National Prep Showcase – Event Recap

Saturday, November 18th, 2006

FRIDAY
Saint Thomas More 67 Fork Union 63
Coach Jere Quinn’s squad was able to secure a hard fought victory in the event’s first game. Devan Ebanks, one of the top juniors in the country, led the Chancellors with 20 points on 7 of 14 shooting from the field in addition to pulling down 7 rebounds while demonstrating his superior athleticism and ability to excel in transition. URI bound point guard Marquis Jones was solid with 12 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds, despite his 5 turnovers. Donovan Monroe a 6’2 guard from Fork Union paced his squad with 23 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists.

Winchendon 80 Hargrave Military Academy 72
Malcolm Grant a 6’0 point guard who has already committed to Villanova had a tremendous opening day scoring 23 points, dishing out 4 assists, and grabbing 8 boards. Winchendon Head Coach Mike Byrnes opted to pair Grant with fellow point guard Darius Gabriel for most of the game, which freed Grant up to look for his own shot, and he responded by knocking down three shots from behind the arc. Mike Ringgold a 6’4 athletic slasher was productive around the basket with 13 points and 9 rebounds, but was sometimes out of control turning the ball over 7 times. Papa Lo was also very efficient on the interior connecting on all five of his field goal attempts on way to his 10 point 5 rebound effort in 18 minutes. For Hargrave Military Academy 6’4 shooting guard Dorenzo Hudson led all scorers with 22 ponits.

Lee Academy 100 Our Savior New America 56
Lee hit the century mark en route to crushing an overmatched Our Savior team by 46 points. Chris Baez was outstanding scoring 16 points on 4-4 shooting from behind the three-point line in just 9 minutes of action. Also impressive were Sesoo Ikpah who scored 18 points in 13 minutes, sophomore Eliseo Nieves who scored 15 points in 19 minutes, and Travon Wilcher who was all over the rim scoring 13 points in 15 minutes. Junior point guard Nate Tomlinson ran the show dishing out 7 assists with only 1 turnover in only 14 minutes of action.

Notre Dame 98 Stoneridge 95
This may have been the best game of the day and Notre Dame’s Jamine Peterson may have turned in the most impressive performance of the day. “Greedy” scored 33 points on making 14 of his 24 shots from the field and grabbing 9 rebounds in just 29 minutes of action. Ultimately, Stoneridge’s inability to prevent Peterson from getting to the basket and finishing was their downfall. Johnny Higgins, Damian Saunders, and Deonte Roberts were also very impressive for Coach Bill Barton’s squad. Roberts scored 14 points and dished out 6 assists while attacking off the dribble while Higgins played an all around effective game with 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Damian Saunders was a game changing factor on both ends of the court with 10 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, and 3 steals. Local product Troy Gillenwater put on a dominating performance for Stoneridge with 27 points and 11 rebounds showing off his outstanding scoring ability on the low post.

Bridgton Academy 96 Patterson School 85
Justin Burrell, Paris Horne, and Greg Hill were a three head monster for a Bridgton Academy team that beat a very talented squad from Patterson. Burrell who is committed to St. John’s was dominant under the basket with his power game and shooting touch inside 15 feet en route to 22 points on just 13 shots from the field. Horne, an extremely athletic player who was outstanding in transition, solidified his ranking as a mid to high major player with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Hill was 5-10 from the three-point line and 9-16 from the floor on the way to scoring 23 points. Jeremy Hazell and Dominique Sutton led the way for Patterson with 22 and 18 points respectively. The Bridgton victory completed a clean sweep for local New England schools in the first day of tournament action.

SATURDAY
Northfield Mount Hermon 92 Our Savior New American 39
Our Savior was handed their second big loss in as many days as Northfield Mount Hermon Associate Head Coach returned to his alma mater in dominating fashion. NMH was all over the floor with their full court pressure forcing Our Savior into 32 turnovers that led to easy transition baskets. Jerrell Williams, who thrives in such fast paced games, set the standard for the day as he poured in 33 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 steals. Tyrone Nash and Gary Correia chipped in 14 points a piece while Andrew Van Nest knocked in 10. Our Savior didn’t have a single played score in double figures and only attempted 39 shots to NMH’s 72.

New Hampton 67 Champlain St. Lambert 56
Darryl Ashford Jr. who is bound to Bobby Knight and Texas Tech was very impressive in all aspects of the game with a 15 point, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. Ashford is an athletic player who makes things happen on the defensive end of the floor and is at his best in transition. New Hampton Head Coach Jamie Arsenault played 9 players for at least 17 minutes, and no one played more than 29 for a well balanced squad. Robbie Hanzlik looked like the best unsigned senior on the team running the point and converting on both of his three-point attempts. Coach Arsenault’s squad was able to hold Champlain St. Lambert to 34% shooting from the field while converting 58% of their own attempts including going 7-11 from the three-point line.

