City of Palms - Day 3

Day 3 of the City of Palms brought out a variety of college coaches along with ESPN’s Dick Vitale. The star studded event did not disappoint with the game of the day wrapping up close to 1am between Montverde and Whitney Young. This game was the most competitive game of the day as several of the other hyped match-ups turned into early blowouts. Despite a lack of close games, there were a few strong individual performances, notably the 31 point exhibition that Andrew Wiggins, the number 1 player in America put on. In addition, a 61 game winning streak was snapped.

Game of the Day:

Montverde (FL - #4) vs. Whitney Young (IL - #17)

Okafor vs. Dakari - Rd. 2

The most anticipated game of the day, not to mention the most anticipated individual big man match-up of Jahlil Okafor (#2 – 2014) vs. Dakari Johnson (#12 – 2013) tipped off at 11pm in Fort Meyer, FL. Despite the late start and the travel that Whitney Young had incurred (plane flight to Tampa, drive from Tampa to Fort Meyer), the Dolphins got off to a strong start with a 17-11 1^st quarter lead. Montverde made a strong second quarter run to take a 29-26 halftime lead before a back and forth second half. Okafor started off slow going 1-4 early, but finished the half with 9 points and 5 rebounds on 3-6 shooting. Okafor ran the floor well and attacked Johnson in the post when not facing double teams. Dakari held his own in the first half with 7 points. The 2^nd half was a bit more guard dominated by players such as Whitney Young’s L.J. Peak (#53 – 2014) and Miles Reynolds (2014) along with Montverde’s Kasey Hill (#9 – 2013) and DeAngelo Russell (#13 – 2014). Peak and Reynolds hit several timely three pointers towards the end of the 4^th quarter to keep the game in reach and Reynolds hit three free throws to send the game into overtime after being fouled on his game tying three point attempt. With players beginning to foul out in overtime, Montverde’s other big man; Devin Williams (#85 – 2013) came up large with several clutch free throw attempts and buckets. Junior guard LJ Peak missed a last second 25 foot three in overtime to try and tie the game again. Williams and Russell led Montverde with 17 a piece and Reynolds led Whitney Young with 18. Okafor finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds while Johnson finished with 10 points and 17 rebounds. Okafor may have won the individual battle, but Johnson goes to 2-0 against Whitney Young at the City of Palms (both matched-up in 2010).

Mismatch of the Day:

Lone Peak (UT - #7) vs. Chester (PA - #3)

In the early quarterfinal match, Chester carried a 61 game win streak into their match-up with everyone’s new favorite team, Lone Peak. Chester took a 2-0 lead to start the game before Lone Peak completely dismantled them. Junior TJ Haws (#66 – 2014 Scout) began the game with two threes along with a buzzer beater three to end the first quarter up 17-8. Haws continued to stay hot in the 2^nd quarter while big man Eric Mika (#76 – 2013) joined the action down low and dominated the boards. Chester was still within striking distance at the half only down 33-22; however senior guard Nick Emery (#61 – 2013) put the game out of reach leading a 9-2 run for Lone Peak. Emery continued to knock down shots and went for 16 2^nd half points as Lone Peak led 59-36 after the 3^rd quarter and 73-50 at the end. Both Haws and Emery scored 23 points for Lone Peak while Chester was led by Arizona commit, Rondae Jefferson (#17 – 2013). Jefferson’s strong performance was not enough to keep his teams win streak going. Chester pressed the entire game and apparently did not get the memo from Proviso East (IL) that it is futile to press this Utah squad. Next up for Lone Peak is the number 12^th ranked team in the country, Southwind (TN).

