Chick-fil-A Tuesday Standouts
Who were the standouts from Tuesday at the Chick-fil-A Classic at Belleville East High School? With some of the best talent in the metro east and St. Louis on display there were plenty to choose from including three prospects ranked…
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Continue ReadingWho were the standouts from Tuesday at the Chick-fil-A Classic at Belleville East High School? With some of the best talent in the metro east and St. Louis on display there were plenty to choose from including three prospects ranked in the top five in the Illinois rankings of their respective classes. Let’s look at the standouts from Day 1 action at Belleville East.
SG Jordan Goodwin (Belleville Althoff – 2017 – SLU)
The state’s #2 senior still isn’t all the way back to 100% from his shoulder injury about a week and a half ago against East St. Louis, but as we saw against Centralia post injury Goodwin’s less than full strength is still about good as anyone in the state. The 6’3” power wing started off the game slow as he was settling for jump shots. They weren’t falling consistently. In the second quarter he began to attack the cup. When he is going downhill there aren’t a lot of people in the state that can stay in front of him. He has great body control at the rim to be able to finish through and around contact. Did have a couple jumpers including a sick step back three. He finished with 29 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, and 2 dimes.
PG Tyohn Trimble (Alton – 2017)
Trimble was outstanding for Alton keeping them in the game against Althoff. The 5’5” lead guard is a quick and shifty guard that uses his speed and ball handling in tight spaces to make up for his lack of size. Trimble plays with good pace and has an understanding of the game. Great first step off the bounce getting in the lane where he can finish with runners or dish it off to a teammate. The tough guard can also shoot it from the perimeter off the catch. Trimble had 21 points. Should be on the D3/NAIA radar.
PF EJ Liddell (Belleville West – 2019)
The top 2019 power forward in Illinois played like it in this event. He is a 6’7” four man that has a long and athletic build with a frame he should continue to add strength. Liddell displayed great explosion around the rim on a variety of jams including a couple alley-oops. Didn’t get a ton of traditional low post touches as for his high school team he plays a face up four role. Showed he could stretch the floor on a three and had a pair of slashes to the rim. Good free throw shooter. Liddell rebounded at a nice clip especially in the second half. Was impressed with what he did as a rim protector. The high-major prospect had 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 blocks.
SF Karrington Davis (Chaminade, MO – 2018)
Davis is one of the premier wings in the state of Missouri and the Midwest for that matter in the class of 2018. The 6’6” wing brings a combination of size, strength, skill, and athleticism to the table that makes him very intriguing at the college level for mid-major plus/high-major programs. One area that I have been impressed with is his defensive abilities. Tough on ball defender that moves well laterally and can check multiple positions. Gets in passing lanes and takes it the other way for scores. We have seen Davis shoot it great in the past. He didn’t necessarily have to take those shots in this contest as most of his points came in transition and at the rim. Davis finished with 11 points.
SF Jericole Hellems (Chaminade, MO – 2018)
Hellems is a 6’7” small forward that is incredibly versatile. He can beat a team in so many different ways. The first is with his lethal jump shooting. The Chaminade junior has a silky smooth mid-range pull up off the bounce that he can stretch out to beyond the arc. Size and athleticism make him a problem along with his ball handling slashing in the half court. Quality body control at the rim. Like what he brings to the table as an underrated passer. Feel for the game is outstanding knowing when to pick to score or dish. Plus perimeter defender. Hellems had 14 points. Needs to be on the mid-major plus/high major radar.
SF Javon Pickett (Belleville East – 2017 – Illinois)
Pickett has done it all this year. We have seen him with dominant scoring games, pass it at a high level as a setup man, and hit the glass. Against St. Mary’s in their first round game he did it on the defensive end. I have never seen the Illini commit be so dominant on the defensive end of the floor getting in passing lanes and taking them the other way for transition scores. He did it over and over finishing with euro steps multiple times. Early in the game his jumper was going, but when it really mattered late he took it to the cup. Pickett had 33 points and 7 steals.
SF Jordan Yates (Belleville East – 2018)
Special shout out to this 6’3” tough guy for Belleville East. He usually quietly goes about his job playing defense and rebounding, but in this one he had several huge buckets hitting the glass and finishing with put backs. Finished well inside. Yates had 14 points. Small college prospect.
PG Yuri Collins (St. Mary’s, MO – 2019)
Collins is a 5’11” point guard that is quick with the rock in his hands. He was at his best shooting it from the perimeter. Collins was fantastic drilling threes off the catch at a high level. Pure looking perimeter jump shot with deep range on his jumper. Defensively is quick and has potential long term putting pressure at the point of attack. Only thing that held him back from a monster game was foul trouble. Collins had 18 points. D1 prospect.