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Taylor Truman Tops Detroit Western 65-48

29 Dec

TaylorTrumanWhat sums this game up is simply, Truman’s starting 5  was better than the Cowboys.  The Cougars used a 21-8 run in roughly a five minute stretch in the opening quarter to get a double digit lead and coast to an easy victory.  The only time Western would cut the lead down to single digits was 8 after the end of the third quarter.  However, the Cougars held Cowboy star sophomore guard Brailen Neely scoreless in the fourth, a major factor in winning the game, Neely finished up with 16 points in the game.   A key in the early first quarter run was senior point guard Devain Newbell, who scored 11 of his 17 points in the first quarter.  Newbill is an explosive guard in open space, with good handles that likes to get into the lane and create plays for Truman.  He has nice speed and can be effective when coming off a high ball screen.  To go along with 17 points, he had 6 assists, good enough to win the game MVP.

His partner in crime was 2014 U of D Mercy commit Aaron Foster-Smith.  Truman’s Mr. Basketball candidate did not disappoint, according to my stats,  Foster-Smith took 10 shots, and made all of them, including three three-pointers.  Aaron is wing with good size measuring in at 6’7″.  He is a explosive athlete, inside-out scorer, runs the break hard, and his body that needs to blocked out on rebounding, because if not, he will jump out of the gym and get the rebound, which he did 11 times vs. Western.  Foster-Smith is currently only under 100 points away from breaking Truman’s career scoring mark.

Not to be outdone in the victor fellow senior Anthony Wartley-Fritz.  In the win, Anthony had his best game of the season, getting a double-double with 11 points, and 13 rebounds.  Standing at 6’7″, Fritz, has good size, brings energy to the floor, and toughness.  He finished through a couple and-one plays, and went after rebounds hard the whole game.

With the victory, Truman is now 5-0 heading into the new year.  The Cowboys head into 2014 with a 1-4 record.

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Horatio William’s Tip-Off Recap

15 Dec

images-5Another solid tip-off showcase was put on by the Horatio Williams Foundation at Detroit Edison High School.  The showcase featured some of the best teams within the city of Detroit, along with a few quality teams from the surrounding suburbs.  However, there was no shortage of individual talent at DEPSA.  From players who have already signed or been offered by division one schools, to players eager to make a name for themselves this year, Detroit Edison was the place to be on Saturday.

Detroit Community 70 Detroit Osborn 58:

Community junior point guard Darryl Smith was the clear standout for the Hurricanes in their win over Osborn.  He has grown two inches from last year, 5’7″-5’9″, and is set up to have a big 2013-2014 campaign.  Smith showed a quick first step when attacking defenders from the perimeter, and then finished nicely at the rim with either hand.  Smith rarely made any turnovers or mistakes the entire game, and led either team in scoring with 23.

Detroit King 54 Detroit Edison 41

If any senior in Michigan is more deserving of a college offer than King’s Tyrone Acuff, please let me know.  Mr. do it all Acuff was a man on a mission against the Pioneers.  The 6’6″, big bodied, long armed, broad shouldered, put the Crusaders on his back en route to victory.  Despite his size, Acuff has point guard skills that make him a matchup nightmare for opposing coaches.  He had everything going his way on the offensive side of the floor, hitting perimeter three pointers, took smaller defenders to the basket, rebounded offensively, finished in transition with authority, and played clutched during crutch time when DEPSA was mounting a comeback.  An absolute steal for any college that wants a solid late addition to their program.  Finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds.

Southfield 54 Detroit Western 51

A sloppy, error prone game did have its standouts.  For Southfield, 6’7″ junior forward Isaiah Green is listed as the tallest player the Blue Jays, and they needed every inch of that going up against the long and lanky Cowboys.  Green was a force all game long down low for the Blue Jays.  He was the games leading shot blocker, and sometimes even blocking multiple shots on just one trip down the floor.  He is good around the offensive rim, with an improving back to the basket game.

Western was led by 5’8″ sophomore point guard Brailen Neely.  Although he does not have the assists he should’ve had, Neely displayed excellent court vision throughout the game finding teammates for jump shots and layup that were simply missed.  The bread and butter for Neely’s offensive game is his three point jump shot.  Once he makes a few, which he did late to keep the Cowboys in the game, Brailen can stroke it with anyone.  Neely will be counted on for the Cowboys if they wish to contend in the PSL.

