Slam Dunk to the Beach: DE/NJ/PA Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Also known as Hoop Hall East, Slam Dunk to the Beach is one of the premiere basketball events in the Mid-Atlantic. Naturally, some of the best high school programs from around the country. Here are a few prospects from Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania who stood out:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1213554' first='Brandon' last='Benjamin'] | 6'7 F 2024 Bergen Catholic (NJ)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With Blair aggressively denying Copeland, Benjamin became the go-to guy inside. He capitalized on high-low actions and entry passes into the post. But what really made the difference for the Crusaders was how Benjamin worked the glass. His 7 offensive rebounds resulted in putbacks for him and second-chance opportunities in general. He finished a 20-points, 10-rebound double-double in the close loss.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1406894' first='Emmanuel' last='Butts'] | 6'7 F/C 2026 Haverford (PA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Haverford was at an athletic disadvantage against Seaford's switching scheme, but they found some success playing through Butts. His touches inside were initially met with double teams that drew the defense in and led to open threes. When he wasn't beating his man with rip-throughs or spin moves in 1-on-1 opportunities, he was floating to open spaces for dump offs. Butts scored 14 points, but he also drew 7 fouls with his assertiveness down low.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1013073' first='Carnegie' last='Johnson'] | 6'0 G 2023 Blair (NJ)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Johnson set the tempo from the opening tipoff against Bergen Catholic. He had a layup on a backdoor cut, then a steal into a pull up 3 in the first minute of the game. With 4 steals in total, Johnson's defensive activity stifled BC's ability to generate easy looks on offense. That plus his rebounding (4 boards) created instant offense where he kicked it ahead to someone else (4 assists) or got to the rim himself, finishing with 12 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Brent Ricketts | 6'2 G 2023 Seaford (DE)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Blue Jay senior showed off his abilities as a slasher versus Haverford. Early in the contest, Rickets jumped a pass and took it the other way for a layup. With his explosive athleticism and physically developed body, Ricketts drove through contact on his way to the rim, including an and-1. He also displayed some start-stop ability on a couple pullup jumpers from the mid-range. The under-the-radar prospect scored a game-high 17 points, plus 2 steals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1589139' first='Reggie' last='Selden, Jr.'] | 6'1 G 2024 Bonner-Prendie</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bonner's primary playmaker, Selden Jr got hot early as a scorer. He used his wiggle to split defenders on his way to the rim and later to break Roosevelt's press. A threat without the ball in the half court, he drained a couple threes as well. Then he closed out the 4th quarter from the line, going 5-of-6. Selden Jr totaled 15 points, 4 assists, and a steal.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='829428' first='Jayden' last='Williams'] | 5'10 G 2024 Blair Academy (NJ)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The junior played well against Bergen Catholic but went off in their second game, versus Westtown. His 23 points came from all over the floor, with his jumper getting plenty of usage. Williams showed a knack for getting open on the perimeter, making 5 threes and a pullup two. Each one seemed to kill any momentum his opponents tried to build. With the hot hand, Williams made his way to the basket and racked up 4 assists too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"style":{"typography":{"textDecoration":"underline"}}} --> <p style="text-decoration:underline">Honorable Mention:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>KJ Carson | 5'11 G 2025 Haverford</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Brady Eagan | 6'4 W 2023 Bonner-Prendie (PA)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1173984' first='Matt' last='Gilhool'] | 6'10 G 2024 Westtown (PA)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1013065' first='Ian' last='Imegwu'] | 6'7 F/C 2023 Blair Academy (NJ)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='901957' first='Jayden' last='Lemond'] | 6'2 G 2023 Blair Academy (NJ)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Akendre Matthews | 6'3 W 2024 Seaford (DE)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Aviyon Matthews | 6'3 F 2024 Seaford(DE)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zion Miffin | 6'1 G 2024 Seaford (DE)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Daron Rippey Jr | 6'0 G 2026 Blair (NJ)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1477716' first='Kevin' last='Rucker'] Jr | 6'5 G/W 2024 Bonner-Prendie (PA)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sephon Triplett | 6'1 G 2023 Westtown (PA)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->