Hoophall Heats Up Saturday

New England Recruiting Report | Friday, January 13th, 2012

The 2012 Spalding Hoophall Classic got underway on Thursday and after two days of local action on both the boys and the girls side, Saturdays match-ups will begin three days of national competition of the highest quality. 

Thursday Recaps

Commerce 60  Sci Tech 48: Shadiar Thompson struggled shooting from the floor but still brought his hard hat and lunch pail to collect 16 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 blocks for Commerce.  Alex Lopez added 12 points and 5 assists while Bryan Greene and Keith Caston scored 13 each for Sci Tech. 

Central Catholic 72  Springfield Cathedral 62: With senior guard Luis Puello out with a sprained ankle, sophomore Tyler Nelson played a starring role for Central Catholic, scoring a team high 19 points on five three-pointers, including a dagger long ball in the game’s final minute.  Shawn McCoy, Joel Berroa, and Doug Gemmell also finished in double figures while Cathedral was led by Lou Garcia’s 23 points on five three-pointers of his own. 

Springfield Central 76  Putnam 57: Tyrell Springer scored 21 points while Kamari Robinson had 17 to lead Central to a lopsided win over Putnam.  Chris Prophet and Lee Turner also finished in double figures for Central while Putnam saw Jordan Almore, KayJuan Monroe, and Dizel Wright do the same. 

Mahar 69  Hampshire 43: Phil DePhillipo was a model of efficiency, going 12 of 17 from the floor en route to a 25 point performance for Mahar as they ran away with a lopsided victory in a Western Mass clash.  Keith Cotnoir led the way for Hampshire with 18 points and 7 rebounds. 

Friday Recaps

New Leadership 63  Sabis Charter 52: Joseph Crapps and Stephen Jackson took a combined 37 shots for New Leadership as Crapps finished with 24 points along with 18 rebounds and Jackson 16 and 6.  Nelson Zayas scored a team high 21 for Sabis but struggled to get it going from the field, shooting 8 of 23 including 4 of 14 from three. 

East Longmeadow 52  Longmeadow 40: Sam Blake was dominant in the paint for East Longmeadow, scoring 20 points, grabbing 14 rebounds, and blocking 5 shots, but the real key to this game was defense as Longmeadow was held to just 25% shooting from the floor and 4 of 19 shooting from three. 

Saturday’s Schedule

12:00pm – Springfield Central (MA) vs. Windsor (CT): Central returns for their second game in what promises to be a steeper challenge against an undefeated Windsor team from Connecticut.  The Warriors have a variety of weapons with Garey Allen and Andy Hurd in the backcourt, Jared Wilson-Frame on the wing, and Jaquan Harrison up front. 

2:00pm – St. Patrick (NJ) vs. LaVerne Lutheran (CA): A battle of east vs. west as St. Patrick is led by Jared Nickens and DeAndre Bembry against a LaVerne squad that features the 9th ranked prospect in the country in Grant Jerrett, who is already committed to Arizona. 

4:00pm – Gonzaga (DC) vs. Riverside Academy (LA): One of the nation’s best uncommitted big men, Ricardo Gathers, leads a Riverside squad up from Louisiana as they take on Gonzaga High School and their junior point guard Nate Britt, who is already committed to North Carolina. 

6:00pm – Oak Hill Academy (VA) vs. Prestonwood Christian (TX): Oak Hill will look to utilize their depth with Jordan Adams (UCLA), Damien Wilson (Memphis), Tyler Lewis (NC State), D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera, and A.J. Hammons as they meet a Prestonwood team that features Kansas bound big man Zach Peters and the nation’s third ranked junior Julius Randle. 

8:00pm – Northwest Catholic (CT) vs. DeMatha Catholic (MD): Kuran Iverson and Northwest Catholic have their biggest challenge of the season against national powerhouse DeMatha, who features two future Big East players in Jerami Grant (Syracuse) and James Robinson (Pittsburgh).