Kentucky lands Erlens Noel concludes No. 1 recruiting class

Now that Kentucky has wrapped up its fourth consecutive No. 1 recruiting class, what if Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Terrence Jones, etc. decided to come back for a shot at a second consecutive national championship?
Nah, not going to happen.
But given the Wildcats’ track record under coach John Calipari, they’re going to be heard from again next March. Davis and Gilchrist will go off to become the first two players taken in the June NBA Draft and Jones will fall somewhere in the lottery. Kentucky, though, will be back.
That much was all but assured on Wednesday night when Nerlens Noel—the No. 1 or No. 2 prospect in the class of 2012, depending on what recruiting analyst you subscribe to—appeared on ESPNU to announce he was signing with Calipari and the Cats.

If you don’t bleed Kentucky blue or follow the crazy world of college hoops recruiting, Noel is painted as the second coming of Anthony Davis. Some analyst say he’s an even better shot blocker than Davis, which boggles the mind given the records Davis shattered in his only college season.
At 6-foot-10 and 210 pounds, Noel is thinner than Davis. He may not be the offensive player Davis turned out to be, but he will anchor Kentucky’s defense, which will once again lock down opponents. He’s a Bill Russell-type shot blocker who uses his long arms and perfect timing to send back shots and keep them in play so teammates can corral them.
Despite Noel's commitment, Kentucky fans didn’t quite get the bountiful recruiting harvest they were hoping for Wednesday. Shabazz Muhammad, who would have been the heir apparent to Kidd-Gilchrist, opted for UCLA.
Even without Muhammad, the Cats cleaned up. Joining Noel in Lexington are three fall signees—6-8 Alex Poythress from Clarksville, Tenn., Archie Goodwin, a scoring machine from Little Rock, Ark., and 7-0 Willie Cauley from Kansas.
Poythress is a combo forward and McDonald’s All-American who can score inside and out. Goodwin can put the ball on the floor and make threes. Cauley is probably the least advanced of the Kentucky recruits, but has loads of potential.
Noel, Poythress and Goodwin are all consensus five-star recruits. ESPN rates Poythress the No. 13 player nationally and the No. 3 small forward, Goodwin the No. 15 player in his class and the No. 4 shooting guard, and Cauley the No. 40 player and the No. 11 center.
Kentucky is still in play for Anthony Bennett, the No. 7 player in the class of 2012, and UConn transfer Alex Oriahki, a junior power forward scheduled to visit Lexington. Oriahki recently trimmed Duke from his list but also likes Missouri, which joins the Southeastern Conference in the fall, and North Carolina. But UNC is also courting South Carolina transfers Anthony Gill and Damontre Harris, who both left the program after coach Darrin Horn was fired and replaced by Frank Martin.
Other than No. 1 Kentucky, only one other SEC school was ranked among ESPN’s top 25 recruiting classes. Florida landed firmly at No. 25. The Gators signed two four-star guards in the fall—6-4 Michael Frazier of Montverde (Fla.) Academy and 6-1 Braxton Ogbueze of United Faith Christian Academy in Charlotte, N.C.
Florida is still hoping to sign Bennett and recently gained some scholarship room when freshman Walter Pitchford decided to transfer to a school closer to his Michigan home.

Sinead O’Connor writes open letter to family of murdered teen, Treyvon Martin

Irish singer songwriter Sinead O’Connor has posted an open letter to Treyvon Martin’s family on her website. The controversial singer expressed her sympathy towards the Martin family whose teenage son was shot in Sanford, Florida by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, who claims he did so in self-defense.

Treyvon Martin

O’Connor wrote: “I would like to extend my very deepest sympathies to the family and other loved ones of murdered teenager, Treyvon Martin. I am very sad today (and am certain the whole of Ireland is) to learn of poor Treyvon’s terrifying ordeal and horrified by the fact his known and named and admitted killer has not been arrested, despite the crime having taken place a month ago. This is a disgrace to the entire human race.”

On 26th February, the 17-year-old high school student was found dead in Sanford, Florida. Witnesses heard a scuffle, a cry for help and a gunshot. Zimmerman was found standing over his body with a handgun.

Martin was carrying no weapons, only a packet of Skittles and an iced tea. He had a bloody nose and a wound to the back of his head.

The police did not arrest Zimmerman, run a background test or test him for drink or drugs at the scene. Since the death of their son, the Martin family has being petitioning to have him arrested.

