5 Takeaways: The Rock Holiday Classic quarterfinals

Pat Lammer

January 3, 2019 @ 09:38 PM

North Broward Prep in Coconut Creek was the site of eight games Thursday at The Rock Holiday Classic. Thursday's final scores were: SILVER BRACKET QUARTERFINALS Miami Springs 52, Grandview Prep 29 Orangewood Christian 66, Leman Manhattan (N.Y.) 57 St. John Paul 59, Coral Reef 47 Loyola (N.Y.) 64, Lake Mary Prep 53 GOLD BRACKET QUARTERFINALS Oxbridge 76, Oviedo 72 Wellington 59, St. Andrew's 58 North Broward Prep 45, Seffner Christian 42 Pine Crest 59, Jensen Beach 49 Here are 5 Takeaways from The Rock Holiday Classic: <h2>Wild finish</h2> The Wellington-St. Andrew's quarterfinal went down to the wire. St. Andrew's, down one 59-58, had the ball on a side-out with 9.7 seconds remaining. The final possession, however, did not go as planned. The Scots got the ball in-bounds but the Wolverines quickly popped the ball loose, leading to a mad scramble. It eventually wound up in the hands of St. Andrew's sophomore Josh Minott, who drove the lane. Minott attempted to get an off-balance shot off, but the ball flew harmlessly out of bounds. St. Andrew's players argued the shot had been deflected by a Wellington defender but the call went to the Wolverines. Wellington was able to run out the final seconds. Wellington will play Oxbridge Academy on Friday in the semifinals of the Gold bracket. <h2>Remember the name</h2> Sophomore Chris Walker provided Wellington with a major lift. The 6-foot-4 10th-grader drilled five 3-pointers on the way to a 20-point performance in the victory over St. Andrew's. On defense, he often guarded the much-taller Yussif Basa-Ama (2020). Basa-Ama, a solid 6-8 Division I prospect, was held to 7 points. "He didn't play last year as freshman because he tore his knee up," Wellington coach Matt Colin said. "We were going to play him on JV last year so he could learn the system and what not. He didn't play last year, he didn't play in the summer. He just got cleared to start this year. But we've always known he's a shooter, and he's a good finisher. He's going to be one day be such a complete player that he's going to be unbelievable." Linton Brown (6-4/2019) added 12 points for the Wolverines. <h2>Orangewood young, talented</h2> The Rams, out of Maitland in Central Florida, improved to 8-4 and look to have a bright future. Orangewood Christian starts two eighth-graders in Kaven Call (6-4) and Omari Henry (5-9). Henry's dad is an assistant on the team. The Rams also have 6-10 sophomore center Elijah Hulsewe. Junior Drew Thelwell led Orangewood in scoring Thursday with 29 points. Orangewood will play Miami Springs on Friday in the semifinals of the Silver bracket. <h2>Cajuste healthy, thriving</h2> Oxbridge senior A.J. Cajuste, who dealt with knee and femur injuries a season ago, is healthy again and it showed against Oviedo. The 6-foot guard tossed in 31 points as Oxbridge ran its record to 9-0. "I was injured last year and it's been a long road," Cajuste said. "I think I worked really hard over the summer to come to where I am now." Old Dominion is the latest to inquire about Cajuste. He said ODU's point guard is a senior and has averaged playing 38 minutes a game. Cajuste handles the ball very well, can drive and can guard bigger players. College coaches want to see his field goal percentage from the outside go up. Cajuste teams with 5-9 sophomore Jason Simpson in the backcourt. Oxbridge 6-3 senior Klein Alexandre just took a visit to St. Vincent College in Pennsylvania. <h2>Redemption for Feller</h2> North Broward Prep junior Sawyer Feller cashed in on his second chance. With the game tied in the final minute, Feller was called for traveling giving the ball back to Seffner Christian. Moments later, junior guard Dom Denny jarred a ball loose. Feller latched on to the steal and was fouled. He hit two free throws with under 10 seconds to play to give NBP (7-5) the lead for good. Denny finished with 12 points and Feller 10. If you have high school basketball news, you can reach Pat Lammer via e-mail at PatALammer@Gmail.com or via text at 954-661-9671.