Chicago Elite Classic: Saturday Notebook

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Chicago Elite Classic wrapped up on Saturday with a big day of hoops. Seven games going for almost 12 hours featuring many of the top players and teams in the state.&nbsp; Here is our recap in <strong>Chicago Elite Classic: Saturday Notebook</strong>!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Baldwin Makes Statement in Hyde Park Win</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hyde Park won the opener pretty comfortably to start the day off winning over Chicago U-High 58-34.&nbsp; The story was their junior [player_tooltip player_id='1373451' first='Jurrell' last='Baldwin'].&nbsp; We liked what we saw out of him on the circuit and this summer, but he took it to a whole different level on Saturday.&nbsp; The 6'6” small forward dropped 22 points and 10 rebounds in the win.&nbsp; Physical forward looked smooth shooting it, put it on the deck, and scored in the paint.&nbsp; Senior guards [player_tooltip player_id='1215301' first='Camron' last='Williford'] (11 points) and Damarion Morris (11 points) also contributed to the win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>U-High was led by Harvard commit [player_tooltip player_id='1215322' first='Xavier' last='Nesbitt'].&nbsp; The scoring guard struggled with some turnovers early, but as it went on he made some crafty scores in the lane and pull up jumpers for 20 points.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Junior Forwards and Denver Commit Lead Mt. Carmel over North Lawndale</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Next up Mt. Carmel looked quite impressive in a 72-48 victory against North Lawndale in the second game of the day.&nbsp; The 2024 forward duo of [player_tooltip player_id='1373436' first='Angelo' last='Ciaravino'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1285492' first='Lee' last='Marks'] we were looking forward to evaluating didn't disappoint.&nbsp; Ciaravino is a 6'6” forward that can play both inside and on the perimeter.&nbsp; He didn't shoot it particularly well early on, but impacted the game with his transition scoring, rebounding, defense, and slashing.&nbsp; As the game went on the three ball started to fall in a 26 point performance.&nbsp; Marks is a long and rangy wing that was very active on the offensive glass, finished well inside, and handled it off the bounce late in a 16 point outing.&nbsp; Their star senior Denver commit [player_tooltip player_id='989268' first='DeAndre' last='Craig'] is one of the top guards in Chicago.&nbsp; He showcased that in a 20 point outing scoring from all three levels with effectiveness making it look easy at times.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>North Lawndale was led by Jermarje Winfield who had 18 points.&nbsp; Slick scoring wing that had a nice perimeter shot.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Gonzaga Front Line and Star Sophomore Impose Will on St. Ignatius</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Ignatius played DMV power Gonzaga close in the first half only trailing by a bucket at the half.  Then the big boys for Gonzaga took over winning 77-59.  The top prospect for Gonzaga is [player_tooltip player_id='1370498' first='Nykolas' last='Lewis'].  The 2025 shooting guard brings big time athleticism and scoring pop.  He attacked downhill finishing with acrobatic finishes at the cup and scoring in transition on the regular for 19 points.  Harvard commit Thomas Batties and 2024 [player_tooltip player_id='1370003' first='Daniel' last='Holmes'] did the damage inside.  Batties swatted shots and scored on the interior for 18 points.  Holmes fouled out, but was impactful while in there as the junior post had 15 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For St. Ignatius the story was the play of [player_tooltip player_id='1285517' first='Reggie' last='Ray'].&nbsp; The 2024 guard played the best we have seen him play.&nbsp; He came out aggressive in the first half taking it to the rack along with scoring on the long ball netting 22 points.&nbsp; Senior D1 commits [player_tooltip player_id='989270' first='Richard' last='Barron'] (George Mason) and [player_tooltip player_id='939066' first='Jackson' last='Kotecki'] (Miami OH) each had their moments with Barron playing bully ball for 11 points and Kotecki scoring more inside for 14 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>SIU Commit Takes Over Against Curie for Vashon</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Louis power Vashon controlled this one from start to end against Curie winning 59-36.&nbsp; Southern Illinois signee [player_tooltip player_id='1573246' first='Kennard' last='Davis'] showed why he is among the premier senior prospects in Missouri with his performance.&nbsp; The versatile combo forward did whatever he wanted dominating with physicality inside along with showing touch on a jumper.&nbsp; Impacted defensively as well in an 18 point outing.&nbsp; Sophomore combo guard [player_tooltip player_id='1552480' first='Trey' last='Williams'] looks bigger than we remembered from last year and wow can he shoot it from deep draining a quartet of them with such a smooth stroke for 15 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Curie's guards really struggled in this game against the intense defensive pressure of Vashon.&nbsp; Inside top uncommitted post [player_tooltip player_id='1056104' first='Chikasi' last='Ofoma'] showed why low-major and D2s are monitoring him.&nbsp; High-motor four man that plays with toughness and scores junk points on the interior for 11 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Senior Trio Pushes Whitney Young to Win at Buzzer</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Whitney Young took on National Christian Academy from the DMV.&nbsp; It was much closer than we expected as the Dolphins led 37-25 at the half.