Recruit Review: April '10

With Mundelein's Ben Brust almost certainly out of the picture, Wisconsin's 2010 class size might be set at three players. That leaves another scholarship to possibly add to the 2011 class, which has two important pieces already starting another summer travel season. Here's how each Badger recruit finished up the high school portion of the year ...

2010

:: Though Duje Dukan could conceivably arrive in Madison as the lowest-rated prospect in Wisconsin's 2010 class, he is undoubtedly the incoming freshman about whom Badger fans are most excited. Dukan averaged 22.9 pts and 9.3 rebs this season to lead Deerfield (Ill.) High School to a share of the Central Suburban League title.

Deerfield's Dukan led the Warriors (25-4) on an remarkable 18-game winning streak that peaked when Dukan scored 19 straight second-half points to beat Riverside-Brookfield on Valentine's Day. The very next game, Glenbrook North basically had to throw the Jordan Rules at Dukan to halt the streak. Fresh off scoring 32 points against Conant, Dukan next capped a furious rally with a game-tying 3-pointer to send the Waukegan game to overtime, but Illinios recruit Jereme Richmond's squad prevailed, 93-87.

There was more. Deerfield's second round state tournament opponent, Libertyville, got "Dukan-ed" when the senior scored the final 12 points of the opening quarter. He finished with 28 of Deerfield's 56 points in an easy win. However, Schaumburg ended Dukan's senior season unexpectedly in the sectional semis despite his 22-point, 12-rebound effort.

In addition to earning Second Team All-State laurels, Dukan was invited to the Nike Hoop Summit on April 10 as a part of the World Select team. Though he struggled in the team's loss [box score], Dukan was honored to participate [practice video]:

"Any time you are mentioned as one of the better players in the world, in your age group, it's just incredible. Being able to represent Croatia is very special. As a whole, being able to compete with the top players in America will help prepare me for the Big Ten."

:: Port Washington's Josh Gasser piled up plenty of honors of his own at the conclusion of his prep career. The 6'4" combo guard just missed his third straight season averaging a double-double, posting career high averages in scoring (23.9) and assists (4.8) to go along with 9.8 rebs and 2.7 stls per game. Following in the footsteps of Ben Averkamp, Kwamain Mitchell and Tim Jarmusz, Gasser was named Wisconsin's 2010 Gatorade Player of the Year for his contributions on and off the court.

The Pirates (19-5) went 6-2 in February to clinch a share of the mighty North Shore Conference crown, as Gasser continued to make a killing from the charity stripe. The team won its final regular season game with Gasser on the sidelines nursing an ankle injury and set out to return to the state tournament. After a bye, Gasser returned to score 33 points as Port advanced to the regional finals, but his state title dream ended with 26-point showing in a tough loss to Whitefish Bay.

:: The jump in Evan Anderson's production never really materialized under the new coaching regime at Eau Claire North, but Anderson did set a personal best in averaging 10 ppg (up from 8 ppg last season). Anderson, who was Honorable Mention All-State, has become a capable passer out of double-teams but needs to work on keeping the ball high and away from smaller guards.

His Huskies began February with a loss before winning eight in a row, including two games to win their WIAA tournament regional as the #5 seed. North (18-7) bowed out to top-seeded Antigo as Anderson was held to two points.

Anderson headlines the recently announced North roster for the WBCA All-Star game to be held June 19 at the UW Fieldhouse, where he will go head-to-head with state champion seven-footer Ben Mills of Arrowhead.

2011

:: February and March were not kind to Bolingbrook. The Raiders started off well, winning two games to extend its streak to four wins in a row. Junior forward Devon Hodges used a big second quarter to power the 'Brook into a tie for the conference lead on Feb. 5, but the team would get no closer to the Southwest Suburban Conference title.

The following game Hodges put together a monster game with 25 pts, 9 rebs and 2 blks. But Bolingbrook was unable to take advantage and was upset by Kankakee. The loss started a season-ending six-game losing streak from that point on culminated in a crushing defeat in the Class 4A regional semifinal. Hodges did lead the team in scoring that game with 10 points, adding a couple rebounds.

Bolingbrook posted a 13-13 record this year. Hodges was named Third Team All-Area by the Chicago Sun-Times and head coach Rob Brust called him "a walking double-double." Hodges will play some AAU tournaments with the Full Package Elite 17U team this summer.

:: After regaining his health at the end of January, George Marshall helped Brooks Prep to six straight blowout wins spanning the city playoffs and the start of the state tournament, including revenge against Carver. But Marshall managed only two free throws as the Eagles (24-8) fell to Crete-Monee to end the high school season.

Once the travel team season began, Marshall started making headlines along with his new teammates on the Mac Irvin Fire. The Fire list Marshall at 6'2" and 190 lbs. but that's probably a result of the standard "program height" boost.

