The main event of the IPSAC Midwest Basketball Challenge...Detroit Country Day against Fort Wayne Bishop Luers. Ray McCallum against Deshaun Thomas. Two potential All-Americans.
Well, the team match-up didn't live up to the hype. Ray McCallum certainly did. McCallum finished with 36 points including 3 dunks that made the crowd go crazy. He was impressive. Great quickness, crafty moves, superb shooting from the outside, tough rebounds, strong defense. McCallum was good in every phase of the game. He should definitely be an All-American candidate.
Deshaun Thomas was met with double and triple teams right from the tip. Detroit Country Day didn't let him catch the ball and if he did then they made sure he had no choice but to pass. DCD decided to make another Luers player beat them other than Thomas. No Luers player was able to step up.
DCD stretched their lead to 30 points in the third quarter. I believe the final margain was 17 points. Thomas did most of his damage in the final minutes of the third quarter and in the fourth quarter. He ended with 33 points by my count.
Ken Mullen 5'9 junior point guard impressed me with his quickness. He was able to get around DCD defenders and into the lane most of the night. He finished with 22 points on 9-12 shooting. He never looked for his outside shot until the game was decided. He is probably a stretch for mid-majors, but definitely is a D1 player.
Amir Williams 6'10 junior center controlled the paint and boards for Detroit Country Day. He was really impressive with his outlet passes. He started most fast breaks for DCD. He allowed the guards to leak out and he could hit them on the move with a 40 foot outlet pass. I had him down for 10 points and 9 rebounds.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
IPSAC Midwest Basketball Challenge-Munster/Cathedral
The Munster vs. Indianapolis Cathedral game was the one I looked forward to the most. I wanted to see how the much hyped Collin Hartman was and I wanted to see how good Munster was when they played outside of the region. Well, both passed with flying colors. Munster was impressive as was Hartman.
Munster jumped out early by hitting 3's against Cathedral's zone. When I say Munster I should say Brian Stolarz as he went 4-4 from 3 in the first quarter. Munster led 17-7 after the first and 29-15 at the half. It always seemed like Munster was up by more since their defense was so good. Munster plays really hard and they are physical. A guy in front of me said something that was very true..."if you are going to beat Munster you are going to have to be tougher than they are." Not many teams can match Munster's toughness.
Collin Hartman is counted on to do a lot for Cathedral. They have totally rebuilt from last year's team. Hartman is very good, but he can't carry them to wins against teams like Munster. His shooting form is great and he cuts really hard. Most seniors don't cut as well as he does. He handles the ball very well and can lead a fast break. Once he adds muscle he will be very tough to handle.
Joe Crisman 6'4 junior guard is more of a small forward right now. He can shoot it, strong, rebounds, a good defender. He doesn't handle the ball to well right now. It also looked shaky when he was dribbling like he could lose control at anytime. In order to be a D1 player he will have to tighten that up immensely as well as working on getting his shot off quicker. It seemed like it took him a decent amount of time to get off his shot.
Brian Stolarz 6'4 junior small forward had the fast start and didn't do much after the first quarter. If he can shoot it like he did against Cathedral than he can play at the mid-major level. He is strong, a good rebounder, and tough. He doesn't have guard like handles though and he is still not a great defender although it seems like he is making a great effort to get better defensively. I still think he is a low-major player unless he becomes a lights out consistent shooter.
Kyle Ritz 6'1 senior point guard is a true point guard if you will. He is Munster's leader, he is the floor general. He is very sure with the ball and has very good court vision. He did not look for his shot at all. I only had him down for two shot attempts. I think he would be a good NAIA point guard. He can score if he needs to. I think he just understands his role as the distributor on a good team.
Kevin Owens 6'9 senior center had some solid post moves. Owens could probably be a very good player if he was more aggressive and assertive. It seems like he has the physical tools to be very good.
Munster jumped out early by hitting 3's against Cathedral's zone. When I say Munster I should say Brian Stolarz as he went 4-4 from 3 in the first quarter. Munster led 17-7 after the first and 29-15 at the half. It always seemed like Munster was up by more since their defense was so good. Munster plays really hard and they are physical. A guy in front of me said something that was very true..."if you are going to beat Munster you are going to have to be tougher than they are." Not many teams can match Munster's toughness.
Collin Hartman is counted on to do a lot for Cathedral. They have totally rebuilt from last year's team. Hartman is very good, but he can't carry them to wins against teams like Munster. His shooting form is great and he cuts really hard. Most seniors don't cut as well as he does. He handles the ball very well and can lead a fast break. Once he adds muscle he will be very tough to handle.
Joe Crisman 6'4 junior guard is more of a small forward right now. He can shoot it, strong, rebounds, a good defender. He doesn't handle the ball to well right now. It also looked shaky when he was dribbling like he could lose control at anytime. In order to be a D1 player he will have to tighten that up immensely as well as working on getting his shot off quicker. It seemed like it took him a decent amount of time to get off his shot.
Brian Stolarz 6'4 junior small forward had the fast start and didn't do much after the first quarter. If he can shoot it like he did against Cathedral than he can play at the mid-major level. He is strong, a good rebounder, and tough. He doesn't have guard like handles though and he is still not a great defender although it seems like he is making a great effort to get better defensively. I still think he is a low-major player unless he becomes a lights out consistent shooter.
