bwba report

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SoCalHoops Recruiting News

BWBA: Matt Jameson To Miami (OH),
Other Players At Academy--(Aug. 31, 1999)

About a week ago, we put up some miscellaneous notes about players we were catching up on whom we had lost track of during the summer. In our efforts to be as complete as possible, we missed a couple, but since it's never too late, here's what we know: Matt Jameson (6'-1" Fr. PG) who graduated from Newport Harbor High this past June without a scholarship offer (he was the subject of a very nice article in the Daily Pilot and here at SoCalHoops), played for Bob Gottlieb this summer and worked out in the Branch West Basketball Academy as well, and as a result, he caught the eye of several college coaches, including the coaches at Miami of Ohio, who offered him a full ride. Matt will enroll this fall at Miami (OH) and play on a full basketball scholarship.

And speaking of Gottlieb and the BWBA, this past Sunday we had the opportunity to visit with Bob and watch his Academy workout at Anaheim High School. There were about 30 guys in attendance, and for those interested in participating or checking it out, especially during the lull during the fall period, BWBA and Gottlieb hold court every Sunday evening at 6:00 p.m. at Anaheim High School (which is located just off the 5 Freeway in Anaheim off the Lincoln Blvd. offramp. The school is on Lincoln, so just head east after exiting the freeway and look to your left). No matter what you might think of Gottlieb's antics on the court during tournaments (recall the infamous duelling "timeouts" during the last Pump Shootout where he and Dave Goosen of Pump N Run both attempted to let the other run the clock out by calling time-outs. . . with a running clock), he's a solid coach with tremendous contacts throughout Division I, II and III circles and has helped place countless players with top quality programs. And Bob comes by it honestly, having been a former high school coach, a D-I coach, and the personal coach and trainer for his own son, Doug, who plays point for Oklahoma State where he led the NCAA last season in assists. . . Now, if only Doug could develop a shot, he might have a future in the NBA. . . :-)

The Branch West Academy has had some really solid players in attendance lately, and if you've never seen one of Gottlieb's skills workouts, you'll want to check it out. This past week we saw, among others, Harrison Schaen (6'-8" Fr. PF) of Mater Dei, and Sean Phaler (6'-8" So. PF) from Villa Park, two of Orange County's most promising young big guys. Harrison played this summer with his Mater Dei team and also had some stints for SCA at the AAU Nationals and he also played a game or two with the Pump N Run Black team. Harrison most recently played at the National Maccabi Games for the Orange County team which took the silver medal; Harrison's former Maccabi and ARC teammate, David Gale (5'-11" So. PG) from Buckley was also in attendance this past weekend with Harrison, and both have been invited to play with BWBA I in the Long Beach Fall Hoops Classic Tournament September 10-12 at Long Beach City College. Also in attendance Sunday was Marcus Crane (6'-4" Jr. SG/SF) who transferred from Artesia to Oceanview. Marcus looked great on Sunday, agile, mobile and slashing to the hole, shooting very well, and he's looking forward to getting started at Oceanview this season. Gottlieb also told us that in addition to Schaen, Phaler and Crane, he'll have Ryan Wilbur (6'-4" Sr. F) from Brea Olinda, Ryan Moore, and a couple of top players from out of state (including one of the top young prospects from Florida), as well as former Pump N Run I team member Heath Bailey (6'-11" Sr. PF/C) from Oregon, will play for BWBA I in Long Beach. Heath petitioned the Oregon high school athletic powers- that-be for an extra year of high school eligibility, but was apparently denied the extra year (he repeated the ninth grade after a disatrous start in Hawaii before moving to Oregon). No word on whether he'll stay at his local high school and just continue to work out without playing, or transfer to a prep school. We're betting that he'll stay at home, work on his game and the weights, and treat the year as a sort of "redshirt" senior year, which will enable him to gain the needed strength for college.

Players travel from all over to come to the BWBA Academy sessions. This past week several players came from as far away as Lancaster, including Matthew Nurse (5'-11" Sr. PG) from Antelope Valley Christian and Peter Beaudin (6'-7" Sr. PF) and several others. Based on what we saw of them, the High Desert area is also going to be tough again in D-V.

The Branch West Academy will take a week off this weekend for the Labor Day holiday, but will be back again the following Sunday (provided BWBA isn't in the finals at the Long Beach Fall Hoops Classic). Again, come down and check it out at Anaheim High School from about 6:00-8:30 p.m.