dream classic preview

The 6th Annual Nike Dream Classic Basketball showcase event will be held tomorrow all throughout the day at Long Beach State, at the Pyramid. Here's the schedule of games:

9:00 a.m.	The Bishop's School vs. Dudley (North Carolina)
10:35 a.m.	Ayala vs. Manual Arts
12:05 p.m.	LA Westchester vs. LA Fairfax
1:35 p.m.	Long Beach Jordan vs. Crossroads
3:05 p.m.	LA Crenshaw vs. Upland
4:35 p.m.	Mater Dei vs. University of San Diego High School
6:05 p.m.	Dominguez vs. Artesia
7:05 p.m.	Mayfair vs. Bishop Montgomery

If you checked our earlier versions of the schedule we posted back in December (which we got from Dinos Trigonis' site, Fullcourt Press) forget that one, the one above is correct. How do we know? Because Russell Otis and Dinos gave us an advance copy of the program yesterday at the adidas Double Pump Hoop Challenge, that's how.

These are going to be some exciting matchups. No, we didn't do the program notes for these, but we have previewed just about every one of the teams playing in the event with the exception of LA Crenshaw and USDHS. But based on the rosters for both of those schools, you'll see some very familiar faces.

We don't really know anything about Dudley, except that Russell Otis tells us that they beat Mt. Zion this year, so they must be pretty good. They've got a couple of big guys, including Chris Ferguson (6'-7" Sr. F) and Jonathan English (6'-6" Jr. F) and from the looks of their roster, they average about 6'-4" or 6'-5" and look to be quick (or at least as quick as guys can look when they're all just standing in a photo. . . but you know what we mean. They're athletic and look strong). They also feature Nick Bowden (5'-11" Sr. PG) who is supposed to be a pretty good point, but honestly (and we may just be out to lunch on this one) we didn't find him on the lists of any of the top players maintained by our good friends like Clark Francis at HoopScoop. Bishops will face Dudley, but other than Nick Booker (6'-5" Sr. SG/SF) who signed this fall with Davidson University, there isn't a senior on the team, and we hear that Nick either sprained his ankle or received some other injury a few weeks ago, and might not play. Still they have Ryan Read (6'-1" Fr. G) Alex Nieto (6'-3" So.SG/SF) and Jaris Cole (6'-2" Jr. SG) as somewhat familiar names so we'll see what they can do tomorrow morning.

This Manual Arts team is still the defending City Champions, but it's basically an entirely new team with the exception of Mario Roberts (6'-2" Sr. SG). They have Jason Crow (6'-4" Sr. F) and DeAndre Morris (6'-4" Sr. F) along with some other speedy guards, and Onye Ibekwe (6'-5" So F) as their big man, so it will be interesting to see what they can do with the Bulldogs, who come into the game with a record of 16-4 overall and 3-0 in the very tough Sierra League. We've already previewed Ayala, so if you want to see who's on the roster just click on the link. Come to think of it, we've also previewed Manual Arts too so that should be an easy comparison to make.

Which Fairfax team will show up? The good one, with their coach and players, or the one that showed up on Saturday for the second matchup of the season between these teams which was played at the Double Pump Hoop Challenge, and which Westchester won with ease, 80-52. We doubt that Fairfax can play as poorly as they did on Saturday, or that they can shoot as bad, or fail to defend like they did at LBCC, but then again, you never know, and they really need this split with Westchester to insure a good seeding in the playoffs, because this is a league game. It will also be the third time these teams play each other this year (the first was at the Reebok Holiday Prep Classic last month). Westchester played great on Saturday, even with the unfortunate injury to Keith Everage (6'5" So. F) who suffered either a bruise to his spine or a concussion, and who has to be doubtful given the severity of what we saw during yesterday's game. But everyone else really stepped up, and you'll see Ashanti Cook (6'-1" So. PG) running the show along with John Clemmons (5'-10" Jr. PG) backing him up, because Jason McKinney isn't even listed on the roster. He told us he's injured, and will be coming back Tuesday, and whether it's grades or really a knee injury, the fact is he hasn't played a game yet with the varsity this season, so you won't see him playing tomorrow. But you will see Chad Bell (7'-1" Jr. C), Terrance Lawson (6'-5" Sr. F), Cedric Thompkins (6'-8" Sr. F) and Jason Breland (6'-5" Sr. SG/SF) as the principal players. Fairfax will throw Ishmael Torres (6'-2" Sr. PG), and Fowzi Abdelsamad (6'-2" Sr. PG) in the backcourt running the one, and Fernando Sampson (6'-1" So. SG) and Marqui Jones (6'-5" Sr. SG/SF) along with Kevin Bell (5'-11" Fr. G) and Linton Barnett (6'-0" Sr. G) and Aaron Mimms (5'-11" Sr. G) at the two. And with all this guard talent, you'd think the Lions could really find someone to run the point adequately but that and shooting from the perimeter seem to be their two biggest weaknesses right now. Inside and on the wings, Fairfax remains pretty strong, but they will need to run a whole lot faster and stronger than they did on Saturday. Evan Burns (6'-8" So. F), Craig Smith (6'-8" Jr. F), Scotie Stern (6'-4" Sr. SG), Jason Morrissette (6'-5" Sr. SG/SF), Daniel Malwah (6'-5" Jr. F) and Alex Bausley (6'-7" Fr. F) all better come prepared to play, because this will be a tough game and could be for the league title.

