Top Teams from the Shorecrest Holiday Hoop Tournament based off day 1 observations.
1 Clearwater – The Tornadoes used a high pressure full court defensive attack to force Berkeley into multiple turnovers and rushed shot attempts. Clearwater surprising shot the ball well behind the three-point line extending the defense and creating more space to score in the paint versus Berkeley Prep. They ended the contest with four players in double figures lead by G Gene Culver who had 15 points. G Joel Alfred added in 13 of his own points while Jerreyon JJ Johnson and Ryan Lerna both finished with 10 points each.
Clearwater 84
Berkeley 68
2 Shorecrest Prep – The tournament host finished the evening in stylish fashion. Arguably the most fundamentally sound team of the field of eight. They shot the ball well from the outside and made high percentage shots inside of 15 feet. Shorecrest dominated AATL on the glass and seemed to get every loose ball. At no point did they look out of rhythm or off balanced. Shorecrest boasted 3 different scorers in double figures including Marcus Blake who had 15 and the only dunks of Day 1 of the tournament.
Final
Shorecrest 65
AATL 43
3 Berkeley Prep – The motor did not get going for the Bucs until it was too late. Clearwater entered the game with “attack” as the only mission and took it to Berkeley for the majority of the first half. The Bucs started to finally get in sync late third quarter when they made a run to cut the lead to 8 points. Jacob Mathis lead all scorers with 29 points working the paint and perimeter. Kaleeyl Findlay earned his buckets inside dropping 17 points against Clearwater.
Clearwater 84
Berkeley 68
4 Northeast – It didn’t take long for Northeast to pull away from Pinellas Park in the third game of the Shorecrest Holiday Tournament. The Vikings used some great ball handling and efficient shooting to blow past the Patriots. Alfonso Franklin was a monster off the bench. Scored 11 points in just half of the 1st quarter and ended the game with 17 points. Jaylnn Williams contributed with 9 points of his own. The Vikings were surprisingly athletic and controlled the pace of the game from start to finish.
Final
Northeast 62
Pinellas Park 29
5 Largo – Largo used their athleticism to fend off the hungry Wolves who did not lead in the game after Largo took the lead in the second quarter. Packers used a vicious trap that continually kept Newsome off balance. They were not without their own turnover problems. Giving the ball up a bunch to the opponent. Isaiah Thomas lead the Packers in scoring with 16 strong points which included 4 three-pointers. Dakari Allen struggled from the free-throw line but did manage to post 9 points of his own.
Final
Largo 52
Newsome 42
6 Newsome – The Wolves were uncharacteristically careless with the basketball yesterday versus Largo. The speed of the Packers did not seem to overwhelm Newsome. But the Packers aggressiveness did hamper the Wolves offensive plans. Brendan Miller lead Newsome in scoring with 13 points. Justin Stewart hit 4 field goals and quietly totaled 9 points.
Final
Largo 52
Newsome 42
7 Academy At The Lakes – The night didn’t go as planned for AATL. Shorecrest pressured the ball and forced AATL to turnover the ball more often than any coach would be comfortable with. One bright spot for AATL was the play of F John David Hannah who was the only AATL scorer in double figures (10).
Final
Shorecrest 65
AATL 43
8 Pinellas Park – Was overwhelmed by the speed and aggressive attack of Northeast. Not much went in the favor of the Patriots as they allowed the Vikings to get out to a substantial lead in the first quarter being out hustled and out worked on the glass. Patrick Cavanaugh lead all Patriot scorers. The big man hustled 16 of the Patriots 29 points.
Final
Northeast 62
Pinellas Park 29
12/22 (Today) Games
Winner Bracket
Largo vs Clearwater 4:30p
Northeast vs Shorecrest 6p
Consolation Bracket
Newsome vs Berkeley 1:30p
Pinellas Park vs Academy At The Lakes 3p