Player of the Day:

Andrew Wiggins (#1 – 2013)

Wiggins started the day off taking pictures with Dickie V during lay-up lines and finished the day with 31 points on 15-22 shooting. Wiggins came out of the gate a bit slow going 2-5 in the first quarter for 4 points, but picked it up in the 2^nd quarter where he went 4-5 for 9 points. He showed off his ridiculous hops with a two handed alley oop and his head at the rim to get the crowd off its feet and added in a three for good measure. Wiggins also guarded 6’7” Justin Jackson (#16 – 2014) and made his life miserable in the first quarter. In the second half, Wiggins showed why he is the future number 1 pick in the 2014 draft by going 9-10. All 10 of his shots came within a few feet of the basket either on powerful two-hand dunks or strong forays to the basket. Wiggins dominated the game on both sides of the ball and helped his team to a 77-50 victory.

Wiggins Domination 

Other Notes: 

·         Paul VI (#16) suffered an upset loss in Day 2 of the tournament and needed a last second free throw to defeat an injury riddled Prestonwood squad. Despite having a double digit deficit primarily the entire game, PG Marquan Botley led the Lions back and scored 5 points in the last minute before Paul VI won on a free throw.

·         Jonathon Williams III (#37 – 2013) and Jujuan Johnson (#64 – 2013) combined for 48 points in a blowout win against Lake Wales, FL.      
  Jujuan Johnson

·         Kiski defeated Brewster Academy and Tilton in the New England Prep School Showcase, but met their match in Arlington County Day (FL). Breakout star Rashad Richardson, who had 30 against Brewster went 2-15 for 5 points.     

·         Malik Newmann (#3 – 2015) was in foul trouble for most of the game but still scored 12 points to lead his Callaway team to a 47-44 win.

·         Day 4 of the City of Palms tournament features a Lone Peak vs. Southwind semi-final followed by a Montverde vs. Long Beach Poly semi-final.

NY2LA Summer Jam: Recap

On the last day of the second July evaluation period, a well-known college coach muttered “I can’t wait to go home.” While this thought was surely shared by many of his colleagues, the 17U Sports U team based out of Northern Jersey had different thoughts. Despite being forced to play back to back games Sunday afternoon, Sports U came away with the NY2LA Under Armour Summer Jam championship with a mercy rule win over the Illinois Wolves.

The Road to the Championship:

Sports U - 17U Champs

While Sports U was methodically defeating TP Elite and the Iowa Barnstormers on their road to the championship, the other side of the bracket was producing close and entertaining games. The Houston Defenders, featuring the Harrison twins and athletic freak Derrick Griffin were considered the favorites to take home the title on the final day. The morning began against the Utah Reign, led by future BYU Cougars Nick Emery, TJ Haws and big man Eric Mika. Despite solid performances from all three of these players (who also play on the same high school team), the athleticism of Houston took over and they snuck away with a 52-49 win. Despite the win, star guard Andrew Harrison suffered an injury which turned him into a mere decoy in their semi-final game against the Illinois Wolves. 

While Aaron Harrison turned into the primary scorer and facilitator after his brother’s injury, the Wolves featured a balanced attack led by its trio of Big 10 commits, Kendall Stephens, Jalen James, and Nate Taphorn. Houston led a low scoring first half 24-21, but the intensity picked up in the second half featuring electric alley-oop dunks on the Houston side and a barrage of three-pointers from Stephens and Taphorn. After a Harrison free throw that tied the game at 50 with two minutes left, Jalen James made a strong drive to the basket for a contested lay-up to go up two. With the Illinois parents cheering a little louder, the Wolves made two consecutive steals that led to fast break lay-ups and essentially sealed the game and a berth in the championship. 

Once this game ended, Sports U matched-up with the Iowa Barnstormers, led by two-sport stars Dondre Alexander and Jeremy Morgan. Alexander came alive in the second half but Iowa could not get their deficit below three points and Sports U held on for the victory.

