Montrose Christian

Varsity boys basketball Montrose Christian coach Vetter to resign Stu Vetter , one of the winningest high school basketball coaches of all time, will step down from his position at Montrose Christian in Rockville at the end of the summer. The move comes after 14 seasons as coach of the Mustangs, where Vetter guided current NBA players Kevin Durant , Greivis Vasquez (Maryland) and Linas Kleiza , and established one of the preeminent high school teams in the area.

Varsity boys basketball Montrose Christian coach Vetter to resign Stu Vetter , one of the winningest high school basketball coaches of all time, will step down from his position at Montrose Christian in Rockville at the end of the summer. The move comes after 14 seasons as coach of the Mustangs, where Vetter guided current NBA players Kevin Durant , Greivis Vasquez (Maryland) and Linas Kleiza , and established one of the preeminent high school teams in the area.

Montrose Christian will host a coaches' clinic Saturday featuring three high-major men's basketball coaches as guest speakers. The Mustangs will welcome St. John's coach Steve Lavin, Virginia coach Tony Bennett and Villanova coach Jay Wright to their Rockville gym. George Washington assistant Kevin Sutton and Montrose coach Stu Vetter will also speak at the clinic. “Learning new and innovative coaching techniques from some of the best basketball minds in the country is one method my staff and I use to continue improving as coaches,” Vetter said in a news release.

NEW YORK -- The conversation took place during his freshman year at Maryland. Greivis Vasquez, still learning a new language and getting adjusted to playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference, sat down in his coach's office one day to talk about his dreams. "He told me that he wanted to play in the NBA," Gary Williams recalled recently. "I told him, 'You've got the size, you see the court really well, you can shoot fairly well. It's just a matter of getting better every year.' He just took that to heart and went with it. Greivis got better every year.

The pipeline between the tiny private school in Rockville known for its basketball prowess and the huge state university in College Park with a resurgent men's basketball team was opened last year by the unlikeliest of players. Freshman guard Greivis Vasquez, who came to Montrose Christian from Venezuela, became the first Stu Vetter-coached player in more than a decade to choose Maryland. Two more, guard Adrian Bowie and forward Shane Walker, will join him in College Park next season. Those who suspected a dispute between Vetter and Maryland coach Gary Williams see Vasquez as the ultimate olive branch, but the two coaches insist there wasn't a problem between them after Exree Hipp's career fizzled with the Terps in the mid-1990s.

No. 8 John Carroll drew fellow Maryland team and national powerhouse Montrose Christian of Rockville in the second round of the Iolani Classic in Honolulu on Thursday night. The Mustangs proved to be too big - with four starters between 6 feet 6 and 6-8 - and too talented, and beat the Patriots, 43-28. John Carroll (9-4) matched Montrose Christian bucket for bucket in the first quarter before the Mustangs ran on the Patriots in the second and fourth quarters to win. The slow, methodical Mustangs, ranked No. 11 by USA Today, won the opening tip-off and ran off two minutes before taking their first shot.

TERRAPINS SENIORS Eric Hayes Hometown: Woodbridge, Va. High school: Potomac (Va.) Position: Guard Career games played : 128 Senior averages: 10.9 points, 3.9 assists, 2.5 rebounds Landon Milbourne Hometown: Roswell, Ga. High school: Oak Hill (Va.) Position: Forward Career games played: 112 Senior averages: 13.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.3 blocks Greivis Vasquez Hometown : Caracas, Venezuela High school: Montrose Christian Position: Guard Career games played: 131 Senior averages: 19.5 points, 6.4 assists, 4.8 rebounds

COLLEGE PARK -- Cliff Tucker, considered by many among the nation's top high school guards, signed and faxed a letter of intent yesterday to play for Maryland, the athletic department announced. Maryland still has one scholarship remaining, leaving the option open for popular prospect Jai Lucas, whose father, John, played for the Terps. Lucas has prolonged his recruiting process and is still uncommitted. Tucker, a 6-foot-5 senior swingman from Chapin High School in El Paso, Texas, is a four-star recruit ranked the No. 19 shooting guard in the country by Rivals.

