Oak Hill Academy vs St Benedict's

In Benton, Kentucky, as part of an Old Spice event, Oak Hill Academy of Mount Wilson, Virginia squared off with St Benedicts Prep of New Jersey in front of an ESPN crowd and 6,000 in the stands. The game was previewed earlier here at Recruitng Wars.

So what did we learn after watching the game? For one thing, that Fran Frachilla needs to retake Math 101: "300+ division 1 schools, with 13 scholarships each is more than 1,000 players" said Fran. *Cough* *cough* How about 4,000 players?

Brandon Jennings had a lot of weight on his shoulders with Jason Campbell injuured (broken hand) and Malik Story dismissed from the team for other reasons. After watching this game, there's one thing that Brandon Jennings reminded me that I didn't think of before: Salim Stoudamire. And it's not just the step-back three, but his on-court demeanor/moodiness. Which perhaps explains his college destination (Arizona).

If Jennings is the #1 player in the 2008 class, he didn't show it on Thursday. He surely showed flashes of great talent and explosiveness but he was not the star of the game by any means.

The other touted player in the game, Samardo Samuels had a solid game, but was not as dominant as his top ranking might suggest. Part of it of course was the Oak Hill bottling it up zone, part of it facing a 300-pounder in "Tiny" Gallon.

But there was a star in the game, Tamir Jackson, a junior (2009 class) of St Benedicts, who almost put 30 points on the scoreboard. Not bad for a player who was definitely flying under the radar on the national scene. #11 showcased his skilled at a very big stage, ESPN - and he certainly deserved it!

A number of other juniors (2009 class) showed promise, like big man Greg Echenique of St Benedicts who promises to be a highly sought after big man among the premiere college programs. Oak Hill's Glen Bryant (#31) has a lot of athletic talent, and he's certainly at the right place to make the most of his talent. Another player in a similar situation is the big 300-pounded Tiny Gallon. Frachilla compared him to an Oliver Miller (no one was throwing burgers on the court as far as I could tell).

But wait, there's more! The 2010 class (sophomores) was well represented, with Oak Hill's starting wing duo of Howard and Allen, and St Benedict's promising wing Aaron Brown (#22) and promising Canadian forward Tirstan Thompson (#13) coming off the bench.

Of course as you are well aware a single game does not tell the whole story, but it can tell part of the story.

Campbell Hall (CA) vs St Edward (OH)

It took an overtime to decide this high school game between Campbell Hall Episcopal of California and hosts Saint Edward of Lakewood, Ohio that featured three top 150 players, two of which are in the top 10 of the class of 2008. If you missed our game preview be sure to check it out.

The highest ranked player of the game, UCLA-bound JRue Holiday justified his top tier ranking by showcasing a lot of skills by taking on the whole team and being very effective at it in the first half of the game. Clearly he looks like a special talent. Obviously under the Ben Howland regime his shot selection will greatly improve, but some of that was by necessity - as it is often the case in high school basketball where the talent level difference between teammates can be huge.

The second highest ranked player, #7 by the ESPN Top 150 players of the 2008 class, Izzo State bound Delvon Roe also showed his skills, but because he was playing with a more mature and balanced team, he didn't need to try to take over the game the same way JRue Holiday did. Izzo himself was in the stands with his posse, wearing a leather bomber jacket to showcase his toughness (or because of the cold).

Delvon Roe has another talented teammate, Indiana-bound Tom Pritchard, who was ranked just outside the Top 100 by ESPN, but after his performance last night, he may have managed to put himself into the top 100. He showed that he is good at doing what he can do, meaning that he plays within himself and focuses on his strengths. Not exactly NBA lottery material, but he is an ideal forward for Kelvin Samspon's rotation. And he has the Indiana trademark outside shot too.

Of the other players, 2010 (sophomore) James Johnson of Campbell Hall showed some promise at 6'7". But he got a Fathead-size facial dunk by the high flying Delvon Roe, then pushed by Tom Pritchard and got an emphatic block too. A painful lesson for the youngster, but that's how one improves.

Of the remaining players, two senior guards from each team have improved their standing and/or scholarship opportunities, St Edward's Frankie Dobbs and Campbell Hall's Dallas Rutherford.

More on this game at West Shore Sun, Kid Cleveland, and the 5in60 blog.

The next high profile high school basketball game on ESPN is on Thursday, December 13, 2007 at 9pm eastern (6pm pacific) between perennial powerhouse Oak Hill Academy and New Jersey's St Benedicts. This game features two of the best players of 2008, Oak Hill's (and presumably Arizona-bound) Brandon Jennings and St Benedict's Pitino-bound Samardo Samuels (Wow, both Caracter and Samuels in the line-up! Wow! For more details on the high-school and college basketball tv schedule, check the December 2007 College Hoops Schedule at NCAA Hoops Today.