“Yeah, I think so,” Calvin Lamb said by phone. “He’ll commit soon but he’ll sign in the spring.”

The 6-foot-4 Lamb has visited UConn, Kentucky, Kansas and Oklahoma and may still get out to see Arizona.

“Arizona, if it fits into the schedule I don’t see why not,” Calvin said. “He’s so busy with his games and Arizona’s busy, too.”

Lamb visited UConn over the weekend and Calvin said it went well.

“That was a really good visit. I can’t complain, really nice,” Calvin said.

Coach Jim Calhoun pitched the proximity of the campus to Queens, where the Lambs live.

“He said it’s close to home,” Calvin said. “He’ll be home but not too close to home. It’s easier for his parents to get to the games.”

Doron will return home on Saturday for the Thanksgiving break and Calvin said they will talk things over then.

“He comes home this weekend we’ll sit down and we can discuss everything when he gets home,” he said.

PITTSBURGH SIGNS THREE

Pitt continues to do well in the New York/New Jersey area.

The Panthers announced the signing of three players, guard Isaiah Epps (Plainfield, N.J./Hargrave Military Academy/Plainfield H.S.), forward J.J. Moore (Brentwood, N.Y./South Kent Academy, Conn.) and guard Cameron Wright (Cleveland, Ohio/Benedictine H.S.).

Epps, Moore and Wright will enroll at Pitt in August, 2010 as freshmen. Moore committed to the Panthers last Wednesday.

“We are extremely excited about Isaiah, J.J. and Cameron,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said. “All three are good players from winning programs and all three have an outstanding work ethic.”

WEST VIRGINIA ADDS 7-FOOTER

West Virginia signed David Nyarsuk, a 7-foot-1, 230-pound center currently attending MountainState Academy in Beckley, W.Va.

I saw him play last year for Chris Chaney at The Patterson (N.C.) and he was raw but very athletic. He averaged 10.1 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game.

Nyarsuk came to the United States as part of the African Hoop Opportunities Providing an Education (A-HOPE) Foundation in 2008. A-HOPEis a non-profit charity that helps student-athletes from Africa, who donot have the means to advance their education in their home countries,with educational opportunities in the United States.

Nyarsuk is ranked No. 19 at his position by ESPN.com/Scouts Inc., and is rated as a 3-star by Rivals.com.

“We’re excited about David’s ability to be a game changer at thedefensive end of the floor,” Mounties coach Bob Huggins said. “His ability to changeshots around the basket, as well as run the floor, will fit well intowhat we want to do at both ends of the floor. David is an extremely hardworker which is what we have prided ourselves on.”

Nyarsuk joins Noah Cottrill, a 6-foot-3, 190-pound guard from Logan,W.Va., in this year’s recruiting class.

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JayVaughn Pinkston, a 6-6 combo forward from Brooklyn Bishop Loughlin considered the top prospect in New York City, will announce at 3 p.m. Wednesday at his school.

The Daily News reported on its Website Tuesday that sources indicated Pinkston would announce for Tennessee, but New Heights athletic director Kimani Young said, “Nobody confirmed that.”

Pinkston is expected to announce from among Villanova, Tennessee, St. John’s, Seton Hall and Marquette.

If Pinkston picks Tennessee, it could well have an impact on what Tobias Harris says at his announcement Thursday on ESPNU since both play the same position.

“There’s no way they’re going to the same school,” said a Division 1 assistant coach recruiting one of the players.

Torrel Harris, Tobias’ dad, said it would be Tobias’ decision, but that the two players could potentially coexist on the same team.

“They’re two different players,” Torrel said. “JayVaughn is a power forward and Tobias, he can do it all. I think if he [Pinkston] did go there [Tennessee], they’ll both play a lot.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, the 6-8 Harris, a senior at Dix Hills (N.Y.) Half Hollow Hills West, had finished up his final visit — to Georgia Tech.

