Las Vegas Day 2: Ross working on redemption at Super 64

NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A year ago at this time, LaQuinton Ross looked like a burned out basketball prodigy.

Once considered the top 2011 talent in America, the 6-foot-8 Mississippian has seen his game dissected and downgraded consistently over the past two years.

"I got hurt at the beginning of last summer and hurt my ankle real bad," Ross said. "I didn't have a good summer.

"You have to hear people criticize your game when they really don't know what is going on. They didn't know it was an ankle injury. I don't like to make excuses but that's what was going on."

Friday at the adidas Super 64, Ross made a strong case for a return to elite status in the rising senior class. In the morning, he scored 18 points and controlled the action as a point-forward in an 83-55 blowout win over the Michigan Mustangs. It got even better in the evening as he served up 26 points against Adonis Thomas and the Memphis Magic.

A native of Jackson, Miss., but student and player at Life Center Academy in New Jersey, Ross did it all at Rancho High School on Friday. His ball-handling and shot looked much-improved. He drove-and-dished the Mustangs to death. He is more mature and playing with a purpose. Basketball is fun again.

"I'm back this summer," Ross said. "I started off good this summer and am going to finish off good this summer."

Recruiting-wise, things are still wide open but he did mention four schools that have been on his mind lately.

"Ohio State has been on me really hard. Maryland, West Virginia, Baylor have been in there, too," Ross said. "I'll probably narrow it down at the end of the summer to my top five."

DC Assault's World Champion

Quinn Cook was a member of the United States' under-17 team that captured gold at the FIBA World Championship in Germany earlier this month. The 6-0 guard is running the show for DC Assault and will head to Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) in the fall after earning Washington, D.C. player of the year honors at DeMatha last season.

Needless to say, Cook is looking forward to a break.

"I'm very tired. I want to take a vacation but I can't," Cook said. "This is the price that comes with being a top athlete."

Cook, MaxPreps.com's No. 10 prospect in the class of 2011, was among the assist leaders at the World Championship as the USA roared to an 8-0 record in the event with seven wins coming by 20 or more points.

"Just to put on the USA jersey is self-explanatory," Cook said. "We worked extremely hard. It felt great to represent the country and win those games."

Following the Super 64, Cook will prepare for life with legendary head coach Steve Smith at Oak Hill. He is part of an incoming group at the Virginia power that could wind up ranked No. 1 nationally in the preseason.

"I felt it will help me get ready for college on and off the court," Cook said. "I did everything in the city I could do. The only thing that I haven't done is win a national championship and with the guys we have coming in next year hopefully we can get that done."

Former DC Assault star and current Duke guard Nolan Smith was on hand Friday at Rancho to support Cook and his teammates. They have forged a close relationship.

"That is my godbrother," Cook said. "He is my best friend. He is my big brother."

The two could end up following a similar career path. Smith also played and Oak Hill Academy before heading to Duke, who is also in the mix for Cook's services. Blue Devil assistant Nate James was in the gym to see DC Assault's 68-45 shellacking of the Ohio Basketball Club on Friday.

Brissett a star for all seasons

Jacoby Brissett of the Florida Rams and Dwyer (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) is another player with a lot on his plate. And not just in the sport of basketball.

The 6-5, 225-pound power wing-forward is also a top quarterback recruit and led Dwyer to Florida's Class 4A state title as a junior.

"It's been back-and-forth between sports every weekend," Brissett said of his summer activities. "I love it. It keeps me out of trouble."

Louisville, Florida State, LSU, North Carolina, Notre Dame and South Florida are among the schools expressing interest in allowing him to tackle both at the next level.

Moats a true scholar-athlete

Minnesota Pump N Run's Shelby Moats is the total package. A 4.0 student at Waconia High School, he is also a rough-and-tumble post presence who made life difficult for 6-10 Landen Lucas of the Northwest Panthers on Friday.

Several Ivy League schools would love to land the 6-9 forward, but he is also intrigued by the thought of playing for national runner-up Butler.

"The academics there aren't where the Ivy Leagues are, but it is Butler. You can't beat that," Moats said. "A dream situation would be high-major basketball, high-major academics."

Moats will be narrowing the field of suitors down next month.

"I'll go through the end of July and see what happens," Moats said. "By the end of August, the teams that have thrown their name in the hat I will choose from."

Friday Super 64 Standouts

Rodney Hood, MBA Elite: Hood torched the Michigan Mustangs for 27 points in the morning. The Meridian (Meridian, Miss.) wing looks all of 6-8 and has developed a dangerous jumper out to the arc. He was also great off the dribble and paired with Ross to give MBA Elite two towering primary ballhandlers. Hood ticked off Florida State, Georgia Tech, Marquette Michigan State and Seton Hall as schools that stood out. According to Hood, all have offered.

Quincy Miller, D-One Sports: Miller poured in 34 points against the Florida Rams and did it impressively with dunks, 3-pointers and a couple of old-school post moves, but as usual it wasn't enough for his D-One Sports team to pull out a win. Kentucky head coach John Calipari and assistant Oliver Antigua were watching. The 6-10 forward is ranked No. 9 in MaxPreps.com's 2011 Top 100 and on his way up.

Shabazz Muhammad, Dream Vision: If Muhammad played soccer, he would be known as a "poacher" – and that's not a bad thing. He is an opportunistic scorer who is hanging around the basket looking for the ball when he isn't using his sweet stroke to knock it down from the outside. The Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) rising junior has a special feel for putting the ball in the bucket. Unfortunately, his Dream Division team is a bit of a mess. North Carolina's Roy Williams made an appearance to see him.

Jordan Goodman, DC Assault: Due to a 16-point scoring outburst in the first half of a win over the Ohio Basketball Club, Goodman's services weren't needed much in the second. He used variety in piling up 18 points in the game, hitting a couple of 3-pointers, finishing around the basket and getting to the line. At 6-9, the Rutgers commitment might be able to play some on the wing at the next level.

Goodman will not be back at Progressive Christian Academy (Camp Springs, Md.) next fall. He mentioned Quality Education Academy (Winston-Salem, N.C.) and Word of God Christian Academy (Raleigh, N.C.) as two potential destinations.

Teams: Compton Magic Elite (Corona, Calif.), D-One Sports (Rocky Mount, N.C.), DC Assault (Washington, D.C.), Dream Vision (Chula Vista, Calif.), Florida Rams (St. Petersburg, Fla.), MBA Elite (Jackson, Miss.), Michigan Mustangs (Oak Park, Mich.), Minnesota Pump N Run (Eden Prairie, Minn.), Northwest Panthers (Tacoma, Wash.), Ohio Basketball Club (Cleveland, Ohio).

Coaches: Mike Anderson (Missouri), Rick Barnes (Texas), Tony Bennett (Virginia), John Calipari (Kentucky), Jeff Capel (Oklahoma), Scott Drew (Baylor), Mark Few (Gonzaga), Anthony Grant (Alabama), Frank Haith (Miami), Ben Howland (UCLA), Sean Miller (Arizona), Mike Montgomery (California), Matt Painter (Purdue), Josh Pastner (Memphis), Bruce Pearl (Tennessee), Rick Pitino (Louisville), Craig Robinson (Oregon State), Brad Stevens (Butler), Roy Williams (North Carolina)