According to Adam Munsterteiger of Buffstampede.com, the Colorado Buffaloes have secured a letter of intent from the final member of their 2012 recruiting class. Colorado point guard Xavier Talton joined fellow locals, Josh Scott and Wesley Gordon, as well as Xavier Johnson of California and Chris Jenkins of Detroit. Fantastic class for coach Boyle. 

Welcome aboard Xavier! 

Xavier Talton

Position: Point Guard Measurables: 6-2, 185 lbs. High School:  Sterling (Sterling, CO) HS Rankings: - Rivals: 3-star Other Schools of Interest: Offers from Wyoming, Buffalo, SMU, Colgate, Mercer, Rice. Nebraska and Utah also showing heavy interest Status: Signed LOI with Colorado  Notes: From Rivals ($): "They said they will look for me to be aggressive," Talton said. "I am going to try to bring my leadership, my scoring and my point guard abilities. I just want to make everybody around me better." Talton was named the 4A Colorado player of the year and Tri-Valley Conference player of the year after he led Sterling to 27 wins and a state championship as a junior last season. He averaged 21.3 points during Sterling's final three playoff victories. "Xavier can score a heck of a lot of points for you. He has a great shot but he would just assume pass the ball and get his teammates the ball," Sterling head coach Mike Holloway previously told BuffStampede.com. "He has a real knack for setting up his teammates and creating opportunities for them. He has a great feel for the game."

According to Adam Munsterteiger of Buffstampede.com, the Colorado Buffaloes have received their second commitment in the 2012 recruiting class in two days, and this one's a big one. Xavier Johnson is a high profile forward playing for a big time team in California. He had offers from at least four other Pac-12 teams. Johnson's commitment should see the Buffaloes make a nice jump in the recruiting rankings.

Welcome aboard Xavier! Tad Boyle is officially on a roll...

Xavier Johnson

Position: Small Forward Measurables: 6-6, 180 lbs. High School:  Mater Dei (Santa Ana, CA) HS Rankings: - Rivals: 4-star, 83rd in Top 150 - ESPN: 4-star, 86th in Top 100  Other Schools of Interest: Offers from Arizona State, Harvard, Oregon State, UCLA, UNLV, USC. Other schools that are showing interest in him are Arizona, Cal, Georgetown, Oregon, SDSU, Stanford, Syracuse. Status: Verbal to Colorado Notes: From Scout: Johnson is a multi-talented forward who can knock down the three, create his own shot from midrange and also attack the basket. He tends to rely on his three too much, but he has a terrific stroke and in time should be a very good three-point shooter. Johnson's effort is inconsistent, but when he's focused and plays hard, there's a big difference in his performance. He's a good passer and defender when giving good effort on that end of the court.

Check out an interview and some highlights after the jump.

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According to Buffstampede.com, the Colorado Buffaloes and head coach Tad Boyle have landed their third verbal commitment of the 2012 recruiting class. Jenkins is a long small forward who averaged just over 28 points for his high school team his junior season. He joins local forwards Josh Scott and Wesley Gordon in the 2012 class. 

Welcome aboard Chris!

Chris Jenkins

Position: Small Forward Measurables: 6-7, 190 lbs. High School:  University of Detroit (MI) Jesuit HS Rankings: - Rivals: 3-star Other Schools of Interest: Offers from Central Michigan, Detroit, Duquesne, Eastern Michigan, Florida International, Morehead State. Other schools that are showing interest in him are Xavier, Boston College, Providence, Stanford, Santa Clara, La Salle and St. Bonaventure. Status: Verbal to Colorado Notes: From Rivals: An intriguing wing on the mid major level is Chris Jenkins of the REACH Legends. Jenkins canned some threes and has good size and length for a small forward.

Check out his highlights after the jump.

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According to Buffstampede.com, the Buffaloes have signed two local high school prospects for the 2012 recruiting class over the last few days, both from the Colorado Springs area. After only signing players from Colorado over the last seven years, head coach Tad Boyle has made sure to take advantage of a banner class in the state for 2012. 

