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Pirates Close Regular Season Against Butler on Senior Night


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South Orange, N.J. – Seton Hall men's soccer wraps up the regular season on Saturday night as they welcome in Butler to Owen T. Carroll Field for a 6:56 p.m. kickoff. The match will be streamed on the BIG EAST Digital Network on FloFC.

HALLOWEEN AT THE HALL/SENIOR NIGHT
All students and kids in attendance are invited to wear their Halloween costume to the match. No Halloween masks or face coverings allowed.

The Pirates will be celebrating Senior Night prior to the match on Saturday night. A total of 11 seniors will be honored prior to kickoff: Torre Avitabile (Holmdel, N.J.), James Boote (Southampton, England), Luca Dahn (Kahl, Germany), Quenzi Huerman (Vannes, France), Hugo Keller (Sweden), Denis Kelmendi (Falkenburg, Sweden), JP Marin (Briarwood, N.Y.), Eden O'Leary (Tel Aviv, Israel), Johannes Pex (Stephansposching, Germany), Paavo Riihijarvi (Oulu, Finland) and Hannes Ronnholmen (Stockholm, Sweden).

LAST TIME OUT
The Pirates clinched a berth in the BIG EAST Tournament with a 2-1 win over Villanova on Saturday night. All three goals in the match were scored in the second half, the first of which came from Marin after a cross into the box from Pex deflected off the near post. Villanova answered in the 72nd minute with a goal from Viktor Benediktsson to level the score at 1-1. However, just three minutes later in the 75th minute, Boote scored his first career goal to deliver the Pirates a 2-1 win.

BIG EAST SCENARIOS
Entering Saturday, the Pirates are in second place in the BIG EAST standings with 16 points. The Pirates can lock up second place, and the bye to the semifinal round that comes with it, with a win against Butler combined with a Xavier draw or loss. Additionally, the Pirates can guarantee themselves no lower than a fourth place finish in the standings with a win or a draw on Saturday, or a UConn loss or draw.

SCOUTING BUTLER (9-5-1, 4-3-1)
  • The Bulldogs enter this matchup coming off a 2-1 win at home against St. John's on Saturday which snapped their two-match losing streak.
  • The Bulldogs have scored two or more goals in eight of their last nine matches, including four matches in which they have scored at least three times. Butler's 17 goals in BIG EAST play paces the conference.
  • Butler's attack is led by Palmer Ault and Jack Streberger. Ault leads the team with eight goals and 21 points and has points in each of his last two games. Ault had multi-goal games in three straight at the end of September, but has been unable to find the back of the net since.
  • Streberger had six points in two matches last week, including a two-goal game against St. John's. Twelve of Streberger's 13 points this season have come during BIG EAST play, a total which leads the conference.
  • Butler is the only team in the BIG EAST with four players who have scored five or more goals this season.
  • Butler leads the all-time series 5-2-1, but the Pirates got the best of the Bulldogs last season in a 3-2 win. In all five of Seton Hall's losses to Butler, it has been shutout.
NEWS & NOTES
  • Seton Hall has clinched a berth in the BIG EAST Tournament for the second time in three seasons. The last time the team qualified was in the spring of 2021, when the Pirates took home their first BIG EAST title since 1991.
  • Prior to the loss on Oct. 19 at Georgetown, the Pirates had a seven-match unbeaten streak to open BIG EAST play, a program best start to league action.
  • Quenzi Huerman has 18 points on the season, the most by a Pirate since Andres Arcila's 21 point campaign in 2017.
  • Huerman's 90th minute game-tying penalty kick against Creighton was the second such goal this season for the Pirates. Pex scored in the same fashion against Xavier in a 2-2 draw on Sep. 17.
  • The Pirates have six game-tying/go-ahead goals in the 70th minute or later this season.
  • Seton Hall has won its last eight matches, and 17 of its last 18, when scoring the first goal.
  • The draw against Creighton on Oct. 15 was the Pirates' sixth of the season, setting a new single-season program mark.
  • Luca Dahn has played wire-to-wire in a match in 44 of his 47 career matches.
  • Hannes Ronnholmen's five shutouts are tied for the third most in a season in program history.
  • The Pirates have allowed just 16 goals all season, tied for the second fewest in the BIG EAST.
  • Borg's goal against St. John's on Oct. 1 was the latest regulation game-winning goal for the Pirates since CJ Tibbling's 89th minute goal against Air Force in the opening round of the 2020 NCAA Tournament.
  • The Pirates scored a goal in each of their first nine matches of this season, doing so for the first time since 1999 when they scored in their first 11 matches.
  • The win over Oregon State on Sep. 2 was the Pirates' first over a top-10 team in the United Soccer Coaches rankings since beating No. 2 Georgetown to win the BIG EAST title on Apr. 17, 2021. The win also marked the first time Seton Hall has defeated a top-10 non-conference foe since winning at No. 3 Virginia in the 2001 NCAA Tournament.
  • The Pirates conceded just one goal through its first three matches of the season, the program's best defensive start to a season since 2005.
WATCH
All BEDN events can be seen on FloSports, one of the leading streaming services in the world. Special Seton Hall pricing is available only through this link for fans who want to subscribe to watch Seton Hall events, home and away, as well as all other live events on the FloSports platform. Fans with a .edu school address can purchase a subscription for $6.99 per month, and all other fans can purchase a subscription for $12.50 per month. The non-Seton Hall pricing on FloSports is normally $29.99 per month.
The link to watch all Seton Hall Men's Soccer games can be found here.

