This upcoming Saturday, Phenom Hoops will travel to Carmel Christian School in Matthews, North Carolina, for our annual Carmel MLK Showcase. The one-day event will feature four games with plenty of intrigue throughout the slate. As teams enter the second half of their season, each game carries that much more weight. This will be one of the last stretches before the start of conference play, so any type of momentum is vital during this time. Let’s take a closer look, moving onto Carmel and Independence…
Although they might not receive as much attention as other squads, Independence is quietly having a season worth noting. In addition to their impressive mix of juniors and seniors, Coach Davis remains among the best coaches in the high school space. Their junior trio of Christian Jones, Laurence Black, and Lusemo Macharia has been fantastic, accounting for over half of the Patriots’ total scoring. After watching each guy several times over the recent years, it’s easy to see the strides they’ve made this season. However, seniors Dylan McFarland, King Rhodes, and Sawyer Fike give this squad several battle-tested veterans. While they have multiple pieces who can step up on a given night, that rotation of six does a terrific job of setting the tone for this group.
Meanwhile, the hosting Cougars have found consistent success behind the leadership of James Wood and Logan Johnson. Wood has provided a much-needed scoring punch as a strong, skilled guard who can assert himself from all levels. Johnson is a crafty, shot-making guard who can put pressure on defenses in a variety of different ways. That being said, this team has quality depth. Guys like Myles Vicks, Jesh Gutierrez, Hunter Gerould, Landon Haggarty, Jayden Griffin, Noah Noch, Tommy Kaminski, and Grayson Riebe all find opportunities for this squad. Given the talent on both sides, the nightcap should definitely be worth the price of admission.