Sinead O’Connor

O’Connor has also set up a petition from her site. Other celebrities have also lent their voices to the Martin family’s campaign including Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, Spike Lee and members of the NBA’s Miami Heat.

In O’Connor’s letter, she wrote with conviction about the Martin case, denouncing racist reaction and wrote about Africa being the birthplace of civilization.

She said, “For those out there who believe black people to be less than pure royalty, let me inform you of a little known, but scientifically proven, many times over, FACT. Which after reading, you will hopefully feel both very stupid and very sorry. For you dishonor your own mothers and grandmothers.
EVERY human being on earth, no matter what their culture, creed, skin color, or nationality, shares one gene traceable back to one African woman. Scientists have named it ‘The Eve Gene’. This means ALL of us, even ridiculously stupid, ignorant, perverted, blaspheming racists are the descendants of one African woman.”

She continued evoking Jesus Christ and how black people have contributed to our society.

“These beautiful people continue to believe in and even manifest Jesus Christ better than you do. That alone could stand as the greatest reason your racism is blasphemy, were it not for all the other reasons.

“These people you hate and fear ARE the body of Christ, just as we all are. Every child, woman or man. And they know it. Maybe that’s why you can’t bear to look at them. Because you see Jesus Christ and you can’t stand the light.

“Stop this ridiculous and uneducated attitude. You would be dead without black people. Think of all the greatest music ever composed. The greatest songs. The greatest inspirational heroes.. Muhammad Ali, Mandela, Martin Luther King, Harriet Tubman, Soujourner Truth, Bob Marley, Nina Simone, Curtis Mayfield. So many absolute angels, sent from God.

Without the inspiration of these people many millions of so-called ‘white’ people, including myself would not have had the strength to pay the price of life.

O’Connor goes on to urge black youths to love one another, end black-on-black violence and ignore the materialistic messages of hip-hop.

She wrote, “Go back to strong black musical guides who left you information in the 60s and 70s. when they were living through the civil rights struggle. Curtis Mayfield. The Impressions. Nina Simone, Mahalia Jackson. Sing back the Holy Spirit ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, as those artists did.

“Forget bling. Forget “Get Rich Or Die Trying”. That is an evil message. Evil my dears is only life backwards. Turn it the right way up. With music. The messages American black youth are being given through music are not about the spiritual and therefore strong and conquering but PEACEFUL making of YOUR country into the wonderful place it secretly is and can be.. BECAUSE OF YOU, and BY YOU!!

“You know not how you are adored, appreciated, valued, loved, cried for, smiled for, prayed for, all over the world. You know not how much inspiration and uplift-ment of heart you give to millions just by your presence on earth. These musical guides will give you self-esteem. When you have self-esteem you can achieve anything. You can stand in the street as many did yesterday and change your country peacefully and with song. Chant down Babylon as the Rastas say. Rastafari will also give you self esteem. Investigate it.”

On her site she also gives the details of a petition she has set up on Change.org via her, temporarily reinstated Twitter account. She said “Friends and enemies.. I have briefly re-joined twitter in order to send around thechange.org petition set up by Trayvon Martin's parents, asking for the killer of their child to be arrested…again may I extend my very deepest sympathies to Trayvon's loved ones.”

Gunman has a price on his head

SANFORD, Florida: Members of the small New Black Panther Party are offering a $US10,000 ($9548) reward for the ''capture'' of George Zimmerman, the neighbourhood watch volunteer who shot Trayvon Martin.
The New Black Panther leader, Mikhail Muhammad, announced the reward during a protest in Sanford at the weekend. When asked whether he was inciting violence, Mr Muhammad replied: ''An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.''

The bounty announcement came moments after members of the group called for the mobilisation of 10,000 black men to capture Mr Zimmerman.

Mr Muhammad said members of his group would search for him in nearby Maitland, where the 28-year-old worked before the shooting, employees there told The Orlando Sentinel.
Sanford city officials condemned the group's appeal and asked citizens to leave all arrests to the police.
''The city is requesting calm heads and no vigilante justice,'' the statement said. But Mr Muhammad said: ''If the government won't do the job, we'll do it.''
The Southern Poverty Law Centre says the New Black Panther Party, a black separatist group founded in 1989, is ''virulently racist and anti-Semitic'' and its leaders have encouraged violence against whites, Jews and law officers.
Original members of the Black Panthers insist the organisation led by Mr Muhammad has no right to use its name.

