Above, Cornell's Louis Dale defends during the 2009 NCAA Tournament. Below, some recruiting news from around the Ivy League.ScoutHoops.com reports that Princeton received a verbal commitment from T.J. Brey, a 6'3" guard from Catholic Memorial High School in Waukesha, Wisconsin. He had offers from Brown, Dartmouth, Bucknell, Florida Gulf Coast, Hillsdale (D-II), Lehigh and North Dakota.
Penn is somewhat crowded on its roster at the wing forward position with Tyler Bernardini, (6'6" Jr.), Rob Belcore (6'5" So.), Sean Mullan (6'6" Fr.), Tommy Eggleston (6'6" Fr.), and Zach Gordon (6'6" So.). Nevertheless, Penn is reportedly recruiting very hard, Will Sheehey, a 6'6" wing from South Fork High School in Stuart, Florida. He has taken unofficial visits to Penn, Princeton and Columbia. Sheehey could be an impact player at any Ivy program.
Harvard is reportedly expecting campus visits during the month of September from Rod Odom, a 6'8" forward from the Middlesex School in Massachusetts and Brice Kofane, a 6'8" forward from the Miller School in Virginia. Some sources have speculated that Odom might verbally commit to Harvard during his late September visit. Odom reportedly made this decision to commit to Harvard some months ago, but has withheld making an official announcement because he wants assurances that he will be admitted academically in order to avoid any embarrassment in the event he is not accepted. Such a situation occurred last year with Harvard and Frank Ben-Eze, who decommitted from Harvard after admissions declined his application. He subsequently enrolled at Davidson.
Financial aid might also play a role in Odom's ultimate decision.
Clearly Odom would be taking a big risk in committing to Harvard over the many high major programs offering him scholarships. Not only is Harvard a difficult place to prepare a top prospect for a potential pro career, but the Crimson have never won an Ivy League title despite having some loaded teams during the 90s and earlier part of this decade. Accordingly, the opportunity for Odom to play in the NCAA Tournament and gain much needed exposure would be minimal at best. Another risk factor is Harvard's coaching staff. Some have commented that Harvard coach, Tommy Amaker is not expected to remain in Cambridge in the event Harvard lands itself in any postseason tournament. No recruit wants to see his coach leave after just one or two seasons. And with a coaching background of Seton Hall and Michigan, Amaker will bolt back to the BCS leagues as soon as the opportunity presents itself.
Below are some related recruiting links:
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