Memphis basketball 2014-2015 is
upon as we speak and just when you thought it was going
to be an off year it takes a 180 degree turn. District
16-AAA with all its national prowess as one of the
toughest districts in the country was supposedly on a
down year with usual league leaders White Station
and Hamilton
losing a boat load (other word, Lolll) of national elite
players to graduation and transfers. The main word
in this sentence is
transfer and Hamilton brothers deciding not to attend
Arlington
Prep out of Florida and staying home to pursue a state
title. At the same time
Dedric Lawson
reclassifies to 2015 to come out with his brother
K.J. Lawson.
while Dewas losing all big dogs then from high
school basketball seems to always make
national newsis
always intriguing and this year is no different. This
year is different from years past as like past
preseason polls is dominated by
inner city Division AAA
schools
but a truly major change is in the works and definitely
the hardest to date preseason polls . With the
merger between
Memphis City Schools
into
Shelby County
Schools
now completed with all schools under one umbrella, the
old county schools are making noise claiming three spots
in the
MemphisHooper.com
Top Ten Poll. The poll has changed a little in
the last couple of weeks
Mitchell Summer Shootout 2014
In
it's first year, Mitchell Summer Shootout was a
tremendous success with some of the top talent in the
city and region at display accordingly.Coach
Phillipscoming
off aTSSAA
State Championshiprun
and favorites to not only win in Memphis but repeat as
state champs went undefeated in summer action. TheMitchell
Tigers(No.
1 Preseason Poll) were led
by juniors Kylan
Phillips,Naba
Echols, &Jeremiah
Martinas
the best three guard set in the state, hands down.Douglasswill
make some noise inDivision
AAwith
Mr. Basketball candidateLaGerald
Vickleading
the way for the iconic North Memphis high school.
Manassasprobably
has the best sophomore class in the city and deep also
plus the senior leadership from
Marcus Nesby and
will have a great run with that group of young men,
TSSAA honors a great possibility in a couple of years.
Westwood(No.
10 Preseason Poll)
is led by 6'8Toriano
Stokesand
this young man is going to be special compadres and not
only on the court, this young man has already made a 25
on the ACT.RidgewayisRidgewayandCoach
Henningcoming
off to his standard a tough season will rebound with
incoming freshmanTyler
Harriswho
is going to be special compadres. Only three years agoMelrosewas
one of the top programs in the country but that
fortune has changed dramatically and will be many years
if ever back at that level, seriously. Think this is a
game just sit back and watch.Covingtoncame
down and proved they will make some noise inDivision
AAwithBobby
Shanksleading
the way and don't no one want to go on the road and playCovingtonin
the postseason.Whitehavenwill
be ok and will sit in the middle of the pack of 16-AAA
with a chance to make a move here and there. You have to
give it toCoach
DelamarofSheffield,
he does an extremely great job with the kids he gets
every year respectively. The Knights will make some
noise with some upsets in the works and possibly more as
the season progresses.
MUS Summer Classic 2014
2014 Summer Classic was another
success with some of the best teams in the city and
surrounding areas. Since it's inception since 2000 it
has made national acclaim as one of the best high school
summer events respectively.
Click here for stats.Houston(Number 2 Preseason Poll)
came away with a perfect 6-0
mark with good team basketball all weekend long. Senior Marlon Hunter
will lead the Mustangs and Justin Benton
will make noise all year long. Memphis Central
went also 6-0 but their opponents were not a strong as
Houston, but still 6-0 after Hoopers staff had them as a
cellar team in 16-AAA. Coach Ricardo Patton
and Young
have done a great job this summer. Central'sDarius Thompson
and Antonio Gillespie
will be good. Players that stood out to the Hoopers
staff over the 3 day event and the top player at the
event was Southwind senior Donte Dorsey,
who has elevated his game to another level. His jump
shot from all over the court is solid, basketball moves
are full of basketball IQ that has grown ten fold. Dorsey
is a high major prospect with offers from major
universities on deck and is going to be a great player
on the college level.
