"From one great Jesuit school to another..."

Look out Atlantic 10 & Philadelphia Big 5... the Hawks have reloaded.





St. Peter's Prep star Ronald Roberts chooses Saint Joseph's - NJ.com

St. Peter's Prep senior forward Ronald Roberts will sign a Grant in Aid on Tuesday morning to play for coach Phil Martelli at Saint Joseph's in Philadelphia.

Roberts, a Third Team All-State selection this past winter, was released from his national letter of intent to St. John's on April 13. He originally chose St. John's over Saint Joseph's during the early signing period on Nov. 19.

St. John's hired Steve Lavin as its new head coach on March 30 after parting ways with former coach Norm Roberts on March 19.

Roberts, a 6-6, 190-pound forward, notched 18 double-doubles in 28 games this season while averaging 19 points and 12.7 rebounds to help St. Peter's Prep to a 25-4 record and the No. 6 ranking in The Star-Ledger Top 20.

"From one great Jesuit school to another, we are excited to have Ronald play for a former National Coach of the Year with a great incoming freshmen class," St. Peter's Prep coach Mike Kelly said last night. "Ronald wants nothing more than to improve his game, get to the NCAA Tournament and play for a great coach. I believe he will realize all of that at Saint Joe's."

The late signing period for college basketball ends May 19.




Staten Island's Kanacevic chooses St. Joseph's - NYPOST.com

In an ironic twist, Halil Kanacevic will now play at a higher level than he intended in the first place.

The former Hofstra forward verbally committed to transfer to St. Joseph's University, which recruited the Staten Island product when he was at Curtis. The Philadelphia school is in the Atlantic-10, a step up from the CAA.

“The program speaks for itself,” said the versatile 6-foot-8 Kanacevic, who averaged a team-high 7.6 rebounds for the Pride along with 8.6 points. “It’s a great place, they’ve won, gone to the tournament. Coach [Phil] Martelli is a good coach. I felt comfortable there. I like the school a lot.”


Martelli has led St. Joe's to the NCAA Tournament five times in 16 years, including an Elite Eight berth in 2004, and has compiled a 289-187 record in that time.

Kanacevic asked for his release from Hofstra when coach Tom Pecora bolted the Long Island school to take the job at Fordham. Since, the Pride hired former Providence College coach Tim Welsh, who resigned on Monday after a DWI charge. Fellow New York City native, Chaz Williams, has reportedly asked for his release, too.

Kanacevic said he also considered Providence, DePaul, Vermont and Monmouth, but St. Joe's was at the top of his list from the start. He will have to sit out the 2010-11 season, but will still have three years of eligibility.

“It’s a new challenge, new setting, new surrounding,” he said. “I got a year to see how the conference, how the level of play is. I’ll be ready to make an impact when I’m able to play.”



Saint Joseph's gets recruit on rebound from St. John's - Philadelphia Daily News

By DICK JERARDI
Philadelphia Daily News

jerardd@phillynews.com

There is an old saying in recruiting that close does not count. Well, sometimes it does.
Ronald Roberts, a 6-7 senior forward from St. Peter's Prep in Jersey City, N.J., was really interested in Saint Joseph's. But the lure of the Big East and a chance to play in Madison Square Garden trumped the Big 5 and Hawk Hill. Roberts signed with St. John's last fall. St. Joe's was the runner-up.

Then, Norm Roberts (no relation) was fired as St. John's coach. Steve Lavin was hired as the replacement. Ron Roberts did not want to play for somebody he did not know. So, he got out of his letter on intent and reopened his recruiting. He has now committed to St. Joe's.

With that, the complete makeover, St. Joe's edition, is done. After the Hawks lost 20 games last season, changes were inevitable. Well, two players have transferred. Five high school players are on the way. A transfer is coming. And, because St. Joe's is one over the 13-scholarship limit at the moment, at least one other player will be transferring out soon.

"He developed such a tremendous bond with coach [Phil] Martelli in the recruiting process that it was difficult for him when he chose St. John's," St. Peter's coach Mike Kelly said of Roberts. "When the coaching switch happened, it was just a logical thing . . . The only sticking point continued to be whether he was going to play in a power conference or not. I said, 'Ron, you've got to go where people love you.' "

The incoming class also includes Patrick Swilling, a guard from Brother Martin in New Orleans; Langston Galloway, a guard from Baton Rouge, La.; Plymouth-Whitemarsh big man C.J. Aiken; and swingman Daryus Quarles from Paulsboro (N.J.) High. Also, Hofstra freshman forward Halil Kanacevic said last week he will transfer to St. Joe's. So, all of these players essentially will be in the same class, after Kanacevic sits out the mandatory transfer year.

Sophomores Temi Adebayo and A.J. Rogers were released from their scholarships.

Roberts averaged 19 points and 12 rebounds for St. Peter's, which finished 25-4 while playing a very strong schedule.