Phenom Hoop Report
Scouting Report: Monday, January 23rd, 2012
Event: Penny Hardaway’s Hoop Fest
Evaluator: Rick Lewis
Twitter: @Coach_Rick57
Website: www.phenomhoopreport.com
Phenom Quote of the Day: “Play as a team and eliminate all thoughts of personal glory.”
Phenom Hoop Report Philosophy: “Balanced, thorough and detailed evaluations based upon the 3 P’s philosophy of Performance, Production, and Potential”
In today’s issue, we will take a close look at the inaugural Penny Hardaway Hoopfest that was held at Memphis White Station High School on January 20-21st, 2012. The Hoopfest was a showcase of national teams going up against the best teams in the Memphis area. More importantly, tournament director Travis Haddock put together a well organized and professional tournament with the proceeds going directly to the St. Jude Children Research Hospital. In speaking with Mr. Haddock, the tournament raised over $7,000 that will be donated to this worthy cause. Congratulations to Mr. Haddock for a successful and enjoyable tournament! According to Mr. Haddock, “the talent in Memphis is as good as anywhere else in America and far better than most places, it is extremely rare to have elite teams from other regions come play here. Perhaps part of the problem is that Memphis prep teams are feared, or maybe the larger reason is that no one in this area has put forth the effort to invite the best teams in the country to an event in the Bluff City.” One thing is for certain, the players and teams from Memphis play extremely hard and competitive no matter the competition.
In the one Friday afternoon contest, it was Our Savior New American (New York) winning 62-55 over Ensworth of Tennessee. Ensworth is a traditional Tennessee 2A power house and has won two of the last three Tennessee 2A state championships. Leading the way for Our Savior 6’2 senior guard Nick Lewis with 16 points. He went 5-12 from the floor (2-7 from the 3 point line) and an automatic 4-4 from the free throw line. Lewis is a silky smooth WG that has excellent athleticism and has an outstanding shooter’s touch. Nick Lewis is definitely one of the top unsigned senior shooting guards in the country. 6’1 8th grader Devonte Green played like a season’s veteran and tallied 10 points. However, the best player on the court was 6’9 Christopher Obekpa as he finished with 11 points going 5-7 from the floor and 1-2 from the free throw line. While the official statistician had Obekpa down for 7 rebounds, but it did indeed seem like he had more than indicated and had at least a half dozen block shots. Without question, Obekpa has to be one of the top unsigned senior big men in the country. Obekpa is oozing with raw talent and athleticism and like many athletic big men; their defense is more advanced than their offensive game, although Obekpa went an impressive 5-7 from the floor. Enswoth was led by 6’2 senior guard William Downey who finished with 19 points. Downey went 7-14 from the floor (5-12 from the 3 point line). In addition, it was 5’10 junior PG Corn Elder that contributed in a big way as well as he chipped in 11 points and even more impressive 8 rebounds. Ensworth went 22-56 from the floor (8-32 from the 3 point) and only shot 3-3 from the free throw line. On the other hand, Our Savior went 25-49 from the floor (3-11 from the 3 point line) and 9-18 from the free throw line. The biggest lead for My Savior was 18 points, but the relentless and aggressive Ensworth team made the game competitive down the stretch.
In the next contest, it was the Oak Hill Warriors earning a hard fought win over defending Tennessee state 3A champions Craigmont. Oak Hill won the contest by the score of 69-66; it was the clutch free throw throwing that secured the victory. Oak Hill was led by 6’6 WF Jordan Adams with 24 points. Adams went 9-15 from the floor (2-6 from the 3 point line) and a perfect 4-4 from the free throw line. Tyler Lewis and D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera both finished with 14 points. Lewis went 4-11 from the floor (1-3 from the 3 point line) and 5-6 from the free throw line. Smith-Rivera went 3-9 from the floor (0-1 from the 3 point line) and an impressive 8-9 from the free throw line with many of them coming in the last minute of play. Smith-Rivera was saddled with foul trouble as he picked up his 4th foul late in the 3rd quarter, but he played smart and avoided any other fouls. 7’0 AJ Hammons finished with 8 points going 3-3 from the floor and 2-2 from the free throw line. He had 8 rebounds and 4 blocked shots for the game and a two crucial blocks in the final minute of play. Hammons committed an unusual seven turnovers for the Warriors as being his only negative for the game. 6’1 junior guard Sam Craft led the way for Craigmont with 18 points. Craft went 8-16 from the floor (2-3 from the 3 point line) while backcourt guard Jordan Washington tallied 15 points going 9-12 from the floor (2-5 from the 3 point line) and 3-4 from the free throw line. In addition, Ladarius Coleman chipped in 10 points for the upset minded Craigmont.
Oak Hill took a 14 point lead in the 3rd quarter, but Craigmont outscored Oak Hill by converting on 7-10 three point shots in the second half and we are talking about downtown 3 pointers for Craigmont. Oak Hill shot 23-48 from the floor for 48% (3-11 from the 3 point line for 27%) but won the game at the free throw line going an impressive 20-24 for the game. On the other hand, Craigmont went 27-58 from the floor for 47% (7-15 from the 3 point line) and only went 5-8 from the free throw line. Oak Hill is now 30-0 for the season.
