Moravian and Vertical Academy Impressed Against OTE

<p>The number one ranked team in North Carolina Moravian Prep and a Trey Parker lead Vertical Academy took a quick trip down to the Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta. After an impressive 27 points and 7 rebounds over Derek Lively and Westtown, Mikey sat out this game. Moravian was at full strength with their dynamic shooting backcourt. The Lions were not able to see projected first-round pick, Jean Montero, however running mate Jazian Gortman and Dominick Barlow came to play. Barlow had one of his most impressive games of the season dropping 20 points and 10 rebounds.</p> <p>In the first half Moravian stayed afloat and only trailed by two behind their timely shooting and pesky defense. [player_tooltip player_id="918978" first="Jackson" last="Holt"] hit a lot of timely shots in this game to give the Lions a puncher’s chance at the end of the game, scoring 17 points on 41% shooting from the three. [player_tooltip player_id="1029969" first="Eli" last="Ellis"] didn’t have his best shooting performance, but the attention he garners opened up more opportunities for Jackson and his brother Issac, who finished with 15 points. Two drawn charges by the Lions had them only down by two points after a 15 point comeback in the last three minutes. A shot at the buzzer that was nowhere near close and the Lions were defeated by two points.</p> <p><br /> Jazian Gort lead this offense all day and filled up the stat sheet doing it. Finishing with an offensive rating of 104, while nearly getting a triple-double, while shooting 50% from three. Quick first step and poise like no other, Gort and Team Overtime handled business but a really good showing from Moravian. Justin Banks and Mayor Wol helped the Lions gain almost ten offensive rebounds combined. [player_tooltip player_id="918978" first="Jackson" last="Holt"] helped the team with his pesky defense and that led to 17 more points off turnovers compared to Overtime(3) converted off of a Moravian turnover.</p> <p><br /> Amen Thompson Team OTE played Liberty Heights earlier this year at Combine in a very competitive game that went into Sudden death. Thompson’s timely scoring and assists propelled his team. This game was somewhat the same, a back and forth contest. A barrage of three-pointers and a lot of jaw-jacking. OTE could not stop Treymayne Parker or sharpshooter senior [player_tooltip player_id="1052070" first="Abdul" last="Beyah"] in the first half. Beyah has played up since he was in eighth grade and despite his size is never afraid of the moment. Beyah finished with 20 points and a true shooting percentage of 45.</p> <p>2023 Trey Parker has become known as one of the most underrated players in his class, with his finishing ability and elite scoring at all three levels. He has learned how to slow his game down this season and is learning how to convert his elite first step into other facets of his game. So this is not only seen when he is attacking the basket, but also his activity in the passing lanes and his ability to convert off of the mistakes the defense gives him. He was perfect from the line, tallying four steals in the game as well to compliment his 24 points. The next step in his game is him becoming an even better playmaker, with only one assist on the night.</p> <p>Amen finished the game with a double-double, shooting 58% from the field and leading his team to the 86-74 victory. The most underrated part of Thompson’s game is his passing ability. He has really good size, so even when you don’t believe he will score he finds a way to distribute around the defender(s) guarding him. His pace is impressive for his age and his size, a point forward in the making. A great showing by two teams that represented the state of North Carolina against this new wave of professional high school players well. I’m sure the Ellis brothers and Trey Parker will see these teams again before their high school careers are over.</p>