NYBL Session #2 6th Grade Recap

S. Morrow, K. Walker, D. Stevens, P. Dawson, J. Harris, M. McNeal, Agbo  & B. Williams

A couple of days ago we published a Session #2 recap for the 7^th grade division.  The recap outlined the top teams and several standout performers.  Well, the 6^th grade division may be smaller in numbers, but by no means is there less team or individual talent! At the very top of the division sits the Oakland Soldiers, who after a 5-0 run in Atlanta remain perfect at 10-0.  If the Solders were not already stacked enough, with studs Shemar Morrow and Kyree Walker, they will be even tougher to beat with the addition of Dylan Dupina (6’0 PF LA) who comes over from the City Stars and the emergence of Kendell Munson (6’2 C Kent, CA). Due to a slight philosophy change in Atlanta, there were a few teams than challenged the Soldiers, but at the end of the day, nobody could take them down. Team Glory was the stiffest challenger, but Oakland still got by them 67-54.

West Coast All-Stars-9-1 After 2 Sessiona

Arguably the second best team in the league is the West Coast All-Stars, who ran the table in Atlanta with a 5-0 record. This team is also loaded with talent with guys like Jason Harris, Paris Dawson Tyrone Washington, William McClendon, and the only reason they might not be considered the dog in the league right now is their loss to Team Takeover in Session #1. Although West Coast beat the Soldiers in Portland earlier in the year, that was without Walker, plus, Oakland defeated Team Takeover in an instant classic in D.C. Make no mistake, West Coast was challenged in Atlanta, just ask the Leesburg Basketball Club (2-3), who had a chance to get the win, but went down 49-48. Some observers are predicting an all-west coast championship in Columbus.

The Worldwide Wildcats had to feel pretty good about their weekend, finishing with a 4-1 record, with the only loss coming against a very talented San Diego Select (49-41), who was filling in for the weekend. The Wildcats had to fight back the Mansfield Cavs, who so far this NYBL season has surprised some teams with their toughness. Worldwide held on to get the 48-42 victory. Their next biggest challenge was the Carolina Kings (2-3), but again, they held on to win 48-36.

Worldwide Wildcats

Congratulations to San Diego Select for their 5-0 record in Session #2.  Although Steve Wade’s team worked hard to join the league this year, they simply could not make it happen.  However, they did make a cameo appearance in Atlanta, and boy did they look good! Great guard play, wings that can score, a big and aggressive frontcourt make this team very difficult to beat. Worldwide was their stiffest test, but they beat them by 8 points (49-41).

CBC Elite deserves some props, finishing 4-1 on the weekend. CBC had no cake walk either, as they had to get by the Mansfield Cavs (58-69), Brampton Warriors (49-55) and Flint’s Finest (59-69). They hung in there with San Diego, but eventually fell to them 63-48. The God First Crusaders continue to improve, and their 3-2 record is a reflection of that. The Texas based team is powered by Isaiah Leblanc who has led the team in scoring in 2 sessions. Last weekend, they beat Team Glory (44-34), Leesburg (52-49) and Go Hard in the Paint (64-37). Their 2 losses were to the Banneker Kings (62-70) and the West Coast All-Stars 89-49).

The Banneker Kings got 3 wins in Atlanta (3-2), over the likes of God First Crusaders (62-70), Enplay Elite (49-54) and Go Hard in the Paint (62-31).  They were defeated by West Coast (41-72) and Oakland (21-53). When you go 2-3 or worse in a session it’s difficult to get much ink, but there were some very competitive games, and a few teams who had a chance to better their record in Session #2