&nbsp; The lead was cut into in fact it was tied on the last possession on regulation when Princeton commit [player_tooltip player_id='939057' first='Dalen' last='Davis'] tipped in a bucket from about 8 feet as time expired.&nbsp; Whitney Young won 54-52.&nbsp; Davis struggled shooting it from the perimeter in this one but showed his leadership and passing off well before coming up clutch at the end in a 10 point outing.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1048324' first='Daniel' last='Johnson'] is the top uncommitted prospect in the Illinois 2023 class and he came out firing in the first half being active on the offensive glass and knocking down mid-range jumpers.&nbsp; Also defended at a high level while scoring 15 points.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='939072' first='Marcus' last='Pigram'] showed toughness in a 12 point performance as The Citadel commit dropped 12 points.&nbsp; Top 3 sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1385300' first='Antonio' last='Munoz'] is a bouncy forward that played above the rim and finished in transition for 8 points.&nbsp; Cole Pruitt is a new name that jumped on our radar as the 2024 shooting guard started for the Dolphins while connecting on a trio from deep for 9 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For National Christian they were led by Turner Harris as the two guard showed multi level scoring pop netting 13 points and Kristopher Mickens also getting 13 points by getting to the line and using his size.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Simeon Completely Dominates St. Rita</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was built up as the best senior class vs top junior class.&nbsp; Battle of the big men.&nbsp; Whatever you want to call it Simeon completely obliterated St. Rita 86-59 looking like a dominant veteran team.&nbsp; Early on it was [player_tooltip player_id='1048305' first='Wesley' last='Rubin'] who took control of the game as the Northern Iowa commit stretched the floor nailing four triples.&nbsp; He was super comfortable letting it fly and displayed his full offensive game as he had 21 points.&nbsp; Top unsigned senior point guard [player_tooltip player_id='939059' first='Jalen' last='Griffith'] was the difference as he got all his guys involved zipping passes around the court.&nbsp; His passing was on point along with a quartet of threes scoring 24 points.&nbsp; Toledo commit [player_tooltip player_id='939068' first='Sam' last='Lewis'] showcased an all-around game.&nbsp; Played well in transition, took opponent off the bounce, and passed it well in a 20 point performance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Rita was led by [player_tooltip player_id='1157230' first='Morez' last='Johnson'].&nbsp; The Illini commit was the only really consistent presence for the Mustangs in the loss.&nbsp; High-motor post rebounded well in traffic along with playing with physicality and athleticism inside.&nbsp; He got to the foul line and used his spin moves going for 16 points and 11 rebounds.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1157223' first='Nojus' last='Indrusaitis'] didn't have his best game.&nbsp; He scored 14 points with a lot of those points coming on technical foul free throws.&nbsp; Best move was a fantastic baseline spin.&nbsp; Top junior [player_tooltip player_id='1157228' first='James' last='Brown'] only scored 4 points.&nbsp; Got in foul trouble early and never could get in rhythm.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Guards Battle and Junior Big Man Makes Difference in Kenwood W over Joliet West</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Joliet West jumped out early behind the shot making of [player_tooltip player_id='1373437' first='Justus' last='McNair'] and Jayden McNair draining a pair of threes each.&nbsp; The Tigers stretched their lead to 35-25 in the first quarter.&nbsp; The third quarter completely flipped the script as junior power forward [player_tooltip player_id='1285487' first='Calvin' last='Robins Jr'] started to take over as Kenwood won that quarter by 15 points taking a 47-42 lead.&nbsp; They closed the deal in the fourth winning 72-66.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kenwood big man Robins was the difference maker in this contest.&nbsp; His athleticism impacts the game in so many ways.&nbsp; High-motor kid that rebounds and throws down monster dunks.&nbsp; Also liked the growth on a mid-range jumper as he had 21 points with most of them coming in the second half.&nbsp; Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1401824' first='Tyler' last='Smith'] is a transfer from Leo who stepped up on the big stage going for 17 points including several threes, scoring in the paint, and making improved decisions as a passer.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='939050' first='Darrin' last='Ames'] had his moments in this one scoring on several spectacular finishes at the cup as the Kansas State commit was aggressive taking it downhill and going coast to coast for 12 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Joliet West backcourt shined in this one as well.&nbsp; Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1385291' first='Jeremiah' last='Fears'] made difficult shots all night long with defenders draped on him as he created off the bounce and got his jumper off for 17 points.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1562176' first='Jeremy' last='Fears'] is a Michigan State commit that impacts the game with his intangibles, passing, defense, and athleticism.&nbsp; He scored in the lane, pushed in the open floor, and had some big time finishes including a sick reverse layup.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1373437' first='Justus' last='McNair'] is an underrated junior that can really shoot it from deep netting 16 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->