Detroit Cass Tech 86 River Rouge 58

The depth at the guard position for Cass Tech is hard to match with any team.  Even with division one prospect Kenny Carpenter not playing because of an injury, it was the guard play for the Technicians that won them the game.  Senior Mike Laster, one of the state’s top uncommitted seniors and had 17 for the game, did most of his damage going to the basket and finishing at the rim.  Class of 2015 prospect Rob Edwards, a transfer from U of D Jesuit, will contribute size, athleticism, craftiness, and play making ability for the season, Edwards finished with 13 points and six rebounds.  However, the guard that stole the show for Cass was senior Sharif Black.  Sharif played sparingly last year for the Technicians, sitting behind soon to be Florida Atlantic commit D’Andre Johnson.  Black was the reason why Cass had a strong second quarter and pulled away from Rouge at getting the win.  Sharif is a point guard who has a nice feel for the game.  He picks his spots well when he wants to attack the basket and when to set up for his teammates.  Sharif did a nice job of changing speeds on the defense keeping them uncomfortable, and facilitating throughout the entire ball game.  Black will be another weapon at the disposal for the Technicians if they wish to march to the Breslin Center come March.

The lone bright spot for River Rouge was 5’11” senior guard Kevin Lomax.  Lomax did all he could to keep the Panthers in the game, coming out in the first half and simply balling.  Hitting three’s, getting past defenders with nice ball handling skills, and using his speed to get into the lane to either create for teammates or himself, which usually got him to the free-throw line.  Lomax will pair nicely with other Panther senior guard Terrell Crawford for Rouge, who compete in Class B.

Detroit Consortium 67 Detroit Douglass 52

Even though the score does not indicate, this was the most exciting high school basketball game I’ve been to in a while.  The game pitted the number one player in the state, Consortium sophomore Josh Jackson, against Douglass’ Dayton commit, Darrell Davis.  Josh finished with 27 points, and 22 rebounds.  Yes that is right, 22 rebounds.  Can you get any more versatile than that for a 6’8″ SF?  Jackson showed the public that he is a big time player that can put the team on his back when needed.  He struggled throughout most of first half, giving up a few turnovers, and forcing the issue quite a bit.  But in the second half, is where Josh picked up his game.  He found is rhythm offensively, attacking the basket and getting into the lane for his mid-range game, and don’t forget about his defensive stats, the phenom finished with six blocks.  This is Jackson’s team.  Unlike last year where he had fellow superstar Vince Hunter to lean on during adversity, Jackson rose to the occasion for Consortium and led them to a win.

Davis finished with 23 to lead Douglass.

Detroit Pershing 34 Westland John Glenn 12

Yeah, you read that score correctly.  The Pershing vs. John Glenn game was suspended during the second half due to numerous quarrels in the stands.  Regardless, Pershing was given the victory, the Doughboys are now 1-1 on the young season.  The Rockets however, fall to 0-2, with both losses coming to PSL powerhouses, the other being a 72-35 setback to East English on Tuesday.

Next Horatio Williams Showcase

As previously stated, the Horatio Williams foundation does a fantastic job of organizing basketball showcases for Detroit area high schools.  The next showcase will be the Horatio Williams Foundation Freedom Classic Games, held on Saturday, January 18, at Warren Fitzgerald High School.  Here is the event schedule:

12:00 Warren Fitzgerald vs. Detroit Renaissance

1:45 Detroit Southeastern vs. Southfield

3:30 Detroit Western vs. Detroit Country Day

5:00 Detroit Cass Tech vs. Flint Beecher

6:30 Detroit Frederick Douglass vs. Warren De La Salle

8:30 Detroit Pershing vs. Ann Arbor Huron

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Romulus Captures First Class A Crown Since 1986

24 Mar

Not since the time of the great Terry Mills has Romulus won a state championship, but it is safe to say that the time has come for Romulus head coach Nate Oats and the Romulus Eagles.  Oats has led the Eagles to the Breslin Center multiple times during his tenure at Romulus, but never capturing a state title.  But not winning is a hard thing to do when you have three players that a more than deserving to have been on the Mr. Basketball consideration list with E.C. Matthews, Wes Clark and Leo Edwards.  Romulus got things going right away, attacking the Southeastern defense with a 7-0 run in the first two minutes of the game, and eventually leading 19-10 after the first.  E.C. Matthews fresh off a 37 point performance in the semi-final tallied nine points in the opening quarter.  But the Jungaleers had a run of their own in the second.  Trailing by 10 with 6:57 until half, Southeastern would go on 8-2 run over the next 5:58 to only be down 24-20.  Now in the third quarter already leading by 42-27 with 2:13 to go in the quarter, things were almost about to get out of hand for Southeastern, but when E.C. Matthews took a pass from Leo Edwards and went up for one of his signature tomahawk dunks, it signaled the end for Southeastern.  Romulus eventually got the lead up to 19 at the end of the quarter at 51-32 and that was all she wrote for the Class A state title game.  Cruising to a decisive 61-49 victory.

