Saturday's Best

Upsets and individual performances highlight a busy Saturday in NY, NC and CA.

by Russell Steinberg May 28, 2011 10:06pm ET
Kyle Anderson_opt (2).jpg
Kelly Kline
Kyle Anderson registered a double-double in an ultra-efficient shooting performance for the N.J. Playaz at EYBL in L.A.

Saturday's Standouts

Tyler Lewis: The point guard had one of the greatest individual games in the history of the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions, pouring on 47 points to lead Team Loaded to a 90-81 win over Garner Road. Lewis fell just three short of the tournament record of 50, set by Mike Miller.

T.J. Warren: Garner Road might have lost to Team Takeover, but Warren nearly matched Lewis's outburst. He posted 41 points in the losing effort.

Kyle Anderson: In one of the most complete individual performances of the day, Anderson filled the stat sheet with 20 points on an efficient 9-12 shooting as the No. 16 Playaz Basketball Club defeated the New York Gauchos at the Nike EYBL in Los Angeles. The five-star rated guard also snared 15 rebounds in the 77-70 win.

Darren Payen: Payen carried East Coast Elite with a strong overall performance in the 17U division at the GymRat Challenge in Albany, earning a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. He also added four blocks in the defensive effort and sparked his team with several rim-rattling dunks in a loss against Sports U Team Izod.

Mike McCahey: The New York Falcons won twice today in Albany, and saw the same outstanding result from McCahey. The forward scored 26 in an early-morning matchup with the MASS Hoops Jaguars, then equaled that total in the Falcons' afternoon game against Advanced Hoops.

Teams on the Move

Florida Family: Kobe Eubanks hit the clinching free throws as the Florida Family 16U team upset No. 3 Garner Road, 81-80 at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions. Eubanks, who has offers from Kentucky, Florida and several other schools, finished with 29 points.

Albany City Rocks: Junior Oliver Hanlon's buzzer-beating jumper lifted the City Rocks to a hard-fought, low-scoring 49-48 victory over No. 21 Spiece Indy Heat at Nike EYBL. Hanlon's 18 points and perfect 6-6 shooting from the line earned Albany the upset victory over a Top 25 17U team.

Boo Williams: Ready to face three top 15 teams at Nike EYBL this weekend, No. 20 Boo Williams had a chance to make a statement. The nation's twentieth ranked team did just that, defeating No. 14 All-Iowa Attack, 62-59 behind 27 points from Marcus Paige.

Dwight Howard Warriors: Five-Star rated Solomon Poole scored 25 points, including a buzzer-beater to lead the Warriors to a come-from-behind 76-74 win over the Charlotte Nets. Guard Ian Baker scored all 19 of his points in the second half to keep his team in the game before Poole's eventual game-winner.

Next Level: In Albany, the crowd was treated to a nail-biting upset Saturday as unranked Next Level topped No. 19 New Heights, 55-54. 

News to Know

  • In Los Angeles, Philadelphia 76er Andre Iguodala was in attendance, along with draft hopeful Iman Shumpert, who was in L.A. to see his agent. Shumpert told Five Star that he had a "good workout" with the Eastern Conference Champion Miami Heat.
  • Zach Peters has left the Team Texas Titans for the summer so he can play football. The Titans are in Los Angeles at the Nike EYBL.
  • The playoffs are set in North Carolina tomorrow to wrap up the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions. The eight-team 17U National field consists of the Wisconsin Playground Warriors, South Florida Panthers, Team Loaded, Hoop Magic Team Takeover, Colorado Chaos, Florida Elite, Team United and Southern Phenoms.
  • Junior Gavin Ware (Southern Phenoms) is leaning toward Georgetown. "They're a good program and a great academic school," he said. "And they're in the northeast."
  • Theo Pinson of the 17U CP3 All-Stars said at EYBL that his game resembled that of Andrew Wiggins of CIA Bounce when comparing himself to other players in his class.

 

Additional reporting by Rob Matera, Norman Waterman and Justin Walsh.