Raymond Bowles & Kendall Smith recruiting updates

Doug Benton's NorCalPreps article (a Rivals sub is required and well worth it) about Sunday's Nor Cal Clash event, which pitted the top 2013 talents against those in of 2014, contained these recruiting items:

* Raymond Bowles -- 6-foot-5, wing, Modesto Christian/Lakeshow (2013): offers from UC Irvine and Pacific

* Kendall Smith -- 6-foot-3, point, Deer Valley/Oakland Soldiers: is hitting San Jose State University on an unofficial trip followed by officials with Louisiana State and Long Beach State.

The upcoming Nor Cal Clash

The fourth annual Nor Cal Clash is coming up on August 26 at 1:30 p.m. at Contra Costa College.

As usual, it's the youngsters versus their elders -- Northern California's 2014 elite matching up with those in the 2013 class.

It will also be Tim Kennedy of Division II state champion Archbishop Mitty matching wits with Lechet Phillips of Deer Valley High, whose team was a Division I Nor Cal quarter-finalist.

A game and player report on the event will be done by the Hoop Review scouting service in addition to websites NorCal Preps and California Preps as well as other other media outlets.

Here are the rosters:

Class of 2013 - Coach: Lechet Phillips – Deer Valley

Dakarai Allen 6’4” Sheldon (Sacramento)
Noah Allen 6’6” Palma (Salinas)
Jabari Bird 6’5” Salesian (Richmond)
Raymond Bowles 6’5” Modesto Christian (Modesto)
Aaron Gordon 6’8” Archbishop Mitty (San Jose)
Rae Jackson 6’3” El Cerrito
Darin Johnson 6’4” Sheldon (Sacramento)
Daiveon Leverett 6’7” Weston Ranch (Stockton)
Kendall Smith 6’2” Deer Valley (Antioch)
TJ Wallace 6’3” Modesto Christian (Modesto)
D’Erryl Williams 6’2” Sheldon (Sacramento)

Class of 2014 - Coach Tim Kennedy – Archbishop Mitty

Shon Briggs 6’6” Heritage (Brentwood)
Jalen Canty 6’6” St. Patrick-St. Vincent (Vallejo)
Derrick Clayton    6’5” Castro Valley
Trevor Dunbar 5’8” St. Ignatius (San Francisco)
Joey Frenchwood 6’0” Newark Memorial (Newark)
Joey Goodreault 6’3” Miramonte (Orinda)
Cameron Oliver 6’8” Grant (Sacramento)
Malik Pope 6’7” Capital Christian (Sacramento)
Murshid Randle 6’3” Central (Fresno)
Elliott Smith 6’5” Freedom (Oakley)
Temidayo Yussuf 6’5” St. Joseph-Notre Dame (Alameda)

The Nor Cal Clash plus where Kori Babineaux is heading

Bill Paterson writes about the upcoming Nor Cal Clash and next year's destination for Folsom High's Kori Babineaux.

The 'old' guys rule

It was the upstarts who held sway in the first 20 minutes but the veterans took the Second Annual Nor Cal Clash by a final score of 91-87 Sunday evening at Contra Costa College. Whether due to experience, greater physical maturity, more polished skill development or a combination thereof, seniority triumphed but not before being pushed hard.

The 2012 youngins led 28-22 at the end of the first 10-minute quarter and maintained the lead, 47-41, at halftime. Finally displaying more consistency, the class of 2011 put together a 30-point third period to take the lead 71-62 and held on for the close conclusion.

Senior Juan Anderson stuffed the stat sheet via 12 points, five rebounds, four assists, a trio of blocked shots (more on one of those below) and three steals. Mark Tollefsen, out of Sam Ramon Valley High, topped the 2011 squad with 13 points.

Junior Robert Upshaw produced a double-double composed of 15 points and 14 boards while his teammate on the night, Dominic Artis, contributed 13 points for the 2012-ers. 

