Johnny Jungle

The 6th Man of St. John's Basketball

For the die hard St. John's fan.
The unofficial 6th man. est. '07
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Forward JaKarr Sampson Decommits from St. John’s

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Jeff Borzello of CBSSports.com is reporting that JaKarr Sampson, one of the nine newcomers signed to Steve Lavin’s recruiting class of 2011, has decommitted from the Red Storm and will reopen his recruitment.

Sampson will return to Brewster Academy for a post-graduate year. (Photo: Ohio.com)
This report comes less than one week after Sampson was one of three St. John’s freshmen to be ruled academically ineligible by the NCAA.

“[JaKarr] has decided to return to Brewster Academy as a post-grad student and to further his education to complete his academic requirement to attend college academically,” Sampson’s former AAU coach Don Anderson told Borzello.

Amir Garrett and Norvel Pelle, the other two incoming freshmen to be ruled ineligible, will be taking classes to work toward eligibility and be cleared to play for St. John’s, beginning in the second semester.

Sampson is an athletic combo forward with the ability to face up to the basket and score in the post. On the defensive end, he uses his athleticism to block shots from the weak side. He was regarded by many recruiting outlets as the best overall prospect in the Red Storm Class of 2011.

His ineligibility and return to Brewster leave the Red Storm with a depleted frontcourt to begin the 2011-2012 season. God’sgift Achiuwa remains the only post player on the active roster, which could force natural forwards Maurice Harkless and Sir’Dominic Pointer to take on a greater role in defending down low.

Prior to his commitment to St. John’s, Sampson was considering Baylor, Louisville, and Tennessee.

If Sampson rejoins the basketball team at Brewster, he will be another asset on an already-talented squad that includes high-major prospects TJ Warren and Mitch McGary.

Kyle Anderson Drops 61 Points at iS8, Talks St. John’s

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It begins to sound like the stuff of folklore.

On a sunny September Saturday, in a stuffy, half-empty middle school gym, tucked away inside Jamaica, Queens, New York City, just over two miles from the campus of St. John’s University, Kyle Anderson showed why he is a consensus Top 5 player in the country.

Anderson dropped an impressive 61 points in a win at iS8 in Queens. (Photo: Hudson Valley Varsity)
The 6’8” New Jersey product dropped 61 points (yes, 61 points) and grabbed 8 rebounds for the New Jersey Playaz in a 131-91 win in the first round of the iS8/Nike Fall Tip-Off Classic.

“A lot of big-time players like to come play in iS8,” Anderson told JohnnyJungle.com of playing in the tournament. “And me being right across the bridge [in New Jersey], coming over to play every spring and fall, it’s just a blessing.”

Anderson, nearing his September 20th college decision, is in the midst of a final round of campus and in-home visits before he chooses between St. John’s, Georgetown, Florida, UCLA, and Seton Hall.

This past Wednesday, September 7th, the St. Anthony (NJ) senior visited St. John’s campus, a visit that included time with the team and speaking with former UCLA guard and current Cleveland Cavalier Baron Davis, who was on campus for a workout.

Steve Lavin was also one of only two head coaches at St. Anthony yesterday, along with Seton Hall’s Kevin Willard, to watch Anderson work out. Another former UCLA point guard, Earl Watson, accompanied Lavin.

“It means I must be doing something right,” said the poker-faced Anderson, who has taken care not to hint toward which college he may be leaning. “Those are two great coaches right there and for them to take their time to actually come see me, that means I picked a great five schools.”

St. John’s has two commitments from the Class of 2012: Louisiana forward Ricardo Gathers and Washington D.C. point guard Darrick Wood, the latter of which plays AAU with Anderson on the New Jersey Playaz.

And the possibility of playing together has come up in conversation between the two.

“Yeah, we have those talks. But, you know, it’s still something I have to think about,” said Anderson. “I’ll go where I want to go, but it would be a plus to have another person that I played AAU with. That would help.”

Wood is currently enrolled at Bridgton Academy (ME), after transferring from NIA Prep (NJ), and did not make the trip to play in iS8 this weekend.

Ranked #5 overall by ESPN, Kyle Anderson is the highest-rated player St. John’s recruited heavily in the Lavin Era. If Anderson commits to the Red Storm, he would join the six Top 100 recruits that Lavin has already lured to Queens, along with top junior college players Nurideen Lindsey and God’sgift Achiuwa.

Anderson will host UCLA for an in-home visit tonight, September 10th, and Florida on September 12th, then travel to Florida for an official visit September 16th and 17th. A Seton Hall in-home will follow on September 18th, before the decision comes on his birthday, September 20th.

Report: St. John’s Amir Garrett and Norvel Pelle Still Awaiting NCAA Clearance

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Jeff Goodman of CBS is reporting that incoming St. John’s freshmen Norvel Pelle and Amir Garrett are still awaiting academic clearance from the NCAA.

Seven of Steve Lavin's nine newcomers have been cleared by the NCAA, so far. (Photo: Icon/SMI)
As part of a larger piece on players around the country who are still awaiting clearance, Goodman says that Pelle and Garrett finished summer classes last week.

