3 Takeaways: Tinley Park vs Shepard

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>PHI checked out a pair of south suburbs squads on Wednesday night as Shepard traveled to Tinley Park.&nbsp; Both teams are under .500, but this was a really fun game with a lot of talent on both sides that can play at the next level!&nbsp; Shepard led almost the entire game behind their freshman 6'8” power forward and senior 6'9” five man, but Tinley Park made a run in the fourth along with a couple key plays late to win 65-62.&nbsp; Let's examine this one in <strong>3 Takeaways: Tinley Park vs Shepard</strong>!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tinley Park Senior Trio Leads Way to Win</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The host school came into this game at 8-9, but we were very impressed with a trio of their 2025 prospects.&nbsp; Their 6'5” wide bodied five man [player_tooltip player_id='2815637' first='Kendall' last='Webb'] showed a lot of intriguing tools.&nbsp; Light on his feet for how big he is.&nbsp; Excellent footwork round the hoop, has a nice mid-range jumper, and rebounds very well in his area going for 17 points.&nbsp; Point guard DJ Jervier was a catalyst in the comeback.&nbsp; Wiry point guard has a sweet floater game and uses his quick first step to get in the lane for acrobatic layups.&nbsp; Hit a big pull up three and a was lights out at the foul line notching 21 points.&nbsp; Nolan Maciejewski stepped up as the lefty combo guard drained a trio from deep en route to 13 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Shepard has Major Sleeper in 6'9” 2025 Center</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>First look at Shepard 6'9” five man [player_tooltip player_id='2815549' first='Jovan' last='Thomas'] and we came away impressed.&nbsp; He is a legit 6'9” with a massive frame.&nbsp; He knows how to use it as well.&nbsp; Excellent at sealing through defenders on the block for finishes and uses the glass well banking it off for scores.&nbsp; Hook shots, dunks, and always seemed to keep the ball high.&nbsp; Solid passer and rebounded well in his area.&nbsp; Was an intimidating force early swatting shots.&nbsp; He had 16 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocks.&nbsp; Can definitely see him going to a JUCO and developing into a player with more refinement.&nbsp; Has some NC State DJ Burns in there.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Williams Looks Part of Top Tier Freshman</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We saw [player_tooltip player_id='2632093' first='Amari' last='Williams'] for Shepard in the fall, but this was our first chance this high school season.  The 2028 power forward is one of the premier posts in the freshman class.  He has a long and wiry frame with plus athleticism.  The quickness and agility on the offensive boards were apparent from the jump as he had several put backs.  Finished out of the dunker spot well along with a couple of post scores with quick moves.  Rebounded well both in and out of his area as he had 14 points and 10 rebounds. A couple junior shooters to watch on this team are Aaron Arrambide (11 points) and Marcus Monteclaro (8 points) who each knocked in some clean looking three balls.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->