Nike EYBL Peach Jam Preview
It all comes down to this for the top Nike teams in the country.
The 2011 Nike Peach Jam is one of the most anticipated events on the summer circuit as it culminates a highly competitive EYBL season.
Brackets for both the 17U and 16U divisions feature some of the top Nike travel teams and read like a who’s-who in the Five-Star Top 25. The 17U division features an astounding seven teams ranked in the top ten (No. 1 Team Takeover, No. 2 BABC, No. 3 Oakland Soldiers, No. 4 Memphis YOMCA, No. 7 CIA Bounce, No. 8 Georgia Stars, and No. 10 Playaz Basketball Club (N.J.) while the 16U division is headlined by No. 3 CIA Bounce, No.6 MeanStreets, No.7 All-Ohio Red, No. 8 CP3 All-Stars and No. 9 Mac Irvin Fire.
17U Featured Team Matchups:
Tuesday 9/12, 10:15 AM: No. 2 BABC vs. No. 14 All-Iowa Attack: 14-1 BABC and 10-5 All-Iowa Attack square off in a top-15 matchup at the beginning of day one. Five-Star rated player Nerlens Noel leads BABC against UNC-commit Marcus Paige of All-Iowa Attack.
Wednesday 9/13, 7:15 PM: No. 1 Team Takeover vs. No. 12 Houston Hoops: The well rested and number one team in the nation, Team Takeover looks to keep their undefeated record (15-0) against Five-Star rated player Rasheed Sulaimon and his 12-3 Houston Hoops squad.
Wednesday 9/13, 7:15 PM: No. 4 Memphis YOMCA vs. No. 10 Playaz Basketball Club: 13-2 Memphis YOMCA will battle to hold onto their top-5 ranking against Five-Star rated player Kyle Anderson and the 11-4 Playaz Basketball Club.
Thursday 9/14, 10:15 AM: No. 7 CIA Bounce vs. No. 13 Mac Irvin Fire: The 12-3 Canadian squad try to fend off a very dangerous Mac Irvin Fire (11-4) team led by Five-Star rated player, Jabari Parker.
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17U Featured Player Matchups:
Tuesday 9/12, 9:00 AM: Rodney Purvis vs. Ricardo Ledo: This matchup features phenomenal guard play with two Five-Star rated guards. Both can get to the hoop at will and are the main playmakers for their respective squads, so look for this to be a high-octane matchup.
Tuesday 9/12, 11:30 AM: Archie Goodwin vs. Rasheed Sulaimon: Two Five-Star rated guards square off in this matchup. Archie Goodwin, fresh off his very quick recovery from a wrist injury, looks to prove himself against top competition. Both guards are long and athletic and play a similar style so it should be a fierce head-to-head battle.
Wednesday 9/13, 11:30 AM: Nerlens Noel vs. Jabari Parker: Although they do not play the same position, these Five-Star rated players will compete to prove which class has the better talent. Although Noel is younger, he can carry the load for his team at any time with his long athletic body. Parker is one of the best players in the class of 2013 and can do it all from ball handling and shooting, to rebounding and playing defense.
Thursday 9/14, 10:15 AM: Kyle Anderson vs. Rodney Purvis: Rodney Purivs can light up his opponent any time he takes the floor. In his second featured matchup of the Peach Jam, he will take on the much taller guard in Kyle Anderson. Both are Five-Star rated guards and talented scorers. Look for Anerson to use his four-inch height advantage against Purvis.
16U Featured Team Matchups:
Thursday 9/14, 1:30 PM: No. 6 MeanStreets vs. No. 8 CP3 All-Stars: The very balanced MeanStreets squad will try to crack the top-5 while George McClinton and his CP3 squad stand in the way in this featured matchup.
Thursday 9/14, 1:30 PM: No. 9 Mac Irvin Fire vs. No. 12 Memphis YOMCA: The Mac Irvin Fire squad is hoping to win the whole tournament while Memphis YOMCA is trying to prove they deserve to be top-10.
16U Featured Player Matchups:
Jordan Bell (California Supreme) vs. Marc Loving (All-Ohio Red): Tuesday, 1:30 PM
Any matchup between two players on the Five-Star Summer Player of the Year Watch List is worth mentioning, but especially when it includes Jordan Bell, whose stock has been rising throughout the spring and summer. A head-to-head matchup between Bell and Loving, who spearheads All-Ohio Red’s attack, will surely bring out the best in both players.
R.J. Curington (CIA Bounce) vs. E.C. Matthews (The Family): Tuesday, 11:30 AM
Another matchup between two players vying for Five-Star’s Summer Player of the Year award. Curington and Matthews are two of the best guards in the class of 2013 and their head-to-head battle on Tuesday should set the tone for the remainder of a highly competitive week.
Format:
For the 17U division, the 24 qualifying teams all earned a spot in the tournament by playing well at the three Nike EYBL sessions earlier this year. Each team has been placed into one of four pools and will first be put through a grueling, five-game round-robin beginning tomorrow at 9:00 AM. against each team in their pool.
After five games, the top two teams from each pool will advance to a single-elimination tournament, which tips off with the quarterfinals Thursday night at 6:00 PM. With a Friday afternoon semifinal doubleheader, the champion will be crowned Friday night in front of a nationally televised audience on ESPNU at 6:00 PM.
The 16U division is a bit smaller, but features a similar format. With four groups of four teams, pool play will run from Tuesday (beginning at 1:30 PM) to Thursday night (final games at 11:30 AM). The top two teams in each pool will advance to the eight-team, single-elimination tournament, tipping off Thursday night at 8:30 PM, with the title game playing out Friday afternoon at 1:30 PM.
