Standouts of the Week (Jan. 31): Notebook

<p>This week, I made it out to four games. The regular season is winding down and due to COVID-19, these past few weeks have seen a handful of highly anticipated matchups being canceled. </p> <p>Luckily, I watched one of the best outings of the season on Tuesday night as Berkeley Prep rallied back to beat Carrollwood Day in a double overtime thriller. Then, on Saturday, I took in three games at the inaugural The Invitational hosted by Access Sports at Orlando Christian Prep.</p> <p>Here is a look at my notes.</p> <p><strong>Windermere is a complete squad</strong></p> <p>Even with 2023 6-8 forward [player_tooltip player_id="709255" first="Sean" last="Stewart"] not at 100 percent, Windermere earned more than enough from its guard play to take down undefeated East Lake on Saturday. 2021 6-3 guard [player_tooltip player_id="714790" first="Kanye" last="Jones"] (College of Charleston commit) scored a game-high 26 points, doing the majority of his damage on jumpers and cuts to the rack in the opening half. 2021 6-3 guard [player_tooltip player_id="818648" first="Trey" last="Moss"] (USF commit) had 13 points and was really in the groove as a bonafide point guard.</p> <p>...2023 6-1 guard [player_tooltip player_id="812622" first="Jalen" last="Debose"] made his shots matter as he contributed seven points. He’s in an ideal situation learning next to Jones and Moss as he will take over the offense next season most likely. Stewart had six points playing in Iimited minutes. With offers out from nine schools including UF, Kansas and Maryland, this is just the beginning for the sophomore big man.</p> <p><strong>Aberdeen and Udeh make Dr. Phillps go</strong></p> <p>Dr. Phillips is really good. There is no denying that. Plus, this is a young group that returns nearly everyone next fall. The Panthers have three losses on the season, one to No. 1 nationally ranked Montverde and two to Oak Ridge and West Orange by a total of just three points. 2022 6-4 guard [player_tooltip player_id="546239" first="Denzel" last="Aberdeen"] deserves way more attention from college programs. It is quite hard to understand how he has only three offers (FGCU, Louisiana Lafayette and Stetson). He dropped 25 points, was knocking down 3’s with ease and was in full control of his offense against Impact Christian. Aberdeen is playing with endless confidence.</p> <p>...2022 6-10 forward [player_tooltip player_id="814902" first="Ernest" last="Udeh"] is one of the best defenders in the state. A bonafide shot blocker, he is developing his offensive game and is hard to stop when going up for dunks. He caught four alley-oops in this game as he scored 10 points. Udeh holds seven offers including the likes of UF, USF and Stetson. 2022 6-5 guard [player_tooltip player_id="829411" first="Riley" last="Kugel"] (nine points) did his part as a vision passer and floor stretcher. He has four offers including Middle Tennessee State and FAU. A young prospect to watch at Dr. Phillips is 2024 6-3 guard <span class="Text__StyledText-jknly0-0 kLcjsH"><a class="Anchor__StyledAnchor-sc-1fyvlgd-0 kPpPPt" href="https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/jordan-tillery/7HCTJnOJ7EG8GbUm9WvxuQ/default.htm">[player_tooltip player_id="1055794" first="Jordan" last="Tillery"]</a></span> who has a chance to be really special in due time.</p> <p><strong>Hawkins put it all on the line for Berkeley Prep</strong></p> <p>A recent blowup candidate for football, earning offers from a handful of high major programs, 2022 6-7 Berkeley Prep forward [player_tooltip player_id="814906" first="CJ" last="Hawkins"] is still out to prove he is a heck of a basketball player. It clearly worked as just three days after the comeback victory, 65-63 over Carrollwood Day, he earned an offer for both football and basketball from USF. He also has offers from Western Michigan and IUPUI for hoops. In the game, he finished with a game-high 26 points and took every possession personally going up against [player_tooltip player_id="714775" first="Mike" last="Trigg"] and [player_tooltip player_id="814919" first="Tony" last="Livingston"] mostly. Hawkins was locked in from the start and is clearly at his best when he gets inside for buckets. He is a big body who takes on contact well.</p> <p><strong>East Lake earned a tough outing from Bittar</strong></p> <p>The last regular season loss for East Lake came on Feb. 7, 2020, just a week short of exactly one year in time. On Saturday, Windermere handed East Lake its first loss this season, dropping the Eagles to 19-1. The speedy and lock down Windermere defense didn’t make it easy whatsoever. 