SHOWTIME FOR PREPS

By Marcus R. Fuller St. Paul Pioneer Press

After stringing a few nothing-but-net three-pointers together during a first-half stretch Saturday, Jacob Thomas showed no signs of letting up as he eyed the rim while taking a couple of quick dribbles past midcourt.

The entire defense keenly fixed on him, so Thomas didn't hesitate to fire a pass up the court to Chad Calcaterra, who made a powerful two-handed dunk.

It was clear that Minnesota's two most-highly recruited basketball prospects in the class of 2010 play well together. They made great AAU teammates on the Howard Pulley Panthers, the host of this weekend's Sabes Foundation Invitational at Bloomington Jefferson High School.

But will they become Gophers?

"That would be cool if we both get a chance to play together with the Gophers," said Thomas, a 6-foot-3 junior guard from Columbia Heights. "You never know what's going to happen."

Thomas, arguably the best player in his class in Minnesota, would like nothing more than to be netting deep jumpers and setting up Calcaterra for slams in front of hometown fans at Williams Arena, but there are two things working against that right now.

For one, Thomas doesn't have a scholarship offer from the University of Minnesota yet, mainly because there are concerns about his academic standing. Secondly, Calcaterra, a 6-foot-10 center from Cloquet High School, isn't sure if the Gophers are the right fit for him. And the feeling is mutual.

"I don't really think the Gophers stand out among other schools," Calcaterra said Saturday. "My friends up at Cloquet keep saying they want me to go to Minnesota, but I don't want to make a choice yet."

Thomas made it known last year that he wanted to stay home and play for coach Tubby Smith's up-and-coming program if the opportunity presented itself.

"Nothing has changed," he said. "I will always want to play for the Gophers."

A few members of Minnesota's staff, including Smith, watched Thomas last season. He averaged 22 points and six rebounds a game but didn't receive an offer.

A breakout tournament at the Boo Williams Invitational in Virginia earned Thomas national recognition in April after he was considered one of the best shooters at the event. He also said Big East Conference schools Syracuse and Notre Dame showed interest.

After Thomas led Howard Pulley in scoring at the Jayhawk Invitational in Kansas last week, the Gophers asked to see his transcripts, which might mean an offer could come soon.

"It was kind of frustrating a bit that I hadn't heard from them in a while," Thomas said. "But they haven't made up their mind yet with me, so I'm just going to keep playing hard and keep doing my thing."

At 6-3, Thomas is considered small for a shooting guard. He is a work in progress as a ball handler and perimeter defender, but he sure can shoot. In Howard Pulley's 80-73 victory over the St. Louis Eagles on Saturday, Thomas scored 20 points, including six three-pointers, being defended by highly touted guard Bradley Beal, who has offers from Kansas, Illinois and Florida.

"He's putting up big numbers, and he's doing it on all the top AAU teams," Howard Pulley founder Rene Pulley said. "When you get a chance to play on the big stage, you get a chance to show that you really are what people thought you were."

Calcaterra, meanwhile, has played much better than expected this spring. He added strength and 20 pounds, going from 210 to 230. He also worked with his father on drop-step moves and hook shots to become more of an offensive threat, but shot-blocking is his strength.

"He'll go up and swat shots and dunk on people when he gets a mean streak," said Howard Pulley teammate Seantrel Henderson of Cretin-Derham Hall. "He's improved a lot."

Calcaterra got a scholarship offer from the Gophers as a sophomore. He was favoring them at one time but is keeping his options open. He also has offers from Auburn, Northern Iowa and Colorado State.

"It's the most important decision of my life," he said. "So, I'm really looking at what other schools are looking at me strong."