New York point guard Lamont “Momo” Jones committed to Arizona Wednesday, choosing the PAC-10 school over Florida.
The 5-foot-11, 170-pound Jones is the No. 11 point guard in the Class of 2009.
He initially committed to Louisville, then Virginia Tech and then USC, but secured his release from Southern Cal after Tim Floyd resigned in the wake of the O.J. Mayo scandal.
“He left a message on my phone and said he did [commit to Arizona],” Oak Hill coach Steve Smith said by phone.
“I think he’s going to be a good player. He’s a freshman and he can play both guard spots. That helps as a freshman. If you get stuck in one position, sometimes it’s hard to get minutes as a freshman. The fact that he can play one or two, I think it helps that he can play.”
Smith said he believes Jones can contribute as a freshman.
“He’s physically mature enough right now as a freshman to have an impact as a freshman. I think he fits in with their plans. If they want him to score he can do that because he shoots it so well. If they want him to run their team, he can do that, too.”
Emanuel “Book” Richardson, an assistant to Arizona head coach Sean Miller, is Jones’ Godfather, but Jones told GOAZCats.com that family was not the deciding factor in the decision.
Jones could split time next year at the point with returning point guard Nic Wise, who took his name out of the NBA Draft and will return to campus.
Jones is the second New York native to join the Wildcats since Miller and Richardson moved there from Xavier. Kevin Parrom, a 6-6 wing who played at South Kent (Conn.), also signed with Arizona after initially committing to Xavier.
In other Arizona news, 6-7 forward Derrick Williams of La Mirada, Calif., will be on campus Thursday.
Williams, who also got a release from USC, took an official visit to Memphis earlier this week.
He said he is considering Arizona, Arizona State, Gonzaga, Memphis and Miami.
**Smith also confirmed that forward Roscoe Smith and point guard Juwan Staten will suit up next year for Oak Hill.
Calling Chalmers shot a fluke is just his way of rationalizing things. The truth of that game is his beloved Calipari choked under pressure and it was CALIPARI who lost that game (calling a time out at any point during the last 90 seconds to get his guys refocused would have been enough), but you’ll never get him to admit that. The Memphis players had the “deer in headlights” look on their faces when Kansas started making their comeback, cut to the bench and the team leader Coach Calipari had the same “deer in headlights” look. The person who should have been in control just looked flabbergasted and did nothing. Whether it was a fluke or not doesn’t matter, blame Coach Cal for allowing Chalmers to ever be in a position to make that shot.
Give it up boys ……. Kansas got the NC trophy ….Memphis had the best team in 2007 …… why not accept your fluke victory with pride …..constantly arguing about it shows insecurity on your part …..kinda like the more you argue about it the less fluky the scenario becomes . Bill Self will never win a legitimate NC …..
*yawn* There is no reason to assume Memphis will be slapped with the worst possible penalty, not sure why everyone keeps stating this like it’ll be fact. I can’t say the NCAA won’t do something crazy, but anyone objectively looking at the situation can’t possibly think Memphis is guilty of any intentional wrongdoing.
Pasta – Laettner was 10 for 10 from the field against UK in that 1992 NCAA game and was also perfect from the line. That whole sequence could be called improbable but I’d say it was mostly because of the pass from Grant Hill. Laettner was very hot that game and his shot was picture-perfect; and I’m by no means a Duke fan. The Lorenzo Charles shot could be called somewhat of a fluke because of how it happened off a shot. I’d call the Chalmers clutch, not a fluke.
But you’re just having fun with all this, right?
Lord2FLI- I wasn’t knocking Memphis. I was just simply putting things into perspective for our brilliant friend pasta. Which is also why I said “may have one”.
I don’t hate Memphis; in fact, I think that they are getting screwed in this whole situation. Cal finds out about infractions investigation, Cal bolts for Kentucky, Memphis left to pick up the pieces. Sometimes, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. Calipari was up to something and bolted town before he would have to deal with any punishments memphis MAY receive. If I were a Memphis fan, I’d hate Calipari (even more than I already do).
Memphis ( Cal ) knew about the investigation in 2008 before the tournament in which Rose played ……he sure took his time “bolting” …..ludicrous theory …..now had he resigned during the offseason before the 08/09 season and had taken a job at Western Kentucky or even Arizona ….the “bolting ” argument could have merit . No …Cal knew he was not the subject of investigation ….coaches don’t bolt to storied programs ….