Here's our take on some of the various players, plus thoughts on the ball that was played:

* Politicians and corporate leaders get dinged for lacking "the vision thing'" but Juan Anderson overflows with this attribute. He displayed the ability to pick out both open teammates and, maybe more importantly, soon-to-be open colleagues and delivering pinpoint passes. Anderson was named the Player of the Game. His shooting was off though throughout most of the game.

*  Finally, a replacement slogan has emerged for the venerable "it ain't over until the fat lady sings" description of a game's make-or-break outcome. From now on we're going with "it ain't over until Juan Anderson says so" as his last millisecond run-and-jump block on a breakaway layup attempt amply demonstrated not to count your points until the basketball emerges through the net.

* 6-foot-7 David Andoh was king of the midrange jumper -- a seemingly lost art -- last night. He is going to bring frontcourt scoring to St. Mary's this coming season.

* Mark Tollefsen is a net-nestling shooter. Let him catch and fire is simply a losing strategy as his treys last night never met iron.

* Just like in boxing, it's the lower weight divisions that are often the most enjoyable to watch in hoops. Last night's matchup of T.J. Taylor and Dominic Artis banging each other around out front via dribble-drives and defensive stops was quite the spectacle.

* 6-foot-11 Robert Upshaw opened the game with a nice spin move inside for a basket and later nailed a top of the key trey. There's promise in the 2012 big but also much work still to do. The PAC-10 will be watching.

* JT Adenrele  may 'only' measure out at 6-foot-6 but no one battled harder and played big inside than the soon-to-be senior from Oakmont High.

* Berkeley's High Langston Morris-Walker already looks college-ready physically and enjoyed some nice sequences on the court last night.

* Gary Williams is a solid glue guy and the 6-foot-3 Castlemont backcourter is one to watch as he enter his senior year.

* Watch to see the development of 2012 frontcourter Richard Longruss. The 6-foot-7 Bishop O'Dowd star had his moments and the addition of a couple more inches should throw his recruiting interest wide open.

* Which is true: Sometimes it is the little things that count versus don't sweat the small stuff? Context rules the day, but it's certainly the former on the basketball court.

* As is usual, not a lot of outside-shooting accuracy was on display -- attempts, yes -- in the Contra Costa College gym.

* The play was certainly uptempo but too often sloppy. We're not sure one jump stop was employed in all forty minutes as penetrating the key resulted in seeking and making contact rather than any mid-range shot attempt. There were also no dunk freebies on the menu as it seemed every attempt to swoop in and send the ball downward was hotly contested.

A Nor Cal Clash roster change

Due to a personal situation, Castro Valley's Roderick Bobbitt will not play in Sunday's Nor Cal Clash. 6-foot-3 Gary Williams, out of Castlemont, has taken his place.

Bill Paterson on Sunday's Nor Cal Clash

Bill Paterson of the Sacramento Bee offers a preview of Sunday's Nor Cal Clash. Go here.

The upcoming Nor Cal Clash

The upcoming Nor Cal Clash (NCC) at Contra Costa College in San Pablo is an opportunity for some long-simmering arguments, suppositions, biases, you name it -- and this is just among prep basketball fans -- to be settled.

The Sunday, August 29 event pitting the top flight gladiators of the class of 2011 versus their upstart 2012 brethren should go a long ways towards answering the age-old question: does seniority rule?

This will also be the first local opportunity to see junior David Andoh back on the court as well as the initial time to witness -- at least for most -- what highly rated 2012 Fresno area prospect Robert Upshaw can do on the floor at 6-foot-10. 6-foot-6 senior J.T. Adenrele is also a newbie to most Bay Area basketball fans as is 6-foot-7 Chad Haysbert. Both are out of the Sacramento area. Fast-rising Juan Anderson will be on display for a preview of what should be a tremendous senior season.

The individual matchups will also be intriguing for a number of other reasons including the fact that high school and club team basketball teammates, separated by a year in school, will oppose each other.