SEC 2022-23 conference preview

ESPN

As the 2022-23 men's college basketball season draws closer, ESPN.com's panel of experts is predicting the order of finish for the nation's top conferences. We've already looked at the mid-majors, American, Pac-12, Big East, and Big Ten. Now our focus turns to the SEC.

Anyone still believing the SEC is only a football conference hasn't been paying attention to the preseason hype in men's hoops. The same five teams are ranked in the top 20 in both the AP poll and at KenPom: Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Auburn and Alabama.

The last time you saw John Calipari's Wildcats, they suffered a shocking upset in overtime at the hands of No. 15 seed Saint Peter's in the round of 64. Now reigning national player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe is returning, along with enough veterans (Sahvir Wheeler, Jacob Toppin), top recruits (Chris Livingston, Cason Wallace) and key transfers (CJ Fredrick from Iowa and Antonio Reeves from Illinois State) to make the Wildcats a popular Final Four pick once again.

Then again, they'll have their work cut out for it in a deep SEC. Arkansas likely has the league's top NBA draft pick in five-star recruit Nick Smith Jr., while Tennessee returns several veterans from a team with one of the best defenses in the nation last season.

All of the above teams are hungry, because Alabama (2021) and Auburn (2022) have won the last two SEC titles outright. Let's tip off 2022-23.

Find more preseason analysis here.


Feeling old?

Got 87% right. Give it a try. Every miss was my second choice.

DI board approves clarifications for interim NIL policy


Guidance centers on institutional involvement in deals for current student-athletes​


The Division I Board of Directors on Wednesday voted unanimously to clarify how schools can be involved with the name, image and likeness activities of enrolled student-athletes on their campuses. The new guidelines were recommended by a membership working group and supported by the Division I Council earlier in October.

The board's updated guidance (PDF), while not an exhaustive list of specific circumstances, is intended to clarify how existing NCAA rules apply to the interim policy for name, image and likeness, specifically how the current rules relate to Division I member schools' involvement in NIL activities.

"The NIL landscape is constantly evolving, and the Board of Directors decided it was important to offer further guidance with respect to a number of key questions that have arisen recently," said Jere Morehead, chair of the board and president of the University of Georgia. "As we continue to reinforce current NCAA rules, we expect to offer further guidance in the future on what should and should not be done when engaged in these activities. We are committed to fostering a fair and appropriate NIL environment that supports our students and complies with our rules."

