Over this past weekend, I tried to take working hard to another level. In a 26 hour on-court stretch, I was able to bounce between 5 tournaments and get a good look at the majority of the field in each of them. My thoughts:
Boys
- Hudson Valley City Rocks had a rough go of it at the Basketbull tournament in Springfield on Saturday morning, losing 2 games by 5 or fewer points, but I was impressed with their resiliency after going down 17 in the first half against RI Elite. The difference in their comeback was the performance of Kyiev Bennerman (Spackenkill 2018) and Jacob Lydon (Pine Plains 2018). Bennerman was a physical force that, despite being a shorter post at 6'4", wore the opposition down with relentless tough play. As an explosive big with a linebacker build and deceptive quickness & athleticism, he drew nearly 15 fouls in the game which hampered RI Elite as they tried to finish the game. His inside was countered by Lydon's outside; younger brother of Syracuse standout Tyler made his mark on the 2nd half with his shooting stroke. He knocked down a handful of looks in rapid succession, quickly fueling his team's comeback effort. He's around 6'3" as a 2 guard now, but you have to think by looking at the rest of his family that he's not stopping there. Look out for the younger Lydon over these next couple years.
- Lone Wolf's 10th grade team had nearly a carbon copy story in their game against RCA Saturday night, but they were able to force overtime and secure the victory after going down 17 before halftime. That comeback was fueled by strong play from Noah Tyson (Rutland (VT) 2018) and Dylan Trombley (Moriah 2018). They fell behind due to not hitting shots & making poor decisions against RCA's 2-3 zone - Trombley changed that after halftime. The natural point guard took a more ball-dominant role and fueled the offense, helping direct teammates to open looks while knocking down a handful of looks himself. Looking forward to continue seeing that, as Dylan is already signed & set for EST this summer. Noah Tyson also stepped his game up after halftime using his athleticism & tenacity. The athletic 6'2"-6'3" guard was the only Lone Wolf player who could truly match RCA's athletic ability, and he was in attack mode as the game went on without overdoing it. He also showcased some range, making the defense pay for playing 2-3 by hitting a couple open perimeter looks. Strong 10th grade team up in Burlington.
- Didn't see too much of this, but happy that 2015 All-EST Honorable Mention Tyler Bertram (Cooperstown 2018) is back in an EST jersey this summer. Now on the City Rocks Orange team, he's taking advantage of some more freedom to work with really strong combo guard play. He's a knockdown shooter & big-time scorer by trade, but he's continued on expansion of true point guard abilities that we saw an improvement with during the winter. He can set others up just as well as he can for himself, which makes him even more dangerous.
- Speaking of City Rocks Orange, wishing a speedy & full recovery to Joe DeLollo (La Salle 2018), who will be out for an extended period of time - presumably missing all of EST in the process - after dislocating his ankle on Sunday.
- Bumped into Ty'Jon Gilmore (Watervliet 2016) at Springfield College Saturday as he played for CD Raptors on an off weekend for his City Rocks team. Watched the first half of their game - yeah, he's good. A 2015 All-EST 1st Teamer who, because he's doing a post-grad year at St. Thomas More in CT, is eligible to participate in EST this summer, he was the best player on the court by far. He limited his shot attempts - but he didn't miss any of them, including a contested three that he drained while getting knocked over. With his combination of well-rounded on-court ability and unteachable leadership qualities, I think he's the local Class of 2016's most underappreciated player. Ty'Jon Gilmores don't come around every day. Happy that he's recently received a scholarship offer from Division I Jackson St. and is garnering increased attention from schools such as Davidson & CCSU.
- Two players from the northern reaches of Section II stood out at Basketbull on Saturday as well; future league foes that thankfully will both be in EST this summer. Matthew Fuller (Granville 2017) showed an ability to fill it up against whoever guards him, something that I've now seen every time I've watched him play. His main knock is height, being 5'10" - but he makes up for it against defenders with an uncanny ability to get to where he wants to get to on the court and a quick, high release with elevation on his jumper. Even a good contest on his jumper often doesn't do the defense any good. He's a very good shot maker with what the average person considers difficult shots, and there's a good chance the shot is going in if he gets a clean release. I think he'll jump on some radars this summer. Same goes with Caleb Scrime (Lake George 2018), someone I've gushed over a little bit on Twitter these last couple weeks. As essentially a combo guard that's spurted up to 6'4", he's got desirable physical tools to go with his skill set. He's a knockdown shooter with easy college 3 point range already, can handle the ball, has good court vision & showed the ability to make the good, easy pass and the good, tough pass effectively. He's also a good defender, and with his length, he makes a very good defender at the top of odd-guard zones (3-2, 1-3-1). Caleb can get it done against anyone.