R. Harris, J. Banks, I. LeBlanc, C. Ellis, L. Stankavage, C. Harris, T. Notarainni & L. Gonzales

In terms of individual talent, there were a number of players who logged in impressive performances in Session #2.  The following is a short list of the kids we saw: Isaiah Leblanc (6’0 WF Houston), Dimingus Stevens (5’8 SG Washington D.C.), Montez McNeil (6’3 C Baltimore), Jahmal Banks (5’8 WF Washington D.C.), Luke Stankavage (5’3 SG Charlotte), Jordan McPrater (4’10 PG Charlotte), Logan Howe (5’6 SG Mansfield, OH), Chance Mott (6’2 C Mansfield, OH), Devon Smith (5’4 PG Snellville, GA), Rakiea Herbin (5’11 C Burlington, NC), Chase Ellis (5’9 PF Dougsville, GA), Jeremy Roach (5’6 SG Leesburg, VA), Chuck Harris (5’6 PG Leesburg, VA), Thomas Naarainni (5’10 WF San Diego), Brock Williams (5’2 PG Burlington, NC), Paris Dawson (5’7 SG Long Beach, CA) Shemar Moorow (6’2 WF Aurora, OH), Kyree Walker (6’2 WF Atlanta), Rico Harris (4’11 PG Flint, MI), Dylan Dupina (5’10 C LA), Karsen Perkins (5’10 C Concord, NC), Jason Harris (6’3 C Chandler, AZ), Tyrone Washington (5’5 PG Tempe, AZ), Zawdie Jackson (5’3 SG Snellville, GA), Jordan Toles (6’0 SG/WF Baltimore), Chibuzo Agbo (6’0 C San Diego), Obinna Anyanwu (6’1 C San Diego) and Alex Wade (5’0 PG San Diego).  Session #3 in Louisville, Kentucky will give teams another opportunity to bolster their record and raise their seeding for the championship session in Columbus, Ohio in June.

Current League Standings

League Website

NYBL Session #2 2019 Recap

Rowan Barrett Jr., Balsa Koprovica, Chandler Lawson, Brian Antonie & Wendell Moore

If there were any lingering doubts about the significance of the NYBL, what went down in Session #2 in Atlanta last weekend squashed all of that. The NYBL is hands down the best thing to hit middle school basketball in decades. The amount of team and individual talent amassed in the second session is unmatched. In terms of elite teams, the addition of the Memphis War Eagles and George Hill, the emergence of the Brampton Warriors and Team United; the discovery of Butler Elite and the known juggernauts like All-Ohio Red, Team CP3, S.C. Hornets, Team Rio, Texas Express as well as other elite teams, the NYBL is a force to be reckoned with.

In terms of individual talent, 9 of the top 10 ranked players in the country were ballin out in the ATL. When you talk about top 100 ranked players nationally, it’s safe to say 90% of the most elite players are in the league, and they hooped last weekend. Names like Balsa Koprovica (6’8 C Florida), Chandler Lawson (6’7 WF Tennessee), Scottie Lewis (6’3 WF New Jersey), Wendell Moore (6’4 PF North Carolina), Jeremiah Francis (5’11 PG Ohio), Jordan Mitchell (6’3 WF Ohio) and Kobe Langley (5’9 SG North Carolina) were all established top 10 players when year #2 of the NYBL tipped off in Washington D.C. in March, but guys like Rowan Barrett Jr. (6’4 WF Canada), Nobal Days (6’8 C Wisconsin), Isaiah Moseley (6’0 SG Canada), Andrew Nembhard (6’0 PG Canada) and BJ Mack II (6’6 C North Carolina) have all burst onto the national stages since their teams joined the NYBL.

All-Ohio Red Sits 10-0

This past weekend featured early season match-ups that could not even be imaged 2 years ago. Team CP3 vs Memphis War Eagles; All-Ohio Red vs Texas Express Elite; Team Rio National vs S.C. Hornets; Memphis War Eagles vs S.C. Hornets and Team CP3 vs Memphis War Eagles our just a few of the elite match-ups that were offered in Session #2. With those types of battles, some teams that are not accustomed to loosing at all, let alone this early in the season were going to take some “Ls.” All-Ohio Red went undefeated for the second time in 2 sessions, including a surprising blowout (41-62) win over Texas Express Elite, and now sits at a perfect 10-0 in league play. All-Ohio is playing some of the best basketball in the league.  Not only are they bringing the full court pressure for 32 minutes, they bring a fresh 5 players off the bench to maintain that pressure.  Most teams simply can’t hold on for an entire game.  We no their top guns (i.e., Francis, Mitchell & Reynolds), but guys like Chris Payne, Chris’Sean Stringer and Amri Davis have been leading the team at times. According the score books, Payne was the big dog in Atlanta.

