Best of the Best: Marion Basketball Classic
The first annual Marion Basketball Classic was a hit with tons of talented teams and players scattered throughout the event. The 8-game showcase has been one of the better ones of the year and we are here to dive into…
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Continue ReadingThe first annual Marion Basketball Classic was a hit with tons of talented teams and players scattered throughout the event. The 8-game showcase has been one of the better ones of the year and we are here to dive into some of the top storylines and players from the day of hoops. Here are 10 of the top performances from the Marion Basketball Classic:
Benito Munoz Drops 20 On Columbus North
Columbus North has been off to a terrible start this year but Harrison had slipped earlier as well. It was key for one of these teams to right the ship and just a couple days before Harrison pounded Benton Central scoring 97 points. They kept that going when they got 20 points on 7/10 shooting from sophomore guard Benito Munoz. The 5’11 shooter led all scorers in the game. He also grabbed 5 boards in the win.
D.K. Fox Looked Stellar In The Post
We have already seen what D.K. Fox of NorthWood looks like when he isn’t engaged. He showed that in the Brownsburg Shootout earlier in the year. On Tuesday, however, he was almost the exact opposite. He was engaged and active and dominant in the paint. Fox is undersized for what he should be playing, probably a power forward spot, but he’s so mature and physically built that no one can stop him if he really wants to get buckets in the paint. He did that over and over again against Danville. He had 15 points on 5/7 shooting and grabbed 6 boards in the win. He also drew six fouls that gained him another five points at the free throw line.
Ryan Cloncs With A Standout Shooting Display
Last year, Danville was led by Luke Callahan, a guy that was so skilled at 6’6 that no one could slow him down. He’s not graduated and Danville was looking for the next guy to step up. Without a doubt, it has to by Cloncs. The 6’3 wing shooter was great in the loss to NorthWood as he shot the ball from all over the floor. He shot from a step behind the three-point line to a nice mid-range pullup in transition and was also getting to the rim. He had 27 points in the game on only 17 shots while still dishing out 4 assists. Cloncs put his name out there a bit with this performance.
Peyton Hendershot A Great Two-Sport Athlete
The talented football prospect, Peyton Hendershot, has done nothing but make his mark on the two games I’ve seen this year. He’s already got an offer from Ball State to play football but he’s quite a talented basketball player as well. The 6’5 small forward went for a double-double earlier this year and against Covington he missed a triple-double by 1 points and 2 assists as he dropped 9 points, 14 rebounds, and 8 assists against them. He plays so hard and is really athletically gifted. Reminds me of how Brandon Peters played for Avon last season although Peters was more of a shooter and Peyton a better passer.
Ronny Williams A Guy To Watch
Williams isn’t likely going to be any higher than a DIII/NAIA prospect but he’s going to be a really good one. The 5’7 guard is super quick and is quickly learning to take over the Liberty Christian squad this season. Warren Central is pretty solid defensively and threw tons of different looks at him but he still managed to score 24 points. Warren Central struggled to stay in front of him and he drew 10 fouls that game. He’s got a lot of the qualities you love in a point guard and someone will find a fit for him.
Ra Kpedi Becoming A Man In The Post
For the last year or so, we have been waiting to see if Lawrence North’s Ra Kpedi is going to take that next step forward. He has shown spurts throughout the game where he can make a play here and a play there. However, he had yet to string it all together. On Tuesday, for me this is the first time he had put a long stretch of that together and he looked stellar. The 6’8 forward is still considered a raw, project type guy but he’s got a lot of weapons that play right now. He showed a bunch of those in this game as he was aggressive and tough and finished everything he wanted to. He went for 16 points and 13 rebounds and did it against Roosevelt’s tall lineup. They had a bunch of size but that didn’t deter Ra from going over his right shoulder, rebound putbacks, and up and under. He had it all working and it was great to see.
Kyle Guy Staying Steady In Senior Season
I wasn’t sure how the start of this season would go for Kyle. He had a bad start to the high school season last year but came back strong in the summer playing against high level competition. Now, he’s doing the same in the high school season. The difference right now is his shot selection. He can be a guy that takes a lot of shots, a lot of bad shots, because he feels he is hot and can hit it. Last year he didn’t make those and pressed into taking more bad ones. This season he is making them and has cleaned up his shot selection. He scored 31 in this one against Columbus East and looked the same as he had the previous two times I’ve seen him so far. Efficient and steady and has Lawrence Central rolling right now.
Parker Chitty A Guy Getting Better
After watching Chitty this summer, it was really hard to see how he ended up going to Eastern Kentucky as a commit. His team struggled and so did he as he wasn’t able to do any of his best skills at a high level. On Tuesday, he had the complete package working from the point guard spot and it looked really good. The 6’1 lead guard is a bigger, stronger guy than your typically point guards at the DI level. He doesn’t use his speed as much as his deception. He had to score a lot of points to keep CE in the game but also kept his teammates involved. That balance, at that level, was impressive. 31 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists made me change my tune a bit.
Chris King Coming Into His Own
King has been a guy that was a little high risk, high reward. He has a ton of talent but was a little immature in his basketball game. While this was only one game, his matchup against Southport was really eye opening. He was more reserved in his play which is a good thing for him. He scored 21 points, 9 coming in the overtime period. He scored that on 12 shots form the floor and was 4/4 from the free throw line and 3/4 from behind the arc. He’s been showing improvement since transferring to Tech from LC last year. If he continues to make progress like this, he can be really good with lots of suitors.
Paul Scruggs Taking A Lot On His Shoulders
There might not be another player in the state with more pressure on his shoulders than Scruggs at this point of the year. With Joey Brunk out and Southport losing games early in the season, Paul has to be the guy. Southport doesn’t have a ton of depth for scoring options, even with Brunk. And on Tuesday, his 33 points wasn’t enough to beat a really good Arsenal Tech team. Scruggs is doing his best right now and even with the pressure he is being really effective.
C.J. Walker Fighting For Mr. Basketball
Walker is on a mission this year and in the matchup against Southport he got to go on a back and forth with Paul Scruggs. 32 points for Walker is a nice statement in this game especially when he did it on only 16 shots. C.J. is one of the top contenders for the Mr. Basketball crown and this was a highlight game for him on a big stage. He’s got a lot of the things you need to win and a few more of these big time games will keep him up at the top. So far this season. Walker has yet to disappointed.
Justin Thomas With A Big Game, Shuts Down Marion
Thomas has been much improved from even this summer.. He was solid during the summer but didn’t have many, if any, big games. This 31-point performance is one of those big games. He’s still being recruited lightly but if he shows some more of these games this season it will be tough to miss him. Thomas is a nice point guard prospect and playing next to Justin Roberts makes him a little better because he doesn’t always have the ball in his hands. He’s become a bit more efficient scoring with less touches and they have really been good as a defensive backcourt combo.