Massachusetts 17-Under AAU Recap

KINGSTON, Mass. – The 17-under Massachusetts AAU tournament took place south of Boston towards Cape Cod, as the South Shore Supreme Sports complex was home to the games.  The event took place over two long days of games, the second of which wasn’t what many hoped for considering what day it was, as play did not start until Saturday morning.  In fact, because of how late in the day the games were going on Mother’s Day (they were not running behind), there was some discussion first about not playing the final, then trying to start it as soon as the semifinals ended.  Both teams wanted to start right away, but a lack of officials kept that from happening until the Division II final, won by the Boston Warriors Central by a 60-49 margin over the South Shore Supreme Wolfpack, was complete.

In the Division I final, BABC and Metro Boston played mostly to a standstill in the first half.  Metro Boston was probably playing the best basketball of any team entering the game, and while BABC held the lead for a lot of the half they were hardly in command at the break as Metro Boston scored the last five points to close within 32-29.  After holding off Metro Boston for much of the second half, BABC then pulled away in the final minutes, posting their first double-digit lead late in a 65-55 win.

Gerard Coleman (6′3″ Jr. SG, Tilton (NH) School) capped off a terrific weekend with a game-high 19 points to lead BABC, while Ron Giplaye (6′6″ Jr. PF, Fitchburg (MA) Notre Dame Prep) wore down defenders inside en route to 14 points.  Allen Harris (6′4″ Sr. SG, West Roxbury (MA) Catholic Memorial HS) led Metro Boston with 15 points.

The win marks the 69^th state title for the storied BABC program.  With the 15-Under team winning the state title in Amherst this weekend after the program also won the 14-Under and 16-Under, they became the first program ever to sweep all four high school divisions in one year in the state.

Now, a look at some of the players in this event.

Rodney Beldo (5′10″ Jr. PG, Scituate (MA) High) It was a far different weekend for him than last year’s 16-Under event was, as he wasn’t himself on Saturday and injured his ankle in the semifinals on Sunday.  He had been playing better prior to the injury, making more plays happen after you could hardly notice him on Saturday.  Part of it is that he got hurt earlier in the spring, so he’s had a rough go of it in the last month.

Daniel Brooks (6′3″ Jr. SG, West Roxbury (MA) Catholic Memorial HS) Athletic guard has made some good strides offensively, as he looked much more aggressive and scored much better than he did a year ago.  He finished in transition often, but had some defensive issues as he was in foul trouble for much of his team’s last game before fouling out with a lot of time left.

Jarell Byrd (6′3″ Jr. SG-SF, Lynn (MA) Classical HS) Once this very athletic wing started playing like an active forward who just found the ball and made plays, his play was much better.  He’s very athletic and scored points on loose balls, stickbacks and a few transition plays, while also blocking a few shots and getting rebounds as a glue guy.

Dennis Clifford (6′11″ Jr. C, Bridgewater (MA) Bridgewater-Raynham HS) The lanky big man had some good moments this weekend while his team’s play was a mixed bag.  While far from dominant, he was more of a factor inside, including offensively as he managed to finish with contact, and he also made a couple of nice long outlet passes off rebounds.  Next year, he will attend Milton Academy and re-classify into the class of 2011.

Gerard Coleman (6′3″ Jr. SG, Tilton (NH) School) All he did was reinforce that he’s a solid high-major prospect with an excellent weekend.  His length, athleticism and tremendous body control were all on display constantly, as he scored often – he had games of 24 and 21 points along the way – and also did so with a variety of drives and three-point shots.  He continues to get better going to his right, showed a better ability to stop and pop for short jumpers, and didn’t shy away from contact even after getting few calls in one game where he was constantly hammered going to the basket.

Patrick Connaughton (6′3″ So. SG-SF, Arlington (MA) St. John’s HS) A jack of all trades for his team, he’s not a baby physically but hasn’t matured all the way, either.  He has solid ball skills and some range on his jumper, though he didn’t shoot lights-out from deep, and showed a quietly solid all-around game that numbers like 37 and 30 points, which were two of his game totals, don’t fully capture.

Andrew Douby (6′3″ Jr. SG, Oakdale (CT) St. Thomas More) While it’s not hard to tell that he’s fairly new to the game, there’s certainly a lot to like from a potential standpoint.  This lanky guard is built much like his sharp-shooting brother and has a good stroke, and while he’s athletic and capable of getting to the basket, he looks awkward quite often and will travel with the ball as well.  Defensively, he showed good lateral movement defending on the ball.

P.J. Douglas (6′1″ Jr. SG, Brockton (MA) Braintree HS) In a couple of years, he’s made solid strides from being a player who was your classic athlete who doesn’t know the game.  While he still has more to go, especially since his game is basically that of a very under-sized wing, he’s very athletic and has an improved stroke from long range, and is capable of rebounding from the wing.  He showed that he can score on a quick drive to the basket as well, and hopefully he’ll do that more instead of settling for some of the three-pointers he took (and subsequently missed) that weren’t in the flow of the offense.

Tevin Falzon (6′6″ So. SF, Newton (MA) North HS) His play overall was a mixed bag, and he’s a tough player to project.  On the plus side, he knocked down his fair share of shots out to three-point range, and at times he showed some hints of potential.  On the down side, the game looks to be a little too fast for him and he also seemed to stand around often without the ball, as if he’s very new to the game, and he also lost the ball easily at times as well.

