Gaffney's Peak leaves for Chicago

First Sindarius Thornwell.  Now LJ Peak.  The state of South Carolina has now recently two of its most promising players move on to new high schools for the upcoming season.  Thornwell, featured in this excerpt from "The Hoops TV: Episode 2," will attend formidable Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia.  And Eric Bossi (@ebosshoops) of Rivals.com has informed Twitter followers that LJ Peak, who led his Gaffney High School squad to a AAAA South Carolina State Championship as a sophomore, has moved to Chicago and will attend Whitney Young High School.

Both Thornwell and Peak have national profiles, ranked 43rd and 55th in their respectively classes.  So the changes are likely not driven by the desire for more "exposure."  

Both players have been major factors on their high school and AAU teams.  Thornwell led his Lancaster High School squad to a 24-4 record during his junior season.  And Lancaster's favorite son led his Team United travel team deep into the EYBL Finals at the Peach Jam, finally losing to the highly respected CIA Bounce in the quarterfinals of Nike's grassroots basketball championship tournament.

In addition to obtaining a state title as a sophomore, Peak helped to immediately establish the newly formed Upward Stars AAU program as a national force.  According to Bossi, a family move to Illinois is the reason for Peak's transfer.

To be sure, the Palmetto State still has a significant number of exciting players to watch this season.  Marcus Stroman (Keenan), Matt Howard (AC Flora), PJ Dozier (Spring Valley), Austin Ajukwa (Cardinal Newman) are only a few of South Carolina's players to watch during the upcoming season.  And Thornwell and Peak are unlikely to forget their roots as they take their impressive games on the road.

ABR TV: Episode 2

During the second episode of the new and improved version of ABR TV, we speak with Frank Booker, Westside High School's star shooting guard.  As you will see, Booker has compiled a long list of accomplishments.  And he is poised to have a great senior season for the Patriots.

OntheRadarHoops.com scout and resident Georgia recruiting expert Shun Williams also makes an appearance from the Suwannee Sports Academy studio to weigh in on Booker and to describe some of his recent and upcoming events.  In addition to being the "capital of grassroots basketball" in the Southeast and beyond, the Suwannee Sports Academy is the home of a new studio constructed to showcase the great traffic of high level basketball players going through the metro Atlanta based basketball hub.  Enjoy!

The Hoops Show: Episode 3

During the latest episode of The Hoops Show, special guest Carey Rich discusses the South Carolina Pro Am.  Rich, a former University of South Carolina Gamecock point guard and current 560 AM sports talk radio host, shares his insight about the professional, collegiate, and prep players who participated in the league.  And he also talks generally about basketball in the state of South Carolina and beyond.

ABR TV: Southern Kings 15u

During the first episode of the new version of ABR TV, we take a close look at the Southern Kings 15u AAU team with Kings coach Rodney Johnson.  These mostly rising sophomores from the greater Augusta, GA, area have distinguished themselves during the past twelve months by making a major impact at the varsity level during the high school season.  And the players travelled across the country during the Spring and Summer, proving in tournament after tournament that a group of hard working players from one area can compete with the best teams anywhere.  Enjoy coach Johnson's analysis of his team and his players.  And listen to Evans High School coach Kevin Kenny as he explains his ideas about AAU basketball at different ages and levels.  Coach Kenny also gives a sneak preview of what is ahead for his Evans High School squad!

The Hoops Show: Episode 2

During episode 2 of The Hoops Show, guest Marcus Shockley of BasketballElite.com and host Chad Cook of AugBball.com discuss several topics:

1) The Power 24 AAU tournament.  Shun Williams of On the Radar Hoops (OntheRadarHoops.com) made his first evaluation period AAU tournament a great one by featuring some of the top AAU teams in the Southeast.

2)  Recruiting violations and an especially entertaining reaction.

3)  We take a close look at the incoming Oak Hill Academy guard and highly regarded player Sindarius Thornwell.  The rising senior has played three impressive seasons at Lancaster High School in South Carolina.  More recently, he has made his mark on the Nike EYBL AAU circuit and the SC Pro Am league in Columbia, South Carolina.

4)  A discussion about a much talked about July AAU game.

