Observations: Dwyer (Staten Island, NY) vs. University School (Kreul Classic)

<p>The 30th annual <strong>Kreul Classic</strong> kicked off in Coral Springs with a handful of opening games Wednesday. The four-day event brings in 40 impressive boys' basketball teams from nine states around the country.</p> <p>Let me briefly run down the scores from day one:</p> <p><strong>Miami Norland</strong> 55</p> <p><strong>Grandview Prep</strong> 47</p> <p><strong>Jahvon Smith</strong> - 14 pts (Norland), <strong>Harry Santiago</strong> - 16 pts (Grandview Prep)</p> <p><strong>Riviera Prep</strong> 60</p> <p><strong>Coral Springs</strong> 54</p> <p><strong><span class="css-901oao css-16my406 r-1qd0xha r-ad9z0x r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0"> Esteban Lluberes</span></strong> - 19 pts (Riviera Prep), <strong>Jon Fils</strong> - 20 (Coral Springs)</p> <p><strong>Mountain Brook</strong> <strong>(AL)</strong> 69</p> <p><strong>Forest Hill</strong> <strong>(FL)</strong> 50</p> <p><strong>Colby Jones</strong> - 24 pts (Mountain Brook/Xavier commit), Jonathan Mogbo - 24 pts (Forest Hill)</p> <p>University School Sharks 71</p> <p><strong>Curtis (Staten Island, NY)</strong> 54</p> <p>*See Below*</p> <p>Observations: <strong>McFarlane shines, Curtis hangs around and Hendricks continues to develop</strong></p> <p>In the Under Armour bracket of the Kreul Classic, the <strong>University School Sharks</strong> defeated the <strong>Curtis Warriors</strong> <strong>(Staten Island, NY)</strong> 71-54. The Sharks surged ahead of the Warriors in the second half, outscoring Curtis 42-30. It looked early on that the Sharks, who are ranked 6th in the state by MaxPreps, were going to blow Curtis out of the building by jumping out to a 22-12 lead after one. Senior (2020) combo guard <strong>Roger McFarlane</strong> was one of the catalysts of the early lead, finding a handful of buckets underneath the basket off Warrior turnovers. McFarlane can score in bunches and was nearly in double digits at the end of the first quarter. The six-foot-four Shark scored 13 points by halftime and a game high 27 for the game. <strong>McFarlane</strong> would also hit the Sharks lone 3-pointer on the night before the half (more on him later).</p> <p>The second quarter saw Curtis fight back, running off a 12-7 eight minutes to cut the lead to five points by halftime. Leading the way for the Warriors were 2021 guard <strong>Alijah England</strong> and 2020 guard <strong>Robert Mitchell</strong>. Despite a significant size advantage for the Sharks, the Warriors hung around driving to the basket and getting buckets around the rim on drives. Curtis had nobody above six-foot-four score against U-School. I was impressed with the Warriors ability to fight back after it looked like the Sharks were going to run them back to New York after the first quarter. England would finish with a team high 15 points followed by Mitchell with 14.</p> <p>The second half was mostly controlled by U-School, who got a big overall night from 2020 forward <strong>Taylor</strong> <strong>Hendricks</strong>. The six-foot-eight sophomore finished with 18 points including a couple of blocks. He was set up with a couple of lob dunks from his teammates, including one from 2021 guard <strong>Jaden Grant</strong>. What stuck out to me about Hendricks is his ability to hit a mid-range shot. Hendricks hit multiple 15-foot jump shots, including one from the left corner and left wing. With the mid-range somewhat of a lost art, Hendricks seems to be getting more proficient with the shot on a daily basis. It is an added facet to his game that could separate himself from other front-court players in the area and nationally.</p> <p>Back to McFarlane, I sat with a college assistant who was really impressed with his game. That assistant referred to him as a "very good" player. In <a href="https://www.marsreel.com/battle-tested-roger-mcfarlane-brings-talent-and-toughness-to-the-court/">April</a> of last year, I spoke with Roger after his junior season.</p> <p><strong><em>“My goal is for my stock to rise and become a Top 50 player in the country by the end of the summer,” said McFarlane. “I want to pick up a lot of high-major Division I offers. I am going to take a lot of unofficial visits this summer to schools that have interest in me.”</em></strong></p> <p>McFarlane seems to be living up to the billing in his senior campaign. In every game I have seen him play this season, McFarlane has played extremely well. I have yet to see a bad quarter from him this season. I fully believe he is a man on a mission to become that Top 50 player he set out to be last April. With the Sharks having as many as two games left in the tournament, McFarlane will get a chance to show his talents to college coaches like the one I spoke with.</p> <p><em><strong>For any South Florida hoops news or information, please contact Michael Costeines @Steins_23 on Instagram or follow him on twitter @Mungertown_Mike23</strong></em></p> <p>&nbsp;</p>