“We had a great visit,” Torrel said. “Coach [Paul] Hewitt is a great teacher, a lot of teaching. In the practices, his players go really hard. He’s got a great group of guys, high-character players on the team. They get a lot of guys to the NBA. A lot of one-and-dones, two-and-dones.

“We met with the president of the school, met with the academic advisors. Just watched a lot of practices and films.”

Torrel said the family would spend the next several days picking a school from among Syracuse, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Louisville, Maryland and Georgia Tech.

Conventional wisdom says Harris will pick from among Syracuse, Tennessee, Louisville and West Virginia.

If Pinkston chooses Tennessee Wednesday, we may know a little more about where Harris ends up.

“That’s not my decision,” Torrel said. “That’s Tobias’ decision. We haven’t talked about that.”

TERRENCE JONES LIKELY TO SIGN LATE

Linda Mashia-Jones, the mother of five-star forward Terrence Jones, said her son will likely wait until the spring to sign.

“It’s looking that way,” she said Tuesday. “I can’t say for sure unless he has a breakout tomorrow [Wednesday] and calls me and tells me he’s ready to make a decision.”

She added: “He’s still waiting. He still wants to wait.”

A 6-foot-8 forward from Portland (Ore.) Jefferson, Jones and his mother visited UCLA two weeks ago. He is considering UCLA, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington and Kentucky.

The early signing period runs Nov. 11-18.

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Lance Stephenson

The 6-foot-5 Brooklyn native started and shot 2-for-10 for 7 points in Cincinnati’s season-opening come-from-behind 69-62 victory over Prairie View A&M.

He was 0-for-3 from beyond the arc while adding 4 rebounds, 2 assist and 1 turnover in 22 minutes.

“He was a nervous wreck,” Bearcats coach Mick Cronin said. “He’ll get better. I have to make sure he isn’t putting too much pressure on himself. When we were struggling, he was the one guy getting visibly more physical. You could see his frustration and his desire to win. I have to teach him how to channel that and there is no such thing as a ten point shot. He was trying to do everything himself, which is good and bad.”

The Bearcats trailed 38-30 at halftime before outscoring Prairie View 39-24 in the second half behind 12 of Deonta Vaughn’s 15 points.

Vaughn came off the bench in the second half after going 0-for-6 to start the game.

“He responded,” Cronin said of Vaughn. “Deonta is a great kid, but he has to give us better leadership. He has to make sure these guys are ready to play. Before the game when coaches aren’t in there, he has to make sure they are ready to play. Upsets happen in college basketball.”

Cincinnati made just 39 percent of its shots, while shooting 27 percent (8-for-30) from beyond the arc.

On Stephenson, Vaughn said his teammate was clearly “frustrated” in his college debut.

“That is for any freshman that comes in,” he said. “Your first couple of games is the hardest for you. I just have to talk to him and tell him how it will be for the rest of the season. He doesn’t have to force anything, and just let it come naturally.”

Cronin won’t make Stephenson available to the media until December, but hoops fans will have plenty of chances to see Lance on TV. In perusing my TV schedules, I see that both SNY and ESPN are showcasing a whole lotta Lance.

Wednesday – Toledo at Cincinnati, 7:30, SNY

Nov. 23 – Cincinnati vs. Vanderbilt, 5, ESPN 2 (Maui Invitational)

Nov. 24 – Cincinnati vs. Maryland/Chaminade, 1:30/7, ESPN2

Nov. 25 – Cincinnati vs. TBD, ESPN2

Dec. 1 – Texas Southern at Cincinnati, 7:30, SNY

Dec. 19 – Lipscomb at Cincinnati, 2 p.m., SNY

WALL HITS BUZZER-BEATER

Kentucky freshman John Wall hit a pullup 15-foot buzzer beater to lead No. 5 Kentucky to a 72-70 victory over Miami (Ohio).

“When it hit the bottom of the net, it was a relief, a great feeling,” Wall said, according to The AP.