Carter Sweat
(Center Hill
- No.9 MemphisHoopers.com
Top Ten) is
as fluid as they come with his moves anywhere on the
court in cohesion with player defense especially when
attacking the goal.. His 6''4 frame with great ball
handling at all times but will pull up on a dime
anywhere on the court and can nail the shot in high
confidence form.
Jeremiah Oatsvall
of Brentwood Academy
played extremely well this week displaying his outside
shot from all over the court. BA will be back in form
and should have a great season, major hiatus since the Brandon Wright
days. White
StationNic Smith
is a scoring machine but the Spartans will need more to
even break into The
Hoopers Top Ten. Dyer County
has solid core from last years group that made it to sub
state action respectively. Seniors DeAndre Gilton, DeMichael Smith,
and Ashton
Mitchell and
all these young
men
are battle tested.
ECS (No.5
MemphisHoopers.com Top Ten)
enters the poll again with legendary Head Coach Terry Tippettn his final year of his
illustrious career that spans 4 decades. Senior Skal Labisierre
returns and will be a ESPN Top Ten Ranking
2015. Another TSSAA D-2 Championship is on the horizon
for a total of 6 overall respectively. Briarcrest
also looked good at the event with junior Micah Thomas
displaying his athletic ability with that unorthodox
shot but him jumping off the ground so high it and all
his offensive moves are explosive.
Germantown(No.7
MemphisHoopers.com Top Ten) has played good
basketball all June long and will make noise all season
long and should advance in postseason action. Kipp Academy
in Division A
looked really good with some early transfers and will
battle Mitchell
for Division A honors in Memphis. For the second year in
a row Waynesville High School from Missouri
traveled south to play in
event with nationally ranked
big man Juwan
Morgan and gave
Southwind
their only loss of the event. Teams
to watch and on the rise with a solid June under their
belt were Craigmont
who garners one of the top scorers in the city candidate
for this upcoming basketball season in Teverette Cain.
Other teams on the rise are Collierville, Kirby,
and MUS
which
all had good weekends but the high school basketball
season will tell the tale for these ball clubs who are
on the borderline. Remember compadres and let's not get
ahead of ourselves where MUS Summer Classic
is sometimes for showcase where kids have no intention
on going to that school but fiddle faddle. Let's see who
enrolls where when school starts August 4, 2014, it's
always a story somewhere on who is where and not.
Dyer County
with 2 of the 4 returning starters #12 DeMichael Smith
& #24 DeAndre
Gilton
Last Year 2013-2014 Preseason Breakdown
Memphis high school basketball is
always intriguing and this year is no different. This
year like past
preseason polls is dominated by
inner city Division AAA
schools
but a truly major change is in the works and definitely
the hardest to date preseason polls . With the
merger between
Memphis City Schools
into
Shelby County
Schools
now completed with all schools under one umbrella, the
old county schools are making noise claiming three spots
in the
MemphisHooper.com
Top Ten Poll. The poll has changed a little in
the last couple of weeks with transfers complete like
Ladarius Coleman
from
Craigmont
to White Station,
C.J. Anderson
from Whitehaven
back to Arlington.
The emergence of
Bolton with the
rising of Jalen
Fisher (espn
#23) respectively and a Team Thad 17's
summer circuit player.
Once mighty powerful (
16-AAA)
district and arguably the toughest district in the state
is presently on a down beat from the last 4 year run
garnering 3 of the
TSSAA
state championships in
White Station,
Melrose,
and
Memphis East
respectively.
Southwind
the other
Shelby County
Schools
to win state and defending their 2013 state
championship
makes the poll at the No. 7 slot.. Division
16 - AAA still holds that claim but barely with onlyMemphishoopers.com Preseason
Top Ten Number 1 White
Station and Preseason
Top Ten Number 2 Hamilton are
the only true contenders. Memphis
Central under second year Ricardo
Patton will battle to a point with East and
Melrose rebuilding. Whitehaven will
falter, maybe winning 17 games this year after their
best team last year since the Julius
Peppers days, going 24-12 last year. Whitehaven was
once a Number 7 fall to 9 in
Memphishoopers.com Preseason
Top Ten
with a probable Top 3 ranking until C.J.
Anderson (Team
Thad -
UMASS)
and other rising sophomores and juniors like Trey
Atkins (Catholic)
transfer on top of star point guard probable season long
hiatus.
