Nor Cal Tip-Off Classic: Senior Standouts

Britt Wright November 29, 2021 @ 07:24 PM

The Fourteenth Annual Tip-Off Classic was held November 27 at Dublin High School. This is an event to showcase high school basketball in Northern California. There were eight games on the day. NorCal has a good group of unsigned Seniors which some were playing at this event here’s a rundown of the 2022 players. [player_tooltip player_id="766848" first="Takai" last="Emerson-Hardy"] 6’7 F of Vanden HS Emmerson-Hardy has a strong game when he’s working 15ft in and around the basket. With his length and strength he’s able to convert or get to the foul line. His length and bounce helps him get rebounds out of his area. He did knock down a 3-ptr when needed. 5-13FG, 8-12 FT, 9 rebounds, to finish with 19 pts. [player_tooltip player_id="1266054" first="Derrick" last="Claxton"] 6’6 G of Inderkum HS A long athletic Claxton has impact, and is very active on both end of the court. He plays fast but controlled. He lights up in transition where he excels trying to get to the rim for finishes including dunks. A big guard who handles and sees the court. He has a nice mid-range game. He got votes for Player of the Game.9-16FG, 4 assists, 3 rebs, 3 steals along with 18pts. [player_tooltip player_id="966273" first="Anthony" last="Williams"] 6’8 F of Inderkum HS Williams is starting to show his capabilities. The transfer from Whitney was aggressive in the paint. He had good presence and did well aggressively going after blocks and rebounds. He’s been working on his paint moves, powering up, and using a jump hook to score inside. 4-7 FG, 3-4 FT, 4 rebs, a block and 1 stl. 11pts. [player_tooltip player_id="1118939" first="Cade" last="Bennett"] 6’1 PG of Campolindo HS Bennett’s been the court general for a team that is 16-0 dating back to last season. He’s a productive guard that does more than handle point guard duties. He has good strength, and is an aggressive on ball defender, moves well laterally, and rarely gets beaten on the drive. He does a good job in help situations. 5-8 FG, 4 assists, 3rebs, 2stls. 10pts. [player_tooltip player_id="1113042" first="Rishod" last="Brown"] 6’3 SG of Grant HS The long and wiry Brown was considered for Player of the Game. He’s fast with those quick twitch muscles. He worked well in transition, he knifed and sliced his way to the the rim for buckets in the half court. He hit a couple nice dribble drive mid-range jumpers in half court sets. He has the length and foot speed to guard multiple positions. 8-11 FG, 4rebs, 3stls for 19pts. [player_tooltip player_id="947835" first="Dajon" last="Lott"] Jr 6’8 PF, of Elk Grove HS Lott has improved his play in the post on both ends. At this event he made a concerted effort to have post presence on defense. Just being a big body in the middle helped his team on defense. He made it difficult for the teams other bigs to score inside. He worked in the post before venturing out on offense. His jump hook, and paint jumper looked good. 6-9 FG, 2-3 from 3Ptr, 4rebs, 14pts. [player_tooltip player_id="1254443" first="Thomas" last="Labat"] 6’7 F, of Dublin HS It’s early in the season and Labat, the 6’7 forward has shown overall improvement in his game. He’s going to be a key piece for this team as he’s the only player standing 6’7 and is counted on to rebound and defend in the post. He turned it up a notch in the second half, hitting a couple of nice baseline jumpers in the short corner, and being more aggressive in the paint. He had a block, 6 rebounds and 8pts. [player_tooltip player_id="766857" first="Ameere" last="Britton"] 6’2 G, of Elk Grove HS Britton struggled with his shot in the first half and had to play through foul trouble. He attracts a lot of attention from the other teams defense. He got it going a bit in the second half, finishing with 16 pts on 5-11 shooting and 3 rebounds.