Team CP3

Keyford Langley’s Team CP3 faced one of the toughest schedules of the weekend and came out unscathed (9-1 overall) with wins over Team Rio (54-47), Memphis (57-52), Team Takeover (67-39), 6^th Man Warriors(63-43) and Academy Prep Hawks (50-45). Wendell Moore had another good weekend as did Chaz Gwinn, the Langley twins and Mike Green. The upstart Brampton Warriors solidified their place among the elite teams in the league with a 5-0 record in Atlanta. That unblemished recorded included a lopsided victory over Texas Express Elite (62-41) on Saturday. A virtual unknown in the U.S. prior to Session #1 in Washington D.C, Brampton’s Rowan Barrett was killin it in Atlanta. Multiple 20 point games, dunks and athletic demonstrations finally convinced some folks that he’s the top guy in this class. Speaking of tops in his class, his running mate, Andrew Nembhard, is quietly building a case as the top PG in the class. He’s not flashy, but he runs the point like a poised college guy.

Andrew Nembhard, Isaiah Moseley, Myles Pierre & BJ Mack

Although the Ohio Hoopsters left D.C. 0-5 in the opening session, their ride home from Atlanta had to feel much better packing a 5-0 record. Now that’s a serious turnaround! Speaking of turn arounds, with the addition of Balsa Koprovica, who is a big who is super skilled, and the continued physical play of Bryan Sanders, Team Florida has a new look, a new swag, and 5-0 record coming out of Atlanta. They are now a legitimate threat to upset somebody in Columbus in June. Over the weekend, Team Florida took down the Charlotte Rivals, D-Wade Future Stars, Team United, Reach Higher Kings and Carolina Chaos. In 2 sessions Team Rio has only lost 2 games (8-2 overall) and has played a very competitive schedule.  We know they have top 5 Scottie Lewis on the roster, but Brian Antonio was the story this weekend, as he knocked down a boatload of treys in several tough games. Team Rio continues to get better, and could find themselves in the final 4 in Columbus in June.

Other impressing showings included Team United’s 68-67 overtime victory against the Memphis War Eagles on Sunday. In that game, North Carolina’s BJ Mack silenced some of his many critics with a big time, 30 point performance. Butler Elite had to be happy with their 4-1 showing last weekend. Their only loss came at the hands of Texas Express Elite, who had to overcome a double digit deficit to pull out the 58-60 win. Noble Days was hurt on day one, but returned on Sunday. In his absence, Demonta Hudson put together a great weekend, and was his team’s leading and most consistent scorer.

Juwan Gary, Chris Payne, DJ Jeffries & Joe Jones

Fresh off a great showing in a big tournament their home country, the Northern Kings logged in a surprising 4-1 record in Session # 2.  Their lone loss came against DC United, another Canadian team (33-30). Their best win of the weekend was a 39-37 nail bitter against Texas Express Elite Saturday afternoon. A big shout out goes to the Georgia based TNBC, who got out of Atlanta with a surprising 4-1 record. You can’t blame it on a soft schedule, as TNBC beat a very competitive Team Takeover (59-57), the Academy Prep Hawks, DC Assault and Upstate Elite.

There were a number of 3-2 teams after last weekend, most notably the Memphis War Eagles. Rodney Newsome’s bunch has rarely lost 2 games in a season, let alone in 1 weekend! But hey, that’s what happens in the NYBL. It was hard getting him here (the league), but it was clear his team enjoyed the competition and are very much looking forward the Session # 3 in Louisville, Kentucky in 2 weeks. The S.C. Hornets were initially flying high after the opening session with a gaudy 5-0 record; however, in Session #2 they took 2 body blows from Memphis (60-69) and Team Rio (48-51). No shame in those losses, as they came at the hands of 2 of the league’s top teams.

