Holiday Tournament Observations
I had a chance to watch a lot of holiday basketball action as I visited tournaments at MICDS, Meramec (Coaches vs. Cancer), Chaminade and Park Hills Central and monitored several others via live-streaming. Here are a few observations from my…
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Continue ReadingI had a chance to watch a lot of holiday basketball action as I visited tournaments at MICDS, Meramec (Coaches vs. Cancer), Chaminade and Park Hills Central and monitored several others via live-streaming. Here are a few observations from my holiday tournament travels.
*St. Mary’s is the Real Deal: St. Mary’s was the newcomer to the tournament and drew the No. 1 seed, which raised a few eyebrows. After struggling to defeat No. 16 seed Lafayette in the first round, the Dragons went on to defeat Lindbergh, Hazelwood Central and SLUH to win the championship. The championship game was tremendous as the Dragons defeated SLUH 60-57 in overtime to move their record to 11-0. Coach Kelvin Lee has a deep team that plays fast with full-court pressure defense. 2018 post Yahuza Rasas was a force in the low post while guards Yuri Collins and Tony Burks are an exciting young backcourt.
*The Dual: The semifinals game between SLUH and Webster Groves in the Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament was a rather pedestrian affair for three quarters. However, the fourth quarter turned out to be something special as guards Brandon McKissic of SLUH and Courtney Ramey of Webster Groves staged a spectacular one-on-one dual that had the standing room only crowd on the edge of their seats. They guarded each other and took turns making one big shot after another as the tension mounted. The trash-talking reached an all-time high, but both players elevated their games. In the end, McKissic had the final say as his driving layup with 10 seconds left gave the Jr. Billikens a 49-48 victory.
*Deandre Do-it-All: One player who really stood out at the MICDS Tournament was 5’11” 2018 guard Deandre Campbell of Parkway Central. There may not be a player who has to do as much for his team as Campbell does. Not only is he the Colts top scorer, he is also the point guard, floor leader and defensive stopper. And he rarely comes out to take a break. When the stocky Campbell gets a full head of steam to the basket, he is tough to stop. He scored 34 and 35 points on consecutive nights in victories over Francis Howell Central and Lutheran North.
*Young Talent in Mineral Area: I ventured South to the Park Hills Central Tournament and I was impressed with some of the young talent in St. Francois County. Tournament champion Farmington has a pair of impressive sophomores in 6’3″ forward Tycen Gray and 6’6″ forward Cole Laurence. Host Park Hills Central has a pair of very nice freshmen in 6’3″ forward Breven McMullen and 5’11” guard Brent Wagner. Both programs are going to be good for quite awhile.
*Rip and Run Ritenour: The Huskies made their debut in the Chaminade Tournament this year, where they finished second to the powerful host Chaminade team. Few teams are more entertaining to watch than the Huskies with their up-tempo, free-wheeling style of play. They run at will and nearly everyone has the green light to shoot the 3-pointer and they score a lot of points. Diminutive 2017 guard Robyion Hughes scored 30 points in the championship-game loss to Chaminade. 2018 wing Kobe Smith is a talented wing player while 2017 football standout Carl Garmon is also an excellent basketball player.
Giant Killers: Class 1 Advance did an excellent job of getting to the championship game of the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament and they knocked off a pair of very good big-school programs to get there. Advance defeated Class 4 Cape Girardeau Central in the quarterfinals and Class 5 Jackson in the semifinals. Charleston finally ended Advance’s run in the championship game with a 66-60. Advance has an excellent trio in 2017 guard Preston Wuebker, 2017 forward Dawson Mayo and 2018 guard Armani Vermillion.
Harrison’s House: Talented 2018 guard Landon Harrison of Helias has been on an offensive tear during the season. He outdid himself with a record-setting performance against xx in the first round of the Joe Machens Great 8 Tournament in Jefferson City. Harrison scored a tournament-record 44 points in an 88-80 victory. Harrison led the Crusaders to a third-place finish in the Class 4 state tournament as a sophomore.
Shooting Spree: Although Perryville fell short in its upset bid of Farmington in the quarterfinals of the Park Hills Central Tournament, the Pirates left quite an impression on me with its perimeter shooting. The Pirates made a total of 16 3-pointers and had the No. 2 seed Knights on the run for three quarters. It was quite an impressive show because the Pirates had four different players who made at least three from long distance.
Ladue Ram Tough: Ladue put together an impressive week in winning the MICDS Tournament. The Rams defeated Francis Howell 76-56 in the championship game. Ladue has all the right pieces. They have a standout point guard in Zach Bush, an excellent shooting guard in Tate Hotz, good size in 6’6″ River Rhoads and 6’7″ Moses Opkala and a productive player off the bench in 6’4″ Toiyon Drummer.
New Dynamic Duo: One of the top emerging dynamic duos in the state is the 2018 pair of 6’6″ Karrington Davis and 6’7″ Jericole Hellems of Chaminade. Both were dominant in the Red Devils’ 90-74 victory over Ritenour in the championship game of their own tournament. Davis had 27 points and eight rebounds while Hellems had 24 points, 15 rebounds and six assists to lead the Red Devils.
Saxony: The Crusaders of Saxony Lutheran continued their fine play this season by winning the small school division championship at the Carbondale Holiday Tournament in Southern Illinois. That meant a date with highly-regarded Memphis Ridgeway in the overall championship game in which Saxony nearly pulled off the big upset, losing 60-58. Saxony has been led by its 2017 backcourt pair of William Rogers and Corie Williams, who combined for 42 points against Ridgeway. The Crusaders have the talent and experience necessary to make some noise in Class 3 this season.
(Photo by Wiley Price of the St. Louis American)