This is going to feature some really interesting matchups, including the one which will pit Jordan's Travon Bryant (6'-8" Sr. PF) against the Roadrunners' Isaiah Fox (6'-10" Jr. F/C), and this will be a battle of the heavyweights, with Fox allegedly tipping the scales at 270 lbs, and we don't know Travon's weight, but it's probably at least 245. Jordan also features Nick Tamarao (5'-11" Sr. PG/SG) , who was just on fire in the fourth quarter last night at LBCC, Alshawn Rodgers (6'-1 Sr. F), Ron Banks (6'-2" Jr. G) and Kendall Lucas (6'-4" Sr. F) as one the principal group of players, and Donald Williams (6'-2" Jr. SG who can also light it up as can Rashawn Childs (6'-3" Jr. SG). Jordan is probably a bit deeper at the guard spots, but Crossroads has a bunch of youngish players, with only one senior on the team leftover from the State Title years with Baron Davis. Felipe Williams (6'-4" Sr. SG) will be counted on for leadership as well as good shooting, and the rest of the young studs, including Jordan Rush (6'-5" So. SF/SG), Kirk Lofgren (6'-6" Jr. F), Doug Hall (6'-5" So. SF), Joe Abrahams (6'-2" So. SG) and a few others will need to really move and fill it up because Jordan can be a dangerous team when they're hot like they were in the fourth quarter almost coming back to win (and only losing by 5) from a 20+ deficit at the half. This should be a fun game. Can't wait to see the battle of the big men.

Crenshaw has been a real mystery this season, not because we don't already know a lot of their guys, it's because of who we don't know. Every year, Willie West reloads, and from the looks of the roster, he's done it again. He's got height, speed, and shooting, and we also hear that in addition to the swarming man pressure that Crenshaw is famous for, Willie has also installed a zone this year. Old names and faces on the 'Shaw roster include E.J. Harris (6'-3" Sr. PG) who has signed with Kansas State, Tommy Johnson (6'-5" Sr. SG) who has signed with Washington State, Chris Davis (who is listed at 6'-8" and who may have grown some) a powerful, tough post man, and Jamal Walls (6'-8" So. PF), one of the veterans of so many of those Pat Barrett-coached SCA powerhouse teams (which also featured DeAngelo Collins, etc). There are some new faces, and we're not sure who Willie has been playing lately, but we do know Lester Clay (6'-4" Jr. SG), a great athlete and really terrific young man, but beyond that, many of the names and faces are new, so we're not sure what to expect. Upland features the same guys we previewed and profiled earlier in the season (here's the preview link) and they are coming into this game with a record of 13-4, and 2-1 in the always tough Baseline League. We don't know Crenshaw's record, but they've had a few weeks of layoff since the Nike San Diego Prep Classic, so again, they should be well rested, with just a few games played in the City Section since the first of the year. This is going to be a fast, fast game if Crenshaw sticks with it's usual style, and if we were Jeff Klein, we'd get out our half-court offense and try to slow it down. But then that's why he gets the big bucks coaching and not us. . . Another fun game.

