Sunnyslope at St. Mary’s

Gregg Rosenberg February 2, 2021 @ 09:45 AM

On Wednesday January 20th I attended the 6A Sunnyslope Vikings at the 4A St. Mary’s Knights.   Here were some of the varsity standouts of the game: Sunnyslope 59 St. Mary’s 51 (unofficial stats) Sunnyslope [player_tooltip player_id="703820" first="Grady" last="Lewis"] Sunnyslope (11 pts 5 rebs 1 ast 1 stl 1 blk) -A strong bodied 4-man has a chiseled frame and can score it inside a variety of ways. He can rip through plus he has a polished right hand hook shot and the up and under. He can score it off the glass and rebounds at a good clip. He can block shots and passes decently out of the post. [player_tooltip player_id="826998" first="Elijah" last="Saunders"] Sunnyslope (16 pts 9 rebs 1 ast 2 stls) -A 3-level scorer is a difficult match-up for his position. He can jab step and shoot it from mid to the 3. He can also score it with his back to the basket with a hook shot plus can he can use a speed move and go to work. He can play above the rim and rebound the ball at its highest point. [player_tooltip player_id="827007" first="Oakland" last="Fort"] Sunnyslope (22 pts 4 rebs 3 asts 1 stl) -A dynamic scoring lead guard has extended his shooting range to go along with his elite speed and handle. He has a nice floater, he has a consistent 3pt shot and gets into the lane so quickly. His burst and athleticism to go along with his shooting make him one of the better AIA PG’s. https://twitter.com/EVision_AZ/status/1352130889086504960 [player_tooltip player_id="991885" first="Malcolm" last="Olexa"] Sunnyslope (6 pts 3 rebs) -A smart PG who can shoot it, drive and use the floater. He is so critical to this teams success as he can relieve the big-3 of for some pressure. He is their second ball handler and he plays like a crafty vet.   St. Mary’s [player_tooltip player_id="809681" first="Keiren" last="Brown"] St. Mary’s (7 pts 2 rebs 1 ast 1 stl) -A strong lead guard who has improved his 3pt range. He has extended it, which should extend his future career. He sees the court well and likes to shoot it off the catch from deep. He has a strong frame and he is much improved as a PG to facilitate. [player_tooltip player_id="701238" first="Garrison" last="Phelps"] St. Mary’s (14 pts 6 rebs 1 ast 4 stls 1 blk) -An athletic stud on the break and a lock down defender on the wing. His pull-up from mid-range is improving. He can drive it to the hole and score through contact and plays hard. If he can make his 3-ball more consistent, he will be even tougher to guard. [player_tooltip player_id="826995" first="Jeremiah" last="Cherry"] St. Mary’s (4 pts 3 rebs) -A big man has huge mitts to rebound the ball. He has a polished hook shot with his back to the basket and he can throw it down on the break. Against the bigger teams they play during the season, he will be critical. His length and size helps anchor their team defense. They will need his production in the big games of the season. [player_tooltip player_id="826997" first="Foune" last="Doucoure"] St. Mary’s (7 rebs) -A big time high-motored rebounder. He attacks the ball in the air and has a strong upper body to snatch rebounds in traffic. He doesn't score it too much on this team with many talented players but gives them many extra possessions. [player_tooltip player_id="831119" first="Jason" last="Fontenet Jr"] St. Mary’s (9 pts 4 rebs 2 stls) -A thicker scoring lead guard can shoot it from the perimeter and get into the lane with a tighter handle. He uses that stronger frame to get through contact. He also is very quick on the ball defensively collecting steals and rebounds well for his position. [player_tooltip player_id="994006" first="Styles" last="Phipps"] St. Mary’s (12 pts 1 reb 1 stil) -A quick ball handler is a natural 3-level scorer. He has the floater game, the deep-3 plus likes the pull-up from mid-range. He has a tight handle and speed with the ball to get passed his defender and score it. He is a rare freshman who plays heavy minutes on a top-tier team.