CIS Hoops.ca

In what has become an ongoing legacy at Laval, Head Coach Jacques Paiement Jr. continues to add high-level Quebec-based talent to his Rouge et Or program. This season is no different as Laval brings at least three top recruits with Quebec roots however Paiement also reached beyond the provincial borders to snag a pair of experienced international players. Most noteable from Quebec is 6'4" Hughes Ryan from Montmorency CEGEP, where he earned 1st Team All-Star status in the Quebec colleges league last season. Ryan can stroke the ball and brings a wide ranging skill set. Joining Ryan from the CEGEP ranks is 6'0" lead guard Olivier Lefebvre who was one of the top players on Ste-Foy CEGEP provincial championship team last season. Another Quebec native, 6'5" Alex Prophete, a tremendous athlete who played for Paiement Jr. at Ste. Foy before embarking on a post-CEGEP career that included time with the ABA's Quebec City Kebs, comes off a redshirt year last season and will add experience up front especially on the glass. Laval was able to attract a pair of quality foreign players including 6'3" Marvin Vebobe, a native of France who spent two seasons at INSEP (France's equivalent to Canada's now-cancelled NEDA program). As well, Laval gets 6'6" Jihad Murr, a native of Lebanon who played in the Lebanese professional league. Murr is pursuing a Master degree at Laval. Paiement expects his entire rotation from last season to return with the likely exception of underrated 6'5" post F.O. Gagnon-Hebert, who has graduated from his undergraduate program and plans to focus on his academics as he pursues a Masters degree in Biology... New uOttawa Head Coach James Derouin starts his new position very late in the current recruiting season however the cupboard is hardly bare with the Gee-Gees, led by 6'5" third-year wing Warren Ward, one of the better returning pure scorers in the CIS. The Gee-Gees also welcome back 6'2" third-year guard Jacob Gibson-Bascombe, who sat out last season to get his academics in order and, given the losses to graduation the Gee-Gees experienced, is likely to step into a starting role in the backcourt. Another returning starter is 6'7" Louis Gauthier while Ottawa's stable of freshmen from last season 6'3" Ryan Malcolm-Campbell, 6'3" Kamesh Edwards and 6'3" Akeem Gardner are expected to play more prominent roles in the rotation. Ottawa's top recruit is likely 6'5" Gabe Gonthier-Dubue, probably the first true potential impact player to play for Ottawa from the Next Level program started by former Gee-Gees Head Coach Dave DeAveiro. According to Derouin, Gonthier-Dubue will be given every opportunity to nab a starting spot up front with his prototypical CIS "4" man frame and solid skill set. Another early commit who stayed on with Derouin is 6'3" Chris Anderson from Toronto (Mount Carmel H.S.), a tough, athletic wing with a football-type body who should be a nice complement to Ward on the wing. The Gee-Gees are also in hot pursuit of Anthony Ashe, an Ottawa native and nephew of Gee-Gees alumnus Rob Ashe, who decided to transfer from Carleton after spending his first two seasons as a Raven. Apparently, Ashe is also considering St. FX and Acadia after making visits out east recently. Derouin, who makes his official Gee-Gees head coaching debut on Sunday of Labour Day weekend when Ottawa hosts Cincinnati Bearcats (NCAA Division 1 Big East conference), hopes to bring in more talent by the time September rolls around. Derouin also announced that this season's Jack Donohue Memorial tournament will include U of T Varsity Blues, St. FX X-Men and UQAM Citadins... Missing the OUA West playoffs for the first time in his stellar coaching career clearly has not sat well with competitive Guelph Gryphon Head Coach Chris O'Rourke as the Gryphons will bring in a large stable of talent including a number of rotation-ready players in September headlined by 6'0" point guard Kareem Malcolm. Originally from Brampton Campion, Malcolm spent his first two post-secondary seasons at Sheridan College with the Bruins where he averaged 19 points per game last season and was a 1st Team OCAA West All-Star. Malcolm, another in the long line of Bruins under Jim Flack to move on to Guelph, should be an immediate starter and 30+ minutes per game star in the Gryphs backcourt. Guelph adds another probable starter in 6'8" Kevin Cameron, once a highly-touted recruit out of Fergus, ON who sat out last season after transfering from defending OUA West champions Windsor Lancers. Cameron has three years of eligibility remaining. Another transfer who will sit out this season but promises to be a rotation mainstay is 6'1" Zach Angus, a transfer from Western who played high school basketball at St. Mary's High School in Hamilton. Angus, a prototype lead guard, won the junior OBA provincial gold medal in 2008 and the bronze in 2009 with Hamilton Blessed Sacrament. O'Rourke added another athletic guard directly out of high school by bringing in 6'0" Youri Mutamba from St. Catharines Denis Morris, a first team All-Niagara selection. Another experienced big man is 6'5" Jerald Greenidge, a native of Brampton (North Park C.I.) who has post-secondary experience at Sheridan College and Cegep du Champlain College, where he was league all-star and team MVP. 6'9" Duncan Reid also returns to Guelph after sitting out a couple of seasons. Three other recruits out of high school who will look to compete for spots include 6'7" forward Andrew Beney from Bluevale Secondary School in Waterloo plus a pair of potential zone-busting shooters: 6'0" George Mason from Toronto St. Michael's Blue Raiders and Michel Clark, a Halton All-Star from Burlington Nelson. Look for a revamped Guelph roster that will look to continue the Gryphon tradition of stopping teams and creating easy scoring opportunities from their pressure "d".