Besides Memphis will not recieve any punishment as harsh as vacating a season …..they may get a slap on the wrist so the Ncaa can save face …..but that’s even doubtful ….. but the haters in here can hate on …..I’ll be here to state the facts and bring out the truth .
ok Kansas fans…. you need to stop! Regroup, count to 10…… Pastaboy is an idiot!!!!! You guys straight up won that national championship last year! And I was so pumped, not because I was a Kansas fan, but because you guys fought back and hit a CLUTCH shot (Chalmers)!!!!! I, being an arizona fan, give you guys 100% credit! And Bill Self IS an elite coach!!!! Dont listen tp Pastaboy! Memhis fans cant even stand him! You dont see Arizona or Kansas or Kentucky, or UNC or Maryland fans argue with EACH OTHER!!!!! By, the way, there are some really good Memphis people out there!!!!
Yes, lasagnaboy, you are correct. He did take his time “bolting”. You see, you he couldn’t just walk up to Kentucky and say, “Hey guys, I’m going to be your coach next season”. No, no, no, that’s not how the world works. He had to have an OFFER before ACCEPT. Silly spaghettiboy. After the offer, it took what- 2 or 3 days for him to accept?
-That was for free.
But, anyway congrats to U of A for snaggin’ Momo.
Memphis may have been the best team in 2007, but Kansas was obviously the better team in April of 2008. And, as Jay Bilas said, it’s not a matter of when Self wins his next NC it’s only a matter of how soon.
And Cal wasn’t Kentucky’s first choice (3rd or 4th at best).
I was at the game and, although it sucked, Kansas won the game. Sure Memphis had their chances with free throws. But, in the end, the team needed some coaching. Any decent coach would have called a timeout if his players didn’t fully understand the strategy. FOUL!
Yeah, Memphis missed some very clutch free throws. But both CDR and Rose were exhausted. Still should have made them, but they didn’t. Chalmers should have never had a chance to put up that three. I could tell it was going in when he released it. No fluke about it. Again, Pastaboy’s hero (Calipari) forgot to coach with 3 seconds left. If he would have done his job, we wouldn’t be here talking about it.
In the last two minutes, Kansas had to do everything right (they did) and Memphis had to do everything wrong (they did).
Pastaboy, your coach screwed the pooch and lost us the championship. How’s that for swagger? Kentucky can have Calipari. I am more than happy at the direction we are going in now.
Go Tigers
By the way, I have decided to stop arguing with a pimple faced internet loser (Pastaboy). Anyone that has “swagger” on an internet forum is undoubtably a child or has a miniature body part. He is on “ignore”.
What was this about? Momo Jones? Congrats Arizona on getting a very good player….
That’s pretty close to how I saw the game too (one of the best championship games in history), mem.
The first half Kansas was in command but Memphis wouldn’t go away. The second half Rose took over and showed why he was peerless in the college game that year.
Self made adjustments, harrassing and eventually frustrating Rose out and Calipari refused to change the strategy. Kansas played good enough offensively to stay close throughout Rose’s coming out party and were therefore in a position to tie the game and then prove they had the better team in the extra session.
It wasn’t just Calipari’s refusal to foul in the last seconds, the damage of his poor coaching (and the benefit of Self’s) were already set at that point. A decent coach against a decent coach and the game wouldn’t have come down to a final shot.
What’s ironic is the Jayhawk guys I work with had been on the complete other side of this coin a few years back when their lack of free throw shooting and Roy’s stubbornness against Syracuse lost them the championship. Full circle.
Ahhhhh………..the Friday afternoon revisionist history fairy tale hour ….one of my favorites . Yeah Bill Self ….what a stategist …..the only strategic thing he did was after the game …when he tore up his Oklahoma St. job application in the restroon stall . I’m tired of insecure KU fans dredging up this argument ….every unbiased observer knows Memphis ( the better team) lost the game ….Ku did not win it . It was not only a fluke shot …but a fluke pass to Chalmers ….the guy was falling down ( fouled?) and lost the ball which miraculously bounced into mario’s hands …..total fluke …accept your tainted NC like men and quit crying for Christ’s sakes.
“I think I got fouled, actually, but I ain’t complaining,” Collins said. ……..oops
Looks like the NEWS of D. Wiliams is getting out more.
Hopefully, Josh has received the phone call.
If not already…by Monday.
The new Wildcat………..
http://wildcatsportsreport.com/forums-home/wsr-free-forums
Good Luck with the season memphis.
It will be a challenging one.
