Backcourt prospects stand out in Shawnee

Prep guard Koenig: Kansas has faded

College basketball recruiting notebook. …

Two nearly identical blue-chip backcourt players in the Class of 2013 — one headed to Kansas University and the other with KU on his list of prospective schools — played well at the KC Prep Invitational held Thursday through today in Shawnee.

• Kansas City Pump N Run’s Conner Frankamp, ranked No. 65 nationally by Rivals.com, orally committed to KU on July 16. The 6-foot-1, 160-pound junior point guard/shooting guard from Wichita North chose KU over Oklahoma, Texas, UCLA, Kansas State, Missouri and others.

• Wisconsin Playground Warriors’ Bronson Koenig, ranked No. 66 nationally, tells Rivals.com analyst Clint Jackson that co-leaders Wisconsin and North Carolina lead Duke, while KU has faded. The 6-foot-2, 170-pound combo guard averaged 17 points a game last season for LaCrosse (Wis.) Aquinas High. Frankamp went for 27.2 ppg at Wichita North.

It would make sense if KU has “faded” a bit for Koenig, considering it’s highly unlikely the Jayhawks would bring in such similar players in the same class. Both are known as deadly three-point shooters and have been compared to fiery former KU guard Kirk Hinrich.

Koenig — he also has Indiana, Marquette, Michigan State, Minnesota and Virginia on his list — told the LaCrosse Tribune that Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski offered him a scholarship Tuesday.

“Apparently, he offered me, but I didn’t even know it,” Koenig said. “He called my AAU coach and said he offered me and that I didn’t sound very excited about it. He must have said it in a weird way.”

“I mean, I’m handling it,” Koenig told cbssports.com, referring to the recruiting process. “I’m not very good at it yet. But I’m trying to get better.”

Frankamp, by the way, told the Journal-World on Thursday that life has been good since committing to KU.

“I’m happy, and everything is going well. It’s time to relax (before school starts),” noted Frankamp, who, after committing, went on to be named MVP at the adidas Super 64 in Las Vegas.

Duke flap: Duke and the NCAA are investigating whether an NCAA recruiting rule was violated when Krzyzewski reportedly offered a scholarship to prospect Alex Poythress during a summer tournament, CBSsports.com reported Saturday.

Poythress told CBSSports.com that Krzyzewski spoke to him Tuesday while he was in Orlando for a tournament with the Georgia Stars.

NCAA rules prevent coaches from contacting recruits before they are finished playing in tournaments.

Duke spokesman Jon Jackson said in a statement Saturday that the school is gathering facts and that “proper adherence to NCAA bylaws has always been, and will continue to be, a cornerstone of Duke Athletics.”