2018 Commitments

[HuskyFan1125]

I thought I would start a thread for 2018 Commitments around the country. There is a U17/18 thread but its a mixed bag.

Several top recruits in the class are already committed.

Half of the ESPN top 10 for 2018 have committed.

5. Shakira Austin--Maryland
7. Charli Collier--UCONN
8. Jenna Brown--ND
9. Sedona Prince--Texas
10. Destanni Henderson-South Carolina


All of this is brought about because a player @CoachBill was highlighting, Cameron Swartz committed to Colorado today.

The Buffs already have #13 Mykasa Robinson (USA PG).

Raoul‏@Raoul_000
WBB; Cameron Swartz, 5-11 SG, Fellowship Christian School (Roswell, GA–2018), has committed to Colorado

We can keep this thread going with the remainder of recruits for the 2018 class!

 

[HuskyFan1125]

Good article in Prospect Nations about Nalyssa Smith.

She lists Baylor, UCONN, Kansas, Louisville, tOSU, and WVU as her schools of interest.

Player Introduction: Nalyssa Smith | Prospects Nation

 

[HuskyFan1125]

State of Tennessee has a lot of top talent for the 2018 class.

2018 PG Jazmine Massengill TN 6' 0" Tennessee
Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, TN)

2018 W Elizabeth Balogun TN 6' 1"
Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, TN)

2018 G Rhyne Howard TN 6' 1"
Bradley Central (TN)

2018 P Elizabeth Dixon TN 6' 4"
Ridgeway HS (Memphis, TN)

2018 W Brinae Alexander TN 5' 11"
Riverdale HS (Murfreesboro, TN)

2018 G Jordyn Cambridge TN 5' 7"
Ensworth HS (TN)

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Good article in Prospect Nations about Nalyssa Smith.

She lists Baylor, UCONN, Kansas, Louisville, tOSU, and WVU as her schools of interest.

After checking, that is the list Hoopgurlz has but hasn't been updated since the summer. She had a list of 14 schools she tweeted in the fall.

 

[SCGamecock]

State of Tennessee has a lot of top talent for the 2018 class.

2018 PG Jazmine Massengill TN 6' 0" Tennessee
Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, TN)

2018 W Elizabeth Balogun TN 6' 1"
Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, TN)

2018 G Rhyne Howard TN 6' 1"
Bradley Central (TN)

2018 P Elizabeth Dixon TN 6' 4"
Ridgeway HS (Memphis, TN)

2018 W Brinae Alexander TN 5' 11"
Riverdale HS (Murfreesboro, TN)

2018 G Jordyn Cambridge TN 5' 7"
Ensworth HS (TN)

An unusual explosion of talent out of Tennessee this year. Really wanted Massengill at SC but figured that was not happening once Henderson committed to us. Balogun and Howard are elite guards.. I'm hoping we can get 1 of them at least.

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Nalyssa Smith saw the Prospects Nation piece and sent out this tweet in response:

 

[HuskyFan1125]

Arizona State goes north of the border for a 2018 recruit!

Bret McCormick‏@ASGR1995
Taya Hanson 5-10 PG 18' TRC Academy Ontario Canada commits to HC Charli Thorne Arizona State. Played on Canadian 16U team.

 

[donalddoowop]

Arizona State goes north of the border for a 2018 recruit!

Bret McCormick‏@ASGR1995
Taya Hanson 5-10 PG 18' TRC Academy Ontario Canada commits to HC Charli Thorne Arizona State. Played on Canadian 16U team.

More competition for Courtney.

 

[JordyG]

More competition for Courtney.

I think (hope) this is the year Courtney holds her own and gets tons PT.

 

[SCGamecock]

Olivia Nelson-Ododa just dropped her top 12:

South Carolina, UConn, Notre Dame, Stanford, UCLA, Tennessee, Maryland, Duke, North Carolina, Ohio State, Florida State and Georgia.

No Texas schools and only 2 West Coast schools... lots of Southern schools. I think she stays east and probably doesn't leave the South if I'm being honest.

 

[jennyo70]

Mykasa Robinson decommited from Colorado a while ago. She stated with her sister who is there, and tore her ACL, she realized how far away from home and support she was. Decided she wanted to be closer to home.

This past weekend, opening of the AAU tourneys, she commited to Louisville. She plays for Kentucky Premiere and will join fellow AAU teammate Seygan Robbins in Louisville (class of 2018).

I thought I would start a thread for 2018 Commitments around the country. There is a U17/18 thread but its a mixed bag.

Several top recruits in the class are already committed.

Half of the ESPN top 10 for 2018 have committed.

5. Shakira Austin--Maryland
7. Charli Collier--UConn
8. Jenna Brown--ND
9. Sedona Prince--Texas
10. Destanni Henderson-South Carolina


All of this is brought about because a player @CoachBill was highlighting, Cameron Swartz committed to Colorado today.

