The NY2LA Invitational took place this past weekend in
Mequon, WI featuring a plethora of talented teams from the Midwest. The
viewings were brief on Sunday, but very meaningful as a handful of top
prospects were in attendance. Biggest Star: Kobe
King, 6’3”, SG, 2017, Wisconsin Playground Warriors In a semi-final win against the Milwaukee based Playground
Elite, rising junior Kobe King went
for 31 points. It was just recently that Wisconsin’s top player in the 2017
class started to break out nationally with a few high scoring games in the
second live period of the spring and then again in the Spiece Run N’ Slam in
Fort Wayne, IN. A smooth looking wing, King exudes a certain sense of calmness
and grace on the court. He has a feathery touch from beyond the three point
line which he showcased right off the bat in the first-half. He is also a good
(not great) athlete which allows him to create his own shots off the dribble
and in the paint. While he will need to improve his explosiveness and the lift
he gets on his outside shot, there was no doubt that King’s stock is set to
rise. He not only knocked in the game winning three in the semi-finals, but he
was also named as the MVP of the 16U bracket. Right now, King holds mid-major
offers plus one from Iowa State and has interest from several big time programs
including Wisconsin and Virginia.
Other Notes: Freshmen guard Jordan
McCabe is well known up north for his fancy ball-handling and passing
skills that have earned him the “White Chocolate” nickname. In a close
semi-final win on Sunday, McCabe wasted no time showing off his cross-over and
step-back skills. He hit his first three point attempt of the game and racked
up several no-look passes that ended up as easy assists. Despite the flash to
his game, McCabe struggled with the size of the taller defenders and while he possesses
the hand speed to execute his fancy dribbling moves, he doesn’t necessarily
have the foot speed or athleticism to blow by defenders and get deep into the
lane. That being said so far, McCabe has already produced on the varsity level
at Kaukana High (WI) and has interest from several Big 10 schools to go along
with Xavier, Virginia, and Missouri. Tre Jones, the
brother of NCAA champion Tyus Jones suffered a defeat early in the morning with
his 16U team but he just continued to play with the eventual champions in the 15U
bracket. The Howard Pulley Panthers took home the championship in Wisconsin
with a win over McCabe and the Wisconsin Playground Warriors. This past season
the 6’1” freshman helped Apple Valley capture the Minnesota 4A Boys
Championship as he began to step out of his older brother’s large shadow. While
not as talented, the younger Jones certainly makes an impression with his
lengthy wing-span and ability to attack off the pick and roll. Jones hounded
defenders and got into the lane for lay-ups or short runners on a regular
basis. With McCabe and Jones playing on side by side courts in the
semi-finals, it was natural for the eyes to focus on the two hot shot point
guards. Despite their talent, it was 6’4” Wisconsin wing Keshawn Justice that stood out on Sunday afternoon. The lanky wing
started off with a three from the right side of the court before taking over
the second half of a close win. Always seeming one step ahead of his defender,
Justice utilized quick cuts and ball screens to get to the basket and also hit
the game winning shot of a tough drive down the left side of the basket. He also added a three in the second half, one
in which his tight, compact form was on display.
The 2013
Minnesota Timberwolves Shootout featured four games on Saturday and included
some of the top teams and players in the Midwest. The Target Center played host
to a 43 point performance by future Iowa State Cyclone Matt Thomas in the
opener and concluded with a battle between the top two juniors in the state of
Minnesota in Tyus Jones and Rashad Vaughn.
Apple Valley
(MN) 80 vs. Robbinsdale Cooper (MN) 70
The last
game of the Shootout was also the most anticipated as Tyus Jones, the top point
guard in the junior class faced off against Rashad Vaughn, one of the top
shooting guards in the junior class. Roy Williams and Hubert Davis, along with
Tubby Smith and Fred Hoiberg sat courtside to watch this match-up and they were not
disappointed. Vaughn’s Robbinsdale Cooper squad took a 1 point lead into
halftime which quickly turned into an 11 point lead with 12 minutes to go.
Vaughn hit back to back three pointers from behind the NBA 3-point line during
this stretch before Apple Valley tightened up on defense and began their
comeback. Jones began attacking the basket for lay-ups, runners, and assists.
While Apple Valley was led by the steady play of Tyus Jones, they also received
a 21 point performance from 3-point marksman Dustin Fronk along with 22 points
and 12 rebounds from junior forward Dennis Austin. What once was a double digit
deficit turned into an 80-70 victory.
Tyus Jones (6’1” - #1 2014)
Stat line: 18 points, 8 assists, 7-10 FG’s, 4-4 FT’s
Playing his
second game in two nights coming off a back injury, Tyus Jones was the catalyst
in Apple Valley’s 80-70 win. Jones was extremely efficient all game and did not
force any shots or passes. In fact, all 10 of his field goals came within 12
feet. Jones went 4-5 from the field in the first half which included two
floaters in the lane and two lay-ups, one of which that came off a steal and
beat the buzzer to end the half. In the 2nd half Jones continued to
use his floater while utilizing the pick and roll to get to the basket shooting
3-5 from the field. On the defensive side, Jones had two steals off Vaughn
passes that turned into lay-ups and also defended Vaughn on a key 2nd
half possession and forced a deep contested jumper. Overall, Jones shot 70%
from the field, found the open man, and led his team to a victory so there isn’t
too much to nitpick, but as the number one player in the class of 2014 Jones
will need to dominate from start to finish instead of just in stretches.
