The Wolverine

April 2018

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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APRIL 2018 THE WOLVERINE 63   BASKETBALL RECRUITING Weems averaged 26.5 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in the regu- lar season, and put up a quadruple double with 21 points, 16 rebounds, 12 assists and 10 steals, and added seven blocks, in a regional semifi- nal win over Detroit Country Day March 14. He also finished a 76-56 regional win over St. Clair (Mich.) High March 12 with 22 points, 10 rebounds and five assists and notched a dou- ble-double — 26 points and 10 re- bounds — and added five assists and three steals in New Haven's 68-45 win versus Pontiac (Mich.) High in the Class B District opener March 5. Weems lists Michigan State, Ohio State, Michigan, Iowa, Missouri, Or- egon, and DePaul as the schools re- cruiting him the hardest at this point in the process. "I'm going to start going on more visits, and then figuring out official visits, and going from there," he said. Many believe he will end up out of state, though MSU is a strong con- tender. U-M is in the mix. ANOTHER WAGNER TO WATCH Sixteen-year-old Franz Wagner (6-7), brother of Michigan junior for- ward Moritz Wagner, has the same aspirations his brother does of mak- ing the NBA, and he's become a rising prospect. He has put up big numbers recently for his Alba Berlin team to earn mention as a potential collegian. "My brother is so focused on the next step that he, similar to me, doesn't really look ahead too far," Moritz said in early March. "But I think his goal is to play in the NBA at some point. That's his dream." There are many ways to get there for a European prospect. Moritz was torn between continuing to play for his Alba Berlin team and develop there or take a chance and come to the U.S. to play college ball. "He's definitely thinking about coming to the U.S.," Moritz said of his brother. "He's a little different than me, but he's in a very similar situation. "I think he really has both options in mind. It's a tough time for a young guy, 16 years old. He's graduating school right now, and he's going to have a whole year to think about it." Michigan will likely be one of his options if he continues to improve. CLASS OF 2018 SIGNEE BRANDON JOHNS IS A REGIONAL CHAMPION It took four years, but Michigan signee Brandon Johns finally has led his team to a regional title. The East Lansing (Mich.) High senior (6-8, Rivals.com's No. 65 senior nation- ally) had won a pair of league titles and two district championships plus enjoyed two undefeated regular sea- sons, but until March 14 he had never won a regional. That changed when he put up 27 points in a 50-42 win over Okemos (Mich.) High, a team that had beaten East Lansing twice in the regular sea- son. It came after he scored a quiet 12 points in a 70-37 win over Kalama- zoo (Mich.) Central in the semifinals March 12, and after he led East Lan- sing to a third consecutive district championship March 9 in a 56-45 vic- tory over Lansing (Mich.) Waverly at DeWitt, Mich. He scored 21 points in the first half and eight in the fourth quarter on his way to 33 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots in that game. Johns averaged 28.2 points, 10.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.0 steals and two blocks per game in the regular season. "It feels really good," Johns told The Lansing State Journal after the re- gional title win. "We've been want- ing it for three years now, and to fi- nally get it is amazing. "I think we just had a really fo- cused mentality. We had a lot of en- ergy, and we were really motivated to come out with the win." East Lansing was ranked No. 10 in Class A in the final Associated Press poll of the season. Only one other 2018 signee is still playing this year — Mono (Ontario) Orangeville Prep's Ignas Brazdeikis (6-7, Rivals.com five-star prospect). Brazdeikis had another huge couple of games at The Grind Session Na- tional Championships in mid-March, notching 35 points and eight re- bounds in a win over Rockville (S.C.) Believe Prep and 34 in an 84-70 loss to Bronx (N.Y.) Our Saviour Prep. Brazdeikis has averaged 31.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game this year. He had one more tournament to play, March 23-25, before he could concen- trate on being a Wolverine. Oakdale (Conn.) St. Thomas More's Adrien Nunez (6-4, Rivals.com three- star prospect) and his team lost to Gill (Mass.) Northfield Mt. Hermon 90-67 in the elite New England Preparatory School Athletic Council postseason tournament in early March. Nunez scored 14 points and averaged 15.5 points per game this year. Daytona Beach (Fla.) Father Lopez Center Colin Castleton's season ended with a playoff loss to Deltona in Febru- ary in which he scored 23 points. The 6-11 standout, Rivals.com's No. 127 se- nior prospect nationally, averaged 25.0 points, 12.0 rebounds and 5.0 blocks per game this year. Finally, Detroit's David DeJulius (6-1, Rivals.com's No. 118 player na- tionally) and his East English team were shocked by Detroit Western in the first round of the state district playoffs, a game in which DeJulius was held to 14 points (13 below his average). DeJulius averaged 27 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and three steals per game. He and future team- mate Johns were both among the five finalists for the prestigious Hal Sch- ram Mr. Basketball Award in Michi- gan. The award ended up going to Clarkston (Mich.) High's Foster Loyer, a Michigan State signee. ❏ On The Web For regular reports on Michigan basketball recruiting plus videos of U-M commitments and targets visit TheWolverine.com. U‑M commit Brandon Johns, Rivals.com's No. 65 senior nationally, scored 27 points to lead East Lansing (Mich.) High to a 50‑42 victory over Okemos (Mich.) High in its regional title game. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM

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