2010 New England Super Regionals Recap
FOXBORO, Mass. – The 2010 New England Super Regionals for the high school age divisions were held this weekend at Mass Premier Courts, with a few games being played right down the road at the Mansfield Sportsplex. While teams wanted to win for the gold medal aspect as usual, this year it’s part of a series of such events as the first in the inaugural New England AAU Championships Series. Teams not only competed for medals in the 15-under and 16-under divisions, but also power ranking points. Another event will be held in the middle of May at Rhode Island College, which will also be home to the NCS Championships the third weekend in June. The top 16 ranked teams will qualify. There will be no NCS Championship in the 17-under age division.
The 15-under championship game was never a contest, as BABC scored the first 11 points of the game and led by more than 20 for much of the latter part of the first half en route to an 86-42 win over the Boston Warriors. Three players scored in double figures for BABC, with Bobby Ahearn (6’5” Fr. SF-PF, Marshfield (MA) High) and Makai Mason (5’10” Fr. PG, Hatfield (MA) Bement HS) leading the way with 12 points apiece.
The 16-under championship game was similar, as BABC scored the first eight points and led by more than 30 in the latter part of the first half in a 73-40 win over New England Storm. Georges Niang (6’7” So. PF, Methuen (MA) Tilton School) led the winners with 13 points and seven rebounds, while Jaylen Brantley (5’9” Fr. PG, Springfield (MA) Central HS) capped a solid weekend with 12 points and six assists.
The 17-under championship game was a stark contrast to that for the younger ages, as it was tight throughout and played within a ten-point window either way. A number of ties and lead changes came about, with Middlesex Magic needing some late free throws after a few misses helped keep Mass Premier in the game to take home a 77-76 win. Individual player statistics were not available for this game.
Now, here’s a look at some of the prospects who competed this weekend.
Kamali Bey (6’2” So. SG, Springfield (MA) Sabis Charter School) Scoring guard showed that he’s simply too strong for many players his age around here, as he often finished through contact. He went for 13 points in the semifinals and was tough to stop when he went to the basket. Next year, he will re-classify and attend Wilbraham & Monson Academy.
Jaylen Brantley (5’9” Fr. PG, Springfield (MA) Central HS) A baby physically, he has a solid feel for the game and has shown he can score. Simply put, he made things happen with the ball, and if he grows enough physically he could one day become a combo guard.
Dominique Bull (6’3” So. SG, Worcester (MA) Cushing Academy) Continuing the trend from a week earlier, he didn’t put up big scoring numbers but looks better with the non-scoring offensive plays he made. He knocked down a couple of deep shots, which also bodes well since that part of his game is still a bit unproven as he’s more of a scorer than a shooter.
Aaron Calixte (5’9” Fr. PG, Stoughton (MA) High) Point guard has a good motor that keeps going when he’s on the court. He’s quick and showed he can get to the basket often, but also has a jumper that must be respected. If he keeps working and grows more, the latter of which is certainly possible, he could have a high ceiling.
Renee Castro (6’2” Fr. SG, Milton (MA) Beaver Country Day School) The best things he did here were move without the ball and show a consistent effort. Symbolic of his play was where he passed to a teammate, moved to the corner, then went to the basket as a shot went up and put back the miss. He scored like he’s capable of, but also had a nice long bounce lead pass and drove and dished to a teammate as well.
Andrew Chrabascz (6’6” So. SF-PF, Portsmouth (RI) High) He didn’t put up the biggest numbers, but he was around the ball constantly and made a lot of plays. The highlight was a play where he dove for a loose ball and then made a pass halfway across the court while on his back, and the fundamentals were solid including consistently using the left (off) hand. Next year, he will re-classify and attend Cushing Academy.
Pat Connaughton (6’3” Jr. SG, Arlington (MA) St. John’s HS) Versatile guard has several ways to score and can do more than that. He scored posting up a smaller guard and shooting it, knocking down a clutch three-pointer, and also came up big at the foul line late in the game. Though not the most athletic guard, he’s not lacking entirely in that area and his skills make him very effective.
Matt Droney (6’2” So. SG, Canton (MA) Catholic Memorial HS) Playing more at the point than off the ball, the lefty had his moments in a playoff loss but seemed to run out of gas near the end. He scored 10 points in the losing effort but has played and will play better.