Education/monitoring for current students​

The board noted that schools generally can and should provide education to current student-athletes, including on topics like financial literacy, taxes, social media practices and entrepreneurship. Schools also can provide NIL education to collectives, boosters and prospects. The board also noted that — when permitted by applicable state laws — schools can and should require student-athletes to report NIL activities to the athletics department.

School support for student-athlete NIL activities​

Under the interim policy, schools can inform student-athletes about potential NIL opportunities and can work with an NIL service provider to administer a "marketplace" that matches student-athletes with those opportunities. They cannot, however, engage in negotiations on behalf of an NIL entity or a student-athlete to secure specific NIL opportunities.

Schools also can support their enrolled college athletes in NIL activities directly by providing stock photos or graphics to either a student-athlete or an NIL entity or arranging space on campus for an entity and student-athlete to meet. Schools cannot, under the interim policy, provide free services (graphic designers, tax preparation or contract review) to student-athletes unless those services are available to the general student body, nor can schools offer equipment (cameras, graphics software or computers) to student-athletes to support NIL activities, unless that equipment is also available to the general student body.

The latest guidelines also clarify that member schools can promote student-athletes' NIL activities, provided the student-athlete or NIL entity pays the going rate for that advertisement (for example, on a video board during a game). However, schools cannot allow student-athletes to promote their activity while participating in required athletics activities (pre- and postgame activities, court celebrations and news conferences).

School involvement with collectives and other NIL entities​

The board also clarified that school personnel (including coaches) can assist an NIL entity with fundraising through appearances or by providing autographed memorabilia but cannot donate cash directly to those entities. School staff members also cannot be employed by or have an ownership stake in an NIL entity.

Schools also can request donors provide funds to collectives and other NIL entities, provided the schools do not request that those funds be directed to a specific sport or student-athlete.

Finally, schools can provide tickets or suites to NIL entities through sponsorship agreements, provided the terms of those agreements are the same as for other sponsors. Those same assets cannot be offered as an incentive to provide funds to an NIL entity.

Lynda Tealer, chair of the NIL Working Group and executive associate athletics director at Florida, emphasized that "the new guidance may require institutions and key stakeholders to modify practices, and some disentanglement may be necessary."

Enforcement of NCAA rules related to NIL policy​

For any violations that occurred before this additional clarification, the board directed the enforcement staff to review facts of individual cases but pursue only cases that are clearly contrary to the interim policy.

In addition to approving the new guidance for member schools, the board unanimously adopted a proposal for new allegation and conclusion standards when potential violations related to the interim policy occur. When information available to the enforcement staff indicates impermissible conduct occurred, the enforcement staff and Committee on Infractions will presume a violation occurred unless the school clearly demonstrates that the behaviors in question were in line with existing NCAA rules and the interim policy.

The board reiterated its previous position that the focus of its NIL guidance is not intended to question the eligibility of enrolled student-athletes.

Third-party administration of NIL activities​

The board received a report about the benefits and challenges related to the use of an independent, third-party administrator to collect student-athlete disclosures of NIL activities. Based on recommendations from the Division I Council and the NIL Working Group, the board did not take action on the third-party administrator concept at this time but noted the need for future discussion as the legal and political landscapes continue to evolve.
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Pirates Set to Host Creighton, Xavier This Weekend


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SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - Walsh Gymnasium
SETON HALL (13-9, 4-6) vs. No. 15 CREIGHTON (18-3, 10-0)
DateTimeLive VideoLive AudioLive StatsTwitter
Fri.,
Oct. 28
6:00 PMPSN Secondary LogoWSOU logoStatBroadcast@SHUVolley
SETON HALL (13-9, 4-6) vs. XAVIER (13-7, 6-4)
DateTimeLive VideoLive AudioLive StatsTwitter
Sat.,
Oct. 29
5:00 PMNoneWSOU logoStatBroadcast@SHUVolley

PREVIEW
Seton Hall returns to the friendly confines of Walsh Gymnasium this weekend when it welcomes a pair of BIG EAST Conference opponents. The Pirates will host No. 15 Creighton on Friday, Oct. 28 at 6:00 p.m. and then Xavier on Saturday, Oct. 29 at 5:00 p.m.

