Rotary rolls in Pangos Rocky Mountain Summit opener

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ST. GEORGE, UT – The Seattle-based Rotary Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) 17s squad had a chance to show what might have been Friday night at the Nets of Fire sports facility in the opening day of the Pangos Rocky Mountain Summit.

It has a roster built to challenge as the best on the Nike-fronted spring EYBL and come out atop during July’s Peach Jam championship. But the COVID-19 pandemic dashed those aspirations – and those of the rest of the EYBL’s 40 or so squads.

The Rotary club, however, would have been a tough nut to crack for any EYBL opponent to knock off under normal circumstances.

That was evident Friday night as Rotary handled Prodigy Elite – a quality, non-athletic apparel affiliated opponent from Southern California – in forceful fashion, 69-45.

With a lineup that included Class of 2021 players committed to Duke (Seattle O’Dea’s 6-foot-10, 245-pound Paolo Banchero/pictured), Gonzaga (6-9 Kaden Perry of Battleground) and Kentucky (6-2 Nolan Hickman, a three-year standout at Eastside in Sammamish, WA who will play for Wasatch Academy in Utah as a senior), Rotary was too big and strong up front and skilled in the backcourt for its Southern California counterparts, 69-45.

Banchero (11 points) and the quick- and big-jumping Perry (six) dominated the lane while Hickman – who could prove to be the best of the 2021 western-based guards – led the way with 17 points by way of his tight jump shots and nifty floaters and drives.

Rotary, which plays against two other SoCal-based teams Saturday (San Diego’s Border Boyz and Long Beach’s Belmont Shore), is much more than the aforementioned “Big Three” of Banchero, Hickman and Perry.

Six-six Shane Nowell and 6-5 Jaylahn Tuimoloau are now former Eastside teammates of Hickman but also figure to be on major college rosters a year from now.

The left-handed Nowell is likely the fourth best basketball prospect on the Rotary roster while Tuimoloau is the consensus No. 1 defensive line prospect in the Class of 2021.

Six-three Drew Carter (Tigard in Portland) committed to the University of Colorado – as a quarterback – a couple of weeks ago and 6-3 Leo DeBruhl (Seattle Academy) has considerable skill as a jump shooter and playmaker.

Prodigy Elite, which plays a squad loaded with some of the best in Colorado (Billups Elite) Saturday morning, got 14 points from R.J. Smith (Damien) and 11 from Jahmai Mashack (Etiwanda).

The Rotary program, which has five other team across the three divisions here, also got a dominating (105-61) effort from its 16s “Black” squad against the Salt Lake City Rebels.

One of the west’s – and nation’s – best guards in the Class of 2022, Koren Johnson (Garfield), led the way with five 3’s and a game-high 21 points.

The Border Boyz are led by one of the nation’s most hyped members of the Class of 2023 in 6-2 Mikey Williams.

But his 24 points weren’t enough as the SoCal Buzz squad as Andrew Pipersburgh (Serra in Gardena/16 points), 6-11 Brody Rowbury (Meridian in Idaho/12) and Christian Estrada (St. John Bosco in Bellflower/10) were too potent up front for its San Diego opponent, 68-60.

Belmont Shore has a roster dotted with some of the West’s best in 2022, notably guards Richard Isaacs (Las Vegas by way of Wasatch Academy), JoJo Hunter (San Joaquin Memorial in Fresno) and Tajavis Miller (Servite in Anaheim) and 6-7 Jeremiah Nyarko (St. John Bosco in Bellflower).

All had strong moments in their team’s 76-46 decision against Salt Lake City Metro Black.