Kyle Ritz 6'1 senior point guard is a true point guard if you will. He is Munster's leader, he is the floor general. He is very sure with the ball and has very good court vision. He did not look for his shot at all. I only had him down for two shot attempts. I think he would be a good NAIA point guard. He can score if he needs to. I think he just understands his role as the distributor on a good team.
Kevin Owens 6'9 senior center had some solid post moves. Owens could probably be a very good player if he was more aggressive and assertive. It seems like he has the physical tools to be very good.
IPSAC Midwest Basketball Challenge-Howe/ECC
The Howe/East Chicago Central game was the closest game of the day. Early it looked like Howe was going to run away with it. Howe let ECC back into the game during the 2nd quarter though and it was back and forth from there.
PJ Boutte scored a go ahead basket with around 30 seconds left in the game. ECC attacked and Howe fouled Anthony Williams. Williams,who was hot most of the day, knocked down both free-throws to give ECC a one point lead. ECC came out of the time-out in a 2-2-1 press and Howe throw right over the top to Jordan Manuel. Manuel drove to the hoop and was unsuccessful on this attempt. After many tips and a scramble later the game was over. ECC escaped with a 62-61 victory.
Anthony Williams 6'1 junior forward for ECC impressed me. I had never heard of him before but he made a lot of big shots for the Cardinals. He was a tough defender and scrappy player all game. I hope to see him more in the future.
Michael Harris 6'3 senior guard was only 5-11 from the field, but he easily could have been 8-11. He made numerous nice plays and great moves. He hit the open shot and was the leader for ECC. He is definitely a D1 player...how high is the question though. I think he could play major minutes early for most mid-majors depending on the system.
Isiah Hill 6'10 junior center has lost a lot of weight and has gained a lot of mobility from it. He still has some work to be done in the conditioning department, but he has made great strides. I had him down for 10 points and 5 rebounds. He could be a very good post for mid-majors if he continues to lose weight. As of right now, he is a low-major prospect.
Giovantae Hazelett 6'7 senior forward showed glimpses of a very good player. He might only be 6'5 or 6'6 though. He had some athletic finishes while showing good free-throw form going 4-4 so he has a base to develop. He appears to be more of a D2 type of player, but this is the first time I have seen him.
Jordan Manuel 6'8 senior wing is committed to Detroit. He didn't play until the 4th quarter. He came in cold to start the 4th quarter with the game tied. I'm not sure that is a great situation to put a kid into. Even if he sat out for discpline reasons I think I might have just held him out the whole game or gotten him in during the 3rd quarter. He could be a big-time player for Detroit if he gets after it...that is a big if though.
PJ Boutte 5'9 junior point guard is also committed to Detroit. He was questionable due to spraining his ankle last week. He played major minutes though. I had him with the stat line of 1-4 from 2pt, 1-4 from 3pt, 3-6 from the free-throw line with 1 assist to go along with 4 turnovers.
PJ Boutte scored a go ahead basket with around 30 seconds left in the game. ECC attacked and Howe fouled Anthony Williams. Williams,who was hot most of the day, knocked down both free-throws to give ECC a one point lead. ECC came out of the time-out in a 2-2-1 press and Howe throw right over the top to Jordan Manuel. Manuel drove to the hoop and was unsuccessful on this attempt. After many tips and a scramble later the game was over. ECC escaped with a 62-61 victory.
Anthony Williams 6'1 junior forward for ECC impressed me. I had never heard of him before but he made a lot of big shots for the Cardinals. He was a tough defender and scrappy player all game. I hope to see him more in the future.
Michael Harris 6'3 senior guard was only 5-11 from the field, but he easily could have been 8-11. He made numerous nice plays and great moves. He hit the open shot and was the leader for ECC. He is definitely a D1 player...how high is the question though. I think he could play major minutes early for most mid-majors depending on the system.
Isiah Hill 6'10 junior center has lost a lot of weight and has gained a lot of mobility from it. He still has some work to be done in the conditioning department, but he has made great strides. I had him down for 10 points and 5 rebounds. He could be a very good post for mid-majors if he continues to lose weight. As of right now, he is a low-major prospect.
Giovantae Hazelett 6'7 senior forward showed glimpses of a very good player. He might only be 6'5 or 6'6 though. He had some athletic finishes while showing good free-throw form going 4-4 so he has a base to develop. He appears to be more of a D2 type of player, but this is the first time I have seen him.
Jordan Manuel 6'8 senior wing is committed to Detroit. He didn't play until the 4th quarter. He came in cold to start the 4th quarter with the game tied. I'm not sure that is a great situation to put a kid into. Even if he sat out for discpline reasons I think I might have just held him out the whole game or gotten him in during the 3rd quarter. He could be a big-time player for Detroit if he gets after it...that is a big if though.
PJ Boutte 5'9 junior point guard is also committed to Detroit. He was questionable due to spraining his ankle last week. He played major minutes though. I had him with the stat line of 1-4 from 2pt, 1-4 from 3pt, 3-6 from the free-throw line with 1 assist to go along with 4 turnovers.
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