Atlanta Basketball Classic: Southern Powers Meet

ATLANTA, Ga. - The once loaded Atlanta Basketball Classic is smaller, thinner and weaker in terms of Division I talent but that doesn’t mean the storylines are missing. There is a handful of high-major players and two of the top teams met on Friday afternoon at Georgia Tech. Peach state forward Rashad Chase and Alabama’s Stanley Robinson were the headlining prospects but it was Charles Little that took the show home.

Little, a 6-foot-6, 210-pound forward from Cleveland, Tenn., was solid inside the paint, scoring at and above the rim all day. He dunked nearly everything he touched and his determination to get the job done sparked the Celtics over the Birmingham Raptors.

Little, a rising senior was matched up with the Demetrius Jemison, a 6-foot-6, 225-pound forward. The two are similar in styles, playing non-stop from buzzer to buzzer. Jemison finished with 11 points and a team-high nine rebounds.

Little, who is getting SEC interest (Auburn and Ole Miss) took advantage of great point guard play from Sharaud Curry, a 5-foot-10, 160-pound point guard from Georgia powerhouse Wheeler High School in Marietta. He had 16 points and eight assists in the win. Curry is coming off a solid showing at the NBA Players camp and could be the top point guard in the Atlanta tournament.

Chase, who is ranked 136 by Rivals.com in the class of 2005, squared off against Robinson, a talented 6-foot-9 rising junior. It was Chase winning the one on one battle, scoring 11 points and pulling six rebounds.

Robinson, who is the No. 14 player in the class of 2006, scored nine points. He’s an attractive prospect because he loves to handle the ball and he can play outside of the paint. Offensively, he’ll need to become more aggressive.

The Raptors were led by 6-foot-2 scoring guard Vincent Clark, who scored 21 points. He connected on six of eight three pointers and was the only constant on the team. He’s a mid-major plus player and could be one of the bigger surprises in the tournament.

The Celtics had a solid contribution from Gambia big man Ndie Ismaila, a 6-foot-7, 240-pound power forward. He’s a defensive stopper and rebounded well. He said he’s received interest from Wofford, Virginia Tech, Virginia Commonwealth and Stanford in the eight months he has been in the states. Ismaila preps at Laurinburg Institute.

Rivals.com will be at the ABC on Saturday and will have more exclusive coverage from the event.