#PHHustleRegionFinals Championship Sunday: A Scout’s take
Three teams walked away with the title of Prep Hoops Hustle Region champions on Sunday, and got there in very different ways. ABC New Mexico’s 2022 National squad claimed the 17u Title, while the Washington-based Roots Elite and the San…
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Continue ReadingThree teams walked away with the title of Prep Hoops Hustle Region champions on Sunday, and got there in very different ways.
ABC New Mexico’s 2022 National squad claimed the 17u Title, while the Washington-based Roots Elite and the San Diego-based Multilevel Select won the 16u and 15u crowns, respectively.
Here’s a breakdown of the championship games.
#PHHustleRegionFinals Championship Sunday: A Scout’s take
17u: ABC= Awesome Back Court
Trailing 47-45 at halftime against a very skilled and big Arizona Dream squad, the Albuquerque-based squad turned to its backcourt trio of William Benjamin Jr. (pictured), Exodus Ayers and Ja’Kwon Hill- and boy did they deliver.
Taking advantage of heavy legs on the Arizona side, the guard relentlessly attacked the basket, getting paint touches at will, to outscore their opponents 42-33 in the second half. Benjamin, a 6-1 2022 guard from Las Cruces, NM, led the way with a team-high 27 points on 12-15 shooting. Ayers, a 6-1 junior from La Cueva, NM, came off the bench to score 20 points and Hill, a 5-11 guard from Volcano Vista, scored 15 points in the victory.
6-5 2022 F Sean Johnson chipped in 15 points and 12 rebounds for ABC and did an excellent job attacking the offensive glass and finishing in the paint.
ABC had the toughest road to the title game, registering an 84-81 win over a very good PSB Denver team in the semifinals.
Arizona Dream was led by 6-5 senior wing Easton Reagan, who scored a game-high 29 points to keep his team within striking distance in the second half. The skilled wing was also very good in a semifinals win over AZ Select Showtime.
16U: Parker Gerrits Can’t Lose
In the game of the weekend, Roots Academy 2023 survived a game-tying buzzer beater from Chosen Few’s Jordan Cosby to outlast Chosen Few 72-65 in overtime.
The story of the championship game – and the 16u Bracket for that matter – was the play of 6-1 2023 Olympia PG Parker Gerrits.
The unflappable playmaker scored a game-high 33 points, and made big play after big play after Chosen Few stormed back to take the lead in the second half.
Roots Academy looked like they were going to run away with the game, leading by as much as 12 points in the first half before Chosen Few’s 2024 backcourt of Alijah Adem and Adonis LaFluer went off in the second frame to take a 57-51 lead.
But Gerrits, who added 5 rebounds and 5 assists, scored on strong drives, hit timely free throws and a big three deep in the game to give his team back the advantage.
Roots got the championship game by handily dispatching the Sacramento Hoyas and the Utah Force Sunday morning, while Chosen Few beat PAL Elite of Arizona to advance.
15U: Multilevel on a Different Level
While the 17u and 16u games were tight and entertaining, the 15u championship was won in blowout fashion by Multilevel, coached by La Jolla Country Day Assistant Coach Mason Biddle.
Biddle, who prepped in Riverside County, has a blend of San Diego and Riverside County players on his teams. They came together to put together a dominant championship game performance, a 72-54 rout of PAL Elite of Arizona.
James Wei, a 6-1 2024 wing from La Jolla Country Day, scored a team-high 22 points, but it was the guard play of 2024 Otay Ranch PG Tristan Guzman and 2025 LJCD PG Christopher Carrillo that was the catalyst in the rout.
Multilevel used crisp ball movement and body movement to stay a step ahead of PAL’s players, generating easy basket after easy basket. Conversely, PAL relied on a lot of 1-on-1 isolations, and Multilevel’s pack-line defense bogged down driving lanes, making every attempt tough for PAL’s players.
Guzman added 16 points and Elyas Elegado added 14 for Multilevel. Carrillo, who Biddle said was his team MVP this weekend, added 10 points.