Louie McCroskey, a 6-4, 180-pound wing guard/wing forward from St. Raymond's High School in the Bronx, New York, is coming off a solid junior campaign for high school coach Gary DeCesare. McCroskey was also a rock for the Bronx-based Mustangs AAU team at the IS8 league this spring and also played well with the New York Ravens last week at the TOC in North Carolina.

But for some reason, McCroskey's recruiting has not been as strong as Louie and DeCesare thought it would be. "They (coaches) are missing the boat," DeCesare said. "Louie works hard and is getting better every week."

Reporter Brian Towey watched McCroskey play in the very competitive IS8 league a couple of weeks ago. Towey said: "McCroskey poured in 21 points in the Mustangs 59-58 loss to the Long Island Panthers las week in the quarterfinals of the playoffs at IS8, scoring from mid and long range, off the bounce, and angling in for interior buckets.

"McCroskey did everything in his power to keep the Mustangs afloat, knocking down a jumper from just inside the arc and canning two free throws with less than a minute to play.

"McCroskey has a quick first step and handles well. He is active on the glass and has a solid mid-range game. He is someone who could be characterized as a money player; come crunch time, you want the ball in his hands."

Rutgers has extended a scholarship offer. This is surprising to both Louie and DeCesare. Other schools who have expressed interest include St. Joseph's, UConn, and Notre Dame.

McCroskey will play with The New York Ravens AAU team this summer. He will participate in the Adidas ABCD camp as well as the Adidas Big Time Tournament.