2021 SIAA Semifinals: Stock Risers

<p>Four teams battled it out on Saturday night for the right to play in Sunday’s Championship game. Victory Rock beat Central Pointe 79-74 to advance, while The Rock won in overtime vs. Calusa Prep 84-75. Check out the five hoopers who really took a leap forward in their game.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="814550" first="Dylan" last="James"] - The Rock:</strong> This 6’-8”, 2023 forward was an absolute force in the paint, all night. He flushed a couple of dunks off the putback and got some great looks at the rim after posting up on the block. Down three in the final seconds of regulation, James was able to hit a layup while getting fouled, forcing a trip to the free-throw line. He sank the shot. They ended up winning in overtime behind his 17 points.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="814908" first="Prince" last="Mosengo"] - Victory Rock:</strong> Central Pointe had their hands full trying to defend Prince in the painted area. The 2022 6’-10” wingman was able to sink some tough shots within five feet of the basket, as well as take contact in-order to draw fouls and hit the and-one. He went 13-for-14 from the charity stripe, including going 8-for-8 in the second half. On defense, he forced steals and posed a threat no matter who he was matched up against. Mosengo finished with 21 points.</p> <p><strong>Terrance Ford - Victory Rock:</strong> The six-foot, 2022 guard finished with 10 points including two threes, but he truly made his mark on the defensive end. Ford has a great defensive stance, and it helped him force a couple steals when having to guard big men out on the perimeter. “Defensively patient” is a phrase we can use for Ford. He earned that on Saturday night.</p> <p><strong>Dallas Martin - The Rock:</strong> Martin, a 6’-3” sophomore, made his mark on the game by being wherever the ball was on defense. He flew around the court, hustling for loose balls, battling for rebounds, and staying aggressive on offense resulting in a few trips to the charity stripe. After walking into overtime with seven points of seven free-throws, Dallas sank a corner three &amp; hit a tough layup to finish with 12 points and help seal a win.</p> <p><strong>Eddiean Tirado - Calusa Prep:</strong> If he wasn’t on someone’s radar now, he should be after Saturday. The 6’-1” senior guard did all he could for Calusa, hitting four deep treys and going four-of-four from the line. He has the ability to take you off the dribble and blow past you for the easy lay. Defensively, he rebounded well and forced a couple steals. His intensity levels were up the entire game. His stock most certainly rose in my eyes. He finished with 20 points.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1068771" first="Nolan" last="Wells"] - Central Pointe:</strong> Another guy who had a monster third quarter, Wells scored all 10 of his points in the period by-way of three treys and a free-throw resulting from a foul on a made three. Wells is a wiry 6’7", and can defend the paint on-the-drive with the best of them. The senior notched a transition block on one of Victory Rock’s better scorers. If anything, Wells’ stock needs when speaking of solid outside shooters in the area.</p>