Steve Lavin to see Federico Mussini in Italy, interest in Ray Kasongo, Luis Montero

According to Adam Zagoria, St. John's head coach is traveling to Italy, and not just for the food.

When announced yesterday, we all know who that meant - Steve Lavin is on the chase of guard Federico Mussini.

Lavin is recruiting Isaiah Briscoe hard, and hopes to be in his top three, to be named this weekend. Brandon Sampson has his visit to Southern California this weekend. And Cheick Diallo is still on the radar.

But with most of the backcourt expected to graduate this fall, with Rysheed Jordan expected to make the jump to the NBA, and Chris Obekpa likely to consider the next level, the Red Storm will need both players to fill the roster and scoring punch.

A month ago, we put together the profile/ highlights on Mussini, a skinny 6'2" guard who can score, but may be a little skinny for the pros. Of course, he compares himself to Steph Curry, and he might have enough game to back up that comparison.

Curry was also a little too skinny for the high majors. And for the pros.

And yet, Steph Curry thrives on the strength of his skills.

Mussini's team plays Varese (aka OpenJob Metis Varese) tomorrow, a team that features former Syracuse (and NY Knicks) guard Andy Rautins and former Murray State forward Ed Daniel (the one with the awesome hair).

Federico Mussini, through three games (he missed the first contest) leads the club with 12.7 points per game on 42% shooting from beyond the arc. He's shooting 4/12, 33% on two-pointers, and has taken 61% of his shots from beyond the arc.

The main question about Mussini - along with recruiting competition from Gonzaga - is whether he wants to sign a contract to play professionally or not.

And what his professional status is now is a question - the NCAA often struggles to clear foreign players for participation as they sort through schoolwork and semi-pro playing seasons.

Zagoria also reports that the Red Storm are looking hard at wing Luis Montero at Westchester Community College.

And Jim Whitesell will travel into the mountains to see Ray Kasongo, a power forward at JUCO College of Southern Idaho. Kasongo had a circuitous route from Canada to American basketball, being denied admission to Oregon despite being supposedly academically qualified.

Kasongo, originally from Scarborough area of Toronto, Canada, considered UConn in his recruitment as well.