The Southern Invitational AAU Basketball tournament was held this past weekend at the Boo Williams Complex in Hampton, Virginia, with Mark Watson on site covering the event for Blue Devil Nation.
Semi-finals action saw all three 2010 Duke commits in action against each other as Boo Williams, featuring Andre Dawkins, defeated DC Assault, featuring Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton, 63-54.
Dawkins led Boo Williams by scoring 26 points with 23 coming during the second half. In the first half, Tyler Thornton played shutdown defense on Dawkins limiting him to three points. Foul trouble caught up with Thornton so he was unable to keep up the defensive pressure. Highly touted 2011 prospect James McAdoo scored 16 points for Boo Williams.
Josh Hairston was limited to three points in the contest. Hear all the details from Mark in this audio update over at Roundballrecruiting.com.
In the Championship Game, CP3 made a statement via a dominating 93-70 victory over Boo Williams. This is a game everyone expected to be close but it was anything but close. CP3 was led by UNC bound Reggie Bullock, Wake Forest bound Melvin Tabb, 2011 player PJ Hairston, and a relatively unknown point guard named Chapman. Hear all the details here.
News from the earlier action is here and here. Be sure and check back as Blue Devil Nation will be providing much additional coverage of the Southern Invitational over the next several days.
I will be on the AAU scene covering the Southern Invitational in Hampton, Virginia. Future Dukies Andre Dawkins, Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton will show off their skills and we'll update you throughout the event on Blue Devil Nation Premium. Check back in to hear the latest on the recruiting trail. Get on the inside by joining BDN Premium today! You will then be activated and will have full access to the site including our members only message board. We look forward to seeing you.
AAU Coverage and discussion on Roundball Recruiting
If you would like to hear an internet call in radio show on college basketball recruiting, check out this link. I was a last minute guest on Marc Maggard's Roundball Recruiting show where we discussed John Wall and other recruiting issues. It's free to listen to the replay and you'll want to go to the April 23rd show. We discuss Harrison Barnes, Andre Dawkins, Duke and Kentucky recruiting and more. Here is the link: Roundball Recruiting Podcast
Andre Dawkins surveys the court during the Boo Williams Invitational - BDN Photo
I've now seen Andre Dawkins play in twelve games and the Duke commitment has made huge strides from being the six man on last seasons Boo Williams team. It was clear to me on a trip to Richmond earlier this season that Dawkins had improved greatly since the summer. Maybe it was there all along, but the thing that caught my eye was his athleticism. In the first five games I had scouted Dawkins, he was primarily a long rang threat, capable of scoring points in bunches. Now, Dawkins is showing off his athleticism by coming all the way across court to block shots or throwing down emphatic dunks. Dawkins struggled in Boo Williams opening game, but erupted the rest of the way scoring over 2o points in five straight games. I was all set to write the headline, "The Andre Dawkins Show," in the semi final game but a miraculous finish by Michael Gilchrist and Team Final spoiled the day and knocked Boo Williams out of the championship game. Despite that, heads were turning with Dawkins play this weekend and the majority of the sites will raise his ranking or add another star to his name. It was easy to see this coming for me after his play during the high school season, but Dawkins has put the rest of the nation on notice that he wants to be known as an upper tier star in the class of 2010. Dawkins was named to the all tournament squad. This is the second of three chats I had with Dawkins over the weekend. The first interview can be found on the Blue Devil Nation Premium message board. Please keep in mind that we do not have a public forum, so registering will only get you in if you are a subscriber.
Have you heard from the Duke coaches of late?
They just want me to concentrate on my AAU season and be myself and go out thee and play hard every night.
You struggled with your shot a bit in the first game, do you just keep shooting until your shot starts to fall again?
Yeah, just trying to get out of the slump from my first game. I knew that wasn't going to last too long. You can't rely on the last game. You have to get your mind set.
Are you going to work on Harrison Barnes this weekend?
Oh [private] yeah, that's my job, I've got to go find him.
Kendall Marshall will be on him as well ...
Yeah we are both going to be on him all weekend so ...
Barnes doesn't tip his hand much does he?
Naw, he is cool.
Is your Dad here this weekend and if so what has he been saying to you of late?
Last night he just told me to forget about that game and move on to the next one. That's what you have to do. You can't go around worrying about the last shot in the last game.
[UNC verbal Kendall Marshall walks by smiling at Dawkins]
He's wearing that national championship shirt today.