MEDIA
Friday's contest against Creighton will be streamed live by the Pirate Sports Network and available to FloSports subscribers. Saturday's match will not be streamed. WSOU FM will cover both contests and both will be available via Live Stats.

PROMOTIONS
Friday – It's our Dig Pink Match!! All fans in attendance are encouraged to wear pink to help spread breast cancer awareness. Those in attendance will receive a free mini stress ball.

Saturday – It's Halloween at The Hall!! All kids and students are invited to attend the match in costume and "Trick or Treat" in the lobby!!

LAST WEEK
Seton Hall ran into a pair of hot teams on the road last weekend and dropped a pair of three-set matches. Junior Bianca Bucciarelli (Carate Brianza, Italy) had team-highs of eight kills and seven digs, but The Hall fell at No. 19 Marquette, 3-0 (14-25, 11-25, 11-25), on Friday. In addition to Bucciarelli's exploits, The Hall also received a solid match from junior Taylor Jakubowski (Lake in the Hill, Ill.). She finished with a team-best 13 assists to go with six kills.

Perri Lucas (Chicago, Ill.), Jenna Walsh (Foothill Ranch, Calif.) and Laila Wallace (Munster, Ind.) combined for 28 kills and only eight attack errors, but the Pirates fell at DePaul, 3-0 (19-25, 17-25, 21-25), on Saturday. Lucas finished with a team-high 11 kills with only two attack error and a team-best .409 attack percentage. Walsh tallied nine kills and four digs, while Wallace had eight kills, only two attack errors and a .400 attack percentage. Jakubowski nearly had a double-double, finishing with a team-high nine digs and eight assists.

The Hall enters this weekend with a 13-9 record overall and a 4-6 mark in BIG EAST play.

PLAYOFF WATCH
The Hall enters this weekend against Creighton and Xavier just one game out of a BIG EAST Tournament berth. The top six teams will qualify for the BIG EAST Tournament in Omaha, Neb., Nov. 23-26. With a record of 4-6, the Pirates are currently in seventh place. Connecticut and Butler currently occupy the fifth and sixth place positions at 5-5.

The Pirates possess the head-to-head tie-breaker with Connecticut by virtue of their five-set win over the Huskies on Sept. 23. The Hall and UConn will not play again this year. The Pirates lost to Butler on Oct. 14, but still have a chance to win the tie-breaker over the Bulldogs if they can sweep them at home on Nov. 5.

Seton Hall has eight matches remaining with six in Walsh Gymnasium. The Pirates are 9-2 at home this year.

SCOUTING CREIGHTON
Seton Hall and Creighton will meet for the 19th time in history on Friday. The two-time defending BIG EAST Champions have won 15 of the prior 18 meetings with the Pirates including the last 14 in a row. Furthermore, the Bluejays are a perfect 36-0 in sets over the last 12 matches against The Hall. Seton Hall's last victory over Creighton came in 2014, a three-set sweep in Omaha.

The Bluejays are coming off another dominant season in 2021. Creighton finished with a final record of 31-4, which includes a 16-2 mark in BIG EAST play. They didn't lose a set in the BIG EAST Tournament, steamrolling their way to a second-straight conference title. In the NCAA Tournament, Creighton swept Ole Miss in the opening round before falling to Kansas in in four sets in round two.

This year, Creighton was again picked as the favorite to win the 11-team BIG EAST Conference according to the preseason coaches' poll. Sophomores Norah Sis and Kendra Wait, as well as senior Jaela Zimmerman, were named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Sis was also named Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year after being named an AVCA Third Team All-American as a freshman last season.

