Pontiac Holiday Tournament: Thursday Notebook

Full day of games at the Pontiac Holiday Tournament which concluded on Thursday. Here is our recap of the games we caught on the day in Pontiac Holiday Tournament: Thursday Notebook!   Bloom Balance Bounces Bloomington A lot of alliteration in this consolation semi final game to kick things off at 8 AM. Bloom did a nice job of getting a balanced effort to win over Bloomington 64-57. Sophomore point guard [player_tooltip player_id="1352590" first="Gianni" last="Cobb"] continues to flash intriguing tools with his quickness off the bounce and athleticism in the paint finishing. Dropped 14 points in the win. Liked what we saw from 2023 shooting guard [player_tooltip player_id="1048314" first="Jordan" last="Brown"]. He was more aggressive than usual taking quality angles to get to the rim for scores. Very good slasher slithering through the D finished with 15 points. Their senior standout 2022 power forward [player_tooltip player_id="863599" first="Emondrek" last="Ford"] finished dump offs around the hoop and had a sick spin move on the baseline. Good job on the boards and defensively. Line read 12 points and 5 rebounds. Bloomington was led by their 2024 shooting guard [player_tooltip player_id="1285483" first="Niko" last="Newsome"]. The sophomore two guard can really score it. At his best when driving for scores in the paint off the bounce and using burst in the open floor for buckets. Got to the foul line quite a bit in 21 points and 7 rebound outing.   OPRF Hangs on to Advance to 5th Place Game Most of the game OPRF had control of this one, but West Aurora made a run late. OPRF hung on to win by a final of 60-58. Once again it was their Denver commit [player_tooltip player_id="1106926" first="Justin" last="Mullins"] who led the way. Wing impacts the game on both ends. Offensively he had a couple of big dunks along with handling well through traffic in transition. Won on straight line takes and is explosive getting downhill as he had 19 points. West Aurora 2024 combo guard [player_tooltip player_id="1157226" first="Josh" last="Pickett"] continues to elevate his stock each time out! The sophomore has a good frame and skill to match. Nailed several threes and pull ups. Also has the burst and strength to get downhill for finishes in the paint. Future is really bright as a D1 guy down the line. He had 22 points.   Joliet West Closes Out St. Charles North This was a fun contest as Joliet West advanced to the fifth place game win a 61-53 win. Once again it was their guard play that dominated. Junior combo guard [player_tooltip player_id="1048319" first="Jayden" last="Martin"] had another strong outing as he is a high level shot maker being most effective pulling up off the bounce as he had 18 points. Freshman phenom Jeremaih Fears hits some key free throws late to seal the win along with doing a nice job setting up others for 11 points. Class of 2023 power forward [player_tooltip player_id="1313851" first="Aaron" last="Brown"] had some key minutes for Joliet West as the high energy big man was active inside along with hitting a couple jumpers. Scored 10 points. Small college gem [player_tooltip player_id="1106928" first="Max" last="Love"] was the top scorer for St. Charles North. The small forward is a plus athlete with good size that can really shoot it. Went for 19 points. Big man [player_tooltip player_id="925225" first="Ethan" last="Marlowe"] showed flashes inside with a reverse layup and top of the key three along with getting to the line for 15 points.   Simeon Wins Instant Classic Over New Trier to Advance to Final What a game! There were so many twists and turns in this contest. Simeon made a frantic comeback in the fourth quarter to send the game to OT where they eventually won it 69-66. It was their guard play that led the way all game long. Simeon 2022 combo guard [player_tooltip player_id="771517" first="Jaylen" last="Drane"] showed why he is among the best uncommitted players in the state. Athletic and slender guard made key play after key play. Shot it about as well as we have seen from the perimeter including a clutch three where he was fouled which was integral to send the game to an extra session. Crisp passing and did an excellent job defensively on the perimeter. Went for 22 points. His senior running mate [player_tooltip player_id="925193" first="Avyion" last="Morris"] also stepped up with some key buckets including a trio of threes and made some electric passes including lobs en route to 13 points. Junior floor general [player_tooltip player_id="939059" first="Jalen" last="Griffith"] made several huge triples in the win when they were needed the most along with his excellent effort on the defensive end. He netted 15 points. Heartbreaking loss for New Trier as they had this game in their grasp. New Trier was led by [player_tooltip player_id="1210370" first="Jackson" last="Munro"] who was dominant in the first quarter. The Dartmouth commit displayed his skilled low post game where he used an array moves for buckets. Got deep post position and went to work. So efficient around the basket as he finished with 25 points in the loss.   