Baltimore-area players in the NCAA tournament, listed alphabetically by college: Clemson David Potter, senior forward, Severn native, IMG Academy (Fla.) Georgetown Henry Sims, sophomore center, Mount St. Joseph Maryland Dino Gregory, junior forward, Mount St. Joseph Maryland Sean Mosley, sophomore guard, St. Frances Maryland David Pearman, junior forward, Oakland Mills Missouri Kim English, sophomore guard, Randallstown Morgan State Reggie Holmes, senior guard, St. Frances Morgan State Danny Smith, junior guard, Woodlawn Morgan State Troy Smith, senior guard, Douglass Morgan State Rodney Stokes, junior forward, Old Mill Morgan State Kevin Thompson, sophomore forward, Walbrook New Mexico State Jahmar Young, junior guard, Du Bois Pittsburgh Chase Adams, senior guard, Mount St. Joseph Pittsburgh Jermaine Dixon, senior guard, Baltimore native, Blake High Texas A&M Naji Hibbert, freshman guard, Baltimore native, DeMatha Vermont Brendan Bald, freshman guard, Severna Park Villanova Isaiah Armwood, freshman forward, Baltimore native, Montrose Christian

During the summer he was the leading scorer on his AAU team. For his powerhouse high school program, he's the ultimate “glue guy.” No matter the level of competition, and no matter the quantifiable contributions, Cedric Blossom 's do-it-all game has made him a favorite of coaches and players alike. Blossom's versatility also made him a prime mid-major recruit, with Bryant, Dartmouth, Holy Cross, Loyola, Morgan State, New Hampshire and Towson among the programs that expressed interest in the 6-foot-6, 225-pound forward.

No. 8 John Carroll drew fellow Maryland team and national powerhouse Montrose Christian of Rockville in the second round of the Iolani Classic in Honolulu on Thursday night. The Mustangs proved to be too big - with four starters between 6 feet 6 and 6-8 - and too talented, and beat the Patriots, 43-28. John Carroll (9-4) matched Montrose Christian bucket for bucket in the first quarter before the Mustangs ran on the Patriots in the second and fourth quarters to win. The slow, methodical Mustangs, ranked No. 11 by USA Today, won the opening tip-off and ran off two minutes before taking their first shot.

John Carroll's No. 8 boys basketball team used a 32-0 run in the third quarter to beat Hilo (Hawaii), 69-26, in Wednesday's opening round of the Iolani Classic in Honolulu. The Patriots (9-3) were led by Kimbal Mackenzie with a game-high 15 points. Kamuela Patnaude had seven for the Vikings. Eleven Patriots scored, including Rodney Elliott and Trystan Pratapas with 11 points each. John Carroll is headed for an all-Maryland showdown in tonight's second-round game at 11:30.

Montrose Christian will host a coaches' clinic Saturday featuring three high-major men's basketball coaches as guest speakers. The Mustangs will welcome St. John's coach Steve Lavin, Virginia coach Tony Bennett and Villanova coach Jay Wright to their Rockville gym. George Washington assistant Kevin Sutton and Montrose coach Stu Vetter will also speak at the clinic. “Learning new and innovative coaching techniques from some of the best basketball minds in the country is one method my staff and I use to continue improving as coaches,” Vetter said in a news release.

During the summer he was the leading scorer on his AAU team. For his powerhouse high school program, he's the ultimate “glue guy.” No matter the level of competition, and no matter the quantifiable contributions, Cedric Blossom 's do-it-all game has made him a favorite of coaches and players alike. Blossom's versatility also made him a prime mid-major recruit, with Bryant, Dartmouth, Holy Cross, Loyola, Morgan State, New Hampshire and Towson among the programs that expressed interest in the 6-foot-6, 225-pound forward.