2021 6-4 guard [player_tooltip player_id="714843" first="Anthony" last="Bittar"] gave an all-around full effort game with 20 points. His mid-range floaters on drives to the rack are a thing of beauty. He is a highly athletic skilled ballhandler who rarely gets rattled. 2021 6-5 guard [player_tooltip player_id="818666" first="Dean" last="Gabrelcik"] and 2023 6-0 guard [player_tooltip player_id="962396" first="Henry" last="Hurst"] each had 13 points, scoring mostly from outside.</p> <p><strong>Clayton controlled the tempo for a thinner Bartow group</strong></p> <p>Without 2023 6-0 guard [player_tooltip player_id="962495" first="Kjei" last="Parker"], 2021 5-10 guard [player_tooltip player_id="818699" first="Malcolm" last="Dewberry"] and 2022 6-5 forward [player_tooltip player_id="1065408" first="Jaiden" last="Wynn"], Bartow had a much smaller bench on Saturday against Providence. 2021 6-3 guard [player_tooltip player_id="818651" first="Walter" last="Clayton"] (Iona commit) played nearly the whole game as he dished out high IQ passes and had around eight to nine assists being a true floor general. 2021 pair, 5-8 guard [player_tooltip player_id="953723" first="Tyrone" last="Smith"] moved into a starting role and shot well while 6-2 guard/forward [player_tooltip player_id="953724" first="Amarion" last="Frazier"] attacked often. They each recorded 17 points.</p> <p><strong>Carrollwood Day has a leader in Trigg</strong></p> <p>Headed to USC next fall to suit up for the football team, slowing down 2021 6-5 guard [player_tooltip player_id="714775" first="Mike" last="Trigg"] is a feat in itself. He is like a jumbo-sized running back or linebacker coming through the lane. Always in control, he dropped a team-best 25 points in the loss to Berkeley Prep on Tuesday. 2022 6-7 forward [player_tooltip player_id="814919" first="Tony" last="Livingston"] (17 points) did a lot of dirty work inside while 2023 6-2 guard pair, [player_tooltip player_id="962858" first="Tre" last="Lockett"] and [player_tooltip player_id="709234" first="Joel" last="Harrison"] combined for 22 points. Lockett, in my opinion, was the best pure basketball talent on the floor and his outside shooting touch is super dangerous.</p> <p><strong>Providence never backs down from a challenge</strong></p> <p>It seemed as if Bartow was going to pull away over and over against Providence, but the Stallions didn’t quit. Losing 54-45 on Saturday to the defending Class 6A state champions, Providence did all it could. 2023 6-6 forward [player_tooltip player_id="1060164" first="Mason" last="Lee"] finished with a team-best 13 points and his combination of length and speed is something fun to watch. 2021 pair, 6-10 forward [player_tooltip player_id="818650" first="James" last="Lee Repass"] (Furman commit) and 6-1 guard [player_tooltip player_id="953478" first="Jack" last="Dillard"] (Embry Riddle commit) both had eight points. 2024 6-5 forward [player_tooltip player_id="1055748" first="Jaylen" last="Robinson"] is the next big prospect in line at this program as he displayed a slew of confidence and strength for a freshman. </p> <p><strong>Impact Christian has pieces in place</strong></p> <p>All of Impact Christian’s losses this season have come to teams with a winning record. Dr. Phillips controlled things all game long in a convincing 69-46 victory Saturday. However, in Class 2A, Impact Christian is a state regular and it appears it should be again this season with the senior leadership from 6-5 forward [player_tooltip player_id="714825" first="Ivan" last="Lawson"] and 6-4 guard/forward [player_tooltip player_id="818662" first="Calvin" last="Johnson"]. Lawson led his group with 13 points and some gritty takes to the rim while Johnson had 10 points, shooting well from outside. 2022 6-5 forward [player_tooltip player_id="814927" first="Kelvin" last="Johnson"] chipped in with 12 points and improved as the game moved along.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">The drop off feed from USF commit [player_tooltip player_id="818648" first="Trey" last="Moss"] (<a href="https://twitter.com/TreyMoss2021?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TreyMoss2021</a>) to College of Charleston commit [player_tooltip player_id="714790" first="Kanye" last="Jones"] (<a href="https://twitter.com/joneskanye0?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@joneskanye0</a>) who slams it home. <a href="https://twitter.com/WHS_Hoopz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WHS_Hoopz</a> <a href="https://t.co/qPhegAWKOj">pic.twitter.com/qPhegAWKOj</a></p> — ᴊᴀᴋᴇ ᴘᴇʀᴘᴇʀ (@JakePerper) <a href="https://twitter.com/JakePerper/status/1355960357970391044?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>