June 1998 MSU Basketball Skuttle-Butt

LE FastCounter

06/30/98 - MSU commitment Alonzo Lane won the slam dunk contest at MSU's basketball camp. The word is he was unbelievable during the camp. BTW, his nickname is "Shaq."

06/28/98 - Here is what Mississippi Hoops' Kevin Henderson said about MSU commitment Alonzo Lane after seeing him at several summer camps and showcases:

"Yes, I'm bias when it comes to Mississippi players, however, if there is a better power forward prospect in the entire South would someone please show me. He has a great vertical leap with tremendous quickness. Lane has improved his offense and flat out owns the paint. Lane gets no media attention currently but wait until he hits the college scene. He has committed to MSU."

06/26/98 - According to Kevin Henderson's lastest MISSISSIPPI HOOPS, MSU may get involved with Miss Gulf Coast CC 6-11 center Raynell Brewer. Brewer was "placed" by the University of Houston where present MSU assistant coach Robert Kirby coached last year.

06/26/98 - Former MSU basketball assistant coach Owen Miller continues to make waves on the college basketball recruiting scene. He convinced 6-3 Lamar Price to say no to South Alabama, Northwest Louisiana and Nichols State and walk on at UT-San Antonio. Price, a full qualifier, will be offered a full scholarship next season. Source: MISSISSIPPI HOOPS.

06/26/98 - I received another Robert Jackson has qualified confirmation. Trust me guys, he will be eligible.

06/26/98 - I talked to a former MSU basketball player Thursday. He had a lot of great things to say about MSU commitment Alonzo Lane. According to this former player, Lane is a big-time talent who is very strong and has tremendous leaping ability. He also has a very nice 8 to 10' foot shot. Alonzo looked to be about 6-5 to 6-6. If you want to compare him to a former MSU player, my source said former Bulldog Cameron Burns comes to mind.

06/26/98 - A Baton Rouge source of mine was in Starkville recently and ate at the Grill Restaurant. While there, she had the chance to visit with Bart Hyche, Tyrone Washington and football player J. J. Johnson. The two basketball players were really singing the praises of new coach Rick Stansbury. Bart felt State will have the talent to contend for post-season honors. My source also mentioned that J. J. Johnson couldn't have been nicer. She came away with the impression that these three young men were very positive ambassadors for Miss State.

06/26/98 - I had the chance to talk to Steve Townsend recently and I tell you what folks, this is one true maroon Bulldog fan. Steve, who owns a couple of Sunflower grocery stores and Cost Less Foods grocery in Columbus, Mississippi, is a Bulldog Club member and supports the Bulldogs big-time.

06/22/98 - It appears the Robert Jackson info is correct. The only signee that has not completed the necessary freshman academic requirements is Tyrus Boswell. The rumor continues to be he will qualify.

06/19/98 - No new news on the Robert Jackson situation. I will continue to see if I can get a solid confirmation.

06/19/98 - To all of you wondering about Mississippi Hoops' Kevin Henderson: I talked to Kevin last night and told him about the things being said about him on the internet. He explained his situation to me. He has been attending AAU games for the past month and a half and has not done a publication during that time. Kevin does not take the information for his publication lightly. That is one reason he has been on the road the last month and a half. He also cleared up a misunderstanding that I had. He does not publish 8 to 10 issues a year, which I thought, but 8 to 10 issues per $30 subscription. In other words, you pay $30 and receive 8 to 10 issues. It could take longer than a year but you will receive 8 to 10 issues for your $30.

He told me to mention on my page if you are dissatisfied, contact him at his home phone number which is 601-840-5483. He also told me he will be mailing out two issues within the next two weeks. One will include where all the top Mississippi players signed this past year and the other one will list the top players for this upcoming basketball season. This last reason partly explains why he has been on the road the past 1 and 1/2 months.

