Ten Best: Lawrence Central vs. North Central
MVP: Kris Wilkes (North Central) Wilkes hasn’t had his best set of games the last few weeks but this was a bit of a bounce-back as he had his jumper working from deep and poured in a ton of points…
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Continue ReadingMVP: Kris Wilkes (North Central)
Wilkes hasn’t had his best set of games the last few weeks but this was a bit of a bounce-back as he had his jumper working from deep and poured in a ton of points to pace North Central in the big win. Wilkes built his game around his perimeter jumper and then was able to drive a bit later on in the game as it opened it up.
Best Offensive Performance: Kris Wilkes (North Central)
Wilkes dropped 20 points in the win and did it as well as he has recently. His jumper was great and he was working in those drivesfrom the wing and in transition. He’s an elite scoring wing and has always played tough on contact. He got back to that a bit in the game and looked better.
Best Defensive Performance: Emmanuel Little (North Central)
Little has done a lot to improve his offense this last year but he’s always been a good defender when he plays with energy and in this one, he was a big reason why Lawrence Central couldn’t get anything going near the rim. It forced Jordan away from the rim for more jumpers and the guards settled for a ton of threes rather than driving the lane. Little finished with 20 points.
Play of the Game: Eric Easter (Lawrence Central)
The best play of the game was Easter’s block at the rim against Emmanuel Little. Little went up and looked like he was going to really try and stuff it home but Easter was able to come from the side and pin it against the backboard, creating a run-out opportunity.
Best Intangibles: Mateo Rivera (North Central)
One of the best things about Rivera is that no matter what the level of game, the style of play, he always seems to be productive. He’s not deficient in any area, giving you defense and offense with good energy in every game. He’s a heady point guard that could go LM or NAIA and it really wouldn’t shock if he was a great playerin any game. He was the catalyst for NC, getting things slowed down and into position, allowing them to keep a healthy lead all game.
Best Guy Off The Bench: Gary Gilliard (Lawrence Central)
Gilliard hasn’t been a big weapon for LC this season but in this game he was impactful, especially early on. He was finishing around the rim before NC shut that down and even showed a step out jumper. Gilliard is a big body post who can rebound it a bit and score a little bit but he’s maybe not as assertive as he could be. Tonight, he looked a ton better.
Best Under-The-Radar Performance: Donyell Meredith (Lawrence Central)
With all that Lawrence Central was doing, Meredith seemed to go unnoticed and part of that is just the lack of shots he took but he was really effective when he wanted to be. Donyell isn’t at the point where he can take over a game but he has stretches at times that look really good. Tonight, though, he pretty much made one play in each quarter and eneded up with 11 points on just a few shots. Next year, with a few scorers graduation, you might see Meredith become the scorer he can be.
Best Underclassmen: Wesley Jordan (Lawrence Central)
Jordan was easily the best underclassmen in this game, granted there weren’t a ton of options. Wesley did well making plays against North Central’s elite players. He didn’t seem scared and had his mid-range jumper working. He slowly keeps expanding his game and right now he has that comfort level from 10-12’ where he can knock down anything. As he grows, that range could become bigger and transfor him into more of a wing or stretch-four.
Best Player To Track: Donald Lee (North Central)
Lee is one of the more interesting players in the 2018 class. He’s a long, lanky 6’5 wing who is only starting to figure out how to be an offensive player. He’s much like Meredith where next season as a senior he could really jump forward with more touches and opportunities.
Best Storyline Moving Forward: Can North Central get back on track? They are obviously good enough and have enough games but this is the best team in the state when they are on and have proven that this year. However, they have lost a little bit of their polish the last couple weeks but Kris Wilkes and Emmanuel Little were both on tonight and looked the part. They want a State Championship and should be the favorite.