the Niagara area, will officially visit the Big Ten school. McLimans, who is currently at Worcester (Mass.) Academy, visited Providence last weekend.
Class of 2010 forward Will Regan will make a return trip to Ann Arbor. Regan is high on the wish list for the Wolverines.
Wisconsin has two of the top prospects in Chicago's deep and talented class of 2011 talent pool coming to town this weekend for unofficial visits. Chasson Randle, a good-looking point guard from Rock Island High, and Nnana Egwu, a high-potential center from St. Ignatius Prep, are planning to be with the Badgers this weekend.
Duce Bello, a rising star in the class of 2011, will make an unofficial visit to Charlotte. Bello is at High Point (N.C.) Westchester Country Day.
Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy guard Lamont Jones will head to Virginia Tech for a visit. The 5-11 guard from New York is one of the better seniors still left uncommitted in the class of 2009.
The Hokies will also play host to Victor Oladipo, one of the better athletes in the class of 2010. Oladipo is a 6-4 guard from DeMatha Catholic in Maryland.
UNC Greensboro will have over 25 prospects on campus this weekend for the Blue & Gold game. A number of top prospects from North Carolina will be counted amongst the visitors.
Raleigh (N.C.) Enloe teammates Melvin Tabb and Emmanuel Chapman, both 2010 prospects, will be on campus. Class of 2011 guard Jacoby Davis of Charlotte Vance is on the list.
James Carlton, a rough and tough forward from the class of 2010 out of Winterville (N.C.) South Central, is expected to be in town, too. Manny Dias, a 6-foot-5 junior forward from Charlotte (N.C.) Harding is on the visit list. Charlotte sophomore Jervon Pressley is visiting, too.
Dyricus Simms-Edwards, one of the better point guards left in the class of 2009, is making a trip to Kent State. Simms-Edwards is a senior at Washington High School in Illinois.
Florida Atlantic will play host to Gainesville (Fla.) guard Greg Gantt.
Dylan Hale, a point guard from Minneapolis (Minn.) Washburn, is visiting Texas State.
Tate Unruh, a point guard out of Branson (Mo.) will visit Toledo.
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