Creighton enters this weekend ranked No. 15 in the nation with an 18-3 overall record and a perfect 10-0 mark in conference play. The Bluejays have won 10 straight matches, including a five-set victory over No. 16 Marquette on Oct. 14, handing the Golden Eagles their first BIG EAST loss. Creighton is coming off a pair of road sweeps last weekend at Villanova and at Georgetown. Sis currently leads the BIG EAST with 4.19 kills per set, while Wait is the conference's top setter with 11.42 assists per set.

SCOUTING XAVIER
Seton Hall and Xavier will meet for the 17th time in history on Saturday. The Blue Demons own a 12-4 all-time series lead and had won six straight in the series before the Pirates snapped the streak by sweeping the Musketeers in Walsh Gym last season.

Xavier is coming off an 11-18 season overall last year, which included a 6-12 mark in BIG EAST play. They tied Seton Hall and St. John's for seventh place in the final standings. The Musketeers finished the season with four straight losses and 10 of their final 11 matches.

This year, Xavier was picked to finish eighth in the 11-team BIG EAST Conference according to the preseason coaches' poll. Senior setter Carrigan O'Reilly was named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. The Musketeers also return talented middle blocker Delaney Hogan, but lost fellow MB Ellie Chaffee to graduation.

Xavier has been one of the surprises of the BIG EAST season so far this year. Despite being picked to finish eighth, the Musketeers enter this weekend with a 13-7 overall record and a 6-4 mark in BIG EAST play. They're currently in fourth place and have a two-match lead on a potential BIG EAST Tournament berth. Xavier is coming off a successful weekend with a pair of road victories. They edged Georgetown in five sets on Friday before defeating Villanova in four on Saturday. Lucia Corsaro currently ranks third in the BIG EAST with 4.58 digs per set.

UP NEXT
Next week, The Hall will remain home for a pair of BIG EAST Conference matches. The Pirates will host local rival St. John's on Wednesday, Nov. 2 before welcoming Butler on Saturday, Nov. 5. Both matches will start at 6:00 p.m. and be streamed live by the Pirate Sports Network for FloSports subscribers.

38 at the garden

Saw the Jeremy Lin documentary on HBO. Can't believe it's been 10 years since he burst onto the scene. Good story that I never knew all the background and remarkable that he was California high school player of the year and he received 0 d1 scholarship offers. He had to settle for some sleepy program in Boston.

LenDale White reveals $150K was left for him at USC: ‘All just cash, rubber bands’


By Brian Wacker

Straight cash, homie.

That’s what former NFL running back LenDale White claimed was left in a bag in his college apartment during his days at USC — to the tune of $150,000.

The 37-year-old former All-American was a guest on Barstool Sport’s “Bussin’ With The Boys” podcast, hosted by former NFL player Will Compton and current Titans offensive tackle Taylor Lewan. During the interview, White was asked what sort of benefits he received while at USC, where he shared backfield duties with Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush, who was infamously stripped of the award after an investigation revealed that Bush had received improper benefits during his time there.

“Are we talking about coaches? We talking about boosters? What?” Compton asked.

White then shed light on what would happen when he’d get a new apartment.

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“I don’t really know what a coach or a booster is,” White said. “All I know is I had a nice house or apartment, and when I went in there, I know that there was somebody left something behind. I don’t know if it was for me or not, but I never told anybody they left it there, and I kept it.”

Asked what the most amount of money he’d seen left somewhere, White said, “About $150,000. This is all just cash, rubber bands.”

White also said he drove a Lexus GS400 while at the school.

After three seasons at USC and leading the nation with 24 rushing touchdowns in 2005, White turned pro and was drafted in the second round by the Tennessee Titans. But his success in college didn’t translate in the NFL.

White topped the 1,000-yard mark just once in four years in Tennessee and twice failed to reach 250 yards rushing in a season. He also battled weight and knee issues.

In April 2010, White was traded to the Seahawks but Seattle released him in May. Three months later, White signed a two-year deal with the Broncos only to suffer a torn ACL in the final game of preseason. The Broncos released him the following August.

