August 1, 2017
There's one senior player on scholarship: point guard
Justin Judkins. The departure of
Joe Lien, and my decision to hold onto his scholarship rather than offer it to an unimpressive transfer, means we'll have two schollies to offer this cycle, just like I thought we'd have all along.
We're still well-stocked with big men, so I'll be looking mostly at perimeter players this year.
It didn't take long for me to identify our #1 recruiting target: a point guard from nearby Pottsville, PA named
Rob Prendergast.
HTML Code:
#13 PG Rob Prendergast
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Height: 6-2
Weight: 184
High School: Pottsville Area High School
Hometown: Pottsville, PA
GPA: 2.67
Test Score: 1050
Rating: ***
Attributes:
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Type INS JPS FTS 3PS HND PAS ORB DRB PSD PRD STL BLK QKN STR JMP STA
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Current: 16 42 43 39 40 50 38 17 31 66 4 44 98 21 83 45
Potential: C A B D D A D F D A F C
Season Stats:
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PTS OREB REB AST TOS A/T STL BLK PFS
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15.8 1.6 5.2 5.1 2.6 1.98 0.3 1.1 2.4
Shooting Averages:
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FGM FGA FG% FTM FTA FT% 3PM 3PA 3P%
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7.0 14.0 .500 1.4 2.0 .692 0.4 1.8 .229
Recruiting Notes:
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Qualified: Yes
Current interest in Lafayette: Very High
Rankings: East Region #77 Overall, East Region #22 PG
High School Awards: None
Top 5 Schools: Lafayette, George Washington, Buffalo
Rob is a solid three-star recruit, ranked #456 nationwide. We've been landing guys with better national reputations lately--both members of last year's class were in the #200 range--but our staff think Rob is an Orange/Blue player who will punch above his weight.
I like Rob's potential as a shooter and a passer, and he's already a lockdown defender. He's quick and athletic, so I'm thinking he has a good chance of reaching his lofty potential.
We're at the top of Rob's list of three schools, none of which have offered him yet. I'm moving quick with this player. I offer Rob a scholarship, invite him to campus, and send Coaches Sims and Manion to visit him.
We've had some success recruiting three-star guards from New Jersey who stand 6'3" and average over 30 points a game in high school. Why not try it again? Meet
Robert Close.
HTML Code:
#24 SG Robert Close
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Height: 6-3
Weight: 178
High School: Montville High School
Hometown: Montville, NJ
GPA: 3.07
Test Score: 970
Rating: ***
Attributes:
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Type INS JPS FTS 3PS HND PAS ORB DRB PSD PRD STL BLK QKN STR JMP STA
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Current: 34 23 69 69 31 30 16 19 16 47 21 43 64 38 95 57
Potential: B B A B D D C D D B D C
Season Stats:
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PTS OREB REB AST TOS A/T STL BLK PFS
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32.6 1.7 5.3 3.6 2.9 1.25 1.2 1.1 2.1
Shooting Averages:
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FGM FGA FG% FTM FTA FT% 3PM 3PA 3P%
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12.8 24.4 .526 3.2 3.8 .829 3.8 9.3 .409
Recruiting Notes:
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Qualified: Yes
Current interest in Lafayette: Average
Rankings: #48 SG, East Region #38 Overall, East Region #5 SG
High School Awards: All-State
Top 5 Schools: Rutgers, Lafayette, Saint Joseph's, Seton Hall, St. John's
I went back and looked at
Joe Lien's scouting report from high school, and Robert is fairly similar to the player Joe was at a similar stage in his career. Lien was the superior shooter and ballhandler, but he wasn't
Close to
Robert's level as a defender. (Yes, I know what I did there.) But Robert is a Red/Green recruit, while Joe was a glittering Yellow/Blue prospect who lived up to his potential and will be playing basketball for a living.
Should I offer Joe's old scholarship to this promising scorer? He's expressed Average interest in us, but we're clearly among his favorite programs. We have plenty of money to spend on an all-out recruiting effort, complete with a visit to campus. Before I offer him, I'll take a look at some of the other players we've evaluated. We have money in our budget to woo them in various ways.
I've learned, however, that if you want to land a recruit at the top of your range, you need to move quickly. I've lost a few guys by being too indecisive, or by chasing players who were out of our league. I'm going to trust my gut and offer Close this month.