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.

Prospect Profile: Mycheal Henry

Mycheal Henry, SF
6'6" :: 215 lbs.
Class of 2011
Chicago (IL) Orr HS
AAU: Mac Irvin Fire / Rising Stars

::: RANKINGS UPDATED AUG. 24 :::
Rankings
Scout: 4 Stars * * * * (#19 SF/#86 overall) Previous: NR (SF) > 3 Stars (SG) > 4 Stars (#21/#66 > #22 SG/#62 overall)
Rivals: 4 Stars * * * * (#6 SF/#36 overall) Previous: NR > 5 Stars (#4/#18) > 4 Stars (#6 SF/#20 overall)
ESPN/Scouts, Inc. grade: 81 (#89) > 87 (#56 > #61 > #65 SF)

Honors
2010 Third Team All-City (Sun-Times)
2010 All-Area (Sun-Times)

Recent Press
4/29: No leader for Mycheal Henry - IlliniHQ.com
4/13: Recruiting wrap: Class of 2011 revisited - IlliniHQ.com
2/28: Beware of the scary hired guns - City/Suburban Hoops Report
2/14: Chicago Orr Star Mychael Henry Picks Up Scholarship Offer form Wisconsin - ChicagoHoops.com
2/13: Orr's Henry nabs Big Ten offer - City/Suburban Hoops Report
2/10: Harris helps Hyde Park get by Orr - Chicago Sun-Times
1/18: Henry help s Orr hold off Lake Forest Academy - Chicago Tribune
1/1: MLK edges Chicago Orr - MichiganPreps.com

The Verbal
Illinois lands Mycheal Henry - City/Suburban Hoops Report (5/10/10)

The Hype
Making a name - ESPNChicago (4/27/10)
Plenty of 2011 stars make jump - City/Suburban Hoops Report (4/13/10)
Henry has Illini's attention - IlliniHQ.com (3/2/10)
Illinois wing gains Wisconsin offer; Hoyas next? - Scouts, Inc. (2/16/10)
Starks gets Young rolling versus Orr - Chicago Sun-Times (1/13/10)
Stars again prove rep as tournament titans - Suburban Journals (1/5/10)
Orr plays spoiler against Crete-Monee - Chicago Sun-Times (12/19/09)
School Daze: Road Trip - SLAM (7/20/09)
Orr soph Henry starts to show his skills - Chicago Sun-Times (1/22/09)

Audio/Video
Highlight: Mycheal Henry - Orr 2011 - Highlight Mixtape (3/11/10)
Game: Orr vs. Hyde Park - CPS Playoffs (2/14/10)
Highlight: Mychael Henry Dunks on 6 ft 10 in - YouTube (1/5/10)

Stats
Game: 1/9/10 (Or vs. Detroit Romulus) - MLive.com

Additional Info
2009-10 Schedule :: Chicago Sun-Times

Photos

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.

Recruit Review: Feb '09

Today is the last day of February, which means the high school basketball regular season is over in Wisconsin. State tournament seeding is set in Wisconsin and Illinois and soon to follow in Minnesota.

A lot has happened in the last six weeks, so catching up on the action for all the Badger recruits is a daunting task. I did a bit of research and humbly offer some quick recaps below.

2009

:: Though senior Diamond Taylor scored only eight points back on Jan. 17 when Bolingbrook (IL) lost to St. Ignatius and another potential Badger recruit Nnanna Egwu, 66-63, he bounced back with 19 points in an overtime loss to Homewood-Flossmoor. Since then, the Raiders have not lost, starting their streak by blowing out Andrew, 84-50. Yet Taylor has struggled somewhat in that time. After fighting off an illness earlier this month, Taylor's missed front end of a bonus free throw situation nearly cost his team a victory in one game.

More recently, the 6'3" guard scored a game-high 14 points and 11 points, respectively, as Bolingbrook clinched the SouthWest Suburban Blue Conference title last weekend. A #3 seed in the Oswego (East) Sectional was the team's reward. Bolingbrook (18-6, 7-1) beat Stagg by 24 on Saturday, when Taylor chipped in nine points.

:: Henry Sibley (MN) forward Mike Bruesewitz is chugging along since his team dropped two games to a pair of elite Midwestern squads (Hopkins and Memorial). Bruiser hit the game-winner for his mates versus Kaukauna in the 2009 Wisconsin vs. Minnesota Border Battle. He averaged over 18 ppg for the month of January. The Warriors have rarely been challenged at all in conference and they recently clinched their second-straight league crown. Behind Bruiser's 19 points, they destroyed Hill-Murray to start February and Bruesewitz was soon named to the final 15 for Minnesota's Mr. Basketball.

Opposing coaches appear to be throwing junk defenses at Sibley to prevent Bruiser and his front line teammates from getting revved up. This trend has limited Bruesewitz's scoring. He averaged nine ppg in a recent three-game stretch, but bounced back with 16 points in Sibley's win on Tuesday to end a nice stretch of home games (7 of 8). The Warriors (22-2, 14-0) dominated South St. Paul, 77-27, and have two remaining road games before tournament play begins in Minnesota, where Hopkins is the heavy favorite in Sibley's division.

2010

:: The sight of Vander Blue attending Marquette games and rumors of him wavering in his verbal commitment to the Badgers seem like distant memories now. Though Blue had a relatively quiet night, Madison Memorial (19-1, 17-1) wrapped up another Big Eight Conference title by beating Madison East, 56-45, Thursday night in the biggest city basketball game in years.



