WAUKEGAN, Ill. – When coaches say that summer games are about “playing good competition,” it’s not just lip service.
Damon Bailey backed up his words Saturday during USJN’s seventh annual Great America Showcase. Bailey coaches the Indiana Bedford North Lawrence Stars 17 Blue squad, and his primary rival at the event in Pool A clearly appeared to be the Wisconsin ABC Knights 17. The teams were scheduled to play at 7:15 p.m. Saturday but, because the Knights were expected to be without one of their top players for the night session, tournament organizers asked Bailey if he’d be OK with switching the showdown to the afternoon so that the Knights would have all their weapons.
Sure thing, Bailey said. No problem.
“Obviously we want to win every game but we came here to get competition,” said Bailey, the Indiana schoolboy legend and former collegiate standout at Indiana. “If it was all about winning the tournament, I would have said, ‘No, we’ll play you tonight.’ It’s about the kids and giving them opportunities – not only for our team but for their team. That’s the type of game that both teams can get better from.”
The game lived up to expectations. Bailey’s Stars won 51-48, erasing a nine-point deficit in the second half and marking them as the team to beat during Sunday’s bracket play.
“For us it’s difficult to find competitive games in the summertime, so that’s why you come to an event like this,” Bailey said.
The Knights feature several talented players, including Green Bay commit Breanna Cera (2016) and 6-foot-4 Sidney Cooks, one of the country’s top players in the class of 2017.
The Stars’ roster includes the top eight players from the Bedford North Lawrence High School team that won Indiana’s Class 4A state title to cap an undefeated season. The standouts are two 2015 grads, guard Alexa Bailey (Bailey’s daughter and a Butler commit) and 6-2 post Dominique McBryde, who made a verbal commitment to Purdue last week.
The Knights led until the middle part of the second half, when the Stars initiated fullcourt pressure that changed the course of the game. The Stars fed off the turnovers and increased tempo, and Alexa Bailey’s penetration was the catalyst on offense.
“We’ve got a group of kids that really can get after it full court,” Damon Bailey said. “That’s the way we play (in the winter). I don’t play that way much in the summer just because we’re not in shape to do it.”
Oh, Canada: Welcome to Chicago
Bedford North Lawrence was hardly the only team seeking stiff competition. The YNBA Avengers 14 – based in Ontario, Canada – had an additional reason for making the long trek southward.
“To be honest,” coach Gad Perlmutter said with a wry smile, “I’ve never been to Chicago, so I really wanted to come to Chicago.”
Perlmutter had taken teams to a few U.S. events in the past. He heard good things about USJN, checked out the web site, and booked his tickets.
“It’s a vacation but it’s also basketball,” Perlmutter said. “I just wanted to bring the girls to see good basketball. You’re going to get good basketball here. You hear about Illinois, Indiana … you’re going to get good basketball. We went to a couple tournaments – Buffalo, Syracuse – but the competition level was terrible. Not even close (to here). Every game is tough. You can see the difference.”
The Avengers split two games Saturday, winning by three points and losing by 18.
“That’s the first time that has happened to them,” Perlmutter said of the blowout. “We’ve lost games, don’t get me wrong. But by six points, five points, close games. The competition back home is not very good. We kill teams.”
The coach is hoping to bring his team to four or five U.S. tournaments next summer. For now, he’s content with exploring the sights of America’s third-largest city.
“I can’t wait to see Niketown,” he said.
Spotlight grows on Illinois’ Neuqua Valley
High school teams in Illinois might not look forward to facing Neuqua Valley later this year. The Wildcats 17 team, which went 3-0 Saturday by a combined margin of 120 points, possesses talent and depth. And there’s more to come. Five of the players are sophomores or juniors.
“We don’t lose much when we bring in the underclassmen,” said Gordon Smith, who handled coaching duties Saturday in lieu of head coach Mike Williams.
Following this event, the Wildcats will split up and several will return to the other club teams. Bryce Menendez, a 6-2 Class of 2015 forward, and 2016 guards Myia Starks and Kai Moon also play for the Illinois Elite. Sisters Najee and Malia Smith (both 2014) join Niki Lazar (’14) and Lauren Deveikis (’14) on the Illinois United.
Slow start dooms Michigan Monarchs
The Michigan Monarchs 12 squad went 2-1 in pool play Saturday, but the one that got away was a surprisingly lopsided loss to a solid Missouri Team adidas 12 team.
“I think they finally showed up,” coach Darryl Tarplin said. “It took two games for them to wake up. But we ended well. I expected a better game out of my girls (against Team adidas). I don’t think my team showed up that game. I think I was coaching somebody else; that’s what it felt like.”
The Monarchs had nine players Saturday, all of which come from different schools in the Detroit area. But they’re used to playing alongside one another in the summer.
“I’ve coached the core group of this team since the fourth grade,” Tarplin said. “Out of the 11 girls we have, seven have been with me since the fourth grade.”
Skill is in abundance, particularly among the havoc-inducing guards, rising eighth-graders Kaela Webb and Camree Clegg. Jordan Lewis (2018) is a solidly built interior presence.
“I see big things in our future,” Tarplin said.
