LutherRackleyRulez
09-07-2010, 11:19 AM
Per Goodman/FoxSports......
BEHANAN TO LOUISVILLE;
ISN'T READY TO ANOINT KENTUCKY AS TOP CLASS JUST YET
Chane Behanan isn’t quite ready to anoint Kentucky as the top recruiting class.
``If we can get Quincy (Miller) and Deuce (Bello), I think we’ll have the top class in the country,” said the Bowling Green (Ky.) High standout, who committed to Louisville moments ago. ``We’ll definitely give them a run for their money.”
The 6-foot-6 ½, 235-pound senior may not be far off.
If Rick Pitino and his staff – which has really been bolstered by the offseason addition of assistant Tim Fuller – can reel in Quincy Miller and Deuce Bello – the Cardinals will certainly have one of the top classes in the nation.
Kentucky has hauled in a trio of Scout.com’s Top 10 players: top-ranked Anthony Davis, Michael Gilchrist (No. 5), Marquis Teague (No. 6) and Kyle Wiltjer (No. 19).
Louisville could wind up a handful all ranked in Scout.com’s Top 53 slots: Miller (No. 2), Wayne Blackshear (No. 12), Behanan (No. 29), Deuce Bello (No. 32) and big man Zach Price (No. 53). Blackshear, Behanan and Price have already committed and Miller and Bello, who both visited Louisville this past weekend, could pull the trigger for the Cardinals as soon as by week’s end.
``I spoke to them (Miller and Bello) today,” Behanan told FOXSports.com on Monday night. ``It’s looking good, but we won’t know for sure until they make a decision.”
Behanan, a Cincinnati native who moved to Bowling Green a little more than a year ago, said there were multiple factors in his decision to commit to Louisville over Kentucky, West Virginia and Ohio State.
One was the ability to step in immediately and vie for extensive playing time.
``He knows he’ll have to earn it,” Bowling Green coach DG Sherrill told FOXSports.com. ``But the opportunity is there.”
Another is the fact that he’ll play basically halfway from Cincinnati – where most of his family still resides – and Bowling Green – where his mother and two younger brothers live.
Behanan is a guy who truly emerged as a big-time player this past summer when he exploded at the NBA Camp and followed it up with a strong July period.
He’s a guy who already has a college-ready body and is far more versatile than you’d expect when you look at him in the layup line.
``He’s a tough match-up,” Sherrill said. ``If you put a smaller guy on him, he’ll take him inside – and he can beat bigger guys off the bounce. He has a diverse skill set for a guy 6-7 and 235 pounds.”
That’s clear by the nine triple-doubles and 22.3 points and 12 rebounds he averaged last season. Sherrill said some of the triple-doubles came with double-digit blocks and some came in excess of 10 assists.
This is a critical get for Pitino – who is coming off arguably the most difficult year of his personal life and also is in desperate need of talent. Louisville is a fringe NCAA Tournament team this season – and perhaps more likely NIT-bound.
However, with Blackshear, Price and now Behanan in the fold – and Miller and Bello likely on their way – the Cardinals may become more than just nationally relevant again in 2011.
Pitino’s program could be legitimate Final Four contenders.
http://community.foxsports.com/goodmanonfox/blog/2010/09/07/behanan_to_louisville;_isnt_ready_to_anoint_kentuc ky_as_top_class_just_yet
BEHANAN TO LOUISVILLE;
ISN'T READY TO ANOINT KENTUCKY AS TOP CLASS JUST YET
Chane Behanan isn’t quite ready to anoint Kentucky as the top recruiting class.
``If we can get Quincy (Miller) and Deuce (Bello), I think we’ll have the top class in the country,” said the Bowling Green (Ky.) High standout, who committed to Louisville moments ago. ``We’ll definitely give them a run for their money.”
The 6-foot-6 ½, 235-pound senior may not be far off.
If Rick Pitino and his staff – which has really been bolstered by the offseason addition of assistant Tim Fuller – can reel in Quincy Miller and Deuce Bello – the Cardinals will certainly have one of the top classes in the nation.
Kentucky has hauled in a trio of Scout.com’s Top 10 players: top-ranked Anthony Davis, Michael Gilchrist (No. 5), Marquis Teague (No. 6) and Kyle Wiltjer (No. 19).
Louisville could wind up a handful all ranked in Scout.com’s Top 53 slots: Miller (No. 2), Wayne Blackshear (No. 12), Behanan (No. 29), Deuce Bello (No. 32) and big man Zach Price (No. 53). Blackshear, Behanan and Price have already committed and Miller and Bello, who both visited Louisville this past weekend, could pull the trigger for the Cardinals as soon as by week’s end.
``I spoke to them (Miller and Bello) today,” Behanan told FOXSports.com on Monday night. ``It’s looking good, but we won’t know for sure until they make a decision.”
Behanan, a Cincinnati native who moved to Bowling Green a little more than a year ago, said there were multiple factors in his decision to commit to Louisville over Kentucky, West Virginia and Ohio State.
One was the ability to step in immediately and vie for extensive playing time.
``He knows he’ll have to earn it,” Bowling Green coach DG Sherrill told FOXSports.com. ``But the opportunity is there.”
Another is the fact that he’ll play basically halfway from Cincinnati – where most of his family still resides – and Bowling Green – where his mother and two younger brothers live.
Behanan is a guy who truly emerged as a big-time player this past summer when he exploded at the NBA Camp and followed it up with a strong July period.
He’s a guy who already has a college-ready body and is far more versatile than you’d expect when you look at him in the layup line.
``He’s a tough match-up,” Sherrill said. ``If you put a smaller guy on him, he’ll take him inside – and he can beat bigger guys off the bounce. He has a diverse skill set for a guy 6-7 and 235 pounds.”
That’s clear by the nine triple-doubles and 22.3 points and 12 rebounds he averaged last season. Sherrill said some of the triple-doubles came with double-digit blocks and some came in excess of 10 assists.
This is a critical get for Pitino – who is coming off arguably the most difficult year of his personal life and also is in desperate need of talent. Louisville is a fringe NCAA Tournament team this season – and perhaps more likely NIT-bound.
However, with Blackshear, Price and now Behanan in the fold – and Miller and Bello likely on their way – the Cardinals may become more than just nationally relevant again in 2011.
Pitino’s program could be legitimate Final Four contenders.
http://community.foxsports.com/goodmanonfox/blog/2010/09/07/behanan_to_louisville;_isnt_ready_to_anoint_kentuc ky_as_top_class_just_yet