Here are the rosters:

2011

* J.T. Adenrele, 6-foot-6, Oakmont High
* Hameed Ali, 6-foot-2, San Leandro High
* Juan Anderson, 6-foot-7, Castro Valley High
* Roderick Bobbitt, 6-foot-2, Castro Valley
* Robert Garrett, 6-foot-10, Sacramento High
* Chad Haysbert, 6-foot-7, Antelope High
* Andre McPhail, 6-foot-7, Deer Valley High
* Quincy Smith, 6-foot-2, Deer Valley High (now out with a hand injury)
* Dominique Taplin, 6-foot-2, Oakland High
* T.J. Taylor, 5-foot-9, Oakland High
* Mark Tollefsen, 6-foot-8, San Ramon Valley High
* Stuart Wesonga. 6-foot-7, San Marin High

2012

* David Andoh, 6-foot-7, St. Mary's
* Dominic Artis, 5-foot-9, Salesian High
* Glenn Baral, 6-foot-3, St. Mary's High
* Taylor Johns, 6-foot-4, Sacred Heart Cathedral
* Tajai Johnson, 6-foot-2, Vallejo High
* Richard Longruss, 6-foot-6, Bishop O'Dowd
* Langston Morris-Walker, 6-foot-4, Berkeley High
* Casey Norris, 6-foot-1, Newark Memorial
* Lawrence Otis, 6-foot-2, McClymonds
* Kyiron Thomas, 6-foot-3, Sheldon High
* Robert Upshaw, 6-foot-11, San Joaquin Memorial

Another Gerry Freitas-run event, this year's NCC also features quite the coaching pairing. Craig Ashmore of Newark Memorial will match strategy with Manny Nodar of St. Mary's. Both helmed teams that played in the state championship games last March.

Event Information:

Nor Cal Clash
Sunday, August 29, 5:30 p.m.
Contra Costa College, San Pablo

Here's Joel Francisco on the NorCalClash

For those who weren't there (and we're taking away your bonafides as a fan of high school basketball if you were elsewhere), here's a writeup and some player analysis on Sunday's Nor Cal Clash:

Gardner, Turner stay in attack mode
Joel Francisco
Scouts Inc.

SAN PABLO, Calif. -- The first annual Nor Cal Clash, organized by Gerry Freitas, provided a nice preview of things to come in terms of high school basketball in the Bay Area. The event was a showcase game between the region's top juniors and seniors. Although the Class of 2010 came out strong to take a comfortable 32-17 lead, it would be the sensational junior backcourt of 6-foot-2 Josiah Turner (Sacramento, Calif.) and 5-7 Kiwi Gardner (Manteca, Calif.) who led the 2011 prospects to a 105-99 victory.

Turner's pull-up game and Gardner's athletic ability in the transition game would be the difference; the 2010 team's defense got shredded to ribbons on a consistent basis. In addition to the aforementioned dynamic duo, the 2011 squad also received strong performances by 6-6 J.T. Adenrele (Roseville, Calif./Oakmont), 6-5 Darius Nelson (Sacramento, Calif./Sheldon), and 6-2 Roderick Bobbitt (Castro Valley, Calif.).

Standout players

Kiwi Gardner (5-7, 150) PG
2011, Manteca, Calif.
Gardner doesn't possess ideal size for a Division I point guard, but he has many other physical attributes, such as speed and quickness, that will attract coaches from that particular level. Gardner has an exceptional burst off the dribble. He gets in the lane whenever he wants with a blow-by or a crossover. He has great bounce and can finish much of the time in traffic. However, at the next level, his game will have to slow down because his decision-making, at times, will result in costly turnovers. He has a tendency to overpenetrate and leave his feet in traffic while passing. He is a true point guard who can knock down the 3-point shot and his shot overall looks solid with a smooth release. Gardner will need to learn to manage the game and not play at such a fast pace, but there is no question his talent will be recognized among Division I coaches...

Go here for the remainder.