Welcome aboard Wesley and Josh!

Wesley Gordon

Position: Power Forward Measurables: 6-7/195 High School:  Colorado Springs (CO) Sierra HS Rankings: - Rivals: Ranking not yet released Other Schools of Interest: Unknown Status: Verbal to Colorado Notes: Gordon plays the five at Sierra right now, but CU sees him playing the three (small forward) or the four (power forward) when he arrives on campus. He averaged 21 points during his junior season.

Josh Scott

Position: Power Forward Measurables: 6-8/200 High School:  Colorado Springs (CO) Lewis Palmer HS Rankings: - Rivals: Ranking not yet released Other Schools of Interest: Boise State, Colorado State, San Francisco, Stanford, Wake Forest Status: Verbal to Colorado Notes: Buffaloes coaches have told Scott that he will play the three or four in college and that he needs to continue to develop his outside skills, post moves and strength during his senior year.

According to the Colorado Daily and scout.com, Tad Boyle has received his third verbal commitment in 7'1" center Ben Mills. Mills, out of Arrowhead High School in Wisconsin, visited Boulder this week and supposedly left campus as a Buff. He originally committed to Boise State but after a coaching change, he asked out of his signed letter of intent to open up his recruitment. At first, Boise State denied Mills his release. 

Mills has an impressive offer list including the likes of Georgia Tech, Iowa State, Northwestern, Utah State and Oregon State. His AAU coach said he had offers from Oregon St., Bradley, Wisconsin-Green Bay, Northwestern, Toledo, Iowa State and Xavier, and eight other schools have made contact, including Iowa, Georgia Tech, Northern Iowa, Oklahoma, Southern Illinois, St. John's, Virginia, and Washington State. Mills averaged 17.1 points and 11.2 rebounds per game as a senior while leading the Warhawks to a 25-3 record.  He was also a first team All-State pick by both the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association and the Wisconsin Associated Press. Mills scored 18 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked three shots in Arrowhead’s state championship win. Making that performance even more impressive is Mills only attempted nine shots, making eight. As a junior, he averaged 13 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks a game. At 210 pounds, Mills will need to add weight to be successful in the Big 12 trenches.

Here are is a video of Mills on the court.

Mills is a skilled forward who shot 53 percent from the field and 59 percent from the foul line as a senior. He needs to continue to add weight and strength to his long 7-1 frame, but he has made tremendous strides in all aspects of his game the past three seasons under both Davis and Arrowhead coach Craig Haase. 

Mills averaged 21 points and 10 rebounds during the state title run.  He was a force offensively and defensively, blocking shot after shot.  At seven foot one, shooting jump shots is usually a tough task.  Not for Mills.  He shot around 70 percent from the free throw line and would even step back for fifteen footers every now and then.

Mills is gearing up to start for Arrowhead for his senior season after leading the Warhawks to a record of 17-5 a year ago. As a junior, he averaged 13.8 points and 9.17 rebounds per game, while sinking 50 percent of his shots from the floor, including 36 percent from 3-point range. His efforts during his junior season earned him a first team all-conference honors in the Classic Eight Conference. In addition, he was named first-team all-county and was an all-state honorable mention.

Ranked No. 9 among Wisconsin state seniors in the class of 2010 by wishoops.net, Mills was one of the hottest prospects in the state and received offers from 19 NCAA Division I programs before narrowing it to Boise State, Hawai'I and Oregon State. With his commitment to Boise State, Mills becomes just the second player in Arrowhead basketball history to receive a Division I basketball scholarship.

"We are really excited to add another big man to our roster and think Ben is a great fit," Graham said. "Ben is an exceptional young man that can run the floor and play multiple positions, which will be a great addition to have in our rotation. He has grown over a foot and gained over 40 pounds in the last three years, so the potential for him to get bigger, stronger and more mature as a player is something we are looking forward to developing."

New head basketball coach Tad Boyle didn't waste much time on the job as he has received his first two commitments at Colorado. Boyle, just over two weeks on the job, had to get a jump on things with the late recruiting period starting in April and it looks like mission accomplished.

