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Smoothie King Classic Day 2 Rundown: Panthers, Hurricanes Reach Finals
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December 29, 2009
By: Aaron Seybert
SWFLHoops@gmail.com
BRADENTON, FL-- The Manatee Hurricanes and tourney host Bradenton Christian Panthers are set to meet in the 3rd Annual Smoothie King Classic Championship game on Wednesday evening. Manatee will look to hand Bradenton Christian their first loss ever in the tournament's history, as they have won the tournament the two previous years it has existed.
#3 Bradenton Christian 51, Braden River 49
Bradenton Christian (10-1) nearly lost their first game of the tourney on Tuesday night, if it weren't for the clutch three-pointer from senior guard Jon Negrin with just over 20 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of the Panthers semifinal matchup with the Braden River Pirates. Trailing 49-48, Negrin knocked down a deep trey and then proceeded to point to a tattoo on his back right shoulder in honor his late brother Anthony Negrin, who passed away just a couple months ago after a long battle with cancer. Negrin, who finished with a team-high 14 points, is short in stature but plays with enough emotion for a whole team to thrive off of, and his heroics on this night will no doubt be logged in the fond memories of BCS fans who endear him and his older twin brother Jordan Negrin, who finished with 13 points of his own in the game.
Not to be lost in the end result, Braden River played a heck of a game for head coach Matt Nesser and were able to use solid transition defense to slow down the Panthers the whole night and keep the score low. 6'6 senior forward b gave Bradenton Christian fits all night down low. Whether he was taking his man baseline, scoring with an array of back to the basket moves, or getting putbacks inside, Bobelis was at times unstoppable for the Panther duo of senior Mike Frey and sophomore Brian Cobb. He finished with 23 points on the night total. Another bright spot for the Pirates was 6-5 freshman Trevon Young. The class of 2013 forward checks in at about 240 pounds but can move well and did a great job of throwing his weight around inside on the glass, while also scoring 7 points.
Cobb added 12 points for Bradenton Christian in the win as well.
Manatee 77, #8 Palmetto 67
Manatee (6-5) started this season off slow due to the fact that their football team, and in turn 9 basketball players, were busy making their way through the state playoffs. Well football season has officially ended, and now Hurricanes head coach Shawn Campbell has all the horses in the stable and there are quite a few thoroughbreds within the bunch. With a full bench of superb athletes, which Campbell used throughout the game continuously, they were able to dominate the second quarter, outscoring the Palmetto Tigers 27-11, and take control of the game.
Palmetto (5-1), the #8 ranked team in our week 6 team rankings, would not give up though, as they were able to get back to within single digits on multiple occassions after getting down by as many as 17. Tigers sophomore Jordan Smith, who finished with a game-high 24 points, hit 4 of his 6 total treys in the second half to keep the game reasonable, but the Hurricanes answered with a Smith of their own.
Manatee senior guard Brice Smith scored 9 of his team-high 20 points in the fourth quarter, while also doing the majority of the ball-handling duties and not turning the ball over.
Palmetto senior forward Travontae Rhodes gave it everything he had as well, and was a big reason why the Tigers were ahead early in the game. Rhodes scored 14 of his 20 total points in the first half, including a big time putback dunk in traffic. Helping Manatee (6-5) get the win as well were junior guard Quenton Bundrage and freshman guard Terrence Cummings, who each had 13 points.
Even with as good as Manatee looked at times, it is scary to think of how good they could be when you take into account that two of last year's leading scorers, seniors Tracy "Ace"Sanders and Travon Montgomery, were not used as much as would be expected once the team gets into full gear. Sanders actually did not play at all past the first quarter, while Montgomery played in each quarter but was off the court in key spots throughout.
