Pro City Summer Hoop Challenge Primes Teams for Open Period

Ron Bailey, Publisher

July 2, 2006 – The Nike Pro-City Summer Hoop Challenge was the scene yesterday for major AAU/travel team action, with teams from Washington, DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Tidewater, VA squaring off. Held at Georgetown’s McDonough Arena, a significant crowd supported the event. Following is a brief recap of the action.

Cecil Kirk 53 Positive Image 48

The Cecil Kirk squad from Baltimore, MD, led by their coach, Anthony Lewis overcame a nine point second half deficit via a 13-4 second half run, and held on for a hard fought victory. Jamar Young (29 points) and Terrance Jones (9 points) led Cecil in scoring, while Bradley Wanamaker (16 points) and Raymond Simms (11 points) paced Philadelphia, PA-based Positive Image.

After making their second half run and equaling the score, it was Cecil’s Young who guided his squad to victory, as with 5:11 in regulation, he drove, was fouled, and scored through contact. With the accompanying foul shot, Cecil held a three point lead; one they would never relinquish. For his exploits, Jamar was named the game’s most valuable player.

Baltimore's Jamar Young, a standout guard for Cecil Kirk, pictured here in the lobby of Georgetown's McDonough Arena.

Down the stretch, Young acted as his team’s offensive trigger man, guiding Cecil in their one high, four low set, which according to Lewis was just what he wanted. “We were saying (to the other team) run at him” he revealed. “If he doesn’t get the ball up (for a shot), he’s going to make a good pass to someone else, to get a good pass”

Cecil’s coach also lauded his team’s defense in the second half, which held Positive Image scoreless for close to four minutes. Accroding to him, utilizing defensive pressure “is how we play”. Lewis went on to state “If we are able to pressure you on defense, create turnovers, get the ball out on the floor”, Cecil is playing to their strengths, as their “game is transition...our mission is transition”.

16 & Under - Boo Williams 45 Triple Threat 39

As evidenced by the relatively low score, both team’s defensive pressure caused problems for their opponent. Boo William’s coach, Ken Chisholm attributed their victory to several factors, of which defense was key. “They couldn’t really score over 40 points” he said. “So if you keep somebody under 40, usually you are going to win the ball game”.

Chisholm, whose team is based in the Tidewater section of Virginia, also indicated feeding his team’s forwards and centers was a factor in his first half plan of attack, as “They didn’t look like they had that many bigs, so we wanted to hurry up and pound it inside”.

Boo William's 16 and under squad, mixed inside and outside offensive action in their 45-39 victory.

The game’s MVP, Keith Wright (8 points) was a prime beneficiary of this tactic; his baseline shot leading to a 19-15 lead for his team was representative of his impact. Chisholm was happy that his forward “with big soft hands”, went “straight up to the basket. There was no playing around…he just played an all-around good game”.

For Triple Threat, based in Washington, DC, Kevon Moore (15 points) paced the squad in scoring, showing he can get to the rim fairly easily. Maurice Creek (10 points) also reached double figures for Triple Threat.

17 & Under – Boo Williams 73 Triple Threat 59

A challenge both teams faced was inactivity – neither squad had competed as a team, in over a month, though Boo Williams’ head coach and namesake, Boo Williams, and Triple Threat’s coach and organizational leader, Keith Stevens, refused to allow it as an excuse.

Given the long period in which his team didn’t practice or play as a unit, Williams stated “I didn’t know how we would feel” though he was confident his charges would respond well. “When you look at our record, it's 32-3…this is a very good team” he said. “Coming here (from Tidewater, VA), for one game, I knew Triple Threat was going to be good here (in their backyard, of Washington, DC)…But I really felt if we were at the top of our game, even if we hadn’t played in a month, we’d be o.k.”.

Stevens acknowledged the lack of playing time did affect his squad, but after noting “those guys are not practicing either” and as such “My guys have to play hard from the beginning”. He went on to lament the double digit deficit Triple Threat faced early on, saying “You don’t dig an 18 point hole against a good team like that, and think you are just going to come back”.

He was proud of Triple Threat’s effort in “cutting it to six”, but not at what followed. “We took two bad shots (at that point), and it changed the game again” he said.

From a player standpoint, Boo William’s Chris Wright (26 points), shot threes, drove to the cup, and finished on breaks – there was no denying his MVP award. He would also notch several steals, and kick the ball out on breaks, to streaking teammates.

Chris Wright, showed his complete offensive skill set in Boo William's victory over a talented Triple Threat team. To use the parlance of the street, he 'got his man'.

For their part, Wright’s teammates, Pat Patterson (12 points), and Ed Davis (11 points), not only scored, but rebounded as well. Davis provided several blocks, one of which came while filling from the weak side, was particularly impressive.

Triple Threat was led in scoring by Jeff Jones (13 points), Adrian Bowie (11 points), and Corey Allmond (10 points). That trio, along with the interior play of Chris Braswell (9 points) and Jeff Allen (6 points) were instrumental in their team’s second half performance.

Despite the uneven score, this game benefited both teams, as it prepares them for the crucial open recruiting period and related schedule of games, which starts next week.

Actually, that holds true for all of the teams participating in the Nike Pro-City Summer Hoop Challenge. There is no doubt that they are better prepared for the upcoming evaluation period, as a result of having competed in this event.