Here's some news of interest...

The Charleston Daily Mail Wrote:Hargrave's Braswell could be Hoyas' loss and WVU's gain
By Mike Casazza
Daily Mail sportswriter
July 16, 2008

MORGANTOWN -- Twenty-one months ago, which is a veritable eternity in the world of college basketball recruiting, Chris Braswell was committed to the Georgetown Hoyas and planned to star in the Big East Conference near his home in Fort Washington, Md.

Now the 6-foot-8, 230-pound forward is one of the top players available players in the 2009 recruiting class.

In between, Braswell left famed DeMatha High and its pedigree of professional players after his junior year and enrolled in a preparatory school so that he could improve his grades and test scores and insure he'd get into Georgetown.

In the spring, he discovered he'd need a second year at Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy to complete his coursework. Earlier this month, the player and the school agreed to reopen Braswell's recruitment.

It was a departure from today's recruiting norm, where it's often thought that the sooner someone commits, the better it is for his future.

West Virginia University Coach Bob Huggins has two 2010 commitments and none for 2009 -- although that might change because Braswell is back in play and back to thinking about the Mountaineers.

"A lot can happen between now and then and I want to look at other schools and weigh my options, but Georgetown is still on my list," Braswell said after helping his AAU team, Triple Threat, to an easy victory in the Jam Fest on Tuesday at University High. "It's my career and my education and I know it's a gamble, but whatever school I go to, I want to make sure I get an education and I'm successful at basketball."

Braswell's AAU coach, Keith Stevens, discussed options with Braswell and his mother and grandmother, as well as with Georgetown. Braswell was initially considered a 2008 prospect -- Rivals.com ranked him No. 84 overall and No. 26 among power forwards -- when he committed to the Hoyas in October 2006.

The delay encouraged everyone to step back and realize not only that Georgetown might have to go in another direction, but that Braswell might want to do that, too.

Stevens said Braswell couldn't sign a National Letter of Intent until the upcoming spring, which could have put him and the Hoyas in a bind.

"He didn't want to be in a situation where Georgetown decided they didn't want to wait to sign him and gave his scholarship to someone else," Stevens said. "He wanted to leave all his options open and not close any doors because he didn't want to get caught in a situation when he had no other options."

Countless colleges called Stevens as soon as Braswell and Georgetown agreed to the mutual split. He had 24 messages within 18 hours and one of the first to reach out was WVU. Huggins had been after Braswell before he committed to the Hoyas.

"I talked to Coach Stevens, and Coach Stevens told me that they (WVU) were trying to recruit me hard again," Braswell said. "I remembered they'd recruited me before and I liked what they had. I think it's a great basketball school and a great school. I'm open to everybody, any college. I'm not going to back away from any opportunity right now."

There are a number of things connecting WVU and Braswell, who averaged 20 points and 12 rebounds as Hargrave went 29-0 and won the prep school national championship this past season. Davis blocked a potential game-tying basket at the buzzer to preserve the two-point title game victory.

He played at Hargrave with Roscoe Davis, the 6-10 WVU recruit who is still trying to gain his eligibility for the coming season. He also knows WVU sophomore forward John Flowers as a friend and opponent from back home in Maryland.

When Braswell was at DeMatha, Flowers, from the Washington D.C., suburb of Waldorf, Md., was at St. Mary's Ryken in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference.

Stevens said WVU assistants Larry Harrison and Billy Hahn have been in contact.

"I think West Virginia would benefit because he'd got such great talent and size, but also because he's a great person," Stevens said. "I also think he'd benefit from being at West Virginia. Coach Huggins is known for getting his guys to work hard and to focus on individual skill development."

The Mountaineers aren't a lock and it's premature to even say they're among the leaders for Braswell's services, although he is interested and impressed by the past two recruiting classes.

Of the 20 or so serious offers, WVU and the Hoyas are competing with Pitt, Syracuse, Connecticut, Villanova, Xavier, Charlotte, Virginia Tech, Virginia, Indiana, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.

"Anything can happen," he said. "(Georgetown) might give my scholarship away, but there are other schools -- not only Georgetown -- on my mind now and I know there are a lot of schools that may want me."

Braswell spotted Virginia Tech, Xavier, Villanova, Charlotte and West Virginia watching him on the first two days of the Jam Fest. Pitt arrived Tuesday afternoon. The attention and the need to validate it are the major components to his gamble.

"It shouldn't be a distraction, but I think it is at times," Stevens said. "It's different playing when you know where you're going. When you know where you'll be playing, it's a lot easier than it is when you're worrying about it."

"I think he's a little too tense sometimes and needs to just relax a little. I tell him there's no need to be so tense about it. At least he knows people want him, which is better than playing when nobody wants you."

Contact sportswriter Mike Casazza at mikec@dailymail.com or (304) 319-1142.

If Huggins can convince Braswell to come to Morgantown, it would be a great start for WVU's 2009 recruiting effort. It sounds like he still prefers Georgetown though. We'll see what happens soon enough.

bitcruncher Wrote:If Huggins can convince Braswell to come to Morgantown, it would be a great start for WVU's 2009 recruiting effort. It sounds like he still prefers Georgetown though. We'll see what happens soon enough.

Georgetown has five of its 11 players in 2008 6-8 and over, and 6-11 DeShonte Riley arrives in 2009. Braswell may well be looking elsewhere.

If there's no scholarship for him, we'll be glad to take him off y'all's hands. Now all Huggy needs to do is sign him.