Girls
- Empire State Blazers 10th grade team had quite a good day Sunday, winning a pair of games in extremely convincing fashion to win the varsity division at The Adidas Headlinerz in Scotia this weekend. Their run, including a one-sided 54-31 W over Northern Border Rampage that I was frankly surprised about, was undoubtedly fueled by scrappy pressure defense and strong play from 3 guards - Stephanie Jankovic (Averill Park 2018), Sam Dayter (Cohoes 2018), and Ava Fitzmaurice (Greenville 2018). The scouting report should be out on Stephanie by now; let her go left, let your nightmare begin. The southpaw got to her left nearly at will Sunday, and she wreaked havoc going to the rim from start to finish. She's stronger than most guards and can finish right through bigger players, so she worked her way to the line often when the defense was forced to foul to prevent a bucket. Dayter, an all-league selection at Cohoes, didn't do a lot of any particular thing Sunday. She did a bit of everything. Scored some, and had a stretch where she shouldered the scoring load by hitting a 3, a mid-range shot, and a couple fast break finishes in a short stretch. She created for others, especially in the games' uptempo stretches, and her length (5'9" and lanky at the guard spot) caused serious issues in their zone press. Fitzmaurice made 10 more threes than anyone else in Section II this year - an open look is a death sentence. Believe it or not, she actually missed a couple open looks Sunday (maybe she's still shaking off softball arm?). The scary thought emerged though - she doesn't need open looks anymore. Ava hit a couple deep stepback looks that were, all things considered, pretty well-contested. If she starts to become a difficult shot-maker, she'll be impossible to guard at the Class C level. Looking forward to having all 3 in EST this summer.
- Blazers might have knocked off the Northern Border Rampage A team in convincing fashion, but I'm sure they'd love to have another shot down the road. Rampage features many of northern NY's top players, including one that is receiving some serious attention from Division I St. Francis (NY) and Division II Le Moyne in Paige McCormick (Heuvelton 2017). The 5'11" wing was understandably rusty Sunday - along with being the state player of the year in Class D two years running, she's also a standout on the Heuvelton softball team that plays in the state semifinals on Saturday. Rampage also feature Section VII standouts Kenna Guynup (Beekmantown 2017) and Madison McCabe (Au Sable Valley 2017) that just didn't have it going Sunday, outside of a quick 8 point stretch from McCabe (Section VII's leading scorer this year) to make it a game in the middle of the 2nd half. That whole thing of them not getting it going doesn't happen much. Just not their day; still looking forward to having them in EST, where I have a good feeling about what they'll be showing.
- Northern Border Rampage's standout of the day was one of their more unheralded players at this point, but one that has really been growing on me of late in Maddie Olcott (Moriah 2019). She's another pretty lanky and athletic wing, but she's rapidly turning into more of a basketball player than just an athlete. She's becoming more confident with the handle and more consistent with the jumper. Still, her athletic ability is the strongest of her strengths, and good first-step quickness helps her get by defenders & slither to the rim without having to pound the rock much. Her motor noticeably never turns off and she occasionally does things on the court that you wouldn't expect her to do just because she outworked everyone else on the court for it - definitely someone that I have to continue keeping an eye on.
- If you're looking for electric guards, Emily Wander (Bethlehem 2017) might as well be lightning. Her slender 5'4"ish frame often puts her at a serious size disadvantage, but she makes that an advantage because other guards often just can't check her. Wander's crafty game, slick handle, consistently good jumper, and exceptional ability to finish around bigs through contact was on full display Sunday, along with something else that helps complete the circle - better decision making. She was a driving force behind her Saratoga Sparks team getting two Ws Sunday. With the combo of her ability on the court and high academic rank in the classroom, she's one of the 518's most sought after high D3 prospects and is attracting serious interest from numerous NESCACs. If she goes D3, that's going to be a steal and 4 years of job security for whatever coach lands her.
