Compiled by PAUL GOTHAM
Counting down to tipoff and previewing the incoming players of the Atlantic 10 with a look at the first-year players of the St. Bonaventure Bonnies.
St. Bonaventure finished 22-9 (14-4 in A-10 play) last season and fell to Wagner in the first round of the NIT.
Mark Schmidt and his staff welcome four players to campus: Josh Ayeni, Tareq Coburn, Amadi Ikpeze and Chinonso Obokoh. In addition transfers David Andoh, Matt Mobley and Courtney Stockard will join the lineup.
David Andoh F 6-7, 220 Montreal, Quebec/IMG Academy (Liberty)
At Liberty
Played one year (2014-15) at Liberty … was the Flames’ second-leading scorer at 10.0 points per game … ranked third on the team in rebounding at 5.6 per game … shot 42 percent from the field and 77 percent at the free throw line … played in all 32 games, starting 15.
Prior To Liberty
Started his college career at San Jose State, where he averaged 2.3 points per game as a freshman … transferred to Merritt College, which plays in the California Community College Athletic Association, for the 2013-14 season … averaged 14 points and 8.3 rebounds per game and earned Bay Valley All-Conference honors.
High School
Spent his senior season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. … his junior year he was a student-athlete at Saint Mary’s High in Berkeley, Calif., where he averaged 17 points, nine rebounds and four assists … played AAU for Belmont Shore … rated a three-star player by Rivals.com and Scout.com coming out of high school and was ranked No. 123 in the class of 2012 by Northstar Basketball.
Josh Ayeni F 6-8, 215 Zaria, Nigeria/St. Frances Academy (MD)
A native of Nigeria who came to the United States in 2011 … graduated from St. Frances Academy in Baltimore, Md … as a senior there, Ayeni averaged 14 points and 10 rebounds per game, earning third team All-Conference honors in the Baltimore Catholic League … his junior season, Ayeni helped St. Frances win the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association conference title. … in 2015-16, he played at Impact Academy, a prep school in Sarasota, Fla. and averaged nearly 24 points per game … his AAU team was the DC Warriors.
What they’re saying about Josh Ayeni – Steve Keller/National Recruiting Report: “He runs like Barry Sanders. He’s raw and not quite as long with his arms and his legs. He has a lot of upside to develop.”
Marcus Helton/DMV Elite: “Josh will make an impact. He has a soft mid-range touch. He has a really strong body, a nice build. He’ll be able to come in and bang on the boards and score some points.
Tareq Coburn G 6-5, 195 Rosedale, N.Y./Cardozo
High School
At Cardozo High School in Queens, N.Y., he was named honorable mention All-State as a senior … helped the Judges to a record of 27-3 and the championship of the Public School Athletic League’s Queens Division … at points of the season, Cardozo was ranked in USA Today’s Top 25 … Coburn was Cardozo’s leading scorer at 20 points per game … on a team with two other Division I signees, Coburn also averaged 7.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game … he made 51 percent of his shots overall including 37 percent from three-point range … during the season, Coburn helped the Judges win the SNY Invitational … Cardozo defeated powerhouse programs Mount Vernon and Christ the King in that event … as a junior, Coburn averaged 13.9 points per game and was named to the New York Daily News’ All-Queens second team … played AAU for New Heights.
What they’re saying about Tareq Coburn – Allen Rubin/Hoop Scoop: “He’s a lefty. His strength is getting to the basket and getting to the foul line. He’s a good mid-range shooter, much improved three-point shooting.”
Steve Keller/National Recruiting Report: “He can handle on the wing and shoot some off the catch. He can fill a role early in his career.”
Amadi Ikpeze F/C 6-10, 245 Amherst, N.Y./Amherst
High School
Signed a National Letter of Intent with St. Bonaventure in the fall 2015 signing period … as a senior, he helped Amherst to the Section VI Class A-2 championship and a 22-2 overall record … was named sixth team All-State by the NYS Sportswriters Association and to the 2016 All-Western New York second team by the Buffalo News … averaged 13.2 points, 10.1 rebounds and 4.5 blocked shots per game his senior year … in the Feb. 26 Section VI championship game, he recorded a triple-double of 30 points to go along with 13 rebounds and 12 blocks to lead Amherst to an 84-76 victory over Lewiston-Porter … his junior season, Ikpeze helped the Tigers to a record of 19-3 and a perfect 9-0 slate in Section 6 … playing on a team with two guards who averaged double-figure points per game, Ikpeze averaged 9.5 points, 12 rebounds and 4.5 blocked shots per contest … his career totals of 572 rebounds and 226 blocks both rank second all-time at Amherst … played for coach Chris Kensy at Amherst … in the summer of 2015, Ikpeze was chosen to play for the Western New York team that participated in the Basketball Coaches Association of New York Hoopsfest in Johnson City … also played for the Western New York Elite AAU team in the Bigfoot Basketball Classic in Las Vegas … prior to high school, he had not played organized basketball.
What they’re saying about Amadi Ikpeze – Kevin Goode/Head Coach-Bishop Kearney High School: “He’s a big kid and very physical. Definitely got to keep him off the boards. He rebounds very well. He was able to finish everything around the basket and he has a very nice soft touch from the free throw line. You got to play him straight up because you can’t foul him.”
Ben Drake/Head Coach Jamestown High School: “”Amadi has a huge upside. He has some natural athletic ability and moves very well for a kid his size. Getting stronger and playing against great competition in practice every day will be so beneficial for him. The coaches at St. Bonaventure thrive off taking kids like Amadi, these diamonds in the rough who get overlooked by bigger schools, and molding them into spectacular college players. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Amadi be one of those guys!”
