We truthfully know very little about national Top 25 center/forward RouSean Cromwell, who hails from Fairley High School in Memphis, TN. The photo
above is a good 18 months old, and little has been written about him in the past
year. But the athletic 6'10" big man has a host of major college
programs calling his school on a regular basis. Long arms and quick
leaping ability have made him a stifling presence on defense, as both a shot
blocker and rebounder, and his offense is just starting to come into its own.
A recent report by Jeff Goodman of TheInsidersHoops revealed a 4.5 GPA
for the stellar student-athlete, with recruiting interest coming from Ivy League
schools and Stanford, as well as other high-majors like Oklahoma and Florida State. That piqued my interest, so I called Fairley HS this morning to
speak with head coach Sylvester Ford.
The head man could not be more pleased with Cromwell and his Bulldogs right
now, after they recorded one of the bigger upsets in East Coast high school
basketball this season. Friday night they upset the top-ranked team in the
state, White Station, who also was ranked #10 in the country. The Bulldogs
did it with defense, in a physical grinder that ended 47-42. No player for
Fairley scored more than nine points.
"RouSean blocked several shots and pulled down big rebounds," Ford
notes of the junior center's role in the Memphis AAA city championship
game. "His defense was so big for us."
Cromwell is averaging 12 points, nine boards and four-plus blocks per game
this year, though the final chapter is yet to be written with the coming state
playoffs.
"His strength is in the low block right now," Ford offers on his
prized big man's offensive game. "He can score with his back to the
basket, and we play him at the five. But we also will play him at the
three or four. He runs the floor well and jumps well. I'm not the
only coach who loves his defense."
That says a lot about the 6'10" junior's burgeoning versatility for a
coach to play him in spots out on the wing like that. Though Ford is just
as interested in extolling Cromwell for his all-around character and academics.
"He's an authentic kid in the classroom just like he is an authentic kid
on the court," the Fairley head coach beams. "He's a great
influence on the other players."
Ford says that Cromwell has scored an 18 on the ACT.
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