Five Takeaways: Villa Park vs. Loyola
Huntington Beach — Edison high school hosted its annual post-Thanksgiving Showcase which featured a number of solid programs from Orange County and beyond. We were able to attend the final two games of Friday’s action. Below are five takeaways from…
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Continue ReadingHuntington Beach — Edison high school hosted its annual post-Thanksgiving Showcase which featured a number of solid programs from Orange County and beyond. We were able to attend the final two games of Friday’s action. Below are five takeaways from Villa Park’s 63-58 win over Loyola.
Michael Archer primed to be one of the county’s leading scorers
The 6-foot senior guard not only has the green light to let shots fly on the offensive end, he has the shot-making ability to among Orange County’s best scoring guards. Archer dropped a game-high 17 points, including three 3-pointers to lead the Spartans to a five-point win. Archer’s smooth three-point shooting stroke, and ability to attack closeouts when run off the line, make us believe he will hit or surpass that 17-point mark many times this season.
Jack Sharar is VP’s x-factor
The 6-foot-5, 225-pound senior forward didn’t have his best offensive game of the young season, but it was easy to see why he could be the most important player for the Spartans this season, especially in the playoffs. Sharar not only has the size, toughness and physicality to compete inside as a finisher, rebounder and defender, but he can also stretch the floor to the 3-point line off the catch. That face-up shooting ability draws the opponent’s big men away from the basket and opens driving lanes for the Spartans’ guards.
Sophomore trio provides intriguing future for the Spartans
Jayden Baude, Dakari Harris and Malakhi Johnson are the three class of 2025 prospects that see a good chunk of playing time for Villa Park and are great building blocks for one of Orange County’s perennial top programs. Baude is a playmaking and scoring guard with good size for the position. He showed the ability to play with great pace and flashes of how to run a team as he finished with nine points and five assists in the win. Harris is a wing-type prospect with an inside-out skill-set. He has great hands and finishing ability around the basket and rebounds in and out of his area. Harris finished with 11 points and eight rebounds for the game. Johnson comes off the bench for the Spartans but you can tell the coaching staff likes what he brings to the table. The point guard is a high IQ player who really looks to get teammates the ball in positions they can be successful.
Jonas De Krassel and Quincy Watson provide a sharp-shooting duo for the Cubs
De Krassel was the go-to guy for Loyola on this night and he delivered on the offensive end despite the loss. The 6-foot-4 senior scored a game-high 21 points and did so in a variety of ways. De Krassel connected on three 3-pointers and had success putting the ball on the floor, drawing contact, and getting to the free throw line where he connected on 9 of his 10 freebies. Watson was a spark plug off the bench for the Cubs as he drained four triples en route to 14 points for the game.
Loyola was short-handed and will improve over time
The Cubs were missing two major pieces to their starting lineup in Friday’s game, but still managed to put together a strong performance against a solid opponent. Highly-talented 2025 guard, Jaedyn Patterson Jaedyn Patterson 6'1" | CG St. Monica | 2025 State CA-S , a transfer from St. Anthony, is sidelined due to the CIF Southern Section transfer sit out period and will quickly enter the starting lineup and be one of the team’s top offensive options when eligible. The other missing piece was returning forward Hugh Vandeweghe, a 6-foot-7 forward who was a key interior contributor for Loyola’s 22-win team last season.