Holiday Hoopsgiving: Wasatch Academy
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While most Utah teams were putting their teams together Wasatch Academy was on their way to Atlanta, Georgia to play in the hoopsgiving Invitational. Wasatch Academy came in ranked #23 in the country in the pre-season rankings. With teams from…
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Continue ReadingWhile most Utah teams were putting their teams together Wasatch Academy was on their way to Atlanta, Georgia to play in the hoopsgiving Invitational. Wasatch Academy came in ranked #23 in the country in the pre-season rankings. With teams from Georgia, Florida and surrounding states Wasatch Academy was impressive. Played against a lot of D1 talent on both of these teams.
Game 1
vs. Peeblebrook (GA) 71-62
Wasatch Academy had literally just gotten off the plan made it over to the gym and was still dominant. Kentucky signee Nolan Hickman Nolan Hickman 6'2" | PG Eastside Catholic | 2021 #29 Nation UT was as reliable as you can make them. His ability to control tempo against athletic guards that try to speed him up or pressure him is absolutely elite. Nolan can really change speeds and get to the basket with ease. Richards Isaacs Jr. was another bright spot in game 1 as he was just a force inside penetrating and with his outside jumper. Lil Pop Pop fills the lanes well and knows how to get his feet set to pop a quick 3 in transition. This backcourt is dynamic and they seem to be playing really well together. Fousseyni Traore Fousseyni Traore 6'7" | SF Wasatch Academy | 2021 State UT is just an ox inside and he is an elite high school rim protector that has really mastered the art of going straight up. Watching him block a few dunk attempts was impressive. He runs the floor extremely well. After this game look for Wasatch Academy to just get better.
6’6 Casey Jones the transfer from Mater Dei, CA is a player to really watch, he is super athletic and just provides some great wing help that rebounds and gets easy put back buckets or scores off of nice cuts and curls. He’s got that LM D1 game.
Game 2
vs. Grayson (GA) 75-72
Fousseyni Traore Fousseyni Traore 6'7" | SF Wasatch Academy | 2021 State UT was a beast inside. He blocked almost everything he contested at the rim. His ability to control a block and bring it in was something else. He also has great passing ability as his team is looking to run. His quick gather steps that lead to scores is elite. He isn’t always trying to dunk everything but he is finding easy ways to finish at the rim. Lil Pop Pop had another great game as his floster game was on. It was needed because it was crowded in the lane. The stat sheet might not show it but 6’8 W Matus Hronsky played an excellent game defending, rebounding and passing. Hit a huge corner 3 late in OT. It proved to be the game winning shot before they went to free-throws.