'12 WI F Junior Lomomba

[TroyD92]

Junior Lomomba



Madison (WI) Memorial

Ht: 6'4
Vert: 36 in

Statistics: 10.6 ppg

Originally Posted by Mark Miller

Don’t look now but it appears Memorial has yet another high-major recruit on its roster in freshman Junior Lomomba.....Many feel Lomomba is the top collegiate prospect in the state in the class of 2012 and after watching his performance Friday, that may indeed be the case

Notes:
-Teamates of Marquette commit Jeronne Maymon and Wisconsin commit Vander Blue.
-Uncle was former Badger Hennssey Auriantal
-Will be attending tonight's Marquette and Wisconsin game.
-Coach Moore was in attendance to his high school debut in which he scored 10 points
- A year older than most his grade, speculation it's even a greater disparity

Interest: Baylor, Duke, Iowa, Iowa State, Kentucky, Marquette, Memphis and Wisconsin

[Jcwisco]

The Badger football team should hire the guy who keeps recruiting these guys who end up at Memorial. At least they get who they want.

[Bernini]

Was anybody who tuned in impressed with Lomomba?

I just watched a few minutes during the final quarter and my first impression was he was kind of uncoordinated and somewhat of a tweener. During the stint I saw: he came up with a really impressive block, dropped a pass, fumbled an easy rebound, and scored an easy layup (although it seemed like collecting the pass was a bit of a chore). It's such a brief period to judge a player so I could use a little help.

[TroyD92]

Originally Posted by Bernini

Was anybody who tuned in impressed with Lomomba?

I just watched a few minutes during the final quarter and my first impression was he was kind of uncoordinated and somewhat of a tweener. During the stint I saw: he came up with a really impressive block, dropped a pass, fumbled an easy rebound, and scored an easy layup (although it seemed like collecting the pass was a bit of a chore). It's such a brief period to judge a player so I could use a little help.

I think his potential is through the roof he's already 6'4 he's a very good athlete, But I still think he is growing into his body....And he must have some talent starting as a freshmen on probably the most talented team in the state. Also its apparent he is not an main option to score or even close to that actually.

[Bernini]

WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL

Even with a pair of Division I basketball recruits drawing most of the attention at Madison Memorial, it's nearly impossible not to notice the lanky, agile and athletic 6-foot-4 freshman adeptly playing his role on the same court.

He gets to loose balls. He jumps over opposing players for rebounds. He even knows where to stand and where to move when the basketball isn't in his hands.

Simply put, Junior Lomomba always seems to be in the right place at the right time.

"He's got a high basketball IQ for a young player, and I hear he's a gym rat," said Verona senior Jason Ziemer, a second-team all-state selection last season.

"I think he's the real deal."

Lomomba, 15, moved to Madison from Montreal, Canada, in 2007 with the help of his uncle, former University of Wisconsin basketball player Hennssy Auriantal.

A Canadian citizen, Lomomba came here for a better education and to improve his basketball skills in the hope of playing at the college level and professionally someday.

"Basketball is an opportunity to go to college, and also a chance to play basketball for a chance to go to the NBA," said Lomomba, who is fluent in English and French and said he earned a 4.0 grade-point average his first semester.

Upon arrival, Lomomba struck up a friendship with Memorial senior and Marquette-bound Jeronne Maymon — who also works on his skills with Auriantal in the Wisconsin Force youth program — and later junior and UW-bound Vander Blue.

That shouldn't come as a surprise considering Lomomba loves basketball — even more than he enjoys watching his favorite movie, "Love and Basketball."

Lomomba loves the game so much he worked overtime to learn English as a youngster in Canada because his dream was to come to the United States and play in the NBA. And he works as hard in the classroom as he does in the gym.

"I want to go to the NBA," Lomomba says, flashing a kid-friendly smile. "That was the same thing for Hennssy. He had a couple tryouts and he didn't make it. I know how hard he worked, and I just want to work even harder to get there."