“John Wall catching it and going, I loved it,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said.

The 6-foot-4 Wall, projected as the No. 1 pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, finished with 19 points, 5 assists and 3 steals. Wall sat out Kentucky’s season opener against Morehead State because of amateurism issues.

FREE THROWS

Arizona freshman Kevin Parrom of New York will miss at least a month with a stress fracture in his left foot, according to the Arizona Daily Star…No. 12 UConn led by just one at the half before beating Colgate 77-63 beind Stanley Robinson’s 18 points and Kemba Walker’s 16 points, 6 assists and 5 steals. Gavin Edwards added 14 points……Kyle Singler put up 23 points and 11 rebounds to lead No. 11 Duke to a 74-49 win over Coastal Carolina…Syracuse comes to Madison Square Garden this week for the Coaches vs. Cancer event and will play Cal in the first game Thursday night. Defending NCAA champ North Carolina meets Ohio State in the other semi. Read my feature advance on Syracuse’s zone here…Memphis added to its recruiting haul by landing 6-7 center Tarik Black of Memphis Ridgeway, the No. 47 prospect in the nation. Josh Pastner’s club now has seven incoming recruits, five of whom are ranked among the Top 70 by Rivals. Rivals ranks Memphis as the No. 1 overall recruiting class for 2010.

(Photo courtesy Michael Keating, Cincinnati Enquirer)

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Check back later today on SNY.tv and ZAGSBLOG.com for his decision.

The 6-foot-9, 225-pound Pankey visited Houston this past weekend and will announce for either Houston or Maryland.

“Making my decision today .. It was tough but I’m ready ; should be in the SNY studio around 1:00,” Pankey wrote on his Twitter page.

Three of Pankey’s St. Anthony teammates have already committed to Division 1 schools: Devon Collier (Oregon State), Derrick Williams (Richmond) and Elijah Carter (St. Bonaventure).

KNIGHT DENIES REPORT HE’S DOWN TO THREE

Brandon Knight, the No. 1 prospect in the nation out of Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Pine Crest, denied a report in the Orlando Sentinel saying his top three schools were Kentucky, Kansas and Florida.

“Not right,” Knight wrote Monday morning by text.

The Orlando Sentinel cited an unidentified source in saying that Knight was targeting those three schools.

Knight visited Florida this past weekend for the season opener, an 74-46 victory over Stetson.

Knight declined to offer a list or a timetable on his decision.

He has previously visited UConn, Kansas and Kentucky.

Pine Crest coach Dave Beckerman told me he believes Knight will wait until the spring to sign.

If Knight were to pick Florida, it would impact the recruitment of junior guard Austin Rivers, who has verbally committed to Florida but is also considering Duke.

“Duke wanted to recruit me, but they wanted to do it the right way out of respect for Florida. It’s two unbelievable programs and I feel fortunate that they both want me,” Rivers told the Sentinel.

“Both have really good coaches, really good programs, really good recruiting,” Rivers said. “There are a few differences and a lot of similarities.”

LESLIE TAKING HIS TIME

Raleigh (N.C.) Word of God forward C.J. Leslie is taking his time with his college choice.

The 6-8 Leslie has visited Kentucky, but told Newsobserver.com he is also considering N.C. State, Florida, Oregon, Georgia and UConn. He is the No. 4 power forward in the Class of 2010.

Newsobserver.com reported that Leslie made a surprise appearance Wednesday when Marietta, Ga., point guard Ryan Harrow signed his letter of intent with the Wolfpack. Harrow said he wanted Leslie to join him at N.C. State.

His mother, Leslie, recently told me the family was also trying to schedule a visit to Florida.

“I just wanted to get out and experience this recruiting thing because it’s definitely a one-time thing and make sure I chose the right school that’s best for me,” Leslie told Newsobserver.com.

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The 6-foot-8 Smith told me during a recent interview that he had decided where he wanted to go from among Georgetown, UConn and Duke and he then told Borges he had a frontrunner.

