Teams Rose, Wall play for adidas Global Nations title

• Tweet

• Tweet

GARDEN GROVE, Ca. — The teams representing the United States’ Class of 2016 took different paths Sunday night to the Monday night championship game of the adidas Global Nations playoffs.

Team Wall busted out to a 24-point advantage over Class of 2017 Team Lillard and cruised to a 117-73 victory in one semifinal on Court 1 in the Next Level Sports Center.

And, on Court 4, Team Rose led by only four points early in the fourth quarter before pulling away in the closing minutes and knocking off Team African, 105-89.

Teams Wall (for John) and Rose (Derrick) meet for the title at 6 o’clock (PT) Monday night at Cerritos College in Norwalk, two hours before Team Africa and Team Lillard play for third place.

Both games will be televised by ESPNU.

Team Wall, though, will be going into the game more than just a little hamstrung by injury.

Kyle Guy (Indianapolis Lawrence Central), who is one of the best jump shooters at the event and who committed to the University of Virginia early in his junior year suffered a severe ankle sprain Saturday and is now getting about with the aid of crutches.

Also on crutches Sunday night was Dennis Smith Jr. (Fayetteville, NC, Trinity Christian) – who had been playing as well as anyone at the event suffered a sprained knee early in the second quarter while trying to score over Gary Trent Jr. of Team Lillard.

Baring something approaching a medical miracles of sorts, Smith will be an observer sitting on the bench Monday night.

And it’s a shame, too, because Smith would have helped provide Team Wall to either out-play or at least neutralize the guard play that Rawle Alkins (24.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals per game on Sunday, including the 106-93 win over Team Lillard earlier in the day), Lonzo Ball (11.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 2.5 steals and 2.0 blocks per game), Kobi Simmons (12.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game) and Frank Jackson (12.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steals per game) provide for Team Rose.

Minus Smith and Guy, the backcourt responsibilities for Team Wall’s Payton Pritchard (12.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game on Sunday) and Markelle Fultz (15.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game) will be even more pronounced Monday night.

One of the more compelling potential individual matchups in the title game Monday evening will come whenever Team Wall’s 6-foot-10, 265-pound Udoka Azubuike (16.5 points and 6.5 rebounds on Sunday) and Team Rose’s 6-9, 250-pound Edrice Adebayo (15.0 points and 7.5 rebounds per game) are lined up against one other down low.