Hill Knows the Formula

Ahmed Hill: Aquinas High School
Photo Courtesy of Ty Freeman

Ahmed Hill, who was featured in the first episode of "The Hoops Show," spent much of his Spring and Summer developing his basketball skills.  It is noteworthy that the prep standout who has received scholarship offers from many of the nation's premiere basketball programs focused specifically on the areas of his game most in need of improvement.  And it is telling that, after a fine July month on the "AAU circuit," the coaches and scouts who are so impressed with Hill's abilities list the areas of the game that he and his astute AAU coach, Mike Stokes, identified late in the Spring as skills needing extra refinement: notably Hill's ability to score off the dribble.

Aspiring basketball players can learn from Hill.  To the casual observer, the explosive guard has a lot going for himself, playing for an AAU team that competes in the nation's biggest tournaments, namely the Nike EYBL Finals at the Peach Jam, where the Southern Stampede came within one possession of winning the impressive tournament's 16 & Under division, and the loaded Power 24, a tournament that Hill's squad won after beating all opponents in a "super pool" consisting of top teams from all over the southeast.  But Hill's success has much less to do with the tournaments his team attends than the time and effort he expends in the gym between those tournaments.  While many high school players spend nearly every weekend of the Spring and Summer competing in AAU tournaments, Stampede coach Mike Stokes is selective in choosing where and when to compete.

"The Hoops Show:" Episode 1

The creators of AugBball.com and BasketbalElite.com are collaborating to present "The Hoops Show."  The topics covered in the first episode include the players and teams that made the biggest impact at the 2012 Nike EYBL Finals at the Peach Jam.  During future episodes, we will feature various contributors and topics.  Enjoy the first episode!

Dominique Lacy and the SC Pro Am

Dominique Lacy Highlights (SC Pro Am Action)


After broadcasting live (AugBball.com) and live tweeting highlights (@AugBball) and commentary for two sessions at the SC Pro Am (SCProAm.com) in Columbia, South Carolina, one thing is obvious:  Dominique Lacy has made a huge name for himself among the professional and college players, the coaches, and the fans involved with this impressive league.  Lacy played his collegiate basketball at UNC-Wilmington and is entering his third professional season after playing for one year in Germany and another in Bahrain.

During a recent game, Terry Dozier, most recently the incoming coach at new Columbia area high school Westwood Academy and formerly a standout for the South Carolina Gamecocks, the Charlotte Hornets, and several international clubs, called Lacy "the player who has had the best summer at the SC Pro Am."  Dozier, who coaches the DJ's Seafood team in the summer league, went on to explain that Lacy only needs an NBA team with the appropriate "fit" to give him an opportunity for the electric wing to make his way onto basketball's biggest stage.

We too are big fans of Lacy.  It is hard not to be.  He competes relentlessly in all areas of the game and genuinely enjoys playing the game the right way, supporting teammates and giving maximum effort regardless of the score.  Lest we forget, Lacy is an extremely gifted player, as you can see in the highlight video above.  And yes, all of these highlights were collected over the course of two games.  And yes, we did leave a lot of stuff out.  And yes, the highlight of his dunk last Thursday night did, in a matter of hours, make its way from the @AugBball twitter feed all the way to the top of SportsCenter's "Top 10 Plays."

Basketball fans in the Columbia area are well advised to attend SC Pro Am sessions (admission is free!) on Sundays and Thursdays at Heathwood High School.  And those who cannot attend in person should check out the live broadcast of the games at www.AugBball.com.  The first of Thursday's four games begins at 5:30 P.M.

Broadcasting Live: Southern Stampede vs Upward Stars

We are broadcasting live from the Power 24, bringing our viewers a great match up between the Southern Stampede and the Upward Stars.  Go to AugBball.com for a preview of this match up, including a close look at the Stampede's Marcus Stroman and Ahmed Hill, and Upward's LJ Peak.

Although the link on AugBball.com lists a 5 P.M. start time, we estimate the game will begin closer to 5:10.  Check it out!

The SC Pro Am Goes Viral!

@AugBball Presents: The Full and Original Footage of Dominique Lacy's Dunk at the SC Pro Am...
This plays was the Number 1 Play on Sportscenter's "Top 10 Plays" on July 26, 2012!





