Saturday 11/19 Scrimmage Report

Erron Nichols

Cincy Prep Hoops Report was all over the Greater Cincinnati area today, hitting 5 different scrimmages in an 8 hour period, trying to get a better feel for who the top teams are going into the season; which is creeping up quicker and quicker. Here are some thoughts on what we saw today........

• Middletown @ Withrow
• Middletown: New coach Josh Andrews seems to have really emphasized rebounding as his team did a great job boxing out the bigger Withrow team and pushing the break. While he didn't have a huge scoring day senior PG Geovonie McKnight did a excellent job setting up teammates and deferred most of the scoring duties to star sophomore wing Vincent Edwards. A bright spot for Middletown was 6'6 sophomore Chance Sorrel, who missed last year with injury. Sorrel is a wide-body inside with a love for physicality, soft hands, and the decent ability to run the floor. Considering that two starters have still not joined the team yet, as they took a week off after football season, the Middies appear to have one of Cincy's top Division I squads. 
• Withrow: The depth of Withrow continues to overwhelm CPHR. Missing big men Rozelle Nix and Devin Williams, as well as PG Tyonte Robertson, for the first two quarters the Tigers still used 6 quality players and beat Middletown by 7 points in those quarters. Senior forwards Erron Nichols and Tyler Jordan continue to be the story as their versatility from the wing of post, toughness on defense, and athletic rebounding ability make substituting that much more difficult for Coach Gilbert. For the guards, juniors Tim Coleman and Corey Wise were aggressive attacking and creating shots today while senior Damon Gooch showed consistent range on his jumpshot. 

Luke Kennard

• Franklin/Turpin @ Woodward 
• Franklin: For a unknown Division II team the Franklin Wildcats are really good, and really big! 6'5 freshman wing Luke Kennard, CPHR's #1 ranked freshman, played the point today for a team that plays a 6'6 post and two 6'8 forwards in the Rossi twins. Franklin also has the shooting ability to stretch the floor and showed a variety of well played defenses that kept opponents off balance. 
• Turpin: Sophomore guard Zach McCormick continues to show CPHR that he is one of Ohio's elite talents in his class as he was able to create shots off the dribble while the rest of the Spartan team showed they are a deep and talented group capable of making a run at Walnut Hills for the FAVC divisional crown. 
• Woodward: The Bulldogs struggled for the day but did have spurts of pressure defense turning into instant offense as they were the most athletic team at their scrimmage. Senior SF Eric Hill led the scoring for Woodward.

• Walnut Hills @ Shroder
• Walnut Hills: While they didn't have their most efficient day the Eagles got a lift from junior PG Kyree Burton who's three point shot was falling while he also was able to attack the lane. The Eagles might not have great depth but they have a talented starting group that should be really hard for opposing offenses to score on. 
• Shroder: The Jaguars impressed with their defensive intensity and played just as well on offense as they played Walnut Hills to a tie. Senior PG Trey Dees did a good job pushing the ball and then becoming more of a scorer in the half court, something that Shroder will desperately need. Senior posts Ladell Griffin and Randale Griffith did a good job on WH star post Isaiah Johnson while contributing offensively by running the floor and making some nice passes out of post-up situations when they were double teamed. 

• Colerain @ Covington Holmes (KY)
• Colerain: The Cardinals are very talented but are definitely a work in progress. The depth at the guard spot is incredible with Kiere Bennie and Bryan Porter leading the way today while Eli'sha Campbell, Milt Davis, Deiontay Waiters, and Kane Thompson played their role. Missing two of their bigger players Colerain turned up the heat and forced several Holmes turnovers; effectively turning defense into offense with fastbreak buckets. Their half court offense is in development but with their defensive effort the Cards should start the season on a good note. 

• Summit @ Simon Kenton (KY)
• Summit: In a physical full mock-game scrimmage the Silver Knights rallied from a halftime deficit to defeat Simon Kenton 60-51. The Knights look like a good team but with senior SG Tommy Kreyenhagen sidelined until February with a shoulder injury an even  heavier burden is going to be placed on junior PG Kevin Johnson and sophomore PG Antonio Woods. Both looked great today as Johnson aggressively attacked the rim and scored while Woods played his usual set-up role, with double digit assists and only one turnover. Without Kreyenhagen the Knights are in need of shooting and they might have found a spark with Joey Kreyenhagen, Tommy's sophomore brother, who provided good minutes off the bench. 

With some big time scrimmages coming up this week stay tuned to CPHR for all the team reports!