Lakewood Ranch 77, Bayshore 71
Bayshore had some bright spots in this one, including dynamic senior scoring guard Javaris Jackson, who poured in a game-high 24 points, and junior guard Jeremi King, who notched 21 points of his own. However, despite keeping it close all the way till the end of the game, they weren't able to pull it out, as a balanced Lakewood Ranch Mustangs squad took the win and moves onto the 5th place final to be played on Wednesday. Lakewood Ranch was led by Danny Zarrella with 16 points, while Jake Carlton and Tim Greenamoyer added 13, and Andrew McNett chipped in with 11. The Mustangs also had two guys with 9 apiece, Jordan Baker and freshman Brett Hanewich.
#11 Southeast 64, Out-of-Door Academy 50
Southeast guards, senior Devin Bacon and junior Reggie Smalls, are quick, talented, and can really score the ball in bunches. Tuesday evening was no different, as Bacon scored 21 and Smalls added 14, helping #11 Southeast improve their record to 6-3 on the season and move on to face Lakewood Ranch in the 5th place game Wednesday. Southeast freshman guard Antonio Ray chipped in with 10 points for the Seminoles.
Stephen Berg led ODA with 13 points, while Andrew McInnis added 12. ODA will face off against Bayshore in the 7th place game on Wednesday.
SWFL Hoops Scouting Notes - "Hello, my name is..."
Terrence Cummings, 5'9, PG, 2013, Manatee - Cummings can flat out go. He may in fact be the fastest kid in SWFL with or without the ball that is suited up on the hardwood this fall. The first time we saw him against Venice, the only thing that stood out was his quickness, speed, and ability to come up with steals defensively. However, watching him tonight made us realize this kid has a chance to be special. In one span of the game, Cummings got a steal and took it for a layup, knocked down a trey, and then drove to the basket through traffic, spun, and finished the layup. If he can truly learn to consistently control his body at such high speeds, this dynamic athlete, who does not play football by the way, could be a guy with real top level potential.
Trevon Young, 6'5 240, BF, 2013, Braden River - Young is another football looking kid that does not suit up on the gridiron. Although more of a space filler at this point in his young career, Young showed flashes of skill with a face up drive to the basket and showed a soft touch on a couple different occasions. Not to mention the back to the basket turn around fade away jumper he hit as well. If he grows some more and keeps improving his skill level, this big young fella could be another special one in years to come.
Brice Smith, 6'2, WG, 2010, Manatee - Smith was the man for Manatee down the stretch. He handled the ball as the point in the fourth quarter when Palmetto was trying to apply relentless pressure, and to our recollection did not have a turnover. Smith is a good shooter that can get hot and hit treys in bunches, but he can also slash well and just finds ways to put the ball in the bucket. His handles are reliable and he seems to have a good understanding of the game as well. The nicest part about him is that he also has the ability to bang in the post and is active on the boards throughout the game. Smith will be an invaluable piece of the puzzle for Manatee this season if they are going to make a run at a district title and possibly more.
Jordan Smith, 6'2, WG, 2012, Palmetto - Smith is a gunner. There is little doubt that Smith has never saw a shot that he would not take with confidence that he can make it. Although he takes some shots with awkward starting body positions, he has unlimited range and will hit shots in bunches. Primarily a shooter at this point because he needs to adds some strength to be very affective around the basket, but he can hit shots off both the catch and the dribble. If he rounds out his game to be more than just a gunner and athlete, he has the size and length to be looked at as a nice wing guard prospect.
Jamari King, 6'3, WG, 2011, Bayshore - King is slim but long, and in our first chance to see him, he really did some nice things offensively. He showed he was able to slash to the basket and find a way to put the ball in the bucket. His length allowed him to get a few deflections defensively, as well as get his hands on a good amount of rebounds. He will need to add some weight and strength quickly to become more consistent as a slasher, but he is one we will keep an eye on over the next year and watch his progression.
This is just a few of the guys who had stand out performances on Tuesday, and these guys along with some others did a lot to stake their claim for a spot in our player rankings which will be continually updated throughout the year!
