The Virginia Tech basketball Class of 2013 is now complete.  With Robert Brown’s transfer, another spot opened up and guard Devin Wilson from Montour HS in McKees Rock, PA (basically Pittsburgh) has committed to the Hokies and could sign as early as Wednesday, April 17th when the spring signing period begins.

Wilson is listed at 6’4″ so has good size, necessary in the ACC.  Both Clark and Emelogu are also 6’4″, and Muller from Germany is a metric 6’3″, so it is a tall guard class.

Wilson had offers in both football (nc state, temple, akron, and ohio) and basketball (wvu, george mason, st. joe’s, some CAA and MAAC schools, etc.) but decided to go with hoops and the Hokies.  He was a 2-star wide receiver in football, and a 3-star guard in basketball according to Rivals.com.  ESPN Recruiting Nation didn’t give him a grade (i.e. not a 3-star) but at least had an article about it.  If you subscribe to ESPN you can read it.

Trevor and Niemo (I’m 6’1″)

Virginia Tech Class of 2013 signee Trevor Thompson participated in the 2013 Elite Showcase Basketball Classic on Sunday, March 24th at trinity university in Washington, DC.  Donte Clark was also supposed to participate in the game but was a no-show (I asked Trevor after the game and he had no idea why Clark wasn’t there).

Trevor had the best first half of anyone in the game.  He had 13 points on 6/10 shooting, 1/2 free throws, 6 rebounds, and one block.  Both the points and rebounds were the most of anyone in the game at the break.  He was much quieter in the second half, though, with just 2 points on 1/3 FGs, 1 steal and 1 assist.  He finished the game with 15 points on 7/13 FGs, 1/2 FTs, 7 rebounds, and 1 steal, block, and assist.  His 7 FGs included 3 dunks, 2 putbacks, a turnaround bank shot from 6-8 feet, and a 10-12 foot jumper.  He missed other 3 or 4 jumpshots including one that Dodd swatted right back in his face but he ended up getting a dunk out of it.

Thompson In-Game Dunk Part 1

Thompson is listed as a center but I don’t feel he’s quite ready to be a big man in the low post just yet.  He needs to add some weight to his frame but is athletic.  I’d call him a stretch-4 at this point.  Not quite as tall as JvZ and with more weight already than Joey had last year, and more polished as a scorer.  Trevor isn’t afraid to face the basket from 12-18 feet away, but his jumper has a weird, clockwise-spin on it (as opposed to backspin) that he’ll need to fix as he progresses.

He didn’t show a lot of post moves, but this was an all-star game, they aren’t exactly feeding the post a lot.  He did show a short hook to his right and a turnaround jumper in the post.  Trevor didn’t show the tenacity on the glass we’ll need him to have, but again, this was an all-star game.  You don’t expect to see it but hopefully he has it.

Thompson In-Game Dunk Part 2

My buddy Pete also noted he has bad posture a lot of the time on the court so he hides his height to a degree.  As you can see in the pictures of him and me, he towers over me (I’m 6’1″ – a real 6’1″).  So I’d put him at a legit 6’9″, or probably 6’10″ or 6’11″ in “basketball height”.  If he can add weight, he could be a force.

The all-star game featured no Top 150 recruits (since Clark wasn’t there).  It had mostly 2 and 3-star prospects who all would be playing at the next level, but mostly at low-to-mid-majors such as navy, holy cross, niagara, vmi, manhattan, and duquesne.  Some of the 3-stars will be going to providence, arizona, and kansas (Frank Mason, who VT really thought they were going to get).

Trevor and Dodd in the low post

One player of note was Damonte Dodd, a 6’9″ 230 lbs. center going to maryland.  I’d say Trevor was an inch or two taller, but Dodd was clearly more physical than Thompson, dunking on him once and swatting Trevor’s shots twice.  But Thompson was more athletic than Dodd and was able to beat him to the hoop a couple of times on nice feeds.  Trevor will have to beef up to compete with bigs that size though — and Dodd isn’t even in college yet.  Schools like pitt and syracuse and unc will have guys at least Dodd’s size that Trevor will have to bang with down low.  I would rate Dodd as the better player today because he’s more physically ready for the ACC, but Trevor may have more upside because he’s more versatile and active on offense (can step away from the hoop).

The most visually appealing player was Harold Givens.  He could literally jump out of the gym and put on a show in pregame dunks.  He is considering several SEC schools and miami, ga tech, and uva (boo).

Thompson Pre-Game Dunk Part 1

Trevor’s team lost on a tip-in at the buzzer to cap an exciting ending to the game.  Approximately 120 people were there (I literally counted everyone there at one point).

