Good Guys vs. Cancer Standouts (Part 1)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The annual Good Guys vs. Cancer event took place this past week at First Flight High School in the Outer Banks, featuring some of the top teams from North Carolina and Virginia. There were nationally ranked matchups, some great matchups between teams from both states and tons of high level talent throughout the event.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I was there Friday and Saturday, and here's part one of the many standouts from the VA teams in attendance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1259622' first='Shanon' last='Simango'] | 6'7” PF | Blue Ridge 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2288432,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Simango-Shanon-OBX.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Simango-Shanon-OBX.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2288432" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Dartmouth commit was fantastic for Blue Ridge all weekend, but particularly in their win over Greenfield on Friday where he finished with 23 points and 9 rebounds on 9-for-10 shooting from the field. He played with his typical high motor running the floor for easy buckets and keeping plays alive on the offensive glass regularly. He sealed and finished well in the paint, using his strength to finish through contact and dominated in the paint throughout the weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1759699' first='Kamren' last='Martin'] | 6'4” CG | Blue Ridge 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1777527,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Martin-Kamren.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Martin-Kamren.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1777527" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Long Beach State commit showed what makes him one of the best guards in VA, as he impacted the game on both ends of the floor in a lot of different ways. He controlled the tempo and pushed the ball in transition getting his teammates buckets, and both in transition and in the half court he showed the ability to get to the rim at ease. He made shots from multiple levels and defensively he was great both on the ball and jumping passing lanes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1117676' first='Josiah' last='Rickards'] | 6'3” CG | Catholic 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1308381,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/10/Rickards-Josiah-CBG.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/10/Rickards-Josiah-CBG.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1308381" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While Catholic struggled in their loss to Wilson Prep on Saturday, Rickards did show why he's one of the top available guards in the state with a nice showing on both ends of the floor. He is able to play on or off the ball and he scored the ball well in both scenarios from all three levels. He is able to create space on the ball to get his shot off and his ability to make shots from different spots on the floor makes him very tough to guard.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1259544' first='Damon' last='Thompson'] | 6'2” PG | John Marshall 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2173177,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/09/Thompson-Damon-22Redd22.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/09/Thompson-Damon-22Redd22.jpg?w=768" alt="" class="wp-image-2173177" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The JMU commit is one of two seniors in the starting lineup for JM, and he played well against some high level competition as they went 1-1 with a tough loss to fellow nationally ranked Myers Park and a win over Richmond Senior. Thompson handled pressure well throughout the event, getting to the paint and finishing well while also making shots from deep too. He was good at the point of attack defensively and he stayed aggressive looking to score the ball and putting pressure on the defense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1948393' first='Demeir' last='Pollard'] | 6'3” CG | Landstown 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pollard is one of the more underrated seniors in the 757, and he played very well despite Landstown losing to Greenfield in their only game on Saturday. He did a little bit of everything, playing on and off the basketball while scoring it from different levels and making plays for others. He shot the ball well both off the catch and off the bounce, and he brought great energy on the defensive end while rebounding well for his position too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->