6'5" G Carlon Brown, a junior transfer from the University of Utah, has decided against entering the NBA draft early and play one more year at the University of Colorado. Brown will have to sit out next year due to NCAA transfer rules but the timing could be perfect. With G Cory Higgins entering his senior year in Boulder and the potential of G Alec Burks heading to the NBA early, Brown would be a good option to fill some of the void at the guard spot. Many Division-I schools wouldn't take a third year transfer considering they have to sit out a year but with Higgins and Burks potentially leaving after the 2010-2011 season, this is a good plan for the program.

It is also a good plan because Brown can certainly play.

Brown was Utah's leading scorer last year averaging 12.6 points per game in 28.7 minutes. It looks like Brown made the right choice to come back to school considering 103 early entrants filed paper work for the NBA draft, including Carlon. Multiple NBA teams expressed interest in Brown but many agree with his decision to come back to school and work on his game.

Brown, who was a starter his first two years at Utah, was asked to come of the bench last year which was the main reason he transferred:

Brown acted unhappy at times last season, and there were rumors he might want to transfer. After starting for two seasons, Brown was asked to come off the bench early last season and only started 12 games.

In a statement released by the university, Brown said, "I am very thankful for my time at Utah. But I feel now it's in my best interest to explore all of my other options. I appreciate the chance to be a Ute, but I think my playing style and skill set may fit better in another situation."

Brown also visited Kent State but ended up deciding to attend Colorado.

In an article from Buffzone, Brown thinks he can bring versatility to a team:

"I can be used at different positions at any time," he said. "I think I can play offensively one through three, I think I can guard one through three. I can bring the ball up. I can shoot. I can pass. I can make plays for teammates. I can finish well at the rim, and I think I can bring some leadership and experience to either team.

"I think I`ve got a lot of attributes I can bring to a team and help build a culture or help sustain one."

The second signature of the weekend is from 6'8" 190 pound Texas high school prospect Andre Roberson. Roberson was being recruited by Tulsa, Penn State, Texas, UNLV, UCLA and Clemson. Roberson averaged 15 points and 12 rebounds per game as a senior at Wagner High in Texas.

According to the blog Texas Basketball Inc, it sounds like the Buffs got a pretty good player:

I've said for a year plus now that in my opinion Roberson was the prospect with the biggest upside in the Central Texas area in the Class of 2010. I watched the lanky wing fight 6'9" 250 Keith Davis of Desoto in the Texas 5A State Semi Finals last year and the youngster had 17 rebounds against the burly Texas A&M commit.  Roberson has a superior outside shot, defends bigger guys in the post with his length and is a nightmare matchup on the perimeter when he takes other 3/4 men off the dribble.  Despite his still slender frame Roberson is adept at finishing in traffic and tries to dunk everything.

Roberson had just returned from his official visit to Penn State this past weekend and for a while definitely looked like he was headed to the Big Ten.  A late surge in recruiting from the Denver Tourney had UNLV making a late offer and also drew renewed interest from UCLA.  As soon as Roberson returned from Penn State the savy Colorado staff had the youngster headed for the beautiful Colorado campus this past Wednesday and Thursday.

Big props have to go out to Colorado Assistant Tommy Abedemarco for keeping the fire burning with Roberson as he was the only coach who made the transition from the old staff and was retained by new Head Coach Tad Boyle.

Look for Roberson to make an impact immediately as a freshman. He'll be an outstanding 3/4 matchup as the Buffaloes look to build the program to the upper echelon of the Big XII.   In addition to UNLV & Penn State he also had offers from Wichita State and Tulsa amongst others.

