By Steve Spiewak
MaxPreps.com
LEWES, Del. - The Bay Ball Classic hit full stride Friday, with every team having played at least once by the end of the night. Friday also saw action from the national bracket, which included some marquee teams and players from across the east coast.
Fans once again packed Cape Hanlopen High School to take in all the action throughout the day.
- Queens, N.Y. powerhouse Christ the King received an unkind welcome to the First State by Delaware's own Caravel School. The Bucs, powered by four players in double figures, edged the Royals on a last second, buzzer beating tip-in. The loss spoiled another big performance by Christ the King's Ryan Pearson, who had 27 points and 11 rebounds.
- One freshman making a name for himself is Trevor Cooney from the Sanford School (Del.). In two games, the ninth grader is averaging 18 points, 5.5 rebounds, and four assists. He's displaying a complete game that has already attracted the likes of Notre Dame,. St. Joseph, and Villanova. Cooney also competed on varsity last season as an eighth grader, averaging just over 10 points a game.
- Gwynn Park (Md.) put on a defensive show in a 73-60 win over Randallstown (Md.) Thursday night. Seniors Ronnell Leggett and Chibuike Achuko each contributed huge blocks that excited the crowd and demonstrated their serious leaping ability. Harold Washington had 24 and Sean Thomas added 20 to propel the Yellow Jackets to victory.
- Perhaps the most impressive player on the glass so far has been Justin Perillo, out of Tattnall (Del.). After averaging almost seven rebounds a game last year, Perillo grabbed 13 boards in each of the Hornets' first two games at the Bay Ball. He's also doing his share of scoring, amassing double doubles each time.
- After a season opening loss to local rival Plainfield, Linden (N.J.) head coach Phil Colicchio is happy with the way his team has improved in the short span of a few weeks, including a hard fought 66-62 victory over Glasgow (Del.). "If this were two weeks ago, we don't win this game," he said. Colicchio mentioned the vast improvement of 6-foot-9 big man David Bruce as one of the reasons for the team's turnaround.
- Putnam City (Okla.) star Xavier Henry thinks that coming to the Bay Ball Classic is good exposure for Oklahoma high school basketball, which sometimes gets overlooked because of the state's prodigious football reputation. "There are players in Oklahoma, some really good ones. We're just trying to get out here and show it," he said.
- The best matchup of individual players came when National Christian Academy (Md.) took on St. Mark's out of Massachusetts. National Christian Academy's 6-7 Dante Taylor lined up down low against St. Mark's 6-10 Erik Murphy. Though Taylor finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds, he was dominated by Murphy, who finished with 35 points and 11 boards despite an early exit due to an apparent injury. Murphy is only a junior, and will be back next year alongside class of 2010 standout Nate Lubick, a 6-7 forward also garnering D-1 attention.
- Rice (N.Y.) is once again making a case to be considered New York City's top team. The Raiders hammered Roosevelt (D.C.) 72-27 in Friday's night cap. Senior Kemba Walker and junior Durand Scott each played well, but it was Drexel commit Chris Fouch who really helped the Raiders get started. Fouch nailed three shots from beyond the arc to bury Roosevelt early.
Friday's Scores:
Lower Merion (Pa.) 55, Glasgow (Del.) 50 (OT)
Woodbridge (Del.) 80, St. Mary (Md.) 58
Wilmington Charter (Del.) 56, Cape Henlopen (Del.) 55
Tatnall (Del.) 65, Bullis (Md.) 37
Kempsville (Va.) 55, Towson Catholic (Md.) 50
Caravel (Del.) 62, Christ the King (N.Y.) 61
National Christian Academy (Md.) 75, St. Mark (Mass.) 66
Rice (N.Y.) 72, Roosevelt (D.C.) 27