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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.
  • Givon Crump, 6-foot-6, 210-pound small forward from Wolfeboro (NH) Brewster Academy, committed to Baylor head coach Scott Drew on Sunday night.

    Crump chose Baylor over Rutgers, Oregon State, South Florida, DePaul, Cal. He visited Rutgers this past weekend.

    “(I liked the) style of play (at Baylor) and it is a Christian school,” Crump said in a text message. “They’re in a strong conference. They showed me love and on my visit there it was a family-like atmosphere.”

    The attorney for Lance Stephenson denies that his client groped a female student at Lincoln High School in Brooklyn earlier this month.

    “He did absolutely nothing wrong,” Alberto Ebanks, Stephenson’s lawyer, told The Daily News. “He categorically denies these allegations.”

    The News reported on Sunday that Stephenson, a 6-foot-5, 200-pound guard considering among the best players in the nation, had been arrested for groping a 17-year-old girl’s breasts and buttocks through her clothes at the high school Oct. 3. Police say the incident occurred on school grounds, but school officials say it happened at a bus stop near the school.

    “Where is the proof?” Ebanks said. “There’s not one independent witness that will verify this. … At 2:50 on or near school grounds, someone has to see this happen.”

    Chris Gaston got about three hours of sleep on Saturday night and then had one of the best games of his life Sunday morning.

    After waking up at 4:15 Sunday, Gaston made a five-hour drive from the New Hampton (N.H.) school to Queens with New Hampton head coach Pete Hutchins.

    The 6-foot-7, 210-pound Gaston then scored 26 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and made 3 blocks to lead the Playaz Seniors to a 96-81 victory over Lance Stephenson and the Juice All-Stars in the is8 championship game. Gaston, who will play for Fordham next season, was named MVP of the championship game.

    “It feels great,” said Gaston, who was 11 of 16 from the field and 4 of 8 from the line. “Two years in a row we came in second place. It feels good to finally get the 7-foot trophy.”

    Fresh off his weekend visit to Kansas for Late Night in the Phog, St. Anthony senior wing Dominic Cheek has set the dates for his last two visits.

    After going to Villanova Oct. 24 and Pittsburgh Oct. 31, Cheek will visit Indiana Nov. 7 and Memphis Nov. 14, according to Ben Gamble, the associate head coach at St. Anthony. The NCAA early signing period runs Nov. 12-19

    Cheek will choose from among those five schools, as well as Rutgers and Seton Hall, but Gamble said he may not sign until the spring signing period in April.


    If you missed this week’s Saturday Night Live because you were watching the Red Sox-Rays or the Texas-Missouri game or because, like me, you crashed early, do yourself a favor and watch these hilarious skits. My favorite is the hip-hop song with Amy Poehler below.

    “I’m Jeremiah Wright cuz tonight I’m the preacher. I got a bookish look and you’re all hot for the teacher…….”When I say Obama, you say Ayers.”

    Looks like Lance Stephenson made the right move skipping his trip to Kansas this weekend for Late Night in the Phog in order to play with the Juice All-Stars in the is8 playoffs.

    Stephenson, the 6-foot-5 combo guard out of Brooklyn Lincoln, dropped 30 points to go with seven assists and five rebounds as Juice knocked off New Heights, 85-78, in the second semifinal, according to NYHoops.com.

    Juice meets the Playaz Seniors in Sunday’s 11 a.m. championship. Despite playing without Fordham commit Chris Gaston and St. Anthony star Dominic Cheek, the Playaz downed the Gauchos, 98-89. Cheek was on an official visit to Kansas.

    Defending national champion Kansas secured the first verbal commitment in the wake of its Late Night in the Phog event Friday night.

    Elijah Johnson, a 6-foot-2, 183-pound point guard from Las Vegas (NV) Cheyenne, gave a verbal commitment to head coach Bill Self. He chose the Jayhawks over Texas and Oklahoma.

    “I’m pretty excited,” Johnson told the Lawrence Journal-World Saturday night. “It was the best choice out there for me. In my opinion, it’s the best place to be.”

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