Patterson 86 St. Thomas More 82
It was more of the same for St. Thomas More on Saturday as Devin Ebanks was again impressive with 20 points and 13 rebounds and Marquis Jones was impressive yet erratic with 18 points, 5 assists, and 9 turnovers. Drew Zito provided a spark off the bench knocking down 3 three-pointers and scoring 14 points to attract the attention of many of the top division II and low major coaches in the gym. But Patterson had 5 players score in double figures led by 6’6 forward Tirrell Baines who went for 18 points and 10 rebounds and was ultimately able to pull off the victory. The Patterson victory was the first of the tournament for a non New England team.

Notre Dame 90 Hargrave Military 89
Once again Notre Dame Prep was the subject of the day’s most exciting game as the game went down to the buzzer with Hargrave failing to score on their last possession. But this time Kansas State bound Michael Beasley looked like the player who is ranked as the top senior in the country by rivals.com. Beasley had 19 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 steals in a performance that led one college coach in the crowd to say “that’s a 15 year pro right there”. Jamine “Greedy” Peterson again stole the show scoring 24 points and pulling down 8 rebounds in what turned out to be a terrific weekend that should lead to a variety of offers from high-major programs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee commit Deonte Roberts and Marquette bound Damian Saunders were solid for the second day in a row with 16 points, 5 assists, 3 steals and 14 points on 7-7 shooting respectively. Dorenzo Hudson led 5 Hargrave players in double figures with 25 points.

Winchendon 69 Fork Union 51
Malcolm Grant turned in his second dominating performance in a row to help his Winchendon team defeat an overmatched Fork Union squad. The Villanova bound point guard was outstanding again on Saturday going 6-12 from behind the three-point line and scoring 26 points. But the real story of this game was the Winchendon defense. Coach Byrnes’ team held Fork Union to 28% shooting from the field and won the battle of the boards by a count of 48 to 34. Mike Ringgold showed more of the same scoring 12 points on 6 of 7 shooting from the field, grabbing 10 rebounds, but turning the ball over 5 times. Junior point-guard Darius Gabriel had a better showing today with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.

South Kent 75 MCI 54
The size and athleticism of South Kent was too much for MCI to contend with as SKS Head Coach Raphael Chillious’ team held their opponents to 36% shooting from the field and only 5 assists versus 23 turnovers. Matthew Bryan-Amaning’s stat line was solid with 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists but that doesn’t adequately reflect his impact on the game as he displayed his rare combination of size, skill, athleticism, and agility. Manuel Cass had a very efficient 18 points on 8 for 10 shooting from the floor to go along with 5 rebounds as he continued to demonstrate that he has completely transitioned to the small forward spot. Oregon State bound combo-guard Calvin Haynes hit 3 three-pointers en route to scoring 17 points while his backcourt mate Mark Lyons demonstrated his ability to run the team scoring 8 points and dishing out 6 assists against 2 turnovers.

Brewster Academy 94 Massanutten Military Academy 64
There were a wide variety of impressive performances in Brewster’s dominating win but none more so than Craig Brackins demonstrating incredible skills for a player his size and dropping 29 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and a blocked shot. Brackins is the definition of a mismatch problem as he appears equally comfortable on the block or shooting 3’s and taking his man off the dribble from the perimeter. Junior power forward Emmanuel Negedu was also very impressive as he dominated the interior scoring 16 points on 7 of 11 shooting from the floor, pulled down 11 rebounds, and had 3 very impressive blocked shots. Newly reclassified junior Terrell McKenzie added 9 points and 6 assists while his backcourt mates P’Allen Stinnett and Dugos Balbay contributed 11 and 10 points respectively.

Bridgton Academy 96 American Christian 82
Bridgton Academy knocked off an American Christian team that was missing one of the top two juniors in the country in Tyreke Evans who sprained his ankle earlier in the week. It was a close game throughout the first half until Bridgton was able to pull away in the second behind the strong play of 6’2 senior guard Ronnie Moss. The lefty showed the ability to knock down the three ball, take his man off the dribble, and finish with both power and finesse in leading the second half run. Rashard Green was equally impressive scoring 20 points mostly by attacking the rim off the dribble and crashing the offensive glass. Justin Burrell and Paris Horne chipped in with 18 and 15 points respectively. Seton Hall bound big man Michael Glover led the way for American Christian with 21 points.

Stoneridge 96 Lee Academy 83
The west coast powerhouse jumped out to an early lead and was able to hold a 20 point advantage midway through the second half before Lee made an inspired run to retake the lead behind the likes of Nate Tomlinson, Corey Bingham, and Chris Baez who had 4, 3, and 3 three-point baskets respectively. But when the game got tight Massachusetts native Troy Gillenwater was able to turn it on to the delight of his hometown fans and guarantee a Stoneridge victory. Gillenwater finished with 37 points by going 11-16 from the field and converting on 14 of his 20 free-throw attempts. But most impressive was the way in which he was able to take the game over when his team needed him to.

