Flyers going after guards

UD appears intent on bringing in three perimeter players to replace four grads.

Flyers aim for a great class

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By Doug Harris, Staff Writer Updated 11:41 PM Saturday, June 27, 2009

Highly touted basketball prospect Jalen Steele of Knoxville, Tenn., visited Dayton for the Duquesne game last season and found the revelry in the stands as entertaining as anything on the floor.

“The fans are into the game,” the 6-foot-2 senior-to-be said. “They’re real faithful to the team. They’re into it. They get the team ready to go. If there’s a bad call, they get mad. I loved it.”

That wasn’t all Steele found appealing about UD.

“Me and the coaches click very well,” he said. “And I clicked with (Flyer recruit) Juwan Staten. Me and him exchanged phone numbers.”

In a couple of years, those two backcourt stars just might be exchanging passes.

The Flyers will be graduating four guards after this season, and while NCAA rules prevent UD coach Brian Gregory from commenting on recruits before they’re signed, the team appears intent on bringing in three perimeter players to replace that quartet.

One scholarship is going to Staten, who is ranked as the 43rd-best prospect and 10th-best point guard nationally in the 2010 class by ESPN.

And four other celebrated guards have confirmed the Flyers have offered them full rides — Steele, Indiana native Jesse Berry, Chicago’s Brandon Spearman and Cleveland’s Cameron Wright.

At least three more perimeter players also have visited UD: Nick Kellogg of Columbus (Clark Kellogg’s son), Roy Marble Jr. of Southfield, Mich., and Matt Kamieniecki of Clarkston, Mich.

Ralph Hill, a versatile 6-6 forward from Westerville, has given UD a verbal commitment and is pegged to play the four spot. And the Flyers undoubtedly are holding the final scholarship in the class for prized recruit Adreian Payne.

Although the 6-10 center has been mum about his plans, Steele, Berry and Spearman all have said UD is currently their No. 1 choice, which means the Flyers conceivably could put together their best recruiting class since Anthony Corbitt, Norm Grevey, Troy McCracken, Noland Robinson and Bill Uhl Jr. arrived in 1986 as the nation’s 19th-rated bunch.

Steele, who is being recruited by Marquette, Clemson and Xavier and has about 20 scholarship offers, averaged 21.3 points last season in leading Fulton High School to its second consecutive state title.

He scored 20 points in the state semifinals, hitting the game-winner in the lane at the buzzer, and tossed in 22 in the final to earn tourney MVP honors.

“He’s a tremendous, tremendous competitor,” Fulton coach Jody Wright said. “He has an unbelievable desire to win, and that has manifested itself many times in big ballgames. Like many great players, the bigger the game, the better he plays.”

The 6-1 Berry is a prolific scorer. Playing for Lafayette Jefferson in perhaps the premier prep conference in Indiana, he set a school record by scoring 51 in a game and then later topped that with a 55-point effort.

“He can make plays. He can get to the rim and finish. And he has a great pull-up game, which you don’t see much anymore. Plus, he can shoot the 3,” Jefferson coach Scot Bunnell said. “He’s a jet. He can really go.”

Berry has offers from Cincinnati and Butler and has a visit to Arizona scheduled for early August.

“He can fill it up,” said Van Coleman, the recruiting analyst for Hoopmasters.com. “If you’re looking for a long-range shooter, he’s your guy.”

The 6-3 Spearman, who is ranked as the 71st-best prospect in the nation by Rivals.com, has offers from DePaul, Iowa State and Bradley and also visited Marquette last week.

“He’s got a really good mid-range game,” Coleman said. “He’s a great pull-up shooter. Very physical, very strong.”

The 6-5 Wright, who averaged 20 points, seven rebounds and five assists as a junior for Cleveland Benedictine, was once committed to Ohio State. But the Buckeyes, who have four pledges from the top-100 players in the nation, reportedly pulled their scholarship after landing higher-ranked prospects.

Wright, who visited Dayton earlier this month, also has offers from Indiana and Wisconsin.

“His quickness and explosion in the open court make him a dangerous player,” Coleman said.

The NCAA installed a rule this year that eliminated the April evaluation period for college coaches, meaning they’ll get their first chance to attend offseason camps and tournaments in July. Those recruits leaning toward UD could see their offer lists expand when they get more exposure, but any schools swooping in late in the process could have a hard time overtaking the Flyers.

“I think Dayton has done it the right way,” said Wright, who coaches Steele. “They have recruited him hard all along. Right now, somebody has to beat Dayton out. I’ve said that from the get-go. Anybody that gets on you the earliest and goes the hardest, that’s tough to beat.”

Contact this reporter at  (937) 225-2125 or at  dharris@DaytonDailyNews.com

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