Andrew Force:
Future150 National Analyst. Covering High and Middle School basketball.
Houston, TX (Future150) -- Travis Durham contributed to the reporting.
Without question 15u was the deepest bracket of the Future150 Main Event Houston. With teams like the Sugarland Phenoms, Team Overtime Elite, XPRESS Sports, Hyperfuse, Xpress Hoops Black, Houston Defenders Select, Faith Lions, and Texas Jazz Elite wins were hard to come by.
XPRESS Sports Inc. met Overtime Elite in the final Sunday afternoon. Behind the muscular juggernaut that is Xavier Beasley, XPRESS put away a coheisve bunch, 78-75.
Beasley scored 29 points, many of them out on the run. He played stifling defense well beyond the three point arc.
Overtime Elite outscored the visitors from Shreveport in the second half. Unfortunately, they could not overtake the exciting guard-filled XPRESS Sports Inc.
The following are the top 15-Under performers:
Noah Lucas, 2018 PG, XPRESS Hoops 2018 Black: Lucas was solid on the ball, defending with honor. He doesn't hurry the play on offense. Poise is an invaluable attribute for lead guards and Lucas has it.
Jaylen Walker, 2018 SG, Team Overtime Elite: With long arms, Walker constantly gets deflections. He is good at trapping at the midcourt too. If there is a defensive weakness, Walker has to slide his feet laterally a little faster to stay on the wing. He is fine now, but opponents will keep getting quicker as he climbs the ladder. The freshman can finish with either hand. Walker scored 25 points in the 15u Championship, but Team Overtime lost 78-75.
Jerritt Dixson, 2018 PG, Team Overtime Elite: Though he is a remarkable athlete, Dixson relies too much upon his athleticism. He defends with his hands down. He has a great crossover, but needs to develop his understanding of how to run an offense. Team Overtime will be a great program for him because they run actual sets. He will learn how to set teammates up for buckets.
Matt Garriga, 2018 SG, Team Overtime Elite: Matt Garriga was scoring at will against a feisty Jazz Elite squad. He finishes with either hand in traffic. Around the basket the scorer deceives with unnatural hand scoops and reverses. It keeps taller defenders guessing.
Morgan Cannon, 2018 PF, Team Overtime Elite: Morgan Cannon strives for offensive rebounds. At 6’3” Cannon works for his teammates and fights for anything off the rim.
Frederick Lemons, 2018 G, XPRESS Sports Inc.: Lemons covered ground with stunning rapidity. The moment he touches the ball Lemons bursts up the floor like shot from a cannon. Standing 5'9" he projects as a point guard. His most impressive play of the tournament was a crossover towards the baseline. He dashed into the lane and rocketed off the low block, allowing him to finish amongst the trees. With his combination of lift and strength Lemons can still score underneath the rim.
Patrick Daniels, 2018 SF, AABC Super Stars: Daniels can handle the pill. There is a little extra shake in his game. He likes to attack with the dribble.
Raylon Gardner, 2018 PG, Texas Jazz Elite: Raylon Gardner is a driven North-South guard. He attacks straight up the floor, unwavering in his persistence. Good leaper. On the rare occasions he gets slowed up by a defense, Gardner can knock down those outside shots too. He really makes problems for the entire defense. A subtle strength of Gardner’s game is crosscourt passing. Playing at the point he switches the point of attack quickly by swinging the ball crisply. It really keeps zone defenses shifting. Gardner does get intercepted when he tries the lengthy bounce pass.
Cameron Hunger, 2018 SG, Texas Jazz Elite: Cameron Hunger has a high basketball IQ. He sees the floor well. Hunger is a good three point shooter. The handle needs to improve, so he can score in a variety of ways.
Jerell Hines, 2018 SF, Houston Nets: Jerrell is an explosive leaper. A 6'3" opponent running at full speed was blocked midflight by the 5'8" Hines. Minutes later, Hines blocked one of the best players of the entire event, Antoine Henderson. The Nets had a tough weekend. Hines was asked to essentially play center much of the time. His protection around the rim kept them in almost every game.
Rashard Smith, 2019 PG, Houston Nets: From Humble, Texas comes the crafty passing of Rashard Smith. He really knows how to bait defenders with the bounce pass. Smith expertly employed the no look pass to a slashing big. Friday night, Smith got lots of zone defenders biting on his fakes.
Antoine Henderson, 2018 PF, Hyperfuse: Despite that astonishing block by Hines, Henderson was incredible all weekend long. The freshman has two advanced dribbling moves. The stutter dribble is primetime worthy, while the short, front crossover is just ok. With decent balance and the ability to handle Henderson projects as a combo forward. Right now shooting touch within 8' is very good. He does not pursue offensive rebounds at all. Henderson scored 21 of his team's 41 points in their quarterfinals loss to Houston Defenders Select.
Jermaine Drewey, 2018 SG, Houston Rimshakers: Drewey can knock down open three-pointers from the wings. A good leaper, Drewey likes to shoot more than slash at this point in his basketball journey. A dramatic play highlighted Drewey's weekend. On the tails of a dramatic 13-point comeback, with the game tied at 56, Drewey buried a jumper. His Rimshakers mobbed him, so proud of their scoring leader and his confidence. The young man finished the game with 26 points.
Joseph Oradiegwu, 2018 SG, Sugar Land Phenoms: A courageous slasher, Oradiegwu has innate power. He runs into traffic and willfully absorbs contact on the way to the rim.
Jonathan Oradiegwu, 2018 SG, Sugar Land Phenoms: The twin brother of Joseph, Jonathan has the same bravery with the ball. He does not shy away from the big bodies. The twins best game came against Barrett Station Heat. Joseph registered 12 and Jonathan picked up 11 points.
Braylen Anderson, 2018 SG, Faith Lions: Anderson is a 6’2" guard with long arms and lots of leaping ability. Braylen was the best player on the floor at times. Needs to become more aggressive on the defensive end because he is VERY explosive in open floor and during transition opportunities. Anderson finishes well around the rim and has a good handle and good court vision.
Brian Byrd, 2018 PG, Faith Lions: Byrd was a standout Saturday. Byrd has great handle. His quickness allows him to handle pressure and attack the defense. As a good athlete, Byrd can defend anyone from the PG to SF positions.
Omar Wallace, 2018 CF, Basketball University: Wallace was Mr.Hustle all weekend long. He got every loose ball and was a beast on the boards. He has the uncanny ability to score against bigger players when attacking the basket. As his skill level grows look for him to make a move to the wing full time.
Doug Young, 2018 G, RL9: Young exploded Saturday night, specifically in the second half against the Sugarland Phenoms. RL9 banked 16 points after the break from Young. He was unable to single-handedly keep the contest close. In the end Sugarland won 58-50.
Cameron Cohn, 2018 SF, Houston Defenders: All weekend Cohn got to the free throw line. Aggression is a valuable commodity for young players. Any young man that eagerly sprints towards a mass of humanity with hopes of overpowering them all is blessed with high confidence. Cohn has that.
Ryan Fields, 2018 SG, D1 All Stars: Ryan amassed 28 points through three games. The D1 All-Stars posted low scores, but Fields scored from everywhere on the floor. Fields got to the free throw line. He knocked down two outside bombs against the Super Stars.
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