The addition of Jones could make Iona the best team in the NYC metro region

Momo Jones has made a decision -- the former Arizona point guard is headed to Iona.

“After taking visits to the local schools I felt a good connection with Coach [Tim] Cluess] of Iona,” Jones said in a statement sent to Adam Zagoria by his adviser, former Seton Hall and St. John’s assistant Dermon Player. “I want to thank Seton Hall, Hofstra and UMass as well as South Florida and Marquette for their interest. I want to thank my family and my adviser, coach Dermon Player for helping me in the process. I look forward to going to the Gaels and pursuing my dreams of getting my degree and basketball career. My decision was basically solely on being close to my family and still having an opportunity to showcase my skills."

Jones, who averaged 9.4 ppg as the starting point guard for the Wildcats a season ago, should be able to thrive in the MAAC where he will join a Gaels team that finished 13-5 in conference play last season before losing in the title game of the league tournament.

What will be interesting, however, is if Jones is able to get himself eligible for the upcoming season.

Transfers generally have to sit out a season, but there are waivers available that will allow a player to be eligible immediately. One of the ways to do so is if the player is transferring home to be closer to a sick family member. Jones' grandmother is ill, and seeing as the Harlem native was attending school across the country, there is a chance that Jones will be granted the waiver.

If he does get cleared, Iona will be scary good next season. They already return their top four scorers from a season ago, including Mike Glover, a former Seton Hall recruit that tore up the MAAC last season to the tune of 18.2 ppg and 10.1 rpg. The 6'7" forward known as Optimus Prime on the NYC playgrounds went for 25 and 16 against Syracuse and 21 and 17 against Richmond.

Fairfield, last year's regular season MAAC champ, also returns quite a bit of talent, headlined by star point guard Derek Needham, but if Jones is cleared, its tough not to see the Gaels being next year's favorite and quite possibly the best team in the NYC area. Think about it -- Hofstra loses Charles Jenkins, St. John's will be all freshmen, Rutgers is still a season or two away from being relevant, and Seton Hall is, well, Seton Hall.
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Momo Jones decision to transfer caps off a wild Monday

Momo Jones must have heard footsteps.

With five-star recruits Josiah Turner and Nick Johnson coming in, Jones must have seen -- or been told -- the writing on the wall. He was coming off of a season where he averaged just 9.7 ppg, had a 1.3:1 a/to ratio (averaging just 2.4 apg), and shot 41.8% from the floor and 31.6% from three. That's not exactly the way to win out a starting spot.

Jones has not proven to be the kind of player that remains committed. He went to three different high schools. He was committed to both Louisville, USC, and Virginia Tech during his recruitment. He nearly transferred during his freshman season after struggling to deal with his limited minutes behind Nic Wise. His transfer shouldn't come as a huge surprise, especially if he was forced out. You see, the concern with Jones is that he wouldn't be able to handle playing a reduced role, and the Arizona coaching staff appear to feel that team chemistry is more important than what Jones brings to the table as a player.

The move is risky for Arizona. For starters, unless Jordin Mayes beats out Turner and Johnson, Arizona is going to be starting a freshman at the point. For all the inconsistency that Jones had throughout the season, the kid was a bulldog. He wanted to win, and he played well during the NCAA Tournament. Experience does has value, especially at the point.

The other issue is the whispers going around that Turner may not qualify academically. If he doesn't, Point Guard U will be very thin at the point next season.

According to Jeff Goodman, Jones is looking at transferring closer to his native NYC, possibly St. John's. He may be able to receive a waiver to play immediately due to a family illness.


Dalton Pepper to transfer as well: The West Virginia guard had a shot at starting next season, but in a move that surprised just about everyone involved, the rising junior is out the door. He averaged just 3.9 ppg, but at 6'5", Pepper was a very good defense player on the wing.


Sterling Gibbs chooses Texas: The former Maryland commit and the younger brother of Pitt's Ashton made the decision on Monday night to head to Texas to play for Rick Barnes and the Longhorns. He got a release from his Letter of Intent to Maryland when Gary Williams left. Its an interesting get for Texas. Gibbs is not a blue-chip recruit, and while Texas loses Cory Joseph and Jordan Hamilton on their perimeter, they are bringing in a solid back court with Myck Kabongo, Sheldan McClellan, and Julien Lewis. There is no guarantee that Gibbs, who visited the school this weekend, will play immediately.


