For the third consecutive year since the inception of the Scotland Campus Basketball program, the Knights have earned a berth in the Prep National Championships in Connecticut.
The 38-3 Knights, currently the no.5 ranked team in the country, were listed among the traditionally powerful prep/postgraduate programs to qualify for the national tournament on Monday night, as they join the likes of Brewster Academy (NH), Putnam Science (CT), IMG Academy (FL), DME Academy (FL), Spire Institute (Oh.), Northfield Mount Hermon (MA), and Hargrave Military Academy (VA), among others.
One of the most intriguing opportunities that comes with playing in an event of the Prep national tournament’s magnitude is the exposure. A barrage of Division-I coaches will be spread out throughout the stands and the big stage environment acts as a proving ground for myriad unsigned players.
Last year, as Scotland Campus defeated Putnam Science in the semifinal before losing to Brewster Academy in the final, underrated prospects such as 6-foot-5 guard Akrum Ahemed (now at Canisius) and Dequarius Nicholas (now at SEMO) were inundated with Division-1 offers after arriving at the event with nary a single D-I offer on the table.
Scotland again has some unsung pieces that could raise their recruitment profile with this year’s event. Quickly rising in stock has been 6-foot-3 Class of 2020 point guard Jaeden Zackery, who catalyzed the Knights with 13 first-half points en route to a thorough 101-69 throttling of The Patrick School (NJ) in the championship of the GAC conference tournament. Zackery has been a consistent source for the Knights, impacting the game through his scoring, dishing, rebounding, defense, and even his ability to lay out and take the charge.
With his emergence as a facilitator who can really finish through contact, Zackery has recently earned an offer from Coppin State. Other Division-I programs such as Loyola-Chicago and Wagner are now expressing interest in the well-built guard, who could find himself sifting through more scholarship offers with a convincing performance in Connecticut.
Terell Strickland, another high-caliber guard who has had several games of 20+ points and six or more assists in the last several weeks, is another quickly-rising prospect. Strickland has offers from Bradley, Austin Peay, Tennesse Tech but has garnered numerous potential suitors with his play as of late. He scored 22 points, knocking back 8-for-9 from the free throw line, to spearhead Scotland to an 88-75 a road win over Mt. Zion (MD).
The Knights will look to continue to ride the hot hand of 6-foot-7 sharpshooter Jayson Woodrich, who scored 22 points in the aformentioned drubbing of The Patrick School.
A native of Beachwood, Ohio, the Class of 2020 Woodrich has been a revelation as a shot-maker.
He’s fired in six 3-pointers or more in 10 games this season and averaged 27 PPG during the prestigious Prep National Showcase back in November.
While he holds offers from St. Louis, Cleveland State, Fairfield, Stony Brook and others, a lights out shooting performance on this monumental stage could ultimately draw more offers for Woodrich.
Naysean Baisy, a 6-foot-3 guard of out Seattle, is another guy who could potentially bolster his stock in the national championships. A witty point guard who has had multiple games of six assists or more, Baisy has shown ambidextrous finishing ability and has provided a scoring punch and spark on both ends of the floor off the bench.
While he was recently offered by one of the best junior colleges in the country in national power Southeastern (Iowa), Baisy could be a tremendous late pickup for a team looking to fill a void in the backcourt.
NEWMAN Offers Santiago
Newman University is the latest program to offer bullish 6-foot-5 guard/forward Angelo Santiago, who has authored a breakout prep year after coming in without the same high profile status as other coveted recruits in the program. Santiago, from basketball tradition-rich Peekskill, N.Y. originally, has been a revelation as a multi-positional scoring threat who can bulldoze his way to the rim and get a bucket and hit the outside shot with consistency.
With him being left-handed and also possessing a vastly improved vertical explosive ability, several programs have been vying for the under the radar talent.
Newman, a Division-II program in South Carolina, along with Clarion (Pa.) have each offered Santiago. One program intrigued with Santiago’s potential and the matchup difficulties he creates is Southern Connecticut State University, a Division-II power coached by former NBA player and UConn star Scott Burrell.
Flushed into a prominent bench role on the Knights’ national team, which will compete in the highly anticipated Prep National Championships on March 10, Santiago is well versed in just how vital depth is to this program. In Scotland’s ascension to a first ever national title game berth last season, guys like German Kasanzi provided quality minutes and hit timely shots.
