St. John's 2011-12 Recruiting Class Takes Hit; Sampson, Garrett & Pelle Ineligible

St. John's University's Top-3 nationally-ranked basketball class just got knocked down a few spots.  Incoming 2011-12 recruits JaKarr Sampson, Norvel Pelle and Amir Garrett have yet to be approved by the NCAA Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse and will not be eligible to play during the fall semester.

Head coach Steve Lavin announced Thursday that the three student-athletes-- one-third of his lauded nine top freshmen recruits-- are unable to qualify for the 2011 fall semester.

They won't be enrolled for this semester and remain "under review" by the NCAA committee.  They were expected to have received clearance by the NCAA by this time.

The university is in its third week of classes and will work with the NCAA to review the three cases for possible enrollment in spring 2012.

Lavin said, "We are hopeful Amir, Norvell and JaKarr will be able to join us on the court this winter and in the classroom when the spring 2012 semester begins."

All three are consulting with their families and reviewing their options.  There is a good chance they could still be approved and be on the court in late December after the fall semester ends.  The team would have played 10 games by then.

These aren't just any incoming freshmen.

Garrett is from California but played for Findlay prep in Henderson, Nev..  The 6-foot-6, 190 pound offensive threat was rated as high as the 68th best over-all player in the country and  the #15 power-forward.  The left-handed pitcher was the 22nd-round  pick of the Cincinnati Reds and signed a minor league contract in the off-season.

Pelle was a standout power-forward from Los Angeles and he was rated the #2 center in the country.  The 6-foot-10, 200 pounder is a shot-blocking machine.

Sampson is a 6-8 swingman who starred in Akron at St. Vincent's-St. Mary's--  LeBron James high school-- before transferring. He was rated as high as the #11 combo-forward in the country.

Lavin will begin his second year with the Red Storm after rejuvenating the sinking program last season.  After taking the team to its first NCAA tournament since 2002, he announced he was battling prostate cancer.

Amir Garrett Will Pitch For Reds and Dunk For Red Storm

St. John's recruit Amir Garrett, the 6-foot-6 forward out of Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nev., just  signed a five-year deal with the Cincinnati Reds, but still intends to play basketball for the Red Storm.

Garrett was ranked by Rivals.com as the 21st best small forward in the class of 2011 and the 68th best player overall.  The elite basketball player was one of the six top-100 high school players recruited by Steve Lavin and projected to be a star with the Red Storm next year.  The only problem was , Garrett also had a fastball that has been clocked at 96 mph and he was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 22nd round.

On Monday night, Garrett agreed to a five-year contract with the Reds-- which includes $1 million signing bonus-- but the lefthander said he will still suit up for the Red Storm.

Garrett is still eligible to play college ball and tweeted this, "I'm blessed to be a part of the # Reds baseball organization and still be able to play basketball at St. John's.  # God is Great."

The two-sport star hadn't thrown in a game since June 2010 until working out for the MLB Player Draft in June 2011.  Garrett said he wanted to give baseball one more shot.

"My dad always said, ' Don't let good talent go to waste,'" said Garrett.

He will now join what has been called the third-ranked recruiting class-- according to Rivals.com-- at St. John's.  If the school makes it to the 2012 post-season, which concludes at the end of March, Garrett would be assigned to the Reds extended spring-training or the short-season in Class-A.

Reds spokesman, Larry Herms, says their new signee will probably end up in Goodyear, Ariz competing with rehabbing players and other rookies.

The lanky lefty, with the blazing fastball, could have taken the money and walked away from college basketball, but said he will join Lavin and his young team.  The St. John's coach starts next season with 10 freshman.

"Amir Garrett is a special talent," said Lavin.  "His length, explosiveness, quickness and highly-skilled game make him ideal for our system of play."

He's also the only millionaire on the team.