Derrick williams would never start at Memphis this year ….he’s a good player but not a program changer ….if Az . fans want to crow about 3 star USC leftover garbage …..good luck to you in YOUR season …. it will be a challenging one
pasta there is nothing tainted about KU’s title. KU won, Memphis lost. get over it!
you need to accept losing and quit crying about it, not us.
i know how much it sucks to lose a game you could have very easily won (syracuse). but please just let it go. its over. it happened.
btw collins was fouled on that play and the play before that with around 20 seconds left, luckily he is a good enough ballhandler to still have dished it off to chalmers. thats called talent
Still crying over a year after the game. Pretty remarkable. Kansas was the better team in 35 of 45 minutes. Hard to think of a scenerio where they shouldn’t have won. And they did. Great game, but not something we need to talk about too much (especially 1+ years later) on a Big East blog.
Also, Rose’s bank shot to go up 3 was FAR more ‘fluke’ than Chalmer’s 3 to tie.
Hard to think of a scenario? LOL …How about Memphis makes 2 of 5 free throws instead of 1 of 5 down the stretch ? Can your pea brain conjure up that scenario? Also by saying that Rose’s bank shot was more of a fluke …..you admit that Mario’s shot WAS a fluke ……even though a bank shot with plenty of time to go may be lucky ….its not a fluke unless it directly affects the outcome of the game. So now that we have settled this issue …I agree ..lets move on ………Ku is the proud owner of a fluky tainted NC trophy ….. Memphis was the best team in 2007/08 .
Yes we agree:
Memphis was the better team for 10 minutes in the second half of the 2008 championship game. The other 35 minutes were owned by Kansas so they, as one would expect, won the game.
Again, coaching is part of basketball. Perhaps Memphis had the best players but Kansas was clearly the better team.
Once again revisionist history …Memphis led early 4 to 3 expanded to 9 to 3 for a 4 minute period early on ….. is that Kansas owning the game except for 10 minutes of the 2nd half? Kansas took the lead at about the 10 minute mark and built that to 22 to 15 ….then Memphis regained the lead at the 6:22 mark …..is that owning the 1st half? Kansas had a halftime lead of 5 which Memphis immediately erased taking the lead at the 16;35 mark …….is that owning all but 10 minutes ? No what America saw was what they saw many times watching the Tigers ….a seeming close game ..back and forth …..the opponent gets worn down the last 10 minutes …and Memphis puts the game away …due to 1 for 5 free throw shooting and a fluke shot this scenario did not happen this time …and the better team lost ……before you post revisionist history in here you need to realize I will correct your B.S. everytime . I stand for truth , justice and the American way .
Free throws, mental toughness, and Coaching are all factors on what makes one team better than the other. the talent level of that game was close, but memphis probably had a slight edge. But KU had a better coach, made there free throws, and proved to be mentally tougher than memphis.
Memphis and KU were so evenly matched, but when it came down to the end, KU delivered and Memphis choked. there was no fluke, KU’s trophy isnt tainted, and i know pasta you’ll come back with some ridiculous remark, but KU and Memphis were too evenly matched to say one was better than the other.
Sounds like America saw exactly what “they always saw in Memphis games” A seemingly close game, back and forth, and then Memphis folded in the last 10 minutes.
I never said Memphis was way better . What I did say was Memphis was the best team in the country in 07/08 . If this had been a best of 7 series I honestly think Memphis would have won the series in 6 games . Memphis had the game won and missed free throws …simple as that …. they still would have won despite poor free throw shooting except for the fluke play at the end …… Collins gets fouled and no call to put him on the line …..Rose saw him falling down and backed off knowing he had ridden him the past 20 feet without getting the call ….the guy is falling down …no sense getting an intentional ….. the ball lands in Mario’s hands after Collins falls …… total fluke play …… when we sign Elliott Williams and Lance …….. I’ll be looking forward to the game in Nov. Ku will not fluke that one out of their ass .
Last year the chicago cubs were the best in the world no matter what ANYBODY says!!! This year the Cleveland Cavaliers were the best team in the world no matter what ANYBODY says!!!! Michigan St. was way better than UNC but they had a bad day….I dont care what anybody says!!!! The Giants win over the Patriots was a FLUKE……I dont care what ANYBODY says!!!!! When Arizona lost to Duke in the national championship game, Duke was so lucky that Arizona missed some shots….I dont care what ANYBODY says!! sound like numb nuts pastaboy yet? I will say that pasta is right when the record books read what was just written!!!!!!!!!!
