Players That Took Over in Game 2 of the Holiday Classic Tip-Off

The Holiday Classic at Torrey Pines High School is one of the premier basketball events in SoCal with teams participating from all across the country and the tip-off slate of games was a great exhibition of the talent that will be on display from San Diego County. I was able to catch the second game in which a Carlsbad team who will surprise a lot of people this season was able to come out on top 72-49 over a talented Mater Dei Catholic squad looking to continue their success after a CIF Division 1 title the prior season. Both teams had some standout player performances in this matchup and gave us a preview of what is sure to be a great Holiday Classic to come Jake Hall (2025) | 6-3 G| Carlsbad | Hall had himself a game in this one dropping 26 points with stellar efficiency. The freshman phenom was in full display on the offensive end of the floor scoring from inside with tough floaters and nifty finishes as well as having a lights-out shooting night from beyond the three-point line. Hall was able to spark Carlsbad onto big runs throughout the game with his play and showed off his court vision finding his teammates when attacking the teeth of the defense or while taking off on fast breaks. With the Lancers running a starting five that consists of primarily guards Halls’s ability to get to his spots as a shooter kept the attention on him allowing his teammates to operate with less pressure on them from the defense whenever he didn’t have the ball in his hands. Hall’s feel for the game is apparent in performances like these, the rookie who plays like a vet has a bright future ahead of him. KJ Gonzalez (2022) | 6-1 G | Mater Dei | Gonzalez earned every point he scored in this contest as the Carlsbad defense was throwing the kitchen sink at him applying pressure full court and trapping whenever they could. Despite this Gonzalez was able to display his ability as a slasher taking defenders off the dribble and getting the rim where he displayed his finishing ability through contact with multiple tough layups and many trips to the free-throw line. Gonzalez showed a lot of composure under the pressure he was facing being able to split double teams as well as pass comfortably out of them. The strength and athleticism Gonzalez showed in this game will make him a tough cover for other guards. Gonzalez also had great utilization of the pick and roll for the Crusaders using it to help him find ways to attack as well as dump it down to his bigs for good looks in the paint. Cole Murray (2023) | 6-2 PG | Carlsbad | On a guard-heavy Carlsbad team, Murray stood out in this game with his ability being a floor general. Murray was able to keep the offense steady bringing the ball up the court for the Lancers and getting them into their sets. His steady ball-handling kept defenders at bay and he was no slouch at contributing points as well, finishing around the rim with both his right and dominant left hand while keeping defenders honest with his great shooting ability. The southpaw has a very quick release and a pretty-looking jumper knocking in open threes. Murray was also able to make life harder for the Mater Dei offense with his ability as a defender, he excelled in using his length and wiry frame to stay in front of ballhandlers and turn them preventing penetration as well as using his long arms to help run traps in a press. Kristian Gonzalez (2023) | 6-3 SG | Mater Dei | Kristian much like his brother KJ also had to deal with tough defense thrown at him all game. Kristian is the lightning to KJ’s thunder as opposed to being a bruising slasher in this game like his brother Kristian played a smoother style relying on his shot-creating and using his height to shoot over smaller defenders. While this may not have been one of Kristian’s best games he was able to show his ability to create separation for himself while under heavy defense and looked adept at being a shot creator getting himself looks from all three levels. Kristian’s confidence in his offense is one of the traits that will take him far as despite times when his shot wasn’t falling he never disengaged himself from the offense and kept playing his game. Kristian who already hold a D1 offer and interest from many programs will surely bounce back as the Holiday Classic continues Mason Bowers (2022) | 6-2 SG | Carlsbad | Bowers showed that Carlsbad has another stalwart guard who can contribute on both ends of the court. On the defensive end, Bowers played solid on-ball defense but what stood out to me was how he acted as the de facto center for the smaller Lancers who was consistently there for his teammates in the paint as a help defender as well as being a much bigger factor on the boards than his size would suggest, as he was boxing out bigger Mater Dei players along with tipping the boards to his teammates. Bowers showed off his ability to score with some crafty spin moves and pull-up jumpers but he shined the most in this game when he was finding his open teammates while getting to the middle of the defense. Bowers showed off why he and Hall are one of the best one-two punches in San Diego as he took the pressure off of Hall with his aggressive play and connected with him for some beautiful assists, especially a behind the back dish leading to a three capping off a big run for the Lancers. Dominic Nankil (2023) | 6-4 PG | Mater Dei | Nankil had an intriguing showing in this matchup. With Nakil on the floor, the Crusaders were able to have the Gonzalez brothers do what they do best and take their defenders one on one and look to score as Nakil took the responsibility of initiating the offense off of them. Nakil used his height at the point guard position to attack the boards on misses and had some strong finishes driving to the paint. Nakil who is a standout on the gridiron is finding his groove adjusting back to basketball form and will help elevate this talented Crusader as the Holiday Classic goes on [player_tooltip player_id="971191" first="Toby" last="Harris"] (2022) | 5-9 G | Carlsbad | Harris is a veteran senior leader for the Lancers and exhibited his fortitude in this game. Harris played intense defense picking up on Mater Dei players from the full court at times and never seemed to run out of energy. Despite his stature, Harris was able to hang with his matchups due to his surprising strength and grittiness. Harris’s time in the game was more limited than usual due to some foul troubles but he was still able to make his mark in the scorebook using his strength on some tough layups in the half-court set and some acrobatic finishes in transition Jerry McClure (2023) | 6-3 F | Mater Dei | McClure who is also returning back from a standout football season like Nankil was a big part of Mater Dei’s rebounding and was their glue guy in this game as he produced multiple second chances for the Crusaders. McClure also did a great job of cutting to the basket when his teammates were attacking the middle allowing him to receive lots of dump-down passes for good looks that he finished or got fouled on as he went to the line multiple times in this game. He also helped set up pick and roll opportunities with the Gonzalez brothers setting them up with screens to help them operate as well as give them a target to pass to.