Grassroots: St. Louis Eagles open strong in Bentonville, Ark.
BENTONVILLE, Ark. — The St. Louis Eagles showcased its 17U team this past weekend in at the MADE Hoops Warm-Up in Bentonville, Ark., winning a series of games and going 4-0 on Saturday and Sunday. Head coach Cory Frazier says…
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Continue ReadingBENTONVILLE, Ark. — The St. Louis Eagles showcased its 17U team this past weekend in at the MADE Hoops Warm-Up in Bentonville, Ark., winning a series of games and going 4-0 on Saturday and Sunday.
Head coach Cory Frazier says the Eagles are little different act in 2016 as Jayson Tatum, Tyler Cook and others are headed to the next level. The Eagles return just two players with extensive experience in the 17U Nike EYBL circuit, which will heat up this upcoming weekend in Brooklyn, N.Y., starting with the Jordan Brand Classic on Friday.
Frazier said the Eagles will be leaning heavily on 2017 Jordan Goodwin for leadership in the early stages as fellow EYBL veteran Jeremiah Tillman is currently out with an injury. Goodwin, a 6-foot-4 wing, is coming off a state championship at Alton, Ill.
Tillman is a five star 6-foot-10 2017 post who is out with a separated shoulder. He is scheduled to undergo tests this week and his return will likely be a big part of the Eagles’ success this summer. Until he returns, the Eagles will be leaning heavily on a score of EYBL newcomers, including Brandon McKissic (SLUH), Reggie Crawford (Chaminade), Jericole Hellems (Chaminade), Thomas Dutton (Hickman) and Richard Henderson (Pattonville), along with out-of-state products Tim Finke (Champaign Central), Silas Adhere (Hamilton Heights) and Darius Garland (Brentwood, Tenn.).
“Until you actually experience it (the EYBL) … on day 1 when you get to the EYBL everybody’s eyes is going to be wide open,” Frazier said. “When that ball goes up and after the first two minutes everybody will calm down and it will become normal, but it is the highest level of basketball that’s not college basketball.
“You’re going to find out if you can play or not real quick. Hopefully, it doesn’t scare anyone off.”
Frazier said it helps to have a host of players coming from successful high school programs.
“That helps, the program has been in place for years and the biggest thing is helping every kid get a scholarship opportunity,” Frazier said. “Whether it be a small school or a major Division I — that is our focus. But having kids coming in from winning programs helps develop a winning culture in the program. It gets everybody on the same page. Everybody wants to win, but they’ll do the little things to get a win.”
The 2016 version of the Eagles will be setting the tone at the defensive end of the court with a pair of high-level football recruits from the Missouri side, and a host of tenacious guards.
“I call it organized chaos,” Frazier said. “Being that we’re not as big as we were last year, we do have some really talented guards that can flat play at both ends of the floor. That’s a bonus, because you don’t see that often that kids want to play at both ends.”