Boo holds its ground
Hampton, Va.-The Boo Williams Summer League jumped out to an early lead and never gave it up as they held off the Houston Hoops to win 67-63 in the championship game of the Boo Williams Invitational. Leading the way for the host team was tournament MVP Chris Wright.
Chris Early started things off for Boo Williams knocking down two early threes while Patrick Patterson held Gary Johnson in check during the initial part of the game.
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Chris Wright, who scored 19 points on 5of 13 shooting from the field and 8 of 11 from the line, took over from there. Wright was active on defense and got to the rim in transition for the majority of his points from the field. He was 1 for 3 from the three point line and finished with 3 steals, 2 rebounds and two assists to go along with 2 turnovers.
Physical and low to the ground with the ball, Wright is a nightmare to defend once he gets a head of steam going towards the basket, and he's also a threat from the outside.
Supporting Wright with 16 points was 2008 post player Ed Davis. The majority of those point came in the second half as Davis grabbed a number offensive rebounds.
Long and active but still a little raw, Davis is an outstanding prospect.
Johnson, who had been a terror in the lane for the Houston Hoops throughout the event, had to work extremely hard to get touches against the active defense of Patterson. When he did get his touches, he efficiently scored 15 points on 5 of 8 shooting from the field and 5 of 7 shooting from the line.
Rarely if ever do you see a post player on the prep level who knows how to bury his defender and hold his seal like Johnson. And once he catches the ball down low, he has an advanced repertoire of post moves. Johnson was also effective scoring putting the ball on the floor from the high post.
Patterson's strength and athleticism did keep Johnson in check on the boards. He finished with 2 defensive and 2 offensive rebounds to go along with 1 steal and 2 turnovers.
Patterson did not block any of Johnson's attempts, but he did terrorize the other Hoops players who took it into the lane. Patterson accumulated 3 blocks and grabbed 5 rebounds, all defensive. On the offensive end, he scored 6 points on 2 of 3 shooting from the field and 2 of 2 shooting from the line and only had 1 turnover.
Coming off a big scoring night against the SYF Players, Jai Lucas made an array of difficult mid-range shots to lead the Hoops in scoring with 18 points on 7 of 12 shooting from the field and 4 of 4 shooting from the line. Lucas also grabbed 2 rebounds and dished out 4 assists to go along with his 2 turnovers.
If Lucas' small stature is an issue in college, it will be on the defensive end and not on the offensive end. His speed with the ball, knowledge of how to execute the high ball screen and his ability to hit running floaters allow him to be successful against bigger and stronger defenders.
Boo Williams All Tournament Team
Patrick Patterson
Gary Johnson
Chris Wright-MVP
Silver Division Champions
Athletes First
Bronze Division Champions
Memphis YOMCA