You are right …..many times the better team loses …these are called upsets . Now when an upset occurs due to a fluke play at the end of a game …these are called fluke plays which in turn can translate into a fluke win . The Kansas game was determined by a fluke play at the end …… Kansas had called ( according to Chalmers a penetrate and kick play ) ….which knowing you need a three is about all you can do . Memphis wanted to foul Collins after he got to half court …..fouling him earlier would not accomplish anything …too much time left and Memphis couldn’t hit a free throw …..so Rose tried to foul Collins who was obviously trying to elude the foul and he made a move an eluded the 1st attempt …Rose then rode his back for 20 feet looking for a call which should have been called …Collins stumbles and the ball lands in Chalmers lap …and he throws up a prayer and it goes in . That is a fluke play ……which led to a fluke NC ….not a fluke NC in the sense that Ku was Western Ky …..or Siena etc….. Ku had a great team ….just not the best team in 07/08 .
Evidently Kansas fans are very insecure about their basketball program …..in modern times both their Nc’s were essentially luck ……the Phog Allen stuff in the roaring 20′s doesn’t count ..nor does the 50′s …the N.I.T. was a bigger tourney then. Big rep but not much to show for it
so your blaming the refs now for not calling a foul? wow.
maybe rose should have wrapped him up or he should have hacked chalmers as he was going up for the shot, but he didnt. the refs usually dont call things right at the end of games so you have to make it blatant. something Calipari should have told his guys.
88 was not luck. we had the best player (manning) and got extremely hot at the right time. that happens often in the tournament. see arizona 97, florida 06, cuse 03. not number one seeds but got hot at the right time and won.
chalmers shot wasnt luck. if sasha kaun would have made the tying 3, that would have been luck. Chalmers has made that shot many times before and he was KU’s top 3 point shooter that year. it was a good look and he hit it. that made him 2 for 6 from 3 in the game which is still below his season average that year. not luck at all.
and last time i checked the one in the 50′s does count. so do the helms ones in the 20s. thats 5 national titles to show for it
If Rose had wrapped him up he felt the zebra may have tagged him with an intentional ….which he may have …since Collins was actually even with Rose ……even Collins admitted he was fouled . …………“I think I got fouled, actually, but I ain’t complaining,” Collins said. The non call was the beginning of the fluke play …..part number 2 was Collins falling down , losing the ball , and the ball bouncing right to Mario …….part 3 was of course the shot …….total luck …..Ku year in and year out is overrated …..you got lucky in 08 …..I doubt we’ll ever see you in the finals again .
Hey jhawk4, pastaboy finally said something that was actually right!!!!! They (memphis) will never see you guys (kansas) in the finals again!!!!! Thats cuz memphis will never make it there again!!!! It may be a couple of years out but I’d say an AZ-KU championship would be more realistic!! Kansas will no doubt be very good this year! I just cant wait for you guys to smash mempis in a couple of months!!!!! Even after the win though, pasta will still be whining about refs or some other bullshit! Better yet, he will try to justify his national championship that he doesnt have ….AGAIN!!! I mean, c’mon, even HOLY CROSS has a title to back up trash talking!
Interestingly, there is only one person on here that thinks Memphis was the better team. Fans of every other school agree that Kansas proved they were the better squad on the court, but pastaboy somehow knows better than kenpom (who’s statistical analysis had Kansas as the best team going into the tournament), etc.
Coaching is an important part of the game.
I’m betting they won’t need to fluke anything out of their ass as they’ll put the game away in the first half.
Wow ….. people on this blog are the experts LOL …..what a bunch of losers ……Kansas won on a fluke play and they have a fluke NC …..
Kansas under Bill Self will never win a legitimate NC ……. next year will show the world how inadequate this program is ….Cal could run the table with the Kansas team next year …40 and 0
u r true for that finger. and as for u pastaboy, the only dumbass is u. u probably sit around in ur mom’s basement using windows 98. u r truly the worst of worst when it comes to wannabe memphis fans. with elliot, we are an elite eight contender. we will not go farther then that unless we get lucky and play close to perfect.
memphis will not be in the top 10 u dumb motherfucker. and if u haven’t noticed, everybody here hates u and hasn’t said shit about me being a fake imposter, calipari dick sucking phony.
Limp noodle, kansas has a better shot of winning a title this year, and even next year than memphis. the fact of the matter is they have more championships than memphis, and are a more storied program than us. and can u take ur head out of cal’s ass for a second. all u talk about is cal, yet u remain a memphis fan, and a bad memphis fan at that. y don’t u just go to kentucky with him, and proceed to continue sucking cal’s dick because that is all u do. cal couldn’t run the table with any team. kentucky is going to lose at least 3 games this year even with that heralded class of his. i’ll be laughing when he doesn’t win a national championship there, gets another final four vacated, and is looking for a job in 5 years. maybe then college teams will realize that he builds programs up only to tear them down before he leaves.