Questions arose over the summer about Pelle’s eligibility and the possibility of taking a prep year, which were refuted. He enrolled in summer classes at Rise Academy in Philadelphia to work toward eligibility.

Amir Garrett had an eventful summer for reasons that lie outside the basketball court.

Aside from taking classes at Rise Academy to gain eligibility, Garrett signed to play baseball with the Cincinnati Reds.

“We are hopeful that all of our incoming men’s basketball student-athletes will meet their NCAA eligibility requirements and will be able to join us on campus very soon,” Senior Associate Athletics Director for Communications at St. John’s Mark Fratto told JohnnyJungle.com.

Pelle is one of two true big men slated to play for the Red Storm in 2011-2012, along with junior college transfer God’sgift Achiuwa. The lanky, 6’10” California product is an athletic shotblocker who can finish above the rim.

Garrett is another California product, by way of Findlay Prep in Nevada. The high-flying forward finished as a Top 75 recruit who head coach Steve Lavin has called a “special talent” and “an ideal fit for the [St. John’s] system of play.”

The seven other newcomers from St. John’s Class of 2011 have been cleared by the NCAA. With summer classes having ended for Garrett and Pelle just over a week ago, an NCAA ruling is expected in the coming weeks.

Top 5 Prospect Kyle Anderson of St. Anthony Visits St. John’s

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Kyle Anderson’s college visitations have followed suit with his recruitment, to this point. That holding true, the far-from-glamorous, business-like, on-to-the-next-one “Kyle Anderson College Tour” made a stop in Queens on Wednesday.

Anderson will be making his college decision September 20th. (Photo: NJ Sports)
Anderson, the sought-after New Jersey product and consensus Top 5 player in the Class of 2012, is in the middle of a final round of visits that include Georgetown, Seton Hall, UCLA, and St. John’s. Those schools, along with Florida, are the five from which Anderson will choose in just under two weeks, on September 20th.

During Anderson’s visit, former UCLA point guard Baron Davis was on campus working out and had a chance to speak with the high school senior.

“It made a big impact,” Anderson told the New York Post’s Zach Braziller. “It shows [head coach Steve Lavin] gets guys NBA ready. Baron talked about Coach Lav, how he helped him get to where he is today.”

Anderson also met with university president Rev. Donald J. Harrington, C.M. and took time to be with the team.

A physical anomoly as a 6’8″ point guard, Anderson is one of the most unique players in the country. Though lacking the quickness of many smaller point guards, he maintains a size and basketball IQ advantage over opponents.

As the on-floor leader of St. Anthony (NJ) and the New Jersey Playaz AAU team, Anderson has been a winner. Being such a calculated player, he works well with athletic teammates, whether in transition or the half court. He has great court vision and long arms that cover space on defense.

Following his visit to St. John’s, he tweeted, “St johns visit was great but i dont wanna hear about college for the next couple days [sic].”

Speculation leading up to Anderson’s decision are purely that: speculation. Few details have been released about which way the guard may be leaning.

No one expects it to be accompanied by the fanfare of other top recruits, but September 20th is the date. Mark your calendars.

St. John’s Commit Darrick Wood Leaves NIA Prep for Bridgton Academy

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Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv is reporting that St. John’s commit Darrick Wood will transfer from Newark, New Jersey’s NIA Prep to Bridgton Academy in Maine.

Wood, originally from D.C., is now headed to Maine and Bridgton Academy. (Photo: coast2coastrecruiting.net)
The Washington D.C. native committed to the Red Storm two weeks ago, becoming the second player from the Class of 2012 to give his word to play for Steve Lavin and St. John’s.

NIA Prep has come under scrutiny recently after four graduating basketball players, including TCU commit Ryan Rhoomes and Towson-bound Kelvin Amayo, were ruled ineligible by the NCAA.

In an article by Matthew Stanmyre of The Star-Ledger, written in June, Stanmyre characterized the school as, “a little bigger than a one-bedroom apartment and is carved from bottom-floor office space at the Robert Treat Hotel” and school founder Alif Muhammad as a, “controversial basketball kingmaker.”

These rulings of ineligibility come five years after an NCAA investigation found NIA Prep to be a legitimate institution.

“I might have had one course denied, but never where all the class work was wiped out,” Alif Muhammad told Zach Braziller of the New York Post, following the NCAA ruling this August.

Wood leaves NIA for Bridgton Academy, a school that enrolls 188 students and sits on a 55-acre campus in North Bridgton, Maine.

Bridgton Academy is not unfamiliar to the Red Storm, as current junior point guard Malik Stith spent time there, as well as recent St. John’s graduates Paris Horne and Justin Burrell.

Along with Wood, Ricardo Gathers is committed to St. John’s from the Class of 2012, leaving one open scholarship. Top 5 overall prospect Kyle Anderson will be visiting St. John’s next Wednesday, September 7th, and is scheduled to make his decision September 20th.