Basketball Becomes Vital in the Summer By Eli Saslow Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, July 29, 2004; On the worst days, when his head throbs and his body aches from too much basketball, Archbishop Spalding High School senior Justin Castleberry dreams about his upcoming vacation, about his much-needed break. But school doesn't start until Aug. 30. Too bad, because for Castleberry and other top-level high school basketball players, summer vacation has become the busiest time of the year. During a three-week stretch that runs until the end of July, Castleberry will play about 40 games, more than he does during the three-month high school season. Throughout the summer, he spends 10 hours a week lifting weights and 15 hours practicing, leaving no room for part-time jobs or family vacations. Summer demands have skyrocketed across high school sports, but nowhere is a year-round commitment more essential than in men's basketball, where teams -- and scholarships -- are made during the offseason. "There's never really any break," Castleberry said. "Basically, my whole summer is 100 percent devoted to basketball, even though it's a winter sport. I can't stay out late with friends or get a job. I just do this." When Castleberry decided to commit to year-round basketball, he thought only of the opportunities it would unlock, not the ones it would quash. "If you want a scholarship," Spalding Coach Mike Glick told him, "then you better get it right now." Players race from one camp to the next, from one game to the next, hoping to catch the attention of a college coach. Castleberry feels dizzy just reviewing his schedule: a week and nearly 20 games at the Eastern Invitational in New Brunswick, N.J.; a handful of workouts at Spalding in front of college coaches; weekends filled with summer league games at St. Albans. "I don't even think about what I'm doing, to be honest with you," Castleberry said. "It's just go, go, go. This is the most important time of year." And he's spent months preparing for it. Castleberry and teammate Lawrence Dixon started working out the day after school ended, and since then they've rarely left basketball behind. Glick told them how to prepare: Lift weights three nights a week, practice for about an hour each day and play as many games as possible. "Ideally," Glick said, "they'll be preparing for about 25-30 hours each week. That's their summer." What about a part-time job? "There's just no way," Castleberry said, "that I could possibly have one." What about his family? "I'd like to go see my dad in Texas," Dixon said, "but that just doesn't fit in right now." What about a break -- one innocent little break? "For top-notch players these days," Glick said, "there's really no chance to get one." Coaches often blame the hectic pace on the NCAA's open evaluation period in July, which provides players with a summer showcase more important than anything during their high school season. College coaches can evaluate high schoolers during two 10-day stretches, from July 8 to 17 and July 22 to 31. Next year the NCAA will increase the break between the periods by three days. "We want to give players a little more rest," said Steve Mallonee, managing director of NCAA Division I membership services. "We know that, for them, this is a high-activity period." A high-stress period, too. Hundreds of college coaches flock to camps such as the Eastern Invitational so they can evaluate 300 highly regarded players at one place, instead of flying around the country to watch individual high school games. Hungry for lucrative scholarships, athletes and parents are more than willing to accommodate them. "Kids would play 24 hours a day if that's what they had to do," said Ned Sparks, the executive director of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association. "They might exhaust themselves. They might get tired of basketball. But they believe a scholarship can make it all worthwhile." Take Castleberry and Dixon, who swear that three months of physical stress and emotional exhaustion, three months of going to bed early while friends stay out late, will be made worthwhile by a free college education. Castleberry has been offered scholarships by several Patriot League schools, including Bucknell, Lehigh and American. Dixon is weighing offers from about six schools, including St. Francis and Holy Cross. "The offers keep you doing all the hard work," Dixon said. "We use those for motivation." Younger, lesser players drain themselves during the summer months, too, while eyeing different incentives, like improvement and playing time. Players at Annapolis High School and Glen Burnie High School aren't yet competing for scholarships, but they still spend their summers playing basketball. At both of those schools, players compete together in summer leagues, playing about 25 games over the summer. "The core people on our summer team will be the core players on our team next