SUNDAY
Patterson 104 New Hampton 81
New Hampton was able to hang with Patterson for a half before the North Carolina squad finally pulled away in the second. Seton Hall bound Jeremy Hazell put up another terrific performance scoring 34 points, snatching 4 rebounds, and getting 4 steals. Andre Hardy, who will play for San Francisco next year, set the pace for New Hampton scoring 26 points and grabbing 7 rebounds doing what he does best in attacking the rim and scrapping underneath the basket. New Hampton juniors Patrick Saunders and Orion Outerbridge also played well in the loss. Saunders demonstrated a very impressive skill set knocking down three-pointers as well as scoring on the block with jump hooks while Outerbridge was active scoring and rebounding around the basket.

Brewster Academy 101 American Christian 78
Brewster Head Coach Jason Smith’s squad won big for the second time in as many days this time defeating an American Christian squad that again was missing Tyreke Evans. 6 players scored in double figures for Brewster but it was junior Emmanuel Negedu who stole the show with 28 points and 13 rebounds. Negedu was unstoppable in the paint again today but also demonstrated improved perimeter skills knocking down a couple of 15 footers. The Brewster backcourt was also very impressive today as Turkish newcomer and Texas bound point guard Dogus Balbay played a very well rounded game scoring 16 points, handing out 5 assists, and taking 5 boards off the glass while Creighton commit P’Allen Stinnett consistently created off the dribble for himself and others and finished with 17 points and 6 assists. Michael Glover was again impressive for American Christian with 23 points and 13 rebounds.

Northfield Mount Hermon 67 Champlain St. Lambert 39
It was more of the same for these two teams as NMH won big and Champlain St. Lambert had problems converting on the offensive end of the floor. Gary Correia led all scorers with 14 points including 4 three-pointers and showed the college coaches in attendance why he may have had one of the most polished games of any available point guard in the field. After a spectacular first game, Jerrell Williams was solid today finishing with a double double of 11 points and 10 rebounds. Notre Dame bound forward Tyrone Nash scored 11 points on 4 of 6 shooting but certainly could have been more dominant had the game required him to assert himself more. Matt Glass and Andrew Van Nest also played well in limited time for NMH.

South Kent 87 Massanutten 57
South Kent won their second game of the weekend again by locking down on the defensive end of the court to improve to 4-0 on the season. South Kent was able to hold Massanutten to 27% shooting from the floor and beat them on the glass by a count of 39 to 21. Matthew Bryan-Amaning was again impressive scoring 23 points including what may have been the dunk of the tournament as he pulled the ball back and threw it down with one hand directly on top of a helpless Massanutten defender in one fast break. Jin Soo Kim showed why he may be one of the top sophomores in the country after recently reclassifying. The 6’9 small forward knocked down 2 three-pointers, scored 8 total points, and made 2 very nice passes that led to easy baskets in only 9 minutes of action. Christian Morris was very effective on the interior carving out space and powering up against the smaller Massanutten post defenders.

Blair Academy 76 Tilton 45
Blair Academy knocked off a Tilton team that had only been practicing for less than a week due to league rules and was missing arguably their best player in 6’7 forward Matt Hill who was out with a leg injury. Justin Robinson and Julius Coles paced the Blair squad with 17 and 16 points respectively while no one on the Tilton squad was able to crack double digits. Michael Flemming came the closest and may have impressed some division II and III coaches in the building with his ability to spot up and knock down open shots. But this showing won’t be indicitative of what Tilton is able to accomplish this year as Mehmet Sahan, Can Ozkaner, Joe Fremeau, and Givon Crump are all capable of much better performances than what they turned in today.

MCI 82 Stoneridge 79
The weekend’s only overtime game was its last as MCI was able to hold off Stoneridge for what may have been an upset victory. With their game moving at a much quicker tempo than a day earlier MCI was able to get a big performance from Wichita State bound guard Evann Baker who scored 20 points on 8 of 11 shooting from the floor that included a few quick crossover that almost left his defender on the floor. Lonnie Hayes a junior guard was impressive for the second day in a row. The Cincinatti native is best described as a natural scorer but today he did a little bit of everything scoring 13, dishing 3, and grabbing 4. Kodi Augustus, who is headed to Mississippi State next year, was limited due to a knee injury but did come up big late in the game connecting on back to back three-pointers and a driving lay-up to put MCI up for good in overtime.

All in all the tournament was a great success with many players playing well enough to elevate the level of their recruitment. But perhaps the biggest story of the weekend was the way in which the New England Prep Schools were able to dominate the field. In 20 total games the local New England teams were victorious in 16 including Winchendon, Notre Dame, Bridgton, Northfield Mount Hermon, South Kent, and Brewster Academy all finishing undefeated at 2-0 for the weekend while no other team outside of New England was able to go undefeated through the course of the tournament.