The Baltimore Hoops Festival Standouts
Last weekend St. Frances Academy played host to The Baltimore Hoops Festival. The event featured private and public schools from around the area and also Farragut Academy, a prep school from St. Petersburg, Florida. It was a great slate of games that was headlined by St. Frances taking on Patterson.
Let’s take a look at the standouts from the event.
Jordan Goodwin | 6’1 | Milford Mill ’18
The Millers escaped with a 54-50 victory over Mervo after trailing for the majority of the game. Goodwin scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half to help seal the win. The team as a whole, Goodwin included, struggled to knock down shots from outside. As a result, Goodwin began attacking the rim and drawing fouls. He finished the game going 11-for-14 from the charity stripe and displayed great leadership and poise throughout the way.
Will Thomas | 6’5 | Mervo ’19
Thomas went to work quickly to give Mervo an early lead against Milford Mill. He scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half, mixing it up well scoring from all three levels. In the second half the Millers made it a priority to keep the ball out of his hands. Thomas has great flashes of play making and had he stayed as aggressive in the second half, Mervo likely would’ve been able to hold onto the win.
Jordan Jones | 6’7 | Mount Carmel ’18
Jones has been the most consistent scorer for the Cougars this season and last weekend, it was the same story. The 6’7 forward led the Cougars with 22 points in a 60-52 win over Farragut Academy. Jones finished efficiently from 15 feet, had a couple of jumpers just inside the arc and converted on eight of his 11 free throw attempts. Jones is especially good crashing the offensive glass for quick put backs.
Dre Fuller | 6’6 | Farragut Academy ’18
Fuller was the high scorer from the game against Mount Carmel finishing with 24 points. The UCF commit displayed outstanding shooting ability, knocking down four three-pointers. Fuller is a big-body guard but also has a quick first step that presents a mismatch in almost any situation. Once he puts the ball on the floor, he knows how to use his body to create separation or draw a foul as he attacks the rim.
Tyreek Montgomery | 6’0 | Farragut Academy ’18
Montgomery helped pace Farragut Academy along with Fuller by pitching in 14 points of his own. The six-foot guard had a number of plays where his athleticism was on full display. Montgomery is quick and can be very shifty once he gets into the paint with the dribble. Once he gets into the paint, scoring isn’t the only thing on his mind. There were a few instances where he drove and passed out to a wide open Fuller for a couple of his three’s.
Noah Locke | 6’3 | McDonogh ’18
Locke had what was the most impressive performance of the day leading the Eagles to a 63-61 victory over Capital Christian behind his 27 points. Locke is arguably the best shooter in the country and if you were in the gym on Saturday, he reminded you why. He finished the game with three triples and a number of pull-up jumpers in transition. Locke consistently led the break only to pull up from 15-18 feet in the face of a Red Storm defender.
Drew Green | 6’3 | McDonogh ’19
Green has emerged as the strong second option for the Eagles this season. He came up big in the second half of this game and finished with 15 points. He was relentless crashing the offensive glass, which resulted in a couple of second chance opportunities and trips to the free throw line. Going forward, the Eagles will need Green to have big time performances like this one in crunch time in order to seal wins in the MIAA.
Ace Baldwin | 6’1 | St. Frances ’20
Baldwin led the Panthers to an 84-64 victory over Patterson in the main event of the night. St. Frances was rolling on all cylinders after a slow first quarter and Baldwin was the spearhead. The sophomore floor general finished with 21 points, six rebounds, five assists, and four steals. As he’s done all season long, Baldwin did a tremendous job of controlling the tempo and creating for teammates while picking and choosing his spots to score.
Jordan Toles | 6’2 | St. Frances ’20
By now, folks in Baltimore are used to seeing Toles take off from virtually anywhere around the paint for ridiculous dunks. But he may have had the dunk of the year off a lob from Baldwin in second quarter that made the gymnasium explode. It seemed like after this play, the Panthers didn’t look back and continued to rout the Clippers until the final buzzer.
Gerard Mungo | 6’1 | Patterson ’19
Mungo came out as he always does for the Clippers and provided a toughness and scoring presence. He led Patterson with 23 points and did so by scoring from all three levels. No matter the score, Mungo goes 110 percent until the clock reads zero. Despite the Clippers being overwhelmed by St. Frances’ size inside, Mungo did a good job battling among the big men to secure rebounds.
T.J. Thomas | 6’2 | Patterson ’19
Thomas finished second in scoring for Patterson with 15 points. Similar to Mungo, Thomas hit big shots throughout the first quarter to help Patterson establish an early lead. He did a solid job of utilizing pass fakes to open lanes for himself to take one-dribble pull-up jumpers in the mid-range. In transition it was much of the same as Thomas would push it only to settle his feet at the 15-foot mark and bury a jump shot for his team.