06/18/98 - One down, one to go? According to very reliable sources, MSU basketball signee Robert Jackson has passed his ACT score and will be attending the second summer session at MSU. He will room with MSU basketball signee Joe Marshall. Although this info comes from two different sources, I am attempting to confirm it beyond a shadow of a doubt but I feel pretty good about the sources.

06/17/98 - Two reliable sources have indicated to me that they believe MSU will not recruit Clinton High School basketball player Joseph Ward. It was also indicated to me there is a strong possibility that Ward may be transferring to a Jackson, MS. school this coming school year. I'll post additional details as they become available.

06/16/98 - No new eligibility news on MSU signees Tyrus Boswell and Robert Jackson. People in the know continue to express their opinions that both will qualify.

06/16/98 - Former MSU basketball player David Dominque is getting married on July 11, 1998 in Kilgore, TX. to 1994 MSU grad Lora Nelson. David, who is in management with Sportscare Corp, presently lives in San Antonio, TX.

06/15/98 - MSU signee Ontario Harper took his last ACT attempt this past Saturday. Whether he qualifies or not, he appears headed to the same prep school MSU signee Tyrus Boswell attended, Winchendon (MA) Prep. Source: The Clarion-Ledger.

06/15/98 - For those of you who are interested, here is a link to what ESPN thinks about former MSU basketball player Marcus Bullard's chances in the upcoming NBA draft.

06/14/98 - Here is a Bulldog fan's honest analysis of how a couple of our signees (Harper and Billie) did during the MS/AL all-star basketball game yesterday as well as a few other observations :

"I just got back from the Miss./Ala all-star game which Bama swept 111-76 (Men) and 105-84 (Women).

"I wish I had something good to report but I really do not. I thought Ontario Harper (basketball signee) looked pretty bad today. I don't think he made a field goal and I only remember him making 2 of 4 free throws. Today, he opened at 2-guard and wondered around from there. Also, he did not play a lot of minutes. My guess is somewhere around 20. Now he's an athlete no question about it, and can leap through the roof, but, at least today, he appeared to be very unpolished. To be completely fair to Ontario, I saw him several times during the regular season and was highly impressed. He has a world of talent but just needs a lot of coaching, IMO.

"Ivan Billie (football signee) is a football player no doubt. Granted he's an athlete, but you can tell he's better suited for the gridiron. I think he scored 2 points, although I'm not sure.

"I don't know who got MVP for Mississippi but I'd probably give it to Dennis Williams of Starkville, although Syniker Taylor had a decent second half but he too looked like a football player in a basketball uniform.

"Now Alabama on the other hand had several impressive players: Thomas Cleveland (Arkansas) looked like an outstanding point guard prospect; Mack McGadney (Auburn) 6-7 has an outstanding touch from long range; Chris Williams (Virginia) 6-5 was just an all-around good BB player, and Cedric Patton (Bama) 6-6 was also impressive.

"The Mississippi bunch was, obviously, not on the same par with the Bama bunch. The score could have been much worse."

06/14/98 - On a more positive note, Future Stars now rates MSU's basketball signing class the 15th best in the country after the signing of Juco guard Joe Marshall. Other SEC teams in their top twenty are Florida (#4), Kentucky (#9), Arkansas (#13), Auburn (#19).

BTW, if you have never read or subscribed to Future Stars, I highly recommend it. It has some of the most respected basketball columnists in the business with the likes of Van Coleman, Mike Sheridan and Dan Wetzel. You can subscribe to the online version ($7.99 per month) by clicking here or call them at 910-295-5559 for the print version (12 issues per year) which is $45 per year.

06/13/98 - According to Keith Easterwood, Miss State is recruiting Chavis McAlister, a 5-10 point guard from Tenaha, TX., who averaged 44 points per game last season. I could find nothing about this player. Any of you Texas sources know anything about him?

06/12/98 - The number 13 I asked about yesterday is Jason Word. He attempted to walk-on last year but did not make the team. The rumor is the other players want him to attempt to walk-on again but it appears likely he will transfer to a smaller school such as Mississippi College.