Now that Session #2 has been put to bed, all eyes turn to Louisville and the third stop of the league. Teams are starting to think about seeding and the championship session in Columbus, Ohio in June. With a crystal trophy, and national championship rings up for grabs, teams are starting to feel the heat! Can’t wait for Louisville!

Session #2 Photo Gallery

NYBL League Standings

King James Shooting Stars Classic-Final Day Report

Brazdeikis, Kabongo, Onyeali, Francis, Reynolds, Mitchell, Frankly & Treacy

The final day of the King James Shooting Star Classic was all about championships.  In the 8^th grade division, Canada’s CIA Bounce held off a physical Chicago Select to claim a 57-40 victory and the championship. Although it appeared that CIA Bounce’s significant size advantage at every position was going to result in an easy win, an equally physical Chicago Select team played them toe to toe for much of the contest. In fact, at the break, the game was knotted at 27. CIA Bounce scored first to start the second period, but Chicago answered with a bucket. Later, CIA Bounce went on a 6-0 run and took a 35-29 lead. Another run lifted the score to 41-34 with 6:31 left in the game. From there, Bounce would maintain no less than a 10 point lead before pulling it out by a score of 57-41. Bounce’s Ignas Brazdeikis (6’4 WF Toronto) was smoking hot from the perimeter to the tune of a game-high 18 points. Jonathan Kabongo (6’3 PG Toronto) only scored 8 points, but he ran his team to perfection, and provided several athletic highlight plays to boot. Malik Onyeali (6’0 P/SG Chicago) was the work horse for Chicago Select, and led his team with 15 points, followed by Raekwon Drake who added 10 points.

To get to the championship game CIA Bounce easily defeated the Ohio-based Shining Stars 62-33. By halftime, the game was pretty much over, as Bounce had them down 25-2.  Bounce was just too big, and shot the ball too well (hit 12 treys) for the Shining Stars to get it done. Chicago Select’s ticket to the chip was much more difficult, as they had to squeak out a 36-34 win over Florida Force to advance. Malik Onyeal was the high man with 12 points. Dante Treacy (5’8 P/SG Orlando) was a stud for Florida, finishing with a team-high 12 points.

All-Ohio Red-7th Grade Gold Champions

Much like the pre-game warm-ups for the 8^th grade championship game, many observers in the stands to watch the 7^th grade championship game assumed that All-Ohio Red would totally dominate a much less heralded Team Teague.  Not so fast my friend! All-Ohio did jump out to a 11-2 lead by the 7:59 mark, but a scrappy Team Teague refused to roll over, and battled back tie the game at 32 by halftime. Team Teague got on the board first to start the second period, but an All-Ohio spurt put them up 43-35 with a little over 12 minutes left in the game. All-Ohio would later make a 14-0 run to establish dominance in the game, them go on to get the 71-59 victory and the championship trophy.  

Jeremiah Francis was huge for All-Ohio in terms of scoring (16 points), defending and rebounding. Gerard Reynolds was equally as impressive, as he was the primary scorer (14 points) in the first half.  Reynolds may be a bit undersized for his position, but his strength and post moves are elite. Also, Jordan Mitchell added a very quiet 16 points in the win. James Frankly (5’6 PG Indianapolis) was the smallest player on the court for Team Teague, but the tough and scrappy little PG ran the show, scored, and set his teammates up for easy buckets. With the championship now under their belt, All-Ohio will take their talent to Atlanta for Session #2 of the NYBL. Their schedule in Atlanta includes a showdown with Texas Express Elite, who finished second at the 6th grade AAU Nationals last year, and a rematch with We All Can Go. In addition to barely getting by DC Premier on Saturday, All-Ohio beat We All Can Go on Sunday to advance. Elite PG Tyger Campbell will get another showdown with Jeremiah Francis in the ATL, as arguably the #1 and #2 ranked floor generals in the country will again go head-to-head!!

