A Keanu Post update

All credit for this goes to Sam Wasson/Bleed Crimson: Canadian big Keanu Post has found his next home, albeit a two year one. In the article is mention of two WAC offers.

Reading through the lines, it appears this move is primarily academically driven

What's interesting is this is the same JC and basketball program selected by Jordan Coleman, who departed from Hawaii in mid-season.

A Jordan Coleman update

Freshman backcourter Jordan Coleman left Hawaii back in December 2010 in search of a new opportunity.

We were recently in contact with Marvin Lea, an assistant coach at Westwind Prep in Phoenix and whose club basketball team (Eleate Sports) Coleman was a member of while in high school, for an update.

A former star at Pepperdine and Martin Luther King High in Riverside (CA), Lea said that Coleman was contacted by a number of D-1 and D-2 schools, plus junior colleges, after departing from the islands.

But the 6-foot-4 guard has decided to attend Southwestern Illinois College for a year. The SWIC program is headed by Jay Harrington, who has chalked up 700+ victories over 32 years of coaching. He is also Southwestern Illinois' athletic director. It's located in Belleview, IL, about 20 minutes east of St. Louis.

The Blue Storm just finished a 20-9, 10-6 season as a member of the Great Rivers Athletic Conference.   

A question about Jordan Coleman

Not based on anything read or heard but which Big West team does Jordan Coleman decide on? Or could one of the West Coast Conference southland teams come into play?

Your Wednesday p.m. WAC edition

It seemed over early in Vegas as Boise State stumbled out of the gate but the score is now 54-44 with the Rebels on top and 12 minutes remaining.

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Dayton Morinaga has video and print on the UH two-for-one player 'exchange' of sorts.

Brian McInnis updates from this morning here.

Jeff Portnoy is here.

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Jason Groves has a further Wendell McKines update here. Maybe this is being cynical but it's hard to believe that Big Wen's plans will include another year in college, meaning minus a year of earning money overseas. Just sayin' but we've been wrong before.

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The Cache Valley Daily offers a USU - LB St. report AND has posted 46 game photos.

The WAC in mid-week

This was inevitable. Upon taking over, Gib Arnold had so many scholarships to fill that the numbers indicated some of the newcomers would be unhappy with playing time, experiencing homesickness or you name it during the season.

Two signees have decided to ply their trade elsewhere.

Brian McInnis @ Court Sense has the details, plus a hint about someone new. He also wrote this in the Star Advertiser.

Bill Amis performs as a travel guide on behalf of the Warrior Insider site.

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 Utah State had no trouble with visiting Long Beach State last night. Kraig Williams is here, Shawn Harrison here and Tony Jones here .

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Jason Pugh/Shreveport Times reports on LT's fall on the road to Northwestern State, with a great opening line: "The sum of the Northwestern State Demons was more than a sublime effort from Louisiana Tech’s DeAndre Brown..."

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The Fresno Bee provides the game report of the Bulldogs grabbing a road victory in San Diego with SignOnSanDiego proffering this.

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Nick Jezierny tells us Boise State will be getting a taste of life facing the upper crust of Mountain West Conference basketball tonight, and on the road.

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Chris Murray has a piece up on the thoughts and feelings of the Wolf Packers after seven consecutive losses. Not based on anything heard or read but Nevada is another team with a large number of newcomers and therefore 'eligible' to have a player or two unhappy with playing time. But 10 guys are currently on the court for double figure playing time which keeps kids happy. However, the soon-to-happen eligibility of Olek Czyz will eat into the PT of some of the frontcourters.

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Vandal Nation offers a photo gallery of Idaho matching up in the Travelers Basketball Classic from last weekend.

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Sam Wasson/Bleed Crimson has posted video of the New Mexico State - New Mexico game.

More Friday WAC links

Brian McInnis reports that Jordan Coleman is still coming to Hawaii.

Dayton Morinaga offers some names as UH assistant coaching candidates, including one with key South American basketball ties. He also has the Coleman update.

Ferd Lewis fills in readers on Hawaii's 2010-2011 schedule.

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Stephen Rogers is a wanted man. No, no, no, he isn't on any law enforcement 10 Most Wanted list but he is on the respective Uncle Stew, Steve, Jim and Gregg Wants You recruitment posters issued by Misters Morrill, Alford, Boylen and Marshall. Tony Jones provides the details as well as an outline of the Aggie roster and lineup next season.

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Sean Patrick represents referees in his article about officiating, particularly regarding the recent WAC tourney.

A few more WAC links

Jason Groves offers two points on New Mexico State's Wendell McKines here (what Wendell brings to the team) and here (the latest dustup and do read the comments section).

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Hawaii signee Jordan 'aka J Smoove' Coleman receives a nice hometown writeup (we didn't know that Boise State also offered him):

Air Jordan
Calabasas shooting guard is Marmonte’s most explosive player
Eliav Appelbaum
The Acorn
January 21, 2010

This was Jordan Coleman’s moment, and he was going to make sure everyone in the building knew it, too.

In the opening minutes of the Calabasas High boys’ basketball game at Thousand Oaks on Jan. 8, Coleman threw down a ferocious dunk on the reigning Marmonte League most valuable player, Alex Tiffin.

By turning Tiffin into poster fodder, the message was loud and clear.

