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Iowa State, St. John’s Cruise to Wins at Players Era Championship 

by Carl Berman
written by Carl Berman

Las Vegas, NV. – The Iowa State Cyclones and Creighton Bluejays tipped off Day two of the  Players Era Championship at Mandalay Bay. Playing without their star point guard Tamin Lipsey, who was out with a lower body injury, Iowa State was impressive and took care of Creighton 78-60. The Cyclones led 40-26 at the half and Creighton never made a serious run in the second half.

The Cyclones extended their lead in the second half helped by the play of 6’9 Joshua Jefferson. The senior finished the game with 18 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. He made a nice pass to Killyan Toure for a layup that extended the lead to 18 points. Toure, a 6’3 freshman from France by way of Brewster Academy, was active throughout and highlighted his athleticism as he led Iowa State with 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting and added four rebounds. 6’8 shooter Milan Moncilovic battled foul trouble but finished with ten points on 2-of-4 from deep. Josh Dix tried to keep Creighton in the game, connecting on three second half 3’s as he scored 15 points and added six assists.

In the second game St. John’s got off to a hot start in their game against Baylor thanks to Oziyah Sellers.  The 6’5 Stanford transfer scored 13 early points as the Red Storm raced off to a 21-6 lead. The Bears reduced their deficit for five points on several instances helped from 6’5 Cameron Carr’s 14 points. Carr continued his excellent play at the event, hitting all three of his 3’s and converting 5-of-6 shots overall. The Red Storm’s Bryce Hopkins was active throughout the half. He scored 11 points, hitting his only three-point attempt and making 4-of-6 from the field.  Baylor’s Tounde Yessoufou had problems converting, especially inside, making only 1-of-9 shots in scoring three points. Baylor had a 25-14 rebounding advantage, including 17-3 on the offensive bords but didn’t really take advantage of that, with only a 12-7 edge in second chance points.

St. John’s came out strong and scored the first eight points of the second half, expanding their lead to 17 points. Yessoufou (15 points, 5-17 FG) tried to get the Bears going with two driving layups and a three-pointer but it was too little, too late. The Red Storm maintained a double-digit lead and cruised to a 96-81 win. Carr led the Bears with 25 points on 5-of-7 from deep.

Bryce Hopkins has been injured much of the past few seasons and seems to be hitting his stride. He finished with 26 points, hitting 3-of-6 3’s and added five rebounds and five assists. Sellers had 22 points on 5-of-7 from deep while Dillon Mitchell added 18 points, shooting 8-of-10 along with a team-high six assists. The Red Storm had an extremely efficient offensive game, shooting 57.4% from the field including 11-of-22 on three-pointers.

This article was written by Carl Berman, Managing Partner of NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Instagram, or on twitter.

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Baylor and Iowa State Notch Wins at Players Era Festival 

by Carl Berman
written by Carl Berman

Las Vegas, NV. – The Players Era Festival kicked off today at the arenas at Mandalay Bay and the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. This year 18 teams are participating, up from eight last year. In the opener at Mandalay Bay Baylor topped Creighton 81-74 in an entertaining game. Cameron Carr led the Bears with 21 points and nine rebounds. Baylor controlled the boards, out rebounding the Bluejays 45-27.

Carr showed high-level athleticism and a nice mid-range shot. He didn’t attempt any three-pointers but had a nice high release on his jumpers. He converted 7-of-8 free throws and is 9-of-17 from deep so far this season so there can be some optimism on his shooting. Tounde Yessoufou, a likely lottery pick in the 2026 NBA draft, did not have his best game. Yessoufou scored 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting and added five rebounds. He did connect on 2-of-4 on threes today. Yessoufou is 6’5 with a strong body and will need to improve his shooting to rise up the draft boards.

Hudson Greer, a 6’7 guard led Creighton with 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting. Shooting guard Josh Dix added 15 points by shot only 1-of-5 from deep. He led Creighton with six assists.