There is traditionally very little attention paid to the silver division in major tournaments, however, it’s worth noting that after getting smacked by All-Ohio Red in pool play, National Select made a serious run through the consolation division, where they eventually met and defeated the Michigan Titans 50-29 to claim the title. Because of crowd issues, the game was cancelled with 6 minutes remaining. Tyler Brelsford led with 11 points, while Che Evans added 9 points and Terrance Williams finished with 8 points and 10 rebounds. National Select may have beat down the Titans, but getting by The Family proved much more difficult as they advanced with a 1 point victory (79-78) after Shemar Morrow sank 2 free throws with 2 seconds left to seal the win. Morrow proved he could still dominate playing up a grade, as he led with a game-high 26 points and 13 rebounds. Tyler Brelsford added 17 markers, followed by Che Evans (14) and Terrance Williams (12 points). The NYBL was well represented, as National Select’s top guns dominated, and will also be heading to Atlanta this weekend.

Team Melo beat Rens in the 8^th grade silver bracket championship. In the 6^th grade gold division, We All-Can Go downed the New York Gauchos 61-47 to grab the hardware, while Team Glory got by We All-Can Go 40-48 in the 5^th grade gold bracket. At least in the middle school divisions, the King James Shooting Stars Classic offered many teams some great competition.

King James Shooting Stars Classic-Day 2 Report

Jack Cravaack, TK Robinson, Trey King, Brandon Johnson, Seth Goodson & Isaiah Payton

Day # 2 early on Saturday consisted of pool play, while the first 2 rounds of bracket play tipped off in the early afternoon and evening. Unique to the King James tournament is the fact that teams can be heading home as early as Saturday afternoon. Early in the day, Buckeye Prep's 8th grade squad faced off against Tier 1's "B" team. Buckeye Prep got out of the gates quickly and was up 14-8 by the 8:40 mark, and 30-10 with 4:33 left in the opening period. At the half, the score was already out of reach at 37-18. The second half mirrored the first, and Buckeye Prep would later cruise to an easy 52-29 win. Buckeye Prep was led in scoring by Teays Valley's Garrett Tipton (6'3 WF) who finished with 10 points. Behind him were TherRon Jennings (8) and Seth Goodson (7). Nick Moorman (6’0 WG Ottoville) paced Tier 1 with 14 points.

Later in the afternoon I caught the second half of the Shinning Stars vs Maryland Hawks game (8th grade). By the time I arrived, the Stars were up 20-21. By the 8:45 mark, the Shinning Stars had opened a 33-22 lead. With 1:11 left in the game, Maryland had pulled to within 4 points (43-39). Despite the Hawk run, the Shinning Stars would hold on to get the 46-39 victory. Johnny Miller's (5'8 SG Cincinnati) game-high 12 points came on 4 treys. Isaiah "Sleepy" Payton added 11 points, while Jack Cravaack contributed 8 and Tate Goodyear finished with 7 points.

Later in the first round of bracket play Buckeye Prep and Shinning Stars would face off for the 2nd time in 2 weeks.  Buckeye Prep found themselves down 9-4 quickly after committing 3 straight turnovers to start the game. By the 4:56 mark, the Stars had extended the lead to 8 points (13-21). The Shinning Stars would maintain a lead for the rest of the half, but Buckeye Prep would battle back to trim the lead to 30-26 to close the 1^st half. With 11:05 left in the contest, the game was knotted at 31. As was the case in the first half, Buckeye Prep was plagued by turnovers late in the second period and would eventually go down to the Stars 51-42. Jack Cravaack was a monster in the post and led his team with 12 points. Seth Goodson was the high man for Buckeye Prep with 13 points, followed by Garrett Tipton who added 11 points.

Chuck Painter’s Dayton Metro team had to overcome a huge first half deficit against the Lexington Future to advance to the second round of bracket play. At one point in the first half, Metro was down 22-8, and by the break, the score was a lopsided 30-18. Despite the big hole they had dug for themselves, Dayton started to fight their way back early in the second period. Sparked by TK Robinson’s (5’11 SG Dayton) three trey bombs, Dayton was able to trim the lead to 3 points (32-29) by the 5:57 mark. While Robinson was getting it done from beyond the arc, Jordan Coovert (6’2 PF Dayton) was getting busy in the paint. In the end, Dayton Metro got the win by a final score of 48-47. Coovert finished with a team-high 12 points, while Robinson finished with 11 points. Trey King (6’5 C Lexington) paced Lexington with a game-high 13 points.

