Montverde Overwhelms LUHI In Beach Ball Classic Title
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Montverde proved its no.1 national ranking was accurate and wore out an overwhelmed Long Island Lutheran team with a 70-41 victory in the championship of the Beach Ball Classic. After Long Island Lutheran got within six points in the first half, Montverde built a 16-point lead early in the second half when R.J. Barrett found a cutting Makhi Mitchell for an easy layin and a 40-24 lead.
On the ensuing possession, Barrett went to his right hand and completed a traditional 3-point play as Montverde built a 43-24 lead with 12:57 remaining.
LUHI’s Tyson Etienne quelled a five minute scoring drought by hitting a banker on the run with 8:28 remaining. Georgia Tech-signee Michael Devoe answered by drilling a deep 3-pointer that gave Montverde a monstrous 54-27 lead.
Best Offensive Performance:
RJ Barrett, Montverde Academy
The 6-foot-7 Duke-signee scored a “quiet” 27 points to lead all scorers. Widely regarded as the no.1 prospect in the country, Barrett added 10 rebounds and seven assists.
He hit back to back 3-pointers for the first time all tournament and had several thunderous dunks which exemplified both hang time and sheer athleticism the lefty brings to the court.
Best Defensive Performance: Montverde’s starters.
Montverde went full throttle defensively, limiting LUHI significantly after the first half. Donatas Kupsas (16 points and 10 rebounds), the ultra-skilled 6-foot-9 forward with a 3-point touch and an arsenal of post moves, did damage in the first half but was relatively quiet in the second. It was telling that LUHI struggled mightily with shots around the rim.
Opportunities they normally capitalize on went by the wayside. That’s simply what Montverde does, they make it ugly and irregular for foes with their wall to wall team defense.
Best coaching decision: LUHI head coach John Buck’s decision to go with the four corners offense
After a rather lackluster offensive performance in the first half, Buck made a sound decision to install a four corners offense. This emphasized spreading the floor and utilizing open space, after LUHI withered under Montverde’s man-to-man defense in the first half.
While the change in approach did not pay dividends for a cold LUHI team, the adjustment was a necessity for any team in a game of this magnitude.
Best Aspect of the Environment: A mutual court.
Montverde is based in Florida and Long Island Lutheran is in New York. At the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C., there was no clear crowd favorite or home team.
Both teams took as a road game with something to prove. Montverde was eager to back up its no.1 national ranking, after surviving a major test against DeMatha (a 10-point win in which they staved off a late rally) in the semifinal.
Long Island Lutheran, with highly-touted prospects such as Kupsas and Frankie Policelli (who was recently offered by Cincinnati and Dayton), was eager to prove itself and its basketball-rich tradition against the nation’s premier high school team.
Best play: Barrett traditional 3-point play, 12:57 remaining
Barrett broke down Luhi’s defense, went to his right hand and finished while drawing the foul. An exasperated LUHI retreated to a timeout after the foul was called. Barrett calmly sank the free throw after the timeout, lifting Montverde’s lead to 19 as the game continued to slip into a washout.
Best Under The Radar Performance: Montverde’s front court
Kevin Boyle’s frontline doesn’t seem to get enough credit. After thriving in China and playing a big role in helping the team defeat DeMatha, Class of 2019 Maryland-commit Makhi Mitchell scored 14 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and blocked four shots.
The interior tandem of Mitchell and Filip Petrusev (13 points) combined to shoot the ball at an astounding 12-for-18 clip, a hyper-efficient performance which out-dueled LUHI significantly. Both Mitchell and Petrusev went 6-for-9 from the field.