WS Chronicle

BY CRAIG T. GREENLEE 

FOR THE CHRONICLE

Three more basketball seniors at Quality Education Academy recently announced where they will continue their careers.

Deshawn Corprew, Marsellis Purvis and Keith Stagg all played major roles in the Pharaohs’ impressive run at a national title. The Pharaohs advanced to the finals of the Grind Session Nationals before bowing out to Victory Rock Prep (Fla.).

A week ago, Corprew verbally committed to play for Texas A&M. Purvis and Stagg are both headed to Jones County Junior College (Miss.). In 2014, Jones County won the NJCAA Division I national championship.

With this latest development on the recruiting front, all four of QEA’s seniors are now good to go for college. Pape Ndiaye, a 6-9 power forward, signed with Fordham University (N.Y.) a few weeks ago.

Corprew, a 6-5 shooting guard, closed out his QEA career as one of the best to ever play in the program. As a senior, he averaged 32 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals per game. He made his announcement about choice of schools the day before the end of the late signing period, which was May 18.

Over the final two months of the season, his stock as a blue-chip recruit continued to rise in the eyes of the college scouts. The highly-regarded Corprew attracted intense interest from at least a dozen major-college programs such as Missouri, UCLA, Cincinnati, Florida State and Texas. Before choosing Texas A&M, Corprew reportedly gave serious consideration to Kansas and LSU.

With Corprew added to the Texas A&M roster, there’s no question that coach Billy Kennedy is excited about the possibilities for next season.

“Deshawn gives us another talented and versatile guard who is capable of playing all three positions on the perimeter,” Kennedy said on the Texas A&M web site. “He’s an outstanding defender and has a great ability to penetrate and get into the paint. His toughness, size and athletic ability are going to have a big impact on our team.”

In national media circles, the acquisition of Corprew is viewed as a major accomplishment for Texas A&M. According to a report filed on the Bleacher Report website, the former QEA star is expected to make his presence felt right away. Here’s an excerpt:

“Especially at this stage of 2016 recruiting, snagging Corprew is a big move for the Aggies. He should help the team on both ends of the floor as A&M looks to make another deep run in the NCAA tournament.”

Corey Evans of the Roundball Rundown Report wrote:

“Big late addition for Texas A&M landing Deshawn Corprew. Tough and hard-nosed. Two-way producer. One of the best availables left in 2016.”

In Purvis and Stagg, the Jones County Bobcats have a pair of productive forwards who figure to make an immediate impact.

According to coach Isaac Pitts of QEA, both had offers from lower-level Division schools, but decided to go a highly-regarded junior college program like Jones County in order to enhance their chances to be recruited by the major programs after playing two seasons at the JC level.

At 6-7, Purvis is a bit undersized at power forward. But because of his game smarts and lower-body strength, he’s able to more than hold his own against taller players in the paint. At QEA, he emerged as a fierce inside presence at both ends of the floor. Purvis is also a skilled ball handler who can bring the ball up-court against pressing and trapping defenses.

Stagg, a lengthy 6-8 small forward, is a lethal shooter from 3-point distance. Defensively, he’s a menacing presence who can guard all three positions on the perimeter.

The college scouts got a glimpse of what Stagg is capable of during the final round of the Grind Session National Championships. In QEA’s 82-74 loss to Victory Rock Prep, Stagg delivered a game-high 28 points on 4-of-5 field goal shooting and 6-of-8 on 3-pointers.