by Alex Schwartz

Session I of The Hoop Group Elite Camp at Albright College has come to an end, and it was certainly a success. On day four, I was able to watch the final fives team I had yet to see, in addition to a few squads for the second time, and one—the eventual team champion—for a third time. Many more DI programs were represented, as coaches from schools such as Auburn, Clemson, North Carolina State, and TCU were on hand. In front of these coaches, and many more as well, a handful of players on the teams I saw stood out as top performers during the playoffs (each team had two playoff games before the all-star contests).

Jonathan Angstadt ’11, Holy Name (PA)
Ike Azotam ’10, Marianapolis Prep (CT)
Melsahn Basabe ’10, St. Mark’s (MA)
Alex Bates ’10, Eleanor Roosevelt (MD)
Trivante Bloodsman ’11, Wadleigh (NY)
Shonn Brandon ’11, North Mecklenburg (NC)
Jvonte’ Brooks ’10, Foothills Christian (CA)
Jate Chesul ’11, Holy Spirit (NJ)
Cole Daley ’10, New Hanover (NC)
Rich Dobin ’10, St. Patrick’s (NJ)
Fran Dougherty ’10, Archbishop Wood (PA)
Eric Fanning ’11, Trenton Central (NJ)
Andrew Frowine ’11, North Mecklenburg (NC)
Derrick Gordon ’11, St. Patrick’s (NJ), Western Kentucky
Richard Hall ’09, Bay Shore (NY)
DJ Irving ’10, Archbishop Carroll (PA)
Armand Leaks ’10, The Shipley School (PA)
Ryan Lubreski ’09, Blair Academy (NJ)
CJ Meyer ’10, Lenape (NJ)
Matt Milk ’10, Upper Room Christian School (NY)
Pat Moore ’10, Notre Dame (NY)
Khalil Murphy ’09, APEX Academies (NJ)
Mike Poole ’10, St. Benedict’s (NJ)
Karim Rowson ’10, Wadleigh (NY)
Lamount Samuels ’09, Boys & Girls (NY)
Cory Schmidt ’10, Mercersburg Academy (PA)
John Schoof ’11, WT Woodson (VA)
Aishon White ’10, NIA Prep (NJ)
Jhamir White ’11, Paterson Catholic (NJ)
Jake Wiegand ’11, Chantilly (VA)
Dashaun Wiggins ’10, Wings Academy (NY)
Brandon Williams ’10, Boys & Girls (NY)

There was really one player out of all of those who shined the brightest, and it was Karim Rowson. The Big Apple baller can really play. A6’5 wing, Rowson makes getting to the hole looks simple. In addition, he can shoot the rock, and is a deadly offensive player. Rowson is one of those true tough New York players who plays the game with passion and intensity.

The championship game in the NBA East was a matchup between two squads that pulled upsets in the semifinals. Kevin Sullivan, an assistant coach at Lawrence Academy (MA), led Team 2 to the finals, with Bishop McNamara(MD) Head Coach Marty Keithline took Team 3 to the title tilt. Team 2 was led by Western Kentucky-commit Derrick Gordon ’11 of St. Patrick’s (NJ), ShaqDuncan ’10 of Frankford (PA), Ike Azotam ’10 of Marianapolis Prep (CT), and PatMoore ’10 of Notre Dame (NY) throughout the course of the camp. Melsahn Basabe ’10of St. Mark’s (MA) and Maurice Harkless ’11 from Forest Hills (NY) were the main men for Team 3 at camp. Team 2 led for much of the game, but could not really pull away until the fourth quarter when Pat Moore just took over,repeatedly scoring around the hole. When all was said and done, Team 2 walked away with the title, knocking off Team 3 by 15+. The players were given Team Champion t-shirts at the Award Ceremony.

Speaking of the award ceremony, here is a rundown of some of the honorees:

NBA East Most Improved Player: David Wishon ’10, First Assembly Christian (NC)
NBA East Most Outstanding Prospect: Derrick Gordon ’11, St. Patrick’s (NJ),Western Kentucky
NBA East Most Outstanding Player: Melsahn Basabe ’10, St. Mark’s (MA)
NCAA Most Outstanding Player: Marcus Maye ’12, Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy(FL)

I completely agree with the choice of Basabe as The HoopGroup Elite Camp Session I Most Outstanding Player. The 6’7 big man, who is actually from New York, was great all week and led his team to the championship game. Congratulations to all three of these players, as well as all the other award recipients.

Once they were done giving out the awards, the All-Star selections were announced. Check out list of the players who were the eliteperformers in the games themselves. A complete list of the all-stars will becoming soon!

NBA East Top 20 Game
Melsahn Basabe ’10, St. Mark’s (MA)
Jamir Hanner ’10, South Philly (PA)
Bernard Sullivan ’11, North Mecklenburg (NC)

NBA East Senior Game
Cameron Gunter ’10, Ridley (PA)
David Samuels ’10, Blessed Sacrament (NY)
Anthony Taylor ’10, Egg Harbor Township (NJ)

NBA East Underclassmen Game
Darion Atkins ’11, Landon School (MD)
Deon Jones ’11, undecided
Scott Slade ’11, Monsignor Bonner (PA)

In the Top 20 Game, which was the final contest of Session I, Jamir Hanner was selected as the MVP, helping lead his Blue squad to a 93-73victory. The 6’7 power forward had 12 points and 11 rebounds. In the Senior Game, it was 6’7 big David Samuels who was chosen as the MVP, as his Blue team won 87-80. Darion Atkins was chosen as the MVP of the Underclassmen Game, as the 6’7 big man’s squad won 92-75. Interestingly, all three MVPs were big men,despite the fact that all-star games are usually all about the guards.

During the day I was able to collect a half dozen school lists.

Mike Poole ’10, St. Benedict’s (NJ): Providence ,Kansas State, Iona, Florida International, Rhode Island, Seton Hall, USC,Norfolk State, and Duquesne
                                Offers: Providence ,Kansas State, Iona, Florida International, Rhode Island, Seton Hall, USC, and Duquesne
                                Favorites: Providence, Iona, Duquesne, and Kansas State
                                Dream School: UConn

Karim Rowson ’10, Wadleigh (NY): Providence, Manhattan,Hofstra, and Binghamton
                                      Offers: Manhattan and Binghamton
                                      Favorites: None
                                      Dream School: Marquette

Oliver Ellison ’11, Gonzaga (DC): Boston College
                                   Favorites: n/a
                                   Dream School: Syracuse

Pat Moore ’10, Notre Dame (NY): Colgate, Columbia,Bucknell, Davidson, Siena, Fairfield, Iona, and Harvard
                              Offers: Colgate
                              Favorites: Colgate and Siena
                              Dream School: None

Alex Bates ’10, Eleanor Roosvelt (MD): LIU, Elon,Navy, Army, St. Francis, Quinnipiac, Niagara
                             Offers: None
                             Favorites: Elon and Navy
                             Dream School: None
                             Note- Bates was not 100% sure as to whether it was St. Francis of PA or St. Francis of NY that is recruiting him.

Bernard Sullivan ’11, North Mecklenburg (NC):Clemson, Florida, Georgetown, Davidson, North Carolina State, and South Carolina
                                         Offers: Clemson and South and Davidson
                                         Favorite: Clemson
                                         Dream School: North Carolina

The Hoop Group Elite Camp Session I came to an end on day three of the July Live Evaluation period, and coming soon will also be my recaps from Team Camp on the 9^th and 10^th!

For more from The Hoop Group, the leader in grassroots basketball events, check out http://hoopgroup.com/hoopgroup/index.php.