After slipping against East back in January, the Spartans reeled off nine straight wins -- only one of which was by less than 20 points. A month ago Blue exploded in the second half against Verona to lead the team with 22 points in 57-34 win. That has been the lucky number for Blue, as he scored 22 points against crosstown rival LaFollette and another 22 when Memorial pinned 98 points on Madison West. The Spartans then came from behind to beat Beloit, 66-58, with Blue scoring 13 points. He followed that up with another 21-point performance the next game out. Blue's season-long streak of double-digit scoring games came to an end last Tuesday when the bench was emptied early in a rout over Janesville Parker. Memorial is currently ranked #20 and #24 by a few national polls and earned the top seed in its sectional.

:: Big man Evan Anderson returned from injury to Eau Claire North's lineup with a bang against Rice Lake the last week of January. Anderson scored 14 points -- including two important free throws -- in nearly 30 minutes of the 55-48 win. The Huskies next blasted New Richmond, though Anderson made little more than a whimper (2 pts). Anderson was then limited to three field goal attempts as North was officially unseated as conference champs by Hudson. So it's no surprise that as a #5 seed, North's road to State would have to go through top-seeded Hudson squad in a regional final.

Opposing defenses tend to collapse on North's huge front line, which seems to have been effective. The best case scenario for Anderson in a Wisconsin uniform is looking more and more like a Stiemsma-like impact. Not bad in the end, but also a few years of not much as his college game develops. The Huskies (13-7, 9-4) have won three games in a row, starting with wins last Thursday and on Monday, to run their record to 5-2 since Anderson's return. Last night, North defeated River Falls as Anderson scored 11 in the second half.

2011

:: From the tone of the article, it sounds like Devon Hodges fouled out of a game earlier this year that featured a preposterous 87 free throw attempts. Romeoville made 22 of 37, while surrendering 37 points from the stripe to Plainfield North. Like Taylor, Hodges also missed a game recently when he sat out with the flu. However, the lanky sophomore was a terror on defense while leading the Spartans with 17 points in a 76-74 overtime loss to Plainfield South.

It's unclear whether Hodges was one of the Spartans who missed last Tuesday's game for missing a practice. More likely, Hodges just had an off night and was not mentioned in the article. Either way, Hodges was back in time to grab 12 rebounds in Romeoville's latest set back to Plainfield Central. Romeoville (11-14, 7-7) grabbed a #12 seed in the middle of the Frankfort (Lincoln-Way North) Sectional for the upcoming state tournament before its seniors carried the team to victory in the regular season finale versus Minooka.

: : :

Links:
- The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel just did a nice story on the progress of Wisconsin's two 2009 recruits.
- For the second time ever, not a single McDonald's High School All-American is headed to a Big Ten school this fall. The last time the Big Ten got shut out was 2005.

Recruit Review: 1/12/09

Now seemed like as good of a time as any to recap the weekend for those soon-to-be Wisconsin Badgers still playing at the high school level. Hopefully this can become a regular addition to the site, much like the Recruiting Roundup over at UMHoops.

For more details on each recruit, seek out the Prospect Profile pages in the recruiting sidebar. The collection of news, videos, stats and pictures opens up once a player has verbally committed to Wisconsin. Four such players donned their school colors this weekend, with mostly positive results ...

2009

:: Diamond Taylor led Bolingbrook to a 68-40 win against a depleted Romeoville squad in the second head-to-head meeting between future Badgers this season. The Raiders (10-4) were not impressive during a four-game losing streak earlier in the year, but it is good see Taylor leading the team back. The senior guard scored 19 points and was instrumental in a 10-0 first quarter run that gave Bolingbrook control. The most recent Wisconsin recruit, sophomore Devon Hodges, paced Romeoville with 10 points.

:: The recent Twin Cities battle in which Hopkins topped Henry Sibley, 77-65, has already been documented here. Standout forward Mike Bruesewitz did not have his best game, but got to the line and was his usual self on the boards (10 rebs). Bruesewitz continues to show off his versatility against the toughest competition. With Sibley's guards unable to handle the pressure imposed by Hopkins, Bruesewitz took over some of the point guard duties in the second half for the Warriors. The previous week, Bruesewitz had 20 pts, 11 rebs and 5 assts in a tough loss to Madison Memorial before posting 20 & 12 in a win over Tartan. Sibley (8-2) will try to bounce back Tuesday night against North St. Paul.

2010

:: Madison Memorial traveled out of state yet again this past weekend. The Spartans (9-0) took care of business, too. Jeronne Maymon's monster game led Memorial past the Lafayette (Mo.) Lancers, 65-62, in a St. Louis-area invitational on Saturday. Lafayette features senior forward Tyler Griffey, a well-regarded Illinois recruit, and just recently dropped out the area's top ten rankings. Memorial junior Vander Blue aided the winning effort with two more 3-pointers en route to 17 points. Blue's outside shooting ability was one question mark about his game coming into the season, but he is systematically removing that criticism with each passing week, hitting multiple treys in six of nine games so far. A well-rounded Blue will be much more valuable on the perimeter for Bo Ryan's offense once he hits campus in the 2010.

:: Eau Claire North took its first loss in the Big Rivers Conference last Thursday, 47-44, as it continues to wait for center Evan Anderson to return from his ankle injury. The 6'11" Anderson is expected to return at the end of the month, but will probably be eased back into the lineup.

2011

:: See above. I hope to have an interview with Devon Hodges on Hoops Marinara in the near future. Stay tuned.