Sunday Hoophall: No. 22 Findlay Prep runs away from St. Andrew's School

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – For three quarters, Nick Johnson and Michael Carter-Williams battled back and forth for guard supremacy at the 10th Annual Spalding Hoophall Classic.

Come the fourth quarter though, the defensive prowess of Johnson and his supporting cast at Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) was just too much for Carter-Williams and his St. Andrew's School (Barrington, R.I.) Saints.

Findlay (18-2), which entered the game No. 22 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 national rankings, rolled to a 76-57 victory at the Blake Arena on the campus of Springfield College.

Johnson (18 points) was instrumental in shutting down Carter-Williams (24 points) in the third and fourth quarter as Findlay pulled away from their 38-32 halftime lead. The 6-foot-3 senior held Carter-Williams to just two points in the third before he connected on a 3-pointer with the Pilots already out of reach 63-47.



"We talk about getting under a guys chin," Findlay coach Michael Peck said. "We kind of bum rushed him a little bit and trapped him on those ball screens, and I don't think he penetrated as real quick or as effectively."

After playing against him in AAU, Johnson (an Arizona-signee) knew what Carter-Williams (Syracuse) was capable of.

"Early in the second quarter he got by me a little bit, and then we started to contest his shots and get into him," Johnson said

Carter-Williams kept his team competitive in the first half with 14 points, including a deep 3-pointer to end the first half.

"We go into a lot of these national-level games (with) Division I talent and Michael is able to keep us in the game because he trusts his teammates," said St. Andrews coach Michael Hart. "I don't think I've been more proud of a kid in my 17 years knowing how far Michael has come as a team player. He is probably the best all-around player we have had at St. Andrews."

Said Peck: "It's never in the bag when you're playing against a team with a player like Michael Carter-Williams getting off threes. I don't feel safe until it's at a certain point."



The only player with more points in the first half? Johnson with 15.

"Nick is a great player and really competitive," Carter-Williams said. "He's one of the best in the country. He's going at me, and I'm just going to go right back at him. That's just my mentality."

Peck, primarily used Johnson, but also deployed a rotation on Carter-Williams in the second half so the guard would be unable to get used to going against one player. Winston Shepard (10 points, game-high 15 rebounds) did a good job using his 6-8 body against the 6-5 guard at times in the fourth.

The Pilots overall depth and talent was a huge difference-maker as Nigel Williams-Goss added 19 points and nine rebounds. St. Andrews got as close as 40-36 in the second half but never led in the game.

"I'm really proud of the kids," Hart said. "We battled and we played in my opinion the best high school team in America today. I think on a neutral court I don't see anyone beating them."
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Jamesville-DeWitt (DeWitt, N.Y.) 76, Webster Groves (Mo.) 64: Ninety-five pounds and two inches separate Tyler Cavanaugh from Jamesville-DeWitt teammate DaJuan Coleman. Being Cavanaugh's teammate since 6th grade, the junior has become accustomed to being the sideshow to his current roommate and top-tier Division I recruit.

But on Sunday, it was Cavanugh leading the Red Rams to victory by making crucial baskets in the second half while making a big defensive stop preventing the Statesman from rallying against one of New York's finest.



"We came into this game knowing they were a pressuring defense team and you saw in the second quarter we struggled a little," Cavanaugh said. "So we made little adjustments at halftime and did a much better job in the second half breaking the press."

Cavanaugh gave the Red Rams a 56-52 lead with 5:55 remaining by connecting on two free throws. After Pete Drescher (10 points) extended the lead to six, Cavanaugh strongly contested a field goal attempt by Demetrius Robinson at the other end sparking a 12-4 run for Jamesville-DeWitt to clinch the win.

The uncommitted junior scored 12 of his 26 points in the third quarter after James Kenner (13 points) tied the game at 30 early in the opening minute of the third.

"He really got us going in the third quarter with those two 3s," said coach Bob McKenny." "He hasn't shot well early this year. It was nice to see him finally knock some 3s down."

Rayshawn Simmons led Webster Groves with 21 points.

Cavanaugh combined with Coleman (23 points, 20 rebounds) to outscore Webster Groves 30-10 inside the paint in the second half.



"Coming into these big games everyone is on DaJuan because he is such a great player and he's proven himself,"
Cavanaugh said. "I'm fortunate enough to play with a guy like that because he draws a lot of attention."

Coleman was unstoppable in the Webster Grove low post with Kentucky coach John Calipari in attendance. The 6-10, 280-pound forward said he tries to not think about the presence of big-time coaches.

"I really try to not think about it too much," Coleman said. "I just try to play my game."

Coleman said the Wildcats are currently in his top three along with Ohio State and Syracuse.

