However, the prep school landscape differs from that of traditional high schools.
The schools are most commonly a place for post-graduates or fifth-year players who end up at one of them for any of a number of reasons, most commonly either to improve their standardized test scores and core course grades needed by the NCAA Clearinghouse for them to qualify or for more exposure in hopes of landing at a higher-level college. Post-graduates have already earned their high school diplomas, while fifth-year players are repeating or have already repeated a year and have lost eligibility at the high school athletics level.
This weekend’s event will also feature several Class of 2010 players who played in the prep ranks as underclassmen and who are back this season. Players like Coleman who played on last year’s National Prep Champion squad at Tilton School, N.H., and is signed with Providence.
Others who have signed include Austin Carroll (Brewster Academy, N.H./Rutgers), Melvin Ejim (Brewster Academy, N.H./Iowa State), Matt Brown (Northfield Mount Hermon, Mass./Harvard) and Laurent Rivard (Northfield Mount Hermon, Mass./Harvard), Hector Harold (Northfield Mount Hermon, Mass./Pepperdine), Evan Smotrycz (New Hampton Prep, N.H./Michigan), Dartaye Ruffin (New Hampton Prep, N.H./Drexel), Eric Ferguson (Winchendon School, Mass./Georgia State) and Max Esho (Lee Academy, Maine/UMass). See entire list below.
New to the scene and in action this weekend are: Barton (Brewster Academy, N.H./Memphis), Epps (Hargrave Military Academy, Va./Pitt), Ferguson (Hargrave Military Academy, Va./Florida International), Lorenzo Brown (Hargrave Military Academy, Va./North Carolina State), Mardracus Wade (Hargrave Military Academy, Va./Arkansas), Shawn Kemp (Hargrave Military Academy, Va./Auburn, Cleveland Melvin (Notre Dame Prep, Mass./Connecticut), Antonio Barton (Notre Dame Prep, Mass./Memphis), C.J. Fair (Brewster Academy, N.H./Syracuse), Markus Kennedy (Winchendon School, Mass./Villanova), J.J. Moore (South Kent School, Conn./Pitt), Russ Smith (South Kent School, Conn./Louisville), Brady Heslip (New Hampton Prep, N.H./Boston College) and Bill Baron (Worcester Academy, Mass./Rhode Island).
Others nationally ranked in prep schools include MaxPreps’ No. 22 Dwight Powell (IMG Academy, Fla./Stanford), No. 78 Jason Morris (Hotchkiss School, Conn./Georgia Tech) and No. 97 Nate Lubick (St. Mark’s, Mass./Georgetown).
Over the years, we’ve even seen more and more top underclassmen head the prep route as well, where they have the opportunity to face stiffer competition that the prep school level provides and are typically getting away from a poor academic environment at home or other distractions.
From the Class of 2011, Michael Carter-Williams (St. Andrew’s, R.I.) is one of the few to have already made a college commitment, that being to Syracuse. Naadir Tharpe (Brewster Academy, N.H.), Angel Nunez (Winchendon School, Mass.), Shaquille Thomas (NIA Prep, N.J.) and Aaron Cosby (Northfield Mount Hermon, Mass.) all have wide Division I interest.
In the 2012 class, Andre Drummond (St. Thomas More, Conn.) is considered one of the top prospects across the country and Richard Peters (Brewster Academy, N.H.) is another early pledge having committed to Oklahoma. Khem Birch (Winchendon School, Mass.) is also on the eyes of top programs after being one of the few younger players to attend this past summer’s Reebok All-American Camp.
The majority of the top prep school teams play in the New England Prep School Athletic Conference (NEPSAC). The NEPSAC is deep every year, with starting lineups always featuring D-1 talent and the bench often also having scholarship-worthy players.
There are four classes – A, B, C and D - with the majority of top players on the Class A teams. Each class has a postseason playoff with eight teams battling to win the league. Bridgton Academy of Maine has won four of the last five Class A championships.
Notable alums currently active in the NBA include Caron Butler (Maine Central Institute/Connecticut/Washington Wizards), Francisco Garcia (Winchendon School/Louisville/Sacramento Kings), Jarrett Jack (Worcester Academy/Georgia Tech/Toronto Raptors) and Craig Smith (Worcester Academy/Boston College/Los Angeles Clippers).
Traditional powers outside the NEPSAC include Hargrave Military Academy of Virginia and Notre Dame Prep of Massachusetts. Hargrave won the 2007-08 National Prep Championship while Notre Dame Prep won the crown in the event’s inaugural season of 2006-07 and previously finished first in the National Prep Poll in 2005.
Notable active pros from Hargrave include Josh Howard (Dallas Mavericks/Wake Forest), David West (New Orleans Hornets/Xavier), Marreese Speights (Philadelphia 76ers/Florida), Joe Alexander (Milwaukee Bucks/West Virginia) and Sam Young (Memphis Grizzlies/Pitt), while Notre Dame Prep has produced Mike Beasley (Miami Heat/Kansas State) and Ryan Gomes (Minnesota Timberwolves/Providence).