Obama to weed Trayvon Martin's murder

Washington - states that "if I have a son, he looks like Trayvon," President Barack Obama chose a highly personal way to the hot national debate over the death of Trayvon Martin, the black teenager killed by a neighborhood to see included volunteer in Florida.

Trayvon Martin

Obama has no opinion to express about the behavior of the shooter, George Zimmerman, or any legal aspect of the case beyond a call for a thorough investigation. "The Attorney-General reports to me so I have to be careful about my statements to make sure that we do not Obstruction of an investigation," he said.

Yet his comments Friday, a powerful influence on how the public regarded the case. It was a rare moment White House - a president to identify himself with a victim in a racially charged shooting. More generally, it drew attention to the way young black men by a predominantly white society seen.

Zimmerman or acted legally in the Feb. 26 shooting, and whether the Sanford, Fla., police had acted correctly in declining to arrest him turn into a big part on how the victim is considered.

Zimmerman, 28, claimed that he was Martin, 17, shot in self defense after he called police to say he is a person in his gated community in which he believed was acting suspiciously. Fans of Martin's family said the high school student is simply walking through the neighborhood on his way to a relative's house and that nothing about him reasonably could have been as suspicious or threatening.

Barack Obama

Martin's parents appear to recognize that Obama's public identification with their son that great symbolic importance.

"The president's personal comments touched us deeply," they said. The remarks "we wonder: If his son had looked like Trayvon and a hoodie, he would be suspicious?"

Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Fla, in close contact with the Martin family, a view held by many black leaders expressed saying that targeted for violence "is the reality of a black boy in America."

"This is a problem for generations since slavery existed," she said, hopes that Obama's remarks can change how black men were observed.

"Every time the president is realistic about a situation, it helps the country grow and mature," she said.

Obama's comments were written in advance, aides said, but after a week in which the president is following the case. During a trip to Western countries over the past two days, he read articles about the shootings and comments private how the teen's family must feel, and how the news if he ever came to her through it.

On Thursday, Obama has the Rev. Al Sharpton, whose mother died that day, to express condolences. Sharpton was on his way to a meeting about the matter that he helped to organize. Aides said they accepted the two men talked about the shooting, although Obama did not explicitly tell them so.

Initially the president hesitated to publicly talk about the shooting that he would appear to try the outcome of the case to influence, but over the week, she considered moving. "He did not want an independent investigation to jeopardize," the official said, "but he also felt that we need to ask ourselves how this could happen."

On his way to the Rose Garden Friday morning, a nominee to head the World Bank to announce, said Obama aides that he comment on the Martin case if asked about it - a contrast to his regular practice of questions in the formal institutions to avoid if they stray from the topic of the day.

He was "speaking as a parent," the official said. "He was deeply upset by the death of a young man."

The comments from the White House position shifted a distance to keep the case. Tuesday, for example, the press secretary Jay Carney said that "we here at the White House is aware of the incident" and that "our thoughts and prayers go out to Trayvon Martin's family, but of course, we will not wade into a local law enforcement matter. "

In contrast, Obama said that "it is imperative that we all aspects of this investigation, and that everyone pulls together - federal, state and local - to find out exactly how this tragedy happened." People need the laws and the context for what happened, and the details of the incident, "he said.

Republican presidential hopefuls with Obama in his call for a thorough investigation.

"What Trayvon Martin is a tragedy," said Mitt Romney said in a written statement. "There must be a thorough investigation contact the public that justice is carried out with impartiality and integrity to be."

Campaign at a shooting range in West Monroe, La, Rick Santorum, Martin's death a "terrible event."

"It's cool to hear what happened," said Santorum. "The fact that law enforcement did not immediately go into and prosecution of this case is another example of cold, I would say, the terrible decisions made by the people in this case."

That consensus was a stark contrast to the last time that Obama as president, said a law enforcement matter and race. Early in his tenure, he was much criticized after saying that the police in Cambridge, Mass., had "acted foolishly" with the arrest of Henry Louis Gates, Jr., a Harvard professor, a friend of the president's.

At the moment, administration officials said Obama was surprised by the response to the statement. This time, he was more cautious. He did just what the racial aspects of the matter obliquely to the call of the way that his son would "look" and said that "we all have some introspection to find out how that happens."

She sees his words made more effective, said Douglas Brinkley, a presidential historian at Rice University in Houston.

"There are advantages to think and digest," Brinkley said. "He has the right amount of waiting time information collected, think about what he would say, and run how to do the right way.

"His words today are really healing gesture for the nation."