6A State Tournament First Day: Night Session Top Performers
There wasn’t a lot of drama on the first day of the 6A Tournament at the Chiles Center in Portland. But even though the games may not have been close, there were definitely some impressive performances. Here’s a quick look…
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Continue ReadingThere wasn’t a lot of drama on the first day of the 6A Tournament at the Chiles Center in Portland. But even though the games may not have been close, there were definitely some impressive performances. Here’s a quick look at who did well in the last two games of the day, Jefferson’s win over Grant and South Salem’s victory over Tigard.
Nate Rawlins-Kibonge (2021 Jefferson) – Stats: 18 pts, 19 reb, 3 ast, 7 blk, 8-for-10 fg
Rawlins-Kibonge was the star of the night. The 6-foot-7 big man was absolutely dominant on both ends for Jefferson and pretty much did whatever he wanted to in the paint. Rawlins-Kibonge grabbed rebounds both in and out of his own area and defensively, was a terror with his shot-blocking, one block in particular pinned against the rim drew plenty of oohs and ahhs from the crowd. Offensively his game is still a work in progress, but he worked hard underneath and fought hard on the offensive glass (six offensive rebounds).
Kamron Robinson (2021 Jefferson) – Stats: 18 pts, 5 reb, 3 ast, 2 blk, 8-for-13 fg
If Rawlins-Kibonge was Batman than Robinson certainly served as a great Robin. The 6-foot-8 sophomore was also unstoppable down low offensively, using his soft touch to score down low. Robinson continues to look more sleek with his body and more agile each time we see him and on one fast break, he got out and threw down a dunk, something that is starting to become more a part of his game. Robinson also joined in on the block party with a couple of rejections and accumulated three assists in Jefferson’s high-low game.
Marcus Tsohonis (2019 Jefferson) – Stats: 22 pts, 4 reb, 3 ast, 9-for-14 fg
It was another day at the office for Tsohonis, who missed last year’s state tournament with a broken hand. Other than a couple of ill-advised threes, the 6-foot-4 Washington signee’s shot selection was solid as he used his body to create and finish with his patented flip floaters around the hoop. Tsohonis has stated that he wants to make up for not being able to play last year and he more than made up for things against Grant.
Keylin Vance (2019 Jefferson) – Stats: 14 pts, 5 reb in 15 min
Vance has been dubbed “The Microwave” by head coach Pat Strickland for his ability to heat up quickly and he certainly got it going when he got into the game, sinking a three in his very first shot. As usual, Vance was very aggressive offensively taking the ball to the basket in transition, and finishing in creative ways, often changing his shot in the air before the release.
Trevon Richmond (2019 Jefferson) – Stats: 6 pts, 4 reb, 6 ast
Richmond didn’t have the biggest numbers but had a profound impact when he was in the game as he pushed the ball on offense, and was very effective in transition getting it to guys for easy buckets. The 6-foot guard as always played extremely hard and fought hard on the boards and on defense.
Aaron Deloney (2019 Grant) – Stats: 25 pts, 3 reb, 5 stl
Deloney ended up with 25 points but it took 24 shots to get there, including a dismal 1-for-11 from three-point range. The 6-foot guard just simply couldn’t get things going from deep but he did a very nice job of getting to the basket and finishing creatively, many times absorbing contact along the way. The Vermont signee also had a couple of nice looking passes that weren’t converted into baskets or he would have ended up with more than just two assists.
Max von Arx (2021 Grant) – Stats: 12 pts, 3 reb, 3 ast, 6-for-10 fg
While Deloney and Ty Rankin graduate, Grant’s cupboard is far from empty because players like von Arx return. The 6-foot-4 (and reportedly still growing) freshman played confidently against Jefferson’s big guys, taking the ball aggressively to the basket and converting a number of buckets near the hoop. von Arx also helped distribute the ball with three assists against only one turnover.
Jaden Nielsen-Skinner (2019 South Salem) – Stats: 20 pts, 6 reb, 2 ast, 5-for-12 fg
“Skinny” pretty much had his typical game in terms of final statistics, but the truth was he didn’t shoot as many threes and didn’t finish the game with as many assists. But the Portland State signee was in full control of the game and in the end as the Saxons were killing clock, it was impossible for Tigard to get the ball away from him. Nielsen-Skinner aggressively took the ball to the basket and was able to finish over Tigard’s taller players inside.
Trey Galbraith (2020 South Salem) – Stats: 17 pts, 3 reb, 5-for-10 fg
Galbraith may be small at 5-foot-8, but he is incredibly crafty with the basketball and also plays with absolutely no fear. The junior hit a couple of bombs from the outside, but when in isolation against his defender, would fight hard to get to the basket and score over sometimes much taller defenders. Galbraith didn’t finish with any assists but he’s a capable ball-handler who can switch off with Skinny at the point.
Drew Carter (2021 Tigard) – Stats: 15 pts, 7 reb, 6-for-14 fg, 3-for-9 3pt
When he squares up and has his feet set, Carter has one of the prettier looking jump shots in the state. He was able to can a few threes and pull-ups and there were a few more that were just off the mark. With South Salem focusing in on Stevie Schlabach (who was limited to seven points), Carter stepped up offensively the best that he could.
Diego Lopez (2019 Tigard) – Stats: 11 pts, 3 reb, 5-for-10 fg
Tigard hung around for most of the game and Lopez was a big reason why. The 6-foot-1 senior would often respond to any South Salem score with a bucket of his own, typically off a tough drive to the basket. There were a couple more that just missed but Lopez played aggressively and while he has been more of a glue guy, his offense was definitely needed on this night.