D1 CRAB(S) BUFFET!
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04
Jan
Every week RCS Sports provides you with a D1 College Freshmen Report (posted in VIP NEWS) that includes games played, and minutes, points, rebounds, and assists per game. This provides a great snapshot of how these Freshmen are faring during the three sections of a college basketball year - non-conference, conference and post season tournaments. As many Division 1 teams are beginning conference play, this is a good time to look at how the Freshmen in the class of 2022 are faring.
RCS provided its first report on November 14th when most teams had played just a few games. The report features 36 Freshmen, including some players who redshirted the 2021-2022 season and are still considered Freshmen for this season. At that time (Nov. 14th), only a dozen freshmen saw any playing time to start the season.
As we look through January 2nd, we see that only 15 Freshmen have played in a majority of the games this season - approximately 40%. It should be noted that 5 of these players; Brian Gordon, Charles Chukwu, DJ Richards, PJ Neal, and Shaun Walker, graduated in the Class of 2021 and either did a post grad year (DJ Richards), or already took a college redshirt year.
RED-SHIRT OR NOT?
There are 12 players who have played four games or less making them eligible to count this season as a redshirt year - approximately 33%.
The remaining 9 players have played at least 5 games, but have not touched the floor during the past two weeks.
Bryson Burns - DRAKE 5 games
Cam Amboree - ORAL ROBERTS 7 games
Dubem Muoneke - ABILENE CHRISTIAN 7 games
Chandler Pigge - HARVARD 5 games
Jackson Peakes - RICE 5 games
Jake Arnold - HCU 6 games
PJ Haggerty - TCU 6 games
Shawn Jones Jr - MISSISSIPPI STATE 6 games
Trey Harris - LAMAR 7 games
HICKS SIX!
Of the ten (10) Class of 2022 high school graduates who are playing a majority of the games, only 6 players (16%) have played an average of 10 minutes per game. RCS does not typically report in detail on college players but I think the information below will help as high school parents and players navigate recruitment. The article "Transfer Portal" as published in “Da Magazine”, provides plenty of statistics and details about recent Greater Houston players. (By the way, you can still get a copy of “Da Magazine” - scroll down the homepage).
RCS highlights and congratulates the following 6 players for navigating a regular spot playing significant minutes as a freshman. As you can see, players who went high and low, who committed early and late, who are short and tall, are all having success.
Amaree Abram (Ole Miss) has burst on the scene as a standout freshman for the Rebels. In high school, Abram played for Port Arthur Memorial and Summer Creek while starring with the Nike EYBL Houston Hoops during the grassroots season. Abram originally committed to Texas A&M in August 2021 as he transferred to a prep school in California for his senior year. Then, he decommitted in November 2021 and finalized his commitment to Ole Miss on March 6, 2022.
Austin Benigni (Navy) attended Woodlands Christian and played his 17U season with Nike EYBL Houston Hoops. He committed to the Navy Academy in the fall of his senior year. In college, he saw his minutes increase immediately and has started the last few games. This lets us know he approached college basketball with the same extreme work ethic that marked him as special in high school. He is averaging 7.4 points per game on 50% shooting from the field.
Brody Robinson (Chattanooga) originally intended to reclass into 2024 by attending a prep school. To that end, he played in the scholastic live period and finished the July live period in 2022 with Under Armour sponsored Houston Defenders. Immediately afterwards, Robinson was able to commit and reclass back into 2022.
Chas Kelley (Boston) attended Cy Creek HS before announcing in June 2020 that he was going to a prep school and reclassing in light of the uncertainties surrounding Covid-19. He was able to play an extra summer with Nike EYBL Team Durant on the East Coast before committing in September 2021.
Jackson Fields (Troy State) attended Elkins where he starred in both football and hoops. In Fall of 2021 mid season, he decided to hang up the shoulder pads and focus solely on accomplishing his short term dream of playing D1 basketball. He turned heads during the Spring 2022 live period with independent grassroots team, Houston Superstars Elite as an unsigned senior. In May 2022, Fields accepted and offer from Troy State, and immediately shut down his summer ball stint before jumping right into college summer conditioning.
Trey Miller (Incarnate Word) started all but the first game and is averaging 30.5mpg. He was one of the last signees in the 2022 class, signing on May 25, 2022. However, he found a perfect fit in Incarnate Word and has been given the opportunity to run their offense. He has had a couple of high scoring games but he makes his impact nightly on the defensive end. Miller starred at Concordia Lutheran HS and Cooz Elite during the grassroots season.
CHECK OUT this week's D1 COLLEGE FRESHMEN REPORT (posted in VIP NEWS - only $2.50/monthly)
