SoCalHoops High School All-Star News

The adidas Double Pump California All-Star Classic was held Saturday night at Cal State Dominguez Hills. Two games, first a girls' game and then a boys' game.  And we were really bummed because our digital camera, which we usually carry with us was in for repairs, so we didn't get any photos, but there was plenty to write about. And notwithstanding the compliment from Rich Meyer at WestCoastHoops, they definitely have more accurate scoring numbers than we do, because frankly we were too busy having fun to actually keep track of the complete scoring.

Like most games of this sort, defense is not the hallmark, nor the reason why you go to watch, but unlike the Dada Classic the week before, there was actually quit a bit of defense being played.   The East was clearly the more productive team, winning 140-98, but still both teams played pretty decent defense too.

There were two players who clearly dominated the game for the East team: Gilbert Arenas (6'-4" Sr. SG/PG) and Tito Maddox (6'-4" Sr. PG/SG) played way above everyone else on the floor.  Gilbert was named the MVP of the game and he finished with 26 points,  18 in the first half, and he scored in some very impressive ways, including one phenomenally acrobatic double-dunk (actually there really is no other way to describe the shot--and no, he didn't dunk the ball twice on the same shot, but it sure seemed like he could have).  About Gilbert:  If he can maintain his focus and intensity at Arizona, he will be the Pac-10 freshman of the year.   He can score in ways that most other players only dream about, elevating at will, breaking a press with the dribble, creating his own shot either in close or from out at three point range, and he had several scouts saying that his potential is just unlimited, better than almost anyplayer who has come out of SoCal in recent memory. Gilbert was far and away the best player in this game and we'll miss not seeing him light it up locally next season, but at least we'll get to see him in SoCal at least twice when the Cats play SC and the Bruins.

Tito was also clearly the best point guard in the game, but only escaped being the best player in the game because he was usually on the floor at the same time Gilbert was (they were both on the same team and generally in the same subbing rotation).  He also missed being named  the best player in the game because he absolutely has demonstrated over the course of this spring that he doesn't have anything remotely resembling a jump shot.  But if he could master that, he probably could be a good NBA backup point guard right now.  Tito was, however, the best playmaker on the floor, and he and Gilbert fed off each other, passing back and forth and Tito created several opportunities for Gil to put on a show. Tito pushes the break and can finish around the basket and maybe next year at prep school (unless he ends up at DePaul or Fresno State) he'll focus on getting his shot mechanics fixed. If he does look out.

The rosters were broken up into "East" and "West" teams, although frankly, geographically, those appellations had nothing to do with where anyone was from.  Also, several of the Oakland guys didn't bring their own high school jerseys, so a lot of people were confused looking at Justin Davis, Blandon Ferguson or Jovan Harris. . . no, they didn't play for Long Beach Poly during the season (although Rod Palmer probably wished they had), but a couple extra uniforms were used from the Jackrabbits.

The East Team was :

Tito Maddox (6'-4" Sr. PG) Compton HS (undecided)--As we said, Tito was by far the best playmaker on the floor, and he finished with 24 points and a whole handful of assists (we didn't count them accurately enough to really make a difference).

Joe Kirchofer (6'-9" Sr. F/C) Sacramento Laguna Creek HS (Stanford)- Showed that he'll do what he does best next year for Stanford, post up and move other people out of the paint.  But with Madsen and the Collins twins both healthy it looks like he'll have to sit a while in reserve.  With a 1520 SAT and his National Merit Scholarship status, he won't have to worry about playing: He'll own the team. Joe didn't score a lot on Saturday, but had a couple of impressive blocks.

Dalron Johnson (6'-7" Sr. F) Verbum Dei (UNLV)--The Pac-10 is going to be crying over missing this guy for a long time. On his high school team Dalron was frequently a decoy or a pick-setter for Marlon Parmer, which is not an entirely bad occupation, but on Saturday, Dalron showed his power and his versatility, slashing to the basket, leading a couple of fast breaks, and scoring more than we ever remembered him scoring. Maybe it was the lack of pressure, maybe the level of the players around him, but whatever it was, Dalron was very impressive.

Trenell Eddings (5'-10" Sr. PG) Rialto Eisenhower (UC Riverside)--Easily the smallest player on the floor, he was one of the quickest too. Didn't score a lot, but led most of the fast breaks and alternated at point with Andrew Pleick (the two were on the same substitution squad and thus in the game together a lot). Trenell had some terrific steals, handled the ball in traffic very well, and demonstrated that he's a fine pickup for UCR, which is going D-I next year.

