LSI Final Day: Top Performers
On the final day of the Les Schwab Invitational, six in-state teams took the court at Liberty High School in Hillsboro. It was high-quality basketball and it gave us a great sense of who will be contenders come March as…
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Continue ReadingOn the final day of the Les Schwab Invitational, six in-state teams took the court at Liberty High School in Hillsboro. It was high-quality basketball and it gave us a great sense of who will be contenders come March as we approach the state tournaments.
Crater 64, Churchill 53
The day started off with a Midwestern League battle between Crater and Churchill and the Comets went early and often to their horse, Nate Bittle, to secure the victory. Bittle scored a game-high 31 points, effectively utilizing his height advantage over the Lancers to get buckets time after time. Churchill countered the best they could but they couldn’t match up with Crater, who enjoyed their experience at the Les Schwab for the very first time.
“It was just amazing,” said Crater head coach Chris Schmerbach. “It’s just a very well-run tournament and it was everything that it lived up to be. I’ve been coaching high school basketball now for over a decade and I’d never been and we’re really blessed because we have a great team and a great player that we were invited to be in it and we were really happy with the opportunity and what we got out of it.”
Clackamas 75, West Linn 60
With the consolation round championship on the line, Clackamas got another huge game from star forward Ben Gregg to surge past West Linn. Gregg simply could not be contained anywhere on the basketball floor as West Linn threw multiple defenses against the talented junior. Micah Garrett had another solid offensive outing with 24 points but it wasn’t enough as Clackamas now goes into the rest of the season on a solid high.
“I’m so proud of the guys,” said Clackamas head coach Cameron Mitchell. “That was so hard to do when you lose your first game and go against a guy that’s potentially going to play in the NBA one day, but you come back and get the win, win against the state champion (Jesuit), and then you come back against a great team like West Linn. That’s extremely difficult to do and I’m blown away by these kids to be honest.”
Bishop Gorman (NV) 50, Central Catholic 46
Central Catholic put up a good fight against Bishop Gorman but in the end the Rams weren’t able to hit enough shots or sustain enough momentum to overcome the Gaels. Mwani Wilkinson – who made the All-Tournament Team – had a brilling outing with 24 points and he dazzled the crowd with his high-flying antics. Central Catholic remains a balanced team and got solid contributions from multiple players, and while the Rams aren’t intested in moral victories and felt they could have done more in this year’s LSI, it was overall a good experience.
“The boys played really well against Churchill and Grant and while Mater Dei was really good I would have liked to perform better today,” said Central Catholic head coach David Blue. “But overall the week, the event was incredible. You know you’re going to play four really good teams no matter what, it’s always fun to be on the winners side of the bracket, and the boys competed I know that. It also showed us the areas where we need to improve.”
Norcross (GA) 69, Jefferson 55
Jefferson was a bit behind the eight ball going into the third place game as starters Marquis “Mookie” Cook and Lamar Washington were suspended for the contest due to a violation of team rules. But the Demos still put on a good fight with the guys they did have but it wasn’t enough to counter the overall size and athleticism of the Blue Devils from Georgia. Star forward J.T. Thor was a man amongst boys at times and tallied 24 points and 12 rebounds, while Quincy Ademokoya sank daggers from long range on his way to 25 points. Keshawn Hall led Jeff with 20 points and 8 assists while Kamron Robinson added 17.
Top Performers
Ben Gregg (2021 Clackamas) – 35 points, 11 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 blocks
Gregg simply couldn’t be stopped in the consolation round title game. Whether he was posting up down low, setting up in the middle of the zone high up, or facing the basket from three, the junior forward had his shot on locked in on automatic. Gregg has such a nice form on his shot with a quick release and great rotation on the ball which gives it a chance just about every time he takes it. And against West Linn he was simply too powerful inside to deny around the bucket. But what made this game so special for Gregg was his passing. His court vision and laser pin-point dishes to teammates cutting to the basket for easy layups was special. It was the performance of the day.
Nate Bittle (2021 Crater) – 31 points, 16 rebounds, 6 blocks, 3 steals
If Gregg’s game was #1 of the day, Bittle’s was likely #1a. Churchill had no answer for the 6-foot-11 post as he largely got his points by facing the basket from up high and attacking the defense off the dribble. With his 7-foot-4 wingspan he easily shot it over shorter Churchill defenders in the lane and he effectively used the glass when needed. If there’s one thing that seemingly was a weakness during the entire LSI was the fact he struggled from the free throw line – something that may be more of a mental than physical issue as his form is pure. But otherwise, the junior grabbed every defensive rebound in sight, intimidated anyone driving to the hole with his blocks, and even got out on the perimeter for a few steals. It was a great finish to a great tournament for him.
Micah Garrett (2020 West Linn) – 24 points, 5 rebounds
Over the past year we’ve seen a diversified offensive game from Garrett. He seemingly goes through stretches where he hones in on knocking down the corner three, using his dangerous pull-up jumper, or taking it strong to the hole and finishing. In this game the outside shot wasn’t particularly clicking (0-for-5 from three) so he was honed in on attacking the basket. He made some impressive finishes over Gregg on at least a couple of occasions and wasn’t going to be denied. When Garrett puts his head down and barges into the lane, he’s a hard guy to stop, and if he’s fouled he’ll convert the free throws.
Brian Goracke (2020 Churchill) – 21 points, 5 rebounds
It wasn’t the greatest shooting performance for Goracke – he was 9-for-22 from the field and 2-for-8 from three – but as one of the only guys who could really score most of the night, he helped carried Churchill. The senior definitely seemed more comfortable with the catch and shoot rather than creating off the dribble, but he still utilized his athleticism on the offensive boards on some follow-up shots and some attempted dunk putbacks.
Luke Johnson (2022 Central Catholic) – 10 points, 4 rebounds
Johnson really emerged in this year’s Les Schwab Invitational. The 6-foot-7 sophomore was super impressive with catch and shoot opportunities on the baseline, where his jumpshot showed good form and touch out past 15 feet. He was also very active on the offensive boards against Bishop Gorman’s athletic frontline. There’s a bit of chippiness with Johnson’s demeanor and he kind of got into it with a Gorman player late in the game but hopefully it’s an edge he can harnass in a positive way.
DeRay Seamster (2020 Central Catholic) – 15 points, 4 rebounds, 4 steals
It was another decent day at the office for Seamster as he finished off a solid tournament run. He didn’t shoot it particularly well from the outside and some of his patented little flip shots in the lane bounced out, but the senior pretty much created his own shot whenever he wanted it and had plenty of space to get it off against bigger players. Defensively he was a hawk in the passing lanes and was able to help Central Catholic get out in transition with his steals.
Kamron Robinson (2021 Jefferson) – 17 points, 5 rebounds
The third place game was some of the hardest we’ve seen Robinson play so far this season. Whether it was the fact Jefferson was playing a national opponent or the fact he was absolutely needed to go up against Norcross’ athletic bigs, the 6-foot-9 junior played inspired basketball and backed down from no one. He fearlessly took the ball strong to the basket and while some of the shot attempts ended up being a little wild, there’s no one better in the state of knowing exactly where to go to get the rebound of their own missed shot.
Keshawn Hall (2021 Jefferson) – 20 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists
Hall is probably more along the spectrum of pure point guard rather than scorer, but on a night when getting buckets was needed he filled the bill. The 6-foot junior attacked the basketball off the bounce, using his strong and crafty dribble to create space and get to the hoop. Hall also has been improving with his jumpshot and knocked down a couple of threes. When he wasn’t scoring himself, some of the pure point guard came out of him and he was able to get it to teammates for buckets as well.