year," said John Brady, head coach at Annapolis. "We don't say, 'If you don't play in the summer, then you won't play during the year.' But it sure hurts kids if they don't play in the summer. They'll fall behind everyone else." "Our kids are in the gym lifting three nights a week and playing every other day," said Mike Rudd, head coach at Glen Burnie. "Obviously, that's not unique. These days, it seems like everyone lives and breathes basketball the whole year." Even when players deviate, they do so cautiously. Dixon bucked the trend and decided to get a part-time job at a barbecue restaurant near his house. Still, he misses work often for summer league games or nighttime workouts. "Before I took the job, I explained things to them," Dixon said. "They know my priorities. Basketball comes first, before basically everything." © 2004 The Washington Post Company

Date Time Opponent Location 6/12 WON + 9 vs Laurel @ St.Albans 6/13 WON Forfit vs G-town Prep @ St.Albans 6/18 WON + 7 vs Hayfield (VA) @ St.Albans 6/23 WON + 35 vs Glen Burnie @ Lake Waterford 6/26 WON + 1 vs S.Lakes (VA) @ St.Albans 6/27 Loss-6 vs Paul IV (VA) @ St.Albans 6/28 WON + 30 vs North County @ Annapolis HS 6/30 WON + 4 ot vs Old Mill @ Lake Waterford 7/1 WON + 32 vs Chesapeake @ Lake Waterford 7/2 WON + 34 vs Wilde Lake @ St.Albans *****ALL Varsity Players will attend Eastern Invitational Camp at the College of New Jersey from July 7-10***** *****ALL Varsity Players will attend Eastern Invitational Team Camp at the College of New Jersey from July 11 & 12***** 7/14 WON +5 vs St. Mary's @ Lake Waterford 7/16 Loss -21 vs DeMatha @ St.Albans 7/17 WON +7 vs WT Woodson (VA) @ St.Albans 7/18 Loss -21 vs Gonzaga (DC) @ St.Albans 7/19 WON +28 vs Cheaseapke @ Lake Waterford 7/20 WON +16 vs Arundel @ Lake Waterford 7/21 WON +28 vs Severna Park @ Lake Waterford 7/24 WON +16 vs St. Mary's @ St.Albans 7/27 WON +24 finals vs Broadneck @ Annapolis HS 7/28 WON +29 1st rd. vs Wilson (DC) @ St. Albans 7/29 WON +18 2nd rd. vs L.Braddock (VA) @ St. Albans 7/31 WON +8 3rd rd. vs Paul IV (VA) @ St. Albans 8/1 WON +14 semis vs CH Flowers @ St. Albans 8/1 Loss -18 finals vs DeMatha @ St Albans SEASON COMPLETED: Lake Waterford Summer League Champions; Runner-ups Ban The Brick Summer League; JV Runner-ups Ban The Brick Summer League...........................See You in the fall.........

By MICHAEL PIPER, Staff Writer Two teams, one division, similar records and both playing summer basketball hoping the lessons learned can translate to the winter varsity season. On the surface the Archbishop Spalding and North County boys entries in the Anne Arundel County Summer Parks and Recreation Basketball League would appear to have much in common. That couldn't be further from the truth. While North County has many of its varsity players on its Lake Waterford squad, Spalding intentionally kept its key varsity performers from participating. "We have three seniors who are Division I prospects that play with our team in the St. Alban's League in D.C.," said Sean Whalen, Spalding's new JV and Lake Waterford coach. "We use the Lake Waterford League to get some of our younger talent a chance to participate and get better." Players such as Derek Young, Danny Quinn, Johann James, Miguel James and Danny Palumbo have formed the nucleus of the Cavaliers' Lake Waterford contingent, which boasted a 4-2 record through Thursday's games. Young, a Suitland native, is a rising junior and has handled the point guard spot, impressing Whalen throughout the summer while Quinn, a 6-foot-6 post player has been a pressence in the front court as a rising junior. Swingmen Johann James, a varsity performer last year, and Miguel James and Palumbo have all taken steps forward and Whalen hopes it will help their confidence and their games this winter. "These guys are younger than most of the guys they play against," Whalen said of his team. "They are going against stronger, more mature players and playing well. They also get a chance to practice situations in games they are going to see this year and you just can't really simulate that in practice." Spalding's Justin Castleberry, Marquis Sullivan and Lawrence Dixon join the team when it competes in the St. Alban's League, a league that compares in level of play to the High Point Summer League, where Annapolis High plays. That league is necessary for Spalding, which plays in the ultra-competitive MIAA A Conference. North County, on the other hand, has the luxury of having nearly its full varsity roster on hand when it plays in the summer league. For the Knights, building the continuity and gaining a familiarity with one another, is as important as any basketball skills gleaned from the off-season competition. "You really have to try and develop that team unity in the summer," North County summer league head coach Frank Brown said. "There's really only like a three-month layover until winter, so what they learn in the summer should carry over."