UTSATailgators.com called Roberson "arguably the best player in the San Antonio area" and thinks his "consistent production" makes him a quality prospect:

Andre Roberson of Wagner played like a man possessed night in night out this past year and had very solid senior season for the Wagner Thunderbirds. In two key regional matchups at the UTSA convo, Roberson posted stat lines of 20 points, 11 boards and 6 blocks against Laredo United. He followed that up the next day in the regional final with 16 points & 8 boards against Judson. In days leading up to the regional action, the San Antonio Express News had Andre Roberson averaging 15 points & 11 rebounds a game. This type of consistent production has gotten Andre Roberson a lot of recruiting attention over the last couple of weeks and the hometown D1 school, UTSA, has been in contact.

Roberson's stock looked to be on the rise over the past couple of months as well:

As the season has ended recruiting has definitely picked up for Andre, "Seems like a new school is calling everyday." Roberson has caught the eyes of plenty D-1 recruiters and there are many reasons, "He's a versatile player. He can do a lot both offensively and defensively." Roberson can step back and shoot the three from a set spot. He can put the ball on the floor, slash and finish above the rim. He can also use his length in the low block and use some post moves. Defensively, Andre has a wing span over seven feet that he uses to his advantage altering and blocking plenty of shots. His nose for rebounding is second to none.

Off the floor Andre is said to be a great kid. Very polite, always smiling, grounded and very respectful. Positive traits that are sometimes lacking in today's youth.

Roberson was recently named to the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches All-State Team. Andre averaged more than a double/double this season for Wagner, 15 points & 12 rebounds. He's a 6'7", 185-190 pound athlete that can play and guard outside, along with mixing it up down low. To add to his list of accolades, Andre was also ranked as the 26th best prospect in the entire state of Texas by Texashoops.com earlier this year.

Andre remains undoubtedly the best uncommitted/unsigned senior in the Greater San Antonio area. Two local coaches have gone as far to say that they feel he is the best prospect in the entire city.

Tad Boyle still has two available scholarships for the 2010-2011 recruiting period, both to hopefully be used on an immediate impact post presence but on paper, these two commits look like outstanding pick-ups for only being on the job two weeks. Anytime you can bring in players that are getting looked at hard by five+ NBA teams and a small forward that is being called the best prospect in San Antonio, it has to be considered an early success.

Ultimately, Boyle's first recruiting period will be judged on whether or not he can find a big man but for now, great start. 

When you think about the upcoming 2010 - 2011 season for Colorado basketball, there is plenty to get excited about. The Buffs will return both G Cory Higgins and G Alec Burks, the third and seventh ranked scorers in the Big 12 this past season. CU was third in the conference in field goal percentage, led the league in free throw percentage and fourth in three point percentage. Colorado was relatively efficient offensively from the perimeter spots, soon to be senior Marcus Relphorde played very well the last half of the year and from all accounts, red shirt freshman G Shannon Sharpe, who was hurt the entire year, will be an upgrade at the point position.

But for all the good, the glaring weakness in the middle will prohibit this team from ever challenging in the Big 12. Colorado ranked a horrendous 325th in rebounding margin, dead last in the Big 12 in defensive field goal percentage, 288th in blocked shots per game and 296th in scoring defense. Most of which can be attributed to a lack of an inside presence.

Jeff Bzdelik has stated many times this year that finding a big man this offseason is priority #1 and he has admitted that the success of his team hinders on a successful search. With the spring signing period beginning on April 14th, it is now or never for Bzdelik. Higgins and Relphorde have one year remaining, Burks might have millions of dollars awaiting him in the NBA.

This weekend, Colorado entertained junior college prospect C Guy-Marc Michel. Michel played his last two years at Northern Idaho College where he averaged seven points, seven rebounds and three blocks per game. Michel, who stands 7-foot-1, is best defined as a raw talent who is much more comfortable on the defensive end compared to the offensive end. He has a 7-foot-6 wingspan and led the Scenic West Athletic Conference (SWAC) in blocks the last two years. He has been supposedly offered by both Gonzaga and Colorado. Michel was named all conference in the SWAC this year.

