Joe Henricksen’s City/Suburban Hoops Report

Updated: February 9, 2012 7:01PM

City

Remember Marist? The RedHawks were ranked in the preseason but quickly fell off the map after dropping December games to St. Viator and Niles Notre Dame by a combined 55 points and losing to Taft. But since that Taft defeat, Marist has gone 11-2 and is looking like a team that is starting to put it together. Marist, led by 6-5 Nic Weishar and junior guards Lexus Williams and L.J. McIntosh, is a well-coached team that shoots the three and plays a system that isn’t easy to prepare for or adjust to on the fly in March.

South

While it’s nowhere near the epic rise of Anthony Davis, who went from an unknown player to the No. 1 prospect in the country in the Class of 2011, the ascent of Joliet West’s Marlon Johnson certainly has been eye-opening. Johnson was a 6-4 freshman B-team player three years ago and is among the Hoops Report’s top five prospects in the senior class. The long, agile 6-9 Johnson, who averages 14 points, 9 rebounds and 4 blocks, will be one highly coveted college prospect after two years of junior college.

West

There might not be a hotter combination of team and prospect than York and junior David Cohn. The Dukes have rattled off 12 victories in a row after starting the season 5-7. A victory tonight against Glenbard West would set up a West Suburban Silver showdown with Oak Park-River Forest next Tuesday night. Cohn, a high-scoring 6-2 guard who ­averages 19.6 points, 4.3 ­assists and more than 2 steals, is among the Hoops Report’s top 12 prospects in the junior class. He already sports offers from UIC, Illinois State, Valpo, Colorado State, Wright State and Santa Clara.North

Waukegan senior Akeem Springs ­suddenly became one of the top ­uncommitted college prospects in the Class of 2012 after being released from his Mississippi Valley State letter-of-intent last week. The 6-4, hard-nosed Springs, a four-year veteran who was part of Waukegan teams that reached Peoria in 2009 and 2010, averages 18 points and 8 rebounds for a team that is surging. Fueled by a monster victory against New Trier last week, the Bulldogs (13-8) are tied for Central Suburban League South lead and have won six consecutive games after a 5-7 start.

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