Some schools across the country have added post-graduate teams to their athletic programs in recent years, with the likes of Tyreke Evans (American Christian School, Pa./Memphis/Sacramento Kings) and DeAndre Jordan (Christian Life Center, Texas/Texas A&M/Los Angeles Clippers) being a product of such.
Other preps-to-pros who bypassed college include J.R. Smith (St. Benedict’s Prep, N.J./Denver Nuggets), Dorell Wright (South Kent Prep, Conn./Miami Heat) and Andray Blatche (South Kent Prep, Conn./Washington Wizards).
Hargrave, Notre Dame, and a majority of these schools play college junior varsity teams and other independent schools in their area. Notre Dame plays a majority of the NEPSAC schools, being that they are in the Northeast, while Hargrave gets their crack at the NEPSAC teams when they head up for the top tournaments.
The madness of the prep school season starts in September with open gyms that draw tons of college coaches looking for talent knowing that the prep schools offer the opportunity to see several more prospects in one setting than that of a typical high school fall work out would have.
During the regular season, two tournaments have become the definitive spots to catch the best showcasing of the top prep teams. With the Fall National Letter of Intent Signing Period having passed, college coaches come out en masse to both in hopes of spotting a player they can sign for the Late Signing Period in May.
In this decade, what’s been considered the season tip-off tournament in November has bounced around from Delaware with what was once the War on the Shore in 2003 and 2004, then a brief stop in New Jersey in 2005, and back up to the traditional prep school backyard of New England with it making stops in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and now Connecticut.
The annual February National Prep School Invitational enters its 12th year and can be relied on for always having unique matchups with those non-New England schools coming in to face the traditional powers.
Recent MVPs of the event have included Andrew Fitzgerald (Brewster Academy, N.H./Oklahoma) in 2009, Jorge Gutierrez (Findlay Prep, Nev./Cal) in 2008, Beasley in 2007, Co-MVPs in 2006 Paul Harris (Syracuse) and Lazar Hayward (Marquette) both of Notre Dame Prep, and NBA players Shawne Williams in 2005 (Laurinburg Institute, N.C./Memphis/Dallas Mavericks) and Wright in 2004.
And finally, we’ve recently had the aforementioned National Prep Championship postseason tournament added that gives the prep ranks something to play for rather than a ‘mythical’ national championship that the high school level plays for year in and year out. The Tilton School of New Hampshire captured the championship this past year led by UConn-bound teammates Jamal Coombs-McDaniel and Alex Oriakhi.
This weekend, it’s another year for memories to be made.
NATIONAL PREP SHOWCASE SCHEDULE, Friday-Sunday
(Albertus Magnus College, New Haven, Conn.)
Friday
Noon St. Thomas More School (Conn.) vs. Lee Academy (Maine)
1:45 p.m. Notre Dame Prep (Mass.) vs. Hargrave Military Academy (Va.)
3:15 p.m. South Kent School (Conn.) vs. Mack Academy (N.C.)
5:00 p.m. Winchendon School (Mass.) vs. Massanutten Military Academy (Va.)
6:30 p.m. Proctor Academy (N.H.) vs. Wilbraham & Monson Academy (Mass.)
8:00 p.m. Northfield Mount Hermon (Mass.) vs. Fork Union Military Academy (Va)
Saturday
9:00 a.m. Lee Academy (Maine) vs. Massanutten Military Academy (Va.)
10:45 a.m. St. Thomas More (Conn.) vs. Fork Union Military Academy (Va.)
12:30 p.m. Bridgton Academy (Maine) vs. Hargrave Military Academy (Va.)
2:15 p.m. Winchendon School (Maine) vs. Mack Academy (N.C.)
4:00 p.m. New Hampton School (N.H.) vs. NIA Prep (N.J.)
5:45 p.m. Notre Dame Prep (Mass.) vs. Champlain St. Lambert (Canada)
7:30 p.m. Brewster Academy (N.H.) vs. Worcester Academy (Mass.)
9:00 p.m. Maine Central Institute (Maine) vs. Kiski School (Pa.)
Sunday
10:00 a.m. Brewster Academy (N.H.) vs. NIA Prep (N.J.)
11:45 a.m. Bridgton Academy (Maine) vs. Tilton School (N.H.)
1:30 p.m. Northfield Mount Hermon (Mass.) vs. Maine Central Institute (Maine)
3:15 p.m. South Kent School (Conn.) vs. Champlain St. Lambert (Canada)
5:00 p.m. New Hampton School (N.H.) vs. Kiski School (Pa.)
6:30 p.m. St. Andrew’s School (R.I.) vs. Blair Academy (N.J.)