An iso for Chandler

Immediately following the victory over Iowa, Sports U was given 10 minutes to rest up for the championship game. On the other side, the Wolves called up Keita Bates-Diop from the 16U team to provide some fresh legs. Sports U jumped out to a quick lead behind their guard play. Josh Brown out of St. Anthony’s and Kasim Chandler from Imani Christian penetrated at will and got easy shots in the paint or open looks for big man DeAndre Bembry. Bates-Diop did what he could to keep the Wolves in the game going for eight first half points, but Sports U took a 32-23 lead into halftime. Coming out of the half, Sports U went to a spread offense and Chandler ran circles around the Illinois defenders which led to three consecutive wide-open three pointers by small-forward Spencer Weisz. With the game out of reach, the Sports U guards essentially ran out the clock before the game was called in a 64-39 victory. 

Game of the Day

In a 16U quarterfinal match-up, the Louisville Magic squared off with DC Assault. The Magic were on a roll coming off an undefeated run at the Adidas Invitational the week before. Despite the lofty accolades, WCAC guards Romelo Trimble and Byron Hawkins did not back down. Trimble attacked the basket while Hawkins drained three pointers to give DC a 43-40 halftime lead. The Magic answered in the second half behind the play of DeAngelo Russell and Quentin Snider. In a back and forth last minute, the game went into overtime. When two overtimes weren’t enough to settle the game, the third overtime was played in sudden death (first score wins). After the Magic missed three straight free throw attempts to win the game, Trimble isolated his defender at the top of the key and finished a contested shot in the lay for the victory setting off a raucous celebration under the hoop.

 Note: All photos were provided by Kelly Kline - Under Armour.

Adidas Invitational: Day 2 Recap

The who’s who of college coaches were out in Indianapolis for day 2 of the Adidas Invitational which included Bill Self, Rick Pitino, Billy Donovan, Thad Matta, and Roy Williams. They were all there to see their committed recruits or hopefully future committed recruits, many of whom played in the top games of the day.

Florida Elite vs. Garner Roads:

Florida Elite defeated Garner Roads to win the Adidas VIP Exclusive tournament in April, and the rematch was no different. The Elite squad led for most of the game, however the final eight minutes featured many lead changes until Kasey Hill made a lay-up over UNC commit Isaiah Hicks to cement the victory.

The anticipated match-up was supposed to be the big man battle of Isaiah Hicks and Chris Walker, however this never really came to fruition as Florida Elite started out in a zone and the game turned very guard dominated. Hicks caught an alley-oop from half court in the first half and became more aggressive in the second half to finish with 14 points, while Walker hit a three pointer and had several athletic forays to the basket. Despite this action, Kasey Hill was the star of the game hitting 3 pointers over defenders and driving into the lane at will. It’s easy to see why he has shot up the rankings this spring. Anton Gill of Gardner Roads also had a strong game hitting several three pointers but was limping noticeably on his already injured ankle by the time the buzzer sounded.

Dream Vision vs. Michigan Mustangs:

Dream Vision was without one of its top players, Stephen Domingo, as the recent Olympic gold medal winner decided to enroll in Georgetown a year early. Dream Vision got off to a slow start Thursday morning and trailed the Mustangs by almost 20 points at one point. This didn’t matter to shooting guard Isaac Hamilton as he knocked down jumper after jumper leading his team to a comeback victory. For the Mustangs, Michigan commit Derrick Walton played extremely well showing off an improved jump shot and ability to blow by his defender.

Florida Elite vs. Louisville Magic (16U’s):

The Louisville Magic used their suffocating pressing defense and deep bench to jump on Florida early in the game. Led by Deangelo Russell and Quentin Snider, the Elite squad suffered numerous turnovers to begin the game. The Magic used a hockey style substitution pattern for the first half and their reserves led them to a 19 point halftime lead and never looked back. Despite being played in an auxiliary middle school gym all of the top coaches from the Southeast were in attendance.

Other Notes:

CC stole the show

The 16U Louisville Magic and Florida Elite game featured many highly ranked recruits; however it was a sub off Louisville’s bench that had everyone’s attention. Point guard, Christen Cunningham took over for Snider a few minutes into the game and soon had everyone in the crowd asking who that number 1 guy was. Cunningham was quick off the dribble and drove to the basket at will finishing with both his left and right hand in traffic. He also had several sharp passes and was the main reason his team was up 19 points at the half. “CC” is definitely a name to keep in mind for the remainder of the summer. 