Recruit Review: Jan '10

Since the month of January is officially in the books, what better time to post the first Recruit Review of the season? Wisconsin has a total of five committed players (three signed, two verballed) coming to Madison in the next two classes, and they stack up nicely position-wise.

Two of the seniors look particularly strong and all the players are enjoying some level of team success coming into the home stretch of the high school season.

2010

:: You could put the senior season Duje Dukan has had so far up against any one in Illinois right now. Deerfield (18-1) finished the month of January on a 14-game winning streak, aided by Dukan's 33 points -- 16 in the third quarter -- against Hershey recently. The 6'8" Dukan averaged over 24 points and 10 rebounds for the month.

"We told him before the season, 'You're going to be a marked man in every game,' " Deerfield coach Bret Just said. "But he likes challenges, comes up big. Always. He causes problems for defenses, doesn't he? He can handle the ball, post up, hit three-pointers. We're lucky to have him."

Dukan has come up big in a few crucial games for the Warriors. He pulled down 25 rebounds in Deerfield's sweep of rival Highland Park this season and his 22 points, 11 rebounds and clutch free throws helped beat Central Suburban League powerhouse Glenbrook North, 56-52, on Jan. 14. Needless to say Dukan is the biggest reason Deerfield now sits atop CSLs' North division standings. The senior has thrown his hat into the ring for Illinois' Mr. Basketball as well as proving he can be a serious scorer down the road for Bo Ryan's Badgers.

:: Josh Gasser is averaging nearly 24 ppg this season for Port Washington (12-2), which is clinging to a one-game lead in the North Shore conference after Friday night's two-point setback at Germantown. The loss snapped an 8-game winning streak. Just a week prior, Gasser scored 28 pts in three quarters of play against Grafton, part of a four-game stretch last month when averaged over 30 ppg.

Gasser projects as a combo guard at the next level. He still loves getting to the line and remains one of the state's top free throw shooters. Gasser has posted three 30-point nights this year. He has positioned himself to make a run at Wisconsin's Mr. Basketball award if the Pirates play deep into the state tournament, despite playing in Division 2.

:: The Eau Claire North Huskies (10-5) have struggled through a mediocre start to the new year, dropping four of their last eight games. Evan Anderson is averaging around 10 ppg so far, with his season-high of 19 points coming way back in the first game of the season. The Huskies already trail Eau Claire Memorial by several games in the Big Rivers Conference. Returning to the state tournament will be a tall task.

By now everyone has given up on Anderson dominating high school force. He dropped off the Rivals150 list last fall and you would probably get 1:1 odds for Anderson redshirting next fall at Wisconsin. The big man continues to block shots on defense, but still struggles to produce against the junk defenses thrown at him on offense. Still, he will likely finish with the highest scoring average of his career. New head coach Aric Carpenter has slowly opened up North's offense and his team exploded for a 76-46 win over Rice Lake last week. Anderson scored the game's first eight points.

2011

:: Wisconsin's most recent commitment came from point guard George Marshall, who has been compared to VCU great Eric Maynor. You usually find Marshall scoring in the teens and playing some pressure defense. The junior has missed all but two minutes of his squad's last three Chicago Public League Red-South games with a hip injury. He returned to action with nine points on Saturday to lead his Brooks Prep mates to a 23-point drubbing of Von Steuben.

Facing high preseason expectations, Brooks (18-7) stumbled out of the gates this year and the team struggled with turnovers at times. Two weeks ago, Brooks beat Nicolet in the NY2LAsports.com Extravaganza thanks to the Marshall's own game-winner in the final 20 seconds. After a 12-game January, the Eagles now prepare for the tough CPL playoffs.

:: After transferring from Romeoville to nearby Bolingbrook this season, Devon Hodges sat out a few of his team's early games. He helped push the 'Brook past his former teammates in his second game even though he was not starting yet. Since then, Badger fans should be happy to hear that Hodges has made some steady improvement in his game, not the least of which is some consistency.

Hodges has had good games in defeat (19 pts, 12 rebs vs. Hales) before, but lately has picked up his scoring to help the Raiders snap a 4-game skid. In back-to-back wins against Hillcrest and Joliet, Hodges averaged 18 pts and 10 rebs for Bolingbrook. The wins put the Raiders (11-7, 4-2) back in the Southwest Suburban Conference Blue division race.

Gasser Fills Void At Guard

When Josh Gasser pledged his services to Bo Ryan last Thursday, the Wisconsin filled a big need on its future roster by addressing point guard depth in the 2010 class. The 6'4" Gasser (pronounced Gah-ser) becomes the heir apparent to succeed Jordan Taylor and could give Wisconsin it's tallest option at the lead guard since Devin Harris. Could we see a point guard posting up in the near future?

