Sunday, April 17, 2011

Pittsburgh Jam Fest-Day Two

Day two of the Pittsburgh Jam Fest proved to be very competitive, and several of Ohio’s top programs enjoyed some success.  All-Ohio Red’s U-17 squad finished 3-0 for the day and 4-0 for the tournament.  Red started the day with a convincing 87-32 win over the Northeast Sting in pool play.  Elijah Macon led Red in scoring with 14 points, followed by Kenny Kaminski (13) and Terry Rozier (9). In the first round of bracket play, Red matched up with talented Virginia Fusion Gold and went on the break open a close game to get the 78-58 victory. Jake Kretzer found his stroke and finished with a game-high 18 points, followed by Geovonni McKnight (15) and Terry Rozier (11).

The second round of bracket play featured a showdown between All-Ohio Red and All-Ohio Purple. Although Red was the favorite going in, Orlando Berry’s squad has won multiple championships and they know how to win.  Purple jumped to an early lead and maintained the advantage into the second half.  Big Adolphus Washington got busy in the post, while Willie Moore was getting it done on the perimeter. However, at the end of the day, the depth and talent of Red was simply too much, and both Washington and Moore were both saddled with foul trouble down the stretch. All-Ohio Red enjoyed balanced scoring, with Terry Rozier  and Elijah Macon leading the way with 11 points each, followed by Jalen Robinson  and Deontae Hawkins (8) and Kenny Kaminski (6).  Next up for Red is a match up with DC Assault.  I caught a glimpse of Assault earlier in the day and was impressed with their athleticism and size in the front court.  This should be a good one.

All-Ohio Red’s 16s got off to a slow start in the first game of the day against Delaware’s Team Rebel Black, but was able to rally and win by 20 points.  Without Marc Loving and Nigel Hayes, both of whom are with Bobby Korteson in Italy, Red is relying on their Toledo connection of Tony Kynard and Clemie Owens. Also, Kettering Alter’s Jarron Simmons has been having a solid weekend as well.

Ohio Basketball Club’s U-17 team righted the ship from Friday night’s loss with 3 more wins on Saturday.  Game one on Saturday pitted OBC against a very scrappy Chester Panthers.  Although the game was not decided until the very end, OBC got the win. Later in the day, OBC matched up with Columbus, Ohio based Mustang Ballers and went on to get the win and advance to Sunday. From what little I saw of them, it appeared that Desmond Ridenour had a solid weekend, as did Evan Payne and Isiah Rogers. (Video)

The Ohio Hoopsters almost pulled a shocker against the NJ Playaz, one of the top Nike sponsored teams in the country.  Early in the contest, the Playaz put on a fast break and dunking clinic.  But not so fast my friend, the Hoopsters, without Tony Lavender at the helm, kept their composure and did not lie down.  The comeback was sparked by Stephon O’Daniel who knocked down thee treys in the first half, and before you knew it, OBC had scrapped their way back into the game.  Despite the poor start, the Hoopsters were able to trim the lead to 34-39 by the half.  In the second period, Tyler White heated up and knocked three treys of his own to keep the game close. With 18 seconds left in the game, down 61-62, the Hoopsters went for broke and held the ball for the last shot. Although O’Danial was able to get off a rushed shot, it fell short and the Playaz held on to win 62-61. White led the Hoopster in scoring with 13 points, followed by Thurgood Marshall’s Joe Thomasson (12), O’Daniel (9) and Andre Yates (7).

 
The Hidden Gems 17s were still playing late on Saturday, with a 67-64 win over The Flame. Also, the West Virginia Wildcats squeaked out a 51-50 win over Grassroots Canada on Saturday, as Northland’s Devon Scott continued to play well.

King of the Courts U-15 team finished 3-0 on Saturday, including a 2 point win over All-Ohio Red and a 20 point blowout win over Grassroots Canada.  All-Ohio Red’s 15 took an L late Saturday, and headed back to Columbus a little early. They were 2-0 heading into bracket play, and won both games by a combined 37 points. To see the pictures I took at the event, visit the Buckeye Prep Facebook Fan Page. Also, Follow Buckeye Prep on Twitter! More pics.

No comments:

Post a Comment