Ron Giplaye (6′6″ Jr. PF, Fitchburg (MA) Notre Dame Prep) Overall, he had a fine weekend doing some work inside, although there were some rough spots.  Early in the weekend, he lost the ball too easily as he didn’t look ball-tough, and at other times he didn’t handle passes or rebounds he probably should have.  His body language at times left a little to be desired as well.  The pluses were plenty: tough to handle inside with a solid body, he’s so natural going up with his left hand that you might not know it’s his off hand, and he’s capable of fouling out opposing post players because he’s very fundamentally sound.  He went for 27 and 18 in the two pool play games and was in double digits every game this weekend.

Egi Gjikondi (6′8″ Fr. PF, Malden (MA) High) The lefty post player showed again that he can score in close, as he usually finished when he got the ball near the basket.  Aside from that, there were some issues, like the technical foul he got in a pool play game and not being a factor at the defensive end, especially on the boards, that he should be.

Marcus Grant (6′2″ So. SG, (MA) Lawrence Academy) He gets the “tough guy” award for the weekend, as he suffered a severe gash above his left eye in the first pool play game that required stitches, but suited up for every game after that.  He didn’t just play, either, as he contributed steadily with good defense, baskets in transition and the flow of the offense, and also rebounded from the wing.  The lefty’s scoring efforts included games of 20 and 15 points.

Brian Grossman (6′1″ Jr. SG, Duxbury (MA) High) Always a steady glue guy, he had a solid weekend shooting the ball from long range.  A steady defender, he takes good shots and saw that pay off here, as he had two games with three from deep and one with four, going for 19 points in that outing.

Allen Harris (6′4″ Sr. SG, West Roxbury (MA) Catholic Memorial HS) He didn’t show anything new this weekend, but that’s fine.  The reality is that he knows what he is and doesn’t try to do too much, as he knocked down mid-range shots and a couple from long range and got some baskets in transition.  His defense and rebounding did leave a little to be desired, but overall he was a key to his team reaching the championship game.  Next year, he will be at Suffield Academy.

Bryan Hurley (5′10″ So. PG, Dorchester (MA) Boston College HS) A steady floor leader, he doesn’t have a lot of physical gifts but does possess a good feel for the game that can make up for some of that as well as his lack of size.  He got a few deflections in the air and didn’t hurt the team with major mistakes.

Emanuel Hutcherson (6′4″ Jr. SF-PF, Milton (MA) High) He took a spill in his team’s quarterfinal win and got banged up, and although he said he was fine in between games he was hurting more than he let on.  As such, he wasn’t a big factor in his team’s last game after he was just okay all weekend.  He didn’t quite own the boards like he often does, but he did show some signs on offense of continued improvement with his ball skills.

Greg Kelley (6′8″ Jr. PF, Newton (MA) North HS) An off-court commitment kept him away until Sunday, but once he got there he was a factor in his team’s championship.  His sound fundamentals are always evident, from good low-post moves and rebounding to several lob passes he made from the elbow into the post.  An excellent student, he’ll be a solid pickup for an Ivy League school, his most likely destination at the next level.

Samir McDaniel (6′2″ So. SG-SF, Roxbury (MA) New Mission) He’s continued to show improvement this spring as a solid wing with a good body.  A plus athlete, he’s capable of playing bigger and at times this weekend was also a pest on defense with several steals.  His offensive game still needs work, but there are some signs of progress and he finds ways to score, going for 18 points in one game and 17 in another.

Shabazz Napier (6′0″ So. PG, Charlestown (MA) Lawrence Academy) While he’s been a gunner often, that wasn’t quite the case this weekend and it made a big difference.  Perhaps it was the early three-pointers he tried not going that did it, but for much of the weekend he was thriving by getting in the lane and finishing near the hoop or finding teammates, and he was deadly in transition.  While he still put up some scoring numbers – 30 in one game, 28 in two others, 26 in another – he was much better at making teammates better than he has been in a while and didn’t play the selfish basketball he’s played all too often.

Derek Retos (5′10″ Jr. PG-SG, Attleboro (MA) Brimmer & May School) Although he didn’t shoot lights-out every game this weekend, he showed plenty to be optimistic about.  For a time, the quantity wasn’t there but the quality was as the shots he did make were often from NBA distance, and he was effective scoring in other ways as well as evidenced by his 31-point outing with five three-pointers in his team’s tournament-ending loss.

Kadeem Wint (6′8″ Jr. PF, Boston (MA) Trinity Academy) Well-built post player has a good body, especially for the competition here, but wasn’t quite the factor you would think he would be.  He had his moments, but they were too few and far between, leaving him looking like just a “potential” player.

Ryan Woumn (6′2″ Jr. PG, Lynn (MA) English HS) It hasn’t been the easiest spring for this young man, who had a big coming-out party in the state tournament as his team won a state title.  This weekend, as has been the case at other times, he’s looked like a player adjusting to a new team, but also hasn’t been very aggressive, and a few turnovers almost seemed to have a domino effect at one time.  The plus side is that he’s not going to kill a team with major mistakes, and he showed some signs of progress this weekend with a few plays he made.