KU basketball recruits slip in latest rankings

By Gary Bedore     Apr 28, 2011

Future Duke basketball player Austin Rivers, a 6-3, 175-pound combo guard from Winter Park (Fla.) High School, tops Rivals.com’s final individual rankings of the Recruiting Class of 2011.

As far as KU’s three signees …

— Ben McLemore, a 6-5, 185-pound combo guard from Houston’s Christian Life Center, finished at No. 34, down 17 spots from his spring rating of 17.

— Naadir Tharpe, a 5-11, 170-pound point guard from Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H., dropped from No. 91 to 92.

— Braeden Anderson, a 6-8, 215-pound power forward from Wilbraham and Monson Academy in Massachusetts, remained unranked in the list of 150.

McLemore averaged 16.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in six games at Christian Life after leaving Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va.

Tharpe averaged 14.5 points and 6.0 assists at Brewster. Anderson averaged 20.0 points and 11.0 rebounds a game at Wimbraham and Monson.

KU continues to pursue three players ranked in the top 150: No. 10 DeAndre Daniels, 6-8, 180, from IMG Academies in Bradenton, Fla.; No. 24 Trevor Lacey, 6-3, 190 from Butler High in Huntsville, Ala., and No. 141 Jamari Traylor, 6-7, 212, also from IMG Academies.

Lacey, who is considering KU, Kentucky and Alabama, told Rivals.com on Tuesday he will visit KU this weekend. He has already visited Alabama and plans on traveling to Kentucky before the May 18 conclusion of the spring signing period.

Traylor update: Traylor, who has visited Indiana, Oklahoma State and KU, may make a final visit to Texas Tech before choosing one of those four schools.

“They are all good schools and great programs. I’m not leaning to one school right now, but looking at them equally,” Traylor told Rivals.com on Wednesday.

Of last weekend’s trip to KU, Traylor said: “I think if I went there, I’d become a lot better. I was able to sit down with coach (Danny) Manning and talk to him during dinner. When I go somewhere, it will be important for me to have a good relationship with the head coach and the rest of the staff. I have a good relationship with coach Self.”

Murray to visit West Virginia: Aaric Murray, a 6-10, 245-pound sophomore at La Salle University, will visit West Virginia this weekend, the Philadelphia Daily News reported Tuesday. Murray, who has announced plans to leave La Salle, did not visit KU last weekend as originally planned. It’s believed that visit will not be rescheduled. He has made a visit to Oklahoma State.

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