February 2013 | Page 19 of 21 | Zagsblog
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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Thursday / December 26.
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    • Articles, Big East

    Shabazz Napier and his UConn teammates won’t play in the Big East Tournament next month at Madison Square Garden.

    And they won’t play in the NCAA or NIT Tournaments, either.

    The Huskies are banned from postseason play due to poor APR scores, yet that hasn’t stopped Napier from playing at a high level and competing with the Big East’s best.

    After leading UConn to a pair of overtime victories last week, the junior guard was named Big East Player of the Week on Monday.

    Articles, Recruiting

    MiKyle McIntosh is a 6-foot-6, 225-pound guard/forward at Jackson (Ky.) 22 Feet Academy who is drawing offers and interest from many of the top programs in the nation.

    Kentucky assistant Orlando Antigua will come tonight (Monday) to watch McIntosh and sophomore guard Jamar Ergas — both native Canadians — play about an hour and 20 minutes outside of Lexington.

    “Orlando texted me over the weekend and asked me to send him a few highlight tapes,” 22 Feet Academy coach Ryan Schmidt told SNY.tv. “They seem pretty interested.”

    McIntosh, who will sign in the spring, currently holds offers from Miami and UCLA, but he’s drawing interest from a Who’s Who of heavyweights, Schmidt said.

    Articles, St. John's

    St. John’s fans lamenting Jermaine Lawrence’s decision to pick Cincinnati over the Johnnies and UNLV on Sunday need to keep a few things in mind.

    First, the Johnnies don’t have many scholarships to offer for 2013.

    As things currently stand, they will only have one scholarship to give if Orlando Sanchez does not return. As first reported last month by SNY.tv, Sanchez was declared ineligible by the NCAA and the case is considered resolved on their part.

    If someone on St. John’s current roster — say, JaKarr Sampson or D’Angelo Harrison — were to see their NBA Draft stock rise during a potential March run, it is possible that that player could leave early, thereby opening up a second scholarship for 2013.

    Rutgers

    Rutgers has added a second commit and a second backcourt player in the Class of 2013.

    Craig Brown, a 6-foot-5, 215-pound shooting guard from Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Broward Community College, verbally committed to the Scarlet Knights after Rutgers coach Mike Rice visited him Saturday.

    “The coaches and I had a great relationship,” Brown told SNY.tv by text. “The players were cool on my visit. Rutgers was the best place for me to succeed on and off the court.”

    He said Duquesne, Auburn, Washington, Utah, Gonzaga, LIU, Kent State and Florida Gulf Coast were also involved.

    Brown, who visited the Big East school in the fall, joins South Kent (Conn.) point guard Shane Rector in Rutgers’ 2013 class, giving them two more guards to play alongside Myles Mack, Eli Carter and Jerome Seagears.

    “He’s gonna be a good fit,” Broward coach Bob Starkman told SNY.tv. “He can score, he can rebound, he’s tough. He does a lot of the intangibles as well.”

    Articles, Recruiting

    By ALEX SCHIFFER

    Special to ZAGSBLOG

    NEWARK — It’s fair to say that high school has been good to Tyus Battle so far.

    A freshman at Gladstone (N.J.) Gill St. Bernard’s, Battle is off to a great start for his high school career.

    The 6-foot-5 combo guard is averaging 12.9 points and 4.4 rebounds for a 9-6 Knights squad that is coming off a big win Friday night against Syracuse-bound Tyler Roberson and Roselle Catholic at the Newark National Invitational.

    Battle is the son of Gary Battle, a former All-American at New Haven and a 1,000 point scorer at Colonia High School back in the late ’80s. Battle is known for his nickname, “The Kid Mamba,” and has already drawn comparisons to Charlotte Bobcats rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, a fellow New Jersey native.

    Articles, Player Blogs

    Trey Dickerson is a 6-foot-1 point guard originally from Jamaica, Queens and now at God’s Academy (TX). An uncommitted fifth-year player, he will be contributing periodically to ZAGSBLOG during his senior season. Here’s his first entry:

    What’s up? This is Trey Dickerson and this is my players blog for ZAGSBLOG.com.

    I go to God’s Academy in Dallas, TX. I like God’s Academy a lot. We are always in the gym getting better and we play a lot of junior colleges, which will prepare me for college.

    Articles, Knicks

    The Miami Heat beat the Toronto Raptors, 100-85, on Sunday afternoon, meaning Knicks coach Mike Woodson is now free to spend All-Star weekend in a warm-weather climate of his choice.

    The Heat are now 30-14, or half a game ahead of the Knicks (30-15) for the best record in the Eastern Conference at the cutoff date.

    Had the Heat lost, Woodson would have coached the East All-Stars, including Knicks Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler, in the Feb. 17 All-Star Game in Houston.

    He would also have coached LeBron James and jokingly said he would play him the whole game to tire him out for the second half of the season.

    Copyright 2016 Zagsblog. Partner of iOne Digital / Cassius Network
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