5 Takeaways: Bolingbrook vs Eisenhower
The Decatur Turkey Tournament championship on Saturday night came down to the tournament favorite Bolingbrook and home town Decatur Eisenhower! Bolingbrook liked they were going to pull away early, but Eisenhower fought back as it was a fairly close game in the first half. The Raiders opened it up in the second half behind their guard play and depth! Bolingbrook won the championship 72-49. Here are our 5 Takeaways: Bolingbrook vs Decatur Eisenhower.
Big Three for Bolingbrook
You hear all about the “Big Three” concept in the NBA. You have to have three stars to win. Bolingbrook has that in three point guards who all bring a little bit of something different to the table! Let’s start with Tournament MVP Joseph Yesufu. He is the #9 overall prospect in the 2019 class. Yesufu might not be the biggest guard, but man does he have jets! Tremendous speed in the open floor attacking in transition and consistently winning off the bounce. The athletic guard finishes so well around the rim with his body control. His jump shot has greatly improved. Hit a couple jumpers in the championship game. Gets after it on the defensive end with his quick hands. He takes steals to the other end for touch downs. Mid-major and low-majors need to be on him. The MVP had 17 points in the title game. The other 2019 member of the big three is Tyler Cochran who is a bigger and more physical guard. He did a great job getting on the glass for put backs and was powerful finishing around the hoop. Crisp passer and made some plays on defense. Mid-major to low-major target as well. Finished with13 points. The vet of the group is 2018 point guard Kaleb Thornton. He has great speed in the open floor pushing it end to end. In this particular game he didn’t score a ton, but impacted the game with his distribution skills. Made some quality decisions in the lane dishing it to shooters. Also drilled a corner three. Thornton is one of the top remaining uncommitted point guards and projects as a low-major prospect.
Bolingbrook Supporting Cast
There is much more to this team than the Big 3! They are going to tire teams down with their depth at a variety of positions. On the perimeter they have Demari Grant, Jordan Myrick, and several others that complement the stars. Grant is a fast lead guard that got to the rim and scored in transition. Myrick is a tough on ball defender that plays physical and can hit an open shot. Up front Daniel Buford provides toughness and grit. Also there was another post player that emerged……
Joey Saracco Puts Name on Map
Bolingbrook has players every year that come out of nowhere to make an impact and become college prospects. This year that might be 6’7” 2018 post Joey Saracco. We came away very impressed with his play. Good frame and knows his role on the team. Rebound, play defense, and when they pass you the ball in the paint put it in. He did just that! Saracco has soft hands and touch around the hoop. Efficient player with his touches. Hit short jumpers and finished dump off passes. Area rounder snatching anything near him. Not overly athletic. He had 8 points. Projects as a small college player. Says he doesn’t have much interest right now.
Eisenhower Young Guards
To be totally honest we didn’t know a ton about Eisenhower coming into the game. No ranked prospects before the game. Despite the loss several players put their names on the map coming out of it though. Kari Taliferro is a 6’3” 2020 combo guard that has size. He played like an upperclassmen with his scoring slashing to the rim. He had 12 points. Two other young floor generals also jumped off the court. RJ Walker who is a freshman and Cameron Rowe who is a sophomore flashed potential. Walker was particularly impressive with a sweet slip pass for an assist and drilling a corner three. We will be hearing more from these guys in the future!
Atmosphere at Turkey Tourney
The Decatur Turkey Tourney is an awesome atmosphere! The entire town of Decatur shows up supporting their squads and it makes for quite an intense atmosphere to watch a championship game.