Fortunately, the Slipper Still Fits, the Gonzaga Bulldogs blog on SBNation, has done all the research needed on Michel, having seen him play multiple times. At first, they were pretty excited about the prospects of Michel since he is a pretty athletic big man who just needed some development on the offensive end:

Positives: The first thing that you notice when watching Guy-Marc is that he is very fluid for a 7'1 athlete. He runs the floor with ease, and I even it even looks like he is gliding when he runs the court. This was a pleasant surprise, as many guys his size tend to labor when they are forced to run the court. The area where Guy-Marc really thrives is on the defensive end of the court. He uses his great size and tremendous wing-span to guard every shot that is taken. He also possesses excellent timing on his shot-blocking which allows for him to deflect many shots that other players his size wouldn't. It is clear he is most comfortable on this end of the court, as he is very vocal with his teammates, and controls everything in the paint. Michel is also a fundamentally solid rebounder. Immediately after any shot goes up, he locates a body and boxes out the man.

Negatives: While there is no denying the tremendous force that Guy-Marc is on the defensive end, his offensive game is about as raw as I have seen. While he is vocal and confident with his teammates on the defensive side, Michel appears to be timid and doesn't demand the ball in the set offense. The NIC was frustrating to watch, because many times, Michel would only receive the ball at the top of the key, where he was clearly uncomfortable. The interesting aspect of Michel's offensive game is that he actually has a decent post game. There were two separate occasions where NIC was able to get Michel isolated with his back-to-the-basket, and both times he was able to finish with ease. I was most impressed by a beautiful baby hook he was able to score over his defender from the left block. It seemed that he could hit this shot any time he wanted, but instead he allowed himself to be a bystander in the NIC offense.

Rivals.com says that Gonzaga offered Michel a scholarship but their is some doubts at the Slipper Still Fits if he would be any sort of contributor on the offensive end. They believe the Zags have not offered considering Michel would have probably committed on the spot since he is at most of the games and an idol of his is former Bulldog great Ronny Turiaf:

However, like many guys who are 7'1, Michel is still incredibly awkward on the offensive end, and has a long way to go before he would be able to contribute at this level. I think that the staff would like to see some signficant improvement from Guy-Marc in terms of his overall skill level before they decide that he is worth a scholarship. Still, there is no denying the natural athleticism and great timing he possesses on the defensive end.

But at the same time, Colorado doesn't need a huge offensive producer but instead a consistent rebounder, shot blocker and a defensive force.

In the 2008 - 2009 season:

2008-2009: Michel started in 31 games for the Cardinals last season while leading the SWAC in blocked shots with 103. He was named to the All-SWAC honorable mention team. He averaged 8.3 points and 6.7 rebounds last year and was a member of the Athletics Department honor roll. He has a 7-foot 6-inch wing span and speaks three languages.

This past season, Michel's team made it to the Region 18 Championship but lost 80 - 88 missing out on the chance to play in the national tournament. His team finished 27 - 5 on the year. But along the lines of what the Slipper Still Fits said, at 7-foot-1, Michel never led his team in a game scoring wise this year. But some of his block numbers are amazing.

Here are Michel's year stats:

I am going back and forth on Michel. You never know how a junior college player with less than eye popping stats will translate to the Big 12. It is a big concern. Buffs center Shane Harris-Tunks, a 6-foot-11 freshman last year from Australia, played 11 minutes a game, averaged 1.8 points and 1.6 rebounds per game. So we don't know what we have in Harris-Tunks yet. It is unbelievably important that whoever the Buffs bring in can contribute right away.  Again, Michel is not a world beater on the offensive end and only started 14 games for NIC and played for just 20 minutes a game. A few games, he was in foul trouble. But if you take his 20 minutes a game, extend it to 30 minutes a game, his averages may project to 10.5 rebounds per game, 10.5 points per game and 6 blocks. Not bad at all. We would be signing Michel for his ability to block shots and rebound. If he got 10.5 rebounds and 6 blocks a game, that would make him a team leader in both categories. 

Here is Michel's last 13 games at NIC:

He has the ability to be 13 and 13 guy in limited minutes, he shot 61% from the field which is excellent, had plenty of 7+ block games. Consistency might worry me. At 7-foot-1, you would hope to see no games with less than 6 rebounds. Michel had 7 of his last 13 games with 5 or less rebounds.