“We’re here to play and Calabasas is for real,” said Coyote teammate Josh Langer of Coleman’s monumental slam.

Coleman, who shares a name with another high flyer—some guy named Michael Jordan— doesn’t share the Air Jordan moniker. Instead, teammates and coaches call Coleman “J Smoove,” because basketball comes naturally to the soft-spoken senior guard...

Go here for the remainder.

Jordan Coleman with a standout game

Hawaii signee Jordan Coleman just enjoyed a monster game. The 6-foot-4 backcourter/wing is featured in this writeup by Jack Pollon:

It was supposed to be a clash of two heavyweights in a key Marmonte League game boys basketball game between Calabasas and Thousand Oaks on Friday night.

It was supposed to be a tight, hard fought close game. Calabasas put to rest any ideas of that with a dominating 90-77 victory that was not quite as close as the score would indicate.

Jordan Coleman scored 38 points, had four dunks and made 10 of 13 free throws in a spectacular performance to lead Calabasas.

Coleman certainly elevated himself as one of the regions best athletes and players. “I just knew it was going to be a big game in here,” Coleman said. “I wanted to prove I am one of the best players out there and we have one of the best teams.”

Coleman did his part with 23 first half points displaying a wide variety of skills going to the basket, running in transition and shooting from long range...

Here's more love for Hawaii signee Jordan Coleman

Calabasas High's Jordan Coleman has expanded his repertoire, the one he will be taking to Hawaii next season:

Calabasas wins key Marmonte League game
Jack Pollon
InsideSoCal.com
December 18, 2009

The Calabasas boys basketball team officially put the rest of the Marmonte League on notice it wants to win the league championship in an impressive 76-62 victory against Simi Valley in an early season showdown Friday.

Not only did the Coyotes (9-1, 2-0) keep pace with Thousand Oaks but Hawaii-bound guard Jordan Coleman firmly stamped himself as one the best athletes in the region.

Coleman finished with 26 points, including 18 in the first half...

Go here for the remainder.

Hawaii gets a LOI plus a Fresno State note

Player number one for 2009-2010 has signed on with Coach Bob Nash and Hawaii:

UH men's basketball team signs guard from California high school
Honolulu Advertiser

Jordan Coleman, a 6-foot-4, 175-pound guard at Calabasas High in California, has signed a national letter of intent to play for the University of Hawai'i men's baksetball team.

Coleman is currently a senior at Calabasas, and will be eligible as a freshman with the Rainbow Warriors in the 2010-11 season. He averaged 11.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game as a junior at Calabasas last season...

Go here for the remainder.

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Here's Andy Katz/ESPN on Fresno State (and thanks to Roberto I. Montalvo for bringing this to our attention):

10 programs primed to rise this season
Andy Katz
ESPN
November 12, 2009

Here are 10 programs that will jump within their respective conferences after a disappointing 2008-09 season:

...Fresno State
2008-09 season: 3-13 WAC, 13-21 overall

Reason for optimism: Paul George. Can I say it again? Paul George. He is a star and one of the NEXT athletes ESPN has been pushing. The Bulldogs under Steve Cleveland have been all over the place, but there is a sense that things should settle down in a league that doesn't have an intimidating team. Sure, Utah State is the favorite in the WAC, and Nevada has Luke Babbitt, but it's not as if Fresno State can't climb from three wins to at least eight in the league.

What could happen: The Bulldogs should be in the mix, at least in the middle of the pack.

What's likely to happen: Expect Fresno State to affect the WAC race but fall short of a postseason berth.

Dayton Morinaga is all over Hawaii's verbal commit

Dayton Morinaga has everything you might want to know about Hawaii's new commit:

UH gets 6-4 guard
High-jumping California prep player says he'll join basketball team next year
Dayton Morinaga
Honolulu Advertiser
October 5, 2009

Before the start of the 2009-10 season, the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team got a jump on the future with a high-jumping recruit from California

Jordan Coleman, a 6-foot-4 guard at Calabasas High, said yesterday he will join the Rainbow Warriors starting in the 2010-11 season. He will be a senior at Calabasas this season.

"I feel really good about the coaching staff over there at Hawai'i," Coleman said. "They really made me feel like they wanted me, and the situation felt right, so I decided I want to go there."

Coleman averaged 11.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game as a junior at Calabasas last season. His statistics are expected to improve this season, when he will become one of the showcase players on the team...

Go here for the remainder.

Hawaii gets a commit

Scout's Evan Daniels is reporting that Calabasas High shooting guard and strong defender Jordan Coleman has given a verbal to Coach Bob Nash and Hawaii.

From the MaxPreps site, Coleman averaged 11.9 points per game last season, shooting 99-179 from two-point range and 12-40 from long distance last season. He grabbed 4.7 boards a contest, split evenly at 50 offensive and 59 defensive.

Coleman was a third-team, all-league selection in the Marmonte League in 2008-2009. He previously played at Granada Hills High.

A September 18 Twitter post at the apparent Team Eleate site offered this and the latest entry confirms the Coleman-Hawaii commit:

"San Francisco was in the gym the other night checkin out 6-4 sleeper Jordan Coleman we thinkin a yr at westwind wouldnt be bad."

Hey, there's a Jordan Coleman Fan Club on Facebook if you care to join up.