The junior said his fellow classmate's performance helped him dominate down low.

"It helped me a lot because it took a lot of pressure from me being double-teamed," Coleman said. "Every day he pushes me in practice, and he was talking about it all night about controlling the flow."



Cavanugh said he has been recruited mainly by mid-major teams such as Fairfield, Siena, Colgate, Albany, Vermont, Boston College, Michigan and Yale, but his coach believes he has the potential to play at an even higher level.

"He's a great player," McKenny said." I think he's going to be better than a mid-major."
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Life Center Academy (Burlington, N.J.) 73, St. Mary's (Worcester, Mass.) 69: Andre Horne, Jr. made two free throws with 15.9 seconds remaining and Nikolas Stauskas's 3-point attempt with five seconds remaining bounced off the rim as the Warriors held off a spirited comeback by the Lions (12-2). Strauskas led St. Mary's with 24 points.

Augustine Kazickas capped off a 10-0 fourth quarter run for St. Mark's, who trailed by as many as 13, when he drilled a three-pointer from the left corner to give the Lions a 67-65 lead.

John Johnson responded by making two free-throws to tie the game at 67 apiece before LaQuinton Ross (26 points) drove hard to the basket to get to the foul line on two consecutive possessions. Ross made 3-of-4 free throws, the last one coming with 1:22 remaining to give Life Center a 70-67 lead.

Ross  was held to just five points in the second half by Eric Green Jr. after scoring 21 in the first half.
Alex Murphy (9 points) struggled for St. Mark's, losing possession out of bounds with 32 seconds remaining and the Lions down 70-69.

Kaleb Tarczewski was a block shy of a triple-double finishing with 11 points, 10 rebounds and nine blocks.

Hargrave Military Academy (Chatham, Va.) 78, St. Thomas More (Oakdale, Conn.) 58: Dezmine Wells silenced St. Thomas More and brought the crowd to life when he connected on two consecutive slam dunks by driving hard and sailing through the paint in a convincing victory.



Wells second dunk gave Hargrave a 64-42 lead and symbolized the Tigers superior athleticism compared to the Chancellors.

Wells, an Xavier signee, finished with 20 points and six rebounds.

CJ Barksdale was next in line with 16 points as the Tigers outscored the Chancellors 22-14 in second chance points.

Damion Lee led St. Thomas More with 15 points. Andre Drummond finished with a double-double by pulling in 10 rebounds and scoring 13 points. The 6-10 junior also had four blocks.
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Hoophall notes: Kentucky coach John Calipari arrived Sunday at halftime of the Life Center Academy/St. Marks game and stayed up through the Jamesville-DeWitt/Webster Groves contest. ... UMass coach Derek Kellogg was also in attendance for a portion of the day. ... The most colorful coaching tandem was likely McKenney, with his bright red suspenders, and Hart with a red and white striped jacket. ... Hargrave Military Academy and St. Thomas More played two 20-minute halves because both schools are post graduate. ... Aaron Falzon scored 19 points to lead Newton North (Newtonville, Mass.) to a close 58-56 win over Springfield Central (Mass.). ... Kachi Nzerem scored 23 points and had nine rebounds in New Mission's (Boston, Mass.) 61-38 victory over Sabis (Mass.) in the final game of Sunday's action.
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Skills Challenge: Westchester Country Day (High Point, N.C.) senior Deuce Bello has been an internet sensation for his ESPN-caliber highlight reel dunks. However Sunday it was fellow Wildcat Ike Nwamu getting 1991 NBA Slam Dunk champion and current Springfield Armor coach Dee Brown asking for an encore. ... Nwamu defeated Demine Wells (Hargrave Military Academy) and Keaton Miles (Lincoln-Dallas, Texas) in the finals of the 2011 Spalding Hoophall Classic Skills Challenge with a between the legs right handed slam. ... Bello was unavailable for Sunday’s dunk contest for undisclosed reasons. ... In the first round, Nwamu was one of the lone dunkers to get the Blake Arena crowd on the campus of Springfield College to their feet with two fantastic dunks including his last one where he dangled from the rim on his right arm. ... Nwamu came up short in the finals of the 3-point contest with three made attempts as Ryan Parks (Bishop Gorman-Las Vegas, Nev.) won the event with 17 made attempts in the finals over Peter Fairbanks (14), of Webster Groves. ... Jonathan Riles (Academy of the New Church-Bryn Athyn, Pa.) and Johnny Brown (Bishop Gorman) won the Half-Court Hustle contest which consisted players having to make a layup, foul shot and three point attempt after running back to half court after each made basket. Players were broken up into teams of two for the contest.