Conceivably, Wisconsin could be trotting out a starting lineup measuring 6'4", 6'6", 6'6", 6'10" and 6'11" in 2012 based on the six players they have committed for that season right now.

I imagine Badger fans will grow to love the way Gasser plays, bringing a bit of a football mentality to the hardwood. As a former quarterback and defensive back, Gasser knows how to lead a team, but also adds a bit of reckless abandon and a nose for the ball. So it's no surprise that he is a great rebounding guard and gets to the free throw line a lot. Gasser has scored over 21 ppg for the past two season, going 279-for-336 (83%) on FTs in that time.

Word is Gasser is not playing quarterback for Port Washington this fall, so Badger fans can rest a bit easier hoping he avoids the rash of football-related injuries afflicting top hoops players, near and far, this summer.

Gasser chose the Badgers after taking an official visit to Northwestern, and he had scholarship offers from Arizona State, Maryland and Northern Iowa along the way. Naturally, some recruiting services scrambled after hearing about the commitment -- ESPN moved Gasser into their database for the first time and rating him an 89 (out of 100) the very next day. Go figure ...

Here's s snapshot of the future scholarship situation:Until the Vander Blue situation heats up in the next month or two, things might be pretty quiet on the recruiting front for Wisconsin. While the dorm burglary episode kept things around the program interesting, other midwestern basketball powers -- Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, Indiana, Louisville and Kentucky -- were lining up in-home visits for very sought-after talent or hosting them at football games.

Wisconsin reportedly had Blue and Evan Anderson at Camp Randall for the Michigan State game, but word has not trickled out about hosting more "unfamiliar" faces. So we have only third-party reports of who might be interested in UW since our 2011 prospects don't seem to be picking up steam. Awhile back, JJHuddle.com mentioned that the Badgers were in contact with 2010's Anton Hutchins (seems doubtful now) as well as 2011's Markus Crider and Travis Trice.

: : :

Speaking of iPod thefts and their effect on recruiting ... in light of recent events, you would think Wisconsin may have cooled on Illinois swingman Jacob Williams. But apparently, the coaches are still in touch with Williams, though there still is no offer. Williams' AAU teammates Chasson Randle and Nnana Egwu both enjoyed visits to Purdue over the weekend according to Illinois Wolves' head coach Mike Mullins. Randle already visited Ohio State and is setting up an Iowa State visit, while Egwu will be on the Illinois campus this coming weekend. Bo & Co. have their work cut out for themselves with those two.

Theft Fallout = Roster Shakeup

Speculation became reality this afternoon for the Wisconsin men's basketball team, which officially has two fewer players as a result of the recent burglary scandal.

Wisconsin announced today that Jeremy Glover was kicked off the team, while Diamond Taylor opted to withdraw from the university entirely. Seeing as Glover was dismissed, you can be sure Taylor would have been booted too if he and his family had not opted to leave the school. Hopefully both players can start fresh elsewhere.

It's a terrible situation overall, but now everyone is looking forward to the immediate effect it has on the team's roster. More specifically, who will man the backcourt in a few years with Hughes and Bohannon entering their final seasons?

To be honest, this sets up nicely for Wisconsin, even though it will hurt in the short run and came at a terrible cost. As the news started to unfold, word trickled out that Port Washington senior guard Josh Gasser was cancelling one of his official visits, and sure enough, Bo Ryan immediately offered him the standard full ride as soon as Taylor vacated it. The Badgers are in good position among Gasser's final four school choices; getting a commitment from Gasser would also lessen the "must-have" need to sign a point guard in 2011.

Wisconsin could conceivably land the consensus top three state players in the Class of 2010 if Vander Blue recommits. If this unfortunate news brings a side effect of landing Blue, most Badger fans would probably accept the situation with open arms. Taylor and Glover were redshirt candidates this season anyway.

Playing time will be immediately available for a guy like Blue to make an impact as a freshman behind Jordan Taylor and Rob Wilson. Gasser is much needed because only two walk-ons project to back up Taylor starting next year. At this point it would be risky to count on getting a great replacement player in that class if the Badgers miss on either Blue or Gasser.

Luckily, the front court appears to be in good shape. Redshirt freshmen Jared Berggren and Ryan Evans are developing at a promising rate. Junior forwards Tim Jarmusz, Jon Leuer and Keaton Nankivil all figure enter 2010 with one or two years of starting experience already.

The frontcourt vs. backcourt depth shakes out pretty evenly by class in this way:
Guard class ('06) > big man class ('07) > guards ('08) > big men ('09)

Negotiating With Gasser

Now that Wisconsin has finally offered a scholarship to 2010 Port Washington guard Josh Gasser, many are analyzing the motives behind this rare "5-for-4" deal.

