Cincinnati PG turns heads at Jamfest

One player who caught the eye of the West Virginia University coaching staff during his time in Morgantown at Jamfest was 6-foot-1 point guard Semaj Christon from Cincinnati, Ohio.

This past weekend Christon's team, the Cincinnati Knights, made it to the semi-final before getting bounced out by the eventual runners-up, Team Takeover (N.Y.).

Despite the loss, Christon showed flashes of talent, displaying superb ball handling and passing skills, while asserting himself as a solid defender.

At one point in the semifinal, Christon was able to jump a passing lane for a steal, before going coast-to-coast and finishing with an impressive one-handed dunk.

"Semaj has blossomed into one of the finest guards in the Cincinnati area," said Cincinnati Knights head coach Dave Johnson. "He is a long 6-foot-1 guard with exceptional quickness. Semaj has an old school style to his game. He has a long, lanky frame, and he is capable of dominating any aspect of the game."

Last season, Christon played for Winton Woods High School where he led the Warriors to a 20-4 record before losing in the first round to eventual state champion La Salle.

Next season Christon is expected to transfer to Brewster Academy in Wolfboro, N.H. to finish out his prep career.

Christon has sparked the interest of Xavier, Georgetown and Cincinnati among others. Providence and Illinois have already offered him scholarships.

West Virginia's 2012 class is still very wide open. If Huggins is able to sign Christon, he would be adding a great deal of speed and athleticism to the Mountaineer backcourt to nicely complement his 2011 recruiting class that includes five big men.

— Compiled by Tony Sotelo

2013 SF Rondae Jefferson still wide open

One of the most talent-laden teams competing this weekend was Philadelphia's Team Final. Drawing top athletes from Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey, Team Final stood out as one of the finest squads at the Jam Fest.

Team Final boasted multiple highly recruited players, including Chester, Pa., native Rondae Jefferson. Jefferson led his Chester High School Clippers to a 31-1 record last year and a Pennsylvania Class AAAA state championship and, as a result, has garnered attention from many college programs including Cincinnati, Oklahoma, Syracuse, Florida, North Carolina, West Virginia and many others.

Despite all the attention from top college programs Jefferson still aims to make improvements in his game.

"My biggest strength is getting my team the ball, getting to the rim and playing defense," Jefferson said. "My weakness is my jump shot and strength."

Jefferson will consider a long list of schools and said he has no favorite at this time.

"It's got to be the place that best fits me, where the environment's nice and I feel like home," he said.

— Compiled by Alex Sims

Omar Calhoun glad decision is made

A little more than a month ago, shooting guard Omar Calhoun committed to play for Connecticut, ending a stressful recruiting process.

"It was definitely tough making that final decision," Calhoun said. "The school you choose, that's going to have a big impact on your life for a long time, so I just had to make sure I made the right choice."

Calhoun is the No. 38 player in the ESPNU 100 for the class of 2012 and chose to commit to play for the Huskies over top-level schools like West Virginia, North Carolina, Georgetown, Pittsburgh and Kentucky.

He said a big factor in his decision came down to the UConn coaching staff.

"(Connecticut assistant coach Kevin Ollie) handled my recruiting, and I was really just sold by all of their coaches," Calhoun said. "I knew Coach (Jim) Calhoun has a great track record as far as winning championships. That just made it even easier."

The New York Gauchos guard said he was strongly considering West Virginia prior to making his final decision, but in the end, it just didn't feel like the right fit.

"(Assistant coach Larry Harrison) was the one in charge of recruiting me, and I liked him and the rest of the staff," Calhoun said. "When it came down to it though, I just felt Connecticut was the right place for me to be."

— Compiled by Michael Carvelli