5 Takeaways: North Chicago vs Corliss
The second game of the day at the Adam Lopez Thanksgiving Tournament featured two teams from Chicago in Corliss and North Chicago. There were a lot of turnovers and some sloppy play overall in this one. Several prospects shined in North Chicago’s 68-63 win over Corliss and Iowa St commit George Conditt. Here are our 5 Takeaways: North Chicago vs Corliss.
North Chicago Zones, Pressure, and Team Defense
North Chicago did a great job in this game switching defenses and keeping Corliss on their toes. Started out in a zone which Corliss couldn’t score against. Their man to man team defense was great as well causing turnovers which led to points on the other end. They also used a nice full court press at times to force Corliss’ guards to make bad decisions. Great defensive coaching!
Emergence of North Chicago 2019 Post
We were very impressed with the first half performance of North Chicago 2019 power forward Achaun Clinton. The 6’8” broad shouldered junior went toe to toe with the premier post in the senior class and held him to three points in the first half. Great build on this young prospect. Very active on the defensive end with his hands getting deflections and steals. Also got a nice block. Gobbled up boards in his area at a high rate. Offensively he hit a pair of 15 foot face up jumpers. For whatever reason he didn’t play a ton in the second half. Finished with 6 points, but will see his name appear in our next 2019 rankings.
North Chicago’s Guard Depth
North Chicago doesn’t have one star player, but they have a nice group of guards that are athletic and play within the system. Kenneth Pryor-Richardson led the way in this game with 15 points scoring in transition and on some jumpers including a big corner three. Tyrek Cooper went for 17 in the win. Quincy Gilmore, Syshone Lymone, and Pierce Coleman all showed flashes and contributed to the win.
PLEASE GET GEORGE CONDITT THE BALL
I will never understand how guards at the high school level can’t feed the post. In the first half the top 5 2018 prospect in Illinois George Conditt had just a few post touches period. Yes they were playing zone, but still he is a very good passer that can get shots for others! Their guards kept jacking up shots. Conditt went to work in the second half. He got more space to work and started calling for the ball. The Iowa State commit converted several dunks and had a nice up and under. Did drop a few passes that would have been slams if held onto the ball. He passed it well out of the post finding teammates. Beast on the offensive glass with his quick second jump. A lot of his points came on put backs. Rebounded at a very high rate. Defensively he used his length to get multiple blocks and steals. Finished with 20 points, 16 rebounds, 3 blocks, 4 dimes, and 4 steals.
Good Test for Corliss for Down the Road
Corliss is now 1-2 after playing one game at the Washington TOC where they beat a good St. Louis Whitfield squad. Despite struggling in Springfield this four game stretch to start the season will help them tremendously down the line! They won’t see this type of competition in league play and will help them be ready come March in 2A.