The wide-body that I mentioned yesterday was none other than football player Terrence McCaskey.

Detrick White's stitches have been removed and he will be running in a week or two. His recovery has gone very well.

A couple of people are pretty sure they saw MSU signee Joe Marshall playing ball with the other players at the Sanderson Rec Center.

06/12/98 - There is a future basketball Bullpup on the way. Former Bulldog basketball great Darryl Wilson is the very proud father of little tot Darius. Congrats Darryl!

06/12/98 - Observations from the Joe Frank Sanderson Rec Center: The latest word on T.J. Billups is he has bulked up and now looks like a free safety, plus he has developed a very good shooting touch. Marckell Patterson is really shooting the lights out in pickup games. It was also observed that the players really enjoyed being around each other. Former Bulldog basketball players Darryl Wilson and Marcus Grant, both playing pickup ball with the present players, were having a very good influence on the players by helping them with pointers. Darryl is even helping Todd Myles develop his leadership skills.

06/12/98 - Now that it is official (click here) that John Sherman has not had his contract renewed by head basketball coach Rick Stansbury, it's time to speculate on who will be the next administrative assistant coach at MSU. My vote goes to former administrative coach Owen Miller. He is the perfect man for the job. He is a workaholic (very important in this job), great free-throw shooting coach, very well liked by the players, knows the program as well as anyone available, knows Mississipp extremely well (Gulfport native), as nice of a person as you would ever want to meet, very innovative with a visionary mind, very loyal to coach Stansbury, also great friends with coaches Stansbury and Carter, really cares about MSU, has proven he is an outstanding outside recruiter by recruiting and signing the best recruit UT-San Antonio has signed in 15 years (will help our recruiting efforts tremendously even though he will not be able to recruit other than by phone). Without a doubt, if we could be so lucky as to get Coach Miller back, we would have one of the top staffs in the country. The only problem I see in getting Coach Miller back is he would not be able to go out and recruit as he can now do at UT-San Antonio. Coach Miller is one of the top up-and-coming young coaches in the nation and he is pursuing his goal of being a head coach. Remember what former Bulldog coach Richard Williams said? Coach Miller told him he was leaving so that he could prepare himself for his goal of being the next head basketball coach at MSU. To do that, you have to be as diverse and well-rounded as possible. Hopefully, the best recruiter in the SEC, Rick Stansbury, will be able to recruit him back to MSU.

I want to wish Coach Sherman only the best. Although he is a great guy (I have talked to him a few times and know this to be true), anytime a new coach is named, changes normally happen. A new coach has to be able to hire the people he feels are best for his program. I'm sure not going to begrudge a coach for that, because if he doesn't win, it is folks like you and me who will be telling the administration to get a new coach. If we don't allow a coach the right to choose his own people, then what right do we have to tell the administartion to get rid of him if he doesn't win?

06/12/98 - Former Bulldog players Darryl Wilson and Marcus Grant were seen in the Sanderson Center playing basketball with Tyrone, Bart, Gholar, Q. Smith and others a couple of days ago. BTW, does anyone know the name of the little guard with 13 on his jersey? He was playing with the team and shooting lights out. Also, if anyone else saw them playing, who was the tall wide-body (2 inches shorter than Tyrone) playing opposite of Washington?

06/09/98 - Here are several excerpts (quotes by Smith) from yesterday's Clarion-Ledger Quentin Smith article excellently written by USM beat writer Robert Wilson:

Why did Smith leave USM and transfer back to MSU? - "I realized that I needed to go back to State to get my civil engineering degreee because I found out that the engineering degree (program) that I was in at USM --- architectural engineering --- isn't an accredited degree in some states. It is very important for me to get my degree in engineering, and the best place to do that is Mississippi State."

What is Smith's opinion of USM Coach Green - "I don't have anything against Coach Green. In fact, he helped me regain my confidence this spring. I'm back doing things that I could do my freshman year."