Last night we broadcast live from the SC Pro Am at AugBball.com.  The talent was impressive and the action exciting.The league, only months old, was formed by former South Carolina Gamecock point guard, and current 560 AM (Columbia, SC) radio personality, "The Captain" Carey Rich.  Rich has deep ties in the basketball world, and only such a person can so quickly assemble so many teams (nine) made up of so many present and former college basketball players.

The teams feature players from Division I programs like South Carolina, Clemson, Auburn, Presbyterian, USC Upstate, South Carolina State, Gardner Webb, and Winthrop, and players from major Division II schools like USC-Aiken and Benedict, among other notable college basketball programs.

In addition to the great talent, the SC Pro Am features an electric atmosphere that can only be produced by the combination of very talented players competing fiercely to prove they belong in the league, and to earn bragging rights.

Rich told us in an on air interview that he promised the college coaches whose players are participating that his league will provide a viable option for major college basketball players to compete against peers and to replicate the intensity found at the highest level of college basketball.  And he has fulfilled that promise!

But Rich has also added another wrinkle to his innovative concept: he has chosen five of South Carolina's top high school players, prospects he is confident will play major college basketball in the future, to participate.  And during Thursday's 9:15 P.M. feature game, one that included former South Carolina great Devon Downey, one of those prep standouts stole the show.  Playing with and against the type of players he will face in the near future on the major college level, 6'5" Lancaster High School guard Sindarius Thornwell scored 9 of his Steadman Hawkins Clinic squad's initial 13 points before scoring 22 in the game.  Thornwell, who will attend prep power Oak Hill Academy next school year, repeatedly attacked the basket, scoring in the paint, in the mid range, and from deep.

In addition to the fine basketball, the fine crowd, and the fine sponsors (learn about the league's supporters at SCProAm.com), one specific moment from Thursday's action created a buzz that began in the Heathwood Hall High School gym and quickly spread throughout the globe.  Former UNC Wilmington player Dom Lacy's second half dunk over a defender was so thunderous, so athletic, so amazing, that the live video clip that @AugBball "live tweeted" instantly became ESPN Sportscenter's #1 selection in its daily tally of the top 10 plays from the sports world!

See the video (above) of Lacy's amazing dunk and the capacity crowd's reaction.  And see any or all of the full game footage from the night's four games at AugBball.com.  And visit SCProAm.com for more information about the league.

Brodcasting Live: SC Pro Am!

Click here to see the SC Pro Am live.  The first of four games start at 5:30 P.M.  South Carolina's best pro's, college players, and a select few high school players, will be competing!

And go to SCProAm.com to see the players who will be in action!

Last Minute Prep for Peach Jam: CP3 and Team United

We are very excited to bring our viewers live broadcasting and highlights from the best basketball players in the country during the upcoming Nike EYBL Finals at the Peach Jam and the Peach State Invitational.  We will broadcast every "Peach Jam" game at iHigh.com/augustabasketball.  And we will "live tweet" (@AugBball) the Peach Jam and Peach State games, providing real time highlights and analysis.

During the past few days, and throughout the Spring and Summer, we have flooded this site (and our Twitter feed) with video footage of many of the teams that will visit the Augusta/North Augusta/Aiken area Wednesday, July 18, through Sunday, July 22.  Tonight we share video footage of two North Carolina based Peach Jam participants with whom we became familiar during 6thmanbasketball.com 's Queen City Showcase in Concord, North Carolina:  The CP3 All Stars and Team United.

Team United played one of its Queen City games without standouts Sindarius Thornwell, Kennedy Meeks, and Matt Howard.  But Team United's capable guards played impressively, despite the trio's absence, in an impressive victory against the formidable Upward Stars.  We highlight Team United's guards here:



And earlier in the event, we released this video, which features Meeks and Howard:



And now it is time to have a little fun.  While court side in Concord, some fans got a glimpse of a piece of footage we have stored from Team United's Sindarius Thornwell's junior season at Lancaster High School.  Once word got out about the clip, we rewinded and played it dozens of times for interested fans.  So we show it here:



Now we move to the CP3 All Stars.  Our Twitter followers (follow us at @AugBball) may have seen the videos we have released featuring the CP3 16u and 17u teams in games against the Upward Stars.  But we present them here to readers of this blog.