Not pictured is all the chili and cheese I spilled on myself from the half-smoke I got there (it was embarrassing).

Thompson Pre-Game Dunk Part 2

Monster Pre-Game Dunk

VT signee, 6’5″ guard Ben Emelogu, and his South Grand Prairie High School team lost the Texas 5A (highest level) State Championship Game 46-38 to Ford Bend Travis at u of texas in Austin. Ben led SGP with 13 points, right on his team leading 13.5 ppg average.

SGP finishes the season at 38-4.

Class of 2013 Virginia Tech signee Ben Emelogu helped his South Grand Prairie team to a 60-42 win over Cibolo Steele on Friday in a Texas 5A (the highest level in Texas) State Semi-Final game.  The 6’5″ guard scored 14 points for the Warriors, second most on his team.

SGP is now 38-3 on the season and will play Fort Bend Travis in the State Championship game on Saturday night (8:30 PM CST) at the u of texas’s Frank Erwin Center in Austin… Austin, Massachusetts.

LINK TO 2013 RECRUITING PAGE

Here’s a quick update on the 2013 Virginia Tech signees:

• Ben Emelogu is playing in the Texas 5A State Semi-Finals on Friday at 4 PM EST.  He hit the go-ahead free throw with 1:10 left in a 35-33 win in the Region Finals.  His South Grand Prairie team takes on Cibolo Steele for a chance to play in the State Championship game (and this is in Texas, folks) at texas longhorns’s arena in Austin, TX.  His team is 37-3 on the year.  Ben leads the team with 13.5 ppg and 4.4 rebounds, and also averages 2.2 assists per contest.  They lost to Marcus Smart (oklahoma state) of Flower Mound – Marcus HS in the Region Finals a year ago by a single point.
• Donte Clark scored 17 points, snagged 7 rebounds, and had 5 steals against the Virginia Tech JV team in the Cassell back on January 30th.  He scored 21 points on a couple of other occasions in recent action.  Hargrave finished 36-7.
• Maurice Kirby and his Basha Bears finished a disappointing 9-18 season in the ‘burbs of Phoenix.  Kirby averaged team highs in points (15.6), rebounds (11.5), assists (2.0), and blocks (1.8), while also pilfering 1 steal per game.  But he shot just 44% from the field and foul line for the season.

For game-by-game stats, click on the link at the top of this article and we’ll let you know how Emelogu does in the state semis.

Rumors are surfacing that 6’2″ or 6’3″ Malik Muller, a 19 year old guard from Braunschweig, Lower Saxony in Germany has committed to the Hokies.  If true (and these rumors have not been confirmed), he would fill the fifth and final scholarship available in the VT 2013 recruiting class.

• Here’s a LINK TO HIS PLAYER PROFILE.

It is believed he would play point guard, filling a big need for the Hokies in this recruiting class.  They’ve already addressed their needs inside with two big men, included Trevor Thompson who tweeted this morning that he is 7-foot now and 215 lbs.  Although I’ve seen Muller on some sites listed as a combo guard

Muller played in the under-18 European Championships in 2012, averaging 8.3 ppg, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in 9 games for Germany.  He shot 34% from the field and 30% on 3s (9/30 – I’d assume this is the international distance which is similar to the college line and deeper than the high school 3-point line).

• Here’s a LINK TO THE BOXSCORES from that tournament.

Muller was the MVP of the Jordan Brand Classic International Game back in 2010 -

• Here’s a LINK TO THAT STORY.

Another description from 9 months ago I found calls him extremely physical for a guard (which we need on defense) - LINK

And here’s his highlight video from 12/4/12 (he’s the tiny person in white… just kidding, he’s #12 in white). Warning – the camera guy is a mile away and it has a lot of extra footage, but it looks like he has a nice stroke.

With Erick Green graduating, Marquis Rankin and Adam Smith were projected to be our point guards, but Smith is a good shooter and can work off the ball.

We’ll let you know once the story becomes official.

• 2013 RECRUITING CLASS LINK (not including Muller yet)

Ben dribbling against #1 DeSoto

Updates on the 2013 VT Recruiting Signees:Ben Emelogu and his South Grand Prairie Warriors knocked off the #1 ranked team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex – DeSoto.  South Grand Prairie was #2 going into that game, and had lost twice previously to DeSoto, but proved the third time was the charm.  Ben had 15 points in the 47-45 win and followed that up with 23 points in a 55-52 victory over Cedar Hill to make the Warriors 29-2.  Ben is averaging 13.5 ppg to lead the team.  He also averages 4.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists and hits 1.5 three-pointers per game.

