The River City Basketball Classic : Day 1 Notebook

<p style="text-align: left;">It was the inaugural showcase event jointly hosted by Joseph Simmons (Sandalwood HC) &amp; Russell Powell (Bishop Snyder HC). The event displayed some of Florida’s top talent going head up with some of Georgia and North Carolina’s top talent. Here are my top performers from day 1. </p> <p>Scores for the day are as follows:</p> <p>Game 1:</p> <p><strong>Sagemont</strong> - 71 </p> <p><strong>Paxon</strong> - 59</p> <p>Game 2:</p> <p><strong>North Broward Prep</strong> 73</p> <p><strong>Word of God NC</strong> 71</p> <p>Game 3:</p> <p><strong>Westminister Academy</strong> 73</p> <p><strong>Bishop Snyder</strong> 70</p> <p><em>Top Performers</em></p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1161407" first="Adrian" last="Cruz"] l 6-3 G l Sagemont<br /> Cruz impressed me right off the back to start the day. He has excellent vision and play-making abilities. Cruz shoots the ball from the perimeter at a high clip; unselfish to add to it. He led his team on the day with 28 pts and probably racked up almost double-digit assists. He is the engine to the car for Sagemont. No doubt about it. **Article Photo Athlete**</p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1161413" first="Camden" last="Tyner"] l 6-2 G l Paxon<br /> It was another day at the office for Tyner. I got a chance to see him in action against an unfamiliar foe. Tyner can score from all three levels on the floor; He gives different looks and wrinkles within the offense. He kept his matchup guessing as they couldn’t figure out his next move. He finished with 18 pts on the day.</p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="712115" first="Justin" last="Abson"] l 6-9 F l North Broward Prep<br /> Arguably had the best all-around performance of the day. He logged 24 points and 14 rebounds on the day. Abson was just a force on the inside for NBP. They needed every bit of it as they won in OT by 2. Abson has good footwork, a nice feel around the basket, and finishes with aggression. App State got a steal in talent as the sky is the limit for this young man. Abson was impressive with his overall impact on his team.</p> <p><strong>Freddie Dilione</strong> l 6-4 G l Word of God (NC)<br /> Currently ranked #41 (per rivals) in the class of 2023. Dilione is a smooth operator with the basketball. He is an all-around scorer. He was getting to his spots almost at will. Dilione logged 25 points on the day against North Broward. The perimeter shot was working on the night. Dilione currently holds 6 D-1 mid-major offers.</p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="955595" first="Manok" last="Lual"] l 6-8 F l Bishop Snyder<br /> Lual was solid all around the board for the Cardinals in their matchup against Westminster Academy. Lual had some timely blocks that kept Snyder in the game and gave them momentum to keep up the comeback on Westminster. He contributed to both sides of the court on the night. Lual was able to get busy around the rim as he was on the glass offensively all night long; it helped as he logged 14 points on the night.</p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1301705" first="Alexander" last="Lloyd"] l 6-3 G l Westminster Academy<br /> Arguably the other best performance of the day. Lloyd is the best freshman I have seen with my two eyes this season. He logged 33 points on the night; Lloyd worked for it. When Westminster needed a basket, Lloyd delivered. I saw a plethora of different moves and counters offensively. He scored from all three levels and was highly efficient in the process. Lloyd doesn’t turn the ball over as much either. It was eye-opening to see how he had a feel for the game as a freshman. He didn’t force "bad" shots and was a team player. Not much more you can ask from a player of his talent level or grade. Buy stock in him now.</p> <p><strong><em><span data-preserver-spaces="true">For any North Florida Prep Hoops news or information, contact Mark Holland on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/mark__holland">@Mark__Holland</a></span></em></strong></p>