Oden, Conley give a preview Ohio State's 4 recruits play together for the 1st time and put together an impressive performance in all-star victory
CHICAGO -- For years, the Roundball Classic has been a preview of what's to come in basketball as a showcase for players such as LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal as they came out of high school.
Sunday afternoon at the United Center, it provided a glimpse into one of the top college basketball recruiting classes in recent years.
The four high school players in the Greg Oden-led Ohio State class played together for the first time, starting for the West in a 118-102 victory over the East.
The 7-foot Oden scored a game-high 21 points on 10-for-12 shooting, with 11 rebounds and two blocked shots. Mike Conley, Oden's teammate at Lawrence North, had a game-high 13 assists -- two shy of the record in the 42-year-old Roundball Classic -- seven points and eight rebounds.
Daequan Cook, a 6-5 shooting guard from Dayton, Ohio, had 18 points, and David Lighty, a 6-5 small forward from Cleveland, added 14 points.
Oden, Conley and Cook have played together in summer basketball, going 94-4 with Spiece Indy Heat the past two years. Lighty joined the group Sunday and slipped in seamlessly.
"It was great, kind of a preview of what's to come," Conley said. "I've never played with David before, but he showed out. He converted a lot of my passes, made it easy for me to get assists.
"He fit in real well. He's very unselfish, just like the rest of us. I think that's why Thad Matta recruited him."
The four Ohio State recruits, all ranked in the top 30 in the nation, were joined in the starting five by Lance Thomas, an uncommitted 6-8 power forward from Scotch Plains, N.J., who said he's deciding between Duke and Rutgers.
"Those guys are great," Thomas said. "With Greg, Daequan, Lighty and Mike Conley, that's a starting five right there. You can put anybody in there, and that's a great starting five."
The four Ohio State recruits combined for 60 points, 24 rebounds, 20 assists and shot 26-for-41 from the field. On one play, Oden tipped a rebound to Lighty, who threw ahead to Cook for a fast-break dunk. On another, Oden cleared space inside and Conley drove the lane and flipped the ball to Lighty for a dunk.
"It was awesome. He dunked on me twice," Oden said of Lighty, referring to alley-oops when Lighty outjumped him. "Daequan usually does that. The first oop, I jumped up and he caught it over me."
Oden had little trouble in the post against an opposing front line that had 6-10 Alex Stephenson (headed to North Carolina), 6-9, 280-pound Derrick Caracter (Louisville) and 6-11 Brian Carlwell (Illinois). Those three shot a combined 14-for-30.
The game was a homecoming for Mike Conley Sr., who coached the West. The Spiece Indy Heat coach, Conley Sr. won a high school state basketball title with Chicago Luther South in 1980 and still has family here.
"It's a great way to sort of end my career with these guys," said Conley Sr., who has coached his son and Oden in summer basketball since they were in sixth grade. "It was great coaching all these guys. I've always been one to tell them a little bit here and a little bit there, and it's going to be a lot of fun to watch their careers."
As for what to expect from the 'Thad Five' -- the class includes a junior college power forward -- Lighty said, "Hopefully we'll be good enough to win a national championship. That's on our minds. That's what we all want to happen."
