Basketball U. is proud to announce the beginning of our coverage of Patriot League men’s basketball. We look forward to bringing our tradition of professional, thorough, incisive, and balanced coverage to the league.

Charles Lee’s bid to make the San Antonio Spurs’ regular season roster came to an end when the Spurs waived the 2005-06 Patriot League Player of the Year. Lee had seen action in all six preseason games, totally 16 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists in 52 minutes of action.

The Patriot League has announced a partnership with ESPNU that will result in nationwide broadcasts of nine league men’s basketball games this season on the second-year ESPN college sports network. ESPNU is not carried by all cable companies, though it is available on channel 609 on DirecTV (requires a SPORTS PACK subscription), and on channel 148 on Dish Network (requires a subscription to the America’s Top 180 package). Most sports bars around the nation will be capable of showing the games.

Scout.com is reporting that sources close to Nick Hendra of Xavier High School in New York City say he has given a verbal commitment to American. The 6-3 guard had attracted the interest of a number of Ivy League and Patriot League schools early on, and some Atlantic 10 schools had shown interest recently. In the end, he opted for Jeff Jones’s program over offers from Columbia, Quinnipiac, and St. Peter’s. Hendra has good size for a guard and his basketball IQ and toughness have earned him positive evaluations from recruiting experts.

Center Zack Crimmins of Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington, VA, will play at Columbia next fall, choosing the Lions over scholarship offers from Bucknell and Lafayette. The 6-11 Crimmins received preliminary interest from high major programs Notre Dame and Virginia and the Washington Post reported late interest from Boston College and Tulane on September […]