This past evening I made my annual pilgrimage to the awful Barclay’s center to see the 2017 Jordan Brand Classic.
First let me say that I had hoped to write something about both the regional and national games but they swapped spots of the Regional game with the Girl’s National game so that when I arrived at 5:15 the Regional game had already been played.
I should mention that the Girls game was a total blow out with the west team winning 122 to 81 and could have been a snoozer except for the incredible play of point guard Chennedy Carter. She might have been the most exciting player on the floor in any game played and although she somehow did not win the MVP her performance was electric.
For the record although I missed the regional game the MVP was Brandon Randolph, a shooting guard from Yonkers, bound for the University of Arizona. He poured in 32 points. The Wildcats’ signee scored his game-high 32 points on 16-26 shooting and also had nine rebounds and two assists, earning him the MVP honors for the Regional Red team, which beat the Regional Blue 170-162.
Arizona State signee Kimani Lawrence a 6’ 7” small forward was the Regional Blue’s MVP, as he had 27 points on 10-14 shooting plus five assists and four rebounds.
As for the National game the rosters contained the top 12 players on the ESPN 100 list and 22 of the top 24 (although Michael Porter Jr. listed as the number one rated prospect did not play due to a stiff back).
From a St. John’s perspective there were no players in either the regional or national game. Additionally there was not one Big East recruit on the floor in the National game (FYI there were three Big East recruits on the regional game roster although all three are going to Villanova). Ultimately the lack of involvement with top players from this class for the entire conference is a bit of a red flag for the league. Being an upper echelon conference usually means grabbing your fair share of the top talent during recruiting.
The National game itself was better than some years with more of a commitment to defense than is usually on display in All-Star affairs. Additionally there seemed to be a larger contingent of big players on the roster than usual. Nine of the twenty four players listed were 6’ 9” or over with five of them being either 6’ 11” or 7’ 0”. The best of the big players might have been Deandre Ayton who is headed to Arizona. The seven foot Ayton scored 19 points and had 8 rebounds for the winning West team who won 124 to 116.
The MVP for the winning West side was Miami signee Lonnie Walker IV. The high flying Walker displayed elite athleticism while scoring 19 points and dazzling the crowd with his exceptional hops and speed. He was urged on by a large and raucous group that came in from Reading Pa. to cheer their local hero on. The MVP of the losing East team was Brian Bowen who shot the lights out scoring 26 points on 6 for 7 from three with a lightning quick release. An undecided recruit Bowen, who is a 6’ 7” small forward, looks like he could play anywhere he wants and be a significant contributor immediately.
Kentucky continues to grab lots of elite talent and had four players in the game that all performed well. Six foot eight power forward Jarred Vanderbilt scored 17 points and had 7 rebounds before injuring his ankle in the final minute of the game. Six foot one Point Guard Quade Green led the game with nine assists. PJ Washington another 6’ 8” power forward was smooth and had 11 points, 3 assists and a couple of rebounds. Lastly Nick Richards a six foot eleven inch two hundred and fifty pound center who hails from Brooklyn showed off some good skill to match his elite size while scoring 10 points and grabbing 3 rebounds.
It was good to see that not all of the Kentucky stars are heading to John Calipari’s enormous pool of talent. Mid major Western Kentucky has bagged 6’ 11” center Mitchell Robinson. Robinson scored 15 points and grabbed three boards while displaying the talent to play well above the rim in elite competition. It is good to see a team outside of the power conferences grab a gem like this.
Some of the others who played well in the game were 6’ 11” undecided Center Brandon McCoy who scored 15 points and grabbed a game high 13 rebounds for the East squad, 6’ 7” Small Forward Troy Brown Jr. heading to Oregon had 10 points, with 4 assists and five rebounds for the West, Matt Coleman a Texas bound 6’ 1” PG who handed out seven assists, Kevin Knox a 6’ 8” undecided small forward scored 12 points and six foot three inch Alabama bound shooting guard Collin Sexton displayed both elite quickness and a high end motor.
Hopefully in future years I will be able to report about some more elite St. John’s recruits playing in these games. Watching Ponds last year in this game was so much fun and pulling in some top level talent is critical to getting our program back into the tournament on a regular basis.