The Buffs already have #13 Mykasa Robinson (USA PG).

Raoul‏@Raoul_000
WBB; Cameron Swartz, 5-11 SG, Fellowship Christian School (Roswell, GA–2018), has committed to Colorado

We can keep this thread going with the remainder of recruits for the 2018 class!

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Olivia Nelson-Ododa just dropped her top 12:

South Carolina, UConn, Notre Dame, Stanford, UCLA, Tennessee, Maryland, Duke, North Carolina, Ohio State, Florida State and Georgia.

Just a hunch, but I can't see her going to any of the last fours schools. And twelve seems like a lot to have remaining with 11 months to decide.

 

[JordyG]

Just a hunch, but I can't see her going to any of the last fours schools. And twelve seems like a lot to have remaining with 11 months to decide.

With the way players change programs this year one for every month of the year plus one sounds about right.

 

[JustinesGuy]

Olivia Nelson-Ododa just dropped her top 12:

South Carolina, UConn, Notre Dame, Stanford, UCLA, Tennessee, Maryland, Duke, North Carolina, Ohio State, Florida State and Georgia.

No Texas schools and only 2 West Coast schools... lots of Southern schools. I think she stays east and probably doesn't leave the South if I'm being honest.

Dislocated knee right? That's a very serious injury. Are we passing?

 

[SCGamecock]

Just a hunch, but I can't see her going to any of the last fours schools. And twelve seems like a lot to have remaining with 11 months to decide.

Exactly. A lot of 2018 recruits are either already committed or beginning to take official visits. She has already visited SC, Georgia, FSU, UNC and Duke unofficially.. probably has plans to visit the other schools this summer. I think she'll get down to a top 5 or 6 by Summer. Her plan all along was to take official visits in the fall.. so she's still technically on schedule.

 

[bags27]

I think one or two of the early commits have already announced that they are transferring

 

[MilfordHusky]

I think one or two of the early commits have already announced that they are transferring

A candid statement:

"I've decided to attend ______ for my first year. If the coach lets me do what I want, I'll come back. If not, I'll take a year off and transfer to ______ or _____. After 2 seasons there, I'll look at the draft and see if it pays me to declare early. If not, I'll stick around."

 

[Dillon77]

So far, the Fighting Irish have four commits. Initially, Coach MM said she go after "four, maybe five." After Cosgrove committed, she said they''d go after one more forward/center and possibly one more, probably a guard. So there could be two more possibilities (Class of 2018, a transfer?) These are the Members of the Class of 2018 that are committed thus far to:



Jenna Brown
GEORGIA, Class of 2018
POSITION/PN RANK Point Guard: #3
Overall PN Ranking: 10. Hoopgurlz: #9
HEIGHT 5' 9"



Katlyn Gilbert
INDIANA, Class of 2018
POSITION/PN RANK Guard: #2
Overall PN Rank: #12. Hoopgurlz: #24
HEIGHT 5' 11"
https://prospectsnation.com/player/katlyn-gilbert#videos

Abby Prohaska
OHIO, Class of 2018
POSITION/PN RANK Wing: #11
Overall PN Rank: #60. Hoopgurlz: Not in 2018 Top 60
HEIGHT: 6' 0"


Danielle Cosgrove
NEW YORK, Class of 2018
POSITION/PN RANK Post: #20
Overall PN Ranking: 93. Hoopgurlz: #48
HEIGHT: 6' 3"

 

[Dillon77]

Mykasa Robinson decommited from Colorado a while ago. She stated with her sister who is there, and tore her ACL, she realized how far away from home and support she was. Decided she wanted to be closer to home.

This past weekend, opening of the AAU tourneys, she commited to Louisville. She plays for Kentucky Premiere and will join fellow AAU teammate Seygan Robbins in Louisville (class of 2018).

Hey Jenny: Good to see your post again.

I like Mykassa's game and ND visited her, when she was leaning to Colorado. Mykassa must really want to stay close to home and/or play with friends because Coach Walz is bringing in two top-rated PGs in 2017, as Hoopgurlz describes:
- The headliner is Dana Evans, an explosive 5-foot-6 point guard from Gary, Indiana, who is ranked seventh in the country.
- Fellow point guard Lindsey Duvall, who was once committed to Kentucky and is ranked 22nd in the nation, also is now headed Walz's way.

Plus, Sydney Zambrotta is still around (will be a soph) and she was getting some PT at the end of this year.

Evans is a PG, pure and simple. Can Duvall and/or Robinson work in the "off guard" position?
Otherwise, I fear this position looks (over)stocked.

 

[Go/huskies]

Does MM plan on offering Dara Mabrey?

