San Antonio Churchill 74 San Antonio Jay 48

Not too many times you watch a 5A game where the Head Coach platoons in his 2nd & even his 3rd unit at any point in the game let alone midway through the 1st period. For all intents and purposes this one was over inside of the first few minutes of the tip as Churchill dominated from the jump.  It seems like such a long time ago that San Antonio Jay was a 5A powerhouse, winning a State Championship on a miracle half court buzzer beater by Chris Ross to beat Dallas Kimball 54-53.

Growth on the Northside of San Antonio has shifted many of the quality athletes who would have attended Jay out to newer schools like Stevens & Brandeis.  Hence, tonight's score 74-48 in favor of the home team.  Churchill was led in the stat column by 2012 G Scott Mammel with 15 points.  2012 P 6'9" Connor Lammert had 9 points & 8 rebounds.  Lammert, coming off a cracked vertebrae still looks a little bit tentative and has yet to recover the full bounce in his step.  The more I see him play though, the more I like his ability to make the extra pass, see the floor and finish efficiently around the basket.  2011 Clark Lammert (this week's San Antonio Express News Player of the Week) scored 7 & added 5 rebounds in about 12 minutes of play as Coach Woods emptied his bench early and often.
2011 Clark Lammert of San Antonio Churchill (l) was named the San Antonio Express News Player of the Week. Shown below with Ansley Benjamin (r) of San Antonio Clark this past summer with the Texas D1 Ambassadors.

The Northeast District is shaping up to be a three team race.  Churchill has superior size, Reagan has superior wing/guard play & MacArthur (last year's district champs) are the most structured and fundamental of the bunch.  Should be a "fun "year".

High School Roundup: Monday, November 29th

San Antonio MacArthur 68  New Braunfels 55
At the end of the 1st quarter, Mac pulled ahead by as many as 15 points and excepting a late run in the 4th quarter by New Braunfels (where they cut it to 5) the Brahmas cruised to the win.  2012 W 6'5" Jordan Pratt played a solid all around game in the victory. He had 13 points, 5 rebounds & 2 assists.  2012 G Matt Gramling's shot wasn't falling in the first half, so he got involved defensively and notched 8 steals.  This allowed him to get his offensive game going and his steals & subsequent layups put the game away down the stretch as New Braunfels turned the ball over several times.  Gramling scored 22 points to lead his squad to the W.
2012 G Matt Gramling (l) & 2012 W Jordan Pratt (r) led San Antonio Mac Arthur over New Braunfels.


2012 W Kyle Hittle (l) had 11 points & 2013 G Dylan Larson (r) was the other bright spot for the New Braunfels Unicorns with 7 points.


San Antonio Clark 60  San Antonio Johnson 46
2012 SG Adam Perez led the Cougars past Johnson.  Andre Walker (Texas-Arlington) led Johnson with 14 points.

High School Roundup: November 26-27th

Here's hoping everyone had a great Thanksgiving Day. There was action o'plenty the day after Thanksgiving on the hardwood.  I headed to Houston to catch Austin LBJ & San Antonio Sam Houston. 

Texas Powerade Jamboree 

Sam Houston jumped all over Houston St. Thomas in the opener.  Terrence Washington, a 2013 SG lit up the St. Thomas players for five 3 pointers in the 1st quarter as they raced to a 14 point lead.  St. Thomas has three D1 players in their lineup though and were not rattled.  They chipped away and fought back behind the shooting of 2012 G Christian Sanders, 2012 G Chase Brogna & 2012 P 6'9' Jeremy King.

On The Map: 2013 SG 6'0" Terrence Washington of San Antonio Sam Houston



Austin LBJ  had to go to overtime to put away a pesky Houston St. John's squad.  After the Jags controlled most of the game, St. John's clawed back.  They did it without fab freshman, Justise Winslow who fouled out with 10 points.  The 6'4" Winslow is without a doubt one of the elite players in the country in the Class of 2014.  His bother, Senior Josh Winslow picked up the slack and led St. John's with 28 points. (They are the son's of former Houston, Phi Slamma Jamma star Ricky Winslow.)

2014 Justise Winslow of Houston St. John's

2011 G Robert Lee of LBJ wasn't impressed by any of that as he sliced and diced his way through the St. John's D with several emphatic dunks along the way to a game high 42 points.  It was hands down the best performance of the Texas Jamboree Event. My colleague, Marty Richter of ESPN asked me if Lee had played in the D1 Ambassadors program.  I countered that Lee played the last event of the summer (a small event in Oklahoma when most colleges had returned home). 

2011 G Robert "June Bug" Lee of Austin LBJ, D1 steal waiting to happen

Richter said Lee would have 10 scholarships, hands down if he'd had that exposure.  Expect the phone to start ringing at Coach Freddie Roland's office now that we're getting the word out.  Lee is a high level athlete who could be a difference maker in any number of non power conferences-Coach Max

Austin LBJ 54  Houston St. Thomas 51

In a see saw affair, Austin LBJ held off St. Thomas in a game where foul trouble kept St. Thomas' King & LBJ's Lee on the bench for a big chunk of the game.  D.D. Byrd stepped up for the Jags, leading them with 18 points many of them from the mid range.  2012 G Christian Sanders led St. Thomas for the second straight game with 28 points.  Backcourt mate, 2012 G Chase Brogna was cold for most of the game but came alive in the 4th when he knocked down three buckets from beyond the arc and almost pulled out the win.  Robert Lee, who was the most explosive player in the entire tournament had 14 points for LBJ.
Houston St. Thomas' 2012 F 6'9" Jeremy King (l) alters anything in his path & 2012 SG Chase Brogna (r) is one of the better spot up shooters in the Houston area.


