Francisco’s Finest: Mater Dei vs Damien (Part 1)

Joel Francisco

June 17, 2021 @ 11:06 PM

Francisco’s Finest: Mater Dei vs Damien (Part 1) SANTA ANA, Ca—The Monarchs of Mater Dei started off the game—and most of the 1st half for that matter—on a torrid shooting start, most notably USC signee [player_tooltip player_id="680209" first="Harrison" last="Hornery"]. Hornery, who finished with 24-points, bagged eighteen of those points in the 1st half. However, the Spartans of Damien withstood that onslaught and stayed patient as they cut into that lead slowly, but assuredly behind up-and-coming junior [player_tooltip player_id="748777" first="RJ" last="Smith"] (21-points). Eventually, USC signee [player_tooltip player_id="747080" first="Malik" last="Thomas"] hit some key buckets in the second half while Spivey Word hit the biggest basket of the night as he put Damien up for good as the Spartans upset Mater Dei 63-60 in the 1st round of the CIFSS Open Division Playoffs. [player_tooltip player_id="680209" first="Harrison" last="Hornery"] (Mater Dei) 2021, PF, 6-foot-9, 225 pounds Joel’s Take: With [player_tooltip player_id="680195" first="Wilhelm" last="Breidenbach"] sidelined with an injury, Hornery had to shoulder even more of a load heading into the opening round of the playoffs—and he flourished, especially in the 1st half. He nailed five 3s and his mechanics are tight. In addition, he has a knack for always being around the ball, especially when hitting the offensive glass. [player_tooltip player_id="747080" first="Malik" last="Thomas"] (Damien) 2021, SG, 6-foot-4, 185 pounds Joel’s Take: Thomas didn’t have one of his prolific scoring outbursts, but he is a grinder. He was hobbled by a tender ankle and it grew worse as the game wore on. However, he is a fearless scorer as he dropped in a 3-pointer and he attacked the paint with reckless abandon. One of the underrated aspects of his game is his rebounding—and he does a nice job pushing the break after corraling the board. Kaden Minter (Mater Dei) 2022, WF, 6-foot-6, 175 pounds, Joel’s Take: Minter is one of the better up-and-coming prospects in the Monarch program. He has a rangy frame with long arms and he plays both end of the floor. The strength of his game is his shooting touch. He sets up his shot well, is always on balance, and his release is impeccable. As the season progressed he showed an evolving pull-up game as he did a better job getting to the basket off the bounce. Jimmy Oladokun (Damien) 2023, PF, 6-foot-8, 190 pounds Joel’s take: One of the more improved prospects in So-Cal is Oladokun. The length and bounce were always there, but now the skill package is coming into play. He has developed a nice face-up jump shot from the elbow and his face-up skills are evolving as well. Defensively, his timing is impeccable and he has a knack for blocking shots. [player_tooltip player_id="951315" first="Chris" last="Nickelberry"] (Damien) 2021, PG, 6-foot, 155 pounds Joel’s Take: Nickelberry impacted the game at both ends. Defensively, he was a menace to Monarch starting junior point guard [player_tooltip player_id="748772" first="Mason" last="Ressler"]. He sped up Ressler with his lateral quickness and active hands and was the catalyst at that end of the floor for the Spartans. He ran the team well, did not force the action, and made good decisions.