AAU Nationals Championship Game Live Blog
August 1st, 2007 Posted in AAU Basketball(AAU National’s photo and video highlights linked here)
Final: Breakdown holds the ball for the last minute to claim a 74-45 win. There’s no huge celebration. But these games really are about more than wins and losses. The national TV exposure some of these kids received does more for their recruiting opportunities than anything else.
2:08: Vargas just got a slam for Breakdown. One thing I’ve learned this week is that college coaches like a little flash with their recruits. Perhaps it’s because it puts butts in seats.
3:50: What is it about Ohio and Florida? They’ve decided the championships in AAU ball, two NCAA sports and the last two presidential election.
4:08: Bailey is shooting free throws moments after Taylor, the little guy, put on a brief dribbling demonstration before darting to the basket. Taylor knows the names of almost every point guard 5-6 or shorter to play in the NBA. He called Mugsy Bogues an NBA legend, but he had a little trouble remember Spud Webb, the original poster boy for tiny, but talented, NBA guards.
5:18: Barnes picks up his second foul, and Blackwell hits two foul shots to give Team Breakdown a 64-35 lead. The King of the Court coach just pulled Roe, Pritchard and Dobbs out of the game, the equivalent of waving the white flag.
7:40: Vargas scored on a nifty layup after faking to his right and ducking to his left. He had Pritchard crossed up. Eloy’s stock is rising so quickly that he’s sure to have calls pouring in after tonight.
End of Third Period: Clanton enjoyed a hearty laugh after attempting a three-pointer just before the buzzer. It skimmed the front of the rim. Vargas spent the last 90 seconds of the third period on the bench. It’s 56-30 with eight minutes to play. Boynton will start the fourth period on the bench. He might be done for the night. Taylor and Blackwell are now the guards. Bailey is also ont he floor with Vargas and Clanton. The starters are on the floor for King of the Court.
0:54: Boynton just hit a pull-up jumper from the left side. It arced high and swished through the net. That makes it 56-30. But Knight just picked up his third foul.
1:33: Boynton just nailed a three-pointer from the top of the key to make it 54-28. He’s going to be Team Breakdown’s high scorer unless something dramatic takes place.
3:17: Vargas now has 10 points and three blocked shots. He also is forcing King of the Court to alter shots.
3:45: Vargas scored again, and Boynton then got a dunk off a steal. Knight got a layup off another steal to make it a quick 6-0 run. Breakdown leads 46-26, and there’s a media timeout. But there are no timeouts here.
4:33: Barnes hit back-to-back three-pointesrs to cut the lead to 40-26.
6:00: Seconds after noting that Boynton is a lot shorter than some of the other guards in his class, such as 6-5 William Buford, the Breakdown guard soared high against a much taller defender and scored off the glass. It’s now 40-20, and King of the Court launched another airball.
6:18: The second half is under way, and the problems continue for Roe. He was just called for traveling. Vargas, the big guy, just hit his second three-pointer. Something tells me his stock is rising by the moment. Knight scored on the next trip down. It’s 36-17. The run is now 16-2 since about the midway point of the second period.
Halftime: Boynton hits a layup. Knight scores a runner and then gets a putback just before the buzzer after Taylor swipes the ball and misses a layup. Breakdown is now on an 11-2 run. The halftime lead is 31-17.
1:18: A three-pointer by Vargas and a bucket by Taylor gives the Breakdown a 25-17 lead.
2:17: King of the Court just can’t get a bucket. They took four shots on the last possession and came away with nothing after Holt’s reverse layup bounced away.
3:13: King of the Court held the ball for ages. When they Holt finally drove to the basket, Vargas got his second block in as many King of the Court possessions. It was his third of the game.
3:59: Breakdown calls a 30-second timeout to talk about their defense. King of the Court was stalling on the last possession, possibly trying to run out the clock. They still trail 20-15.
5:20: After an airball on a three-point attempt by Boynton, Breakdown got a steal and a slam by Clanton, who did a nice job of running the floor. Roe answered with a turnaround jumper from the right side, but he picked up his second foul moments later and went to the bench.
End of First Period: Pritchard scored his third bucket of the game, but Boynton answered with a trey. Breakdown now leads 18-13. Boynton scored seven points in the first period, and Pritchard, who also is being recruited by several top Division I colleges, has six.
2:40: Bailey just got a putback after an airball. That came after Roe missed a three-pointer. Team Breakdown is extremely fired up for this one. They lead 13-8 after Holt hits a three-pointer.
8:19: Roe made an impressive basket in the lane. He went high and, with a nice touch, sank a left-handed shot. Pritchard just picked up his first foul with 3:31 to play in the first period. And I’ve just realized that I probably should be using the game time rather than East Coast time on my posts. So, don’t think that it’s suddenly 3 a.m. when you see my next post.
8:18—Vargas scored inside and Boynton scored on Breakdown’s next possession to give the team a 10-4 lead. They’re on a 7-0 run.
8:15—Vargas is actually guarding Pritchard, and Roe is matched with Reliford, who just drew a foul from Roe. He made the shot and the free throw that followed to give Team Breakdown a 6-4 lead.
8:13—Vargas just blocked a shot, but Pritchard got the rebound and put in a left-handed layup. Knight answered with a bucket, but Pritchard made another at his end.
8:11—Guard Kenny Boynton is considered by many college coaches to be one of the nation’s premier rising juniors. He’s also a scorer for Team Breakdown, but the real story with him is that he announced in early June that he is not returning to the high school where he averaged 29 points last season. I plan to ask him about his plans after tonight’s game. Stay tuned for that. Team Breakdown’s Coach Kenny Gillion just shouted in the pre-game huddle: “Cut off the head, the body will die.” And it’s time for the tip.
8:09—In a preview story posted to the site early today, it was noted that the game features some of the nation’s best prep players. Among them is Knight. He’s a scorer. Eloy Vargas is as well, but he can also crash the boards. You can expect King of the Court power forward Delvon Roe to pull down the most rebounds tonight, but Vargas will get his share. One of the more impressive players in 5-6 Ray Taylor. He’s a speedster, and his perimeter is unquestionably some of the best to be found anywhere in the country. He’s a little overlooked at this point, but the rising junior already has heard from DuQuesne University and Florida Atlantic University, among others.
8:02—The captains are shaking hands at midcourt. Here are the rosters for the two teams:
Team Breakdown
2 Zach Bailey, G
32 Keith Clanton, F
11 Brandon Knight, G
23 Eloy Vargas, C
3 Kenny Boynton, G
1 Ray Taylor, G
4 David Blackwell, G
15 Bo Reliford, F
King of the Court
9 Nate Barnes, G
20 Randall Holt, G
22 Frankie Dobbs, G
24 Delvon Roe, F
55 Tom Pritchard, C
11 Kendall Holt, G
42 Jorgio Lacy, F
44 Dee Chapman, F
The AAU 17U Junior Division National Championship game is about 15 minutes from start time at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex a short drive west of Orlando.
South Florida’s Team Breakdown is prepared to do battle with Ohio’s King of the Court at the Milk House in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Both teams are going through their warmups. There’s a peculiar rule in place, perhaps not an official rule. Apparently, each team can only have four balls on the floor at one time.
