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On the Road with Texas Hoops - Brown scores, Madimba impresses, and more

Mansfield - TexasHoops.com continues its coverage from around the state with its "On the Road with Texas Hoops" series. The first stop was Mansfield Spring Creek Tournament as 32 teams gathered around the city as four out of the five high schools hosted a portion of the tournament. TexasHoops.com's Recruiting Analyst Blue Zertuche made his annual stop Thursday to the Spring Creek Tourney before heading south to San Antonio.

Jaden Wells, signed with Division II program Central Oklahoma
Jaden Wells, signed with Division II program Central Oklahoma
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The combo of Jaden Wells and Nazir Brown produced 55 of the LD Bell’s 85 points in their win over Spring Westfield 85-70. Wells, a Central Oklahoma signee nailed the three-pointer and attacked the rim when there was a lane to the basket. The senior guard was perfect from the charity stripe going 8-for-8. A long and trim built Wells is a smart overall player and has upside at the Division II level to compete and grow his game. Brown is a sophomore that TexasHoops.com is tracking and the 6-foot guard dropped in a game-high 31 points. Brown was aggressive on the perimeter as he poured in four 3-pointers and took contact on his way to the basket. He was vocal and handled the ball through pressure.

*** Editors Note, Wells scored 16 points against Mansfield Timberview and Brown had 19 (four 3-pointers)***

Killeen Ellison took care of their first-round game as they faced Crowley High. The star of the game was class of 2020 available guard Shamir Bouges. The Ellison product sliced through the defense of Crowley and scored time after time as he kept cutting to the rim. What we learned today is Bogues is a basketball player who makes the right decisions and puts himself in the right situations. At 6-foot-3, Bouges is long and athletic. His athleticism makes him hard to stop when he gets ahead of his opponent. Bouges beat his defenders to the basket as his teammates gave him the ball in stride.

Cameron Taylor was part of the Timberviews come from behind win
Cameron Taylor was part of the Timberviews come from behind win

In the most exciting game of the day, Mansfield Timberview beat LD Bell on a buzzer-beating put-back. With 0.2 tenths of a second on the clock and Timberview at the free-throw line down one (51-52), junior forward Cameron Taylor stepped to the line and made the first of two free throws. On the second, Taylor missed and the touch put-back went in as time expired by Chendall Weaver. Timberview won, 54-52 to advance to the Elite Eight of the tournament.

In the category of "Impressive Unsigned Senior", it was Timberview's forward, Joey Madimba who took the honors. A super athlete (as we already know), Madimba plays hard and has added a consistent jump shot. Madimba played with confidence out on the wing while draining long jumpers and he drove to the basket. Madimba has always played fast, but now he is doing it under control and at a good pace within Timberview's offense. The 6-foot-4 forward also took the ball and weaved through pressure as he headed to the basket. Madimba finished with 20 points.

Taylor who tied the game at the free-throw line uses his length to score by attacking the basket. Once he left his feet, the 6-foot-7 Tyalor leaned in and moved his body around the defense. He finished with 12 points, and did his share of rebounding.

Amarillo High is on their second trip to the metroplex in three weeks and took on one of the hosts of the Spring Creek tournament in Mansfield Summit. Amarillo couldn't hold on to the lead and eventually lost to Summit on their home court. -But the loss doesn't take away from the future of the three Amarillo sophomores that I built my schedule around to watch. The first glimpse of Brendan Hausen, Cade Hornecker and Damonze Woods came at this same time last year, here in Mansfield.

The three class of 2022 prospects are developing and have different styles. Hausen is a threat from deep as he comes off of screens and reads the defense. He is a heady guard who knows how to get open and create space. At 6-foot-4, Hausen shoots the ball over the top of the defense with a smooth up and down stroke.

Hornecker is a big target inside because of the length of his 6-foot-10 frame. Hornecker needs time to add weight and allow his body to fully develop, but he knows his way around the block. He plants himself on the block and becomes a target for his Amarillo teammates. He keeps the ball high, scores, and is a nice passer when he feels the defense closing on him.

Now, Woods is an interesting forward who has the ability to jump out of the gym. Woods stands 6-foot-6 and at times, he plays like he is two to three inches taller. He is a track high jumper, triple jumper and runs the 400, so what will become of his future in basketball is unknown. However, he has some skill inside, runs the floor, defends, rebounds and scores around the basket with ease with his leaping ability.

Other Player Notes

Nick Shagbonyo
Nick Shagbonyo

• Mansfield Summits success came off of their pressure defense and their quick off the dribble scoring against Amarillo. Summit was led by sophomore guard Nick Shagbonyo and senior Alerick Hall. Shagbonyo hit the gaps and scored going to the basket and in transition. He finished with a team-high of 17 points. Hall went on to finish with 16 points and scored in a similar fashion. He has a burst and uses his crossover to create separation. Finally, junior Channon Hall (Alerick’s brother) tallied double-digits of his own, adding 12 points.

• Elijah Smith added 13 points versus Spring Westfield in LD Bell’s win. Smith hit the mid-range jumper and two three-pointers.

• Willis Williams scored a team-high 16 points for Spring Westfield and grabbed plenty of rebounds. The sophomore is a strong bulky interior player who uses strength to score and to grab rebounds. Unsigned senior Eli Lee was active and ran the floor for Westfield. Lee had put up 11 points in the middle quarters.

• Jalen Griffin game was clicking for South Grand Prairie in their win over Dallas Madison. Griffin is a senior who came out of the tip scoring the basketball. Griffin had a game-high 16 points. Though the unsigned senior led the team in points (as he has all year), Griffin's first option was to distribute the ball. He is a nice passer and decision-maker, but when left open, he will take advantage of his defender's miscues.

• A team that is flowing with talent is the Houston area based Shadow Creek. The Sharks of Shadow Creek had everything working in their opening-round game. Shadow Creek faced Wilmer-Hutchins and the Sharks were too athletic and had too many bodies for their opponent to keep up with. Point Guard Will Young came out firing up threes and taking the ball to the basket. Teammate Ramon Walker showed off his athleticism and sprung to the rim to finish above the rim. Shawn Jones flew to the basket and scored and shot the ball from the perimeter.

Keep an eye on...

Khaden Bennett
Khaden Bennett

A couple of underclassmen that I came across today are prospects that look to have their game trending in the right direction. Freshman Jamyron Keller of Killeen Ellison and sophomore wing Khaden Bennett of South Grand Prairie have a lot to like about their overall game.

Keller is a strongly built guard at 6-foot. He is a ball-handler who can put the ball in the hole. He hits the outside shot and takes the ball to the rack while taking contact by defenders.

Khaden is the son of head coach Brandon Bennett and does what you would expect from a coach’s son. Khaden plays within the flow of the game and does a bit of everything for South Grand Prairie. Khaden is a defender who is scrappy and on the offensive side of the ball, he can score it from inside the paint and step out to hit the three. Khaden is a 6-foot-3 guard that is already helping his team win.

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