The emergence of Charter schools/academies have
had an adverse effect with the "numbers game"
trickling into future athletic aspects
conventionally.
Division AA
will be off this year with numerous schools
changing their classifications from historic
levels. to
Division A
from
Memphishoopers.com Preseason
Poll Number 4Mitchell,
Hillcrest,
Carver
on the south side of the city. The north side
added tangible
Craigmont
to Division AA from Division
AAA and
Kingsbury went up
to Division AAA.
Memphishoopers.com Preseason
Top Ten
haveArlingtoncoming
in at
No. 3.
Arlington
and Houston (another
Memphishoopers.com Preseason
Top Ten at No. 6)
have legitimate chances of advancing far in postseason
action. Especially with once mighty powerful (16-AAA)
district the toughest district in the state on a down
beat. Don't forget Ridgeway(No.
8)
and
Southwind (No.
7)
to make noise and can beat any of these teams mentioned
accordingly. With Jerry
Johnson, Marlon
Hunter, and rising sophomore Justin
Benton coming to his own, Houston will
for the first time in school history should make it to
the Regionals and more.Arlington last
year losing to Munford in
the Regionals wouldn't of happened if Jonathan
Starks from Munford and
now starting point guard at Tulane said
otherwise. Munford had
a gift last year and better of enjoyed it becuae they
will be like years past, districtroundgo
homes. Remember two years ago when Brighton had
a Top 3 team in the state and lost to Bartlett on
a last second shot from Athlon
Bell (Arkansas)
then all their players went to otherschoolsand
the school hasn't won 5 games in two years since then.
This winning comes in cycles unless you are the big dogs
compadres and keeping the flavor is a test of time!!!!
Division AA is also off a
tidbit this year with No. 4Mitchell no longer
in
that field, going down to
Division A. No. 5 Manassasresides in the north
division and will have a tougher road with upcoming
Douglass
High School who might just have the leading scorer in
SCIAA in
LeGerald Vick. Raleigh Egypt
will battle with big men
Fattod Lewis and Junior McGee respectively.
Trezevant
had their best team in years last year but is in
rebuilding mode, that group is gone. went up in
classification
to Division AAA,
Trezevant had their best chance in years last
year and might go thru the last cycle to get in, 6 years
hiatus. Manassas
will be led by Rayford
Albright,
Courtney Smith and a host of newcomers
from one of the best incoming freshmen class in the city
MemphisHoopers.comTop
Ten Poll(Week
7 ) &Penny
Hardaway Classicresults have
the White
Station Spartans holding on
to theNumber
1spot
for all seven weeks respectively. TheSpartans participated
in the No. 1 Attended High School Basketball
Tournament in America in Springfield, Missouri
at theBass
Pro Shops Tournament of Champions.White
Stationin
the first game defeatedWesleyan
Christian ofHigh
Point, North Carolina 64-50 withNic
SmithandLadarius
Colemanat
16 points apiece,Leron
Blackat
12 pts. In the second gameLadarius
Colemanhad
a game high 24 points to lead theSpartans65-50
over the defending 2013Bass
Pro Champions Fairfax
Paul Vl Panthers.White
Stationranked
thenNumber
3inUSA
Todayshigh
school rankings lost in the championship game toNumber
1inUSA
Today'spoll Montverde
Academy from Florida. They beatSunrise
Christian AcademyrankedNumber
25on
a buzzer beater byLeron
Black56-55
on Thursday night (Jan. 23). Hamiltonmoves
up to the Number 2slotwith
wins 3 wins overDistrict
16-AAAopponentsEast,Melrose,
andOverton.
TheWildcatsfall
toOak
Hill AcademyFriday
night (Jan.24) 79-66 heading into a matchup
Saturday night (Jan.25) against district
counteratWhite
Station,
three times in 2 weeks will be a test for both
ball clubs respectively atDyer
CountyonESPNU.Arlingtonmoves
up toNumber
3with
solid wins over thenNumber
5Bolton,KingsburyandGermantownaccordingly.UMASSsigneeC.J.
AndersonofArlingtonhas
been on a tear averaging 21 points, and 8
rebounds during the stretch.
