Boo Williams: Day Two

Hampton, Va. - There was never a doubt coming into the Boo Williams tournament that Marquis Teague was an elite-level player, but now he is putting any concerns about his game to rest once and for all. For the second consecutive day, Teague was the best player in the gym at the Boo Williams Sportsplex, but he was far from alone with an impressive performance on day two.

Stating his case for No. 1

His high school season didn't go as planned. But for Marquis Teague, that will soon be forgotten if he keeps on playing as well as he has for the first two days of the Nike Elite Basketball League. Against the Albany City Rocks, Teague was nothing short of spectacular.

Though his team was younger and smaller than the City Rocks squad, Teague was able to take over at times for Spiece Indy Heat. At 6 feet 2, with long arms and a first step that might be borderline illegal in some countries, Teague is simply impossible to contain going to the rim, and that was on full display Saturday evening.

City Rocks elected to try and guard Teague man-to-man, and quite simply that was an epic failure. Teague continuously beat his man off the bounce, and once in the lane he knows how to finish. He scored on floaters, was creative using his athleticism to maneuver around big guys who tried to block his shot, and also threw down a thunderous dunk or two, giving the photographers opportunities to make a memorable poster.

While getting to the rim off the dribble and finishing is what Teague does best, don't take that to mean he is a liability in other areas. Teague hit jump shot after jump shot extending beyond the three point line, and also was able to set up his teammates with passes for buckets. In the game Teague had seven assists to go along with his game high 32 points.

Overall it was the second day in a row that Teague was the best player in the gym. He stated loud and clear with his play that he should be considered in the discussion for the best player in the class of 2011.

Gilchrist and Wroten do battle

While Teague did his thing, the current number one Mike Gilchrist was no slouch in his own right. Going against Seattle Rotary's Anthony Wroten Jr., Gilchrist showed the talent that has him the current number one in the nation.

After having an average first half by his standards, Gilchrist got it going in a big way in the second half. He has a way of just making it seem so easy going to the rim, and with his size and strength it almost looks like he isn't doing work, but one look at the scorebook at the end of the game, and it is obvious that he does plenty of work.

Gilchrist got to the rim at will with his handle, and simply took over the game for Team Final giving them the separation to pull away from Seattle Rotary. In the process Gilchrist showed the form that makes him such a talented and well thought of prospect. Wroten is an excellent defender, and even he had no answer for Gilchrist with his size and strength. Also Gilchrist showed improved and more consistent range shooting the basketball. When he makes jump shots he is impossible to stop, and that was the case on Saturday.

Going against Gilchrist was Wroten. Wroten, who is coming off of a knee injury that kept him out for the school season, showed no ill-effects from the layoff. If there has consistently been one knock on Wroten it has been his lack of a consistent jumper, but he had the three ball working in the game against Team Final.

Wroten was knocking down jumpers with ease, and of course he showed off his tremendous court vision combined with his elite level athleticism. Overall it was a good matchup for Wroten, and going against a bigger player in Gilchrist he was able to expose his defender at times. When Wroten gets back in game shape and further removed from the injury he should only get better and better.

Other Notable Performances

Athletes First has a heck of a backcourt already at the 17 and under level, and the scary thing is neither of the main two players are seniors. Class of 2012 standout Nino Jackson was excellent in a morning win over the Georgia Southern Kings. Jackson is an excellent shooter and someone who is quick with the bounce. His running mate is Stevie Clark. Clark is a class of 2013 stud who is a big time shooter from deep. Not only that, but Clark is impossible to keep in front when he goes off the dribble. Clark absolutely tore up the Southern Kings at times, and even though he only goes 5-foot-8, he is extremely tough to handle.

The Mac Irvin Fire are looking much better and more cohesive this summer, and they were extremely impressive in a dominating win over California Supreme. The Fire are loaded with talent, and one player who put it on full display was Mike Shaw.

The 6-foot-8 Shaw showed off all of his talents with his play. He scored on perimeter jumpers, converted offensive rebounds for buckets, did some damage off the bounce, and even hit from the mid-range. Quite honestly there wasn't much offensively that Shaw didn't do. Also Shaw did a good job defensively on Cal Supreme big man Kevin Johnson.

One of the more anticipated performances from Fire was that of Mycheal Henry. After making a huge splash during his junior year in high school, Henry took to the floor with the Fire. Unfortunately for Henry he could never quite get in the flow of the game. The small forward was good on the glass, but offensively he didn't show much aptitude to score outside of five feet.

As typical Wayne Blackshear did some good things with his perimeter jumper, and also scoring from the mid-range. Maybe the most impressive guard for the Fire was Macari Brooks. Brooks is supremely athletic and it shows with his game. On top of that he also is a good jump shooter once he gets hot.

