Hoophall Classic: Oak Hill on point in Springfield

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – After nearly two weeks away from the court, Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) turned in its best performance of the season Saturday at the Spalding Hoophall Classic, blowing out Prestonwood Christian (Plano, Texas) 85-55.

The Warriors (27-0) scored the first seven points of the game, led 22-8 after the first quarter and were never seriously threatened by nationally-ranked Prestonwood Christian – winners of the prestigious City of Palms Classic in Florida last month.

Oak Hill Academy finished December with tournament wins at the Chick-fil-A Classic in South Carolina and the Les Schwab Invitational in Oregon.

"Coach wanted us to get that rest and come back focused," Oak Hill Academy senior guard D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera said of the team's layoff following a busy December. "To come out here and beat a well-coached team is nice."

UCLA-bound Jordan Adams led Oak Hill Academy in the scoring column with 23 points. Smith-Rivera (16 points), Tyler Lewis (15 points, nine assists), R.J. Curington (11 points) and Darion Clark also finished in double-figures for the Warriors, who are ranked No. 1 in MaxPreps.com's Academy Top 10.

Seven-footer A.J. Hammons also gave the Warriors a spark early on with a pair of dunks and blocked shot against Prestonwood's star junior, 6-foot-9, 240-pound forward Julius Randle.

The backcourt trio of Adams, Lewis and Smith-Rivera has developed into a strength for the powerhouse Virginia program. They combined for 10 of OHA's 13 3-pointers Saturday (13 of 25).

"We've had some games where they have played really well together," Oak Hill Academy head coach Steve Smith said. "When those three are playing well and making shots we are tough to beat. I thought we were much better than them in the backcourt and it showed tonight."

The dagger came less than two minutes into the second half when Adams found himself wide open on the left wing and drilled an uncontested 3-pointer. The future Bruin converted another easy bucket moments later to make it a 22-point Oak Hill Academy lead.

Adams, Lewis and Smith-Rivera took turns burying 3-pointers in the following minutes as the lead ballooned to 30.

Randle – rated the No. 2 junior in the country by MaxPreps – scored 23 points and grabbed nine boards for Prestonwood. The highly-prized recruit got free for a series of crowd-pleasing dunks in the fourth quarter. The Lions entered the contest ranked No. 9 in the Xcellent 25.

Oak Hill Academy had lost its last two contests at the Spalding Hoophall Classic. Milton (Ga.) beat the Warriors in 2011 and Jared Sullinger and Northland (Columbus, Ohio) notched a one-point victory over the storied program in 2010.

No. 6 Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) 77, Riverside Academy (Reserve, La.) 65

Junior wing Kris Jenkins piled up 30 points and 11 rebounds to lead undefeated Gonzaga past Riverside Academy.

Jenkins, a 6-5 wing built like a defensive end, connected on 12 of 16 field goal attempts and drilled a pair of 3-pointers. He also did an admirable job of defending 6-7, 240-pound manchild Ricardo Gathers of Riverside Academy.

The Eagles led by as many as 17 points early in the fourth quarter. The combination of Jenkins and fellow junior Nate Britt – a North Carolina Tar Heels verbal commitment – was too much for a young Riverside Academy team that gave major minutes to a pair of freshmen and 6-8 eighth grader Khalea Turner. Britt finished with 16 points, five steals and a pair of assists.

Gathers, a one-time St. John's pledge, recorded a team-high 22 points and eight boards for Riverside Academy.

Gonzaga has another showdown ahead over the holiday weekend, facing Aquille Carr and Patterson (Baltimore, Md.) on Monday in a regionally-televised game.

La Verne Lutheran (La Verne, Calif.) 68, St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.) 66 (OT)

After a quiet first half, Arizona-bound big man Grant Jerrett came alive in the second half and overtime to lead La Verne Lutheran past St. Patrick.

Jerrett, a 6-10 senior, posted 30 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots as the Trojans improved to 14-4. The future Wildcat also hit a pair of free throws with less than 10 seconds left in overtime that gave Lutheran a four-point lead and sealed the victory.

"It means a lot," La Verne Lutheran head coach Eric Cooper said of knocking off the New Jersey dynasty. "We are here to stay. We're here to keep traveling and keep playing and keep going to all these things.

"We want them to know who we are and every year we are going to come back with new talent and good talent. It's big for La Verne Lutheran. Five years ago nobody knew who we were."

Eric Cooper – a junior guard and the coach's son – added 17 points and three assists for La Verne Lutheran.

Junior forward Elijah Davis led St. Patrick with 25 points and 11 rebounds. Jared Nickens (see more on him below) added 15 points.

Windsor (Conn.) 61, Springfield Central (Mass.) 55

Freshman Jared Wilson-Frame scored a team-high 15 points to lead perennial Connecticut power Windsor past Springfield Central.

Wilson-Frame, a mature-looking 6-4 freshman, added five rebounds and a pair of assists. He hurt the hometown Golden Eagles with a pair of 3-pointers and also had an impressive first-half dunk in transition.

Jaquan Harrison, a 6-6 junior, added 12 points for Windsor. Chris Prophet led Springfield Central with 16 points.

Saturday standouts and recruiting updates

Kris Jenkins, Gonzaga: The junior's build suggests undersized power forward but he displayed a strong perimeter game Saturday. He credits his mother, Felicia Jenkins, with the development of his jump shot.

"Anything dealing with my shot, she's my trainer," Kris said. "She's someone I always call when I'm struggling to shoot the ball. She always instilled in me to work hard."

Felicia Jenkins played college basketball at Claflin University in Orangeburg, S.C. Her son will have the opportunity to do the same at the Division I level. He listed Clemson, La Salle, Miami, Rutgers, Villanova and Xavier among the programs showing the most interest.

Jared Nickens, St. Patrick: Nickens oozes potential with his 6-6 frame, a pretty jumper and ability to defend on the perimeter. He played on the junior varsity team at St. Pat's as a sophomore but has generated plenty of interest from big-time programs. Nickens lists offers from Fordham, Seton Hall, Southern Methodist, St. Joseph's and Virginia Commonwealth. Rutgers, Villanova and Virginia are also showing interest.

Around the gym

* On a busy day of college basketball, Steve Lavin of St. John's was perhaps the only Division I coach in the building.

* Riverside Academy has participated in events in Arkansas, Florida and Oregon in addition to Massachusetts this season. A trip to Missouri is ahead later this month.

* Don Showalter, the head coach of USA Basketball's Developmental National Team, was on hand at Springfield College to take in the action. Showalter led the squad to a gold medal at the 2010 FIBA U17 World Championship in Germany and another gold at the 2011 FIBA U16 Americas Championship.

* R.J. Curington is instant offense off the Oak Hill Academy bench. He went for 11 points in just seven minutes Saturday against Prestonwood Christian.

"He can really shoot," Smith said of his junior guard. "He averages, honestly, about a point a minute. If he plays 10 minutes, he gets 10 points. If he plays 20, he gets 20. He's scored 30 two times off the bench this season. I just can't get him the minutes, he has to guard better."

* Smith-Rivera headed back to his hometown of Indianapolis during Oak Hill Academy's break. It was a bittersweet return as he saw his former school North Central – still a state championship contender in Indiana without him – go down to Ben Davis (Indianapolis).

"For the most part, a lot of people were supportive of me going to Oak Hill and Georgetown," Smith-Rivera said.