EBA Summer League Playoffs-First Round Notebook

<p>Last night, playoff action tipped off for the EBA Summer League as five games took place to fight for semifinal matchups that are set for Thursday evening. We’ll take a look briefly at how each contest played out and look at the the prospects who stood out.</p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Waruru-Mubia.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1253003" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Waruru-Mubia-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Ballstars vs Panthers</strong></span></p> <p>The Ballstars took the first win of the night led by 2022 forward Waruru Mubia’s 15 points and six rebounds. The Ballstars won a closely contested game by the final score of 42-36 and depended heavily on their trio of Mubia, 2022 Tysean Rodgers and 2022 Donovan Peyton as they have all season long. Rodgers chipped in with nine points and three boards as Peyton finished with seven points, three assists and two rebounds. For the Panthers, 2023 Jaden McCormick led the way and has been the leader of this team throughout the summer. The 6-foot-3 guard is expected to fill multiple positions and kept his team in reach of stealing this one with 13 points and six rebounds. The Ballstars advance to take on the Admirals on Thursday.</p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Jayden-Baker.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1253005" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Jayden-Baker-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Putty Hill vs Team Red</strong></span></p> <p>Putty Hill was rolling on all cylinders as they marched to a convincing 56-23 win over Team Red. 28 of their 56 points were split between ’23 [player_tooltip player_id="957031" first="Jayden" last="Baker"] (11 points), 2022 Jaydn Williams (9points) and 2022 Emezie Egeonu (8 points). What made the win even more impressive was their two standouts in 2022 Nick Jones and 2024 [player_tooltip player_id="1127304" first="Sincere" last="Barfield"] didn’t have breakout scoring games. This duo has been on a tear this summer and posted multiple outings with 15 points or more individually. Baker ended the game on a high note when he caught the ball on the left wing, took two hard dribbles towards the middle of the lane and rose up for a one-handed dunk that put the nail in the coffin. In the loss, 2023 Eric Zhang led Team Red with eight points. Zhang wraps up an overall productive summer league where he showed ability to score in the mid-range and around the basket with a variety of floaters. Putty Hill advances to take on the Hounds Thursday evening.</p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Hounds vs Crusaders</strong></span></p> <p>This was 2025 Tyler Marshall’s breakout performance and put him on my radar going forward when it comes to the incoming freshman class. He had it going from everywhere on the floor as he led his team with 19 points and hauled in seven boards in the 42-36 win. Marshall is a 6-foot-1 guard with athleticism and speed, but he showcased a confident stroke from three as he converted on multiple looks from deep. Another underclassman for this Hounds squad in 2024 Yasir Supreme was impressive as well. He was a late arrival to the game, but wasted no time asserting himself immediately on the glass as he secured a board less than 10 seconds after checking in. Supreme is a workhorse in that sense and sported a stat line of 11 points and nine rebounds. He was crucial late in the game limited the Crusaders to one-shot possessions. The trio of 2024 Jeremiah Douglas (12 points), 2023 [player_tooltip player_id="1164828" first="Tyler" last="Pelkey"] (11 points) and 2024 Ernest Willor Jr. (11 points) combined for 34 of the 36 points. The Hounds will take on Putty Hill in the semifinal Thursday evening. </p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Tre-Dennis.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1253006" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Tre-Dennis-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Blue Magic vs Saints</strong></span></p> <p>Blue Magic came in like a team on a mission as they ran away with a 66-48 win over a good Saints squad. 2023 Tre Dennis had it flowing from three as the rising junior knocked down five in total on his way to a team-high 17 points. 2023 [player_tooltip player_id="957034" first="Tjay" last="Beckles"] held target practice of his own from three as he chipped in with 13 points and five rebounds while 2022 Loyola (MD) commit [player_tooltip player_id="904628" first="Deon" last="Perry"] finished with seven points, four assists and two rebounds.2022 [player_tooltip player_id="1110546" first="Connor" last="Harris"] scored 13 points and gathered four rebounds for the Saints in the loss. Blue Magic will take on Loyola on Thursday evening.</p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Malik-Scipio.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1253008" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/07/Malik-Scipio-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a></p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Soldiers vs CP</strong></span></p> <p>In a game of runs, the Soldiers made their run when it mattered most and separated themselves by a final score of 46-34. 2022 [player_tooltip player_id="902065" first="Malik" last="Scipio"] was the leading scorer for his team with 15 points and nine boards. 2022 Josh Pouncey had an impressive showing for CP in the loss with routine takes to the rim where he was finishing through contact. Pouncey recorded 16 points and five rebounds. The Soldiers are set to take on Arbutus in Thursday night’s opening semifinal matchup.</p>