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Tri-City Junior Phenom Camp (Co-Ed, Grade 4-10) - Summer, 2019!

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Sunday, May 13, 2018

Day 2 Recap: Tri-City Senior Boys' Top 40 Camp in Coordination with Adidas Brand

Day two at the Tri-City Senior Boys' Top 40 Camp is in the books, and the bar was certainly raised from the opening evening.

 Right off the bat, with opening drills, one could tell that the "compete level" and intensity -- something that Nipissing University Assistant Coach Stephen Hong stressed in addressing the campers -- was a touch higher than it was the evening prior.

 As teams split up to their respective teams and were pushed through the paces by the coaching staff, it was clear that some of the messages that had been stressed -- especially in terms of mental toughness, coach-ability, and the like -- were being taken to heart.

 Camp director Imad Qahwash agreed.

 "Our players individually definitely stepped up on two.  They battled, worked hard and really tried to apply the instruction from the staff into game situations," he noted.

 "It was great to have a couple of U-Sports coaches on hand to speak to our kids directly as a group and explain the importance of being a student-athlete and some of the things that they need to do to get to the next level and succeed -- I'm very proud of our guys and the region as a whole," he said.

 After being pushed through their camp stations, Joga World was on hand to take the campers through some regenerative yoga for athletes, with some yoga poses that basketball players can add to their maintenance routine.

 The Games
"Raising the bar" was the theme of the day, and this trend followed into the games on Saturday, where certain players settled in to the elite camp environment and found their comfort zone.

 Among those were a pair of Providence guards, athletic slasher Abdei Hamad and dynamic PG Ethan Passley. 

 As they took on Kansas in the camp's opening game on Saturday, both got off to excellent starts.  Hamad got himself free for a couple of dunks in the first half, while also demonstrating three-point range and a solid mid-range game, as well.

 Passley, meanwhile, had another commitment and was only able to play the first half of this one, but made his impression felt.  He started things off with a three-pointer of his own, and also finished inside with a nifty reverse layup for an "and one" opportunity.

 In a similar script to Friday evening's game, Kansas again got off to a slow start.  Opportunities were there, and good shots were being taken, but they were not dropping.

 Meanwhile, Jordan Rogers (GPSS) did a great job on the offensive glass for Providence.  He picked up a couple of offensive rebounds that resulted in second-chance baskets, including one of his own on a put-back layup.

 Hendrik Stam, a 6'8" post player who was in Thunder Bay this past season, also really made an impression for Providence on day two.  He used his size on the interior to finish a couple of baskets on the interior, while his length was making things difficult for Kansas on the other end -- he tallied a couple of blocks in the first half.

 Taking a 17-point lead into the second half, you had to admire the "compete level" of Kansas.  This was a team that could have folded, but they definitely didn't quit.

 Although things started similarly to the first half -- with Rogers and Michael Sieber providing some offense, and Stam doing things like this on the defensive end....

 You knew that Kansas has the players to make a push.  After all, their top trio of Kanayo Nnadi, Kuel Thomas, and Zach Cudmore were among the best CWOSSA players all season.

 Those three were able to contribute alongside Keaton Thornton, who sliced his way inside for back-to-back buckets -- and Darius Skinner, the Pickering product who hit a three-pointer in transition inside of a minute to go that cut the lead all the way down to single-digits.

 It wasn't enough in the end, though, as Providence held on for the 57-47 win.

 Arkansas vs. Notre Dame
The second game of day two featured a couple of teams looking to pick up wins for the second consecutive day.

 A couple of out-of-town prospects joined Arkansas for day two, including Matt Bardoel (St. Anne Tecumseh) and Noah Balogun, a 6'6" forward from Barrie with a huge wingspan.

 For Notre Dame, Mahier Mohammed, one of CWOSSA's premier scorers this past season, got himself -- and his teammates -- going early.  He scored 5 early points and found Jody Brown Jr. with a nice assist as ND took an early 8-7 lead.

 Balogun, on the other end, was making an immediate impression -- he found Diego Garcia for the game's first basket, and picked up a couple of first half baskets, including this one:


Notre Dame's Trey Wilson had a nice finish to what was a tight first-half; he hit a nice step-back three-pointer and then had a monster slam off of a Notre Dame steal.  His 5 points enabled Notre Dame to take a 32-26 lead into halftime.

The second-half started in back-and-forth fashion, with several lead changes.  Mahier Mohammed (ND) played the passing lane well, racking up a couple of steals -- one of which he took coast-to-coast for a layup.  He had a quick scoring spurt of 7 points in a couple minutes.

Meanwhile, Layee Jabateh was in "create" mode on Saturday, finding Trey Wilson in transition (below) and then getting another assist to Zach Jones as Notre Dame took a 7 point lead.

Ayden Jackson also had some nice contributions for Notre Dame down the stretch, but Arkansas wouldn't go away.  One of the top performers on day one, Khaled Djabo (Arkansas) did his part to keep his team within striking distance -- and a late assist by him to Balogun (who made a nice mid-air adjustment) made it a two-point game with around 2:00 to go.

Bluevale's Michael Allen, though, had other plans as he calmly drilled a three-pointer in transition for Notre Dame which essentially iced it.  His squad would hold on for the 65-58 victory, moving to 2-0 in the camp.

Mark's Top 5
With the theme of the day being "raising the bar", my top 5 from day two reflects five players that had outstanding performances on day two and have thrust themselves into camp all-star consideration:

Abdei Hamad (PROV) - As mentioned, he did his thing offensively for Providence, scoring inside and outside as they took care of business against Kansas.

Mahier Mohammed (ND) - Really came into his own on day two at camp; was up to his usual scoring exploits but also racked up the steals and assists.  Definitely seemed to have great chemistry with Jody Brown Jr., as those two teamed up a couple of times for baskets.

Darius Skinner (KAN) - Has been a steady performer for Kansas the first two days of camp, and his "never quit" attitude pulled Kansas to within striking distance down the stretch.  Demonstrated a solid three-point stroke and is also fearless attacking the basket.

Hendrick Stam (PROV) - Really came into his own on day two, using his 6'8" frame effectively on both ends of the floor.  Probably finished with about 6 or 7 blocked shots -- as well as causing numerous others to be altered by the shooter.

Trey Wilson (ND) - Continued his solid, steady play.  Excellent size at the SF position; demonstrated his three-point capability, and showcased his athleticism with a massive throw-down.

HM:  Ethan Passley - Although he had another commitment on Saturday and only played a half, he certainly made his impression felt in those 20 minutes and is certainly deserving of a shout-out.

 HM:  Noah Balogun - You can't teach 6'6" with a 7' wingspan, and Balogun certainly used those assets to his advantage in his camp debut. 

Heading Into Sunday....
As we move into Sunday, one can certainly say that all campers have made an impression in their own right.  As a result, camp staff are going to have some tough decisions as far as all-stars and camp MVPs are concerned.  It goes without saying that players could certainly differentiate themselves by taking the words that camp coach Nathan Johnson mentioned (head coach at Orangeville Prep; older brother of CWOSSA alum Bryson Johnson) to heart:

Ryerson assistant coach Borko Popic also commented on players taking care of the "controllable factors" while on the floor competing:

With it having been a great camp so far, I'm looking forward to see how things wrap up on Sunday!

Posted by Mark Yolkowski at Sunday, May 13, 2018

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