- Another little guard that I'm starting to enjoy watching some more, although for a different reason, is Allie Pacatte (Cobleskill-Richmondville 2018). Although she has the height that would make her mad if someone tall sits in front of her in class, she makes herself effective on both ends of the floor with tenacity & intelligence. She locks up on defense, especially matching up on the ball. She went up against a couple decent guards, and not only did they not get by her in a full-court man defense, they didn't even get to her side when she was guarding them. Her hands are quick enough to make a ballhandler pay for putting a crossover that isn't crisp in front of her. Offensively, she picks her spots and does a good job running an offense. She possesses good shot selection and a pure stroke when she does let it fly. Another one to keep an eye on!
- Caught some of the Utica Lady Knicks 11th grade team Sunday at the Sparks tournament. Took a close L in the game I paid more attention to, but another solid showing from Liv Marshall (Stockbridge Valley 2017). The 5'11" PF is a great rebounder, both in and out of her area. She doesn't rebound her area or her position, she rebounds the ball, and that's a commodity that's become more & more uncommon. She does have a strong offensive game, including the ability to knock down perimeter jumpers to go along with a mid-range & post game, but didn't really have much freedom to operate in that game. If there was one other girl on the team that made me decide to pay more attention, it was Madison Greco (West Canada Valley 2018). The 5'7" guard did a good job handling the ball against pressure and knocked down shots when she got free. Her next progression will be to get quicker so she can get by defenders pressuring to make her life a little easier, but it was a sound overall performance, and she earned my future attention with it.
- Meanwhile, over at the Adirondack Hoops tournament at Saratoga Rec Center, the girls team that was far & away the class of the tourney was CD Premier. Even with Mekeel 2018 standout Rebekkah Dean sidelined for a few weeks to come with an ankle injury, they put blowout victories on every team they played. They were led by 1 of their usuals and a couple that they picked up mainly for the weekend. The usual was Lyndsey McCoy (Middleburgh 2017) - 5'5" lefty guard, a 3 sport standout now being recruited for hoops at the D3 level by NESCAC, Empire 8, and NEAC schools, has been putting more emphasis on basketball and it shows. She knocks down open looks from the perimeter & mid-range, gets to the line often, and has a consistent floater that she'll use on occasion. She also has a high basketball IQ and makes good decisions, rarely turning the ball over. They were aided by Brianna Legacy (Mount Anthony Union (VT) 2017), who popped in off of her usual Synergy team for the weekend. Another guard whose college attention has been growing of late, her activity on both ends and ability to push tempo & spread the court with deep range on the jumper not only allowed her to get into a better flow than she has been in recent weeks, but it often drew out defenders which allowed teammates more room to work. Add a scrapper & very good defender to the mix in Meghan Murray (Watervliet 2018), who ended up playing in 4 games Sunday after jumping back to her Saratoga Sparks team in the afternoon at their tournament, and they were far ahead of the other teams in attendance. Murray will be one I have to keep an eye on in the future as she develops on the basketball court. Her natural strength, tenacity, and ability to anticipate the play on both ends are impossible to overlook.
- Mass Frenzy had it clicking on all cylinders at their host tournament Saturday, winning their first game over RI Breakers in convincing fashion. A couple Berkshire natives had a lot to do with that. Fallon Field (Hoosac Valley (MA) 2017) has been proving what I've been trying to say for 18 months - she's perhaps the most underrated player in WMass and can hang with anyone in that region. The 5'5" guard knocked down a handful of threes, shot it at a high percentage throughout, broke down her defender off the dribble often and used it to create for others. One of those that she created for also did her own thing and did it well - Sarah Sullivan, a Williston Northampton 2019 by way of Monument Mountain. The 6'1" post showed a more refined pivot game, scoring by turning over either shoulder, and even hit a defender with a little Dream shake before hitting a turnaround jumper at one point. Sullivan runs the floor hard, has good hands, and can finish through contact. She's also put a little muscle on over the last year; her improvement and reclassification into 2019 makes her a definite scholarship prospect.
So, yeah. There's everything. Saw a lot of solid prospects for all levels for both boys & girls in two days. It's amazing what coffee and a willingness to work can do! Coming up on 3 weeks from the opening night of the 2nd annual run of Empire State Takeover's summer showcase leagues, with both boys & girls tipping on Wednesday, June 29 at Union College. Very strong talent already in, with preliminary rosters now set. It's not too late to secure your spot; check the league info here and my contact info is at the bottom with questions!
No comments:
Post a Comment