B.J. Smith to become a Seawolf

Mike Corpos of the Daily Republic offers the details of Rodriguez High's BJ Smith signing with Sonoma State.

The scoop on Josh Akognon

Catch the latest on former Casa Grande High and Cal State Fullerton star Josh Akognon courtesy of Bob Padecky's feature.

Allen Huddleston to Fresno State

Former Merced High star Allen Huddleston departed from Pacific at the end of the season and has chosen his new home:

Fresno 'a really good fit' for Merced High's Huddleston
Sean Lynch
Merced Sun-Star
July 3, 2011
:
Allen Huddleston never expected so many people to care.

When Merced High's all-time leading scorer announced he'd be transferring from the University of the Pacific at the beginning of April, his only concern was what would be best for his future.

Little did he know how many people would have an opinion on which school would best fit his criteria. College basketball fans are some of the most passionate sports enthusiasts in the country, and once the rumors started flying about which way Huddleston was leaning, the sophomore guard was bombarded with opinions and questions.

"It was definitely a different experience," Huddleston said. "I didn't know that that many fans and people even knew who I was, much less cared where I went to school...

Go here for the remainder.

Bill Paterson on two Sacto area bouncebacks

The Sac Bee's Bill Paterson has an article up on transfers -- specifically a pair of former area prepsters -- offering the latest on the two. Some wise words are offered in the piece.

Stephen Domingo in D.C.

From yesterday, Alex Kline/Recruit Scoop tweeted this:

"2013 forward Stephen Domingo of California took an unofficial visit to Georgetown today"

DA to FP

Phil Jensen is covering the Dom Artis transfer to Findlay Prep.

Hameed Ali lands a ride

I thank Di McFadden for sending along this item -- congrats to former Oakland Rebel Hameed Ali for his accomplishment.

Men's Basketball Signs Hameed Ali
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Sports Information
7/01/2011

CORPUS CHRISTI - The Texas A&M - Corpus Christi men's basketball program has signed Hameed Ali (San Leandro, Calif./San Leandro) to a National Letter of Intent, head coach Willis Wilson announced today. Ali, a 6-foot-3 combo guard, becomes the seventh signee for the Islanders heading into the 2011-12 season.

"Hameed is an outstanding athlete, but above all else his basketball IQ is what makes him a potential impact player for the Islanders," Wilson said. "While we have a number of guards returning, we still needed to add to our depth at the point, and with his maturity, I believe Hameed will push for playing time right out of the gate."

In his final season for the Pirates, he helped the team to a 16-12 overall record and a 10-6 mark in conference play. He averaged 20 points and 5 rebounds, and also dished out 5 assists and averaged 1.6 steals and 1.5 blocks. He was an all-league honoree and also picked up Honorable Mention All-East Bay recognition.

As a junior, Ali averaged 11 points, six assists, three rebounds and two steals while leading San Leandro to a 17-10 record on the year. He shot 48 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line. He was also ranked as one of the top 10 point guards on the West Coast by Greg Hicks of Scout.com.

Here is video of Ali courtesy of HoopsBayArea.

The NCAA keeps tinkering

Alan Scher Zagier of the Associated Press looks at summer hoops, particularly the July evaluation period and possible NCAA changes. It's a good and interesting read.

Kiwi on ESPN

ESPN's Diamond Leung makes note of Kiwi Gardner's Summer Pro-Am outburst, of course, using Travis Ferris' video.

Aaron Gordon best in his class?

National basketball writer Justin Young tweeted this earlier:

"How many people said Aaron Gordon for No. 1? He's got my vote on limited collected data"

We are in the same camp, not out of west coast bias but simply based on the fact that there is very little Gordon can't do on the court, the level at which he produces and his being a 2013 prospect at that. Admittedly, we haven't witnessed most of the other candidates so that is a weakness in our argument.

Moreau Catholic's Andy Mitchell stays local

Moreau Catholic's Andy Mitchell has decided to play for Coach John Peterson and Ohlone Junior College next year.

At 6-foot-3, Mitchell doubled his scoring and rebounding averages to 18.8 points and 7.8 boards during Coach Frank Knight's first year with the Mariners.  Likewise, Moreau Catholic went 16-11 after 7-19 and 3-24 records the previous two seasons.

Moreau Catholic's Kacey Holt heads east

Moreau Catholic High's Kacey Holt is heading to D.C. -- not to Congress or the presidency but to Howard University to play for Coach Kevin Nickelberry.The Bison are members of the Mid Eastern Athletic Conference.

The 6-foot-3 Holt was selected to the Second Team of the Hayward Area Athletic League after averaging 17.3 points and 6.2 rebounds a game for Coach Frank Knight.

 Skyline High's Bryce Fluellen is also on the Howard roster.

High school basketball versus club team hoops -- it doesn't have to be this way

The following isn't northern California related -- at least not geographically -- but it's a telling read about, in this case, the negative nexus of high school basketball and club team basketball.

Cut to Rodney King and his plaintive question: "Why can't we all get along?"

Gary Stewart heads back east

Gary Stewart, the former head coach at UC Davis, has landed the top position at Stevenson University in Maryland. He's replacing the AD who was doubling up at the D-III school.

Dom Artis with another national mention

Jerry Meyer of Rivals notes 10 talents as his biggest surprise players of the travel basketball season to date and the Bay Area gets repped (a Rivals sub is required):

8. Dominic Artis
School: Richmond (Calif.) Salesian
The Buzz: Artis is another point guard prospect who is poised to move up the rankings. Quick and confident with the ball, Artis is a playmaker who is a catalyst for a talented Oakland Soldiers team.