Anthony Crater booted from USF: The former Ohio State point guard was dismissed from the South Florida basketball team tonight. According to Brett McMurphy of Fanhouse The New York Times CBSSports.com, Crater failed a third drug test, which automatically results in being kicked off of a team at South Florida. Crater's been in trouble throughout his career. In addition to the failed drug tests, he was a suspect in $8,000 worth of goods stolen out of a teammates room.
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Former USC recruits starting to make decisions

With Tim Floyd leaving USC and the wrath of the NCAA descending upon Troy, the Trojans have been hemorrhaging recruits. All told, USC lost three commits from the class of '09 (not including the morally ambiguous Renardo Sidney).

But those three guys have to end up some where, and they seem to be making their decisions.

• Noel Johnson, 6'7" SF, #53 Rivals, #56 Scout: After flirting with a number of schools, including UNLV, UNC-Charlotte, Xavier, and both Georgia and Georgia Tech, Johnson finally settled on Clemson as his destination. This is a great signing for the Tigers. For starters, Johnson is known for his shooting and scoring ability, and with KC Rivers graduating and Terrence Oglesby headed to Europe, Oliver Purnell really needed a wing scorer/shooter.
  
  What might be more important is that Johnson is a long, lean, and athletic 6'7", which means that he should fit right into the Tiger's pressing defense (as opposed to Oglesby, who never fit in with Purnell's system). Johnson will compete with Tanner Smith and David Potter to start on the wings alongside Demontez Stitt. With the Tigers excellent frontline (Trevor Booker, Jerai Grant, and Raymond Sykes return, while Purnell added top-25 recruit Milton Jennings and Trevor's younger brother Devin), Johnson may have been the missing piece.


• Lamont "Momo" Jones, 5'11" PG, #68 Rivals, NR Scout: It seems that Momo has settled on two schools: Florida and Arizona. Last week, he visited both campuses, but he has yet to announce a decision on where he will play (for the record, this will be his fifth commitment - he backed out on Virginia Tech last March, committed and de-committed from Louisville twice, and has now left USC).
  
  Originally, it looked like Memphis was going to end up being the front runner, but the Tigers backed off of their recruitment of Jones after they signed the Barton brothers. Antonio Barton is a PG, and Memphis's #1 target in the class of '10 is a local kid named Joe Jackson, who is a top 25 recruit.
  
  This will be a tough decision for Momo. While both Florida and Arizona are excellent programs with a great tradition of winning, both are expected to have a down year next year. But Jones would be a valuable addition to either school. Florida lost Nick Calathes to Greece, which combined with the decision by Jai Lucas to transfer has left Florida a bit shorthanded in their backcourt. Jones would probably see a lot of minutes off the bench as he would back up Kenny Boynton and Erving Walker.
  
  But the situation could be even better in Arizona. Known as Point Guard U, Arizona currently has a future pro starting at the point and a coach that was a phenomenal lead guard when he was in college. Tell those two wouldn't be great to learn under. And with Nic Wise graduating at the end of the season, Jones stands to inherit the starting job as a sophomore.


• Derrick Williams, 6'7" F, NR Rivals, #32 PF Scout: Williams was not as highly recruited as Jones or Johnson, as he failed to crack Rivals top 150 and Scouts top 100. But that doesn't mean he can't be an effective player at the next level. Right now, Williams is more of an athlete than a basketball player. He is a versatile wing that can play a little at both of the forward spots. He seems to be one of those guys that gets by right now on instincts and savvy as opposed to being a more skilled player.
  
  As we speak, Williams is in Memphis on an official visit, although he, too, is also looking at Arizona. I think Memphis would be a much better fit for Williams. I'm not quite sure what to expect from Pastner as a head coach (what kind of system will he run?), but given the make-up of the roster at Memphis, he more than likely will run something similar to what Coach Cal was running. Spread the floor, get out and play tough defense, and let athleticism take over. Williams should be a perfect fit.
  
  That said, Sean Miller seems to love guys with Williams' skill set (see Derrick Brown or CJ Anderson), and Arizona is much closer to California, where Williams grew up.
  

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