In other news, 4-star Donte Clark has averaged 15 points in three recent games for the 27-5 Hargrave Post-Grad hoops squad.  Hargrave recently beat St. John’s NW Military Academy (the team center Trevor Thompson, another VT signee, is on).  Donte had 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists in that 90-86 win.

The Basha Bears continue to take it on the chin, but big man Maurice Kirby has played better of late, scoring 24 points and grabbing 16 rebounds in a recent win.  He’s averaging 16 ppg, 11.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.6 blocks for the 9-17 Basha squad.

For more news on the 2013 Class, check out the 2013 RECRUITING CLASS PAGE.

Maurice Kirby

Since the Hokies are in their ‘bye’ (they don’t play this week until Saturday), it is the perfect time to give you some updates on the four members of the Virginia Tech Class of 2013.

For full information on the class, check out our CLASS OF 2013 RECRUITING PAGE.

Here are some items of note…

• Donte Clark has been MIA from the Hargrave recaps for the last month.  Not sure if he’s hurt or what.  There are two kids going to louisville and one to wake on the team.  Donte was averaging around 15 ppg early in the season, with a high of 22 points.  Hargrave Postgrad is 23-5 on the season.
• Ben Emelogu – you want his stats?  TechHoops.com has his stats!  We have his point total from 20 of his 26 games.  He’s averaging 13.6 ppg, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game for the 24-2 South Grand Prairie squad.  He’s been their leading scorer 8 times, with a high of 26 points on the season.  Ben’s made 38 3-pointers.
• Maurice Kirby – you want ALL of his stats?  TechHoops.com has all of his stats!  I have his points, rebounds, blocks, and assists from 16 of his games.  Basha is really struggling, though, with a record of 7-12.  Kirby got off to a hot start but has just 8 points on 4/23 shooting in his last two games.  But he is averaging 15.9 ppg, 10.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.8 blocks per game (he leads the team in every category).  Kirby had 22 points, 19 rebounds, 5 blocks, and 4 assists in a game back in November.  He’s had 20+ points and 17+ rebounds three times this season, and had 12/16 in another game.
• Trevor Thompson – couldn’t find stats for him and his St. John’s NW Military Academy Postgrad team.  I’ll keep looking, and if I find anything, you know I’ll let you know.

Emelogu is on the left.

Tech received their fourth commitment for the Class of 2013 since Labor Day when guard Ben Emelogu committed to Coach James Johnson over the weekend.  Emelogu is a 6’5″, 190 lbs. shooting guard from Grand Prairie, Texas (smack dab in between Fort Worth, Arlington, and Dallas).

Ben is rated a 3-star recruit by ESPN Recruiting Nation (and the #56 shooting guard), but is not rated in the Rivals or 247Sports rankings, but does boast offers from marquette, washington, and tcu.  He is the second off-guard to join the Class of 2013, along with Donte Clark.  Tech also has two bigs in the fold with Maurice Kirby and Trevor Thompson.

It is interesting to note that Tech’s four commits hail from Virginia, Indiana, Arizona, and Texas.  A lot more spread out than what we saw under Greenberg, who largely focused in VA and NC, with a few others from GA and FL.  In fact, 6 of the 8 players eligible to play this season are from VA or NC, and 8 of the overall 9 current scholarship players from the four states I previously mentioned.

The Hokies have at least five scholarships available in this class (assuming no one leaves after this year), so they have room for at least one more.  A true point guard is a need of Tech’s with Green leaving after this season.  Rankin is a true point, and Adam Smith could play it but he is also a good shooter off the ball.  Tech, in reality, can just take the best player they can get given they’ve gotten two guards and two bigs.  It would be nice to get a higher profile recruit to finish the class, but that may not be in the cards this year.

This coming season, like many over the last 10 years, will see the Hokies struggling with the fact they have almost no depth on the interior post.  Well, Coach Johnson is trying to doing something about that, at least for the future.  Tech got a commitment from 6’9″, 230 lbs. Maurice Kirby out of Arizona.  Kirby originally committed to arizona state to be close to home (Chandler, AZ is just southeast of Phoenix and a few miles from Tempe, where asu is), but later re-opened his recruitment.

Kirby might be a huge recruit physically, but he was not a big recruit nationally.  Tech beat out the likes of northern arizona, loyola-chicago, and brown to get him.  He is rated just a 2-star by Rivals and ESPN Recruiting Nation (#37 center on the ESPN list), and wasn’t rated at all by 247Sports.  Still, we need beef, and he’ll bring that.  Is Kirby a project or was he just undervalued?  Time will tell, but probably worth the gamble given Tech has 5 scholarships available this year and Maurice is just the third commit (along with another center, Trevor Thompson, and wing Donte Clark).

