NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Cinderella stories aren’t often associated with travel circuit basketball as it is treated as an individual recruiting showcase more often than a team journey toward a tournament title.
But one emerged Friday at the Vision Sports Main Event held at Canyon Springs High School as the New Hampshire-based Granite State Jayhawks knocked off Hollis Price Elite of New Orleans, 73-66, with a scrappy team effort and the scoring exploits of guard Ben Bartoldus.
“Coming from New Hampshire you are obviously the underdog because you don’t have the respect,” Bartoldus said. “This is a great win.”
As the game progressed and the Granite State Jayhawks began to build a lead, the gym took on the feel of an NCAA Tournament first round game with an underdog mid-major bidding to upset a major conference power. The fans rallied behind head coach Mark Dunham’s squad and H.P. Elite couldn’t slow the momentum.
“We want to make sure every game we compete. If it comes down to five minutes and it is a one- or two-point game, everybody is the same then,” Dunham said. “We do a pretty good job of playing together and competing. We’ve beaten the New York City Gauchos this year, who were the No. 1 seed in Orlando this year. We’ve played against a lot of good teams so we aren’t scared to go out there and play. When we execute and make shots we are very tough to beat.”
The Jayhawks featured just two players over 6-foot-5, but got 30 points from Bartoldus, including 21 in the first half.
“He is kind of under the radar,” Dunham said of Bartoldus. “He was hurt all of last year. This is his first year on the AAU circuit. He is getting recruited by a lot of schools and he gets better and better every single time he plays. He is so athletic and can really shoot the ball. He is a good kid and plays really hard.
“That first half, you could really take that film and send it out to anybody because he was that good.”
The Jayhawks have three players getting Division I looks, according to Dunham. In addition to Bartoldus, coaches are calling for 6-7 post Alex Stoyle and 6-3 guard Alex Dean, who is also being recruited for football.
MaxPreps’ coverage from Las Vegas continues Saturday at the adidas Super 64.
More highlights from Friday’s action at Canyon Springs High School;
Teams we saw: Centex Shooters (Texas), C.J. Miles All-Stars (Texas), Danny Granger Hurricanes (N.M.), Fieldhouse Elite Team ID (Ind.), Granite State Jayhawks (N.H.), Hollis Price Elite (La.), Houston Northwest Cougars (Texas), Mac Irvin Fire (Ill.), Nike Team Florida (Fla.), Terry Porter Elite (Wis.).
Head coaches in the crowd: While dozens of assistants filtered in and out during the day, just two major conference head coaches were spotted – Florida State’s Leonard Hamilton and South Carolina’s Darrin Horn.
Standouts
Tracey Abrams, 6-2, G, Mac Irvin Fire: Abrams, an Illinois verbal, played off the ball most of the time for Mac Irvin Fire and excelled in that role, but also looks capable of playing the point. The well-built rising junior can fill it up, pass, rebound and is extremely active defensively in disrupting the passing lanes and creating opportunities in the open court. Look for him to solidify his standing as an elite 2011 prospect at Chicago's Mount Carmel High School next winter.
Ben Bartoldus, 6-2, G, Granite State Jayhawks: Introducing Ben Bartoldus, a rising senior at Proctor Academy in New Hampshire. The guard had to have generated some interest among the coaches in attendance with his attacking, scoring mentality. He dropped in 21 points in the first half against H.P. Elite and finished with 30. Even with H.P. Elite trying desperately to get back in the game late, Bartoldus had the confidence to attack the rim and put the Louisiana-based squad away by converting. “I love the pressure and love playing in front of the coaches. I just want to go DI,” Bartoldus said. New Hampshire, Quinnipiac, Army and Sacred Heart, as well as Division II and Division III programs, are in the mix for Bartoldus. Don’t be surprised if more jump in after his performance Friday.
Anthony Lee, 6-10, F, Nike Team Florida: The soft-spoken Lee could use some muscle on his 6-10 frame, but he doesn’t play like a lightweight. He was assertive at making himself a target in the post and teamed with Okaro White and Wilfried Yeguete to form an inside trio that was too much for the New Mexico-based Danny Granger Hurricanes. Auburn, Florida State, George Mason, Miami, Mississippi State, Murray State, Tennessee, Temple and Virginia Commonwealth have all offered, according to Lee. UCLA is also showing interest. “I’m trying to get some looks from the West Coast, that’s why coach brought us over here,” Lee said. “A lot of good schools are looking at me and I’m just waiting to see what school is going to pop up.”
Jeverik Nelson, 6-8, F, H.P. Elite: Nelson, a rising senior at Callaway High School in Jackson, Miss., is another long, lean, intriguing forward prospect that hasn’t quite put it all together yet. Nelson put his length to use on the offensive glass Friday, going over the top of an undersized Granite State Jayhawks team for second-chance opportunities – although he didn’t always convert.
Kentari (K.T.) Nettles, 6-8, F, Mac Irvin Fire: Nettles was at LeFlore High School in Mobile, Ala., last year but reports that he is moving to Illinois to enroll at a prep school in the fall – although he isn’t sure where. He is a hunter on the offensive glass looking for a missed shot to dunk. Great frame and length, but not a finished product by any means. Nettles has plenty of suitors, including Alabama, Boston College, Cincinnati, Florida State, Mississippi State, Missouri, Murray State, Purdue, Rutgers, West Virginia. He spent his junior year at LeFlore going head-to-head with Kentucky signee and potential one-and-done collegian DeMarcus Cousins in practice. “It was great. It makes you better every day you play against him,” Nettles said.
Okaro White, 6-9, F, Nike Team Florida: We’ve seen a lot of zone defense this week and White’s ability to step into the high post, face the basket and distribute or attack the rim was impressive. The Florida State verbal didn’t force the issue Friday shooting the ball, but impacted things with his work on the glass and altering and swatting at shots defensively. No hype here, White does a lot of things to help his team win and is a freaky athlete.
Extras
Nike Team Florida brought incredible length to the floor with 6-10 Anthony Lee (Eustis West Oaks), 6-9 Okaro White (Clearwater), 6-7 Chris Bryant (Tallahassee Rickards) and Wilfried Yeguete, who looked bigger than his listed height of 6-6. Yeguete is a native of France that plays at Florida Air Academy in Melbourne. … Mac Irvin Fire was missing some serious firepower from its listed roster that included rising seniors Tim Hardaway Jr., Crandall Head and Meyers Leonard, as well as 2011 studs Wayne Blackshear and Michael Shaw. Along with Nike Team Florida, the Chicago-based Fire were still the most talented teams we saw Friday. … The father-son duo of Melvin and Julian Boatner helped Fieldhouse Elite Team ID – featuring players from southern Indiana – defeat the C.J. Miles All-Stars, 69-68. Melvin coached the Hoosier State club while Julian, a nifty rising senior point guard at Bloomington North, led the team with 28 points in front of several low- to mid-major coaches checking him out. … The most impressive play of the day may have been a missed dunk. While that may sound like a slam on the quality of teams Friday at Canyon Springs, it isn’t. The dunk was attempted by 5-8 Centex Shooters guard Rodney Lee, who got in with the tall trees and tried unsuccessfully to slam back a rebound with authority. Moments later, the diminutive rising senior at Del Valle High School in Texas did successfully dunk, although that didn’t count either as it came just a split second after the first-half horn sounded.