He’s not saying which school is his leader, but Smith has taken officials to Conn and Georgetown and an unofficial to Duke.

He broke down the pros of all three schools in a recent interview with me.

“I liked the history of Duke, the great players that came through Duke, Carlos Boozer, Grant Hill and Elton Brand,” he said.

“UConn, the same thing, the history. I like Jim Calhoun, the head coach, and his experience of sending people to the NBA and the former players Caron Butler, Ray Allen and Rudy Gaye.

“Georgetown, I like them because of the same thing. [David] Wingate, Allen Iverson [went to the pros]. I like the head coach [John Thompson III].

“All three of the head coaches, I felt a great connection.”

Smith put up 29 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks on Friday as Oak Hill routed Winston Salem Prep 100-69.

As for the 6-4 Lamb, he is on UConn’s campus today (Sunday) and is considering Kansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Arizona and UConn. He has visited every school but Arizona.

“I’m just looking for a good coaching staff, a winning school, good players that I can work around,” he told Borges. “A school that’s basketball-first.”

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Of course, the team that could really use Wall — just named to the Bob Cousy Award Watch List – and his transcendant abilities is the New York Knicks.

And the Knicks — off to a dreadful 1-8 start — could well earn the right to select the 6-foot-4 Wall with the top pick. Several mock drafts project Wall as the No. 1 pick next year, ahead of Derrick Favors, Ed Davis and Greg Monroe.

There’s just one problem.

The Knicks traded the pick.

Utah now holds New York’s 2010 1st-round pick after the Knicks dealt for Stephon Marbury.

To borrow a phrase from Spinal Tap, Marbury is currently residing in the “Where are they now?” category and spends more time texting New York Post beat writer Marc Berman than he does actually playing basketball. 

So where does all this leave the Knicks?

Well, without a quality point guard, now or later.

Starting point guard Chris Duhon posted this gem of a line in last night’s 114-101 loss to Al Horford and Atlanta: 0 points on 0-for-6 shooting, 3 turnovers, 3 rebounds, 2 assists.

“He’s going to have to play better and he’s going to have to do it,” a visibly shaken Mike D’Antoni said.

Asked if Duhon might lose his starting job, the coach said, “We’ll see. I don’t know yet.”

At the rate the Knicks are going — which is to say, full-speed straight off a cliff like those chicks in Thelma & Louise — they are “on pace” for a final record that says 10-72 or 9-73.

Is it likely to get that bad?

Probably not, but let’s say they win 25 games.

Is that going to be enough to attract LeBron James or Dwyane Wade to the Garden next summer?

“Honestly, I wouldn’t say they [the Knicks] have to make the playoffs. They just have to compete. Both those guys are on really good teams right now so who knows what the future holds?”  former Knick and current Hawk Jamal Crawford said before the game. “It would be tough for them to leave that.”

Assuming those free agents did want to come to New York, what point guard will they be playing with? Someone who leads his team to the playoffs and makes his teammates better?

Or someone whose team has one more NBA win right now than I do.

One thing’s for sure, the Knicks point guard next year won’t be John Wall — barring some blockbuster trade.

Wall could be headed to Utah…if the winless Nets don’t grab him first.

HORNETS FIRE SCOTT

The New Orleans Hornets announced Thursday that they have relieved Byron Scott of his head coaching duties. Scott will be replaced by General Manager Jeff Bower.

New Orleans lost 124-104 at Phoenix on Wednesday, falling to 3-6 to start the season.

Former Hornets and Bulls head coach Tim Floyd was named an assistant. Floyd stepped down as coach at USC before the season in the wake of the O.J. Mayo scandal in which Floyd allegedly doled out cash payments to a runner in exchange for landing Mayo.

“I want to thank Byron for the hard work he has put in during his time with the Hornets,” said Hornets Owner George Shinn. “I’ve hired Jeff Bower to take over the coaching reign. He knows this team better than anyone, has the respect of the players and in basketball circles, is regarded as one of the best basketball minds in the business. This is our best opportunity to reach our goals this season.”