Other comments by Quentin - "Coach Green was't thrilled about my decision, but I tried to get him to understand I'm doing this for me. It's nothing against him or USM. I've got to take care of Quentin Smith. Unfortunately, there are a lot of times the players get caught in the middle when there are conflicts between coaches."

Other pertinents facts found in this article - Smith must sit out this year --- the 1998/1999 season --- before being eligible for the 1999-2000 season. He would have two years of eligibility remaining. If he would have stayed at USM, Smith would have been eligible after the fall semester and had only 1 1/2 years of eligibility remaining.

06/09/98 - The rumor going around that MSU signee Robert Jackson is eligible and enrolled in the second summer session is just that, a rumor. I have checked with several sources and have came up with no solid evidence to back up this rumor.

06/07/98 - A follow-up to yesterday's Quentin Smith question and answer comments:

Question - Did Miss State grant a release to Quentin Smith when he decided transfer to USM?
Answer - Yes, although Coach Williams initial reaction was not to grant it. After thinking about it, Coach Williams relented and granted Quentin his release. All of this was done in private. The reason Smith was going to have to sit out a year at USM was because NCAA rules require this for D-I basketball transfers.

06/06/98 - There seems to be a lot of questions about the Quentin Smith transfer so I decided to check with the people in the know about these kind of things. Here are the official answers:

Question 1 - Has he really transferred?
Answer - Yes, and he is in summer school at MSU taking two classes.

Question 2 - Does he plan on playing basketball at MSU?
Answer - Yes. However, since he is a transfer, the NCAA rules state that he has to sit out a complete year. In other words, he has to sit out the entire 1998/1999 season.

Question 3 - Has he gotten his release from Southern Miss?
Answer - No.

Question 4 - Will they give him his release?
Answer - As of today, USM Head Basketball Coach Green says no.

Question 5 - What is Quentin's recourse if USM will not give him his release?
Answer - He can appeal to a committee of USM folks (not athletic) who will listen to both sides and decide based on what they hear.

Question 6 - Since they are a USM committee, won't they be bias in favor of USM?
Answer - Probably not. Very seldom do these committees turn down a kid's request for a release.

Question 7 - But what if they turn him down anyway?
Answer - Quentin will have to pay his own way without any athletic scholarship money from MSU.

Question 8 - Where will he get this money?
Answer - Quentin's late mother left him a trust fund. Plus, Quentin is a very bright young man, almost to the point of being a genius, and will easily qualify for academic monies. There are also other kinds of money he can apply for such as Pell Grants, M-Tag and even an orphan scholarship. I can promise you Quentin will have no trouble paying his own way.

Question 9 - Ok, he can find the money to pay his way through college without athletic scholarship assistance. But can he play basketball at MSU without receiving his release from USM? And, if he can, won't he have to sit out two years?
Answer - Yes, he can play basketball at MSU without receiving his release from USM. No, he does not have to sit out two years if he is not granted his release from USM. He can play basketball at MSU starting the 1999/2000 season. The only thing the lack of a release does is prevent him from receiving athletic aid. He can walk-on and play basketball without athletic aid.

Question 10 - If he can play basketball at MSU without being granted a release from USM, why is USM coach Green balking about granting him his release? He is bound to know all of this.
Answer - Good question. You will have to ask Coach Green about that. I don't have the answer.

06/05/98 - Here is a follow-up to yesterday's Quentin Smith post. Quentin, acccording to WCBI Sports Anchor Mark Rogers on last night's sports news, has not been given his release by USM coach James Green. According to Green, he will not release Quentin to play at MSU. If Green does not relent, and I expect him to, Quentin will have to take certain measures to gain his release. I'm not sure what they are at the moment, but Quentin's heart is at MSU and that is where he wants to be so I'm sure he will do whatever is necessary to gain his release. Hopefully, Coach Green will realize this is a young man who has had it very tough the past few years and deserves a little compassion.

