CIS Hoops.ca

Windsor Lancers have announced a pair of new recruits for next season confirming a long-anticipated committment from 6'4" Isaac Kuon (pictured), originally from Mississauga Father Goetz who spent last season at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colorado with the Plainsmen, averaging 2.7 ppg. Kuon, a big, growing (175 lbs.) guard who should push for floor time immediately, will be in his 2nd of eligibility having played at Northeastern just one year. As well, the Lancers welcome 6'2" Allan Cattrysse, who returns to Canada after transfering from Michigan State where he played baseball. Cattrysse, a high school teammate of Lancers all-star Kevin Kloostra at Chatham John McGregor H.S., was highly-regarded as a basketball player coming out of high school but chose to take a baseball scholarship with the Spartans in East Lansing, MI. According to CIS rules, Cattrysse has all five years of elgibility remaining because baseball is a non-OUA/CIS sport however with an undergraduate degree already in hand and a desire to go to teacher's college, expect Cattrysse to probably play only a couple of seasons for the Lancers. The Lancers may or may not have one more recruiting announcement in the coming weeks.

The Varsity Blues have added 6'4" Odane Harding, a combination forward who originally attended Scarborough Jean Vanier before extending his prep career with Toronto Area Preparatory School. Harding then moved on to Lewis (Illinois) University for the latter half of 2004-05 before transfering back to the OCAA's Centennial Colts, where he was a two-time OCAA East Region First Team all-star, averaging about 18 ppg during his two-year career. Harding brings the ability to slash to the rim and get on the offensive glass as key attributes and should help the Blues immediately offset the loss of swingman Ben Katz. U of T is also likely to bring in 6'2" Daniel Simavic a "two" guard from Australia where Blues assistant Andrew Sommerville coached him.

On another Blues related note, U of T assistant Jama Mahlalela is co-founder of Concrete Hoops Basketball Camps, a Toronto inter-city basketball camp at College and Euclid in Toronto. As well, Mahlalela, who grew up in Swaziland, and Blues graduating swingman Ben Katz got together to lead a series of international exchange camps between Toronto and Swaziland, the African country where Jama hails from. The work focuses on engaging youth in sport and AIDS prevention. Jama played his high school basketball at Toronto's Oakwood Collegiate before moving on to a fine career with the UBC Thunderbirds of Canada West. Congratulations on these excellent charitable community initiatives! Here are a set of on-line articles from dose.ca on the camps with some background on the conditions faced by citizens of Swaziland The Concrete Hoop Diaries