Rashad Vaughn (6’6” - #10 2014)
Stat line: 35 points, 7 rebounds, 14-33 FG’s, 3-4 FT’s
The 6’6”
shooting guard knows how to put the ball in the bucket and might be the best
scorer in the country. Any time he touched the ball on the offensive end, the
crowd of 5,122 was on the edge of its seat. While Vaughn took an extremely high
amount of shots, they were all out of necessity as he tried to keep his team in
the game.
1st Half
Vaughn
started the game off quickly showing his impressive athleticism. He attacked
the basket strongly on his first drive to the basket and converted a left hand
lay-up. He followed that up with a two hand dunk and another left handed drive
for a quick 6 points. Vaughn also hit a Kobe-esque 15 foot fall away jumper and
a nice floater from 6 feet out that avoided a charge. While Vaughn finished the
first half with 15 points he struggled from outside the arc going 0-4 from the
three point line.
15 points, 7-14 FG's, 0-4 3's
2nd Half
The various
players guarding Vaughn from Apple Valley had no help side responsibility and
tried to stay attached to him on every move. Vaughn countered this type of
defense by posting up from 12 feet out to start the half. The first shot of the
2nd half was a crowd delight as Vaughn banked in a 15 foot fade away
off one foot. Vaughn’s next two shots were of the same one footed variety,
although neither one had the same success rate. The first half outside shooting
struggles disappeared and all of a sudden Vaughn was knocking down back to back
three’s from the NBA line. At this point in time, Vaughn had 25 points and his
team an 11 point lead. As referenced above, Apple Valley tightened their
defense and Cooper’s offense soon turned into Vaughn catching the ball at the
top of the key and trying to maneuver past defenders which in turn dragged down
his shooting percentage and the quality of shots taken. Vaughn still managed to
hit a contested three to go along with another NBA three. With the game out of
reach, Vaughn also got a lay-up off of an inbounds play, one of the few shots
he got off of a set play.
20 points, 7-19 FG's, 4-7 3's
Overall:
Vaughn’s
versatile skill set was on display for Roy Williams and Tubby Smith all game
long. Vaughn created for himself off the dribble and got to the basket going
one-on-one with defenders or by utilizing the pick and roll. He knocked down
lay-ups, floaters, fade-aways, and NBA range three’s. At 6’6”, Vaughn also
showed off an impressive handle for a player his size constantly bringing the
ball up the court. At times he was a bit careless with the ball and two of his
passes were picked off by Tyus Jones and converted into points for Apple
Valley. Vaughn played the entire game (36 minutes) and was forced to work for
extremely hard in the second half. Despite the high quantity of shots, Vaughn
showed the crowd that he is an elite shooting guard and one of the best scorer’s
in the country.
West Des
Moines Valley (IA) 69 Roseville (MN) 53
Peter Jok
6’6” Iowa
commit, Peter Jok led the way for the Tigers with 34 points as they turned a
four point halftime lead in to a 2nd half blow-out. Roseville was
playing without their leading scorer Mackenzie Johnson and had no answer for
Jok all game. Once deemed one of the top players in the country, Jok is making
a return after an injury plagued past two seasons. Jok was looking spry in the
shootout scoring a quick 14 points in the 1st half before sitting
down with foul trouble and ten minutes left in the half. 12 of Jok’s first half
points came from athletic drives to the basket and put backs from offensive
rebounds. This was a common theme throughout the game although Jok also hit a
17 footer jumper and a three-pointer from the wing in the 2nd half. It
was an impressive game for Jok by all means; however he did go 1-7 from the
three point line. Despite the struggles from deep, Hawkeye fans should be
looking forward to watching him in an Iowa uniform next year.
Blue Valley
Northwest (KS) 57 DeLaSalle 52
In a back
and forth affair, future Iowa State Cyclone Clayton Custer hit a driving lay-up
to take a 52-50 lead with 1:35 to go giving the Huskies a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Custer led the way with 26 points mixing in lay-ups and a variety of outside
jump shots. Reid Travis (6-8” - #29 2014) of DeLaSalle looked to be too much to
handle in the post at times as he went for 29 points and 15 rebounds. After
struggling in a low scoring first half, Travis got it going despite constant
double teams and went 6-8 from the paint in the 2nd half. Despite
the dominance down low, Custer and junior guard Ben Richardson were too much to
handle and brought their coach, Ed Fritz, his 500th victory.
Onalaska
(WI) 77 Lakeview Christian (MN) 62
Matt Thomas (6’5” - #34 2013) started the morning off
dropping 43 points for Onalaska, which was one point less than the tournament
record of 44 set by Rick Rickert in 2001. Thomas is considered by many to be
the best shooter in high school and he showed his stroke off going 16-31 from
the field. Thomas also added 14 rebounds to his stat line. Lakeview Christian was led by senior guard Anders Broman who scored
26. Broman is Minnesota’s all time leading scorer and has over 4,000 points in
his career and is headed to South Dakota State next fall.
