Recruiting Report: D’Angelo Stines (2021)
Mount St. Joe pulled off what was considered an upset over the no. 6 nationally ranked St. Frances Panthers this past Sunday in the MIAA A Conference Championship. The Gaels established an early commanding lead, but in the third quarter, St. Frances showed signs of life and made a small run. Their hopes were then countered by 2021 guard D’Angelo Stines as he scored 11 of his 16 points in the third quarter alone. Many consider his performance as the official coming out party to get his name on the map of college programs.
“At halftime my teammates just told me to keep my head up.” Stines told Prep Hoops following the win. “I hit the first shot coming out of the half and it just made me confident in attacking from there on out.”
Stines was scoring from all three levels. He connected on a three-pointer off of a kick-out pass, finished at the rim in transition and converted on a couple of pull up mid-range jumpers. Once he sees a shot fall, you can see his his energy pick up and his confidence grow when he has the ball in his hands.
It’s been a learning experience for Stines in his first year at the varsity level, but stepping up in a game that holds such magnitude could be the performance that sets up a tremendous senior season next year. Stines isn’t ultra aggressive in looking for his shot. He makes the smart play and sometimes, his unselfishness gets the best of him. Nevertheless, his junior season has allowed him to grow his game in many ways.
“I’m getting more comfortable with the ball in my hands and making smart plays,” Stines reflected. “Last year on JV I was the main guy, but this year I had to play more off the ball and learn when to attack. I feel like as the season has gone on I’ve gotten better at that.”
Stines had another standout performance last night in the BCL Quarterfinal match-up with St. Maria Goretti as the 6-foot-2 guard led the Gaels with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Mount St. Joe advances to the semifinals where they’ll face Mount Carmel. A win could set up a rematch with St. Frances on Sunday at Loyola University of Maryland.
It hasn’t took long for college programs to notice his production. Stines received his first offer from Howard following last night’s win and Mount St. Mary’s will host him for a visit in the near future. I expect many others to get involved with Stines in the coming weeks.