Re-Ranking the 2018 Class (Part 4)
We’ve been thrown a curveball this summer. Due to social distancing guidelines, opportunities to comprehensively evaluate prospects in and around the DMV area have been few and far between. As a result, we will not be providing a mid-summer rankings update as we typically do.
But to be creative and keep content flowing consistently, the team is excited to take a look back at the 2017 and 2018 rankings. Our aim is to re-rank notable prospects in those respective classes based on their performances since high school and ultimately come up with a new top-30 for each.
Here we continue this series by taking a closer look at #15-11 from the new 2018 update.
#15 | Ike Nweke, 6’7″ P | Georgetown Prep | Original Rank: #22 | College: Columbia
Nweke was a forceful paint presence for the 2018 IAC Champs and has hit the ground running at Columbia. After starting 7 games as a freshman and averaging 5.3 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, he earned 23 starts during his sophomore season in which he averaged over 9 points and 5 rebounds per contest. Nweke is known for having a strong work ethic and if the increase in his production from his freshman to sophomore year is any indication, he could become a nightly double-double threat in the Ivy League moving forward.
#14 | Jermaine Harris, 6’8″ P | Rock Creek Christian | Original Rank: #7 | College: Rhode Island
Harris, the 2018 All-Met Player of the Year, averaged 21 points and 11 rebounds a night during his senior year at Rock Creek Christian. Since day one at Rhode Island, he has been indispensable. Harris has started all games in which he’s played during the last two seasons and is due for a significant uptick in production soon.
#13 | Vado Morse, 6’0″ CG | Bullis | Original Rank: #30 | College: James Madison
After a standout high school career at Bullis, including an IAC Championship and Player of the Year Award, Morse hit the ground running at Mount St. Mary’s by winning the NEC Rookie of the Year award in 2019. He averaged double-figure scoring numbers in each of his two seasons at the Mount and is expected to be a big part of Coach Mark Byington’s setup at James Madison.
The 2⃣0⃣1⃣9⃣ ⛹️♂️ ROOKIE OF THE YEAR is…@MountAthletics' Vado Morse‼️
The 6-time Rookie of the Week leads all NEC freshman with 14.7 ppg and ranks first on the Mount with 58 3P. He also contributes 2.9 apg.#NECelite #NECMBB pic.twitter.com/Yo7yhHzMUe
— Northeast Conference (@NECsports) March 5, 2019
#12 | LJ Owens, 6’3″ W | Severn | Original Rank: #18 | College: UMBC
Owens, a 2,000-point scorer and two-time County Player of the Year at Severn was a fun watch in his high school days and his scoring prowess has translated to college. He scored 14 points in his college debut at William & Mary, going 5 of 9 from the field in 25 minutes and finished the season as a top-five scorer in among CAA Freshmen. Owens has since transferred to UMBC and has fit into Coach Ryan Odom’s team seamlessly. He started 32 games last season and led the team with 51 threes made while averaging nearly 10 points per game in about 30 minutes per game.
.@UMBC_MBB coach Ryan Odom on LJ Owens: "He has the ability to score baskets in bunches. I think he's just hitting his stride now." https://t.co/TBjW3kC1lo pic.twitter.com/KBV68nV6mu
— PressBox (@PressBoxOnline) January 27, 2020
#11 | Brendan Adams, 6’4″ W | Calvert Hall | Original Rank: #13 | College: UCONN
Adams initially committed to Rhode Island, but once head coach Dan Hurley left for UConn Adams de-committed from Rhode Island to sign with the Huskies. The Calvert Hall graduate was the lone true freshman on the 2018-19 team and appeared in 31 games averaging 2.6 points and 1.2 rebounds. As a sophomore, the 6-foot-4 guard upped his points per game average to 7.4 and pulled down 2.2 rebounds after appearing in all 32 games. I expect another uptick in production as Adams goes into his junior season with a very talented UConn squad.
UCONN Brendan Adams #10 will not be denied as he goes up and over Temple J.P Moorman II #4 pic.twitter.com/S4j1Igrqg4
— 4.0 Sports Media & Entertainment (@40sportsmedia) January 30, 2020
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