Coach John Pelphrey and staff didn’t arrive on the Arkansas campus until April and quickly had to play catch-up in recruiting.

While others schools had developed relationships with prospects during their sophomore and junior years, the Arkansas staff had just a few months to develop a rapport with some of the nation’s best players. By the look of Arkansas’ four signees, mission accomplished.

Genesis One Academy in Mendenhall, Miss., is home to two future Razorbacks.

Point guard Terrance Joyner, 6-2, 170 pounds, and power forward Andre Clark 6-10, 215, will play their basketball in Walton Arena next year.

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Coach Victor Evans thinks the Razorbacks are getting two talented players.

“Andre as a player is very talented,” Evans said of Clark, who is rated the No. 4 prep school forward in the nation by Bob Gibbons of ESPN. “He’s very unique at his size. He shoots it very well from the perimeter. We have him playing on the front of the press because of his versatility. He can play out on the perimeter against smaller guys and post them. He can shoot the jump shot. He can post up the smaller guys and get the rebound against the bigger guys.”

Clark’s character is something Razorbacks fans need not worry about.

“Andre Clark comes from a great family,” Evans said. “His mother is a super lady. She’s given him a solid foundation as far as socially and morally. He’s everything you look for in a kid. Andre is a kid that you won’t have any problems out of.”

Evans said Joyner has progressed more into a team player since arriving from Los Angles two years ago.

“When he first got here, he had the mentality of a scorer,” Evans said. “Now he’s changed his game and his focus to be a team player. He knows how to get into the lane and create shots for himself and his teammates. I don’t think there’s anybody in the country that is better at dribble penetration than Terrance right now, and I’ve seen a lot of them. I think Arkansas has a gem in Terrance.”

Joyner, whom Bob Gibbons rates as the 12 th-best prep school guard in the nation, has grown as an individual during his time at the Mississippi prep school, Evans said.

“Terrance has matured over the last two years by leaps and bounds,” Evans said. “He came in here as a young and immature kid and now he’s matured into a person that knows how to manage himself. His time management is a lot better.”

In my opinion, point guard Courtney Fortson of The Patterson School in North Carolina will have an immediate impact the moment he dons a Razorbacks uniform.

Fortson, 5-11, 175, the 2006-2007 Mr. Basketball in Alabama, garners high praise from Coach Chris Chaney.

“He’s a tough kid on the court,” Chaney said. “He’s very competitive. He has a very high basketball IQ. He’s been a leader by example on the court. The great thing about his game is he doesn’t have any weaknesses. He treats every situation in practice like it’s the Final Four. He doesn’t want to lose a drill or anything he does. I think he has a chance to be a big-time player in the SEC.”

The Patterson School played an exhibition game against traditional power Oak Hill Academy of Mouth of Wilson, Va., on Oct. 11. The game featured a matchup between Fortson and Arizona signee Brandon Jennings, who’s considered the top point guard in the nation.

Fortson, who is rated by Gibbons the nation’s No. 1 prep school point guard, outplayed the 6-2 Jennings by scoring 29 points on 12-of-18 shooting, grabbing 7 rebounds and making 6 assists. Jennings finished with 25 points but struggled from the field, going 8 of 22. Fortson forced Jennings into 10 turnovers.

“Brandon is a very, very talented player, and I think his upside is very high, and I think he picked a great school in Arizona, but Courtney takes on all challenges,” Chaney said. “He doesn’t like anybody to tell him that someone is better than him because he’s going to prove them wrong. And on that day he definitely proved them wrong. It wasn’t close. He was tougher and scoring at will. He was getting Brandon to do things he didn’t want to do. He took bad shot after bad shot. Courtney got layups any time he wanted. It was great game for him.”

New Orleans Holy Cross forward Brandon Moore is another promising signee. Coach Juan Lumas thinks Moore is bordering on being an elite player.

“Great rebounder and shot blocker,” said Lumas of the 6-9, 215-pound Moore. “I think he defends and rebounds the best. He’s quick enough to guard guys on the perimeter but yet lengthy enough to guard guys in the post. His ball handling is his weakest part of his game. If he gets his ball handling to a better level, he can be as an elite player as you’ll find.”

New Orleans was abuzz Saturday night when Harvey (La. ) Cox High School, led by center Greg Monroe, took on Holy Cross. Monroe, 6-10, who signed with Georgetown, is considered by many as the best big man in the nation. Cox won the game 52-41. Holy Cross was shorthanded with some players still playing football.

Lumas talked about the battle of the big men, who are the best of friends.

“They balanced each other out,” He said. “It was a great battle, they went at it. Lots of dunks, lots of blocked shots, fast-paced game. It was fun to see those guys go at it. Brandon had 18 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks. Greg had 20 points, 8 rebounds and 3 or 4 blocks.”

E-mail Richard Davenport at rdavenport@arkansasonline. com