Andrew Pleick (6'-4" Sr. PG/SG) Los Alamitos HS (Drake)--If Trenell was the smallest guy, Pleick may have been the smartest and craftiest player, a guy who knows the game fundamentally better than just about anyone else out there. He averaged 16 ppg and 8 rbpg this last season, and with a 3.4 gpa, the only surprising thing is that he chose the relatively obscure Drake (at least it's relatively obscure to most of us on the West Coast). Andrew displayed superior ball-handling and excellent shooting, hitting for at least 14 points, and he had some excellent thread-the-needle pasess to Bo Segeberg. An excellent pickup for Pleick.

Gilbert Arenas (6'-4" Sr. SG/PG) Grant HS (Arizona)--Again, the best player on the floor, bar none. Now, if he'll only get rid of those cross-training or running shoes that he's played with for most of the year (and which he wore on Saturday) we'd be happy. Seriously, we don't think there's any way that he'll be permitted to wear those at Arizona, and why would he want to risk ankle injury anyway?

B.J. Ward (6'-1" Sr. PG) Oxnard Santa Clara (UCSB)-- Played reasonably well, but often found himself in the game with either Eddings and Pleick or Arenas and Maddox, which is just too many point guards at once. Showed great decision-making, and even shot a little too. Exhibited fine defensive play, and picked off a couple of steals.

Nick Jones (6'-3" Sr. SG) Oxnard Santa Clara (UCSB)--Did not shoot well at all in this game in the first half, and even air-balled a shot. Not that it really matters, because the guy is a scoring, shooting machine, who together with Ward, led the Santa Clara team to the D-V State title just in time to see their legendary coach retire. In the second half, Jones woke up and hit several threes and a couple others from long range. Nick and Ward will have a lot of work to do at the next level, but they should continue to be a great combination.

Noel Felix (6'-9" Sr. PF) Inglewood HS (undecided)--Played better than he has most of the season, and if he can get his grades together, should be a nice pickup for a San Diego State, Cal State Fullerton, Cal Poly, or a school that can afford to red-shirt him a year. Probably will go the juco route though. Noel had several blocks, and scored well in and around the paint, which is exactly what you'd expect.  

Bo Segeberg (6'-9" Sr. F/C) Serrano HS (Sacramento State)--Bo is really trying to develop a set of consistent hands, and was by far the hardest-working big man on the floor, but he didn't have the most success.  He clearly worked at it more than the others, and had to because he had Chris Osborne and Justin Davis all over him for most of the game. Posted well, showed good footwork, but was frequently stymied by guys like Davis and Osborne, but still managed to finish with 15 points. He'll be a fine addition to Cal State Sacramento and should help their desperate situation, especially if he can learn to catch those bullet passes that Pleick and Eddings often gave him.

Earl Lewis (6'-4" Sr. F) Gardena Junipero Serra HS (undecided)--Earl had a very quiet game, shooting some from the perimeter, and slashing to the hole, but he was largely lost in the shuffle among the flashier guys like Arenas and Maddox.  We also have no idea who is looking at Earl and whether or not he's got the grades. The program materials didn't have a bio for him and we didn't get a chance to talk to him after the game, so we'll have to try to follow up in the next week or so.

The West team was:

Joe Shipp (6'-6" Sr. SG/SF) Fairfax HS (Cal)--He's been called a stand-in double for Kris Johnson, and that's not an inaccurate description: Joe has that sort of heavy look to him, but in his case, it's mostly muslce.  He was throwing up shots from all over, including way beyond the three point line; some went in, most didn't, and he was much more effective around the basket finishing the break.

Kent Dennis (6'-4" Sr. SG/PG) Cleveland HS (West Virginia)--A lot of people have sent us e-mail asking whether Kent Dennis can play the point at West Virginia next year. Ok, the answer is yes, he can play the point, but why would anyone want him there?  He's a much better two guard, and he can hit from way beyond three point range. There was a scary moment when he and Gilbert collided and Kent hit his knee on some part of Gilbert. Kent didn't get up for a couple of seconds, but after a short break, he got up, and continued play, but clearly was favoring one leg for while. Tough young man.

Shantay Legans (5'-11" Sr. PG) Goleta Dos Pueblos HS (Cal)--Maybe the most unselfish and smartest pure point guard, on the floor, made more correct decisions than just about anyone at the position Saturday. Great entry passes, excellent decision-making. Shantay didn't shoot a lot, but several scouts in attendance all commented on how strong he's gotten and how well he handles the ball. Made very few mistakes, and shot well.

Rafael Berumen (6'-9" Sr. F) Simi Valley HS (New Mexico)--Rafael likes the perimeter better than he likes the interior, and that's sort of how he played Saturday night. A fierce competitor, he seemed a bit hesitant to mix it up under the boards at times, and didn't take many shots from the outside.   Fortunately when Shantay got him the ball, he made good use of it and scored a couple of nice dunks and close in shots.

