Cassidy's Takeaways: Montverde Invitational
MONTVERDE, Fla. -- The penultimate day of the 2021 Montverde Invitational featured six of the top high school basketball teams in America and countless Div. I-bound prospects littered throughout their rosters. Rivals.com was on hand for the day that was in Central Florida and delivers news and notes from the event below.
*****
Fact or Fiction: Skyy Clark will be on Kentucky's roster next season
2021 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position
2022 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position
2023 Rankings: Top 30
*****
RICE’S RECRUITMENT HAS AN ACC VIBE
There may not be a wing in the country that scores through contact better than Oak Hill’s M.J. Rice, the No. 27 player in the class of 2022. He finished Friday’s contest with 22 points on 6-for-9 shooting, and his trademark strength was on full display all game. Rice absolutely thrives on physicality. He shot 14 free throws in the contest and scored a bucket in the second quarter despite a defender fully holding one of his arms. Following the game, the class-of-2022 star said Duke, NC State, Pittsburgh and Louisville currently lead the way in his recruitment.
Rice has been on campus at both Duke and NC State and seems incredibly high on both programs. He intends to visit Louisville as soon as the pandemic-induced dead period lifts. It’s still early as it relates to the budding star’s recruitment, but the Blue Devils and Wolfpack will likely figure into the equation until he chooses a school.
THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT IN WACO
Baylor-bound prospects Langston Love and Kendall Brown squared off in the day’s second game. And while Brown’s Sunrise Academy team took home the win, both future Bears impacted the contest in major ways. Brown finished with a game-high 21 points on 10-for-12 shooting and grabbed five rebounds, while Love went for 15 points and added four rebounds.
Scott Drew has his program undefeated this season and the pipeline appears to be backed up with talent. Everything seems to be coming up Baylor as of late, and you can feel the program’s momentum compounding.
CAMRYN CARTER HITS RESET
Following his Friday afternoon game, three-star guard Camryn Carter said the pandemic has thrown a wrench of sorts in his recruitment. Carter, who holds offers from programs such as Georgetown, Ole Miss and Mississippi State, says his contact with coaches has been slow as of late.
“Nothing is the same anymore,” Carter said. “it seems like Covid changed everything for me.”
The hiccup could provide an opening for an interested mid-major to slide into the thick of the race if it so chooses. How Carter finishes the season could determine the trajectory of his recruitment, as the 2021 prospect remains on the board and looking for a landing place. Carter finished Friday’s game against Wasatch Academy with five points, four assists and a pair of steals.
OTHER NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
... Michigan signee Caleb Houstan had arguably the day’s best individual performance. Obviously, the five-star prospect would have preferred it not come in an overtime loss, but the stat-stuffing effort was wildly impressive nevertheless. Houstan kept his team in the game by scoring 19 points to go along with 10 rebounds and three steals. The crown jewel of the Wolverines' top-ranked class, the No. 8 player in the country looks ready to contribute in the Big Ten today and his trajectory is even more encouraging, as he seems to be developing at a rapid pace from both a strength and skill standpoint.
... Tennessee-bound guard Kennedy Chandler put his Sunrise Academy team on his back with a 19-point performance that included an off-balance 3-pointer at the buzzer to force overtime. Chandler added six assists and turned the ball over just once in the effort. His defense was maybe even more impressive than his offense, however, as Chandler was able to speed up his man and force mistakes in the critical moments of the day’s closest and most exciting game. In Chandler, the Vols are getting a well-rounded guard that manages to find a way to impact the game even when he’s not shooting the ball as well as he’d like.
... Point guard J.J. Starling, who has been on a scoring spree of late, gets most of the pub, but uncommitted wing Chisolm Okpara continues to have a solid season for Illinois’ La Lumiere School and is improving his recruiting stock in the process. The No. 114 prospect in the class of 2022, Okpara holds offers from schools such as Providence, Ole Miss, DePaul and others. On Friday, he scored a game-high 19 points in a 61-54 win over Florida’s Calvary Christian High. The three-star prospect gets to the basket with relative ease because of his incredibly strong upper body and decent handle. There could be more offers in store for the 6-foot-7 wing this summer if he continues to develop at this pace and improves when it comes to finishing at the rack.
... Ohio State commit Roddy Gayle Jr., made an impression from the jump in a game against an Oak Hill team stocked with high-major talent, backing up his top-50 ranking with an efficient 19-point, eight-rebound performance that saw him score at all three levels and showcase some impressive court vision. The future Buckeye is a better passer than he gets credit for being and should get credit for rising to the occasion against elite competition and leading his team to a comfortable victory.
... Kentucky signee Nolan Hickman overcame a bit of slow start to turn in a well-rounded performance that featured 19 points, seven assists and six rebounds. The future Wildcat wasn’t nearly as efficient as you’d like, but the majority of the ill-advised shots in the 7-for-17 effort came in the early going. The top-100 prospect settled into a groove and began to operate within the offense and the flow of the game as the contest progressed.