Boulder Creek at Mountain Pointe Elite-8 notes

Gregg Rosenberg February 28, 2022 @ 08:33 AM

On Wednesday, February 23rd I attended the 6A Elite-8 game with Boulder Creek at Mountain Pointe in Phx. AZ.   Game notes: A very low scoring game and fast game. There wasn’t many free throws until the 4th quarter when the Pride had to foul. It was 25-17 lead for Mountain Pointe and the Pride led 38-37 heading into the 4th quarter. [player_tooltip player_id="1180583" first="Marsai" last="Mason"] was picking up the slack without Tru and Mark playing on the night. Then in the fourth quarter, [player_tooltip player_id="1150940" first="Rowan" last="McKenzie"] tied it up at 40-all with 6 minutes left. The Jaguars scored 6 straight points and they made all their free throws down the stretch to essentially put the game away 54-44.   Some of the standouts from the game: [player_tooltip player_id="1263804" first="Jaylon" last="Johnson"] Mountain Pointe A massive post player has long arms and good strength for a freshman. He is a plus two-handed rebounder and he can score it efficiently in the paint with hook shots and layups. He is best inside on defense, but was holding his own in space on switches. [player_tooltip player_id="706700" first="Anthony" last="Jaramillo"] Mountain Pointe A natural scorer has the floater, he can hit the catch-3 and has a sneaky quick burst in lane to score through contact. He can hit contested shots and drive and dump it off in traffic. [player_tooltip player_id="1180583" first="Marsai" last="Mason"] Mountain Pointe A crazy long forward with upside. He showed a lot of his gifts off without the help from their two best players. He is a fluid athlete who defends multiple positions. He is a top-notch rebounder with very good hands. He is also a shockingly good passer and shot blocker. He can hit the catch-3 and score it inside with tip-ins, put backs and driving layups. Mason finished with 16 points 7 rebounds 3 assists and 2 blocks. [player_tooltip player_id="1345403" first="Jayven" last="Price"] Mountain Pointe A two-way point guard handles the ball well and makes good decisions. He is quick laterally on the ball and rebounds the ball well for position. He can hit the 3 and get in the paint and dish it. [player_tooltip player_id="1150940" first="Rowan" last="McKenzie"] Boulder Creek (Pictured) A talented guard is steadily improving his overall game. He is now playing the role of point guard making him a more valuable teammate. His passing skills were on display with up the court passes and dump offs. He showed off his deep 3pt range and he has a mean ball fake and can hesitate and go to the basket. He has a good burst to get to basket with his handle and can finish around size. He finished with 18 points. [player_tooltip player_id="1150843" first="Andrew" last="Bhesenia"] Boulder Creek The clear future of the program showed some glimpses of his upside. He is a natural face-up four-man with an easy 3pt stroke. He can crash the glass and runs the floor like a wing. Once he fills in properly he will be tough to handle in the coming years. Dylan Spilde SF 6’1 2023 Boulder Creek A scoring wing with a high IQ and skill. He is a catch 3pt shooter who moves without the ball. He knows when to cut and he has a sneaky quick burst to the basket with his handle. He plays a smart floor game and will be relied on heavily next season. He scored 14 points in their win. Carson Gates SG 5’11 2023 Boulder Creek An undersized scoring guard has some speed with the ball in his hands. He gets to the cup and can score or get to the free throw line. He can handle some ball pressure to take off some of the load off Rowan. He scored 8 points. Mike Orr PF 6’5 2022 Boulder Creek An usually bouncy forward can play above the rim on the break and flush it down. He rebounds high above the crowd with his leaping ability and runs the floor well. He also made some clutch free throws down the stretch. He scored 6 points with multiple rebounds.