The Houston Hoopstars Elite suffered two losses during the day, however their point guard Derrick Gaston showed off the most impressive ball handling skills of the tournament. Looking like a miniaturized version of Rajon Rondo, Gaston had his defenders on ice skates as he used his dribbling skills to breakdown defenders left and right. At one point during his first game, he made his defender fall with and back and forth cross-over that resulted in an assist.

The dunk of the day came during Dream Vision’s come from behind victory over Michigan. Guard Namon Wright stole the ball at half court and despite having a defender on his back was able to bounce the ball up in the air with his left hand and catch it one handed off the bounce for a fantastic finish. Extremely ballsy, but extremely well-executed.

After struggling on Day 1, Noah Vonleh stepped his game up. After jacking a lot of outside shots on Wednesday evening, Vonleh did most of his damage on the inside against the Eric Gordon All-Stars. Vonleh finished with 22 points and showed to the coaches in attendance why he is such a highly regarded recruit in the class of 2014.

  

Adidas Invitational: Day 1 Recap

The first July evaluation period kicked off in Indianapolis, IN yesterday where the high schools are as big as some colleges and the middle schools are the size of most high schools. Some of the top action took place at North Central High and Northview Middle School under the eye of Billy Donovan, Bill Self, Thad Matta, and a plethora of other D-1 head and assistant coaches. Day 1is in the books:

Game of the Day:

In a 17U Super Pool game, the Memphis Magic Elite held on at the end to beat the Eric Gordon All-Stars 64-61. Despite having a large crowd contingent on hand, the Eric Gordon All-Stars could not capitalize on a Memphis turnover with 15 seconds and down one point.

Comeback of the Day:

Devonte Graham

Garner Roads came back from a 9 point halftime deficit to defeat the New Orleans Elite by 10 points. Garner Roads looked half asleep through the first 12 minutes of the first half as they fell behind 20-10. At the 4 minute mark, Garner Roads got a few consecutive buckets and the team seemed to pick up their energy. Down 29-20 at the half, the Garner Road guards picked up the slack for missing guard Anton Gill, especially 6’2” Devonte Graham who hit a few 3 pointers. Garner Roads took the lead, 43-42 with 4 minutes left and cruised to a victory the rest of the way. 5-star UNC commit, Isaiah Hicks had a solid game mixing in 15 foot jump shots with athletic drives to the basket. He also had a handful of blocks. 

Statement of the Day:

The 16U Louisville Magic squad jumped on the Compton Magic to kick off the 5pm action. By halftime, Louisville had scored 53 points and was already up 20 points. Guards DeAngelo Russell and Quentin Snider suffocated Compton with their defensive pressure and attacked at all times on the offensive end. The Louisville squad showed they are serious about defending their championship. 

Surprise of the Day:

Coming off a dominant Lebron James Skills Academy performance, star 2014 forward, Noah Vonleh struggled mightily against the Atlanta Celtics. Vonleh scored on a few put-backs, but for the most part settled for contested three-pointers which did not connect. Vonleh was also careless with the ball and committed a handful of turnovers. Despite this performance, the talent that Vonleh possesses was evident. Vonleh spent time bringing the ball up the court for his Mass Rivals team, while also playing on the wing and in the post. While his outside shot was not on, he did show the ability to play both inside and outside.

Dunk of the Day:

In the Northview middle school gym with coaches ranging from Kentucky to Cal Poly, the 16U Ohio Basketball Club and Dream Vision teams faced off. At one point in the first half big man Ray Kasongo, of Ohio Basketball Club threw down a vicious one hand power jam over a hapless Dream Vision defender. The dunk came off one power dribble and woke the crowd and the coaches up.

