The top story on the basketball front over the past week was, of course, Oregon’s stellar run on the recruiting trail.
The Ducks landed Bol Bol on Monday to complete what 247sports.com ranks as the No. 1 class in the country for 2017-18.
Yep, Oregon has the No. 1 class, in basketball.
Perhaps most striking is the competition the Ducks fended off to secure the four-player group, particularly regarding the prospects from other quadrants.
A quick rundown of the players, with a sampling of the schools that lost out to Oregon:
C Bol Bol (Henderson, Nev.): Kentucky, Arizona, UCLA and Kansas.
SF Louis King (Jersey City): Kansas, Connecticut, Louisville and Syracuse
PF Miles Norris (Wolfeboro, N.H.): Arizona, Auburn, UCLA, Gonzaga, USC and Texas.
SG Will Richardson (Mouth of Wilson, Va.): Ohio State, Xavier, Georgia, Gonzaga.
That’s quiet the collection, especially King, given his roots and the powerhouse programs that were in pursuit. The Ducks maximized the momentum from the Final Four like few teams in recent years.
Reminder: Current ratings do not guarantee future results.
Arizona had the No. 3 class in both ’15 and ’16 and is waiting on that trip to the Final Four.
Meanwhile, the core of the Oregon team that reached the national semifinals last spring was hardly oozing 5-star prospects.
Tyler Dorsey was the lone member of the quartet to receive high-end offers: Arizona, Kansas and Louisville were all after him.
Otherwise …
Dillon Brooks had no offers from the bluebloods.
Nor did Jordan Bell.
And Chris Boucher, who missed the NCAAs but was vital during the regular season? He was hotly pursued … by TCU, Texas Tech and Big Sky teams.
To the ratings …
1. Arizona (3-0)Last week: 1Results: Beat Cal State-Bakersfield 91-59Next up: Wednesday vs. N.C. StateComment: My favorite part of Deandre Ayton’s game? He’s shooting 76.5 percent from the line.
2. USC (3-0)Last week: 2Results: Won at Vanderbilt 93-89 (OT)Next up: Wednesday vs. LehighComment: Beginning this weekend, the Trojans will take a tour of the old Southwest Conference (Texas A&M and SMU), followed by a dash of the Big Eight (Oklahoma).
3. Oregon (4-0)Last week: 4Results: Beat Alabama State 114-56 and Ball State 95-71Next up: Thursday vs. ConnecticutComment: No idea if UConn is any good: It’s too early, and the schedule thus far is too soft, to know. But the Huskies were picked fifth in the American.
4. Arizona State (4-0)Last week: 5Results: Beat NAU 97-62 and UC Irvine 99-78Next up: Thursday vs. Kansas StateComment: If Tra Holder keeps this up (22.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 6.3 apg), he can say goodbye to the obscurity.
5. Utah (4-0)Last week: 6Results: Beat Missouri 77-59 and Mississippi 83-74Next up: Wednesday vs. UNLVComment: Breakout game for transfer Justin Bibbens (23 pts vs Ole Miss) was right on time: Only game thus far that hasn’t been a lopsided victory.
6. Colorado (5-0)Last week: 7Results: Beat Quinnipiac 70-69, Drake 86-81 and Mercer 79-70Next up: Sunday vs. Air ForceComment: And we have a candidate for Pac-12 freshman of the year who doesn’t play for Arizona or UCLA: McKinley Wright IV, who hit the buzzer beater against Quinnipiac.
7. UCLA (4-1)Last week: 3Results: Beat Central Ark 106-101 and South Carolina State 96-68, lost to Creighton 100-89, beat Wisconsin 72-70 Next up: Sunday vs. UC IrvineComment: Good news: Bruins are winning close games. Concerning news: Add GaTech result to the mix, and they are mighty close to being 1-4.
8. Oregon State (2-1)Last week: 9Results: Beat Long Beach State 89-81Next up: Thursday vs. St. John’sComment: Tres Tinkle and Drew Eubanks (41 ppg, 14.7 rpg combined) early favorites for unofficial title of best frontcourt tandem in the conference.
9. Washington (2-2)Last week: 8Results: Lost to Providence 77-70 and Virginia Tech 103-79Next up: Friday vs. SeattleComment: Credit the Huskies for their schedule, at least, and it gets tougher: Kansas and Gonzaga are up ahead, back-to-back.
10. Washington State (3-0)Last week: 11Results: Beat Seattle 75-59 and Idaho State 83-62Next up: Thursday vs. St. Joe’sComment: Clearly, junior Robert Franks made the most of his offseason: Scoring average has tripled (to 18 ppg), thanks partly to his improved range.
11. Stanford (3-2)Last week: 10Results: Beat Northeastern 73-59, lost to North Carolina 96-72Next up: Thursday vs. FloridaComment: Cardinal doing its part for the conference’s SOS. A victory in one of these games would be even better.
12. Cal (2-3)Last week: 12Results: Beat Wofford 79-65, lost to Wichita State 92-82 and VCU 83-69Next up: Tuesday vs. Cal State-NorthridgeComment: Nice to see the Bears with more rhythm on offense, but the defense was left behind in the Cuonzo Martin era.
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