July 19, 2004 James Quinn MDVarsity.com Magazine Staff The Spalding Cavaliers are coming off a 29-8 season in which they won Baltimore's MIAA "A" Conference, were ranked No. 2 in the Baltimore Sun, No. 12 in the Washington Post, were ranked No. 29, nationally by USA Today and reached the BCL tournament finals. Inspite of the graduation of All-American and DC Player of the Year Rudy Gay, Coach Mike Glick still feels that the Cavaliers can be very competitive in the MIAA "A" Conference and the BCL in 2004-2005. Part of the reason for Glick's optomism is the prsence of three battle-tested seniors who will likely be Division-I college recruits next season. While Coach Glick does not expect any one player to replace Gay's 21 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocked shots a game, he does hope that rising 6'5" senior Lawrwnce Dixon will become a consistent double figure scorer and frontcourt leader for Spalding next season. As we noted in our 2004-2005 preview on Spalding last month on MdVarsity.com, Glick has a very deep and talented backcourt returning and has two excellent juniors coming up from his excellent 2003-2004 JV team. As we have seen on several occasions this summer at Ban The Brick, Spalding's ability to compete with top opponents next year will hinge largely on their slightly undersized frontcourt's ability to compete with bigger, deeper teams. MdVarsity.com traveled to St. Albans for a key Ban The Brick match-up between WCAC power Gonzaga and Spalding on Sunday. We also scouted and interviewed Spalding's Lawrence Dixon. We had seen Spalding play several times previously this summer and Dixon had scored in double figures in each contest. On Sunday, the Purple Eagles defeated Spalding 62-42, but it wasn't for lack of production on Dixon's part. Dixon had 12 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks. The slender resident of Columbia, Md., showed nice ball skills as he both handled and passed the ball well. He did not make his only three point attempt, but he did hit a couple of 15-17 foot jumpers and scored on a couple of nice slicing drives off of dribble penetration. Though thin, Dixon is a pretty good "run'jump" athlete with evolving perimeter skills. Dixon has played on the Spalding varsity since he was a sophomore. He was an alternate starter/top substitute as a junior. Glick had expected a bigger junior year from Dixon, but he was slowed early in the season by a knee injury that forced him to miss some valuable preseason practice time. Dixon averaged about 6 points and 4 rebounds as a junior, though those numbers are decieving since the Cavaliers played a very deliberate style last year and their offensive attack, except for their "go-to-guy" Rudy Gay, was very balanced. Dixon's emergence as a D-I prospect took off last Spring after his junior season. "Lawrence had a GREAT off-season," Coach Glick told MdVarsity.com in May. "The improvement that Lawrence has made in the six weeks since our season ended was unbelievable. I don't think I have EVER had a player improve so much in such a short time."

Date Time Opponent Location 6/12 WON + 3 vs Middleburg (VA) @ St.Albans 6/13 WON +55 vs St. Mary's @ St.Albans 6/19 WON + 17 vs Landon @ St.Albans 6/20 WON +5 vs Sidwell @ St.Albans 6/26 Lost -3 vs Gonzaga (DC) @ St.Albans 6/27 Won + 34 vs St. Albans (DC) @ St.Albans 7/10 10:45am vs Gonzaga (DC) @ St.Albans 7/17 1:15pm vs Whitman @ St.Albans 7/18 2:15pm vs St. Mary's @ St.Albans *****Ban the Brick Playoffs Run On 7/30, 7/31 & 8/1*****