Leaving home, of course, wasn't easy for Lomomba, who starts and averages 12.6 points per game for perennial powerhouse Memorial (5-0). He misses his parents and four sisters back home, and sometimes Lomomba gets a bit down on himself.

But he also knows he left behind a tough environment, a neighborhood in which some of his childhood friends ended up running with the wrong crowd.

Just how tough is the old neighborhood?

"Let me put it this way," said Auriantal, who moved here from Montreal in 1995 when he was 17. "It's tough that if you're in with the wrong crowd, you might not even be alive. A couple of Junior's friends have died since he's been here and one of them is in jail right now for killing somebody."

Friendly bond

While Lomomba often spends time with Auriantal, he lives in Madison with his legal guardian Daphne Maymon, Jeronne's aunt.

Because he attended eighth grade at Toki Middle School — which feeds into Memorial — and established an attendance pattern there before reaching the high school level, Lomomba is eligible to compete in sports for Memorial per WIAA rules.

Lomomba's friendship with Jeronne Maymon formed when he came here to visit in 2005 and 2006 to scope things out.

Ever since, they've been as tight as Memorial's man-to-man trapping defense.

"When he first got down here and we started working out, he was real quiet. Shy, not very talkative," Maymon, the reigning state player of the year, said of Lomomba. "Now he's just goofy, and talks a little bit too much.

"Right now as a freshman, he has the skill level and the mind-set to skyrocket. ... The kid, he's going to be something special."

Lomomba, who has a 33-inch vertical jump, was certainly special in spurts in Memorial's 68-55 victory over Verona on Dec. 11. After a sluggish first half by the Spartans, Lomomba broke a 29-29 tie with a nifty dribble drive and ensuing three-point play in the third quarter. He added a few more inside baskets in the period and Memorial never looked back.

Maymon had 24 points and 15 rebounds while Blue scored 19 points in the victory. All along, Lomomba patiently kept moving without the basketball and never forced the issue. Still, he finished with 13 points.

Lomomba, in fact, has been about as consistent as one could possibly be this season. He's scored in double figures in each game with point totals of 10, 13, 14, 13 and 13.
"I think it helps that there's not a lot of pressure on him to have to perform," Memorial coach Steve Collins said. "You have to put the third- or fourth-best defender on him. And that's a blessing that we have. We're so talented that he doesn't have to go out and score 25 and get 15 rebounds for us to be successful."

New home improvement

Lomomba is so obsessed with improving he'll watch tape after tape of his previous games. He'll grab a spot on the floor, a handful of waffles in one hand and the remote control in the other, and review every play — especially the bad ones.

"Sometimes, I make some mistakes that I can control," Lomomba said. "Like not catching the ball or not making the right pass at the right moment. It bothers me, yeah. Most of the time I watch (film) by myself. Sometimes I say bad things. A lot of bad things."

And when he wants to turn his frustration into fulfillment, he'll ask his uncle for help. And off to the gym they'll go.
"He's got my work ethic," Auriantal said of Lomomba. "He works really hard and he's dedicated in his academics. And he's a perfectionist. He wants to do everything right."

Lomomba said he's slowly seeing some colleges starting to show interest in his skills. But he's just concerned about getting better. "Hennssy says everything will take care of itself," Lomomba said.

Lomomba goes back to Montreal a few times per year — for the holidays, a week or so in the summer and on spring break.

"It's a lot harder than I thought it would be," Lomomba said of being away from his family. "Not living with my mother, my sisters. But I always talk to them at night."

Other than that, Lomomba says he's enjoying Madison more and more every day.

And basketball? Yeah, he's enjoying that, too.

"In Canada, there's a lot of good players," Lomomba said. "But they don't go hard like they do here. I've already gotten better."

[Bernini]

Lomomba was named the #1 prospect in the state for the 2011 class by Mark Miller (I'd go with Tokoto from the information I've gathered)

Madison Memorial coach Steve Collins knows he is a blessed man.

