Cornerstone Holiday Tournament: Blue Division Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Holiday hoops in West Michigan is in full swing as the Cornerstone University Holiday Tournament tips off this evening featuring four local teams. In the first game at 6:30 pm, East Grand Rapids and Forest Hills Eastern match up, followed by Reeths-Puffer vs Godwin Heights in game two. The winners and losers of each game will play each other on Wednesday evening. Below I'll break down each game and highlight prospects to watch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4>Monday @ 6:30: East Grand Rapids vs Forest Hills Eastern</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>East Grand Rapids and Forest Hills Eastern get the action started on Monday evening in what should be a competitive game between two programs in search of some early season momentum. The Pioneers come in with a 1-2 record while Forest Hills Eastern sits at 2-0. EGR and FHC have both played West Catholic, as the Hawks beat West 65-63, while EGR knocked off West 67-34.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Pioneers have one of the top overall prospects in the area in [player_tooltip player_id='1077676' first='Simon' last='Neuhaus']. The senior forward has a great combination of size and skill, making him one of the harder players to guard in the area thanks to his ability to score it from inside the paint and on the perimeter. Pioneer senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1076034' first='Drew' last='Caswell'] is one of the more experienced guards in the area and a playmaker in his own right. Caswell is a threat to knock down perimeter jumpers and can make things happen with his dribble drive.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Forest Hills Eastern has quietly been mentioned as one of the area's most improved teams. The Hawks have one of the areas better forwards in 6'8 junior [player_tooltip player_id='1223498' first='Adam' last='Hardy']. Hardy had a solid summer and has really developed both physically and skill-wise into a reliable force on both ends of the court. Also, keep an eye out for senior guards Aiden Sullivan and Jacob Pallo. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4>Monday @ 8:15: Reeths-Puffer vs Godwin Heights</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The second game on Monday night features two teams that expect to win a lot of games this season. Reeths-Puffer has the majority of its contributors back from a team that contended in the OK Green a season ago, while Godwin figures to be competitive in the Silver once again. If nothing less, Monday night's prime-timer will feature a great matchup between two of the area's best guards in [player_tooltip player_id='902884' first='Jakhary' last='Towns'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1112299' first='Jaxson' last='Whitaker'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Godwin Heights comes into tonight's game with a 2-0 record, led by one of the area's most well-known guards, [player_tooltip player_id='902884' first='Jakhary' last='Towns']. Jakhary has been a mainstay at Godwin since his freshman year, and should continue to be one of the highest-scoring prospects in West Michigan. He's put up games of 21 and 30 so far this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Reeths-Puffer's junior class came onto the scene last season thanks to the play of then-sophomores [player_tooltip player_id='1112299' first='Jaxson' last='Whitaker'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1356946' first='Travis' last='Ambrose']. Whitaker and Ambrose have developed a great connection and are deadly in pick-and-roll scenarios. Ambrose checks in a 6'8 and should be a tough matchup for Godwin. I'd be surprised if they didn't go to him early and often.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->