Kenner League 7/31 & 8/1

[mckspicks]

The Tombs- Hoop Magic Warriors game was the best of KL so far. Bryon Mouton was putting on his best TO for every occasion, right down to fist pumping after individual free throws.

Tombs was down 1 at half and the HMW threatened to break away with a deep team that had fresh guards and bigs to march out. The whole team was cold from outside in the second half, Freeman especially, and the game was in doubt until Aaron Bowen stepped up. In the final stretch of the game he had ten points, two threes assisted by Markel and game winning 12 footer with 5 seconds left. It was great to see him bounce back after two weeks of looking hesitant around the perimeter.

The ball looks so good out of his hand when he's on, I was wondering if those off games could be attributed to the sleeve he wears on his right shooting shoulder- does anyone know if that is injury related?

Freeman showed why he is a special player - his shot was clearly off this afternoon and in response he ratcheted up his defense and used his size to bully people around the hoop and threaded the needle with a lot of passes that had some muster behind them.

Play that would've had commentators going on for at least 10 minutes were KL games broadcast: Austin dribbled the ball to the wing at Markel who made a sharp back-door cut and had an easy layup. It was executed so naturally- Starks has a great feel for the game, especially for freshman.

One scary moment: Moses and Starks came down on each other under the basket and only Starks got up. Moses was able to put weight on it right away, but not much at first, was able to limp back to the bench. He came back in for a minute later, so hopefully it was a rolled ankle that won't be an issue.

I stepped out for the Clyde's match up, but came back in time to another close finish 70-68.

Tomorrow is the day to take note of- Clyde's Versus Tombs. I cannot wait to see Lubick and Moses on Vaughn and the even more compelling matchup of Markel vs. Vee, who will be dueling for minutes this year.

In the final game it was DC Legends versus.... well four guys were doing a shoot-out on the other hoop, one of whom was wearing a polo. I came mainly hoping that Henry would face real competition so I started planning on heading for the door early. A few guys ran into the locker room for unis and they came out with a team... and then five minutes later DC Legends was down 13-3, Premiere Athletics had 6 guys in their bench, Henry was stripped a few times inside and C Wright had a jump shot blocked. CWright righted the ship by turning on the attack.

CW was also shaken up later on a scary play where he was fouled high by the ball and his legs kicked out and he fell on his back. He bounced right up and seemed fine within a minute or so.
All in all, I thought it was a down performance for Henry.

Some additional thoughts of mine on the day here: strainedvocals.blogspot.com/2010/07/kenner-league-731-resurgence-of-aaron.html

[SirSaxa]

7/32???

[mckspicks]

Hahaha I suppose when you start becoming too absorbed with the the countdown until midnight madness ticker (75 min. 6 hr.), all other traditional forms of measuring time become obsolete.

[williambraskyiii]

Can someone just tell me when i have to be at McD today to catch gTown action?

tks in advance

[skyhoya]

Brasky : JC plays at 2, freshman play CW and HS at 4:40, Jb plays at 6, Stop by and say hello, Sky

[williambraskyiii]

Aug 1, 2010 9:22:17 GMT -5 skyhoya said:

Brasky : JC plays at 2, freshman play CW and HS at 4:40, Jb plays at 6, Stop by and say hello, Sky

gracias amigo.

[kghoya]

Aug 1, 2010 9:22:17 GMT -5 skyhoya said:

Brasky : JC plays at 2, freshman play CW and HS at 4:40, Jb plays at 6, Stop by and say hello, Sky

The freshman play VS and JV unless the schedule has changed.

Sunday 8/1/2010 Georgetown University (McDonough Arena)
2:00 PM Team Takeover at Hoop Magic Warriors
3:20 PM Bulldogs at Team Turner
4:40 PM The Tombs at Clyde’s
6:00 PM Beyond Belief at DCX

[HoyaSinceBirth]

HS games ran over so games are running about 50 minutes behind schedule.

[HfieldHoya08]

Quote: One scary moment: Moses and Starks came down on each other under the basket and only Starks got up. Moses was able to put weight on it right away, but not much at first, was able to limp back to the bench. He came back in for a minute later, so hopefully it was a rolled ankle that won't be an issue.

Moses on the bench, not suited up, seems to have some sort of brace on his left ankle... Hopefully nothing too serious, just playing it cautiously for now...