In the Friday night finally, it was Montverde of Florida squeaking out a 76-70 victory over Memphis White Station. Montverde was led by 6’1 junior PG Kasey Hill (Florida verbal) with 21 points going 7-12 from the floor (1-1 from the 3 point line) and 4-7 from the free throw line. His performance Friday night showcased why he is considered one of the premier point guards in the 2013 class. Hill is known more of a slashing PG that loves to dribble penetrate and finish near or around the basket illustrated a diversified game with a much improved ability to knock down open jumpers. Hill’s jumper has excellent elevation, and his shot has beautiful rotation that makes him more of an offensive threat on the court. In addition to Hill, 6’3 senior SG Michael Frazier (Florida signee) and 6’9 Anthony Perez (Ole Miss Signee) were equally impressive. Frazier and Perez both scored 21 and 18 points respectively. The trio of Hill, Frazier, and Perez combined to score 60 of the team’s 76 points. Leading the way for White Station was 6’7 sophomore sensation Leon Black with a game high 28 points and a whopping 13 rebounds for the impressive double-double performance. Black went 8-18 from the floor (0-4 from the 3 point line) and 12-15 from the free throw line. Simply put, Black was exceptional for the home team. In addition, 5’8 freshman PG Niche Smith is a name to put in the memory bank. Smith tallied 17 points going an efficient 5-8 from the floor (1-2 from the 3 point line) and 6-8 from the free throw line. Smith has tremendous speed and quickness, but utilizes the stutter step and reverse spin dribble move to perfection. Throughout the game, it looked like Montverde was in total command but the competitive spirit and passionate play of White Station took a one point lead with approximately 3 minutes left in the game. Montverde rallied and then went on an 11-0 run to ice the game for the visitors from Florida.
While the action on Friday night was fast and furious, the action on Saturday was filled with the upset by Memphis Ridgeway over Montverde by the score of 73-69. Montverde enjoyed a lead of 9 points midway through the first half and again appeared well on their way to another win, but Ridgeway kept bouncing back and pulled off the upset. For Ridgeway, it was a total team effort and balance scoring was the call of the day as four Ridgeway players scored in double figures. Leading the way was 6’6 senior WF Kordario Fleming with 16 points, while 6’0 senior PG Cameron Golden and 6’3 senior SG Adam Wearly both tallied 15 points while 6’7 senior PF Craig Hill chipped in 11 points. Fleming and Wearly are both strong and athletic WF/PF that is bouncy and aggressive, but the one player that stood out was senior PG Cameron Golden. Golden was tough as nails and also sports excellent athleticism but managed to dictate and control the tempo for Ridgeway. Leading the way for Montverde was senior SG Michael Frazier who had two excellent back to back performances. Frazier finished with a game high 29 points going 9-15 from the floor (5-10 from the 3 point line) and a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line. Frazier was the only player for Montverde in double figures while 6’9 Anthony Perez was close with 8 points. Unfortunately for Montverde, 6’1 junior PG Kasey Hill had an off night with 6 points going 2-9 from the floor (0-3 from the 3 point line) and 2-4 from the free throw line. The game was tied 9 times and had 6 lead changes and the game went right down to the wire before Ridgeway pulled off the huge upset.
Up next was the game between Oak Hill and another traditional Memphis powerhouse Melrose. Oak Hill jumped on Melrose early and was clicking on all cylinders and took a commanding 59-33 lead, but Melrose rallied to make the game closer at the end before the Warriors pulled out the 76-71 win. Leading the way for Oak Hill was 6’3 senior WG D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera with 26 points. Smith-Rivera went 8-17 from the floor (6-10 from the 3 point line) and a perfect 4-4 from the free throw line and also dished out 5 assists. 6’6 Jordan Adams chipped in 22 points going 8-14 from the floor (3-7 from the 3 point line) and 3-4 from the free throw line while backcourt PG Tyler Lewis chipped in 19 points. Lewis went 5-12 from the floor (3-8 from the 3 point line) and perfect 6-6 free throws. In addition, Lewis dished out 6 assists. Jordan Adams also collected 7 rebounds, had 2 steals, 2 blocks and dished out 3 assists for a solid all around performance. The trio of Smith-Rivera, Adams and Lewis combined for 67 of the 76 points scored. Leading the way for Melrose was 6’5 junior WG Markel Crawford with 26 points. Crawford went 11-20 from the floor (1-7 from the 3 point line) and 3-4 from the free throw line. Three other players for Melrose scored in double figures with 6’2 senior SG Davonte Hampton chipped in 15 points while 6’7 sophomore PF Chris Jefferson chipped in 11 points while 5’10 junior PG Kenneth Goodwin tallied 10 points. The key different in the game was the deadly outside shooting of Oak Hill as they converted on 14-29 3 pointers for 48.3% while Ridgeway went 8-27 for 29.6%.
In the finally for Saturday night, it was Simeon of Chicago going away with the win by the score of 73-54. 6’8 junior Jabari Parker and 6’8 senior PF Steve Taylor were both equally impressive for Simeon as both recorded a double-double. Parker finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds as he went 8-12 from the floor. On the other hand and not to be outdone by Parker, Taylor played probably one of his best games of the year. Taylor tallied 17 points and 10 rebounds, but Taylor shown more of a power game against Southwind. 6’5 junior elite level athlete JaJuan Johnson led the way with 21 points while 6’9 junior Jonathan Williams tallied 15 points. Without question, Johnson showcased his high level athleticism and his acrobatic dunks simply brought the house down on several occasions. Johnson has the rare blend of explosiveness and skill as he has a feathery touch from the outside. In addition, Williams will make a great face up PF at the next level as he too showcased his ability to step out and knock down the open 15 foot jumper.