About two weeks ago, if anyone asked us whether the Dons would have had a chance to knock off the No. 9 team in the country (according to USA Today), we'd have said "no." But that was before the Monarchs lost the to Soderberg brothers, who weren't the only tall guys on the team, just a portion of the core group of big men. Yesterday, Mater Dei was down to Harrison Schaen (6'-8" Fr. F) and a senior football player, a guy whose name we didn't catch, about 6'-6", who has never played for the the Mater Dei basketball program since entering the school four years ago (or so we were told by some MD faithful at the game yesterday). Of course, Mater Dei still has Jamal Sampson (6'-11" Jr. C), but he didn't play on Saturday (out with the flu), and Mike Strawberry (6'-5" So. SG/SF) was also suffering from the effects of the flu yesterday, even though he played. Cedric Bozeman (6'-5" Jr. PG/SG) appears healthy, and Mater Dei has the rest of the contingent of players including a few who have really stepped up, like Brian Baker (5'-10" Jr. PG), and James Webster (6'-3" So. SF). Whether they can stay healthy and produce the points will be intresting and this is no gimme game. USDHS has a new coach, Chris Grazier, and a bunch of new faces to go along with some of the older ones. This should be a battle of the big men too if Sampson is healthy, as he'll match up with USDHS' Chris Walton (6'-9" Sr. C) who has signed with San Diego State (turning down UCLA), and his cousin Kam Walton (6'-8" Sr. PF). We also recognize Nate Staggs (6'-0" Sr. SF), and Chris Ganan (5'-10" Sr. PG) as names from prior years, as is Mike Stockalper (6'-2" Sr. SG), but the rest of the guys are pretty much new to us, so it will be interesting to see what they can do. The Dons have always been tough but not overly physical, but they'll need to bring some of both with them tomorrow.

This is the big one: Dominguez is currently ranked by USA Today as the No. 2 team in the US, and if you read Eddie Oliver's report, they're actually the No. 1 team in the country right now. Artesia held that distinction for one week in late December, just before these two teams squared off in the finals of the Best in the West Invitational Tournament at Long Beach State, and when the Dons won that game, pretty convincingly, Artesia slipped down to No. 8 or 9. The Pioneers are currently ranked at No. 6 in the country. We won't go through the rosters again, but suffice it to say, this will be a battle of the big men down low, with Dominguez led by Tyson Chandler (7'-0" Jr. C) and Artesia led by the duo of Jack Martinez (6'-9" Jr. F) and Amaury Fernandez (6'-9" Jr. SF/PF). If you want to read our previews of Artesia, or Dominguez, or better yet, peruse the December and January "Daily Articles" to see how they've been doing. Artesia is currently 16-1 with their only loss coming to Dominguez, while the Dons are 15-2. This is going to be a war.

The Cravens, Errick (6'-2" Jr. SG/PG) and Derrick (6'-2" Jr. PG/SG) are two of the top players in the country and they showed that last night as Bishop Montgomery beat up on Washington Union by 22 points, and even if Deshawn Stevenson did manage 33 of Washington's 66, it sure looked like the Cravens really shut him down. The Craven twins are two high-major prospects, extremely athletic, with long arms and incredible rebounding skills, and an incredibly instinctive way of getting to the basket and finishing. They're deadly on the floor and just somehow find a way to score, whether it's shaking, baking, and driving, using their blindingly quick speed and amazing crossovers, or pulling up for the perimeter jumper, somehow they just go out and score. They're both All-CIF and All-State candidates again this year, as are several of the other top guards at Bishop Montgomery: DeVaughn Peace (6'-3" Jr. PG/SG) is an excellent ballhandler, quickfooted, an exceptional athlete; Kenny D'Oyen (5'-7" So. PG), is deceptively quick and strong, an excellent passer who is nicknamed the by the team, the "Energizer Bunny." They've got great shooting with guys like Leland Dodd (6'-2" Jr. SG) who is just discovering how good he can really be. Ian Salisbury (6'-0" Sr. G) and Daniel Fynaardt (6'-1" Sr. G), two athletic shooters with good handles who play tough pressure defense will also see time in the backcourt. Up front, Brian Pruitt (6'-6" Sr. PF/C) will provide a huge atheltic presence with good quickness and tremendous strength, while Craig Caldwell (6'-2" Jr. F) will provide interior defense and rebounding, as will Gavin Lee (6'-3" So. F). Lastly, the Knights will also look to Fred Washington (6'-3" Fr. SG/SF) a young but very talented wing guard, for some big scoring and slashing to the hole. The Knights will face another top set of prospects in Josh Childress (6'-6" Jr. SG/SF) who was the consensus pick as the best shooter last summer at the camp and tournament circuit; lately, he's been struggling a bit, but he doesn't have a lot of guys setting picks or screens for him which is something that Mayfair's coach Dave Breig might want to think about doing for him more often. Mayfiar has several other excellent players including Jeff Bonds (6'-5" sr. SF/PF) who has already signed with Cal Poly Pomona, James Washington (6'-3" Sr. SF/SG) Edwin Draughan (6'-5" Jr. PG/SG), Matt McCraw (6'-1" So. SG) and several others. Mayfair is going to have to bring it's track shoes because there are few teams in California capable of running the break as well as the Knights. But then there aren't many players who can fill it up like Childress can either.

Arrive early because this one could be standing room only. Seating will be unreserved, on a first-come first-served basis.

Tickets are $7 for adults and $4 for students, and that's good for the entire day. Cheap at 10 times the price.