Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Aquinas’ Bonitto hopes for return
Nik Bonitto still walks with a cast that runs from his left foot up his leg.
The talented St. Thomas Aquinas two-sport standout injured his ankle and knee on the same play during a 46-8 pounding of Venice in the Class 7A football state semifinals.
“The way I came down it could have been a lot worse,” said Bonitto, who suffered a tear in his ankle and a sprained knee.
Doctors say the knee is just about healed, but the ankle will take another month or so. Bonitto, who doubles as a talented guard on the basketball court, said his goal is to make it back to play for the Raiders and coach Steve Strand in the postseason.
“I just want to make sure I’m 100 percent by the time the [basketball] playoffs come around,” Bonitto said.
Bonitto has major Division I scholarship offers in both sports. The 6-foot-4, 212-pound defensive end is a consensus four-star prospect with 30 offers. He lists Florida State, Alabama, Miami and Michigan as some of the top offers.
St. Thomas has claimed three consecutive state championships in Bonitto’s three seasons at the school. This year’s squad ranked among the top five in the nation in the final polls.
In basketball, Bonitto’s collected offers from Minnesota, Wake Forest, St. Louis and Denver. He said he is giving some thought to trying to play both sports in college.
“It’s definitely a possibility,” Bonitto said. “West Virginia, they want me to play both [sports]. Florida as well.” But first things first. Right now, the St. Thomas junior is just hoping to make it back by the start of the postseason. District basketball begins Feb. 6.
U-School duo draws UConn
University School big men Vernon Carey Jr. and Balsa Koprivica are two of the top Class of 2019 prospects in the nation.
University of Connecticut, which signed Sagemont senior forward Tyler Polley in November, recently jumped into the mix and made offers to the Sharks duo.
“They both got UConn offers and then Balsa picked up San Diego State as well,” U-School fifth-year coach Adrian Sosa said. Sosa said UConn coach Kevin Ollie is expected to visit in late January to see the pair.
Both are consensus fivestars. The 6-9 Carey is ranked No. 6 overall in his class,while the 7-1 Koprivica is ranked third. The pair has double-digit scholarship offers, including from Florida, Florida State, Miami, Louisville, USC, Baylor and Tennessee.
Sosa added that University School has committed to play in next season’s City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers.
Falcon turned Shark
Adrian Thomas, a twotime Sun Sentinel Player of the Year at Flanagan before going on to play at the University of Miami, is in his first season as an assistant coach at University School.
Thomas played at Flanagan from 2001-05. After finishing up in Coral Gables, he then played in the NBA D-League for 2 1⁄2 years and in Japan for another 2 1⁄2 years.
“Good group of kids ... they are very receptive,” Thomas said of the young Sharks squad. U-School is playing in the 16-team John Wall Invitational in North Carolina this week.
Around the county
Westminster Academy junior guard Zach Scott, a D-I prospect, just missed a triple-double in Tuesday night’s 67-44 victory over Frederick Douglass Academy (N.Y.) in the Kingdom of the Sun tournament in Ocala. Scott had 20 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in the victory . ... Sagemont junior guard Samir Stewart has a handful of scholarship offers, including Vermont, Ball State, North Florida and Georgia Southern . ... St. Thomas senior Michael Akuchie has offers from FIU, Cornell, Colgate and American.