06/04/98 - Former Bulldog basketball player Quentin Smith is back in school at Miss State. He is taking a couple of courses during the first summer session. According to a couple of my sources, he is back at State for two reasons:

I look for Smith to be a much, much better player under Stansbury's style of coaching. I won't go into details, but sometimes a coach's coaching style is not for everybody and that, in my opinion, was the case with Quentin when he was at State the past one and one/half years.

Great to have you back, Quentin.

06/04/98 - BTW, have you Jackson area folks checked out my new sponsor RE/MAX of North Jackson? If you are looking to sell or buy a home, you need look no further than Joe and Mary Lucile Harris. And as usual, they are both like each one of you: MSU Bulldog fans.

06/02/98 - Although Alonzo Lane (Hoop Scoop's 65th best junior basketball player in the country) has recommitted to the Bulldogs, I thought you guys would enjoy reading this article one of my friends emailed me:

Madison County Herald
Thursday May 28, 1998

LANE SNUBS MSU, LEAVES OPTIONS OPEN

By Gordon Frederick
Special to the Herald

Not so quick.

It was reported last week that Canton High School's all-state hoopster Alonzo Lane gave a verbal commitment to Mississippi State. But Tuesday, the high school senior-to-be said he was back in the recruiting game.

Lane said his change of mind is not an attempt to be fickle, but after further consideration he feels it is prudent at this time to leave his options open.

"I want to sit down and talk to my mother before I make a final decision," Lane said. "She thinks I moved too quickly. I did make the statement but I can't guarantee right now what I will do."

Lane, a Dandy Dozen selection last season and a shoo-in for the same pre-season honors this year, admitted he simply got caught up in a barrage of being asked which college will win his services.

"I said that I committed. I talked about it so much that I just gave in. I guess I started to feel the stress of it all," he said.

This doesn't mean Mississippi State is out of the running. Lane had a good visit to the Starkville campus when he attended the recent Super Bulldog Weekend. But over the last two years, MSU has signed Robert Jackson and Tyrus Boswell, both 6-feet-8 and ranked among the top 100 prep power forwards in their respective senior season, and Tang Hamilton and Ontario Harper, both top 100 small forwards.

After signing with the Bulldogs prior to last season, Boswell spent a year in prep school before re-upping with MSU for this fall. Hamilton showed promise while developing in his freshman season this year. Harper is headed for prep school and Jackson is also said to be considering prep school.

But the entire talented quartet should be on campus by the time Lane would be slated to arrive there if he were to sign.

Lane said this could be a factor in his decision.

Along with State, Lane said his list of potential colleges is wide open.

"I would like to look at LSU, Connecticut, Michigan, Tennessee, Kentucky and it could go on and on."

Meanwhile, Lane will spend the summer preparing for play on the next level. He will attend an Adidas-affiliated camp and play for a summer AAU squad.

At 6-feet-7, Lane is projected to be a power forward in college. But this summer, he hopes to develop his game to give him the versatility to play either forward position.

He played this past season, primarily in the paint, at 245 pounds. Now, he is down to 238.

"I wanted to slim down to get quicker," he said. "I want to spread things out and add to what I can do."

He also has his senior season on his mind. The Tigers graduated four of their top five players, but Lane is hungry to hang another state title banner at Canton High. CHS claimed the 4A state championship two seasons ago, Lane's sophomore year, but was upset in the semifinals in 1997-98.

"We should be pretty good," he said. "The young players are going to shock some people next year."

06/01/98 - A couple of sources of mine had the chance to talk to Michael Gholar recently. They both came away very impressed with him as a person. One of the sources said he has the build of Michael Jordan. To quote this source, "he simply looks like he could jump out of the gym." According to a MSU player that was with him, Gholar can outjump anyone presently on the MSU basketball team. Gholar told one of my sources he is qualified and has signed a baskeball scholarship with MSU and is really looking forward to playing for the Bulldogs this coming season and is going to work very hard this summer preparing himself for the upcoming season.

One of my sources was also told that Detrick White broke a bone in his foot but is expected to be completely recovered by the time basketball season bounces around.

This document was created using FlexED