Maryland/DC Recruiting Headlines

<p>It was a busy week in the local recruiting world as two of our top four prospects in the 2022 player rankings announced their commitments. We’ll break their decisions down, plus other happenings over the last week.</p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="837927" first="Cameron" last="Whitmore"] to Villanova</strong></span></p> <p>The long awaited decision was made final by our No. 1 ranked player in the 2022 class as Cam Whitmore announced his commitment to head coach Jay Wright and the Villanova Wildcats. His final three schools consisted of Villanova, Illinois and North Carolina, but ultimately it was the the Cats who won the sweepstakes. Whitmore exploded onto the scene this summer and proved his worth as a top-20 prospect nationally. His elite athleticism, work ethic and versatile skillset should fit seamlessly in Wright’s system. It’s not farfetched to say that under Villanova’s player development program, Whitmore could be hearing his name announced at the NBA Draft in the next few years an become yet another DMV prospect that Wright has molded into a professional.</p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/05/Rodney-Rice.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1200684" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/05/Rodney-Rice-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="904621" first="Rodney" last="Rice"] unites with Mike Jones</strong></span></p> <p>Rice announced his commitment to former DeMatha head coach and current associate head coach Mike Jones and Virginia Tech. It was a battle between the Hokies and Louisville, but the connection with Jones as well as the role Rice will be expected to fill as a scoring combo guard was too tough to pass up. The 6-foot-3 DeMatha standout had explosive scoring outings this summer with Team Durant and is expected to be a key cog for a loaded Stags roster this winter. The game today is all about having guards who can put the ball in the basket and Rice fits that mold perfectly. </p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/10/Tyler-Jackson.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1299741" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/10/Tyler-Jackson-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>St. Frances freshman earns first offer</strong></span></p> <p>George Mason head coach Kim English visited St. Frances this week for workouts and extended an offer to 2025 guard Tyler Jackson. It’s his first offer to date and should be the first of many as he advances through his high school years. I saw Jackson last weekend as the short-handed Panthers took on Mt. Zion and he plays with a fearless approach. Jackson is extremely fast in transition, has a quick burst off his first step and showed potential to be a three-level scorer as times goes on. It was an excellent decision by English to get involved early, as Jackson could be the next highly-recruited guard in the Baltimore area down the road.</p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Barry-Evans.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1247457" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Barry-Evans-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="902030" first="Barry" last="Evans"] makes his pledge</strong></span></p> <p>Evans is no longer playing his high school basketball in the state as he’s set to do a post-grad prep year at Putnam Science Academy, but he spent his four years in the Baltimore Metro area and played with the DMV Stags and Team Melo over the course of his high school summers. Now nearing 6-foot-8, the southpaw caught the eyes of many with his explosive over the rim finishes and his overall versatility and upside on both ends that a number of mid major programs began pursuing him aggressively. Ultimately it was St. Bonaventure who won his verbal commitment and long term, I foresee Evans being a major weapon in the A-10 Conference. </p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/08/Solomon-Ball.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1272109" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/08/Solomon-Ball-300x217.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="217" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Get on the [player_tooltip player_id="1049862" first="Solomon" last="Ball"] train while you can</strong></span></p> <p>2023 Saint James guard [player_tooltip player_id="1049862" first="Solomon" last="Ball"] is a guy who I believe schools should be fighting for. At 6-foot-3 with more potential to grow, the southpaw has improved his overall game in many ways over the past calendar year. What has been more impressive though, is the way he’s adjusting to his body and improving his athleticism, which makes him an even tougher matchup for opponents. Ball is a smooth operator who can be an impact in ball screens both as a scorer or passer, is able to defend either guard position in the high school ranks and comes with high IQ and feel. Ball recently took a visit to Richmond where he was extended an offer. The A-10 Conference is recruiting Ball the most and account for four of his seven total offers.</p>