For Cal Supreme Roschon Prince is really one to watch. The 2013 wing is just flat out a big time player. At 6-foot-5 he can already score inside and out, and has the body and athleticism to be a major problem for teams going forward. He was able to more than hold his own against the talented players from Mac Irvin.

For the All-Ohio 17 and under squad, a nightmare start was quickly erased by Trey Burke. After falling behind 18-4, Burke went on a personal 14-0 run to tie up the score, and from there it was the Burke and Stevie Taylor show. Burke went for over 20, and was super hot from deep while Taylor took over going to the basket with his quickness and created for his teammates with his impressive feel for the game. Both players were the difference in an All-Ohio win.

The Memphis YOMCA fell at All-Ohio's expense, but still they had some good performances of their own. 2012 combo guard Telvin Wilkerson has good size and athleticism, and a pretty release on his jumper that makes it seem like every shot he takes is going in. Also keep a close eye on 2013 wing Jonathan Williams. He is a legit 6-foot-7 with perimeter skills and a man's body. He didn't have too many stellar moments, but Williams did show an impressive feel and some high level potential.

The Long Island Lighting are basically a two man wrecking crew at the 16 and under level. Guard Nkereuwem Okoro forward Daniel Dingle do all the damage for the Lighting against the All-Ohio 16's. Okoro has a very tight handle with a dynamic pull up jumper and Dingle is the inside-outside threat who is just as comfortable launching from deep as playing with his back to the basket.

For All-Ohio, Purdue commitment Kyle Molock had a good game. Molock is a dynamite defensive player who needs to work on his jump shot, but on the ball he is good at getting to the rim and he has high level athleticism.

Emerging from the West Coast from Portland was Jordan Akwenuke. The 6-foot-6 small forward was a beast against the New York Gauchos. He is at his best driving from the wing and finishing around the rim, but also he showed a capability to score on the outside. He should be attracting significant Pac-10 interest shortly.

The Gauchos got decent performances from Omar Calhoun and Derrick Williams to save an overtime victory. However maybe most impressive was Dustin Hogue. Hogue, who says he isn't receiving any college interest right now, is a 2010 wing with good size and athleticism to spare. Also he showed good activity and a willingness to defend.

One of the more impressive point guards on the day was Tyrone Johnson. Suiting up for Team Final, Johnson is at his best getting to the cup with his strength and athleticism, but don't leave him or else a jumper will be buried. When Gilchrist wasn't scoring, more often than not Johnson was.

Closing out the night was the Teague show for Spiece Indy Heat, but 2012 centers DaJuan Coleman and A.J. Hammons had an epic battle in the paint. Coleman is the more physically developed and athletic of the two, and that was on display with the dunking exhibition that he put on, but Hammons also had his moments. Hammons, who isn't someone who looks for his offense, showed good hands, an aptitude to rebound, and the ability to block and change shots on the defensive end. Still Coleman proved why he is one of the elite with his performance, and was truly a difference maker in the game.

While the big guys were doing battle down low, a pair of City Rocks forwards showed their stuff. Face up power forward Eric Katenda is a great looking prospect who is long, athletic, and score in a variety of ways. Also Jaylen Bond is an excellent looking player who could make an impact at the power forward position from day one. To top it off, City Rocks got hot shooting from Jerel Scott to get the win in a hotly contested battle.

School Lists

Nino Jackson has interest from Baylor, Missouri, Tennessee, and Oklahoma.

Marquette and Missouri did their early on homework on 2013 stud Stevie Clark.

Macari Brooks says he has offers from California, Xavier, Illinois State, and Providence. Also he has interest from Tennessee, Missouri State, Illinois, and Colorado

For Mycheal Henry he now has offers from Wisconsin, Illinois, Illinois State, and Marquette. Also interest is coming from Georgetown, Purdue, Notre Dame, and others.

Mike Shaw has an impressive list of schools consisting of Michigan State, Florida, Louisville, Texas, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Tennessee.

All-Ohio energizer George Fant holds offers from Ohio University, Butler, Oklahoma State, Wright State, Miami-Ohio, Western Kentucky, and Mississippi State. Also interest is coming from West Virginia, Southern Illinois, and Purdue.

For Omar Calhoun the offer list stands at Villanova, Louisville, Florida, West Virgina, and Pittsburgh. Also he is hearing from North Carolina, Kentucky, St. John's, Maryland, and basically the rest of the ACC and Big East.

Tyrone Johnson has offers from Villanova, Georgetown, Rutgers, Seton Hall, West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Indiana, and UNLV. Also he has heard from UConn and Kentucky

Jaylen Bond has offers from West Virginia, Temple, St. Joe's, LaSalle, and Pitt with interest from Villanova and UConn.

Jerel Scot says he has heard from Siena, Fairfield, and Marquette.

Big man DaJuan Coleman says Syracuse, Kentucky, Ohio State, and North Carolina are heavily involved in his recruitment.