In addition to having the state’s top-ranked senior in 6-foot-6 Jeronne Maymon, Collins also boasts Wisconsin’s No. 1 junior in 6-4 Vander Blue.

Now, you can add yet another to the list.

Memorial guard Junior Lomomba edged out Menomonee Falls wing J.P. Tokoto by the narrowest of margins to earn the distinction as the top-ranked player from the class of 2012 in the initial rankings for the freshman class released today on Wishoops.net.

The ultra-athletic and highly skilled Lomomba is a starting for the state’s best team and is averaging 10.6 points per game for the 7-0 Spartans.

Lomomba has a silky smooth shot from the perimeter, is very effective taking the ball to the basket and, at 6-4, can guard people out on the perimeter.

Indeed, few doubt Lomomba will eventually follow in the footsteps of Maymon (Marquette) and Blue (Wisconsin) as the next high-major NCAA Division I recruit from the school.

“He doesn’t play like a freshman,” Collins said. “I look back on all the freshman I’ve had, and the basketball gods are looking down on me because I’ve had a great line of four or five of them.

“Junior has a great basketball I.Q. for a freshman. He obviously does a lot of things very well.”

Lomomba moved to Madison last school year from Montreal and is the nephew of former Wisconsin guard Hennssy Auriantal. He wasted precious little time fitting in with a loaded Memorial squad most expect to reach the WIAA Division 1 state title game for the second year in a row.

Collins says Lomomba is advanced in virtually all aspects of the game, though he believes it will take additional time for Lomomba to adapt to the physical nature of varsity basketball.

“It’s hard for a freshman to adapt to the physical nature of the game,” Collins said. “He really found out in the Henry Sibley game how physical it was. You are dealing with big, strong kids. He’s pretty strong for a freshman, but if you look at Jeronne and Junior next to each other, there is a big difference from a physical standpoint. The biggest aspect he needs to improve in his game is gaining strength.”

Predictably, college programs from across the country are beginning to take an interest in Lomomba, who has attended several Marquette games with Maymon this season. With Lomomba’s combination of size, skill, athleticism and poise, it’s no surprise programs from Baylor, Duke, Iowa, Iowa State, Kentucky, Marquette, Memphis and Wisconsin, among others, have shown an early interest.

Questions about Lomomba’s age have surfaced in some quarters, but Collins said he was no older than other players who have competed for the Spartans in recent seasons.

“Junior is 15 and he’ll turn 19 in March of his senior year,” Collins said. “We’ve had other kids who have turned 19 during their senior year so it isn’t a big deal.”

[OnWisconsin07]

Here is the full list of 2012 rankings from WSN.

Wisconsin High School Basketball - Boys / Youth Basketball - Boys

Junior scored 3 pts on Tuesday night (1/6) against Beloit.

He and Tokoto both seem like they will be high-major guys if they continue to develop throughout their high school careers. Not sure which one I would put #1 in my list, but it seems that there is a clear seperation of talent between #1 Lomomba & #2 Tokoto and the rest of the 2012 pack.

How much do you guys feel his connections with Maymon may hurt us recruiting-wise? I know he lives with the Maymons and as the article stated, goes to a lot of games with Jeronne. I'm betting that not a lot of good things are coming from the mouths' of Mr. & Mrs. Maymon in regards to the Wisconsin program either. Also, why haven't we heard about Junior being invited to a Wisconsin game yet? I would assume he has attended at least one.

[Bernini]

Originally Posted by OnWisconsin07

Here is the full list of 2012 rankings from WSN.

Wisconsin High School Basketball - Boys / Youth Basketball - Boys

Junior scored 3 pts on Tuesday night (1/6) against Beloit.

He and Tokoto both seem like they will be high-major guys if they continue to develop throughout their high school careers. Not sure which one I would put #1 in my list, but it seems that there is a clear seperation of talent between #1 Lomomba & #2 Tokoto and the rest of the 2012 pack.

