10 Best: Edwardsville vs Mt. Vernon
Edwardsville is the prohibited favorite at the Salem Invitational Tournament that opened up play on Wednesday night. They are without their star post and Iowa football commit AJ Epenesa who is playing in an all-star game in Hawaii this week. …
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Continue ReadingEdwardsville is the prohibited favorite at the Salem Invitational Tournament that opened up play on Wednesday night. They are without their star post and Iowa football commit AJ Epenesa who is playing in an all-star game in Hawaii this week. They still have newly minted top 10 prospect and one of the hottest recruits in the state Mark Smith leading the way with several other talented prospects alongside him. They opened the event with Mt. Vernon in their first game and the Rams gave them everything they had in the first half as it was tight until Edwardsville opened it up with a couple runs to win 49-37. Read our 10 Best: Edwardsville vs Mt. Vernon to see who played well in this one!
MVP
PF Caleb Strohmeier (Edwardsville – 2018)
Strohmeier is a 6’7” skilled four man that has added significant strength to his frame over the last few years. Has the ability to shoot, but against Mt. Vernon he displayed his improved post game. Finished efficient on his post touches. Great footwork and use of fakes to keep defenders off balance. Defensively he was active at the top of their 1-3-1 zone with his length. In the second half proved he could guard laterally against smaller opponents. He had 12 points. Low-major prospect.
Play of the game
Edwardsville senior point guard Mark Smith pulled up for a three from super deep early in the game which had the gym buzzing.
Best offensive performance
PG Mark Smith (Edwardsivlle – 2017)
Smith started off the contest pulling deep threes. Like from the volleyball line deep! He drilled the first one, but settled for some forced shots after that. Smith has without a doubt proven he is a legit weapon from beyond the arc, but when he attacks the basket that opens up better looks. That is what happened as the game went on. He started attacking downhill and getting buckets inside. Got on the glass for a put back. His passing particularly in the second half was outstanding. Found his shooters as he drew multiple defenders. Had a nice post to post dish. High IQ guard that is a plus passer. He finished with 15 points, 7 dimes, and 4 rebounds. High-major prospect.
Best defensive performance
Smith and Strohmeier both showed well defensively.
Best rebounder
Strohmeier was solid on the glass in this one.
Best passer
Thought Mark Smith passed it at an extremely high level particularly in the second half.
Best catch and shoot guy
SF Quinton Kujawa (Mt. Vernon – 2017)
This 6’4” senior wing had it rolling in the first half. He connected on four shots from beyond the arc as he was the catalyst for the Rams strong first half. Sound perimeter shooter with some toughness. He finished with 12 points.
Best intangibles
Really like the toughness that Caleb Strohmeier brings to the table.
Best under-the-radar performance
SF Oliver Stephen (Edwardsville – 2017)
Stephen is a 6’4” small forward that is one of the best shooters in the senior class. He can really let it fly from deep particularly off the catch. Got off to a slow start early, but got in a rhythm when Smith was looking for him from beyond the arc. Plus free throw shooter that made a pair of trips to the charity stripe. He had 13 points and 4 boards. D2 prospect.
Best underclassmen
SG Amir Spanm (Mt. Vernon – 2020)
Spann is a talented freshman 6’2” freshman combo guard. Comes off the bench for Mt. Vernon and only plays limited minutes, but it is apparent he has the talent to be someone to track down the line. Bouncy athlete that had a couple nice finishes inside. 4 points for Span.