CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Rockets, with a coaching staff fronted by current NBA guard Rajon Rondo, will take a 6-0 record into the Saturday morning start to the NBPA Top 100 Camp tournament on the final day of the 24th version of the event in John Paul Jones Arena on the University of Virginia campus.
Friday the Rockets knocked off the Bulls (87-64) and then the Heat (83-76) to remain the only unbeaten squad among the 10 camp teams.
Rondo got a terrific offensive performances from junior-to-be forward Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (Shawnee Mission, KS, Bishop Miege) as he also got from Class of 2018 shooting guards Joseph Wieskamp (Muscatine, IA, High) and Anferne Simons (Orlando, FL, Edgewater).
The 6-foot-8 Robinson hit 15 of 20 shots from the floor (including two of three from behind the arc) while scoring a collective 34 points and grabbing 10 rebounds Friday.
Wieskamp, who is committed to signing with the University of Iowa in November, dropped in 15 of 18 shots while scoring 34 points.
Simons, committed to Louisville, knocked in a whole bunch of jump shots in his eight of 14 shooting effort that included a couple of 3s.
The Rockets also got a nice day out of point guard Jordan McCabe (Kaukauna, WI, High) had a collective 10 points and 10 assists.
And they also got another couple of strong on-the-ball defensive efforts from guard Luther Muhammad (Jersey City, NJ, Hudson Catholic).
On the topic of defense . . .
No one has played it any better than has 2019 point guard Ashton Hagans (Mouth of Wilson, VA, Oak Hill Academy) for the Knicks.
Hagans was credited with just one shot from the field, with three free throws for five points, during his team’s 84-56 win over the Bucks Friday night.
But it was the disruption he caused on the defensive end, via his quick hands and feet as well as ample tenacity, that were much more eye-catching that any on-paper, post-game numbers.
Jahvon Quinerly (a teammate of Muhammad’s at Hudson Catholic) had sizzled over the first two and a half days of camp when he’d been the best point guard from the Class of 2018.
But Hagans blocked his first jump shot attempt to start things and his relentless harassment helped contribute to Quinerly’s seven turnovers and four of 11 shooting performance.
Hagans was credited with five assists, five steals, two blocked shots and just one turnover while helping his team earn the No. 2 seed in the playoffs that begin at 10:45 Saturday morning.
Notre Dame-bound point guard Prentiss Hubb (Washington, DC, Gonzaga Prep) also played like one of the very best at his position Friday while helping the Warriors win both of their contests.
The left hander hit a combined eight of 10 shots from the floor (including six of eight behind the arc) for 22 points with 11 assists and just two turnovers.
Many of those 11 assists, of course, came via passes to Simisola Shittu (Saxons River, VT, Vermont Academy) and Cassius Stanley (Chatsworth, CA, Sierra Canyon).
Other strong two-game performances were turned in Friday by, among others:
*Keldon Johnson (Spurs/Huntington, WV, Prep) went for 28 points and nine rebounds in a win over the Lakers and 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists in a loss to the Celtics;
*Armando Bacot (Celtics/Richmond, VA, Trinity Episcopal) averaged 13.5 points and 9.5 rebounds as his team swept the Bucks and Spurs;
*Matt Bradley (Lakers/Mt. Pleasant, UT, Wasatch Academy) hit nine of 11 shots from the field and nine of 11 from the free-throw line while averaging 13.5 points as his team split games with the Spurs and 76ers.
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