[Travis McKie nods to me as he walks up and then off]
What about McKie? Are you trying to get him to Duke? [asked somewhat tongue in cheek since McKie is not being recruited by the Blue Devils]
I'm trying but Travis isn't trying to go there. He's not feeling them.
What about your teammate McAdoo? Some are saying he is a UNC lock and that Flordia trails him as well ...
Naw, I don't think he's a UNC lock but he's definitely a great player.
You are obviously used a bit differently with Boo Williams than your high school team. Can you address that?
You have a lot more duties with your high school team. That's the way it is with all of these guys. I mean it's the best guys from every high school.
Does Boo try to assign you to certain areas on the court?
I don't think he wants to label me or anything like that. He wants me to do more.
What is it like being a leader on this seasons Boo Williams team?
It's a little bit different. I was kind of backseat last year, but I'm kind of used to it being a leader on my high school team, but it's a little bit different having this much talent on a high school team.
Okay, I have to ask this. When I was on Richmond, you made a thunder dunk and then went up to Duke Assistant Coch Nate James and let him know about it. What was going through your mind then?
I don't know, I guess I was excited, just bring it and all. It was a good play - it was a nice pass from Steve [Pledger], so I was just having fun. [/private]
Gilchrist hit a three pointer from half court after a steal and Team Final scored 6 points in 3.1 seconds to defeat Boo Williams, despite a huge effort from Duke bound Andre Dawkins
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Wow! Tremendous games today. I was all set to make the headline "The Andre Dawkins show" for his 27 points were a team high for Boo Williams and they held a 63-60 lead with possession of the ball and just seconds left on the clock. On the in bounds play, Team Final forced a turnover and had the ball with 1.3 ticks left. Then a floating three point shot by Tyreek Duren and it looked like OT. After Boo got it to Luke Cothran at half court who fumbled it and Mike Gilchrist threw in a three point shot from just left of center court. Team Final rushed over to the camera and Boo Williams' players were stunned that Team Final scored 6 points in 3.1 seconds to win. Unreal.
On the next court, All Ohio held on for a close win led by behemoth Jared Sullinger over Team Stat. Brandon Knight was injured in the first half and did not return after scoring 10 points.
To have been able to watch both of these close games was amazing.
But that's not all! I went across the way to catch Howard Pulley in their semi final bronze medal game. Upon entering the gym, Barnes drove to the hole for a slashing lay in. The next time down he nailed a three pointer but that was after he blocked the shot on the defensive end. If that wasn't enough, he threaded a pass to a cutting teammate for an assist on the third straight offensive possession. Barnes went on to score 26 points and his team has won three straight contests after dropping the opening two games. Barnes will play one more game which I will stay for. IOW, I am closing it out and staying for the duration.
The best I have seen - Barnes, Knight, Sullinger, McAdoo and Lamb would make up my first team Dawkins played really, really well after his first game. Much to come including a bevy of interviews and information.
Ames defeated Roosevelt 75-42 on Tuesday night. Harrison Barnes scored 14 points as Ames advanced to the State Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena. The Little Cyclones are the number one seed in the tournament and will face number eight seed Iowa City West on Wednesday March 11.
Harrison Barnes' mother denied rumors circulating that Barnes will transfer to Oak Hill Academy for his senior season. Barnes is the number one rated player in the Class of 2010 and is being pursued by top basketball schools across the nation including Duke and Kansas.
Andre Dawkins scored 37 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as Atlantic Christian defeated Covenant 90-61 in the Virginia Independent Schools tournament quarterfinals. Dawkins scored 16 points in the semi-finals as Atlantic Shores defeated Norfolk Christian 76-63. James McAdoo, a highly rated 6'8" sophomore, scored 37 points for Norfolk.
DeMatha edged Gonzaga 62-61 in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference championship game. Tyler Thornton scored 14 points for Gonzaga. Quinn Cook scored 13 points to lead DeMatha.
The Southern Invitational AAU Basketball tournament was held this past weekend at the Boo Williams Complex in Hampton, Virginia, with Mark Watson on site covering the event for Blue Devil Nation.
I will be on the AAU scene covering the Southern Invitational in Hampton, Virginia. Future Dukies Andre Dawkins, Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton will show off their skills and we'll update you throughout the event on Blue Devil Nation Premium. Check back in to hear the latest on the recruiting trail. Get on the inside by joining BDN Premium today! You will then be activated and will have full access to the site including our members only message board. We look forward to seeing you.
Ames defeated Roosevelt 75-42 on Tuesday night. Harrison Barnes scored 14 points as Ames
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