Day 2 of the National Prep Showcase was full of competitive games
These are Saturdays final scores:
Fork Union Military Academy (VA) over Bridgton Academy (ME) 63-56
Hargrave Military Academy (VA) over St. Thomas More School (CT) 85-63
Scotland Campus Sports Academy (PA) over IMG Academy (FL) 82-70
Massanutten Military Academy (VA) over Northfield Mount Hermon School (MA) 79-71
Brewster Academy (NH) over Link Year Prep (MO) 110- 74
Montverde Academy CBD Prep (FL) over New Hampton School (NH) 74-70
Sunrise Christian Academy (KS) over Putnam Science Academy (CT) 79-73
…and these were my standouts on the day:
Trey McGowens 6’3” 2019 SG Hargrave Military Academy- VA (Piedmont, SC)
For the second day in a row McGowens put up solid numbers. Following up on yesterday’s 19pts 3 treys performance McGowens put up 21pts 7reb 4asts 2stls and he did it with some flair. He attacked more off the bounce than he did yesterday challenging defenders to stop him and getting to the rack for contested layups. Instead of settling for out of range jumpers he instead used his decent handle to penetrate and when cutoff he had no problem dishing it off for the assist. He also battled inside getting his fair share of rebounds. On the defensive side of the ball he engaged with moxie and made some plays to help his team out all during their 22 point victory. I had him as a solid MM+ player with upside who needs to be more consistent throughout games and definitely needs to work on his FT’s as he went 4-8 today and 8-14 for the two games.
Anfernee Simons 6’4” SG IMG Academy- FL (Altamonte Springs, FL)
In his first game back yesterday Simons played a bit tentative which is understandable coming off an injury as he was clearly trying to test himself. Today though was a different story as he moved freely and it appeared without pain as he had 23pts 4 treys 2asts 2 stls despite losing to a talented Scotland Campus Sports squad. Simons has always been known as a shooter and on Friday you didn’t see it as he finished with 9pts 0 treys but here on Saturday teamed with 6’5” PG Eric Ayala (Maryland) who has that feel for setting him up in open space Simons was able to get to his spots and bury shots in his comfort zone. The one knock I’e had with Simons is that he’s a really good passer but he doesn’t always use that skill to his advantage instead he forces up shots when discretion might be the better part of valor. On this day though he took what the defense gave him and combined with Ayala (13pts 7reb 6asts) and 6’6” Jaylae Sebree (19pts 4 treys) to stay close until the end when they were forced to foul. For Simons though his recruitment is ongoing since he decommited from Louisville and as he continues to get healthier there should be no shortage of suitors for his considerable services.
Koreem Ozier 6’1” 2018 PG Scotland Campus Sports Academy- PA (Racine, WI)
After his Friday game I was intrigued by Ozier a player I had not previously seen and I must say I was impressed by his handling of his teams offense and the way directed his teammates in a game that was not very competitive for them. I jotted down some notes with the idea of viewing him on Saturday a little closer. I was not disappointed as he continued to show an excellent grasp of running the show from clock management (shot clock that is) and game situations. From when to push it and when to slow it down. After going for 13pts 3asts 3stls on Friday he doubled his scoring output especially at the FT line where he hit all 10 of his attempts with 6 of them in the last minute to push the lead to double digits in their win over IMG. He finished with 26pts nabbed 6reb and dished 5asts in a very impressive outing. His handle was tight and his vision and court awareness was exceptional. While playing a lot of minutes over the two days he had just 3 turnovers. Defensively he held his own despite his small frame and he clearly should get some additional D-1 interest based on his performance here in New Haven.
Max Lorca 6’8” 2019 PF Northfield Mount Hermon- MA (Brooklyn, NY)
In previous viewings of Lorca I had not been totally sold on him as he appeared soft and tentative and reluctant to play all out. Friday night was more of the same as he finished with 7pts 4reb and a block mixed in with 4 turnovers. Switch to Saturday and he started out with 2 turnovers and a layup against a tough Massanutten Military Academy side and I was thinking here we go again. Then something happened as he ran a back door play and received a beautiful alley-oop pass and slammed it home bringing his teammates to their feet and energizing the crowd and like a light switch Lorca began playing with the confidence that I thought he’s been missing as if he suddenly realized he was talented and could compete at this level. 18pts 10reb 2blks later Lorca left the floor with newfound confidence and was definitely not happy his team went down to defeat. He played with reckless abandon while running the court looking to do physical damage on the rims and he got tough in defending his goal playing tough hardnosed defense. He has a nice soft touch down on the blocks and he has extended that out to 15 feet plus he’s not a bad passer in the high post. With all that said and done we’ll see going forward if he can harness his game and take the necessary steps forward to consistently raise the level of his play and expand his recruitment on an upward trajectory.
Rasir Bolton (Penn State) 6’3” CG Massanutten Military Academy- VA (Richmond, VA)
Bolton is the true definition of the combo guard in that he has offensive skills to score the ball from slashing drives to perimeter jumpers but can also facilitate for his teammates as the situation dictates. If he has a fault though it’s in his propensity for launching deeeep high arching 3 pointers from beyond downtown as they say although he does make a few of them. In his 24 point 4 treys effort this afternoon he made 2 of these shots much to the delight of the crowd and his teammates but as a coach I think that’s the don’t shoot that…nice shot kind of thing. He’s jet quick getting from end to end and his floor vision is plenty decent to find the seem to drive or to find the opposite side cutter and deliver the dime for the bucket. He doesn’t shy away from playing defense and his stat line in this contest besides points was 4reb 3asts 2stls which are not to shabby considering the level of talent on the floor. When all was said and done Massanutten walked away with an 8 point win while NMH was probably still shaking their heads over those made moon balls that Bolton tossed in.
Kevin Zhang 6’9” 2018 SF Montverde Academy CBD Prep- FL (Beijing, China)
Watching Zhang the last 2 years at LaLumiere School in Indiana my thought was he could be a low to MM player as a 6’9” stretch 4. He seemed to be one dimensional and rarely ventured into the painted area and definitely shied away from contact. The other thing obviously was minutes played as he didn’t get a lot and of course if you don’t produce you head back to the bench. Fast forward to a new school Montverde’s Prep Team and I have to say he looked like a completely different player. He was quite active all over the court and I’d have to say this may have been a coming out party of sorts. He showed nice range out to the arc which was always in his repertoire but also a willingness to go down low and actually bang with people. He ran the floor with purpose and didn’t force things and he nailed a couple turnaround jumpers that were very impressive. His stat line in a 4 point win over New Hampton School read 25pts 4reb 3stls 2blks and 2asts and if he continues to put up these kind of numbers I can see his recruitment expanding into the HM category.
That wraps up Saturday coverage from the National Prep Showcase.