Salim Fort (Fr. SF-PF, Lynn (MA) Classical HS) Well-built forward battled valiantly for his team, often playing inside. He has a good body, scored over a taller player inside and broke up some post passes, and also used his left hand to score. On the down side, he seemed to roam on offense, indicative of a player who doesn’t have a defined position right now.
Jared Johnson (6’1” So. PG, Springfield (MA) Cushing Academy) Solid floor leader wasn’t spectacular but did things that won games for his team. He’s more mature physically but hasn’t lost his ability to compete and find a teammate as a pass-first floor leader.
Shaquille Jones (6’4” So. SG-SF, Providence (RI) Hope HS) Athletic wing has some length and isn’t mature physically at all but has the frame to carry more weight. He showed a variety of offensive skills, scoring 13 points in a semifinal game with a shot from deep and several shots inside the arc, even out-toughing his opponent on one occasion to finish.
Jake Layman (6’7” So. PF, Wrentham (MA) King Philip Regional HS) A baby physically, he has a good motor and was around the ball often. His lower body is more developed than his upper body right now, and it’s easy to see he needs to add strength, but he runs the floor and gets rebounds and loose balls to contribute.
Tyler McFadden (5’7” Fr. PG, Lynn (MA)) Lefty guard is a baby physically but showed good promise. One play that stood out was a nice pass right through several defenders for a layup, while he knocked down a couple of jumpers but looked a little rough around the edges with his release, and he didn’t look like the most fluid athlete. If he grows physically and improves, he could become a scholarship-level player.
Georges Niang (6’7” So. PF, Methuen (MA) Tilton School) His improvement became a little more apparent here, as he scored often when the ball came his way. He scored in the flow of the offense, usually close to the basket, and while his body is more mature it doesn’t appear to be all good weight, so he’ll need to keep up his conditioning.
Nerlens Noel (6’9” So. C, Everett (MA) High) He basically played on one leg, but was more than effective. After coming down early in the quarterfinals and looking like he might be done, he played with a noticeable limp in his left leg but blocked his share of shots, knocked down a few mid-range shots on the offensive end and looked more capable facing the basket. The leg injury he’s still recovering from has limited his mobility, and his footwork was already shaky before this limited him more and he got away with a couple of travels. If he can be this effective while injured, one can imagine how good he can be healthy and as he keeps improving.
Goodluck Okonoboh (6’7” Fr. PF, Boston (MA) Tilton School) The talent is there with this young post player, but at times he looks a little soft and the results are quite unimpressive. On one play, he missed an uncontested dunk, and at times he didn’t box out well and got out-rebounded. On the upside, he looked better with his fundamental post moves at the offensive end.
Kamari Robinson (6’5” Fr. SF, Springfield (MA) Central HS) Right now, he’s playing like a combo forward, and doing it well, but at his current size he projects as a wing. He’s athletic and scored well this weekend, especially inside as he used his quickness and athleticism and was still bigger than many of his defenders. Along the way, he had 16 points in the quarterfinal win and 11 in the semifinal win.
Wayne Selden (6’3” Fr. SG, Roxbury (MA) John D. O’Bryant HS) Now healthy after a badly sprained ankle limited him a week earlier, his jump shot was going from long range. A couple of his three-pointers were well behind the line, and he reached double figures in both the quarterfinal and semifinal, scoring 17 in the former. As good as those numbers were, the well-built guard doesn’t have much of a motor and on several occasions was reaching on the defensive end.
The length on babc 16s is scary, you look at their roster and see d1 players top to bottom, but more impressively is their ability to not be selfish and play in a team concept which is resulting in these blow out wins over quality teams, even scarier they played without their starting PF for the weekend.
The best big man on BABC 15 year old team is Bobby Ahearn, who was tied for leading scorer in championship game and led them in rebounds. You missed the boat in not recognizing him.
absolutley not, goodluck is the best freshman big in maybe the country, bobby should be up, but he is not better then goodluck and he is a tie with kamari
What about Steven Wynn Jr. on the 16s people sleep on him
on a stacked team he falls through the cracks a little, but it seems when he comes in he tries to force it to much, he needs to learn to play his role, whether its 5 minutes or so, he needs to show he can come in and effictevly run an offense and that way he could pick up offers during live period in july.