Jarrod Stukes of St Athanasius School in Philadelphia, PA lit of the scoreboard with 43 points in a recent middle school game. Stukes is fresh on the scene and seems to be taking the same path as his older brother Amar. Amar was under the radar until 8th Grade and then burst on the scene through high school before landing at LaSalle University next fall. Jarrod currently rocks with Team Philly and we will be keeping an eye out for this high scoring guard.
The Basketball Spotlight MLK Classic is scheduled January 19th and 20th in Pennsylvania. The event has been officially closed and the schedule will be posted on Monday. Thank you once again for supporting Basketball Spotlight.
8th Grade 1. Team Nelson 2. Quincy Douby All Stars 3. Team Flight 4. ESYC 5. Playtime Panthers 6. Black Mambas 7. MCB Elite 8. PYO
7th Grade 1. Team Rebels 2. Qunicy Douby All Stars 3. NJ Shore Shots 4. Play hard 5. Wall 2 Wall 6. NWK 7. Alexandria Titans 8. Playtime Panthers
6th Grade 1. Team Nelson 2. Wall 2 Wall 3. NWK 4. Mid Jersey Mavericks 5. Philly Pride 6. RJS
There’s nothing better than watching two top guards go at it. Here’s a video of two Spotlight Alums banging out. Perry Dozier versus Rysheed Jordan. Doesn’t get any better than this. There needs to be one high school website that keeps all this heat in one place. Someone out there please create this fire.
Basketball Spotlight Class 2016 Alum Tyus Battle traveled to the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament in West Virginia with Gil St. Bernards and received rave reviews for several national media outlets. Battle received “The Stamp” before his 8th Grade year and now is considered one of the best frosh in America.
Here’s what they are saying:
Dave Telep (ESPN):
There’s a big difference between scoring and knowing how to score. Freshman wing Tyus Battle (Edison, N.J./Gill St. Bernard’s) is skilled in the discipline of shooting.
Rarely do you see a senior, much less a freshman, effortlessly knock down skilled jump shots. I’m talking about one-dribble pull-ups where he uses the glass, deep catch-and-shoots and sly midrange shots. For lack of a more appropriate term, he was beautiful to watch.
Battle was the best player and prospect on the floor in a game with a teammate going to Northwestern and a talented DeMatha (Md.) opponent. He finished with a crisp 17 points (7-of-12 FG, 3-of-3 on 3s). SMU and Xavier were here to see him. Good luck, fellas. This guy smells every bit like an elite high-major prospect.
Given all the talent in the gym over two days, Battle’s game was the prettiest to watch and laced with more pure perimeter skill than any other player in the gym. And the kid is a freshman!
Corey Albertson (Rivals.com): The 2016 guard from southern New Jersey proved that he is one of the most gifted and polished perimeter players in the nation with a breakout performance on Saturday. With Antigua having watched in the stands, look for Battle to be one of the first guys that Kentucky targets when it begins to more heavily recruit the class of 2016.
Eric Snow (Scout.com): This is a bad, bad man. He is about 6-foot-5 now and clearly still growing. Battle has an incredible first step, a dynamic floater, and a nice looking stroke on the perimeter jumper. Add in that he can handle the ball well and he has an excellent feel, and it is easy to see why people were so impressed. Battle finished with 17 points and was just unstoppable when he got the ball. As time goes on he will be one of the incredibly elite players in this class.
The Basketball Spotlight AC Showcase will return March 29th and 30th in Atlantic City, NJ. This event has turned into one of the best times of the season on and off the floor. Some of the top teams in the country will head to America’s Playground for a joyful time. Please make sure your reserve your spot early because space is limited. Once again the Atlantic City Sheraton is the host hotel and we have room blocks already set up for your convenience.
Event: AC Showcase Date: March 29th and 31th Place: Atlantic City, NJ Cost: $375 (Per Team) $325 (Multi-Team)
The Basketball Spotlight Player Of The Week goes to 6th Grader Jordan "The Real" McKoy of the Team IZOD. McKoy scored 17 points in the championship to help Team IZOD defeat the Metro Flyers 61-55 and win the Gauchos Tournament. McKoy averaged 15 points for the entire tournament. Congrats to Jordan and keep up the hard work.
#1 Team IZOD defeated Metro Flyers 61-55 to win the Gauchos Tournament this past weekend in the Bronx. Tournament MVP Jordan “The Real” McKoy finished with 17 points for the winners. Joshua Pierre Louis took home the MOP award for the Metro Flyer squad.
Team IZOD Roster Marc Bruce Jordan McKoy AJ Hoggard Jalen Gaffney Jagger Zrada Darrian Dalcourt Xavier Wilson Dashan Critenden Tracy Bowers Barry Evans
Hey basketball world. I hope y'all enjoyed your New Years. This week was a good week. I am going to start with Monday.
Monday was New Year's Eve. I went to New York to see my family. It was fun seeing all of my family members. We were playing Call of Duty Black Ops 2 the entire time and a bunch of other video games. Then as soon as 20 minutes before midnight came we had to shut it off. I was so angry. I was winning! We counted down. Then it was 2013! We were so happy. It was a really joyful night.
The Basketball Spotlight Clash For The Cup is February 2nd and 3rd. The deadline to fully register for this tournament is January 15th. This will be a premiere event with limited space. Any team not fully registered at that time will have a great chance of losing their spot in this event. We currently have a waiting list which will be opened up after the deadline. Thank you in advance.
Basketball Spotlight Class of 2016 Alum Unique Mclean recently won MVP BBN Holiday Tournament. The guard starred with Team Scan on the Spotlight circuit while helping them win the Grand Finale crown. He also took home MVP honors at the 3rd Annual J.E.M. All Star Classic. Mclean has to be regarded as the best dunker to ever come through Basketball Spotlight.
