#HARDWORKSZN KICKOFF: Friday Recaps
6:00 (15u): Iowa Mavericks-Elgin 56 vs J-Hawk Attack 48
The guys from Cedar Rapids Jefferson hung tough for the first half, and trailed by just four, 27-23, heading into the break. But the second half would belong to the talented Iowa Mavs group, led by Cedar Rapids Kennedy stretch-four CG Mills, who after impressing last weekend in Madison, was back at it again tonight, going for a team-high 14 points in the win. For the J-Hawks it was Dkahai Pope who impressed, the Cedar Rapids Jefferson freshman scored a game-high 15 points and was getting buckets in a multitude of ways.
Jerry Deng
7:05 (15u): BBA Force 64 vs Powerhouse Hoops-Lawton 44
Jerry Deng was the best player we saw today in Omaha, and his BBA Force squad was in full control of this one from start to finish. Deng, a lengthy and athletic 6’6 wing, put in a game-high 20 points during the rout, and was simply too big and too skilled for the Nebraska team to contain. Other standouts for BBA (a South Dakota squad) were 6’5 stretch-four Tash Lundhay and combo-guard Cade Schetzel .Isaac Mickle was a key player for the Lincoln, NE group, he was scoring from deep and at the rim en route to a game-high 17 points.
PJ Davis
8:10 (15u): Team Factory Gold 57 vs J-Hawk Attack 28
This Team Factory Gold team is certainly among the favorites to win the title at this event, and this game was a good indicator of that. The Nebraska squad is loaded from top to bottom and used an impressively balanced scoring attack to get by the team from Iowa’s Cedar Rapids Jefferson High School. PJ Davis, a heady 6’2 guard was the leading scorer for Team Factory, he went for 11 points in the 29-point mercy-rule win. Jake Orr was another very strong guard for Team Factory, the Omaha Roncalli freshman scored 10 in the win. For J-Hawk Attack, it was again Dkahi Pope that led the way, the athletic guard scored in a multitude of ways and notched a team-high 10 points in the loss.
Julian Price
9:15 (15u): Illinois Huskies Select 82 vs Iowa Mavs-Julien 75
This was the most entertaining game of the day, especially for those who prefer offense to defense. The ball was flying up and down the court, and transition buckets were plentiful. The Illinois squad, though, just so happened to be the better team in transition during this one. It was Hyde Park Academy’s Julian Price who was especially adept in transition (and virtually every other part of his game), he went off in the second half for 16 points, helping to keep the comeback-minded Iowa team at bay. Jaxson Young from Linn-Mar was exceptional for the Mavs, especially in the second half, when he scored 15, but it just wasn’t enough to get by the guys from Chicago.