TERRE HAUTE — Robinson 7-footer Meyers Leonard is not going to be the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA some day, but his odds of reaching the league are pretty solid if his game continues to evolve as it has during high school.
Sure, the 225-pounder doesn’t have the NBA-ready, grown-man body that Greg Oden had when winning three Indiana 4A state titles for Lawrence North. But Leonard’s athleticism and outstanding passing skills separate him from most 7-footers and he has a nice shooting touch from mid-range and at the free-throw line.
Robinson (25-5) battles No. 1 Hales Franciscan (28-2) tonight in the Class 2A IHSA Final Four. Leonard rarely faces another post man his size, and tonight is no exception.
Franciscan features several athletic 6-4 types on a guard-dominated team.
Also, Class 2A in Illinois is typically very good. Peoria Manual, who plays tonight’s first matchup against Breese Central, won four state titles in the 1990s in the large-school division of the Illinois two-class system.
Olney coach Rob Flanagan, an Apollo Conference rival of Robinson’s, led Olney to the Class 2A Final Four two seasons ago behind 6-foot-11 Keen Thomann, who is having a strong career at Division II Missouri Southern. That’s two out of three years for a Final Four team from the Apollo Conference in the third year of the four-class system in Illinois. (And Marshall represented the region in 2A last year).
Flanagan watched Leonard make strides from year to year as he improved to the sixth best center prospect in the nation according to one recruiting service — and then the Maroons matured with their big man.
“It’s been a maturing process for all of them to fill into their roles,” Robinson coach Bob Coffman said.
The 7-foot Illinois recruit grew from 6-2 to 6-5 during his freshman season and played his sophomore year at 6-8.
“You could see Myers had a lot of growing into his body that year,” Flanagan said. “My 6-10 was a different player, not nearly as athletic and mobile, but a very good player.”
Last year, I watched as Leonard was held to 14 points in a victory over Paris. He had made big strides, though, since covering him as a sophomore in the Class 2A Regional, as he was learning to handle the attention he got on the court from defenses.
Back then, 6-foot guard Ben Jones was the best high school basketball player on the Robinson team — but Leonard had the most potential. The big man has tapped into that potential, but he’ll still have a lot of work ahead.
“If he has a good college career, he’ll play basketball overseas, in the NBA, I could easily see that for him,” Flanagan said. “He’s going to have a lot of work ahead of him. He’s going to have some rough days … The sky’s the limit.”
Leonard has shown improved strength and says he’s dedicated to continued progress in the weight room. And playing with a big-time AAU team, the Mac Irvin Fire, with other Illinois signees has to have helped his confidence.
“Good steady improvement,” Flanagan said. “Meyers has so many opportunities in the summer, based on the chances he got early [in high school]. People invite you to things just because of your size. It opened up a lot of doors for him. You can tell he’s been to some camps that taught him some high-level stuff.”
Flanagan likes the Maroons chances at state because they’re a complete team. But the 2A field is very good. Peoria Manual plays a Class 4A-type schedule every year, and Franciscan features several athletes with big-time potential and one Division I guard.
Leonard appears to have raised his game as his prep career is coming to a close. He plays with a lot of emotion, which can aid him and hurt him at times.
“I think in the last month, I think he’s done a much better job of keeping his head and staying focused,” Flanagan said. “He’s not the only one that loses his focus at 17, 18 [years old].”
With the attention Leonard gets as a Fighting Illini recruit and the big stage of Peoria, it will be interesting to see how he responds.
But I’m just as intrigued by the 6-footer for Robinson. Jones has an impressive mid-range game, rarely even shooting 3s. Perhaps hurting his chance with college coaches is his height or maybe recruiters see him as a beneficiary of the attention Leonard gets from defenses. Jones said he’s had interest from a junior college and some Division III programs.
Jones has scored over 1,600 points in his career, and he attacks the bucket like Harry Marshall does for Indiana State. If he improved his ball-handling at a junior college, he has potential as a Division I point guard. Or Division II level? I see a combo guard who can score and rebound and defend.
“Ben Jones is the Player of the Year in our conference,” Flanagan said. “He got my vote. He’s played since he was a freshman. Night in and night out, probably the best player in our conference. He’s an offensive rebounding magnet and he just knows how to put the basketball in the basket.”
Craig Pearson can be reached by e-mail at craig.pearson@tribstar.com. Read his blog at blogs.tribstar.com/craigpearson.
Given to Fly
March 12, 2010
'Til It's Over: Robinson 7-footer more focused in postseason; 6-foot Jones keeps producing
- Given to Fly
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GIVEN TO FLY: ISU women have solid recruiting class
The caliber of athletes that the Indiana State women’s basketball coaching staff is bringing in is on an upswing.
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GIVEN TO FLY: Major leaguers John, Dorsett meet up at tonight’s game
Terre Haute’s only two big leaguers of the last 50 years — Tommy John and Brian Dorsett — will catch up with one another today.
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FOOT NOTES: Valley natives perform well on national stage
Several Wabash Valley natives continue to shine on the national track and field scene.
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'Til It's Over: Sycamores ‘in a good place,’ but searching for more in MVC
Can Teri Moren lift Indiana State, last year’s seventh-place team in the Missouri Valley Conference, to one of the league’s contenders in her first year on campus?
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'Til It's Over: Two sets of identical twins should keep North Central baseball a contender
The last high school baseball team standing in the Wabash Valley was the North Central, the Thunderbirds falling short 4-3 in the Class A Semistate on Saturday just one game shy of Victory Field.
