SAN DIEGO -- Day four of Rivals.com post Christmas West Coast swing was spent at the Under Armour Holiday Classic on the campus of Torrey Pines High School. Junior guard Shamorie Ponds made the most of his long trip from New York City with a breakout performance while Arizona State's newest pledge Lindsey Drew also had a nice day on Monday.
Ponds emerges as high major option
The group from Brooklyn (N.Y.) Thomas Jefferson traveled a long way to participate in the Under Armour Holiday Classic. On Monday afternoon that long trip was very much worth it as junior point guard Shamorie Ponds was able to show what he's all about.
A skinny six-footer who has built a tremendous buzz this winter with some big scoring performances back home in New York, Ponds backed that up going for 27 points and nailing eight three pointers during a Monday win.
A natural scorer who is dangerously accurate with his southpaw jumper, Ponds is a classic NYC guard. He loves to put the ball on the floor, plays with some flash and is going to keep attacking you and playing in your face, off the dribble basketball whenever he has a chance.
While it was his deep jumper that was doing the most damage on Monday, it's clear to see that Ponds has plenty more to his game. He can get into the lane with ease and once he gets there he is a surprisingly bouncy athlete, takes contact pretty given his slight frame and he is a very adept and willing playmaker for those around him.
At the rate Ponds is going, he's going to make his way into the next Rivals150 for the class of 2016 and he's likely going to do so in the the four-star range. College programs have certainly caught on as Minnesota, St. John's, Seton Hall, Fordham, Iona, Miami and South Carolina have all made offers. On Tuesday, Auburn's Bruce Pearl is expected to watch him and Oklahoma will be out to see him next week.
Though it is still early, Ponds is thinking that he might want to get out and explore when he makes his college choice.
"I wanna go far," Ponds told Rivals.com. "New York will always be there."
Drew is off the board
Very quietly, word spread on Monday that three-star point guard Lindsay Drew of Los Angeles (Calif.) Fairfax had picked Arizona State. A senior, Drew will actually take a year of prep school at Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy before making his way to campus making him a class of 2016 recruit.
It was a year ago to the day that Rivals.com first got a good look at Drew and he has really come along. Monday he showed that he has continued to grow with physical stature -- now pushing 6-foot-4 with blossoming athleticism -- and his game.
A traditional point guard who controls the ball, defends and sets the tempo for his team, Drew is an extension of his coach Harvey Katani on the floor. He gets his teammates in the right spots and then makes sure to deliver to the hot hand. He can get to the rim and he is also capable of playing above it as he showed with a pretty nice tip dunk that seemed to come out of nowhere.
Drew had been considering popping for Arizona State for a while and it was the head coach who won him over.
"The biggest thing was Herb Sendek," Drew told Rivals.com. "He treats all of us like we are a family instead of his players and that makes me feel at home."
Given his improvement over the last year, Rivals.com could see Drew helping the Sun Devils as a class of 2015 recruit. However, with a year to develop and add more strength he will compete for the Rivals150 in 2016. Developing strength will certainly be Drew's focus during a prep year.
"I'm just working on getting physically ready for the Pac 12," said Drew. "I want to be ready to go and play in such a physical conference."