Matt Mobley G 6-3, 185 Worcester, MA/Worcester Academy (Central Conn. St.)
2015-16: Per NCAA transfer rules, sat out the 2015-16 season … has two years of eligibility starting in 2016-17.
At Central Connecticut State
Played two years (2013-15) at Central Connecticut State … as a sophomore in 2014-15, ranked third in the Northeast Conference in scoring at 17.2 points per game … was named the NEC’s Most Improved Player as well as to the second team all-NEC … also averaged 2.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game … shot 36 percent (74-207) from three-point range and 75 percent at the free throw line … his four 30-point games were the most of any NEC player … as a freshman, averaged 6.8 points per game and was selected to the NEC All-Rookie team.
Prep School
Attended Worcester (Mass.) Prep in 2012-13 where he played for coach Jamie Sullivan … was named to the All-New England Prep School Athletic Council second team … averaged 16 points per game … was named team MVP, MVP of the Hoop Hall Classic, and MVP of the Blackburn Tournament … teammates included Darryl Reynolds (now at Villanova), Rene Castro (Butler/Duquesne), Matt Cimino (George Washington) and Matt Panaggio (Mercer) … was ranked 14th in the Massachusetts class of 2013 by New England Recruiting Report.
High School
Graduated from St. Peter Marian High School … as a senior, was named to the first team All-State … named central Massachusetts Player of the Year by the Worcester Telegram and Gazette … candidate for Gatordade state player of the year.
What they’re saying about Matt Mobley – Adam Finkelstein/ESPN: “He went to Central Connecticut and put up big, big numbers for them. He was somewhat of a late bloomer for them. It was a Central Connecticut team that was looking for offense, looking for scoring. The good thing for him is he can be even more efficient given less volume at a higher level of play. His game has improved exponentially over the course of the last couple of years since playing at Wooster.”
Chinonso Obokoh F/C 6-9, 215 Enugu, Nigeria/Bishop Kearney (GS Syracuse)
A graduate transfer from Syracuse, Obokoh is eligible to compete in the 2016-17 season.
At Syracuse
Played in 24 games over his two seasons with the Orange and averaged 0.9 points and 1.7 rebounds per game … in 2015-16, Obokoh averaged 1.1 points and 1.6 rebounds per game in 11 games, including a minute of action against the Bonnies on Nov. 17 at the Carrier Dome … set a career high with 11 points in a win over Montana State … helped Syracuse (23-14) reach the Final Four … sat out the 2013-14 season, then played in 13 games in 2014-15 and averaged 0.8 points and 1.7 rebounds that season.
High School
Graduated from Bishop Kearney High School in Rochester in 2013 where he played for coach Jon Boon … was a top-100 nationally rated recruit at Kearney, rated the 19th-best center in his class by ESPN … his senior season, Obokoh helped Kearney to the Class AA state championship … the Kings defeated New Rochelle in the state title game, 45-39, as he had 13 points and eight blocks … Obokoh scored 15 points in Bishop Kearney’s 68-55 State Federation Tournament of Champions semifinal game loss to Christ the King … Bishop Kearney claimed the Section V Championship for the third straight season and completed the campaign with a 17-8 record … he was slowed by a foot injury that caused him to miss five games but averaged 11.3 points, 15.6 rebounds and seven blocks per game as a senior … at the end of his senior year, Obokoh helped the White squad defeat the Black team, 114-102, in the 2013 Jordan Brand Regional Classic game as he had eight points, five boards and three steals… played AAU basketball for the Albany City Rocks, where he was teammates with Bonnies forward Denzel Gregg.
What they’re saying about Chinonso Obokoh – Steve Keller/National Recruiting Report: “He’s a big kid who’s athletic, can block shots and play in the post. He’ll help them.”
Paul Gotham/Pickin’ Splinters: “Chinonso is a willing defender who covers a lot of territory in the paint. He is aggressive on the glass, runs the floor well and will finish in transition.”
Courtney Stockard F/G 6-5, 195 St. Louis, MO/Jennings/ Allen Community College
2015-16 (At St. Bonaventure)
Suffered a broken bone in his right foot in preseason practice … did not play in any games … still has two seasons of eligibility.
At Allen Community College
Played two seasons at Allen … as a sophomore in 2014-15, was the second-leading scorer in the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference at 23.2 points per game … was named to the National Junior College Athletic Association Region All-Region VI second team as well as to the KJCCC West division All-Conference first team … known as an all-around player, Stockard also was the fifth-leading rebounder in the KJCCC, averaging 9.0 per game … made 48.5 percent of his shots from the field, including 32 percent (38-118) from three-point range … went to the free throw line 296 times in his 29 games and made 75 percent of his free throws … also averaged 1.4 steals per game … his first season, he averaged 12.8 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.
High School
The St. Louis native graduated from Jennings High School … his senior season there, he was named honorable mention All-State … averaged 18 points, six rebounds and six assists per game … led Jennings to an 18-12 record and a spot in the district finals.
What they’re saying about Courtney Stockard – Jesse Shaw/Former Head Coach-Pratt Community College: “We played them three times last year, and he really hurt us every single time. The scouting report on him was you wanted to contain him. You wanted to control his penetration. He’s a very good athlete – super long and athletic. He can really get to the rim, and he got to the foul line really well. His percentage shooting from the three wasn’t great for the majority of the year. That being said, he really lit us up in the regional tournament when we tried to stay off him a little bit. We actually had to change our plans because of how well he was shooting it. He gets a little stronger and continues to develop his skill set – ballhandling and shooting – he can play anywhere. I really like his talent, his upside.”
Biographical information courtesy of St. Bonaventure Athletics.
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