Simeon Captures Title Over CPS Rival Curie Its fitting that the top two seeds met in the championship game on Thursday night as CPS powerhouse programs Simeon and Curie were the prohibited favorites coming in. Curie started out hot, but once the Wolverines settled in their defense their guard play took over as they won the championship 71-58. Simeon 2022 combo guard [player_tooltip player_id="771517" first="Jaylen" last="Drane"] was his usual silky-smooth self getting in the lane for scores and pushing in the open floor. He had 12 points. His fellow senior [player_tooltip player_id="925193" first="Avyion" last="Morris"] was the spark plug of this team. He opened with a three, made several nasty alley-oop dimes, and had his floater falling for 9 points. Now let’s talk about the juniors. Class of 2023 point guard [player_tooltip player_id="939059" first="Jalen" last="Griffith"] ripped up the defense with his pinpoint passing finding big men inside over and over again for dunks. Shifty handles allow him to shake defenders getting in the lane. Also nailed a couple of jumpers shooting it with more consistency during the last few days than we had previously seen. He had 15 points. [player_tooltip player_id="1048305" first="Wesley" last="Rubin"] took home the AC Williamson Award after a game where he showed his skill, defense, and passing recording 8 points. His twin [player_tooltip player_id="1048306" first="Miles" last="Rubin"] dominated in spurts on the defensive end with his shot blocking while also scoring 7 points. Curie got a quick start out of unheralded junior Shawn Brown who has put his name on our radar at the beginning of this season. Scored all 7 of his points in the opening few minutes to get Curie off and going. Then it was [player_tooltip player_id="1148119" first="Jeremy" last="Harrington"] who carried them for a stretch. The 2023 power forward has a strong body and really rebounds well in his area. Shows touch on mid-range shot and can stretch it to three on occasion. Scored 17 points in the loss. Curie’s next potential star is 2024 shooting guard [player_tooltip player_id="1157211" first="Carlos" last="Harris"]. Well built two guard that loves to get his shoulders square and attack downhill. Physical wing with a burst when he is headed to the rim. Finished with 19 points.       AC Williamson Award Winner [player_tooltip player_id="1048305" first="Wesley" last="Rubin"] (Simeon)   1st Team All-Tournament Team [player_tooltip player_id="1056104" first="Chikasi" last="Ofoma"] (Curie) [player_tooltip player_id="1210370" first="Jackson" last="Munro"] (New Trier) [player_tooltip player_id="1106926" first="Justin" last="Mullins"] (OPRF) [player_tooltip player_id="925225" first="Ethan" last="Marlowe"] (St. Charles North) [player_tooltip player_id="771517" first="Jaylen" last="Drane"] (Simeon)   2nd Team All-Tournament Team [player_tooltip player_id="1215287" first="Jake" last="Fiegen"] (New Trier) Brady Kunka (Benet) [player_tooltip player_id="1048319" first="Jayden" last="Martin"] (Joliet West) [player_tooltip player_id="925193" first="Avyion" last="Morris"] (Simeon) [player_tooltip player_id="925178" first="Kyle" last="Thomas"] (Benet)   Honorable Mention All-Tournament Team [player_tooltip player_id="1049088" first="Phoenix" last="Bullock"] (Curie) [player_tooltip player_id="863599" first="Emondrek" last="Ford"] (Bloom) Jeremiah Fears (Joliet West) [player_tooltip player_id="939059" first="Jalen" last="Griffith"] (Simeon) [player_tooltip player_id="1148119" first="Jeremy" last="Harrington"] (Curie) [player_tooltip player_id="939068" first="Sam" last="Lewis"] (OPRF) [player_tooltip player_id="1106928" first="Max" last="Love"] (St. Charles North) [player_tooltip player_id="1285483" first="Niko" last="Newsome"] (Bloomington) [player_tooltip player_id="1157226" first="Josh" last="Pickett"] (West Aurora) [player_tooltip player_id="1048305" first="Wesley" last="Rubin"] (Simeon)