LAS VEGAS – Day II of the “prep school/academy” portion of the 10th Tarkanian Classic at Bishop Gorman High once again was a showcase for a couple of the prime prospects in the national Class of 2023.
Robert Dillingham, as gifted a guard as there is in the junior class, sparked the recently-formed Donda Academy squad (based in the San Fernando Valley area of Southern California), to a 76-64 victory over Denver Prep.
The 6-foot-1 Dillingham (originally from Charlotte, he was the linchpin of the CP3 EYBL team at the Peach Jam last July), got plenty of help from 6-5 Zion Cruz – especially after intermission.
Cruz, who didn’t sign a National Letter of Intent last month and is originally from Jersey City, scored 16 of his 21 points – mostly from long range – in the second half to help his team pull away.
The squad from Denver stayed tight – or ahead – for much of the game, largely due to the presence of 6-10 junior Baye Fall (pictured).
Fall, who migrated to the U.S. from Senegal in September of 2018, was the Most Outstanding Player at the Pangos Middle School All-American Camp in the Southern California in the spring of 2019.
And he was the MOP at the Pangos All-Midwest Frosh/Soph Camp in Chicago in October of 2020, and was selected the top underclassmen at the Pangos All-American Camp in Las Vegas last June, while earning all-camp honors at the NBPA Top 100 Camp in Orlando later in the summer.
The 6-10ish Fall is still a work-in-progress, fundamentally, as was quite apparent Wednesday and Thursday.
But there isn’t another “big” in high school hoops who runs as well as he does, or is as quick to the ball, glass and rim.
Fall proved all those points emphatically Thursday against Donda and its frontcourt that includes highly touted imports from the Midwest in J.J. Taylor (Chicago) and Jalen Hooks (Indianapolis).
Fall went for 30 points, 13 rebounds and five blocked shots. His second and third jumps are often quicker and bigger than his foes’ first jumps.
But the best of the prep school/academy squads on display over the first two days was – easily – Link Academy, which is based in Branson in Missouri.
Link – which is as well-coached, with impressive unselfishness, as it is “talented” – knocked off quality opponents in Southern California-based Veritas Prep and The Patrick School of New Jersey by average margins of 18 points.
It has future Big Ten standouts in its frontcourt in Tarris Reed Jr. (a University of Michigan signee last month) and Felix Okpara (Ohio State), as well as forwards headed to the Southeastern Conference in Jordan Walsh (Arkansas) and Julian Phillips (LSU).
The 16-0 Lions closed out their Tarkanian Classic competition at Bishop Montgomery against Central Pointe Christian (out of Kissimmee, FL) at 2:20 Friday afternoon.
Perry’s team is scheduled to close its regular season on Feb. 22 with, likely, its toughest opponent in Sunrise Academy of Bel Aire, KS.
Then, again more than likely, it will be among the eight squads invited to play in the Geico “national championships” (an event that doesn’t include a lot of state’s teams champions, notably California) in New York City on the first weekend of April.
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