Five coaches who may need a good season in 2022-23 to save their job


These college basketball coaches better watch their backs throughout the 2022-23 season ... or else​

https://www.cbssports.com/writers/gary-parrish/

By Gary Parrish

Appearing on a so-called hot seat list before the start of a season doesn't ensure a coach is merely months away from losing his job -- but it certainly suggests it's a likely scenario.

That's what history tells us, at least.

Two years ago, I listed five coaches on the hot seat. None of them are still working their same jobs. Last year, I listed five more coaches on the hot seat. Only one of them is still working his same job.

Simply put, surviving this annual hot seat list just isn't easy because the only people who appear on it are men who seem unlikely to have a good year heading into a season in which they really need to have a good year to remain employed. Hopefully they all overachieve relative to expectations and get contract extensions because watching people get fired isn't fun. Either way, you can reasonably assume the five men listed below are coaching for their jobs with the odds either somewhat or dramatically stacked against them heading into this 2022-23 season.

Brad Brownell, Clemson

  • Seasons at school: Entering 13th season | Record at school: 218-166
  • NCAA Tournament appearances at school: 3
Anybody who remains a head coach at the power-conference level for 13 years is good, if only because it's impossible to keep a job that long if you're bad. Brownell is not bad. His Tigers have finished in the top half of the ACC in six of his 12 seasons and only landed outside of the top 10 twice. But Brownell has also never finished better than four games above .500 in the league and only made the NCAA Tournament three times, which is why the prevailing thought in the industry is that he needs a nice bounce-back year after going just 17-16 last season. Problem is, Clemson was picked 11th in the preseason ACC poll. So unless the Tigers overachieve, a new coach will likely be roaming the sideline at Littlejohn Coliseum when the 2023-24 season rolls around.

Chris Collins, Northwestern

  • Seasons at school: Entering 10th season | Record at school: 133-150
  • NCAA Tournament appearances at school: 1
Collins will forever be the first coach to take Northwestern to the NCAA Tournament. He'll always have that achievement to celebrate. But it's impossible to argue against the idea that pretty much everything since that magical 2016-17 season has been rough, evidence being that the Wildcats are 26-71 in Big Ten games in the subsequent five years with five straight losing seasons and 10th-or-worse finishes in the league standings. If that pattern continues -- and it likely will considering Northwestern was picked 12th in our preseason Big Ten poll -- then it might be difficult for the school to bring Collins back for an 11th year.

Patrick Ewing, Georgetown

  • Seasons at school: Entering sixth season | Record at school: 68-84
  • NCAA Tournament appearances at school: 1
If Ewing were literally anybody other than a Georgetown icon, arguably the most important player in school history, he would no longer be coaching the Hoyas. Everybody acknowledges as much. That's how badly things have gone. Georgetown is 26-63 in Big East games since he replaced John Thompson III, who made the NCAA Tournament eight times in a 10-year span before missing it twice and being fired in March 2017. In other words, JT3 had a strong family connection to the program his father built into a monster, and he was still terminated after back-to-back bad seasons. So it stretches the imagination to think Ewing will get a seventh year if he backs last season's debacle (featuring a 0-19 league mark) with another rough season, and the bad news for Ewing is that the Hoyas were picked 11th in our preseason Big East poll, which suggests another rough season is likely on tap.

Jerod Haase, Stanford

  • Seasons at school: Entering seventh season | Record at school: 98-90
  • NCAA Tournament appearances at school: 0
Haase is the only coach on last year's hot seat list who survived -- but he didn't do it with a breakthrough season. His Cardinal went 16-16 overall, just 8-12 in the Pac-12. They finished ninth in the league. So that's six seasons with zero trips to the NCAA Tournament despite the enrollment of five-star recruits like Ziaire Williams and Harrison Ingram. For whatever reason, things just haven't clicked. And if Haase doesn't get Stanford to the 2023 NCAA Tournament, it's reasonable to assume a change will be made considering this program that made the Big Dance 13 times in a 14-year span from 1995 to 2008 now hasn't appeared in the Field of 68 since Johnny Dawkins guided the Cardinal to the Sweet 16 in 2014.

