Arizona Christian University Team Camp Day 2 Recap
With three gyms going, ACU team camp really heated up today with a lot of teams and prospects in action. There were strong individual performances, but a few teams are showing signs that they may make some noise this upcoming…
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Continue ReadingWith three gyms going, ACU team camp really heated up today with a lot of teams and prospects in action. There were strong individual performances, but a few teams are showing signs that they may make some noise this upcoming season.
Pinnacle defeated Mountain Pointe in an early game at Scottsdale Prep. Nico Mannion (Class of 2020) showed great confidence in stepping up and making plays when his team needed it the most. Whether penetrating to the basket to finish, dumping the ball off to the open man when help stepped up, or hitting perimeter shots, Mannion showed up in a big way down the stretch. While Nico worked the perimeter, Mason Johnson (Class of 2018) manned the paint and showed a soft touch around the basket to go along with his physical style of play. On the Mountain Pointe side, the guard duo of Malik Salahuddin (Class of 2019) and Terrance Hunter (Class of 2018) led their team by relentlessly attacking the rim. In the end, Pinnacle’s ball rotation and the duo of Mannion and Johnson proved to be too much as Pinnacle pulled away 68-63.
An exciting contest between Red Mountain and Cienega took place at ACU with Cienega taking home the win 49-43. While Andre Harris (Class of 2019) was once again a load on the inside, Tristan Padburry (Class of 2018) provided some timely perimeter shooting. The trio of Andrew Leonard (Class of 2017), Jordan Green (Class of 2018), and Darius Williams (Class of 2017) got into the lane with ease and proved to be too athletic for Red Mountain to counter. The game was back and forth the entire contest, but Cienega found a way to win in the end.
Queen Creek matched up against Beaumont (CA) in a clear mismatch of size. Beaumont’s CJ Clemons (Class of 2017) was strong inside and stepped out to hit a few midrange jumpers, while Jalen January (Class of 2017) and Aaric Sanders (Class of 2017) were big bodies inside and on the glass. Queen Creek was led by Connor Morris (Class of 2017) who showed great toughness in battling the bigger players from Beaumont and constantly making the hustle plays that win close games. The athleticism of Tyler Fulton (Class of 2018) also helped on the glass and with second chance opportunities as Queen Creek proved to be the tougher team in a close win.
Notre Dame Prep guard Andrew Salasek (Class of 2017) impressed with his handle and ability to create shots for himself and others in both of their games today, a win against Arizona Lutheran and a loss against Moon Valley. Often, drives from Salasek would end in a kickout to Justin Maschek (Class of 2018) who proved to be a knock down shooter when left open on the perimeter. In their second contest against Moon Valley, Trevor Thompson (Class of 2017) consistently hit both contested and uncontested shots to go along with the leadership of point guard Camron Davis (Class of 2017). While NDP fought hard and made it competitive, Moon Valley wound up winning the contest 42-27.
Rio Rico may be undersized, but they play 5 tough guards that can all handle the ball and shoot. Having a balanced effort on both ends in games against Paradise Valley and St. Thomas More (SD) who saw their big man Isaac Kortemeyer (Class of 2017) neutralized despite showing great footwork inside and the knowledge and ability to utilize his big body. Rio Rico scored an impressive win 52-36.
While today provided a full slate of games, tomorrow is the championship round, which should call for some good contests between competitive teams.