E.C. Matthews lead Romulus in scoring with 20, and also lead the team in rebounds with ten.  Louisiana Tech commit Leo Edwards tallied 13 points and three blocks in the winning effort.  And rounding out the big three for the Eagles is Missouri signee Wes Clark, finishing up with 12 points and five assists.

Romulus lost last year to Rockford in the semifinal and trust me, these guys have used that defeat as motivation to get to where they are at right now.  Wes Clark, one of the most competitive guys in the State of Michigan, was not even a guarantee to play in their quarterfinal victory against Pershing.  The senior had to receive a shot in his knee just to be able to play.  “Last year, knowing how far we got with E.C. and Leo we could do it,” said Wes on when he knew when the team was capable of winning a state title.  “Knowing how far we got and how much work we put in.  So we took that as a motivator to use in the offseason and play off that.”  Clark will bring this winning mentality to Frank Haith and the Missouri Tigers next year.

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Romulus vs. Pershing Round Two

20 Mar

Romulus 93 Pershing 91: The number one and number two teams in the state collided in what could be a game that produces the Class A state champion. The Doughboys beat Romulus the second game of the season 83-76, but this is a different Romulus team from then. It was evident that the game was going to be a track meet with 11 points scored in the first 1:30 of the contest and 44 just in that quarter. The fourth quarter in this game is where the fun was. Leading by eight with 4:10 left in the contest, Romulus thought as if they were going to cruse to the finish line. But this is Pershing we are talking about. Coach Wydell’s boys don’t quit, the Doughboys responded with a 12-5 run of themselves to cut the deficit to one with 2:40 left in the contest. Pershing held a one point lead with 1:10 left to go in the contest after a basketball by Justin Tillman. But the dreams of a state championship took a tremendous hit when senior wing Jalon Plummer hit probably one of the biggest shots of his life on the next trip down for Romulus. That gave Pershing a 90-88 lead forcing a time-out to be called. However, the game was not over. Pershing junior guard Darsean Woodson picked up the ball of a Romulus turnover with seven seconds left and was fouled with a chance to tie the game. Woodson rolled in the first one, but was unable to connect on the second one. Rhode Island commit E.C. Matthews was fouled after the miss and hit one of two free-throws to extend the lead to two. Mr. Basketball candidate Kahlil Felder was unable to get off the game winning three with 2.3 to go in the contest giving Romulus the return trip to the Breslin Center.

E.C. Matthews lead Romulus with 29 points including 11 of them in the first quarter. “I was just feeding in what was giving to me. I was just wanted to be aggressive and just attack and create for others,” said Matthews after his monster game. This is no uncharted territory for the Eagles. Last year, Romulus beat the Doughboys at this very arena only to fall to Rockford in the next game. Coach Oats knew that this was a big one. But it is not one to celebrate for. The real celebration for Romulus will begin if they win they next two games. When asked what the team will do to prepare for a return trip to the Breslin Center, Matthews added “We are seniors now, we have been here before, so we know what it is like we are not going to make the mistakes we did last year.”

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Detroit Pershing 78 vs. Cass Tech 76

9 Mar

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Beating a good high school team in the State of Michigan  is never easy.  Especially when you have the mentality    going into the game think that it is going to be another cakewalk like it was before.  The MHSAA equivalent of March Madness was on display Friday at Western International in the district final contest between Pershing and Cass TECH.  What seemed to be an upset  throughout most of the game that would have shocked the entire state was changed in 10.8 seconds.  DeAngelo Stewart just tied the game up for the Technecians with 1:08 to go in the fourth quarter.  Pershing’s Kahlil Felder smartly evading CT defenders and calling a time-out with 10:8 seconds to go.  Now on that play, Martez Walker did the rest.  Hitting an off-balanced shot with maybe one second on the clock remaining with two CT players in his face.  It was a big moment for Pershing.  Because earlier in the game, Cass lead by as many as 13 in the fourth quarter.  But you can never count out the undefeated Pershing Doughboys.  Cass Tech lead throughout most of the game.  For each Pershing run it seemed as if Cass upped them on it.  Taking control in the second and third quarters.