Moses

[hotelhoya]

Tombs/Clydes. Punchlines: Vaughn dominated inside; Moses on bench with a wrap. JV generally outmuscled Nate L. Nate played hard but JV has more muscle, weight and experience. Vee played very well; outside shot was consistent and brought the ball up explosively. Hollis T played well; his shot was working today. Showed his gym work and took rebounding position but his style left him on the wing often. Markel is very clever with the ball and fearless on his drives. Quick hands and feet. Austin definitely has lost weight-lot more defined. Tried to play the system and unite the team. Shot came and went but should some great drives. Nate was the big and was overwhelmed inside at times; Clydes boarded well. Aaron's shot was inconsistent but his follows and drives were special.

A very good game for a KL event. Clydes won after Tombs led by 8 until the 3rd quarter. Vee and Vaughn were gutty and led their team back. Entertaining if unusual game for KL; actually defense and a semblance of offensive teamwork, a lot of interior passing and work to get a shot.

[RusskyHoya]

Game 1: Hoop Magic Warriors get run out of the gym, lose by ~30 to Jason's team. Byron Mouton is a walking turnover. Jason plays... loose... bunches of points, lots of moments of sloppiness.

Game 2: Team Turner gets run out of the gym by Bowie State (they're not even calling them "Bulldogs" anymore). Coach Rodney's conserving everything for the playoffs.

Game 3: Others will write plenty. Let's just say that the topic of "take the quick 2" must have never come up in the Tombs huddle.

[RusskyHoya]

Also, hadn't heard this before, but apparently rising junior Mike McIntyre is pursuing a walk-on spot on the team? His father (also Michael) played at Drexel.

[williambraskyiii]

Wow, we have backcourt/wing players galore.

[skyhoya]

like what you saw?

[williambraskyiii]

I really did like what I saw today.

Here are some casual observations:

1) Julian played great. He played nearly the entire 44 minute game and kept up the intensity throughout. Mostly scored right around the basket but demonstrated some deft touch and impressive post moves. He also appears to have bulked up (upper body) in my opinion. He was having his way against Lubick on offense today.

2) Vee looks really very good to me. He plays with swagger and I like that...I did notice that he dribbles with a bit too much bounce, but he showed good passing instincts, shooting touch and defense today. It will be tough to keep him out of the rotation this year.

3) Austin looks trim and cut. He had some exceptionally high degree of difficulty finishes around the rim and a few bombs...also was playing instructor with lubick, hollis and others. I liked what I saw from him -- showed me potential to be a leading candidate for BE POY and a 20 ppg scorer.

4) Markel has RANGE. He made a few bonehead mistakes passing the ball, but I like his offensive game. Couldn't really tell about his D.

5) Lubick is a scrapper. I sense that he will benefit from the more structured game that he will see in actual practices/games this Fall. He showed some impressive ups on his dunks and was very active on D and rebounding. He was hacking a bit today but I like the chances that he can play a big part in our "big man by committee" this season. He will just get better. Also knocked down a 3 and looked OK doing it.

6) Bowen...wow. caught my attention with a baseline jam over 2 defenders. He has a great midrange jumper and can stroke the 3. the kid can also get up. He is a twig but wow...what a welcome surprise as a late recruiting get. Not sure if his performance this summer will translate to substantial minutes in JTIII's gameplan off the bat, but we should all be thankful we got this guy.

7) Hollis stroked a 3 to open the game then had a pretttttty curl around jumper off an inbounds play that just screamed The League. He seems to have gotten a bit bigger but still very rangy.

Interesting point -- Bowen seems to be almost as tall as Hollis to me. He looks at least 6'6. Also Vee has some great size for a guard as well. he is 6'4ish i'd think. Abraham wasn't dressed but just walking around I like how sturdy he looks...not skinny at all.

[harwoodhoya]

Only watched the Tombs game; here's my perspective.

Austin-decent game not a typical game for him at Kenner. Looked bored because he's realy trying to get others involved.the more I see him play make me realize he is very underrated. Definately an all-american candidate

Hollis-shot ball extremely well in 1st half. Would like to see him attack basket more. Too athletic to be just a spot up shooter

Vee- Seemed like in 1st half he tried to hard to prove himself vs Markel. Rebounded to have a solid game.hit a couple of jumpers. I hope we realize he is not a pg. He is an undersized 2.