Bower has spent his 14-plus seasons with the club.

After serving as the assistant general manager for the 2000-01 season, Bower was promoted to general manager in June of 2001 and has since held that position. He returned to the bench as an assistant under Floyd in 2003-04.

“Accountability was our theme this past summer,” said Hornets Vice President of Basketball Chad Shinn. “We talked about the fact that everyone on our staff is held to a certain standard of performance and we didn’t feel this was happening at the head coach level. We feel like we still have an opportunity with our nucleus to get to where we want and Jeff is the right guy, right now to move us in that direction from the bench.”

“As we look at our long-term coaching plans, it’s not about who the head coach is, it’s about the role of the head coach to get the team to perform to their capabilities and reaching our potential this season,” said Bower.

Bower served three years as an assistant coach at Penn State University from 1983-86 before moving to Marist College, where he led the Red Foxes to an NCAA Tournament appearance in 1987 after winning the Northeast Conference.

(Information from the Hornets Website was used; Photos courtesy University of Kentucky, AP)

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JayVaughn Pinkston, a 6-foot-6 forward from Bishop Loughlin considered the top prospect in the Big Apple, hasn’t picked a school yet and may or may not sign late.

“We cannot say definitively,” New Heights athletic director Kimani Young said Wednesday morning. “There’s still a possibility that he commits early.

“He’s still going through the recruiting process even as of this week to figure out if he’s decided 100 percent where he wants to go to.”

Pinkston, who recently led New Heights to the is8 championship by scoring a combined 59 points in the semis and finals, will choose from among Villanova, St. John’s, Seton Hall, Tennessee and Marquette.

Villanova appears to be the leader for his services.

“He’s thinking about it,” Young said of the recruiting process. “He’s not taking any more visits.”

***Doron Lamb, a 6-4 shooting guard from Queens who plays for Oak Hill (Va.) Academy, appears as if he will wait until the spring signing period. He has visited Oklahoma, Kansas and Kentucky and will visit UConn Nov. 15-16. He may also visit Arizona, but likely not until after the early signing period ends Nov. 18.

Pinkston and Lamb are among a group of elite 2010 prospects who may not sign until the spring. Guards Josh Selby and Brandon Knight and forwards Roscoe Smith, C.J. Leslie and Terrence Jones also may sign in the spring.

Selby will visit Indiana Nov. 14, while Knight will hit Florida Nov. 13. Leslie is also planning a visit to Florida, but no date has yet been set.

While that group may wait, several elite area players are poised to sign early.

***Tobias Harris, a 6-8 forward from Dix Hills (N.Y.) Half Hollow Hills West, says he will announce on Nov. 19.

Harris has visited Syracuse, Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisville and West Virginia and will visit Maryland (Nov. 13-14) and Georgia Tech (Nov. 16-17) due up in the next week.

“When we finish all the visits, Tobias will decide,” Torrel Harris, his father, said recently. “Right now all of them are equal. Every one is better and better.”

***J.J. Moore, a 6-5 wing from Brentwood, N.Y., who plays at South Kent (Conn.), could announce at any time. He will choose from among Pittsburgh, Louisville and St. John’s.

**Russell Smith, a 6-2 shooting guard from The Bronx who also plays at South Kent, will visit Louisville this weekend and is expected to sign with the Cardinals once he receives a formal scholarship offer.

“They love him,” Russell Smith Sr. said. “That’s a good thing. Rick [Pitino's] been following him for a while, watching him play. They said they definitely want him.”

***Rod Odom, a 6-8 wing from Long Island who plays at Concord (Mass.) Middlesex, will sign with Vanderbilt Wednesday. He initially committed to Arizona and then changed his plans.

***Fuquan Edwin, a 6-6 wing from Paterson (N.J.) Catholic, signed with Seton Hall Tuesday night and faxed in his papers Wednesday morning.

