Salem Invitational Tournament: Wednesday Standouts

The Salem Invitational Tournament kicked off play on Wednesday night. This eight team event has become one of the must attend mid-winter tournaments in southern Illinois during the season. In the first game top seeded East St. Louis turned it up a few gears in the third quarter to blow out Triad 76-43 after the eight seed played them tight for most of the first half. The second quarter final of the night was probably the best opening round matchup between Effingham and Mt. Vernon. The four and five seeds have as much talent as anyone in this field probably beyond ESL. It was close throughout and went to OT. In the extra session Effingham’s Nathan Thompson hit a dagger three to win the game 54-52. See who the top performers here were in our Salem Invitational Tournament: Wednesday Standouts!   PF Armond Williams (East St. Louis – 2020) Williams is a 6’8” center that continues to see his stock go up every single time we evaluate him. The long and lanky five man comes off the bench for ESL and brings a lot of athleticism to their front line. Runs the floor so fluidly and his teammates find him for dunks when he does sprint the length of the court. Got multiple dunks off just beating everyone down the floor. Plus athlete that should develop into a nice rebounder. Shows timing when hitting the glass. Rim protector on the defensive end swatting anything that comes near him. So much upside here! He had 8 points.   G Cornellious LeFlore (East St Louis – 2019) LeFlore is an energy microwave scorer who has played a bigger role for the Flyers as the season has went along. Probably just under 6’0” he is more of a scorer than passer. Scrappy guard that hits open threes and finishes well in transition. Quality defender. He had 13 points.   PG Elijah Rice (East St. Louis – 2019) Rice is a combo guard we have continued to be big fans of as the season has gone along. Good size at the lead guard spot as he is 6’3” with strength and athleticism. He pushes with a lot of speed in the open floor. Didn’t track his assists, but he did a great job making quick decisions on the fly finding his teammates for scores in the open floor. Banked in a three to close the half and got to the rim pretty easily against not the greatest defenders. Will continue to closely watch him as the week goes on. He had 9 points.   SG Nate Winslow (Triad – 2020) Winslow was the leading scorer for Triad with 14 points. This junior 6’4” shooting guard displayed some versatility with a mid-range jumper, deep catch and shoot three, and scored at the rim on an and-1. Also got on the glass for a put back.   SG Luke Cox (Triad – 2020) Cox is probably the most projectable prospect on this team. At 6’3” he has nice length and a clean stroke from three as he hit a pair of them for his 6 points.   SG Jonah Ogden (Triad – 2019) Ogden is a senior two guard that flashed some scoring ability. Connected on a pair off the catch and also had a strong baseline attack for 8 points.   SG Amir Spann (Mt. Vernon – 2020) Spann is trending as one of the better junior prospects in southern Illinois. The 6’2” shooting guard has a strong build and loves to get downhill. He had a couple impressive takes showing burst and is excellent finishing through contact at the rim for and-1s. Probably the biggest bright spot was to see him shoot and connect on a pair of 15 foot pull up jumpers. Shot them with a lot of confidence. He has to be a weapon from there and needs to continue to extend that range to be a D1/D2 prospect at the next level. He has a lot of other really intriguing tools with his strength, athleticism, rebounding, and defensive potential. Spann scored 15 points.   PF Weston Brockhouse (Mt. Vernon – 2019) Brockhouse is just a consistent force for the Rams. Game in and game out he produces. This 6’7” four man will be a college pitcher at the next level for baseball, but would be a coveted D3 prospect if that was the route he chose. Brockhouse was absolutely dominant on the boards grabbing them at an insane clip. He is great at getting offensive rebounds and putting the back in. Soft touch and feel scoring around the hoop. So efficient with his touches. Can even step out to hit a three. Brockhouse had 19 points and 15 rebounds.   SF Simon Wilson (Mt. Vernon – 2020) Wilson had some flashes in this game. Size on the perimeter at 6’4”. He is a floor spacer that hasn’t found a consistent touch on his shot in the games we have seen this year to date. Did hit one corner three. He shoots a good ball and we believe he will be a plus shooter at the next level. Got on the glass for a put back and also had a nifty up and under on his way to 7 points.   SF Landon Wolfe (Effingham – 2019) Wolfe had a workman like effort in their opening round win. The Rams focused their defense on him and he had to work for everything he got. Wolfe is a 6’5” small forward that has strength and toughness. Crafty with the ball in his hands on drives to the hoop. Finished well in transition. Hit one mid-range jumper which is his forte. Also sealed his man off for a bucket in the post. Wolfe is a player we continue to say is a no brainer D2 prospect. He had 15 points and 8 rebounds.   PG Parker Wolfe (Effingham – 2021) Parker is the younger Wolfe brother. This sophomore point guard is a 6’0” lefty who has a nose for the basketball and always seems to make the big play. On this night it was a steal and coast to coast take to tie the game. He is a pesky defender that always gets a couple steals a game. Crisp passer and good decision maker. Can hit an open three and likes to get out in transition as a scorer. He had 9 points.   SG Nathan Thompson (Effingham – 2021) Thompson hit the biggest shot of the night as the sophomore drilled the game winner to send his team on to the winner’s side of the bracket. A lot to like with this top 100 2021 in-state prospect. At 6’4” he has size and projectability. Right now best as a spot up shooter, but shows glimpses of contributing in other areas of the game. Should grow into a quality defender as he has size, length, and athleticism. Scored 10 points.