Julian-player of game!!!! Showed Nate what life as a big man in the big east is like. He dunked and dunked and dunked! He was also getting hacked. I love how he never forces anything. Stays within his game.

Markel-solid game. His ballhandling is rediculous.I also love his step back. He made a few rookie mistakes but happy with what I saw. Had to be tired playing an intense game like that.has to get stronger.

Nate-shows some flashes but JuJu was just unstoppable. He is starting to grow on me. Tough because he was their only real big today.

Bowen-nice solid game. He looks like a player. Nice stroke and athleticism. He's gonna get minutes. Would love to see him work more off the dribble and get stronger. Succesoor to AFree.

All in all it was a good game to watch if you are a Gtown fan.

[williambraskyiii]

Vee is an undersized 2? Wow, then I guess we are starting a REALLY undersized 2 in jason clark.

Also, maybe I'm wrong but are there that many 6'5+ starting SGs in the BE this year? I don't know what your "undersized" assessment is in comparison to...NBA SGs? then yeah, probably. In the big east? No.

[skyhoya]

Julian is really an under-sized 5 at 6'9".

[BigmanU]

Aug 1, 2010 19:52:02 GMT -5 harwoodhoya said:

Only watched the Tombs game; here's my perspective.

Austin-decent game not a typical game for him at Kenner. Looked bored because he's realy trying to get others involved.the more I see him play make me realize he is very underrated. Definately an all-american candidate

Hollis-shot ball extremely well in 1st half. Would like to see him attack basket more. Too athletic to be just a spot up shooter

Vee- Seemed like in 1st half he tried to hard to prove himself vs Markel. Rebounded to have a solid game.hit a couple of jumpers. I hope we realize he is not a pg. He is an undersized 2.

Julian-player of game!!!! Showed Nate what life as a big man in the big east is like. He dunked and dunked and dunked! He was also getting hacked. I love how he never forces anything. Stays within his game.

Markel-solid game. His ballhandling is rediculous.I also love his step back. He made a few rookie mistakes but happy with what I saw. Had to be tired playing an intense game like that.has to get stronger.

Nate-shows some flashes but JuJu was just unstoppable. He is starting to grow on me. Tough because he was their only real big today.

Bowen-nice solid game. He looks like a player. Nice stroke and athleticism. He's gonna get minutes. Would love to see him work more off the dribble and get stronger. Succesoor to AFree.

All in all it was a good game to watch if you are a Gtown fan.

I was at the Tombs game also and totally agreed with that take on the Julian vs Nate matchup. Julian, I feel has arrived to his potential (I know it's just Kenner) and now looks Big East ready to be an actual difference maker for us. I also feel Nate will be there in time but needs to take notes. He has alot to work on to make an impact in the Big East. All fairness to Nate, he was playing the "5" because Moses was out. I really wanted to see the Moses/Julian matchup play out.

[rustyshackleford]

I'll chip in too because my perspective is a little different.

Austin - He's an all american candidate and a potential first rounder. He also had a mediocre game today. Part of it was trying to get teammates involved so he didn't look as much for his shot. But with the exception of an occasional brilliant fallaway osr three he generally seemed to be forcing things. Part of that was probably because Tombs was actually in a close game but he'll have much better days.

Hollis - Beautiful smooth shot but I didn't see any of the new dribbling/driving ability others claimed in the past couple games. He's long and grabs boards and he's the type of guy who has the potential to be a star.

Vee - A solid player on offense but where he really shines is d as a disruptor. He and Julian were obvious leaders on a team with surprisingly decent role players (Hummer and that dude from Hampton) Our backcourt is going to be really crowded because of the different competencies of our players.

Julian - Beast. As long as he stays in good shape and has his hook shot drop he'll be very good. Oh and hits ft's.

Bowen - Of all the freshman he might be the most ready to and offer the greatest impact to this team. He's a solid and opportunistic defender and he's one of our most versatile players on offense. He can hit the j, he can throw down dunks, he's around for putbacks and he has great hands.

Markel - Some long bombs, some very heady plays that make him look like the pg of the future and some silly freshman mistakes including two consecutive to's where he had his pocket picked.

Nate - A bit of a hacker but a lot of good things today. All over the floor getting rebounds, getting some putbacks, making some nice touch passes and sinking that early 3. One year from I"m counting on him being a beast.

Kenner has left me pretty confident that we'll score points this year. I still have no sense of how we'll defend.