Kevin Keatts, NC State

  • Seasons at school: Entering sixth season | Record at school: 90-68
  • NCAA Tournament appearances at school: 1
NC State fans once more or less pushed Herb Sendek to Arizona State despite him making five straight NCAA Tournaments, then the school later fired Mark Gottfried after his four consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament were backed by two straight 13th-place finishes in the ACC. With that serving as the history of the program, it's worth noting that Keatts has now missed three straight NCAA Tournaments -- though, in fairness, he would've likely made it in 2020 if not for that event being canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic -- and enters this season with low expectations. That's a bad combination that could lead to a change in Raleigh if Keatts can't inspire confidence among the fanbase that he's the guy to reestablish NC State as a factor in the ACC and true rival of national powers like Duke and North Carolina.

Big Ten 2022-23 conference preview: Could the league's national title drought finally end?


Big Ten 2022-23 conference champion predictions...............​

St. John’s lands versatile junior college forward Yaxel Lendeborg


By Zach Braziller

St. John’s is going big with its 2023 recruiting class.

First, it was four-star, 6-foot-8 forward Brandon Gardner and on Wednesday coach Mike Anderson landed a verbal commitment from 6-9 junior college forward Yaxel Lendeborg.

“It was clear-cut,” Lendeborg said of his decision. “Me, my mom, my dad, we went on the visit [this weekend]. We loved every moment of it. The coaches made us feel like family. Their playing style I feel suits me perfectly. They play fast-paced offense, they play hard-nosed defense, and they move the ball a lot. That caught my eye.”

Lendeborg, a 20-year-old who can shoot from the outside and has some guard skills, picked the Johnnies over New Mexico and Xavier, providing a dose of good news after the Red Storm lost out on top-targets Brandon Williams (UCLA) and Carl Cherenfant (Memphis). He averaged 12.2 points, 11 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 29 games while shooting 35.7 percent from 3-point range for Arizona Western College.

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Yaxel Lendeborg has committed to St. John’s.
Yaxel Lendeborg

“He’s pretty skilled, seems like a really good kid,” a college coach familiar with Lendeborg said. “He shoots the ball pretty good. He’s definitely a good get. I like him. He has a chance to be good at their level.”

The coaching staff was drawn to Lendeborg because of his versatility and the ability to play inside and out. They told him he reminds them of former St. John’s stretch forward Aaron Wheeler, a shotmaking threat who can play at the top of the press. Assistant coach Greg “Shoes” Vetrone, Lendeborg’s lead recruiter, saw him at an event this summer and remained in constant contact with the skilled forward.

A Pennsauken, N.J. native, Lendeborg is a late bloomer. Out of high school, he didn’t have any scholarship offers after appearing in just 11 games at the varsity level. It wasn’t until he was seen at a spring camp in New York that he opened eyes and wound up at Arizona Western.

Even after he was named the Arizona Community College Athletic Association Player of the Year and was a third-team All-American last season, he only held an offer from Lamar that came from Charles Harral, the former coach at Arizona Western. But he had a strong summer, performing well at junior college showcase events. Offers came pouring in, from the likes of Memphis, Houston and his three finalists, among others.

He took an official visit to St. John’s last weekend, and felt the fit was right for him. He was drawn to the uptempo style and the family atmosphere Anderson has cultivated. The presence of DePaul transfer David Jones, a close friend, played a role as well.

“It’s amazing. It feels like I’m representing my area,” Lendeborg said. “I’ll have a lot of support back home.”

Long Social Distancing

A new phenomenon is happening. Its called "long Social distance". I warned this since the beginning of the pandemic. People like myself will refuse to get back to our normal lives. The dangers of COVID are still very severe. This latest variant is very dangerous.

BREAKING: NEW COVID SPIKE IN EUROPE

A new COVID spike is beginning in Europe. Scientists have mentioned this is due to the millions of people that are still unvaccinated in Europe. When will the unvaxxed learn? More unnecessary sickness and death will happen this winter.

There are also big concerns of a US spike as well.

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