CP3 16u vs Upward Stars 16u at the Queen City Invitational



CP3 17u vs Upward Stars 17u at the Queen City Invitational

Queen City Showcase: Above the Rim!

In this special video, you can check out the "Top 12" dunks that we caught on film this week at the Queen City Showcase in Concord, North Carolina.  Tweet us at @AugBball if you think we got the order wrong!

Queen City Showcase Feature: SKG 15u vs CP3 15u

One of the Queen City Showcase games ABR Live streamed live Thursday, July 12, was a matchup between two of the southeast's best 15 & Under AAU teams.  The Southern Kings 15u (based in Augusta, Georgia) and the CP3 All Stars (based in North Carolina) met for the second time this season.

The game featured many talented players and several highly skilled guards.  Enjoy the highlight footage (below) of the game.  During the weekend we will continue to publish video footage, pictures, and commentary from the Queen City Showcase in Concord, North Carolina.

 

Queen City Showcase Special Feature: Luke May (Queen City Thunder)

Luke May, a 6'7" wing who will graduate with the class of 2015, grabbed our attention in a game earlier today.  Watch the video below to see why...

#QueenCityShowcase Special Feature: Meeks and Howard (Team United)

Marcus Shockley (@M_Shockley) from basketballelite.com informed us yesterday of possible interest in 6'9" center Kennedy Meeks (Team United) from elite programs like Kentucky and North Carolina.  After seeing the skill set and size Meeks possesses, it is easy to believe that the top teams in college basketball are intrigued.  And guard Matt Howard is another elite player, both on and off the court.  According to Shockley, the 6'4" Howard is being pursued by the likes of Harvard and Stanford. Programs like Harvard and Stanford are drawn to players like Howard, who are highly talented basketball players and accomplished students.  The clips in this short video should give viewers a visual representation of the types of things these two players do so well on the court.

Queen City Showcase Special Feature: Charlotte Jets North

In addition to broadcasting Queen City Showcase games live at iHigh.com/augustabasketball, we are consistently publishing "special features" on this site and on our twitter feed (@AugBball).

Late last night we released our "Wednesday's Top Performers" video, featuring Justin Mckie (Upward Stars 17u), LJ Peak (Upward Stars 16u), Dustin Dodd (Charlotte Reign), Matt Howard (Team United) and PJ Dozier (Upward Stars 16u).

And this morning we published this highlight video, featuring the event's opening game between the Charlotte Reign and Keenan High School.

The newest release (featured above) provides a close look at the impressive Charlotte Jets North squad. The Jets nearly defeated the formidable Upward Stars in last night's 7PM game (see archived broadcast here).

Queen City Showcase: Charlotte Reign vs Keenan HS

As we continue to broadcast live from the Queen City Showcase in Concord, North Carolina, we will publish highlights from the tournament throughout the day.  Earlier we posted a video featuring Wednesday evening's top performers.  Now we share highlights from an entertaining game between the Charlotte Reign and Keenan High School.

Charlotte was led by Dustin Dodd (11), Patrick Wallace (22), and James Chapman (15).  Keenan High School benefited from balanced scoring and great floor play from future South Carolina Gamecock Marcus Stroman.  Enjoy the highlights and watch games live at iHigh.com/augustabasketball.

Queen City Showcase: Wednesday's Top Performers

See highlights (below) from Wednesday's top performers at the Queen City Showcase.  ABR Live is broadcasting live from court 1 at 6thmanbasketball.org 's event in Concord, North Carolina.  Visit iHigh.com/augustabasketball to see teams like the CP3 All Stars, the Upward Stars, Team United, and the Southern Kings play live all day Wednesday.  And check back here and follow our Twitter feed (@AugBball) for updates and highlights.

ABR TV, Episode 4: Georgia Stars Elite 16u

The important "July evaluation period" begins today, and ABR Live will be broadcasting games live (iHigh.com/augustabasketball) from the Queen City Showcase in Charlotte, North Carolina.  During the next several weeks, we aim to provide basketball fans with great information and video footage from the nation's best AAU tournaments.

Tonight we release Episode 4 of ABR TV, featuring the Georgia Stars 16u Elite squad.