Boo Williams: Day Three Rundown

HAMPTON, Va. – For the second year in a row the Houston Hoops reached the title game at the Boo Williams Invitational. Unfortunately for the Hoops, once again the host team Boo Williams was waiting. Chris Wright led his team to the championship and hoisted the MVP hardware.

Championship Boo Williams 67, Houston Hoops 63

Semifinalists – Team Final, Team Florida, Houston Hoops, Boo Williams

All-Tournament -- Gary Johnson, Houston Hoops; Patrick Patterson, BWSL; E’Twaun Moore, SYF; Nick Calathes, Team Florida; Tyreke Evans, Team Final.

MVP – Chris Wright, Boo Williams

16 Championship – Georgia Stars 73, S.C. Ravens 64

Championship Recap

Before taking care of the Houston Hoops, point guard Chris Wright delivered a strong performance against Team Final and Tyreke Evans in the semis as Boo sprinted into the final game. The highly regarded and now uncommitted guard performed at a high level in his team’s final two contests and for his efforts earned the MVP hardware that came with Boo’s second straight championship.

In the championship game, Wright tallied 19 points, including an 8-for-11 from the free throw line. Last year, Wright was an important contributor for a highly successful Boo Williams squad laced with top D-I talent, including 2 McDonald’s All-Americans. This time out it’s Wright who mans the controls and he has his team off to a strong beginning with a championship in the 48-team spring kickoff event. Not too shabby when you consider that he managed to squeeze in a date with the SAT test Saturday morning!

Gary Johnson, PF, Houston Hoops – He did all he could in the finale, scoring 15 points against an impressive front line intent on slowing him down. The way Johnson plays – all out, all the time – takes its toll on players like him come Sunday. Playing three days in a row is a grind on anybody but doing it with the intensity Johnson brings is simply draining. Even on Sunday afternoon he had explosion left in his legs and was launching himself at the rim as much as he could.

Patrick Patterson (shown), PF, Boo Williams – It was a productive weekend for him to say the least. The half hook he’s been working on went down a few times and you can see his offensive confidence grow throughout the weekend. He’s set himself up to have a big spring.

Jonathan Montgomery, SF, Rising Stars – His 20+ points in a silver bracket semifinal were impressive. Montgomery simply wore it out from mid-range. You have to think he’s a strong mid-major player with an array of offensive talent. His Rising Stars team has been together a long time, just like the Illinois Wolves two seasons ago. Though lacking a big time high-major star, the Rising Stars are on the same page and will be feasted on by mid-major recruiters.

Corey Stokes, SG, Metro Hawks – Against the Rising Stars the Metro Hawks were on a sinking ship. Stokes was held to just 2 points in the first half but fueled a second half rally with 13 points before eventually coming up short. He made some tough 3s in crucial spots for the Hawks, who eventually fell to the Rising Stars.

Tyreke Evans, SG, Team Final – Major props to the country’s top-ranked talent in the sophomore class. He captained a young Team Final group into the semifinals before running out of gas. In the game we saw, he made it look easy early from the perimeter but that wasn’t his best move. His signature bucket of the day came when he split a pair of defenders in mid-air and rose to the rise for an acrobatic finish.

Al-Farouq Aminu (pictured), PF, Ga. Stars 16 – Name sound familiar? Well, his brother is a freshman at Georgia Tech. After playing JV this season due to a transfer rule, Aminu is back running with the big boys. We caught him in the semis and championship game on Sunday and he didn’t disappoint. The young man is an athletic 6-foot-8 with skills. His brother is more of a center while Al-Farouq is a strong, face-up 4-man. He’ll rise above the rim, make tough catches with great hands and he will go off the bounce to the cup. He had 14 and 10 in the title game and made a strong impression here.

Ed Davis, PF, Boo Williams –- Speaking of impressions, Davis announced his presence at the Boo. Expect him to consistently gain confidence and build on each event this spring because that’s what he did all high school season long. Nowhere near where he can be strength-wise, Davis too has great hands, makes tough, athletic finishes in traffic and has a soft lefty touch. Did we mention his dad played a long time in the NBA? Big time prospect.

Chris Wright said that within 5 minutes upon learning that Herb Sendek moved to Arizona State, other programs were on the phone chatting him up. Of course commitments are non-binding so there is no penalty for Wright backing out of his Wolfpack pledge. Among the interested parties: George Tech, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Georgetown, Villanova, DePaul, Wake Forest and Clemson. …

Patrick Patterson has a pretty good sized list and its going to get larger. However, the West Virginian indicated that Virginia, Florida and West Virginia were on him the hardest. …

Jonathan Montgomery has offers from Northern Illinois, Penn State and Loyola-Chicago. … Rising Stars point guard Michael Thompson counts offers from Bradley and Middle Tennessee State. Northwestern, Tulsa, Oklahoma State, Penn State, Xavier and Dayton are evaluating him. …

Strong student-athlete Ceola Clark of the Rising Stars has offers from Loyola, Wisconsin-Green Bay, Western Illinois, Northern Illinois, Indiana State and Chicago State. …

Tanner Smith, a wing with the Georgia Stars 16’s had a huge day. Smith scored 23 in the championship game. Murphy Holloway led the S.C. Ravens with 18 in the game and busted out from mid-range. …

The Gauchos Darryl Bryant has that powerful Curtis Stinson type body. Bryant is a member of the Class of 2008 and a good guard. … Nasir Robinson of Team Final is a horse. He’s always getting on the glass and is constantly around the ball. … Wesley Witherspoon of the Georgia Stars young team reminds you of Georgetown’s Brandon Bowman at the exact same stage. … BWSL’s Chris Earley is a name to watch for. The 6-foot-6 wing has a stroke and with another strong showing could be on the cusp of a high-major scholarship. …