Baltimore-area players in the NCAA tournament, listed alphabetically by college: Clemson David Potter, senior forward, Severn native, IMG Academy (Fla.) Georgetown Henry Sims, sophomore center, Mount St. Joseph Maryland Dino Gregory, junior forward, Mount St. Joseph Maryland Sean Mosley, sophomore guard, St. Frances Maryland David Pearman, junior forward, Oakland Mills Missouri Kim English, sophomore guard, Randallstown Morgan State Reggie Holmes, senior guard, St. Frances Morgan State Danny Smith, junior guard, Woodlawn Morgan State Troy Smith, senior guard, Douglass Morgan State Rodney Stokes, junior forward, Old Mill Morgan State Kevin Thompson, sophomore forward, Walbrook New Mexico State Jahmar Young, junior guard, Du Bois Pittsburgh Chase Adams, senior guard, Mount St. Joseph Pittsburgh Jermaine Dixon, senior guard, Baltimore native, Blake High Texas A&M Naji Hibbert, freshman guard, Baltimore native, DeMatha Vermont Brendan Bald, freshman guard, Severna Park Villanova Isaiah Armwood, freshman forward, Baltimore native, Montrose Christian

TERRAPINS SENIORS Eric Hayes Hometown: Woodbridge, Va. High school: Potomac (Va.) Position: Guard Career games played : 128 Senior averages: 10.9 points, 3.9 assists, 2.5 rebounds Landon Milbourne Hometown: Roswell, Ga. High school: Oak Hill (Va.) Position: Forward Career games played: 112 Senior averages: 13.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.3 blocks Greivis Vasquez Hometown : Caracas, Venezuela High school: Montrose Christian Position: Guard Career games played: 131 Senior averages: 19.5 points, 6.4 assists, 4.8 rebounds

The basketball season is just beginning, but already there's some hot competition in tournaments at Dunbar and Randallstown this weekend and with next weekend's Towson Catholic event at Loyola College. The seventh annual Baltimore-Washington Challenge features six games in two days tomorrow and Saturday at Dunbar. In girls action tomorrow, Walbrook meets Washington city title contender H.D. Woodson at 5 p.m., followed by a 7 p.m. game between three-time defending state champion and No. 6 Dunbar of Baltimore and District of Columbia Interscholastic Athletic Association runner-up Dunbar.

Coach: Leonard Hamilton, fourth season at school (45-48), 18th overall at college level (245-258) 2004-05 record: 12-19, 4-12 (tied for 10th in ACC) Returning starters: Senior G Todd Galloway, junior F Alexander Johnson, senior F Diego Romero, senior G-F Andrew Wilson Sun prediction: Losing record Why it will happen: The good news is that Baltimore native Galloway is back after leading the Seminoles in assists. The bad news is that his 3.0 average was lower than that of all but one ACC point guard, a reflection of Florida State's 68.6 scoring average.

Montrose Christian basketball coach Stu Vetter confirmed Thursday that highly touted senior shooting guard Terrence Ross withdrew his commitment to Maryland "within the week." "He has reopened his recruitment," Vetter said. "He's going to reopen it for a limited number of schools - no more than four or five. Maryland is still very strong in the picture. He just felt that he wanted to open it up and make sure he was making an informed decision. And that's pretty much it." Vetter said Ross, a four-star prospect at the Rockville high school who grew up in Portland, Ore., is not looking at any West Coast schools.

After playing three years for the nationally ranked boys basketball program at Montrose Christian in Rockville, Terrell Vinson returned home to play his final season for St. Frances, emerging as one of the best players in the area. Vinson, a 6-foot-7 forward, scored 16 points in Tuesday's Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference semifinal win over Loyola. His No. 2 Panthers finished the regular season 18-0 in the A Conference and 14-0 in the Baltimore Catholic League. Vinson, who has a 3.0 grade-point average, had made an oral commitment to Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles, but he reopened his recruiting after the head coach resigned last month.