KC Hardwood Classic: Thursday Recaps
Prep Hoops will be a fixture at the KC Hardwood Classic this week with a few different writers following the action. Here is your Thursday recap of the action.
Team Get Shook 53 Kingdom Hoops Elite 30 (15u).
The fourth ranked team in Minnesota dominated the action pushing ahead by double figures early and never looking back. The lead talent was Juwan Grant pushing the pace and attacking for scores or smoothing getting middle to find teammates. Carvon Gurley intimidated opponents with his toughness and verbally led his group while next to him Anthony Ukofia scored around the cup. DeAndre Miller used his strong and compact frame to score inside/out and 8th grader Treyton Thompson of Alexander used his length in a 6-foot-7 frame to finish.
South Dakota Storm 70 SSA Elite White 64 (16u).
The South Dakota Storm played their 30th game of the season last night (more than any other 16u team in South Dakota) and defended their number two ranking in the PHD area by handling a tough opponent from Wichita. With coaches from Augustana, Sioux Falls, and Northern State watching close a teammate effort led the Storm to this key win. Young Karter Lien from Harrisburg had early threes (a 2020 playing up) and Justin Hohm threw a couple gorgeous assists after pick and rolls. Kade Stearns played hard defensively and hit threes but the biggest contributions likely came from 6-foot-3 rolling thunder bug Kaleb Joffer from Tea Area. Joffer was the screen setter of the night, the best player in getting and holding post position, and his late finishes including an And1 in the final minute was the game winner.
Howard Pulley 62 Beyond Ball-IA 34 (15u).
The Pulley Panthers completely dominated the Iowa team with a full court pressuring attack that led to a quick lead and a scared opponent. At 6-foot-4 and long, East Ridge 2021 guard Kendall Brown was the point man on the press running to double and forcing problems. Brown is a high potential freshman to be and he teamed with Jax Madson for early scores. Madson, from Mankato East, hit two first half threes and a floater showing the skills and smarts of a coach’s kid. Inside Jalen Travis was unstoppable on the low block getting position where he wanted and turning over his left shoulder for right hand hooks. This game was a domination by the Panthers from start to finish.
Oklahoma Wolves 81 TNL Express 79 (16u).
We caught the tail end of the TNL overtime loss to the Wolves but we saw enough to know that Deszie Sims has a scoring feel that comes with a constant drive to compete every day. This young man’s speed off his first dribble was not stopped by the Oklahoma kids all game and he was scoring over help defenders constantly. Sims, from Minneapolis Roosevelt, also hit a clutch jumper late to get the game into overtime.
Mpls FAB 59 Oklahoma Rams 28 (17u).
The young FAB squad plays up at 17u but only half of the team is going to be seniors next year. The FAB defensive pressure forced the Rams into more turnovers for the game than they had field goal attempts resulting in a FAB lay-up line. Jalen Miller, a 2019 from Cooper, grabbed the attention of scouts and coaches watching hitting early and late three-pointers with a lot of smooth completions in between. Trokon Massey’s forward attack was not stopped so he finished at the cup regularly and Dorrell Bratton, a St. Croix Lutheran 2018 guard, did everything. We watched Bratton handle the ball for his team, he defended lead guards and power forwards, and then Bratton used his athletic ability and toughness to go the other way and score in the paint.
MoKan 61 Iowa Barnstormers 58 (17u).
With Jontay Porter noticeably absent (Roman Wilson as well), MoKan defended the EYBL short-handed beating an Iowa Barnstormers team that had all of their studs 61-58. The game changed when the Barnstormer pace setter AJ Green dislocated a finger and had to sit for some time. Green came back in and score but MoKan had the late momentum to finish the contest. Malik Hall and Israel Barnes shouldered more of the scoring load and did enough attacking space and completing plays. Iowa forward Elijah Hazekamp opened eyes with his performance and Joey Hauser was solid in front of Michigan State, Marquette, Wisconsin, and Notre Dame.
The City Rocks 66 Howard Pulley 65 OT (17u).
This is a rematch from the EYBL opener that was won by the City Rocks. Howard Pulley went on a 13 game winning streak in EYBL play after the early loss and a number one ranking. Pulley had an 18 point game from Gabe Kalscheur and 17 points from Tre Jones but the Panthers weren’t able to get momentum going quick enough. 2019 Isaiah Stewart put up 16 points and 16 rebounds inside physically moving where he wanted against future Gophers Daniel Oturu and Jarvis Thomas. MoKan got a dozen threes from five different guys and point guard Greg Dolan had a hand in most hitting three himself and assisting on others (6 assists). Jeenathan Williams scored 11 for The City Rocks.