Preview: Adidas Invitational

The first open evaluation period in July kicks off this week for college coaches, many of which will be in attendance at the talent laden Adidas Invitational. Adidas structured this tournament in the “Super Pool” format allowing the top teams to face off against each other during the first two days of action before the playoffs begin. Last year Kasey Hill helped lead the Florida Rams (now Florida Elite) to the 17U title over New Heights, 89-82. This year Hill and his Florida teammates are back trying to repeat after winning the Adidas VIP Exclusive Run and Best Buy Classic tournaments during the spring. The 16U Louisville Magic squad will look to repeat as well this year after previously winning the 15U tournament in 2011. There are also plenty of top ranked 15U teams trying to grab the attention of the coaches in attendance. Last year all of the college coaches flocked to the battle between the top ranked players in the class of 2012, Shabazz Muhammed and Andre Drummond. Let’s see what games will draw the most attention this year:  

1)      Florida Elite vs. Garner Road (Thursday, 1:15pm)

Chris Walker

In this pool play match-up, Garner Road’s will try to seek revenge against Florida Elite who beat them at the Adidas VIP Exclusive Run 17U Championship to kick off the spring. Since that time, Florida also took home the championship in the Best Buy Classic. Florida’s top players have been on an upward trajectory all spring, specifically Kasey Hill and Chris Walker. Hill jumped from a top 20 player pre-Spring to Scout.com’s 6^th ranked player and 2^nd best point guard. Walker has kept his top 10 status while drawing raves from NBA general managers at the Lebron James Skills Academy. While Florida Elite was heard from all spring, Garner Road was somewhat quite losing early in the Best Buy Classic. Isaiah Hicks, a five-star UNC commit has been hampered by an ankle injury and spent June recovering while also playing with his high school team. Despite the fact that the majority of top players from these teams have committed to schools, this game should be the initial highlight of the open evaluation period as it also includes Kansas commit Brannen Greene and Louisville commit, Anton Gill.

2)      Dream Vision vs. Michigan Mustangs (Thursday, 9:30am)

Based out of the west coast, Dream Vision has been quite since its Real Deal in the Rock championship during the Spring open evaluation period. While this team no longer has Shabazz Muhammed, it does feature Georgetown commit, Stephen Domingo, who is fresh off winning a gold medal, along with stand out shooter, Isaac Hamilton. 4-star point guard and Michigan commit, Derrick Walton will try to carry his Michigan team throughout the tournament.  

3)      Florida Elite vs. Louisville Magic (Thursday, 12pm)

This game features two of the top 16U teams in the country. Last year, the Louisville squad drew the attention of John Calipari and Rick Pitino while capturing the 15U title. Five-star point guard and Louisville commit, Quentin Snider will look to lead his team to another title in Indianapolis, however point guard Lance Tejada, shooting guard Adonys Henriqez, and high riser Jonathan Joseph will try to send the Magic to an early pool play loss. Florida elite performed strongly at the Best Buy classic and will try to build on the playoff run they made over Memorial Day.

4)      Compton Magic vs. Eric Gordon All-Stars (Thursday, 3:45pm)

Both teams are ranked in the top 10 for 15U by fivestarbasketball.com. Compton features a plethora of rising sophomore’s that stand 6’5” and taller, while the Eric Gordon All-Stars feature rising freshman, Eron Gordon. Gordon, the younger brother of the team’s namesake already has offers from local schools big 10 schools, Purdue and Indiana. This game will provide coaches with a glimpse of the future.

Eron Gordon

Other Top Ranked Players to Watch:

·         Noah Vonleh – Mass Rivals

·         Leron Black – Team Thad

·         Anton Beard – Team Thad

·         Milik Yarbrough – Indiana Elite

·         Craig Victor – New Orleans Elite

·         Mamadou Ndiaye – Double Pump Elite

·         Solomon Poole – Atlanta Celtics

·         Roshcon Prince – Compton Magic

·         Stephen Zimmerman – Dream Vision