The Prince George’s County (Md.) 4A South League has gained a reputation as one of the best public-school leagues in its region in recent years, producing NBA players like Michael Sweetney, Delonte West and Eddie Basden in addition to college stars such as Georgetown’s Jeff Green. So it’s not often a player comes into the league and dominates from the get-go.
But that’s precisely what Oxon Hill High School sophomore Maurice Creek has done.
Creek, a 6-foot-4, 185-pound guard who spent last year away from home at Mt. Zion Academy (NC), is averaging an eye-popping 34.7 points per game in his first three contests. Little-known in recruiting circles prior to this season, Creek is quickly making himself known to major college programs.
“Just in the past week, UConn, Syracuse, Georgetown and Georgia have called me about him,” said Triple Threat AAU coach Keith Stevens. “He’s definitely a high, high-major kid.”
Creek has the wingspan of a 6-7 player, can shoot the 3-pointer, slash to the hoop, handle, rebound and defend, as Eleanor Roosevelt High learned in a win over Oxon Hill this week. Facing Pittsburgh signee Darnell Dodson, Creek made nine 3s and scored 40 points.
“But we win as a team and we lose as a team, regardless of how many points I score or how many points one of my teammates scores,” said Creek, who by all accounts is every bit as high-quality a young man as he is a basketball player.
“He has a phenomenal attitude,” says Oxon Hill coach Billy Lanier, whose program ahs produced a plethora of DI players over the years, highlighted by Sweetney and former George Mason standout Lamar Butler.
Creek is very adept at creating his own shot, especially a quick-trigger pullup jumper he employs often. But he’s more of an all-around scorer than a shooter, and he excels at every facet of the game, making him an outstanding shooting guard prospect.
“I was just talking to my assistants about that. I said if you chiseled out a ‘two’ [guard], you would chisel out him,” Lanier said. “He’s special. He’s a special basketball player with a lot of room to grow.
“I think he walks right in [to college] and plays right away.”
Creek’s classification is a bit confusing; he spent his freshman year at Oxon Hill and then moved on to Mount Zion, where he re-classified as a freshman. So he’s basically a sophomore this year at Oxon Hill, although it remains to be seen whether he’ll actually graduate with his original high school class, spend the next three years at Oxon Hill, or return there next fall and then head to a prep school for a year.
“It just depends on what happens. I would think if he is recruited at the level he’d like to be recruited at, he might” head to college after next year,” Lanier said.
The one school Creek is really hoping to hear from is the University of Maryland.
“I like the Maryland Terps and George Washington, but my favorite is Maryland. When I was little I watched Juan Dixon and Steve Blake and fell in love with Maryland because of how they play,” Creek said.
Lanier, who has never had a player go on to play for Maryland, would love to see it happen.
“Most kids who grow up in Maryland would love to play for Maryland,” Lanier said. “I think he fits right in with them, but hopefully they’ll recruit him.”
With Creek’s coming-out party having just begun, it’ll probably be a while before his recruitment takes shape. But one thing is certain already.
Said Lanier, “He’s on a lot of peoples’ radars.”