10 Best: Sidwell Friends vs St. Andrews

Houston Wilson

January 23, 2019 @ 08:01 AM

Last night I went to St. Andrew's to see them host Sidwell Friends in a pivotal MAC matchup. Sidwell Friends got off to a fast 9-0 start, St. Andrew's fought back and at the end it was St. Andrew's with the narrow 63-56 win. Here I highlight the 10 best from the game. Best Performance | 2020 Spencer Hayes | St. Andrew’s St. Andrew’s saw themselves down by 1 entering the 4th quarter but it was the services by Hayes that secured this victory for St. Andrew’s. He had 10 of his 18 points in the 4th quarter. He excelled in scoring the basket with contact right under the rim and drew fouls while scoring. Throw in a couple rebounds on both sides of the ball for Hayes and overall it was a terrific day for the junior. Best Scorer | 2019 Jack Lewis | Sidwell Friends Jack scored 18 points for Sidwell Friends in the defeat but it was how easy he made it look that really stood out. He is a reliable catch and shoot shooter but can also put it on the floor and drive to the basket. His pump fake threw a couple defenders off from St. Andrews which allowed him to cause separation and get up a shot he wanted. His ability to get to the free throw line was also impressive in this game. Best Unsigned Senior | 2019 Jason Gibson | Sidwell Friends Jason easily could have been slotted under the “Best Performance” category but this one is also appropriate. It was another excellent outing for Gibson finishing with 18 points after being held to 2 in the first half. There was absolutely nobody stopping his dribble penetration to the rim and if he was not connecting while attacking the rim he was drawing fouls to get to the line. We have talked about it before and we will say it again, this kid is a division 1 prospect that needs to get more looks ASAP! Best Athlete | 2019 Kamari Williams | St. Andrews Sidwell did a tremendous job pretty much shutting down Williams and not allowing him to do a whole during the game but you can see the athleticism that the Boston College commit has. He scored his first basket right before halftime as he rose up for a tip in right as the horn sounded. He needs to get stronger but the athleticism is fully on display. Best Underclassmen | 2021 Benny Williams | St. Andrews Williams is regarded as one of the top sophomores in the area and he showed why last night. He was soaring in the air for rebounds and playing with a ton of confidence as a sophomore. He has a lot of high school ball left but will be in the discussion at the top of the local 2021 class. Best Under The Radar Performance | 2020 Colin Smalls | St. Andrews You do not see a lot of under the radar performances from guys finishing with 16 points but because of everyone else scoring for both teams, this one flew a little under the radar. He scored by getting to the basket, he had a few mid range pull ups and got out in transition too. He is a smaller guard standing at 6’0 but that does not stop him for going up against bigger guys. Best Inside Presence | 2019 Walter Rouse | Sidwell Friends Walter could not be stopped down low in the first half for Sidwell Friends. He was grabbing every rebound on the offensive end and immediately put the ball back up for a basket. I believe his game could be an underrated aspect to this team has the season hits the midway point and we get closer to tournament time. Best Shooter | 2019 Heru Bligen | St. Andrew’s Longwood has a good shooter coming in next year as Bligen really relied on his jumper last night. He was pulling up on his defenders all game long. Sidwell was putting hands in his face all night but that did not phase Bligen as he torched Sidwell with his jumper. 2nd Best Underclassmen | 2021 Chace Davis | St. Andrew’s St. Andrews has some good young talent in their program and Davis is one of those reliable young scorers. He only had 9 points but he is already starting as a sophomore and is not afraid to take the big shot. He is tabbed at 33 right now in our Maryland/DC 2021 rankings. Best Defender | 2021 Benny Williams | St. Andrew’s Benny is a guy that prides himself in defense and that was on display last night. He was playing good on ball defense with his hands up and staying away from fouls. He also caused a few turnovers. Overall, this is a guy that loves to get after it and play hard nose defense.