Top of the Rockies: Sunday Standouts
The Top of the Rockies wrapped up Sunday with buzzer-beaters, big-time dunks, multiple overtimes and champions crowned. All the while there were a number of players who fought through tired legs to put together impressive performances. Here is a look…
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Continue ReadingThe Top of the Rockies wrapped up Sunday with buzzer-beaters, big-time dunks, multiple overtimes and champions crowned.
All the while there were a number of players who fought through tired legs to put together impressive performances.
Here is a look at some of the players who impressed:
Troy Brady, 6-0 unsigned 2016 guard, B&B Academy Seniors
Brady made the shot of the tournament on Sunday, a contested 3-pointer at the buzzer to give B&B a victory over the Colorado Hawks 17s in the quarterfinals. Brady was major from the 3-point line all weekend. He is nearing a college decision. He has opportunities at the NAIA level but may choose to walk on at the RMAC level. It will be interesting to see where he ends up and how he fares at the next level. You can’t teach shooting like his:
.@BradyTJB30 knocks down the game-winner for the B&B seniors in the quarterfinals. pic.twitter.com/hvAYV48HYV
— Prep Hoops Colorado (@PrepHoopsCO) May 15, 2016
Samuel Ward, 6-2 2018 guard, Kansas City Pacers 2018 Blue
After suffering an injury to his left wrist on Saturday, Ward had the hand heavily bandaged on Sunday. It didn’t slow him down. Ward was the most consistent player in the 16U Division over the weekend, using a quick burst and a crafty finishing ability to continually put points on the board. The toughness to play through an injury that was clearly causing him some pain was impressive.
Matthew Johnson, 6-2 2017 guard, Colorado Connect 17U
Johnson was as good as we’ve seen him this weekend. Johnson can really stretch the floor with his outside shot, and it was really falling on Sunday. What was most impressive though was the way he was breaking down the defense with strong penetration and then delivering on-target passes for open shots on the perimeter. He was huge down the stretch in helping Connect pull of a 17U Division semifinal victory over Colorado Chaos 17s Elite. Expect him to have a big role for Rangeview as a senior next season. It’s not too hard to imagine him as a productive RMAC player.
Jamil Safieddine, 6-0 2019 guard, Colorado Hawks 15U
With a relatively thin frame and a little undersized, Safieddine doesn’t look the part at first glance, but as soon as you see him play it’s clear he has a great feel and understanding for the game. He made some really big plays for the Hawks (playing up a division) in a narrow quarterfinal loss to Colorado Chaos 16U. He’s a consistent shooter and a reliable ball-handler. Safieddine is certainly a player who will debut in our upcoming 2019 rankings. Another player we had yet to see, 6-6 Matt Wheelock, was also strong for the Hawks.
Stephen Hayes, 6-3 2019 guard, Colorado Hawks 15U
Hayes continues to prove he his one of the top players in his class. He’s very mature physically and has good toughness at the rim. He should be a big-time contributor for Overland, which will be reloading after losing most of the roster from back-to-back state championship teams. He constantly puts pressure on the defensive with his tenacious attack.
Cory McClellan, 6-2 guard, The Force 16U
We’ll just say for now that McClellan was all over the court and was one of the more impressive players in the division all weekend. We’ll have more on him in a recruiting report coming up soon.
Hunter Shkapich, 5-11 2019 guard, Colorado Elite 15U
We weren’t able to get to ThunderRidge, where Shkapich was playing, but the video below is a great illustration of the leaping ability the young guard has. Shkapich had a very strong freshman season at Colorado Academy, and he is certainly a player to watch going forward.
https://twitter.com/JeremyShkapich/status/731942870744076288
Adam Thistlewood, 6-5 2018 forward, B&B Academy 10th Elite Black
Another promising young player from Golden, Thistlewood does well with the ball in his hands from multiple spots. Made several nice moves to shed his bigger defender on the perimeter and get to the basket, and he can stretch the floor with an ability to knock it down from long range.
Taijae Goode, 5-6 2018 guard, The Force 16U
There aren’t many games Goode plays in which he isn’t the smallest player on the court, but he plays with great heart. We saw Goode at the bottom of piles all weekend, creating extra possessions with hustle plays. He also consistently made good reads in transition, delivering on target passes on the run.
Brandt Christy, 6-2 2017 guard, Shining Stars Black 2017
Christy simply gets after it on the defensive end. Kolton Peterson is the heart of that team, and he was solid Sunday, sticking out in particular with strong rebounding from his guard position. Christy, meanwhile, is the spark plug who makes hustle plays and doesn’t make life easy on opposing guards.