The Phenom Hoop Report:Looking back at the Penny Hardaway Hoopfest

Courtesy of Rick Lewis The 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.