WCAC Showdown: PVI vs Gonzaga

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>#2 and #3 in the early WCAC standings, #1 and #4 in our Prep Hoops MD rankings-- PVI (14-3,3-1) hosting Gonzaga (15-2, 4-1) on Tuesday night was billed as a heavyweight battle and it lived up to the hype. The host Panthers jumped out to an early lead behind an early onslaught from UConn commit [player_tooltip player_id='1259618' first='Isaiah' last='Abraham'], the senior forward hit a shot from the perimeter and finished a fastbreak run with a two-handed slam to put the Panthers up early (he finished with 9p 1r 1a 1s). Teammate [player_tooltip player_id='1259620' first='Darren' last='Harris'] and Abraham contributed most of the first half scoring the rest of the way with point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1259542' first='Ben' last='Hammond'] serving as an effective maestro at both ends of the floor to push PVI to a 7-point lead at half. A 14-6 PVI run early in the second half stretched the PVI lead to double digits for good midway through the 3Q. The Panthers eventually prevailed 73-58.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Player of the game went to PVI's [player_tooltip player_id='1259620' first='Darren' last='Harris'] several hours after he learned that he did not make the prestigious McDonald's All American Game, with the Duke commit putting on a show to finish with 18p 3r 1a. Harris hit his usual array of shots beyond the arc but did a great job of splitting hard hedges on ball screens and getting downhill, finishing well around the rim or at the free throw line. We've seen Harris progress from mainly a catch and shoot threat, to a shooter that boosted his athleticism and improved his handle last year to hit more dribble pull-ups, to a more well-rounded offensive threat that can put it on the floor to keep defenses honest. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Christian Gurdak returned to the PVI floor where he played the first two years of his HS career and kept Gonzaga in the fight on a night where his shooters struggled from beyond the arc, going 8/10 from the field himself while punishing defenders on the low block as well as the glass to the tune of 18p 13r 1b. Gurdak has come a long way when it comes to efficiently working through his reads out of double teams, making the right pass with a good angle to a teammate or getting right into his room to finish around the rim before the double can arrive. Extremely good hands, good footwork on the low block- his rebounding (7 of 13 were offensive boards) killed several positive defensive possessions from PVI and gave his team another look at the rim. Teammate Derek Dixon got it going in the 2H to finish with 16p 7a 1r, doing a good job of knocking down shots off the bounce while creating easy looks for teammates to spur an early run in the 3Q. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The supporting cast for PVI all chipped in on both ends of the floor and showcased how difficult it is to shut down their offense because of the versatile weapons in the stable. [player_tooltip player_id='1259630' first='Garrett' last='Sundra'] finished with 10p 6r 2a, reasserting his value as a pick n pop threat from beyond the arc while also hitting the glass well. [player_tooltip player_id='1956071' first='Adlan' last='Elamin'] contributed 9p 3r 1a, starting to come into his own as a perimeter scorer that makes the most of his looks at the rim. Senior PG [player_tooltip player_id='1259542' first='Ben' last='Hammond'] turned in a statsheet-stuffing 8p 5a 3r 3s 1b performance, the Rhode Island commit effectively controlled the pace of the game with his distribution on the offensive end and with suffocating point of attack defense at the opposite end of the floor. [player_tooltip player_id='1494103' first='Jaquan' last='Womack'] wreaked havoc in his minutes off the bench as an energy big that can guard the low post in addition to sliding on the perimeter, extending possessions with his rebounding and finishing well around the rim. Sophomore PG [player_tooltip player_id='1782683' first='Anthony' last='Brown'] was effective in his minutes in getting the Panthers going in transition by pushing the pace off of defensive rebounds and steals in the halfcourt to finish with 6p 3a 2s. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2148767' first='Jordan' last='Smith'] Jr. is starting to thrive in a secondary playmaker role, a guard that isn't tasked with bringing the ball up often to set up the offense but is beginning to see snap decision passing reads on his way to the rim-- perfectly redirecting a pass from his teammate to an open big on the low block for easy finishes at the rim. Smith finished with 9p 3a 3r on only 5 shots, picking his spots to attack the paint and detonate at the rim. It will be interesting to see how much PVI experiments with putting the ball in his hands, giving him a ball screen, and putting him into advantage situations where he needs to make a quick read and deliver on accurate pass to a teammate before the window closes. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>PVI is bouncing back from a busy week that saw them go 3-1 in two tournaments on opposite sides of the country and will face another stiff test this Friday night as they go on the road to face the O'Connell Knights (15-3, 4-1). Gonzaga (15-3, 4-2) will face off against Dunbar tomorrow before finishing off their week at home on Friday against The Heights</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->