Justin Davis (6'-8" Sr. F) Alameda St. Joseph's (Stanford)--We were not as impressed with Justin this week as we were last week but he'll still be a big time addition to the Stanford Cardinal, especially when he gets on a weight training and strength regimen. Justin averaged 16 ppg and 10.5 rebounds this season, but didn't come close to that on Saturday, mostly because he was not getting the ball on offense, and was forced to do a lot more defensively rebounding and outletting, and with these games being mostly fast-break layup drills, he was frequently on the other end of the court.  Still, he managed some very impressive dunks, and a couple of blocked shots.

Brian Wethers (6'-4" Sr. SG) Murrieta Valley HS (Cal) --Didn't have a good night at all when shooting from outside. We don't know whether it's senior-itis, or just this game, but he airballed a couple of shots. With Shantay and Shipp though he showed some nice teamwork and Shantay fed him a couple of very nice alley oops, including one from way behind the mid court line which seemed like it was going to sail out of bounds, but which Wethers caught.

Blandon Ferguson (6'-4" Sr. SG) Alameda St. Joseph's (undecided)--Blandon had a very good performance, and in a few instances was really exceptional, with good perimeter shooting and a few really nice finishes at the hoop. Blandon hasn't decided yet, has the grades in the core courses and will take the SAT this coming Saturday. There are a few schools that he's interested in, including San Diego State and Cal State Fullerton, but it's either a bit premature until he gets the scores, or maybe a bit late and he'll have to consider the prep or juco route. An excellent defender, runs the floor very well and has good vision. 

Jaqay Carlyle (6'-6" Sr. SG/SF) JW North (undecided)--Jaqay, along with Ryan Sims (who wasn't here) is one of the great mysteries of college recruiting. A good sized two-three combo player, he is just not getting any looks right now and may consider going to prep school.  And the recruiting process, or lack thereof for this great outside shooter who can also finish inside and rebounds very well, is starting to take it's toll, because he just looks like he's getting a bit mentally discouraged right now.  For all you college coaches out there looking for a great two guard with excellent college size and great skills (not to mention an 1190 SAT and a 3.6 gpa) this is your guy.

Aarons Abrams (6'-4" Sr. SG) Rancho Buena Vista HS (Wyoming)--After the game, Aaron's father jokingly accused him of "clowning around" and he's sort of right because in an all-star game like this, especially for the guys who've signed, there's little pressure to do anything except to avoid looking ridiculous, and Aaron had his share of fun on Saturday, especially when guarding his former Pump N Run teammate, Gilbert Arenas, to the extent Gilbert was permitting himself to be defended.  Aaron played well, but just not spectacularly well. He finished with about 10 points by our count. Big time pickup for Wyoming, San Jose State's loss.

Jovan Harris (6'-3" Sr PG) El Cerrito HS (St. Mary's) -- How did the Pac-10 let this guy get away?  Very fast, quick hands, good dribble and ball-control, Jovan had some major drives to the basket. Very good hops and incredible elevation at the hoop, he was largely overshadowed by Maddox and Arenas, but still showed he's a big-time prospect, even if he was wearing a Poly jersey.

Chris Osborne (6'-8" Sr. F) Westchester HS (Arizona State)--Chris was a late addition to this game, and we were glad to see him playing.   At times we were asked by several people whether this was the same Chris Osborne who many described during the season as the biggest disappointment of the year at Westchester (and that's not an assessment we share, by the way). Chris was shooting from all over, including hitting a couple of very nice perimeter shots, and one three-pointer, something he's never done (at least not with Lou Wright on the perimeter and him on the blocks during the season). Chris was also a big-time rebounder and not at all afraid to mix it up inside, and we were very pleased by what we saw from him, and ASU fans have a lot to look forward to from Chris the next four years.

All in all, this was a fun, low key, no pressure event, which didn't take itself too seriously or bill itself as anything other than a fun time for all involved. And generally it lived up to it's billing.  A fun game, some hijinks on the court (mostly by Gilbert), and a lot of time to share some memories and realize that for most of these guys (a couple will participate in the WSS Scholastic Hoops Jam next weekend) this will be their last high school all-star game, and the last time for most of us to see them before they leave for college.  The Pumps, who sponsor the event, both spoke at their noon luncheon honoring the players (as did John "the Coach" Kentera from Sports Radio 690) and they told everyone that for them,  it was a way to give back a little and honor the kids who have done so much for SoCal basketball for the last four years. We had a great time, and know that a lot of others did too. And we can't wait to see how these guys all do when the next season starts at the college level. Good luck guys, and thanks for making what we do so much fun.

 
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