In the SWAC conference, Michel ranked 27th in scoring, 6th in rebounding, 5th in offensive rebounds and 1st in shot blocks

SLAM.com thinks Michel's athletic ability gives him a chance to be a successful division one center:

Another big frontcourt presence for the Cardinals was center Guy-Marc Michel, hailing from Sainte Marie, Martinique. Standing at a lighthouse-like 7-1, Michel is lean and rangy, with a mile-long stride and a wingspan like a bald eagle. He can put the ball on the floor and hop-step to the rack all in one smooth maneuver; oddly graceful for someone so large. Rumor has it Gonzaga University (just half an hour west of Coeur d’ Alene, in Spokane) is holding Michel at NIC until he’s ready for a transfer to the big leagues. To my untrained eye, he has all the physical tools to be a big-time Division I center, though he seems a little raw on the offensive end. But what team couldn’t use an athletic seven-footer?

Jeff Bzdelik continues to add more players to try and right the ship, this time it is JUCO transfer Marcus Relphorde. Relphorde, the 6'7" 225 pound wing/guard combo, played at Indian Hills Community College last season and will have three years to play two at Colorado. Relphorde was being recruited by Arkansas, TCU and Colorado. Marcus would be the fifth incomer this year to go along with 6-11 Shane Harris-Tunks from Australia, 6-6 Keegan Hornbuckle of Los Angeles and 6-5 Alec Burks of Grandview (Mo.) and 6-0 Shannon Sharpe of Corona (CA). And we thought last year's team was young. This should end this year's recruitment for Bzdelik as this most recent scholarship was opened up by the departure of freshman G Ryan Kelley.

In 2007, Relphorde officially signed a letter of intent with the St. Louis Billikens and played one year there. Here is how the article from the St. Louis website described Relphorde at the time of his commitment:

Relphorde played at Homewood-Flossmoor in Chicago before attending American Christian School in Alston, Pa. last year. He scored 13 points, grabbed six rebounds and handed out 3.5 assists per game. At Flossmoor, Relphorde helped the Vikings to a 27-4 record and a spot in the Illinois Supersectionals in 2004-05. He played on that team with current Kansas sophomore Julian Wright, who has declared for the NBA Draft this summer.

"Marcus is a tremendous signee for this program," Soderberg said. "He has the `hard to find' combination of size, skill and agility. I am not exaggerating when I say he has the ability to play all four perimeter positions equally well and, if necessary, could probably do some damage in the post. Marcus is unique in that he has the size and strength necessary to defend lane players yet quick enough feet to defend perimeter players. He poses match-up problems for opposing defenses because he can score both inside and out. He is a great passer with a very good feel on the offensive end."

I like the versatility that Relphorde brings to the program and hopefully his 6'7" size can cause matchup problems on the perimeter. Last year at Indian Hills C.C., he averaged 10.6 ppg and shot a +40% from downtown. He was named honorable mention All-Region team in the 2008 - 2009 season and Indian Hills, considered a powerhouse in the community college ranks, finished 30 - 3.

In 2007/2008, his freshman year at St.. Louis University, Relphorde played sparingly in 21 games, averaging 4.3 min/game and 1.0 point/game.  Relphorde transferred from St. Louis around the time that Rick Majerus took over the helm, along with three other St. Louis players.

The good thing about this signing was it continues to fill in the gaps for each class, something that both Dan Hawkins and Jeff Bzdelik say is important in developing a successful program. Both football and basketball are really one year away from getting the right distribution of players between classes. Here is how the Buffs current roster will breakdown:

Incoming Freshmen: Shane Harris-Tunks, Keegan Hornbuckle, Alec Burks and Shannon Sharpe.
Sophomores: Nate Tomlinson, Austin DuFault, Toby Veal and Trey Eckloff
Juniors: Casey Crawford, Levi Knutson, Cory Higgins and Marcus Relaphorde
Senior: Dwight Thorne

Here are a few short videos of Relphorde after the jump...

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