BIG EAST RECRUITING UPDATE: PROVIDENCE

October 8, 2008


VERBAL COMMITMENT ALERT: James Still, 6'10 C from Detroit Community High School

Keno Davis and PC Strikes for Fifth Time (Providence Journal) on the recruiting trail with the class of 2009 as James Still of Detroit makes a verbal commitment to the Friars. Still's verbal comes one day after JUCO wing Kyle Wright pledges to Providence as well.



Projected 2009-2010 Roster


Seniors: Sharaud Curry (PG), Brian McKenzie (SG), Ray Hall (C)
Juniors: Jamine Peterson (F), Marshon Brooks (G), Alex Kellogg (F), Kyle Wright (G/F)
Sophomres: Bilal Dixon (F)
Freshmen: Antoine Allen (G), Duke Mondy (G), Kadeem Batts (PF), James Still (C)




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The recruiting action around the Providence Friar program continues to happen fast and furious as Keno Davis locks up his fifth commitment for the class of 2009 as Detroit big man James Still is the latest added to the program. Still is a 6-foot-10 center from Community High School in Detroit and averaged over 14 points and 12 rebounds as a junior. Still visited PC backin September and chose the Friars over Duquesne and Detroit. Still is an athletic big man that is very comfortable running the floor and stepping away from the basket.

Still needs to get stronger to battle in the paint in Big East match-ups. He has a lot of potential because of a high skill level and the ability to move well at 6'10. His best days are certainly ahead of him on the basketball court.

Thus far, Davis has been working quickly on the recruiting trail securing five verbal commitments from the class of 2009 in just over the last month. Just prior to Still, Monroe College wing Kyle Wright, who originally began his career at Stony Brook and spent last year as a redshirt with Colorado, committed to PC. Wright previously prepped at Brewster Academy where he played for coach Jason Smith at the New England prep power.

After Brewster, Wright spent one season at Stony Brook where he averaged just under three points a game, appearing in 23 contests and averaging nearly 11 minutes a game. Wright is a skilled backcourt player that has versatility and can shoot it from long range, a skill that fits well in Keno Davis' preferred system. for more on Wright, see the story on the Newest Friar: Kyle Wright.

Last month, PC got a little bigger by receiving a verbal commitment Kadeem Batts out of Powder Springs (GA) while he was on an official visit to the school. In the July evaluation period, Batts turned heads playing for the Smyrna Stars and had several high-major schools checking him out. The NBE Basketball Report was impressed with Batts' play this summer on Wednesday at the Reebok All-American Camp where he showed the tools necessary to compete in the Big East. Batts is athletic and with a strong body can mix it up inside on the boards and defensively he can block and alter shots. He also showed his offensive game is coming around as well, too.


The commitment from Batts came just a week after another commitment from a campus visit came from Michigan native Duke Mondy. Mondy is a 6-foot-3 guard out of Catholic Central High School in Grand Rapids (MI). As a junior, Mondy averaged about 15 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists for coach TJ Carnegie at Catholic Central and his Coach Had Nothing but Praise for Mondy on and off the court.

Mondy had already been familiar with coach Davis prior to him taking the PC head coaching job last April as Davis was recruiting Mondy to Drake, where he was previously the head coach. Mondy decided on Providence over Western Michigan and also had offers from Ohio, Toledo, Central Michigan and others.


Previously, the Friars got a verbal commitment from 6-foot-2 guard Antoine Allen late in the summer. Allen was also visiting PC the weekend Batts made his official. The Baltimore native cited schools such as Rutgers, Maryland, Rhode Island, Auburn, Towson and others as schools interested in him during July. Playing for the Cecil Kirk AAU program, Allen caught the eye of the NBE Basketball Report at events such as the Pittsburgh Jam Fest and the Nike Main Event in Vegas. Each time, Allen showed a high-level athletic ability with speed and strength to get to the basket and rack up points. At times, he also showed the ability to knock down the deep ball and is a very confident offensive player.

The NBE Basketball Report previously caught up with Anthony Lewis, head man of the Cecil Kirk AAU program, for a Closer Look at Antoine Allen.

The Keno Davis system, which causes College Basketball Odds of winning to increase by spreading the floor, was on display at Drake last season and showed how effective it could be. Getting up and down the floor and attacking the basket is what Allen does well. At this point, he is definitely in the classification of a scoring guard, but he also shows the ability to drive and dish. Mondy, according to his high school coach, is an excellent passer who can do many things well as PC spreads the floor and can score from the perimeter at every position. They are both quality additions to the Friar program that will have a very useful skill set for PC and their new direction. Batts adds an interior body that is also athletic and can play in the system and hit the boards.

Keno Davis now has one scholarship open for the class of 2009 at this point and some impressive players are listing the Friars on their recruiting lists. Some of the top targets emerging for the Friars include Samford (CT) forward Tevin Baskin, Delaware prospects Isaiah Philmore, a 6-foot-7 forward, and Erique Gumbs, a 6-foot-8 big man, Michigan prospect Ben Simons and Maine big man Thomas Knight.

Looking for an attacking point guard to draw defenders and dish to the spot-up shooters or take it to the rim himself is a key element of the PC system going forward under Davis. One player who seems perfect for such an assignment as point guard is Chicago's Chris Colvin who made a visit to PC the last weekend of September as PC is Still Busy With Prospects. The Friars' staff has also made regular stops at Worcester Academy and have taken a strong interest in 6-foot-9 Blake McLimans, who could be visiting the campus in the near future as well.

The Friars are also keeping a watchful eye on the class of 2010 as interest has been evident in players such as NYC's David Coley, BF Carson Desrosiers of Lawrence (MA), Evan Smotrycz of the New Hampton School and NJ products such as guard Isaiah Epps and small forward Shaquille Thomas.

With many positions open to fill, we expect the PC recruiting news to be plentiful this fall as Keno Davis looks to make his mark on the Providence program and Big East recruiting battles. We will follow these stories closely as they begin to develop.