2021 SIAA Semifinals: Top Standouts

<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 standouts from the two matchups.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="818675" first="Kevin" last="Miller"] - Victory Rock:</strong> This six-foot, 2021 point guard was one of the most electric players of the night, using his speed to get to the rim and finish over the trees of Central Pointe. Aside from hitting three treys in the game, Miller did a great job off attacking the paint and drew a heap of fouls  that contributed to his 31 points. He went 10-of-13 from the stripe, 9-of-10 in the second half. Off the drive, he’s a solid passer to those who are open on the wing or in the corner. In transition, he able to stop &amp; pop a floater with ease.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1068758" first="Kedrick" last="Green"] - Central Pointe:</strong> Another 2021 point guard who commanded the floor, the 5’-11” stocky hooper was able to take it to the cup and finish with contact. Even when he did not have the ball in his hands, Green showed an ability to stay mobile by flashing, cutting, and making sure to keep his defender on their toes. Defensively, he had a couple steals that caught ball-handlers off guard. Green finished with 14 points in his final game for Pointe.</p> <p><strong>Atraiel Washington - The Rock:</strong> The 2021 Eckerd College commit used every bit of his 6’8” frame to establish position in the post. He’s able to hit the turnaround jumper off the low-block or flush the breakaway slam to seal the game. He rebounded well vs. the bigs of Calusa Prep. From three-point land, “Trell” proved that he has the range. He sank a deep trey with less than two minutes to go to bring the Lions within two. A few minutes later, overtime was forced. Washington ended up with 19 points for his squad.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="818672" first="Arturo" last="Dean"] - Calusa Prep:</strong> Dean did it in a variety of ways for Calusa, and The Rock didn’t have a lot of answers. This six-foot point guard hit the step-back three, came through the lane finished some tough layups, and even put down a one-legged floater to add to his 27 points on the night. He’s extremely quick with the ball in his hands, and doesn’t struggle to make decisions. Defensively, he forced a couple turnovers before the ball crossed half-court. One of those steals resulted in a strong flush by Dean late in the game. Dean is a gem of a player.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="818656" first="Kyle" last="Duke"] - The Rock:</strong> The Lions’ senior leader started off a bit slow, but definitely picked up as the game marched on. Duke, a 6’-3” guard, converted a couple of tough and-ones at the rim and earned some putbacks after a few offensive rebounds. Defensively, Duke was able to get a couple of steals and meet a couple of Calusa players at the rim for blocked shots. Duke walked away with 20 points in the win.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="714780" first="Ramses" last="Melendez"] - Central Pointe:</strong> The University of Illinois commit started slow vs. Victory Rock, scoring just five points all off free-throws in the first 18 minutes. But, in the second half, Ramses began to show some life. His defense helped him earn some easy looks at the basket &amp; draw fouls at the rim. His deflections &amp; steals were essential to keeping the game as close as it was in the final minutes. He finished with 18 points.</p> <p><strong>Tyric Francis - Calusa Prep:</strong> With only having six players, you have to find a way to keep scoring consistent while not gassing your players. Francis provided a third-quarter spark that was more than needed for Calusa to stay close. He scored 13 of his 14 points in the period, hitting three treys in the process. The 6’-1" guard rebounded well all game, had a block on the defensive end, also. A huge baseline dunk by Francis gave Calusa a three-point edge with eight ticks to go in-regulation. Though they didn’t get the win, Francis cannot be ignored.</p>