 

[jennyo70]

Hey Jenny: Good to see your post again.

I like Mykassa's game and ND visited her, when she was leaning to Colorado. Mykassa must really want to stay close to home and/or play with friends because Coach Walz is bringing in two top-rated PGs in 2017, as Hoopgurlz describes:
- The headliner is Dana Evans, an explosive 5-foot-6 point guard from Gary, Indiana, who is ranked seventh in the country.
- Fellow point guard Lindsey Duvall, who was once committed to Kentucky and is ranked 22nd in the nation, also is now headed Walz's way.

Plus, Sydney Zambrotta is still around (will be a soph) and she was getting some PT at the end of this year.

Evans is a PG, pure and simple. Can Duvall and/or Robinson work in the "off guard" position?
Otherwise, I fear this position looks (over)stocked.

I understand EvAns is the only pure PG. the other 3 are all combo guards. (Duvall, Robinson, Robbins). Those 3 combo guards all played for KY Premiere AAU and are all in-state talent. I'm thrilled to have some "local" kids on the roster again. I have no idea how he will use them or get them all minutes. In an interview Mykasa did after her commit, she said that Walz told her she would be a role player and she was ready to do what the team neeeded.

Syd Z, if this past year is any indication, is likely to be role player providing valuable minutes off the bench. She will need to make a huge sophomore leap to garner more time than that.

For all this "over stacked", it has been a long time since we have had a consistent, reliable PG. Taja Cole who was a transfer out last year at the end of her freshman year, left for more playing time. ( Georgia) Had she stayed, she would have owned the spot this year, with Aricuh Carter injuring herself early fall and subsequently having surgery. We sure could have used her this past season.

I'd be lying if I said understand his recruiting philosophy.

 

[Dillon77]

Does MM plan on offering Dara Mabrey?

Short Answer: Either "No" or "Not looking like Plan A."

As any of my colleagues on "McGraw's Bench" could attest, I would second, third and fifteenth having Dara make it a Mabrey hat trick (or three pointer to be more accurate) in South Bend.

However, I think Dara is in a pecking order for one of the two last slots that MM says she has available for 2018.
Coach says she wants one more post/forward to be available in 2018 and I'm guessing that could be a freshman (Olivia Nelson-Ododa would be manna from heaven) or a transfer that has to sit t out a year (Jessica Shepard has been on-campus).

And MM has said might want possibly one more 2018 recruit, probably a guard. My gut is that the high end of this range is Christyn Williams, who has the Irish on her short list. Niele Ivey saw her in Dallas this weekend. And Williams, as my UConn colleagues here know, would be an incredible get. That's the trouble....it's her world and she can call the shots on this one (I'm still having bad-trip flashbacks from what happened with Westbrook and Walker).

So, my gut tells me that Dara is Plan B or C if Williams -- or another highly rated guard we don't know about -- goes elsewhere.

I'd love to have a guard like Dara -- who although slightly smaller than her sisters -- was still the NJ Gatorade Player of the Year as a junior, has the trademark Mabrey touch from three-point land, and is very, very competitive and smart. Plus she handles the ball well and will get more of a chance to do that her senior year with longtime Manasquan teammate and PG Stella Clark graduating. So, she could do what all Mabreys do at South Bend...be a fill-in PG in her spare time.

 

[Dillon77]

I understand EvAns is the only pure PG. the other 3 are all combo guards. (Duvall, Robinson, Robbins). Those 3 combo guards all played for KY Premiere AAU and are all in-state talent. I'm thrilled to have some "local" kids on the roster again. I have no idea how he will use them or get them all minutes. In an interview Mykasa did after her commit, she said that Walz told her she would be a role player and she was ready to do what the team neeeded.

Syd Z, if this past year is any indication, is likely to be role player providing valuable minutes off the bench. She will need to make a huge sophomore leap to garner more time than that.

For all this "over stacked", it has been a long time since we have had a consistent, reliable PG. Taja Cole who was a transfer out last year at the end of her freshman year, left for more playing time. ( Georgia) Had she stayed, she would have owned the spot this year, with Aricuh Carter injuring herself early fall and subsequently having surgery. We sure could have used her this past season.

I'd be lying if I said understand his recruiting philosophy.

Thanks for the insight on the KY Premiere AAU scene -- always good to get the inside scoop. If Mykasa is fine with playing roles (and Syd Z), that's a good sign because there's a lot of talent there.

 

[Vowelguy]

1991 Commitments:

 

[CBus13]

Just a hunch, but I can't see her going to any of the last fours schools. And twelve seems like a lot to have remaining with 11 months to decide.

Hey now! Ohio State could potentially have only four players on their team when Nelson-Ododa hits campus, so there would be PLENTY of playing time for her her freshmen year...