Players

Florida Atlantic point guard commit D’Andre Johnson had 25 points for CT, while fellow senior DeAngelo Stewart had 16, most coming in the second half.  It seemed as if Charles Key, nine points, had nearly every offensive rebound for Cass Tech.  The junior is a high energy player that allows for second maybe even third offensive opportunities.  For Pershing, Justin Tillman had 14 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks.  Martez Walker had 24 points, Kahlil Felder chipped in with 12.  While the x factor in this game was junior guard Darsean Woodson.  Woodson scored five of the Doughboys last 10 points in the contest, and finished up with 18.

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Martez Walker’s Game Winner

8 Mar

Season on the line, rematch vs. a team in Cass Tech you just crushed about two weeks in the city title, what do you do if you are Pershing?  Give the ball to one of the best scorers in the state in Martez Walker and let him go to work.

Romulus vs. Saginaw Recap

1 Mar

Romulus 93 vs. Saginaw 63- The Saginaw Trojans came down I-75 looking to avoid the fate of their fellow city’s high school team, the Arthur Hill Lumberjacks, who lost to Romulus earlier in February.  And things looked relatively good for the Trojans in the first half.  Surviving a 9-3 Romulus run during the first three minutes of the game to come back and only trail by two at the end of one.  Things changed for the Trojans in the second.  They went from playing teams basketball, to a bunch of guys it seemed trying to stuff their own stat sheet.  Romulus went on a 8-0 run to start the quarter and eventually got into the lockeroom leading by a margin of 42-19.  Giving Romulus the ability to cruise to their regular season ending victory.  Even the subs for the Eagles seemed to have outplayed the starters for Saginaw.

Notes

For Romulus, Wes Clark had 15 points and fellow senior E.C. Matthews had 26 himself.  Jalon Plummer also added 13 for Romulus and three three-pointers.  Kenyon Addison led Saginaw with 22 total points, and Jerry Smith tallied 19 for the Trojans.  Leo Edwards grabbed down 10 rebounds for Romulus, and did a nice job defensively against freshmen sensation Al Eichelberger for Saginaw.  I though coming into this game, Romulus would have a tough time guarding the two big men for Saginaw, Al and Joe Powell.  Powell was unnoticeable the entire game, and Al never dominated the way he is used to this season.

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R.I.P. Coach Anderson

20 Feb

Consortium 82 vs. Robichaud 48- I have to say, this was the most heart warming basketball game I have ever been to.  So many times in this time in this age, we here the bad things about high school sports such as illegal recruitment.  But this game showed the brighter side of high school sports.  On Saturday, the 16th of February, of the year 2012, the Consortium Cougars lost more than a coach, they lost a leader, a mentor, and a father.  From the time Al Anderson stepped in at Consortium, he has completely turned the program around.  Players like Travon Baker and Marin Mornar have all played for Coach Anderson, who not only provided them  a chance to continue their basketball careers, but to get an education.  Coach Anderson will be greatly missed, and I respect all the Consortium staff for not cancelling this game.

The Game

You could tell the Cougars wanted this one for Coach Al.  As freshman star Josh Jackson scored the first five points of the game to put the Cougars up 5-0 within the first :30 seconds of play.  The Cougars were able to extend there lead to double digits at 23-9 at the end of one.  Robichaud star Lorenzo Bonam struggled throughout most of the quarter, only scoring two points.  And things only got worse for Bonam.  With 6:45 left in the second, Bonam went up for what appeared to be a simple two handed dunk.  But on the landing, Lorenzo came down funny on his calf forcing him to depart from the game in which he never returned.  By the time that happened, momentum was swinging into the hand of Consortium.  They led 42-25 at half and by as much as 68-45 with 4:02 left in the fourth quarter.  The key to Consortium’s success was their ability to get into transition.  When you have athletic bigs such as Vince Hunter and Josh Jackson, and quick guards like Ronald Boothe, it can be deadly for any team.  Hunter finished up with 25 points and 14 rebounds.  Josh had 18 points and nine rebounds while also recording four blocks.  Ronald Boothe also chipped in with 11 points for the Cougars.