PICTURE
OF THE WEEK
Chris Crawford&Markell
Crawford(Memphis)watch
their old high schools play each other atSheffieldas
they beatMelrosehandily.
DefendingTSSAADivision
AAAstate
championsSouthwindcreep
into theNumber
4spot
with large margin wins over Craigmont and
Wooddale. TheJaguars slip
with a lost toRidgeway85-84
on a last second three byTerrance
Smithwho
scored a game high 31 points to compliment new
transferKhalil
Spencerwho
added 25 point and are positioning theirselves
for a post season run.Manassashad
a strong week with a 86-68 victory overRaleigh
EgyptandRayford
Albrightnotching
40 points and averaging 28 pts a game since his
return and move into theNumber
5position.Houston falls
toNumber
6after
losing to upcomingGermantownwithJake
Millerat
25 pts, andTim
Shawat
21 pts., but in return thumpKirby,then
the next night demolishWooddale by
27 points 87-55 withMarlon
Hunterhitting 31 points in the
win.
BTW keeps rolling thru
district play undefeated with solid double digit
wins that averaged 31 points overCarver, Middle
College&Kipp
Academy. Seniors JaMarcus
Franklin & Angelo
Smith, with sophomoreChance
Blakely are making noise inDivision
A. In theNumber
8slotDouglassimproves
their record to 18-3 with district wins over
Number 5Manassas andTrezevantand
are tied for first place in District 16-AA at
7-1.LaGerald
VickandFreddie
WilliamsofDouglassare
the best 6'5 overall combos in the city hands
down.
Onle private school in theHoopers
Top Tenand
overcoming a six year hiatus from the Top Ten
from theElliott
Williams&Lawrecne
Bowersdays.
For the second week in a row, the Gryphons have
moved up a slot to theNumber
9position
and St.
George's also
holdisthe
best overall record in the city at 19-1
respectively. They handledSacred
Heart of JesusandFayette
Academy handily.
Then in a tough battle withCBHSthey
beat the Purple Wave 74-65 withJustin
Wertnerscoring
25 points on accurate shooting from all over the
court. CoachJeff
Ruffinhas
done a great job early in the season with this
squad.
Penny Hardaway Classic Breakdownfrom
actual games Hoopers staff watched in person.White
Station defeatedHamilton76-71 on
national TV (ESPNU)
and play them Monday night (Jan.27) again
- 2 times in the next 2 weeks. A preview of
state tournament bound teams fromDistrict
16-AAA with the regular high
school basketball season coming around third
heading into district play.Leron
Blacknotched
a game high 25 points in an outstanding shooting
performance at 11-16 (69%).Mitchellis
one of those teams that you can't never forget
and won't go away. After a rough start to the
season, the Tigers have won 11 games in a row in
strong fashion. With 5 seconds left on the clock
againstJackson
South Side(who
will also battle forDivision
AAhonors), juniorNaba
Echolsnails
a three pointer and is fouled to make it a four
point play and the Tigers win 64-60. JuniorJaremiah
Martinled
all scorers at 22 points a clip. South Side had
two players at 20 apiece and are definitely
great ball players in seniorJalen
Braford&Chris
McNeal. Oak Hill Academy
clobbersHouston84-51
behind senior Cody
Martin's(N.C.
State) 17 points and 11
rebounds. Also MVP of the game, junior Terrance
Phillips(Brandon
Jenningslittle
brother) adds 12 points and 12 assists. With the
score at the half 30-25Oak
Hillup,
a 5 point third quarter by Houston and twoESPN thunderous
dunks kill the Mustangs demeanor & hope
immediately as the season goes into a tailspin.
Definitely the surprise team of the early
season with a 13-2 clip. Jumped 6 spots to land
at Number 2 with district action starting this
week.
Last Week 8
Losses to Number 1
nationally ranked Highland Lone Peak and Long
Beach California but a sounding win over
Hamilton stops the fall accordingly.
Last
Week 1
Two losses at City of Palms
drop the Jaguars from the Number 1 slot. All
three losses are to Top 10 teams in the
country but you still need to beat one of
them.
Last
Week
1