**Rutgers recruit Austin Carroll says he will sign Thursday. Was too busy Wednesday with classes and road game 3 hours away.

**Ashton Pankey, a 6-9, 225-pound forward from New York who plays at St. Anthony, will visit Houston this weekend and will then decide between Houston and Maryland, which he visited last weekend.

“He really liked Maryland and I know he wants to be able to compare Maryland to another school,” St. Anthony coach Bob Hurley said.

“He’ll make a decision right after his visit,” Young added.

**Three other St. Anthony players have already committed and are expected to sign early: Devon Collier (Oregon State), Derrick Williams (Richmond) and Eli Carter (St. Bonaventure).

Hurley said the school likely will host a signing event for all four players next Tuesday.

**St. Patrick senior guard Kyrie Irving  signed Wednesday with Duke and his teammate, Derrick Gordon, chose Western Kentucky.

**St. Benedict’s senior guard Aaron Brown will sign with Temple Wednesday, while his 6-8 teammate Gil Biruta will visit Rutgers this weekend.

**As first reported here, Rice senior guard Shane Southwell has committed to Kansas State and will sign Wednesday.

“I just received my papers,” he wrote by text.

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“It’s kind of 50-50 [whether he will sign early or late],” Linda Mashia-Jones said of her son’s plans. “He’s just undecided.”

A 6-foot-8 forward from Portland (Ore.) Jefferson, Jones and his mother visited UCLA this past weekend. He is considering the Bruins, along with Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington and Kentucky.

The early signing period runs Nov. 11-18.

“Hopefully [we will meet] by Wednesday,” Linda said.

Asked if there was a favorite, she said: “They’re all equal at this point.”

As for the UCLA visit, Linda said it went very well and she’s a fan of the nice weather in L.A.

“It was beautiful weather,” she said. “That definitely was a plus for me. It was nice to see some sunshine and get out of the rain.”

Terrence and Linda went to a Lakers game on their own Friday night and on Saturday Terrence watched a two-and-a-half-hour practice while Linda had dinner with head coach Ben Howland and his wife.

Forward Mike Moser, a fellow Portland native, and fellow freshman Tyler Honeycutt hosted Jones.

Linda said she liked how the UCLA campus is set up, with the dorms, athletic facilities and classrooms all near one another.

“I thought the UCLA campus was very student friendly,” Linda said.

Jones has one official visit remaining and could potentially go to Kansas or Arizona, but Linda said there were no plans for that at this point.

“That was our last official visit,” she said. “We have one more we could take but we haven’t scheduled anything and as far as I know there’s nothing in the works.”

JUST’IN-LOVE SMITH MAKES GOD SHAMMGOD PRESEASON LIST

Sources said Siena looked very strong in its scrimmage this weekend against Rutgers. Junior forward Ryan Rossiter of Staten Island had 23 points in 25 minutes and senior forward Alex Franklin scored 19. Mike Rosario (ankle) and Hamady N’Diaye (knee) did not play for Rutgers. Rosario will try to practice today (Monday), sources said. Rutgers opens the season Saturday against Marist at the RAC.

Speaking of Siena, the Saints have a player on their roster whose name is Just’in-love Smith.

Here’s his official bio if you don’t believe me.

“My mother said that she was `just in love’ with me, so that’s what she named me …. Just’in-love,” Smith, who is from East Greenbush, N.Y., reportedly said.

“I knew that kid for a whole year and didn’t realize that’s how you spelled his name,” said a source close to the program. “I thought his name was ‘Justin Love.’”

No, Justin Love is an artist in Brooklyn.

Smith has already made the Preseason Watch List for the 2009-10 God Shammgod Award.

PANKEY TO ANNOUNCE NEXT WEEK

Jersey City (N.J.) St. Anthony forward Ashton Pankey visited Maryland this past weekend and will visit Houston this coming weekend.

