10 Questions That WIll Define State Finals
PrepHoopsIllinois dives into the 3A and 4A state finals with our previews. Here are 10 Questions That Will Define State Finals this weekend! What Unsigned Seniors Will Make a Strong Final Impression? PHI is focused heavily on recruiting and…
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Continue ReadingPrepHoopsIllinois dives into the 3A and 4A state finals with our previews. Here are 10 Questions That Will Define State Finals this weekend!
What Unsigned Seniors Will Make a Strong Final Impression?
PHI is focused heavily on recruiting and this will be the last meaningful games for many unsigned seniors across the state. The marquee one is Bogan’s Rashaun Agee who is the best available post prospect in the class. There are a lot more to track. In 3A college coaches at various levels should be watching Raheem Anthony (DePaul Prep), Jordan Booker (Bogan), Elijah Rice (East St. Louis), Richard Robinson (East St. Louis), Cornellius Leflore (East St. Louis), and Quintez Edwards (Peoria Manual). For colleges checking out the 4A action uncommitted seniors with college futures include Jahiem Holden (Evanston), Christopher Burnell (Rockford East), Sha’den Clanton (Rockford East), Lawrence Brazil (Belleville West), Will Shumpert (Belleville West), Jaylin Mosby (Belleville West), Trevon Hamilton (Curie), Damari Nixon (Curie), and Justin Harmon (Curie).
Will EJ Liddell Make History?
Liddell won Mr. Basketball and a 4A state championship last season. He is right on the cusp of doing it again! The Belleville West power forward is the prohibited favorite for Mr. Basketball and with two wins will win back to back state championships. He is the most dominating force in high school basketball this season in Illinois. The Ohio State commit will have Curie up first which will be their biggest test of the season.
Chicago Go 4 for 4?
Last weekend Providence St. Mel and Orr won the small school championships. This weekend the city of Chicago will have the opportunity to sweep all four classes. In 3A they will have at least one team in the final as DePaul Prep and Bogan meet in the semis. For 4A it is all about Curie. This would be unprecedented if the city swept all four classes of state titles.
Can Pee Wee Brown Continue to Epic Scoring?
Pee Wee Brown from Manual has been a bit up and down throughout his career in high school and on the circuit. He is certainly on a tear right now. The junior two guard averaged 17 points per game during the season, but has gone well over that in recent games to lead his team to the final four. If they want to make a run at the crown he will need to have an epic weekend.
Will Sincere Parker See Recruitment Take Off?
We watched Rockford East’s win over Geneva in the super sectionals. Sincere Parker is a junior wing that we were high on after the summer, but his stock continues to soar. He was outstanding scoring with a fluid jumper and getting to the rack. This is a weekend that Parker could not only pick up offers, but set himself up for a big spring by creating buzz.
Can Curie Capture Both City and State?
It is extremely rare for teams in Chicago to win both the city and state championships. That means essentially going 13-0 through two extremely tough fields. Curie is now in position to do just that. They knocked off CPS powers Whitney Young and Simeon the last two games. Now they will take on defending champs Belleville West in the semis. If they do it Curie has went through one heck of a road to get the two trophies.
Will Evanston Take The Last Step?
Evanston was outstanding last season making it to state with a group many thought was a year ahead of schedule. Their dynamic senior backcourt of Lance Jones, Ryan Bost, and Jahiem Holden bring experience. The stellar sophomores of Blake Peters, Jaylin Gibson, Isaiah Holden, and Louis Lesmond provide youth that are ready to make impacts. Peters and Gibson played major roles in their trip to state last year. This year they want to finish it off with the crown.
Can the Metro East Go 2 for 2 in 3A and 4A?
While everyone is talking about a potential Chicago sweep the metro east has a serious opportunity to bring back a pair of titles to the Southwestern Conference. East St. Louis has been a squad we have seen a lot this year and felt they would be ready to make a run. They got over a huge hurdle beating Springfield Southeast in their city to win the super sectional. Now they get Manual in their city in the semis. If they win that a Chicago power awaits in the finals. Belleville West did it last year and will look to repeat in 4A. EJ Liddell, Keith Randolph, and Lawrence Brazil all return! Their toughest game in Peoria might be the first against Curie. The Maroons played a vaunted schedule this year that has prepared them for this moment.
Will College Court Help Bogan?
Bogan head coach Arthur Goodwin has always talked about how his teams would play best on a big college court. They get two of them at Carver Arena. You can see why he would say that with the speed of Jeremiah Washington and Jordan Booker. They have a lot of rim running bigs led by Rashaun Agee and athletic wings that can dominate in the open floor.
How will Rest Help/Hurt DePaul Prep?
DePaul Prep has one of the most unique roads to Peoria in history. They didn’t play a super sectional game because of the fight with Farragut/North Lawndale which disqualified both teams. The rest is good because well quite frankly they didn’t risk any injuries or more miles on the tires with another late season game. You could say it will hurt with them being a little rusty not playing a game in a week. Overall we think DePaul Prep will benefit from this time off and be ready to go against a Bogan team that wants to get up and down.