Fab Five: Kamiak vs. Monroe
On paper, this was definitely a little bit of a lopsided match-up. Monroe is one of the top teams in the state, while Kamiak is has shown some struggles this season on the defensive end. However they were able to hang tough with Monroe and managed to get the win in the end with some huge defensive stops. Kamiak eventually just grinded out the win in what was really a just hard fought game overall, with a lot of unforced turnovers and ticky-tack fouls. Kamiak made some key plays with less than 5 minutes left in the game. I was very impressed with coaching on both sides. This game could have went either way.
MVP: Carson Tuttle (Kamiak Knights)
Carson was the most talented player probably to step in Kamiak’s gym in a while. At the least, he was the most athletic, as noted by the reaction of the Kamiak fans when he gets hot from the arc. He did a good job overcoming a rusty first half to come back and finish with 25 points on the night. He grabbed a bunch of rebounds and forced a lot of steals and defended the rim on defense.
Offensive MVP: Taylor Sturgeon (Monroe Bearcats)
Taylor is a 2019 guard who is widely considered to be a D1 prospect and everybody in the gym can see why. He’s about 6’1 with a solid build and can really score it. He finished with 26 point on the night and really was the main source of offense for Monroe. He has a nice little floater that he puts up about 5-10 feet out and has a decent outside shot. Handles the ball well, tonight Colby Kyle and Spencer Davidson struggled a little offensively due to the attention they draw.
Defensive MVP: Spencer Davidson (Monroe Bearcats)
Spencer did a really nice job of anchoring the Monroe zone defense in a losing effort. He played the role of rim protector and he did that very well. Did a good job of staying out of foul trouble in the process. Spencer did great on the glass on both ends as well.
Best Underclassmen: Charlie Powers (Kamiak Knights)
Powers continued to show signs of improvement, in this game he did a nice job of showing the ability to take the ball of the bounce and finish through contact. He had a couple of buckets on the night and didn’t take any outside shots. He’s still a very potent perimeter shooter but it’s nice to see his game developing more of an attack off the bounce, which would really compliment his perimeter game as he’s approaching 5’11.
Best Guard: Colby Kyle (Monroe Bearcats)
Just another day in the office for Colby. He finished with some solid numbers, despite it not being his best shooting night. He got most of his points of the bounce, at the rim. He even took a steal and rose up for a pretty deep 3 (Stephen curry range) much to the surprise of the Monroe Bearcats fans.