While several other high-profile schools are dangling traditional full rides, UW is offering a walk-on spot to Gasser in year one, to be followed by four years on scholarship. This type of arrangement assumes a redshirt freshman season in 2010. Knowing they are in a tight spot with available scholarships, the Badgers are basically bargaining with Gasser with a token of good faith.

Only a few weeks ago, the best Bo Ryan could offer Gasser's family was a walk-on role, straight up. At the time, Wisconsin seemed to be in good shape to land either Vander Blue or Cameron Wright. I never bought into the theory that Wisconsin could have signed both -- the fact that UW is still only able to offer Gasser a walk-on spot next year seems to confirm my suspicions.

Fast forward back to the present. Wright is off the market. The Badgers are in contact with numerous high-level prospects for 2011, but do not seem to be close to landing any of them. There sits Gasser, who continued to improve throughout the summer and could fill a big need on the future roster with his ability to play either guard spot.

In my opinion, this strategy speaks just as much to the coaching staff's view of the 2011 class as it does the coaches' hopes of signing Blue for 2010. Yes, it's complicated -- just like most of the UW recruiting news over the last four months.

Blue is priority #1 and obviously the staff feels confident in their chances. Maybe even the "Defender of the Swing" Devin Harris knows something we don't. But Blue will not be a sure thing until he signs on the dotted line with someone. Bo could not afford to continue offering just a walk-on role to Gasser and expect to keep his interest.

The 5/4 deal was available immediately and if the Badgers were serious about landing Gasser, it should have been offered sooner in my opinion.

My hunch is that Wisconsin realized Gasser just might be as good or better than many of their prospects in the junior class. What's more, keeping Gasser at home is more realistic than stealing away a Chasson Randle-type from Purdue, Ohio State, Duke, et al. I would contend that vibes UW is getting from it's 2011 recruiting targets were the final push to up the ante with Gasser.

If Blue leaves the state school hanging, Gasser's offer should immediately balloon to a traditional full ride. But will that be soon enough for a talent of Gasser's caliber?

Prospect Profile: Josh Gasser

Josh Gasser, PG
6'4" :: 195 lbs.
Class of 2010
Port Washington (WI) HS
AAU: Wisconsin Swing

::: RANKINGS UPDATED MAY 4 :::
Rankings
Scout: 3 Stars * * * (#44 PG) Previous: 1 Star (PG) > 3 Stars
Rivals: 3 Stars (PG)
ESPN/Scouts, Inc. grade: 89 (#49 PG) Previous: #54 PG

Honors
2010 Wisconsin Player of the Year (Gatorade)
2010 First Team All State (AP)
2010 First Team All-State (Div. 2, WBCA)
2010 First Team All-Area (Journal-Sentinel)
2009 Fourth Team All-State (AP)
2009 First Team All-State (Div. 2, WBCA)
2008 Honorable Mention All-State (AP)
2008 Third Team All-State (Journal-Sentinel)

Recent Press
6/19: UW recruit Gasser leads South to narrow win - WiSJ
6/17: Port Washington's Gasser eager for return to Madison - Wishoops.net
2/23: UW basketball recruits have teams in hunt for conference titles - The Capital Times
2/9: Top candidates emerge for coveted Mr. Basketball award - Wishoops.net
1/22: Cross-county split decision - Ozaukee Press
12/11: Senior guard gets well fast - JSOnline
12/2: Port boys survive rough road opener - Ozaukee Press
9/18: Northwestern basketball in hunt for top guard - Chicago Tribune
8/18: Wisconsin throws hat into recruiting ring for Port Washington's Gasser - Wishoops.net

The Verbal
Pirates junior guard gives nod to Badgers - JSOnline (9/24/09)
Port Washington's Gasser commits to Badgers - Madison.com (9/24/09)
Port Washington's Gasser gives verbal commitment to attend Wisconsin - Wishoops.net (9/24/09)

The Hype
Arizona State, Maryland extend scholarship offers to Gasser - Wishoops.net (7/29/09)
Quarter-guard - Purple Reign (7/9/09)
July 2009 Wisconsin Prospects Preview - NY2LA Sports (7/5/09)
NY2LA Sports Midwest Inside Dish - NY2LA Sports (5/5/08)

Audio/Video
Interview: The Badger Hour - 100.5 FM ESPN Radio
Game: Port Washington at Nicolet (1/23/09) - Wishoops.net
Game: Port Washington Basketball 06-07: Regional Finals (2/20/08) - YouTube

Stats
Senior: 2009-10 (Port) - JSOnline
Junior: 2008-09 (Port) - JSOnline
Sophomore: 2007-08 (Port) - JSOnline
Freshman: 2006-07 (Port) - JSOnline

Additional Info
2009-10 Schedule :: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel :: Ozaukee Press

Photos