A golden era of Columbus basketball produces two stars in this year's NCAA Tournament

Miami Herald

19-03-2025

This is the golden era of Columbus High basketball.
Within the past week, former Columbus star RJ Luis Jr. was named the Big East Player of the Year.
On June 25, Jase Richardson – now playing for Michigan State – appears to be a lock to become the first ex-Columbus player to get selected in the first round of an NBA Draft.
And the 2026 NBA Draft looks twice as nice for Columbus as the Boozer twins – Cameron and Cayden – are projected to become first-rounders, too.
All that success is what happens when a team wins as often as the Columbus Explorers, who have claimed four straight boys' basketball state titles under coach Andrew Moran.
'As a coach, it brings you gratitude to see players reaching their dreams and goals,' Moran said when asked about seeing his former stars succeeding at the next level. 'It tells me that we did something right along the way to help them get closer to where they want to be.'
While the Boozer twins will make their collegiate debuts next winter for the Duke Blue Devils, here's a quick look at the two ex-Columbus players who will compete in the NCAA Tournament starting on Thursday:
RJ LUIS JR.
Patrick Ewing. Chris Mullin. Alonzo Mourning. Jalen Brunson.
That's just a partial list of the stars who have been named the Big East Player of the Year over the past 40-plus seasons.
Now add Luis' name to that list of legends.
Luis, a 22-year-old third-year collegian, will make his NCAA Tournament debut on Thursday when his St. John's Red Storm take on the underdog Omaha Mavericks.
A 6-7 and 215-pound wing, Luis is a surprise star in many respects because he was just a three-star recruit out of high school.
However, he comes from a basketball background.
His father, Reggie Luis, is a 6-7 Dominican Republic native and a former standout at Miami's Northwest Christian who went on to play pro ball in 20 countries.
His mother, Maria Veronica Luis, is a 5-8 native of Ecuador who played at Miami Dade College and also at Johnson & Wales.
RJ grew up playing a number of sports, including football, baseball, soccer and lacrosse.
'I knew my son had talent,' Reggie Luis told The Herald. 'But he was a late bloomer. He wasn't top nothing (according to the recruiting websites).'
In fact, after Columbus, Luis went to Mount Zion Prep in Maryland for the 2021-2022 season.
Things started to change for Luis when former Miami High coach Frank Martin was hired by Massachusetts on March 25, 2022.
U-Mass' assistants started recruiting Luis. But when the head coach, Martin, found out that RJ is the son of Reggie Luis – a player he mentored in travel ball a couple of decades ago – he took over the recruitment personally.
By June of that year, RJ had enrolled at U-Mass.
As a true freshman, Luis started 10 of U-Mass' 31 games, finishing third on the team in scoring (11.5) on a squad that finished 15-16.
After that season, Luis entered the transfer portal.
'We wanted to get him more exposure,' Reggie Luis said. 'The plan was never St. John's or New York City, but when they hired (coach Rick) Pitino, that changed everything.'
Last season, Luis averaged 10.9 points as he started 10 of his 23 games. But his campaign was slowed by shin splints.
He had surgery on both legs in April of 2024. A month after the operation, Luis had trouble walking. According to the New York Post, Luis had doubts he could make it all the way back because the pain was intense.
Gradually the pain lessened, and he started practicing again in August.
'Shout out to (Dr. Martin O'Malley),' Luis told The New York Post. 'He gave me new legs.'
When Luis returned, he was actually more explosive, and he ranked fourth in the Big East in scoring (18.4), sixth in rebounding (7.2) and 10th in field-goal percentage (44.4). He also had career highs in assists (2.1) and steals (1.4).
Analyst Jim Jackson, who worked for FOX during the Big East tournament, called Luis 'Sweet Lou'.
'He was probably St. John's best player in practice last season, but he had just 10 starts,' Jackson said. 'This season, it was totally different. He brought it to the court.'
Last Wednesday, RJ became the first St. John's player in 38 seasons to be named the Big East's Player of the Year. The last St. John's player to do it was Walter Berry in 1986.
On Saturday, RJ scored 27 of his game-high 29 points after halftime as sixth-ranked St. John's defeated Creighton 82-66 to give the Red Storm their first Big East postseason title since 2000. Earlier this season, they won their first outright regular-season conference title since 1985.
St. John's is 30-4, including 21-0 at home. It is the Red Storm's first undefeated home season since 1931-32.
RJ was also named the Big East Tournament's Most Outstanding Player. After the game, as the fans in New York City chanted 'MVP', Luis was draped in a Dominican Republic flag.
'I'm on Cloud Nine,' RJ's mother told The Herald. 'Nothing has been given to him. Everything has been earned.
'To be there to see him win Big East Player of the Year was amazing. And then to be on the floor at Madison Square Garden with the confetti falling after they won the Big East was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.'
Moran is also proud of Luis.
'RJ didn't have the scholarships he wanted out of high school,' Moran said. 'He went to prep school for another year of development, and it was clearly the right decision.
'He's an amazing kid who has matured and locked in on the defensive end with Pitino. RJ has made himself into a player who has a chance to be drafted.'
By the way, RJ's younger sister is Rachael Luis; a 6-1 freshman who has already won two state titles for the basketball team at Miami Country Day.
JASON RICHARDSON
A 6-3 guard, Richardson has developed into a smaller version of his father, former college national champion and NBA standout Jason Richardson, who is 6-6.
Like Jase, Jason, now 44, also went to Michigan State. In fact, both of them have played for legendary Spartans coach Tom Izzo.
(Ironically, the Boozer twins are also following their father's footsteps as Carlos Boozer played at Duke and won a national title before his standout NBA career.)
Jase – who will get his first taste of March Madness on Friday when Michigan State plays the Bryant Bulldogs -- still has a lot to live up to in terms of bragging rights.
That's because his dad won a national title as a key freshman reserve in 2000 and went back to the Final Four as a star sophomore in 2001. He was then the fifth pick in the 2001 NBA Draft, made the league's All-Rookie team in 2002 and went on to become a two-time slam dunk champ and a prolific 3-point shooter.
Jase, meanwhile, is projected by NBA.com to go eighth in this year's NBA Draft.
If that turns out to be prophetic, then Jase will have been selected just three spots lower than his father.
'Jase has an incredibly high basketball IQ,' Moran said. 'It's been awesome to watch because he started the year on the bench and worked himself into the starting lineup.'
In fact, despite starting just 11 of his 33 games, Jase, 19, is Michigan State's second-leading scorer (12.0).
Coming out of high school, Jase was ranked by ESPN as the 25th-best player in the Class of 2024.
A lot of credit goes to his mother, Jackie Paul-Richardson, who played basketball at the University of Colorado.
Jase this year was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team. He was also voted to the All-Big Ten third team -- an impressive accomplishment for a true freshman.
'It's a cool story,' Moran said of Richardson, 'especially since he is playing for the same coach (Izzo) as his father.'
By the way, Jase's younger brother is another Columbus star, Jaxon Richardson, an uncommitted recruit who is ranked as the No. 13 player in the Class of 2026.