Pontiac Tournament Preview
In our series of Holiday Tournament Previews we look at the top events across the state! The Pontiac Holiday Tournament will run from December 28 to December 30. Check out the opening round matchups, prospects to watch, and our picks!
Opening Round Matchups (December 28)
9:00 AM West Aurora vs Warren
10:30 AM Curie vs Niles West
1:00 PM OPRF vs Lockport
2:30 PM Bloomington vs Joliet West
4:00 PM Benet vs Peoria Manual
6:00 PM Danville vs Plainfield North
7:30 PM Simeon vs Pontiac
9:00 PM St. Charles North vs Bloom
Best Unsigned Senior
SG Zion Young (Simeon)
Young is a freak athlete with strength at the two guard position. He plays above the rim and is great getting out in transition. Deep range on his three point shot and is just a born scorer. Rebounds well for position. Young should be tracked by mid-major and low-majors at Pontiac.
Top Prospect
SF Talen Horton-Tucker (Simeon)
THT is the #2 overall prospect in the 2018 class. The small forward is extremely versatile and stuffs the stat sheet every single game. He can handle it with crafty drives getting to the rim off the bounce. The senior also has range on his shot out to three and passes it extremely well from the forward spot. Iowa State is getting a good one!
Most Intriguing Young Prospect
Bloom 2020 Quartet
Bloom has four 2020 prospects that all rank as potential D1 prospects early in the process. Donovan Newby runs the show from the point guard position. On the wings Keshawn Williams and Dante Maddox can really score at a high rate. Inside center Martice Mitchell has huge upside.
Most to Gain at Tournament
PF Kyle King (St. Charles North)
A couple years ago a guard from St. Charles North put on a show. Look for King to do it this year. The fundamentally sound post can score with his back to the basket with great footwork. So efficient inside. Needs to be on more D2 radars!
Final Four Picks and Champion
This event probably has the most top end talent of any in the state with five teams that might be among the ten best overall in the state. We are going to go with the top seed and right now the best team in the state in Simeon. They have the best player in THT and a ton of senior depth.
Simeon (Champion)
Curie
Bloomington
Danville
Top Prospects
G Camron Donatlan (West Aurora – 2018)
PG Branden Ellis (Warren – 2018)
PG Maurice Commander (Curie – 2018)
PF Tyree Martin (Curie – 2018)
PF Treavon Martin (Curie – 2018)
SG Jayden Gasby (Curie – 2018)
PG Marquise Walker (Curie – 2019)
SG Justin Harmon (Curie – 2019)
SG Dajuan Gordon (Curie – 2019)
SG Ramean Hinton (Curie – 2020)
PG Isaiah Fuller (OPRF – 2018)
PF Charlie Hoehne (OPRF – 2019)
PG Dashon Enoch (OPRF – 2019)
PF Chris Payton (Bloomington – 2019)
PG Chris Pugh (Bloomington – 2018)
PG Patrick Fisher (Bloomington – 2018)
PG Michael Smith (Joliet West – 2018)
SG Charles McKinney (Joliet West – 2018)
PF Colin Crothers (Benet – 2020)
SG Deonta Brown (Manual – 2018)
SG Rolando Brown (Manual – 2020)
PG Kendle Moore (Danville – 2018)
SG Sean Houpt (Danville – 2019)
SF Tevin Smith (Danville – 2021)
SF Brady Miller (Plainfield North – 2018)
SF Talen Horton-Tucker (Simeon – 2018)
SG Zion Young (Simeon – 2018)
PF Messiah Jones (Simeon – 2018)
PG Xavier Pinson (Simeon – 2018)
SG Kenny Pittman (Simeon – 2018)
PG Kejuan Clements (Simeon – 2019)
SG Ahmad Bynum (Simeon – 2021)
PF Kyle King (St. Charles North – 2018)
SF Cade Callaghan (St. Charles North – 2018)
PG Jake Ludwig (St. Charles North – 2018)
C Connor Linke (St. Charles North – 2020)
SG Keshawn Williams (Bloom – 2020)
SG Dante Maddox (Bloom – 2020)
C Martice Mitchell (Bloom – 2020)
PG Donovan Newby (Bloom – 2020)
Event Website