How much do you guys feel his connections with Maymon may hurt us recruiting-wise? I know he lives with the Maymons and as the article stated, goes to a lot of games with Jeronne. I'm betting that not a lot of good things are coming from the mouths' of Mr. & Mrs. Maymon in regards to the Wisconsin program either. Also, why haven't we heard about Junior being invited to a Wisconsin game yet? I would assume he has attended at least one.

Maybe there is a separation now, but we're talking about kids a third of the way into their freshman seasons. Some players will develop dramatically physically and mentally while others have nearly peaked. Some coaches are more prone to favoring upperclassmen over others. So there may be many hidden gems in this group.

Lomomba has a big advantage over other prospects in his class due to his age. He's averaging 10.6 points per as a pseudo sophomore. Winters, Davis, Cerroni, Kelm, Blue, Harris, Cook, Gasser, Rank, Jorgenson, Maymon, Wilson, etc.; all compare(d) favorably to him production-wise against Wisconsin competition at the same age. Tokoto and Pirtle are out-producing him.

Granted, Lomomba plays for a loaded team, but that also works in his favor as a prospect. How many college programs are interested in him because they first came in to see Maymon or Blue? It may not even be serious interest, but I think that's mostly what WSN bases their prospect rankings on usually. Falls currently contains Russell, but he's not nearly a high major prospect. Tokoto is going to blow up more gradually because he needs to make a name for HIMSELF, and he's going to develop more because of his age. I like him, once again based on limited information.

[TroyD92]

Originally Posted by OnWisconsin07

Here is the full list of 2012 rankings from WSN.

Wisconsin High School Basketball - Boys / Youth Basketball - Boys

Junior scored 3 pts on Tuesday night (1/6) against Beloit.

He and Tokoto both seem like they will be high-major guys if they continue to develop throughout their high school careers. Not sure which one I would put #1 in my list, but it seems that there is a clear seperation of talent between #1 Lomomba & #2 Tokoto and the rest of the 2012 pack.

How much do you guys feel his connections with Maymon may hurt us recruiting-wise? I know he lives with the Maymons and as the article stated, goes to a lot of games with Jeronne. I'm betting that not a lot of good things are coming from the mouths' of Mr. & Mrs. Maymon in regards to the Wisconsin program either. Also, why haven't we heard about Junior being invited to a Wisconsin game yet? I would assume he has attended at least one.

its way too early to tell whats going to happen with these prospects....Flavien Davis looked like a star in the making and yet has not made any drastic improvement since his freshmen year.

[Heavystarch]

Originally Posted by OnWisconsin07

How much do you guys feel his connections with Maymon may hurt us recruiting-wise? I know he lives with the Maymons and as the article stated, goes to a lot of games with Jeronne.

Not sure if I want #1 dad becoming a part of the program

[TroyD92]

Originally Posted by OnWisconsin07

How much do you guys feel his connections with Maymon may hurt us recruiting-wise?

I dont think much, Junior will have another year with Vander Blue and around Madison which(obviously) is full of Badger fans....Nobody can convince me that if Jerrone had an offer that he would have picked Marquette over Wisconsin now as in regards to "uncle" Maymon I think he will be far too busy blackmailing the gms of NBA teams to pick his son #1 overall.

[bball_head]

1 Junior Lomomba
2 J.P. Tokoto
3 Otis Pirtle
4 * Tony Mayfield
Nic stokes
Jacob Blakely
Isiah Gray
5 Phillip Nolan
6 Arroyo Edwards
7 Seth Mortag
8 Julius Wanyoike
9 Jamar Morris
10 C.J. Malone

*-tiedclass of 2012 boys rankings

[Bernini]

Lomomba is really starting to struggle. In the last 4 games he's only scored 8, 6, 6, 3, and 4 points; dropping his season points per game average from 13 to 9.

[cyismydog]

Anyone know what's going on with Lomomba? I haven't heard/ seen anything about him in a long time.

[TroyD92]

Originally Posted by cyismydog

Anyone know what's going on with Lomomba? I haven't heard/ seen anything about him in a long time.

he's been visiting his family in Canada for most of the summer I believe.