“He will decide and sign next week,” New Heights coach Jeff Rivera said.

(Photo courtesy Rivals, Siena Athletics)

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“He probably won’t sign until the spring. I can’t say for 100 percent sure,” Lisa Leslie, C.J.’s mom, said Saturday in a phone interview.

The 6-foot-8, 205-pound Leslie out of Raleigh (N.C.) Word of God Academy is the No. 4 power forward in the nation, according to Rivals.

He took his first official visit to Kentucky Oct. 28 for the Blue/White Scrimmage and was supposed to visit Florida this weekend (Nov. 7-8), but will have to reschedule because his high school team has a scrimmage today (Saturday).

“We thought it would be better if we just totally rescheduled it,” Lisa said of the Florida visit.

Leslie had in-home visits with Kentucky, Maryland, Seton Hall, Arizona State, Georgetown, N.C. State, Georgia Tech, Florida International and Oregon.

He plans to take four more officials — including one to Florida — but all four likely won’t happen this fall. Lisa said the family wasn’t sure which schools would get the three remaining visits.

“As of right now, we don’t know which other three schools he’s going to visit,” she said. “We’ve been so busy with the recruiting and everything that we haven’t had enough time to sit down and complete the schedule.”

Lisa said North Carolina was supposed to come for an in-home visit, but cancelled because they decided instead to focus on Harrison Barnes, the nation’s No. 2 recruit.

“Roy [Williams] must feel pretty comfortable with Barnes because Coach [Steve] Robinson called us and they were saying they didn’t want to hinder C.J.’’s recruiting by putting us on hold to see whether Harrison Barnes was going to take the scholarship,” she said.

“Coach Williams told C.J. he really wanted him, he just wishes he has one more scholarship. That was the turnaround with North Carolina.”

The 6-6 Barnes is due to announce this week and is considering North Carolina, Duke, UCLA, Oklahoma, Kansas and Iowa State.

As for Leslie, Lisa said he enjoyed his official to Kentucky but hasn’t proclaimed the ‘Cats his leader.

“He said when he went down there for the visit he really enjoyed it,” Lisa said of Kentucky. “He never said that that was his favorite school.

“He’s still saying that he’s open. I wouldn’t say that that was his favorite school.”

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Brandon Knight

“Looks that way,” Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Pine Crest coach Dave Beckerman wrote in a text.

The early signing period runs Nov. 11-18.

The 6-foot-3, 185-pound Knight took an official to Kansas last weekend and Beckerman confirmed that Knight will visit Florida Nov. 13-15.

“It is my understanding that he will visit Florida,” he said.

Knight has previously visited Kentucky and UConn and has also considered Miami and Syracuse.

UCONN AWAITING WORD ON PLAYERS

UConn sophomore point guard Kemba Walker of the Bronx scored 28 points and senior forward Stanley Robinson added 25 points as undermanned UConn defeated American International College, 106-67, Wednesday.

Freshman big man Alex Oriakhi added 16 points and 16 boards.

The No. 12 Huskies played without senior Jerome Dyson, junior Donnell Beverly and freshman Jamal Coombs-McDaniel due to pending evaluation of recently submitted paperwork pertaining to their eligibility certification.

FREE THROWS

6-8 forward Gil Biruta of Lithuania and St. Benedict’s Prep visits Rutgers Saturday after taking the SAT. Speaking of Rutgers, see the men’s basketball preview in the Video Player in the right corner of the blog...Latavious Williams has made himself eligible for tonight’s NBDL Draft. Williams initially committed to Memphis and then opted to play overseas…Neumann-Goretti guard Mustafaa Jones committed to Hartford. The 5-foot-11 guard chose Hartford over Hampton, New Hampshire, Columbia and Brown, according to Keith Pompey of the Philly Inquirer. Jones is the fourth Neumann-Goretti senior to commit, following Tony Chennault (Wake Forest), Daniel Stewart (Rider) and Tyreek Duren (La Salle).

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