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2/16/12 Recaps

18 Feb

Consortium 81 vs. Dayton Dunbar 44- Dunbar is a pretty well-respected team in the State of Ohio.  But Consortium treated them like they were their little brother.  Freshman Josh Jackson had seven of his team’s first 13 points in the first quarter giving them a 21-8 lead at the end of one.  Consortium’s Vincent Hunter, a UTEP commit, gave Dunbar big man Damarion Geter fits all day in the post.  Consortium built up its lead up to 43-18 at half, and Dunbar was never able to get the deficit under twenty for the rest of the game.  Things got so bad for Dunbar, that a running clock had to be instilled in the fourth quarter.  Jackson finished up with 27 for Consortium, while Hunter added 24.  A.J. Harris led Dunbar scoring 12 points.

Southfield Christian 47 vs. Allen Park Inter-Ciy Baptist 46- Sophomore Bakari Evelyn saved his best for last scoring 11 of his game high 25 points for Christian in the final quarter.  Here is how the end of the game went.  Christian had the ball with about 15 seconds to play looking to win the game.  They missed the shot but got the rebound with less than a minute left to play.  So they thought.  The officials decided to put two more seconds on the clock and place the ball underneath the basket, making it a better angle for the final play.  What do you do with the game on the line, give the ball to your playmaker.  Evelyn lobbed a pass up to Damarco White and tipped it in for the final game winning score.  White finished up with only 6 because he had been in foul trouble throughout most of the game.  The win for Christian makes up for an earlier game this year where they lost to Baptist at the buzzer.  Evan Kraatz had 21 Inter-City.

Notes

Game 1: If they is one flaw is Josh Jackson’s game people criticize about it is his jump shot.  But that could not be criticized today.  Jackson seemed to pull up wherever he wanted to, making five three-point shots.  Josh reminded me of LeBron James today.  He played about four positions, and did not only score the ball.  He also acted like a facilitator, and a rebounder in the winning effort.  Both traits recruiters look for in a player.

Game 2: Evelyn has the skills beyond his years.  Not only did he play well on the offensive end, but in crunch time in the fourth quarter.  The sophomore stepped upped and played ferocious defense on Kratz of Baptist.  Before that, it seemed as if Kratz was getting anything he wanted with the previous defenders that guarded him.  But not until Bakari checked him.  Forcing Kraatz to have to give the ball to his teammates instead of doing whatever he pleased with the ball.

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Detroit PSL Semi-Finals Recap

13 Feb

Cass Tech 61 vs. Southeastern 60: There was no better ending to a basketball game than what happened at Cass Tech on Tuesday the 12th of February.  Trailing by double digits with a little over six minutes left in the game, most in the arena were ready to head to the parking lot.  But not SE.  Javon Haines single-handedly brought the Jungaleers back into the game, hitting a huge three at the mid-way point to cut the score to only 57-54.  Now here is how the ending went.  Cass Tech made a huge turnover with 26 seconds left in the game to give Southeastern the ball back.  SE missed the first shot on their possession, but junior Darryl Bigham was their for the put back with under 11 seconds to play.  With no timeouts remaining, Cass senior point guard D’Andre Johnson drove into the paint but was no good.  A following put back attempt by fellow senior Kyle Steward was good however, giving CT the win and sending them to Calihan Hall on Friday night.

Pershing 50 vs. Douglass 40: Similar to the earlier SE Cass game, a team attempted to make a comeback but was not to be.  Both teams struggled throughout the entire game to get into any offensive rhythm.  However, in the fourth is where things changed.  The score was 34-24 Pershing after three, but Douglass was able to make it 42-37 with 1:30 left in the contest.  But Douglass turned the ball over too much in that time span giving Pershing the hard-fought victory.

Notes

Game 1: Javon Haines might not be the tallest player on the court, but plays with huge amounts of passion.  The senior guard contributed 24 of his teams 60 points.  That is over a 1/3 of their total points!  He has the skills individually to create offense for himself at any time.  An absolute monster on the floor.  I have seen SE play many times this year, and sometimes he is the only one scoring.  I would say that he is a nice D2 prospect.  Daryl Bigham of the Jugaleers I could tell has made great strides throughout the entire season.  Against Cass he proved that he is a reliable forward who a team can dump the ball to in order to get points.  For Cass, D’Andre Johnson started of slow, but in the end finished with 19 hard earned points.

Game 2: The lone bright spot in this game for Fred D was the defensive performance was of junior Andre Frederick.  At times it looked like Pershing star junior Justin Tillman wanted no part of Andre.  Frederick has quick feet that makes him even a threat on the perimeter to block shots.  Has an improving offensive game, but defense wins championships.

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