Aaron Spears is perhaps the best available big man left in the high school ranks if you believe that Sani Ibrahim and DeAngelo Collins are going to attempt to bypass college for the NBA draft.

Connecticut and Louisville have been listed as the leaders to sign the 6-foot-9, 240-pound Spears out of Dunbar High School in Chicago. But that hasn't prevented many other programs from making the effort to recruit Spears. Oregon, one of the nation's best kept secrets despite sweeping Arizona this year and its current No. 23 ranking, has a real need for a post player to come in and play impact minutes next year.

The 6-10 Ibrahim (Winchendon Academy/Winchendon, Mass.) and 6-9 DeAngelo Collins (Inglewood H.S./Inglewood, Calif.) may skip college, but Spears is getting nation-wide attention. The Ducks are going to give Spears their best shot and others are sure to follow -- although one very strong possible contender isn't being mentioned much yet.

That would be Illinois.

The Illini did ink four recruits in the early period, two of which can play the power forward position. But neither is as athletic or talented as Spears. James Augustine can step out and shoot the ball and battles, but would not rebound the ball like Spears. Kyle Wilson plays like a bull in a china shop, but is not going to be able to score like Spears. Spears would be able to leapfrog over both of these signed recruits if the Illini make a scholarship available to him. And he takes it.

If forced to make a prediction right now, our guess would be that Louisville will win the recruiting battle for Spears. But if the Illini decided they wanted to take Spears, you would have to think they would have a shot. That is why the 'Ville's early pursuit of Spears is so important and could ultimately land them a much needed big man over any "Johnny come-lately" suitors.

One of the nation's perennial junior college powerhouses, the College of Southern Idaho (Twin Falls, Idaho), has jumped out to a 16-2 record under first-year head coach Guy Beach and is currently ranked No. 9 in the country. The Golden Eagles are led by one of the top backcourts in junior college basketball, 6-4 sophomore shooting guard Tony Bobbitt (who recently committed to Cincinnati) and 6-foot sophomore point guard Ricky Clemons. Bobbitt (18.2 ppg) and Clemons (19.7 ppg) are both very athletic and very skilled performers.

Clemons, who has truly emerged as a point guard (he was always a scoring guard, he led the nation in scoring during his senior year of high school), has been one of the hottest players in the country. And his recruiting has picked up dramatically since his game against CSI rival Utah Valley, approximately two weeks ago. Clemons exploded for 51 points, nine assists and two steals in a 45-minute overtime performance over Utah Valley.

A native of North Carolina (Bonner Academy/Raleigh, N.C.), Clemons originally committed to Wake Forest in high school, but failed to qualify. North Carolina State has been the leader for some time, but in the last two weeks, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin, San Diego State and East Carolina among others, have stepped up their efforts for Clemons, who is also averaging 8.5 assists and 3.4 steals. "I think he's the best junior college point guard in the country," said Beach. "He's definitely the best junior college point guard who is still available. Along with Tony, we've got the best JC backcourt in the country.

"He has no weaknesses and he's become more of a leader," continued Beach, whose Golden Eagles are on a 10-game winning streak. "He was always a scorer, but Ricky has been able to make the transition to being a true point guard. It hasn't been overnight, it's been a slow process. He's exceptionally quick, gets to the basket, shoots it really well from the perimeter and he's really been creating well, penetrating and pitching. His penetration has really made things easy for Tony, Bobbitt's been making a living off of Ricky's penetration and kickouts."

Also worth mentioning is "the other wing" for CSI, 6-3 sophomore Tim Ellis, who is averaging 15.6 points a game while shooting 41 percent from 3-point range. Ellis, a native of Seattle, is being recruited by Boise State, Idaho, Creighton, Wichita State, South Alabama, Fullerton and Nevada. Ellis, who is very athletic, has toughness and plays over the rim, is starting to attract considerable attention.

Having seen Ellis play back when he was just a junior in high school, we would add with no disrespect intended to the schools listed above, that he is being under-recruited at this point.

The lone sophomore on the frontline for Southern Idaho is 6-8, 225-pound Jack May, who started at Duquesne as a true freshman last season. May, a native of Southern California (Ayala H.S./Chino Hills, Calif.), is averaging 11 points and 7 rebounds on a perimeter-oriented team. He starts at center and is shooting 55 percent from the field in over 25 minutes per game. Among those showing early interest in May are San Francisco, Boise State, Idaho and Fullerton. Beach also has a very talented crew of freshmen, two of the most impressive are from France, both members of the French Junior National team which won the world championship last summer.

Post man, 6-7, 220-pound Yakhouba Diawara (Dijon, France), has already started 10 games for CSI, and is averaging 8.4 ppg and 4.7 rpg in limited minutes (19.4 mpg). His buddy Guillaume Yango (Paris, France), a 6-8, 240-pound post player, became eligible roughly five games ago. Yango, who is averaging 7.2 ppg and 8.2 rpg in 16.4 mpg, has recorded two consecutive double-doubles in CSI's last two games.

"Both Yakhouba and Guillaume have been great," said Beach. "They're tough, very athletic and they come to play. They break the stereotype of the soft European big man, they're awfully good."

David Benezra and Mark Mayemura cover the national college basketball recruiting scene at their Recruiting USA (www.recruitingusa.com) website. E-mail at: hoopsusa@mindspring.com or call (818) 783-2244 or (818) 783-2212 for subscription information.