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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Thursday / March 28.
  • Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski and Illinois head coach John Groce will visit 2016 St. Louis Chaminade guard Jayson Tatum on Tuesday, Tatum confirmed to SNY.tv.

    Andrew Slater of 247Sports first reported the news.

    Tatum recently cut his list to 10 schools: Arizona, Duke, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Mizzou, North Carolina, St. Louis, UConn and Wake Forest.

    Tatum, arguably the No.1 player in the Class of 2016, said that Duke is a school that he is looking forward to visiting.

    Cheick Diallo, the 6-foot-9 big man from Our Savior New American and Team Scan, may join a growing list of elite 2015 players who may not sign until the spring, a source close to the situation told SNY.tv.

    “Leaning to spring but not final yet,” the source said.

    Already, Jaylen Brown, Thomas Bryant, Isaiah Briscoe and Caleb Swanigan are planning on signing late.

    Diallo took an official visit to Kansas this past weekend but is not giving any media interviews at the moment. He is slated to visit Iowa State Sept. 26 and St. John’s Oct 18.

    Ed Morrow, Jr., a 6-foot-7, 215-pound forward from Chicago Simeon High School, committed to Nebraska on Monday, a source confirmed to SNY.tv.

    He also considered Iowa, among others.

    Both of Morrow’s parents attended Nebraska, with Tim Miles using that to drive his recruitment.

    “They’re recruiting me the hardest,” Morrow told SNY.tv this summer. “They pressure me the most.”

    That earned Miles an important visit. Last year, Nebraska earned a surprise NCAA Tournament berth and used it to build momentum.

    MarkisMarkis McDuffie, a 6-foot-7 face-up four man from St. Anthony and Sports U, enjoyed his weekend official visit to VCU and then trimmed his list to four schools.

    McDuffie is down to VCU, Wichita State, Boston College and SMU.

    As for VCU, Markis said, “It was good. I really enjoyed it.”

    “They run like a 10-man rotation,” Derek McDuffie, the player’s father, said before the visit. “They really like to have guys that play about 20 minutes a game, 15-20 minutes. Maybe the top-tier guys might play 25-30 minutes. Because of the offense they run and the defense they run, they push the ball up the floor and they play that pressure defense and they come right at you.

    Tanksley “Tank” Efianayi, a 6-foot-5, 205-pound shooting guard/small forward from Daytona State (FL), enjoyed his St. John’s visit this past weekend and trips to Arizona State this coming weekend.

    “It was good, I never saw Madison Square Garden before so that was amazing to see,” he told SNY.tv by phone Sunday evening. “And Rucker Park, all the great NBA players played at Rucker Park. They just showed me a lot of New York, and their campus was actually quiet compared to the city, which I didn’t know it was going to be like that. It’s actually pretty small.”

    St. John’s needs a big recruiting class in 2015 and must replace numerous graduating guards and wings, and Efianayi, a Connecticut native, sees a place where he could flourish.

    “They have about five wings leaving, so they have a lot of minutes at that position,” he said. “They need a veteran coming in. They’re looking for another leader for the team, so I could play right away if I look to commit there.”

    The courtship of Isaiah Briscoe continues with Missouri coach Kim Anderson having an in-home visit Sunday and St. John’s coach Steve Lavin due in Monday.

    “[Anderson] just wanted a shot,” Briscoe told SNY.tv on Friday in advance of the meeting. “Me, [Antonio Blakeney] and [Thomas] Bryant are gonna go up there [on an official]. He said give him a chance, I’ll give him a chance.”

    Briscoe and the others are expected to take an official to Mizzou Oct. 10, while Briscoe will trip officially to UConn Sept. 26 and also plans an official to Kentucky sometime next month.

    As for St. John’s, Lavin has been recruiting the 6-foot-3 Roselle (N.J.) Catholic guard for several years and has made him a priority in 2015.

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