Iowa State outlasted St. John’s 83-82 in the second game. Milan Momcilovic led the winners with 23 points, hitting 5-of-9 from deep. Oziyah Sellers had a nice game for the Red Storm, finishing with 20 points on 5-of-6 three-pointers. Center Zuby Ejiofor added 16 points to go along with nine rebounds and five assists for St. John’s. The Red Storm had a chance to tie the game in the closing seconds, but Ejiofor could not connect on a three-pointer.

Joshua Jefferson, a 6’9 forward, played well for the Cyclones ending the contest with 17 points, eight rebounds and three assists. He came up with some big rebounds and good defensive stops near the end of the game. Bryce Hopkins had 16 points and seven rebounds for St. John’s and connected on all ten of his free throws. St, John’s only made 7-of-20 threes with players other than Sellers shooting only 2-of-14.

Tomorrow, St. John’s will face Baylor while Iowa State plays Creighton.

This article was written by Carl Berman, Managing Partner of NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Instagram, or on twitter.

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Key Players From Colorado’s Upset of Baylor

by Carl Berman
written by Carl Berman

Boulder, CO – Colorado upset Baylor 76-74 on Saturday to earn its second straight Big 12 Conference victory. Julian Hammond III hit a pair of free throws with 17 seconds left which put Colorado up by four to seal the victory.

Baylor led 32-30 at the half, but Colorado went on a 9-0 run to take a 71-61 lead with 4:32 left. Sebastian Rancik keyed the run with a three-pointer and two free throws. Baylor closed gap to two with 29 seconds left after Jalen Celestine made a three-point jump shot and a layup. Hammond then hit the critical free throws.

Norchad Ormier led Baylor with 18 points and 13 rebounds and Langston Love added 17 points. Andrej Jakimovski led Colorado with 17 points. Rancik, Hammond III, and RJ Smith all scored in double digits for Colorado.

Baylor fell to 16-11 overall and 8-8 in conference play. Colorado improved to 11-16 and 2-14 in the conference.

Players to watch

VJ Edgecombe (Baylor) Freshman. 6’5” 180 SG

Edgecombe is an exceptional athlete. He has a 6’5” wingspan (+1) and an 8’3” standing reach. He has a great motor and is an excellent defender. A slight change in his mechanics has helped him improve his three point-shooting to 36% through 24 games. He is averaging 14.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.

He does not possess a tight handle but has very good court vision and is extremely unselfish. He did not shoot well against Colorado but had seven assists and executed a few pick and rolls with Norchad Omier. Edgecombe played for the Bahamian national team in the Olympic qualifiers. I believe that he is a high lottery pick and will land in the top five picks overall.

Norchad Omier (Baylor) Graduate, 6’7” PF

Omier is from Nicaragua and has played for Arkansas State and Miami. He has a 6’11.5” wingspan and an 8’8.5” standing reach. His long arms and strong body make him a very effective low post player. He has good footwork and uses ball fakes and nice low post moves to finish in the post. He is a very good screener and has good hands and can finish in pick and roll situations. He does not possess a fluid perimeter shot and plays below the rim. He projects as a G League player or a high-level European player for a team that prizes his skill set.

Julian Hammond III (Colorado) Senior, 6’2” 195 CG

Hammond III leads Colorado in scoring, assists, and steals. He has had to play as a point guard, while he is more effective playing the two.

Sebastian Rancik (Colorado) Freshman. 6’9” 210 PF

Rancik is a young player to watch as he develops. He is said to be closer to 6’10” and is very skilled. He can shoot the three spotting up, off movement, and off the dribble. He has good footwork and can finish in the paint. He is a solid defender who kept the talented Edgecombe in front of him on a couple of isolations. He has good lateral quickness. He must get stronger. His lack of strength makes it difficult for him to finish through contact.

This article was written by Dave Maron, a correspondent and scout for NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.

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