Chris Gaston Lighting it Up; Vegas/Orlando Notes; South Florida Loses 2

Here are a few quick hits from around the hoops recruiting world…

**Fordham commit Chris Gaston continues to play well on the summer circuit. He had 42 points and 19 rebounds in a game in Orlando last night for the New Jersey ShoreShots, and added 35 and 17 in today’s quarterfinals, where the Jersey team lost.

Gaston, a 6-7, 205-pound forward from St. Anthony in Jersey City who’s committed to Fordham for 2009, was previously named MVP of the Triple S Harley Davidson Shootout at West Virginia. He will prep next year at New Hampton (N.H.).

**Shaq Thomas, a 6-3 wing from Paterson (NJ) Catholic who is the nephew of NBA star Tim Thomas, has picked up an offer from Syracuse. Thomas is also being courted by Xavier, Fordham and Virginia Tech.

**Ryan Kelly of Ravenscroft (NC) Prep, who moved from NYC to Raleigh when he was a child, is the focus of some high level schools, including Stanford, North Carolina and Notre Dame. Davidson, Virginia and Georgetown have also offered. Most think UNC will land Kelly, especially if David and Travis Wear de-commit. Kelly teamed with the Wear twins on the USA U18 team that lost in the FIBA Americans U18 Championship to Argentina.