Damon Harge Jr. has been a national name for several years. His You Tube videos and success are national camps have many websites ranking him as a Top 10 player in the country. Recently, a few people have compared him to former New York legend and current NBA player Sebastian Telfair. Bassy as he was known was a phenomenal grammar and high school player before becoming a NBA lottery pick.
James “Shangy” Black, Director of Showtime All Stars who has had the pleasure of coaching both players agrees with the comparison. “I coached and was around Bassy at the same age. Damon reminds me of Bassy because of his work ethic, basketball IQ, court vision, skill level and change of direction” said Black.
Harge also decided to follow in Telfair footsteps in terms of videoing his path to greatness. Bassy had a documentary entitled “Through The Fire” while Harge has begun his own reality webtube called #ToBeContinued. Hopefully, Harge can reach the heights of the Coney Island great and with hard work it is possible.
Breakdown: Burgess has been a powerful scorer for the last few years on the Spotlight circuit. During the Tip Off Classic he put his squad on his back and carried them to the Blue Division Championship Game. I like his pull up in the lane and his ability to get past opponents. We will get an up close and personal look at him during the MLK Classic.
Skillcase Analysis: Wright is a tenacious defender that doesn’t mind sacrificing his body for the team. The crafty guard with a good low dribble will get better at finishing around the tin as his body develops. He’s a loyal Lancaster student so he did very well during the drill sessions.
Some basketball purest say you can’t much from a player’s highlight video, but sometimes you can look at a player’s footage and instantly know that he has something special about him. Introducing Alfred Hollins an 8th Grader from California! This youngster passes the look test standing 6’3 but his fluid game caught my attention. His smoothness and body control reminds me of a young Kevin Durant. He seems to glide through the defense before stretching out to the basket. I’ve read that he has dreams of playing at NC if so Roy Williams might be getting a good one down the road.
This battle has been discussed on chat boards and through mail questions. Since we have not seen them on the floor we decided to let the fans chime in. In this edition of the Clash Of The Titans we take our focus to Connecticut. Who’s really the best 8th Grade point guard in Connecticut right now? Is it Jaecee “Mayweather” Martin and Tremont Waters?
Tale Of The Tape
Jaecee Martin (CBC)- Mayweather is a proven winner and has been known to save his best outings for when the stage is the biggest. He’s led the “Money Team” to several Spotlight banners and has shown to be a warrior when in battle. He loves dishing the rock but can also fill up the scoring column if needed. Right now he has the keys to the best engine in the region with his CBC.
Tremont Waters (Team Scan)- Waters plays up in age group a lot which is part of the reason we never saw these tangle. He made waves last spring putting in work on the high school circuit with Team Scan. He has superb court vision and some of the deepest range in America. His smoothness has drawn comparison to a young Chris Paul.
PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE IN THE RIGHT COLUMN AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE.
Skillcase Analysis: Covey has always been known as a versatile forward. He used this weekend to display those skills. He was able to show promise on the post and in the midrange area. He was a good student during drill instruction and worked hard. I think as he matures he will have to become a little more physical.
Skillcase Analysis: Hargis is a scoring guard by nature but did show the ability to get teammates involved. His ball handling lets me know that he has been playing on a competitive level for a while. He was very comfortable doing the drill portion which means he’s a hard worker. I look forward to seeing him on the AAU circuit.
Basketball Spotlight Alum Rondae Jefferson gave his hometown fans a treat at the Jameer Nelson Classic. Jefferson started a one man fast break and ended it with an alley opp lop to himself off the glass. Jefferson is a heavy McDonald All American Candidate; he starred on the Spotlight circuit with Educated Athletes which later became Team Nelson. He also played in the Elite 80 Expo and the Basketball Spotlight All Star Classic. He finished ranked in our Top Class 2012 Regional Top 10. Right now the University of Arizona commit is one the top prospects in America.
A lot of things are going on around the AAU world right now. So we decided to hit a couple of our sources and bring you another “Word On The Street”. Remember some of this information is from reliable sources including those directly involved.
Bagley Heads To Tennessee?
Word from the south is that Class of 2018 stud Marvin Bagley Jr. has moved from Arizona to Tennessee. According to my source he now attends prep school in Tennessee and will be suiting up with the We All Can Go All Stars. This acquisition might put WACG right back in the mix for a National Title. We will keep you posted as this story develops.
Nowell To New Rens?
News out of New York is that high scoring combo guard Markquis Nowell will be returning from Kentucky to play for New Rens. Nowell will definitely bolster NR’s lineup with his scoring prowess. Distance shouldn’t be a problem as New Rens are known to fly players in when necessary. It will be interesting to see him matchup with his former squad.
Montgomery To Georgia United?
Georgia United finished runner up at the 6th Grade Nationals but might get over the top in Memphis as word is EJ Montgomery has joined the squad. If this is true Montgomery will give the defensive minded GU the offensive punch they need to get the job done. Stay tuned as we bring you more info from this situation.
Hello basketball world! I hope you guys enjoyed your Christmas. I know I did. I am going to start from Monday Christmas Eve.
Monday was Christmas Eve. My family did not know that we were coming down to North Carolina. We had fun the entire ride down making my grandmother think we couldn't make it this Christmas. The entire family would be there but not us. When we arrived it was fun yelling "surprise”! Everyone was so happy. My grandmother and great-grandmother was crying in joy. It was cool. I love seeing my family. I got a lot of gifts and had great food. I enjoyed my Christmas Eve.
