SU already has a stellar 2011 recruiting class wrapped up, so now it’s time to see one of the guys in action.

2011 commit Rakeem Christmas is among the participants in Saturday night’s Boost Mobile Elite 24 game, airing on ESPNU from Venice Beach. The shot blocking specialist will be telling fellow blue-chippers Austin Rivers, LaQuinton Ross and LeBryan Nash (amongst others) to promptly get out of his kitchen.

Christmas is the fourth SU commit to suit up since the event’s debut inception, following Donte’ Greene, Rick Jackson and incoming freshman CJ Fair.

Also competing is Jamesville-Dewitt product DaJuan Coleman, a 6’9/280 center who, if he ends up committing to Syracuse for the 2012 class, would continue a long line of high-ceiling big men at the back of the zone. If Coleman and Christmas match up at some point, it will make for a nice Syracuse-y post battle (Rakeem: Go easy on him, we want him to play with you!).

The game tips at 7:30 EST Saturday night.

The low-post dominance continued for Rakeem Christmas on Saturday during a 73-69 squeaker by USA East over Brazil (Fab Melo’s rooting interests were torn, I’m sure). Christmas swatted four shots in 12 minutes and added four points, but as was the case Friday, his playing time was abbreviated by foul trouble. You can see one of his blocks at the 0:36 mark of the video here.

Trevor Cooney had a nice game, making a living from beyond the arc. He sank three of eight three-pointers while going 4-10 from the floor. Showing ability on the defensive end as well, Cooney chipped in four thefts.

The Nike Global Challenge may be filled with international teams, but at least for the Americans, make no mistake – this is about showcasing individual talents, while team play is disjointed. With that in mind, as much as can be taken from these kinds of events, Cooney has been steady, while Christmas seems to be embracing contact on defense. Then again, these guys have a whole year ahead of them before they get to SU, so it will be exciting to see what kind of progress they make.

Friday was an exciting day for SU fans with the announcement of Rakeem Christmas’ impending arrival on campus. Christmas rounds out SU’s class of 2011 with the nearly perfect balance across the board of a center, point guard and shooting guard. All three are in Hillsboro, Oregon (a stone’s throw from Nike Mecca, better known as Beaverton) this weekend participating in the Nike Global Challenge, a competition of international amateur talent.

The event kicked off Friday afternoon, and Trevor Cooney and Christmas’ USA East squad lost a close double-overtime game to Team Canada. Cooney played most of the game and tallied 14 points on 4-18 shooting, including a shaky 3-14 performance from three, and added two steals. Christmas only saw 19 minutes of court time but managed to foul out, though he rejected a team-high six shots in that time  and scored six points.

Also in action was Michael Carter-Williams, playing for the USA Midwest team. They coasted to a 127-86 victory over Team Asia. Like Christmas, MCW didn’t get a ton of playing time (just 18 minutes in a 40-minute game), but made the most of it. His line includes nine points on 4-9 shooting, including a three, and five assists to boot . For an in-depth look at how day one shook out, check out Oregon Live, which had staff live-blogging throughout the day.

Another feather was planted in the cap of Rob Murphy and the rest of the Syracuse staff (plus a few players already tied to the program), as Rakeem Christmas announced his standing as a future Orange on Friday morning. Christmas is the top-ranked center in the class of 2011, according to Scout.com’s rankings, standing at 6’9, 230 lbs. The Philadelphia native didn’t even have SU on his short list back in June, but his play caught the program’s attention during what’s been a busy summer for both schools and recruits.

(Phillyhoops.net)

Also playing a role in his recruitment were Kris Joseph, Trevor Cooney, Michael Carter-Williams and Dion Waiters, the latter three of whom have yet to actually suit up for SU, which is an outstanding feat in and of itself.

Christmas is the latest in a line of top-rated big men to be swayed by SU in swift fashion, joining DaShonte Riley, who backed out of his commitment to Georgetown and Fab Melo, who was thought to be in Rick Pitino’s loving arms until Syracuse swooped in and Melo fell in love with the campus. Any time you can get someone like that in your arsenal and keep him away from a conference rival is frosting on the cake.

Cooney will play alongside Christmas during the Nike Global Challenge this weekend in Oregon. Carter-Williams will also be there, suiting up for the same team as Anthony Davis, who all of a sudden isn’t as appealing as he was a few weeks ago (or even Wednesday, for that matter).

Your move, Thompson. You might want to get going on that 2011 recruiting class of yours.