Earlier in the day, Chicago Select (8^th grade) hooked up with the Cincinnati Lakers. It appeared that Chicago would run away with this one after jumping out to an 8-0 lead. However, back-to-back treys by Corey Davis (6’4 SG Walnut Hills) jump-started the Lakers and the game would remain close most of the 1^st half. However, Chicago’s superior size and strength would become evident, and by halftime they were comfortably ahead 14-26. Raekwon Drake (6’4 C Chicago) was a force inside and made it very difficult for the Lakers to score at the rim. Chicago went on to get the victory and advanced to face Dayton Metro.

I had a chance to checkout the Spiece Indy Heat for a second time this tournament, as they totally dismantled and out executed the New Yorked-based Rens. Last year at this time Rens was a final 4 team, but they were totally overmatched by Spiece, and eventually went down 59-28. Brandon Johnson (6’0 WF Ft Wayne). Led all scorers with a game-high 11 points.

In the 7^th grade division, All-Ohio Red ran through field with little resistance on Saturday. Their first victim, a National Select team based out on Maryland, but loaded with nationally ranked talent. Some of the talent included: Team Takeover’s Terrence Williams, and Tyler Brelsford, Tyrese Jenkins, Sche Evans, Gerard Mungo, Jordan Beckett, the Oakland Soldiers’ Shemar Morrow and Devin Hightower (6^th graders). Despite their collection of talent, National Select was no match for All-Ohio Red, who went on to collect an impressive 58-34 win. Although National Select was up 5-2 early, a 17-2 run to close the first half pretty much set the table for the win. Terrence Williams led National Select with 13 points and 12 rebounds and Tyler Brelsford added 7 points. There were no point totals for All-Ohio, but Sidney’s Andre Gordon and Columbus’ Jeremiah Francis were reported to have been the standouts in the game. All-Ohio would continue to win, and will face We All Can Go early on Sunday morning. National Select won their second pool game against VAC Air Attack 62-56, then made a run through the Sliver division bracket and will face The Family Sunday morning.

Championship Sunday should feature some very competitive games. I hope to check out the action in some of the younger divisions.

King James Shooting Stars Classic-Day 1 Report

Trejan Didier, Seth Goodson & Alex Heath

The King James Shooting Stars Classic in Akron, Ohio has been a premier event for many years, and the 2014 edition appears that it will live up to that grand tradition. On Friday night a number of Ohio-based teams were in action. I arrived in Akron in time to catch the game between Ohio’s Another Level and Indy Speiece Heat Red (2018). Although Another Level would race to 6-0 lead, and lead 11-6 by the 11:05 mark in the opening half, Indy’s superior size and skill would start to pay dividends, and Indy would later close the lead to 14-10 with about 9 minutes left. By halftime, Speice held a 29-20 lead.  In the second half, Speice would capture then later extend the lead to-29-49 with 7:55 left in the game. By the time the horn sounded, the Heat was ahead 35-59.  The star of the game for Indy was Trejean Didier (6’1 SG Ft Wayne) who paced his team with 9 points. Didier was productive at both getting to the rim and knocking down the outside jumper. Alex Heath (5’3 PG Euclid) was a standout for Another Level, and although he did not put up big numbers, he did a good job of penetrating and finding open teammates.

Ed Lysh’s Buckeye Prep team got off to a great start to the tune of a 56-17 blowout win over Illinois Speed Black. From what I understand, the outcome of the game was never in doubt, as Buckeye Prep jumped out to a big lead and never looked back.  The leading scorer in the game was Gahanna’s Seth Goodson who finished with 12 points, followed by Garret Tipton (10), Teon Jennings (10) and Chase Rankin (9).  Next up for Buckeye Prep is Tier 1 Sports Tomorrow’s action should be competitive, as pool play concludes and the first 2 rounds of bracket play tips off.