On Tuesday afternoon Coach Rick Barnes received a huge verbal commitment from elite prospect Tristan Thompson from the class of 2010. He had the option to attend any school that he wanted to in the country with his unlimited upside. He was receiving interested from some of the elite programs in land before pulling the trigger for Texas. Read the rest of this entry »
Brandon Knight is an elite prospect from the class of 2010 who is ranked in the top 5 players in the class. He is a combo guard that stands 6′3 with a long frame.
Brandon is still trying to work his self back into playing shape after missing the first 2 months of the season due to a surgery. He started this game out a little slow but really picked it up in the 2nd quarter finishing the half with 18 points. He scored most of points off of his jumper along with a couple of takes to the basket.
He continued his scoring in the start of the 2nd half with more takes to the rim and his 3 point shot. He played most of the 3rd quarter before sitting out the 4th quarter since it was a blowout. He finished the night with 26 points and 10 rebounds. He looked like he was getting his legs back and showed why he is one of the elite guards in his class. He has a very smooth game with a high basketball I.Q. and plays tough defense. He has good form on his jumper and range out to the 3 point range.
Brandon is definitely a prospect to watch out for in the next couple of years.
St. Benedicts (NJ) continues to roll early on this season they defeated South Atlanta (GA) on Friday night 57 to 43.
On the night after his huge triple-double, Derrick Favors found himself going up against a huge front-line for St. Benedicts. He got into early foul trouble and never real seemed to get into the flow of the game.
Samardo Samuels had a big night playing on a bad ankle he was still able to get 17 points and 16 rebounds.
Greg Echenique (2009) finished with 16 points and played some tough defense against Favors. Tamir Jackson continued his steady play since the Oak Hill game finishing the night with 16 points.
Game 3 - St. Benedict’s (NJ) vs. Kinston (NC) 72 to 44
St. Benedict’s comes into this game after an easy victory on opening night of the tournament looking to continue their dominance. They are ranked #1 in the USA Today’s newest poll.
The Gray Bee’s came out early and set the tone for the game going inside right from the start to dominate. They used a healthy dose of double trouble in Samardo Samuels and Greg Echenique on the inside.
The 1st half was a balanced attack from St. Benedict’s with six players scoring in the half. The leading scorer in the half was Samardo Samuels who had 11 points and 6 rebounds. Reggie Bullock had 9 points and 4 rebounds for Kinston.
St. Benedict’s was able to hold Kinston to a minimal 22 points in the first half with their tough nosed defense. The score at the half was 36 to 22.
The 2nd half started the same as the beginning of the game with the Gray Bee’s holding Kinston to just 7 points in the 3rd quarter as they went on to score 15 points. The game plan continued to be the same get the ball inside.
The game was over by the middle of the 4th quarter with St. Benedict’s cruising to a victory and moving onto the semi-finals round.
The leading scorers for St. Benedict’s were Samardo Samuels with 26 points on 8-16 shooting and 10 rebounds, Tamir Jackson with 15 points on 4-10 shooting, Greg Echenique with 12 points on 5-7 shooting and 8 rebounds and Tristin Thompson a 6′8 combo forward from the class of 2010 who has an amazing upside finished with 8 points and 9 rebounds.
The leaders for Kinston were 2010 standout Reggie Bullock who is a long athletic 2 guard with a lot of upside and a nice feel for the game. He finished with 16 points on 6-11 shooting and 6 rebounds. Another player who showed some promise was 2010 wing Dallas Best who totaled 10 points on 3-5 shooting and 4 rebounds.
In the end St. Benedict’s had just too much fire power on the inside to contain earning an easy victory 72 to 44. They continue to dominate the competition at the event with their combination of guards and power on the inside.