Roanoke Times Article

Virginia Tech felt really good about their chances of landing Frank Mason, a 5’11″ point guard who is ranked #131 overall by Rivals.com in the Class of 2013.  Mason, from Petersburg, VA and the same high school as Cadarian Raines, originally committed to towson university, but decided to go to Massanutten Military Academy for a post-grad year.  He re-opened his recruitment, but verballed to kansas after a visit to Lawrence this past weekend.

Tech currently has two recruits in their Class of 2013 (G Donte Clark and F/C Trevor Thompson).  They only have nine scholarship players on the roster for this coming season (eight active plus transfer Adam Smith), and we know they’ll lose at least one player (Erick Green) after this season.  That means VT could sign up to five players in this class and still fit within the NCAA limit of 13 scholarships.

Coach James Johnson landed his arguably best recruit to date (out of three), getting a verbal commitment from 6’4″ wing Donte Clark.  Clark is yet another kid from Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, VA, bridging that pipeline that started with former Coach Greenberg.  Clark is listed by some services as a small forward (though he’d be very short in the ACC for that) or as a shooting guard.  In other words, expect him to play on the wing.

Donte is low 4-star prospect on average.  ESPN Recruiting Nation ranks him the highest, with Donte at 4 stars, #82 overall in the class, and the #13 small forward.  Rivals has Clark as a 4-star and the #101 prospect in the country, and #27 among shooting guards.  247 Sports rates him the lowest at 3-stars and #112 in the nation, and the #27 shooting guard.

Clark joins big man Trevor Thompson as Class of 2013 commitments for the Hokies.  Donte is originally from Charlotte, another hot bed of Tech recruits of late (JT Thompson, Dorenzo Hudson, and Marquis Rankin).

The Hokies, and Head Coach James Johnson, have secured their first Class of 2013 commitment.  Trevor Thompson, a 6’10″ center, pledged to the Hokies on Tuesday.  He attends St. Johns Northwestern Military Academy in Delafield, Wisconsin.

Thompson is rated a 3-star recruit by Rivals and 247Sports, but was not rated by ESPN Recruiting Nation or Scout.  Thompson will be a post-grad this season after completing his eligibility at Ben Davis High School in Indianapolis.  Trevor’s stock has been on the rise over the summer and so his ratings could improve.

Thompson’s commitment is critical for the Hokies, as it begins to address their seemingly never-ending lack of depth in the post.

According to articles on the Indianapolis Star and Roanoke Times, Thompson had not been on the varsity squad for a full season until this past season, his senior year at Ben Davis, an Indiana power.  He averaged 10 points, 8 boards, and almost 4 blocks per game.  Needless to say, he is either a late bloomer or a work in progress.

Thompson is originally from Reston, VA, having attended South Lakes High School previously (Grant Hill, Joey Beard, etc.).

VT Head Coach James Johnson is on the board!  He has his first commit… 3 years from now.  Class of 2015 shooting guard Warren Craft from nearby William Fleming in Roanoke, VA has committed to the Hokies.  He’ll be a sophomore this coming year in high school.  Craft is 6’2″ already, so he should have good size for an off-guard by the time he gets to college.

I saw a note where Craft is the first rising sophomore in the nation to verbally commit anywhere.

Here’s a ROANOKE TIMES ARTICLE with more about Craft’s commitment…

“Craft averaged 12.3 points and 3.0 assists per game as a freshman while shooting 82 percent from the free throw line and 33 percent from 3-point range.”

And here’s a ROANOKE TIMES ARTICLE from January about how amazing Warren’s story is (he was born prematurely at less than 2 lbs.).  There are pics of him in the story.

One time Virginia Tech 2012 signee Montrezl Harrell has committed to Rick Pitino and louisville.

We should know the fate of prized recruit Montrezl Harrell by the end of the day.  That day being Wednesday, May 16th.  Today is the final day of the NCAA basketball regular signing period according to THIS WEBSITE.  So if he wants to play ball next year, one would think Harrell will have to declare his intentions, and sign, today.  Now, there could be provisions for when a student-athlete is released from a Letter of Intent, but I don’t know of them if there are any.

I really don’t know if Montrezl is still considering the Hokies or not.  According to THIS ARTICLE he hasn’t been released from his Letter of Intent, which he needs to sign with another school.  The article claims kentucky is seriously considering Harrell.

Either way, I wouldn’t get your hopes up too much, but we should at least know the final answer soon.  Real soon.