Hoop Mountain SW2 – Wednesday Recap

New England Recruiting Report | Wednesday, July 6th, 2011

Hoop Mountain’s Super Week II had a successful first full day on Tuesday, welcoming handfuls of college coaches to watch top prospects from New England and beyond. 

Top Performances

Jake Layman, King Phillip: Layman brought his “A” game first thing Wednesday morning, standing out with his natural offensive talent while using his length to make plays on the weak-side of the floor defensively.

Georges Niang, Tilton: One of the most prolific scorers in New England, Niang went to work early in the day and was content to play the role of a distributor from that point on, showing his complete versatility with the ball in his hands. 

Jacquil Taylor, Cambridge Rinde & Latin: Taylor strung together a series of high level plays during his afternoon game, facing up from the mid-post for drives and short jumpers while also throwing down a few big dunks.   

Andre Walker, Clarksburg (MD):  The youngster from Maryland could be the latest high-major post prospect to come through SW2.  He was one of the top overall prospects at the camp, showing good mobility and touch to compliment his size and length. 

John Powell, Brimmer & May: This long athletic lefty worked well along the baseline and at the rim to generate offense, while also handling the ball in the open floor and finding open team mates in transition with an array of no look passes.

Rene Castro, Beaver County Day: Castro was electric with the ball in his hands breaking down defenders to attack the paint to the tune of 30+ points. He possessed a good balance of scoring the ball and distributing it to open shooters.

Tevonn Walker, Vanier (Canada):  The Canadian import looks like a potential high-major prospect in the class of 2014.  He owns all the requisites with his physical tools, can rise up in the mid-range area, or create for others. 

Ben Millaud, Vanier:  The other half of Vanier’s back-court duo, Millaud is one of the top shooters in the camp and plays with an obvious flair, making plays in the open floor and finding people with his court vision. 

Cane Broome, East Hartford: He’s been starring at Hoop Mountain Camps since his middle school days and today was no different as Broome showed off his versatile scoring ability, forcing defenders to pick their poison. 

Will Defanti, Northfield Mount Herman: A strong and super tough point guard, Defanti plays pass first shoot second with a very high basketball I.Q.  He moves the ball with a purpose, consistently finding open guys for clean looks at the basket, and drives through contact to the rim. 

Jaymie Spears, St. Mark’s: An explosive playmaking guard with a powerful body, Spears got back to his roots today, attacking at will to create his own offense.  He can stop and go on a dime with his dribble and also mixed in some soft pull-ups in transition. 

Alex Furness, Cushing Academy: He’s a long lefty guard who is deadly once he gets on his defender’s hip because of his unrivaled size and length in the backcourt.  He penetrated the lane at will today, both finishing himself and also kicking out to shooters with vision. 

Colin Richey, Whitinsville Christian: The consummate point guard with great feel and innate competitiveness, Richey had coaches intrigued with his newfound explosiveness, even getting above the rim to throw down a couple of dunks.   

Jamel Torrence, Suffield Academy: The Tigers look like a potential powerhouse next year with a newly arrived frontline but it was Torrence who stood out with his elite level quickness, two-way handle, and dependable floater not to mention his lock down defense. 

Ed Lawrence, Canterbury: It’s easy to see why college coaches are quickly becoming intrigued as the big fella has a wealth of tools that will only cause his stock to continue to rise with added strength and balance. 

Jackson Donahue, Stonington: An assassin with his jumper, Donahue has a quick release and the mentality of a big time shot-maker with a short memory and unrelenting confidence.  He put points on the board in bunches on Wednesday. 

Edely Telfort, Lynn English:  With his team on the free-throw line trailing by a point with two seconds to play, Telfort streaked in from the perimeter to tip in the miss free-throw and score a buzzer beating win and play hero for his team on Wednesday afternoon. 

Matt Cimino, Worcester Academy:  The young big man is known for his face-up skill set, but he proved his worth with his back to the basket today, displaying nice post moves in addition to poise and vision passing out of double teams. 

Kamali Bey, Wilbraham & Monson:  The power guard has returned to the floor and that’s victory enough after Bey was sidelined for over a year following an injury at last spring’s EYBL.  He showed no hesitation to get in the thick of things today, going right into contact and being aggressive with his body. 

Others Who Impressed

•  Josh Downes attacked the basket effectively and showed an improving jumper.

•  Jordan McBride is a three-point specialist who showed unlimited range in one game.

•  Jeff Spellman is a shifty young guard with a tight handle and sharp acumen for the game.

•  Connor Macomber combined physical strength with tough defense & good decision making.

•  Adrian Oliveira distributes the ball very well while also picking his spots to get his own shot.

•  Harry Rafferty not only strokes it but he does it with a quick and compact release.

•  Craig Luschenat is a versatile scorer who shoots it well and can also create with the bounce.

•  Mike Auger didn’t look like a player coming back from injury, crashing the glass and finishing.

•  Alex Perrone continues to impress, utilizing his big body to score and rebound inside.

•  Thomas Rivard is a long and skilled player who showed great finishing ability in traffic.

•  Increased length & muscle has Steve Haladyna finishing everything en route to the rim.

•  Evan Hole plays with good dexterity and a strong body to do his best work off the bounce.

•  Jack McCarthy was one of the best passing big men in the camp who can also rebound in traffic. 

•  Lucas Hausman has continued to get stronger while diversifying his scoring arsenal. 

•  Denzell Jackson is an old school power forward who doesn’t mind doing the dirty work.

•  Rick Naylor impressed with his toughness and catch and shoot game. 

•  K.J. Baptiste was impressive with good basketball I.Q. and passing ability for a big man.