Pro City Kenner Games: Day 6
Sunday, the Nike DC Pro City Kenner action at Georgetown's McDonough Arena was compelling. Below are brief contest reports.
Tombs 84 Bulldogs 75
Tombs rode 24 game high points, along with six rebounds from Morgan State's Will Thomas to victory. The output of two Hoyas - Brandon Murray and Amir Spears - must also be credited; the former dropped 19 points, nine rebounds, three assists and five blocks, the latter putting up 22 points, seven assists, three bounds, respectively.
Bulldogs crept back into contention in second half play, closing within a point after Mark Bradshaw's three ball with just 3:22 in regulation, Joel Webb's stick back drew Bulldogs to a slender 78-75 deficit. They would not score again.
Why? Fortunately for Tombs, every Bulldog surge was met, like with under twelve minutes to go, Spears' step back three pushed Tombs' then two point lead to 61-56.
Bradshaw accounted for 17 points for Bulldogs. Fifteen points, four rebounds went to Quinton Drayton, while Anthony Carpenter put up 11 points, three boards, two assists. Webb pulled down 10 contest tops rebounds and scored six points.
Clydes 66 Call Your Mother 60
Professional VJ King narrowly edged in scoring his CYM teammate and soon-to-be pro Nana Opoku 15 to 14 points, respectively.
They challenged Clydes, yet could never quite draw even.
Rodney Pryor, a former Hoya whose played professionally in the international and G League sectors, led Clyde's with 14 points, adding four boards in the process. and nine boards. Current Georgetown guy Qudus Wahab scored 12 points, while cleaning the glass nine times.
Higher Level 68 On Point 53
Up just six points in the first half, HL ended up salting away a 15 point win. George Mason player Devonte 'Hollywood/Ticket" Gaines was key, dropping 2 points and snagging 15 caroms. He continued his increasingly stellar Pro City Kenner play.
GW's Noel Brown got on track, scoring 14 points on 9-11 shooting, indicating what happened; he finished above the rim well. Add eight rebounds to his HL totals.
On point was paced by Elvins Nnaji's 21 points. The George Mason guy also tallied seven rebounds, three being offensive, and shot 5-10 on twos, 3-6 on threes. Elijah 'Lil E' Hawkins of Howard ogged 10 points, three assists and three steals.
Darren McClinton All Stars 74 Hoop Magic 58
The contest was never much in question, as DMAS led 38-16 at the half. Resean Edwards from South Carolina State scored 18 points for the victors. Professional Jerian Grant bested his point production (21 points). Grant's older brother Jerai Grant also suited up, scoring eight points.
Donald Carey, now a Maryland player after transferring from G'Town, tallied 13 points for HM. Professional Saquan Jamison pulled down a game best 13 rebounds, eight offensive, while chipping in 11 points on 5-9 overall shooting.
A Wash 102 Brains Skills and Guts 80
In the highest scoring game of Pro City Kenner '22, the teams were knotted at 58. Georgetown's Bradley Ezewiro came late to the game and scored 20 points for A Wash, while his teammate and fellow Hoya Dante Harris provided 23 points. Naji Marshall, of the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans put up 20 points, eight rebounds, five assists.
BSG enjoyed 33 points and six rebounds from George Mason's Devon Cooper, who thrilled his Patriot teammates in the process. Bryson Mozone, a G'Town guy, had 13 points and a team best 11 caroms.
Notes:
Joel Webb, a newcomer to Bowie State from Howard CC, showed he can provide energy and effort on the boards, pulling down 10 caroms, seven offensive. Most impressive was his doing so out of area. If Webb can do this regularly, BSU will have a player that can help propel it to victory.
Nana Opoku is mulling offers from teams in France, Germany and Isreal. Having just finished at Mount St. Mary's, Opoku is seriously improving, as he's one of Pro City Kenner's best finishers, while also hitting perimeter shots - Nana went 6-13 from the field, including 1-4 from three ball land. As shooting improves, so will his chances in pro ball. (See what an seasoned international pro counseled him for his first year in the pay for play space, on Premium Court).
Alani Moore, formerly of Temple, sped and dashed around for seven points, four rebounds and two assists. Last year he played professionally in Iran, which Moore enjoyed.
Meet Steven Ukiteyedi. Standing around 6'3", Ukiteyedi played at Allegany CC last season. Don't be fooled by his o-fer scoring stat line, this guy can drive, and shoots with decent form. His shot just didn't fall. Delaware State has shown interest, as have Bowie State, Fayetteville State and several D3 schools. He is the cousin of Hoya big Ryan Mutombo.
Jerai Grant made a cameo. The brother of fellow DMAS guy Jerian, older Jerai was in Greece last season, with returning being an option. Still an intelligent guy and player, Grant has a double digit pro career, and still does what's needed to win. Expect a few more international seasons out of him.
A monster on the boards, Saiquan Jamison has been such in college at Bowie State, later in the pros - England last year, Germany in 2022 - and even prior to that as a Wise Puma under Rob 'Gardner' Garner. Standing around 6-7 Jamison goes and gets the ball, regardless of who opposes him.