First let me say that I had hoped to write something about both the regional and national games but they swapped spots of the Regional game with the Girl’s National game so that when I arrived at 5:15 the Regional game had already been played.
I should mention that the Girls game was a total blow out with the west team winning 122 to 81 and could have been a snoozer except for the incredible play of point guard Chennedy Carter. She might have been the most exciting player on the floor in any game played and although she somehow did not win the MVP her performance was electric.
For the record although I missed the regional game the MVP was Brandon Randolph, a shooting guard from Yonkers, bound for the University of Arizona. He poured in 32 points. The Wildcats’ signee scored his game-high 32 points on 16-26 shooting and also had nine rebounds and two assists, earning him the MVP honors for the Regional Red team, which beat the Regional Blue 170-162.
Arizona State signee Kimani Lawrence a 6’ 7” small forward was the Regional Blue’s MVP, as he had 27 points on 10-14 shooting plus five assists and four rebounds.
As for the National game the rosters contained the top 12 players on the ESPN 100 list and 22 of the top 24 (although Michael Porter Jr. listed as the number one rated prospect did not play due to a stiff back).
From a St. John’s perspective there were no players in either the regional or national game. Additionally there was not one Big East recruit on the floor in the National game (FYI there were three Big East recruits on the regional game roster although all three are going to Villanova). Ultimately the lack of involvement with top players from this class for the entire conference is a bit of a red flag for the league. Being an upper echelon conference usually means grabbing your fair share of the top talent during recruiting.
The National game itself was better than some years with more of a commitment to defense than is usually on display in All-Star affairs. Additionally there seemed to be a larger contingent of big players on the roster than usual. Nine of the twenty four players listed were 6’ 9” or over with five of them being either 6’ 11” or 7’ 0”. The best of the big players might have been Deandre Ayton who is headed to Arizona. The seven foot Ayton scored 19 points and had 8 rebounds for the winning West team who won 124 to 116.
The MVP for the winning West side was Miami signee Lonnie Walker IV. The high flying Walker displayed elite athleticism while scoring 19 points and dazzling the crowd with his exceptional hops and speed. He was urged on by a large and raucous group that came in from Reading Pa. to cheer their local hero on. The MVP of the losing East team was Brian Bowen who shot the lights out scoring 26 points on 6 for 7 from three with a lightning quick release. An undecided recruit Bowen, who is a 6’ 7” small forward, looks like he could play anywhere he wants and be a significant contributor immediately.
Kentucky continues to grab lots of elite talent and had four players in the game that all performed well. Six foot eight power forward Jarred Vanderbilt scored 17 points and had 7 rebounds before injuring his ankle in the final minute of the game. Six foot one Point Guard Quade Green led the game with nine assists. PJ Washington another 6’ 8” power forward was smooth and had 11 points, 3 assists and a couple of rebounds. Lastly Nick Richards a six foot eleven inch two hundred and fifty pound center who hails from Brooklyn showed off some good skill to match his elite size while scoring 10 points and grabbing 3 rebounds.
It was good to see that not all of the Kentucky stars are heading to John Calipari’s enormous pool of talent. Mid major Western Kentucky has bagged 6’ 11” center Mitchell Robinson. Robinson scored 15 points and grabbed three boards while displaying the talent to play well above the rim in elite competition. It is good to see a team outside of the power conferences grab a gem like this.
Some of the others who played well in the game were 6’ 11” undecided Center Brandon McCoy who scored 15 points and grabbed a game high 13 rebounds for the East squad, 6’ 7” Small Forward Troy Brown Jr. heading to Oregon had 10 points, with 4 assists and five rebounds for the West, Matt Coleman a Texas bound 6’ 1” PG who handed out seven assists, Kevin Knox a 6’ 8” undecided small forward scored 12 points and six foot three inch Alabama bound shooting guard Collin Sexton displayed both elite quickness and a high end motor.
Hopefully in future years I will be able to report about some more elite St. John’s recruits playing in these games. Watching Ponds last year in this game was so much fun and pulling in some top level talent is critical to getting our program back into the tournament on a regular basis.
