Pro City Catchup, Day 9 Part 1

July 26, 2011 - Sunday was another action packed day of hoops in Georgetown's McDonough Arena; D.C.'s Nike Pro City conducted its ninth day. The information 'goods' are below.

Balanced Clark is putting up numbers - As one of two seniors on this year's Hoya edition, much will be expected of Jason Clark. Add the fact he is one of only two guards with previous collegiate press breaking experience on the squad, and the pressure on Clark can be viewed as even greater.

Based on his Pro City play this summer, Blue and Grey partisans should expect Clark to step up, as he's not only scored but found people regularly in summer league action. In terms of scoring, last weekend Clark went on a binge of sorts, averaging 26 points over two games.

Of particularly note is a step back jumper that he sinks from mid-range and long distance. He's proven to be one of the league's most consistent shooters, a skill Clark alternates well with getting in the lane and finishing. Aiding the latter is increased strength.

Though he hasn't really been full court pressed much - most Pro City teams at best only pick up full court - he has advanced the ball well, where he scores or finds people in both open floor and half court situations. Balanced is a good word to describe Clark's mixture of shooting, driving and passing; all three facets of his game are symbiotic.

Defensively, Jason is the same old Jason, disrupting things with his athletic ability, long arms and tenacity. He's been especially impressive picking up ball handlers full court, in the process fueling his Team Takeover's frantic, full court scramble defense, which was instrumental in their 91-82 vicotry over DCX in Sunday's final contest.

It looks like Clark may be poised for an excellent senior season.

Hummer is humming along - A sophomore forward at Princeton, Ian Hummer had a great freshman year by any measure, contributing 13.8 points and 6.8 rebounds each contest, which was good for a tie of first and second respectively on the 25-7, Ivy League champion Tigers. The squad, a 14th seeded NCAA Tournament entry, also almost took out 4th seeded Kentucky in the Big Dance, only falling in the last seconds. Hummer, a 2nd team All-Ivy selection, definitely made an impact last season.

That doesn't mean he's ready to rest on his laurels, as after his Team Symonds crew's 80-75 overtime loss to Beyond Belief, Hummer, a 6'6", 225 pound performer confided "I've been working on ball handling and shooting" this summer. His intent is to prepare for the upcoming season, one of change.

"With the loss of Kareem (Maddox, the team's leading rebounder who shared scoring top scoring listing with Hummer), "we will have to switch things up" he shared. Adding to that change is the departure of previous head coach Sydney Johnson for Fairfield. The defection shocked many outsiders, but necessarily Hummer.

"We heard rumors…it didn't come out of the blue" said Hummer of Johnson's decision, which occurred around three weeks after Princeton's NCAA tourney appearance. "But losing the coach that took us to the tourney and almost beat Kentucky is tough".

In Johnson's stead arrives Mitch Henderson, formerly of Northwestern. Talk outside of the program indicated a Princeton product, which Henderson is, would land the job. Hummer indicated certain on-court certain advantages followed a Tiger becoming the head guy, given the school's signature offense will still be utilized.

Princetonian's can expect the same mentality that can be traced from Johnson back through Pete Carril (and including current Hoya head coach John Thompson III - "Team ball" is how Hummer defined it. Nevertheless there will be "a few new tendencies", given the talent present.

Enter Hummer's summer work, of which he has exhibited in Pro City this summer: Long known for sneaky athletic ability and rough and tumble play around the cup, Hummer has illustrated a new penchant for not only attacking the rim off the bounce (and finishing), but solid outside shooting. Sunday he dropped 17 points, rebounded, and even logged two spectacular blocks as a trailer in transition.

The Tiger faithful will likely see all that this year from Hummer.