2019 Hoop Exchange Fall Festival: Team Standouts (Part 1)

<p>The 2019 Hoop Exchange Fall Festival was in full swing on Saturday at the CPS SportsPlex in Apopka.</p> <p>With high school team action going on and individual showcase teams taking part in it, there was plenty to watch.</p> <p>Here is a look at my thoughts from the high school team matchups.</p> <h3><strong>Montverde has so much young talent</strong></h3> <p>Playing without a quartet of high-major Division I athletes in 2020 players Cade Cunningham, Moses Moody, Scottie Barnes and Day'Ron Sharpe (UNC commit), Montverde still had a lot to like in a matchup against Oakland Park Northeast. 2021 6'4" guard <strong>Langston Love </strong>was superb as a hard nosed attacker and passer in transition. 2020 6'3" Michigan commit <strong>Zeb Jackson </strong>made life awfully tough with his ability to break down defenses and score over and over. 2022 6'8" forward <strong>Caleb Houstan </strong>shot the ball from deep at a high clip and dug in on the boards. 2021 6' guard<strong> Ryan Nembhard</strong> made life easier for everyone with his high IQ passing.</p> <h3><strong>The Rock is a physical group</strong></h3> <p>There are so many athletes on this new look The Rock unit. It was fun to watch them compete against St. Pete Lakewood. 2020 6'5" Cleveland State commit <strong>Alec Oglesby</strong> is noticeably stronger as an attacker and still is a surefire shooter. 2020 6'3" guard<strong> Kendall Latney</strong> impressed me a lot with his toughness on defense, ability to get into the paint offensively. Guard duo, 2021 6'3" <strong>Kyle Duke </strong>and 2020 6'1" guard <strong>Jalen Speer </strong>(transfer from PK Yonge) paced the floor very well and can both score in bunches. Also, forward duo, 2021 6'8" <strong>Atrial Washington </strong>had a couple of huge dunks and cuts to the rim, while 2020 6'8" <strong>Lenzy Hancock </strong>gains confidence by the day as a key piece down low.</p> <h3><strong>Northeast is super versatile</strong></h3> <p>2023 6'7" twins <strong>Matthew Bewley</strong> and <strong>Ryan Bewley </strong>are inseparable on and off the court. They have the greenlight for Oakland Park Northeast as shooters and defensively, they make life hard for everyone who comes into the paint. It is no wonder UF, Alabama, Iowa State and USF have already offered the freshmen twin duo. 2021 6'4" guard <strong>Wesley Cardet</strong> continues to prove why he's a high-major prospect. Not all the shots were falling for him, but he is a blazer and an elusive attacker. 2020 6' guard <strong>Tyrecke Francois </strong>is a very under the radar pickup from Blanche Ely for this program. He is a confident shooter and a guy who sparks an offense with his speed and athleticism. </p> <h3><strong>Miguel and Staton-McCray are a dangerous duo for West Oaks</strong></h3> <p>2020 6'5" guard <strong>Selton Miguel </strong>will make his college decision on Tuesday between Texas A&amp;M, Western Kentucky, TCU, USF and Kansas State. On Saturday, he was the best pure scorer and slasher for West Oaks. Specifically, against Clearwater Calvary Christian, he was figuring out the second he had room to attack the hoop and more often than not, he got points and/or drew a trip to the free throw line. He can shoot it to. 2020 6'5" guard <strong>AJ Staton-McCray</strong> (transfer from Blanche Ely earlier this summer) has really settled in and is a talented outside shooter and versatile attacker. He earned a DePaul offer last night. </p> <h3><strong>Gross and Berenbaum play up to the competition</strong></h3> <p>Going into the 4 PM tilt against West Oaks, it surely looked like an impossible task for Calvary Christian to even keep the game in the single digits range. However, the Warriors surprised basically everyone in the gym including scouts and parents and even me by losing 51-46 to a beyond athletic West Oaks team. For much of the game, Calvary Christian was down just a few points and it actually led up until late in the second quarter.</p> <p>2020 6'8" forward <strong>Josh Berenbaum </strong>was flat out great. He played up to the competition, he took charges like a pro, attacked when he needed to and showed off a high IQ and clear court awareness. He only sat out a few minutes of the game and finished with a team-high 18 points. Berenbaum is essentially a very strong point forward who can do a whole lot for a bigger framed player.</p> <p>2023 6'1" guard <strong>Tristan Gross </strong>wasn't shy against West Oaks or rattled at all. He showed off his advanced ballhandling which created many open jumpers for himself and quite frankly that game was a huge confidence builder for him. Gross is really good with the ball in his hands and he is able to get into free space often and hit jumpers and floaters. The sky is the limit for this kid.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Highly impressed by Calvary Christian’s effort today at the <a href="https://twitter.com/HoopExchange?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HoopExchange</a> Fall Festival. The Warriors lost to West Oaks 51-46. Led for much of the 1st half with 2020 guard Josh Berenbaum had 18 points and 2023 guard Tristan Gross had 17 points. Both had all-around performances. <a href="https://t.co/Maqt8y8GdX">pic.twitter.com/Maqt8y8GdX</a></p> — ᴊᴀᴋᴇ ᴘᴇʀᴘᴇʀ (@JakePerper) <a href="https://twitter.com/JakePerper/status/1178052732961398784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2019</a></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>