Five Takeaways: Melrose vs. Potter’s House Christian
The Melrose Golden Wildcats dispatched of visiting Potter’s House Christian (FL) Saturday afternoon, 69-47.
The Floridians were just pummeled by Melrose early and the bleeding didn’t stop late.
Tempo
Melrose has impressive quickness throughout their lineup. They can break presses or get by defenders on the dribble. The Golden Wildcats won by burning by Potter’s House in tight spaces.
Beyond the quick guards, Memphis Melrose also features some quick forwards. Marcus Lee and Duane Posey kind of attack as forwards. They are both quick with the first step.
They are not good playing slow. Smart guards control tempo and understand time and score. As good as they played to capture the early lead Melrose was that bad at taking smart shots late. Considering the dominance of the Melrose guards and wings the game should have been a cozy win, but too often the Golden Wildcats took 25′ foot shots and rushed.
Melrose now up 37-19 3Q. Potter's House has a little more fire, but lacking on the defensive glass.
— Prep Hoops Tennessee (@PrepHoopsTN) December 9, 2017
Shoot it Ricky
Ricky Shotwell hit five triples. As deep as Shotwell’s three-point attempts tending to be, you can not argue with the results. Shotwell is ostensibly a point guard, but he sure loves to knock down the outside shot.
It would be nice if he learned the difference between a good shot and a bad shot, but sometimes shooter’s just need to shoot.
Shotwell looks like a nice component for the Melrose squad.
After Melrose’s win the Memphis-area teams improved to 2-0 in the Memphis vs. The World Extravaganza.
Discipline
Attributes of great teams generally include disciplined guards. As mentioned above, Melrose’s guards took over a dozen forced shots. When winning big the payback generally never materializes, but it could be a harbinger of bigger problems down the line.
Memphis teams routinely face ferocious, hungry competition throughout the winter months. Forcing shots against good or great teams will get you that quick “L”.
Rebounding
The rebounding of Melrose in the win was encouraging. They attack the glass from almost every point on the floor. Offensive rebounding is about quickness, strength, and hunger. When your team succeeds on the offensive glass good things happen. One time in the third quarter, Potter’s House Christian allowed Melrose four bites of the apple.
Hunger and passion are important for basketball success. Melrose appears to feed off enthusiasm. This bodes well for future rivalry contests.
The Future
Duane Posey is a really interesting prospect. The 6-foot-5 sophomore has all the tools of a future college player. He has good size. Posey is quick with the ball and springy at the rim.
There are certainly elements to his game that need to improve, but at this stage Duane Posey is on track for a promising basketball career.
This season Posey is routinely hauling down double-digit rebounds. His future will be a college wing, but he dominates on the glass at this level. He also has several 20+ point games on his high school resume.
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