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'Til It's Over: Jarvis, Anderson confident Olney, hard work leads to Division I dream
Olney, Ill., population 8,000-plus and known for its population of white squirrels, might not be the dream destination for high school basketball players in Indiana.
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'Til It's Over: Robinson 7-footer more focused in postseason; 6-foot Jones keeps producing
Robinson 7-footer Meyers Leonard is not going to be the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA some day, but his odds of reaching the league are pretty solid if his game continues to evolve as it has during high school.
- 'Til It's Over: ‘Stepping stone’ game points Sycamores in right direction Whether the win comes against a top-25 team or a conference pushover, ending a four-game losing streak is always a relief.
- 'Til It's Over: Indianapolis ISU recruit rolling along in senior season As Indiana State recruit Anna Munn approached Christmas with the Decatur Central basketball team, the senior guard didn’t seem to need much of a wishlist.
- 'Til It's Over: Magic’s still there for '79 Sycamores For the former Indiana State players who visited the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in late November, the weekend was a chance to relive memories with teammates and see Larry Bird’s career with the Sycamores celebrated again.
- CRAIG PEARSON: North has strong history in cross country state finals Vigo County is home to just four IHSAA state championships in team sports. Most recently, Terre Haute South won girls titles in basketball (2002) and tennis (2001).
- 'Till It's Over: It’s been rough year but no need to break up Cubs' core Chicago Cubs general manager Jim Hendry is only in the first year of a three-year contract, and aren’t back-to-back division championships enough to keep him around despite this year’s season filled with bad luck?
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'Til It's Over: Hansbrough, Hibbert give Pacers glimpse of future
You might have heard of the Indiana Pacers’ 2009 first-round draft pick. He was on the television once in a while during his four-year career at North Carolina.
- 'Til It's Over: Bertoli, Moore put on show in abundance of events “Anthony and Erica” may not have the marketing capability of “Dan and Dave,” but neither of Indiana State’s outstanding multi-event participants had let-down performances this weekend in the Missouri Valley Conference Championships.
- ‘Walking wounded’: ISU seniors return to provide spark All three ISU seniors will graduate in May, and all three will be in uniform today as Indiana State battles Bradley in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament quarterfinals.
- Given to Fly: Northview standout runner Thacker coming to ISU Doc Brown told an old-timer in a saloon in “Back to the Future III” that despite having automobiles in the future people run for recreation.
- Given to Fly: Schilli’s Rodman-like performance aids ISU With Indiana State’s women’s basketball team ranking eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference in field-goal percentage (36.5), the Sycamores need as many shot attempts as possible to maintain their standing on top of the league.
- Given to Fly: A classic in every sense of the word What tournament director and co-founder Gary Fears had in mind when creating the tournament came to fruition Tuesday. Marshall, with an enrollment of 438 students, became the smallest school to win the Pizza Hut Wabash Valley Classic in the ninth season of the tourney.
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Given to Fly: ISU women should build confidence off strong outing
Indiana State did not pull off the monumental upset Saturday against No. 23 Kansas State, but the Wildcats are —aside from Connecticut in 2005 — the best team the Sycamores have played in the Jim Wiedie era.
- Given to Fly: ISU women's hoops team slides onto commercial radio Coach Jim Wiedie expects the Indiana State women’s basketball team to have a bit of a retro feel this season, meaning the Sycamores have the potential to get back to creating havoc with their full-court press.
- Given to Fly: ISU vets hope to prove pundits wrong Indiana State’s only two seniors were surprised to see they were picked ahead of just three Missouri Valley Conference women’s basketball teams Tuesday morning.
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Footnotes: In first marathon, former Sycamore comes out a winner
Indiana State graduate Dani Prince made her debut in the event with a victory in the Columbus Marathon on Sunday.
Prince’s goal was a time under 2 hours and 50 minutes, and she ran a 2:48.56. -
Given To Fly: ISU volleyball turning things around
It was an extremely busy weekend for Indiana State athletics this weekend.
- Footnotes: Here’s hoping perfect weather is still around for Nationals in November The weather made for a perfect fall afternoon Saturday at LaVern Gibson Championship Course. For what it’s worth, the Farmer’s Almanac calls for more sunny conditions from Nov. 20-24, with the NCAA Championships falling on the 24th this year.
- Terre Haute natives cherish memories of ‘House that Ruth Built’ Yankee Stadium was packed as usual on Easter Sunday in 1979. George Steinbrenner’s Yankees were one loss away from being swept by the Milwaukee Brewers to start the season. That was no way for the two-time defending World Series champions to perform, so the boss had a conversation with his new veteran left-handed starting pitcher prior to the game.
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Footnotes: Oregon men and women have strangehold on preseason NCAA cross countryrankings
The Oregon men and women were almost both unanimous picks as the No. 1 teams in the nation in the preseason cross country national rankings released recently.
- Given to Fly: Bronze medalist has strong ISU ties One of the remarkable American medalists of this 2008 Olympics thus far also provided one of the most sparkling stories in the brief history of the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course here in Terre Haute.
- Former ISU QB gets back to Amarillo This week, Indiana State signed its most highly-touted football prospect in years, and former quarterback Julian Reese is ripping it up for the Amarillo Dusters of Arena2.
- Indiana State track sending strong group to NCAA regional Three sophomore women and three senior men lead a large Indiana State contingent of track and field athletes into the NCAA Mideast Regional this weekend at Fayetteville, Ark.
- Given to Fly: Sycamores embracing underdog role at MVC Tournament The frustration of not living up to expectations can cause problems within any sports team, from the coach down to the players at the end of the bench.
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