Jack Frost Tournament

San Antonio Churchill 86  HCYA 76
This was a big win for Churchill as the Houston Homeschool group is young, talented & tough.  2012 G Scott Mammel led the Chargers with 25 points & 2011 Clark Lammert dropped 20 in the win.

Georgetown 51  New Caney 31
2012 PG Michael Hardge led Georgetown with 16 points.
2011 Clark Lammert (l) of Churchill sports his Jack Frost All Tourny Hardware. 2012 G Michael Hardge of Georgetown (shown below at Max Ivany's All American Prodigy Camp) was also All Tourny.

Austin Akins 69 Bastrop 60
2011 PG Yolonzo Moore (Hartford) had 29 points for Akins, while Jordan Roach (South Alabama) had 24 in the loss for the Bears.

Georgetown 59  DeRidder(LA) 53
Once again, the Eagles were led by Hardge with 17 points.

Fort Bend Travis 86  San Antonio Churchill 69
2011 G Anthony Adunsi (Iowa State) was too much to handle as he controlled the smaller Churchill guards on his way to 26 points.  2011 F Clark Lammert led Churchill with 21 points.  Lammert also made the All Tournament team.

Jack Frost Championship:   Fort Bend Travis 72  Georgetown 62
Michael Hardge's 25 points were not even close to enough for Georgetown as Fort Bend Travis won the Jack Frost Invitational going away.  Sporting Iowa State signee Anthony Odunsi and the Harrsion Twins (Andrew & Aaron) two of the country's elite 2013 guards, they were the class of the tournament.

Copperas Cove 78 Austin St. Stephen's 76
Cove was led by 2012 6'4" Ricardo Artis, with 28 points.  Seniors Jeff Livsey & Sterling Green each had 19 points in the Spartans loss.

Austin Hyde Park trounced Henrietta 81-26, and Iowa Park 76-38.  2011 W Brooks Pawsat 27 & 24 in those two contests.  Wichita Falls Hirschi beat Hyde Park 56-45.  2011 W Austin Jenkins had 17 in the loss for Hyde Park.

Jenkins (l) & Pawsat (r) are a potent one-two punch for Austin Hyde Park

Jack Frost Invitational: Georgetown, TX

Considering I was playing golf in 87 degree weather on Tuesday, I'm not too sure why the folks in Georgetown named their tourny, "Jack Frost". We do have a cold front coming in though, and for the visitors to the site from up North, I am sorry to inform you that I finally had to turn my air conditioning off a couple of hours ago.  Brrrr! 

Now, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. I am sitting on my duff in San Antonio, just watching the Cowboys shoot themselves in the foot.  Let's hope there's a reprieve tonight as the Longhorns take on those pesky Aggies.  Meanwhile, there is high school basketball being played.  The host Georgetown Eagles just finished the opening game of their tournament, the aforementioned Jack Frost Invitational.

Georgetown 77  Austin Reagan 45

The Rattlers got frost bitten by the host team who got balanced scoring from Seniors David Kerr with 19 & Logan Webb with 15. 2012 PG Michael Hardge had 17 as he quarterbacked his squad to the onesided win.  Brandon Golden added 10 for Reagan in a losing effort.

San Antonio Churchill 79  Austin Akins 64
Fresh off a big win yesterday over San Antonio Stevens, Churchill took the 2 hour drive up I-35 on Thanksgiving Day to take on a salty (although not deep) Austin Akins squad.  Senior Clark Lammert led Churchill for the 2nd straight game as he dropped 26 points.  He's a 6'6" kid with outstanding grades and an increased confidence on the hardwood whose stock is rising in his senior year. Who's hot at Jack Frost? 
2012 G Michael "Too Live" Hardge of Georgetown & 2011 G Yolonzo Moore (r) of Austin Akins.

Akins was led by Yolonzo Moore with 29 points.  Churchill broke Akins' pressure early and often building a 13 point half time lead.  Akins stormed back in the 3rd quarter, getting it down to a 2 point game.  However, with the recent loss of Senior shooter Jeremy Mendez with a torn ACL Akins has little wriggle room for foul trouble.  They tired in the 4th and Churchill salted it away.

High School Roundup: Wednesday November 24th

San Antonio Roosevelt 70  San Antonio Brandeis 57
2013 G Justin Graham had 15 in the loss.

Austin Westlake 61  San Antonio Madison  54
Austin Westlake had a 10 point lead at halftime before San Antonio Madison roared back to take the lead with less than 2 minutes in the game. 2011 P  Drew Wikelius hit a clutch turnaround shot in the low post to make it a one point game and then 2013 PG Will Morse hit 8 straight free throws to win the game 61-54. Morse lead the Westlake in scoring with 23 points (five 3-point baskets) & rebounds with 7. Senior Tom Fisher scored 9 points and had 4 assists.   San Antonio Madison received 20 points from G Andre Scott.
2013 PG Will Morse (l) is quickly becoming one to watch for Austin Westlake, while 2011 WG Max Yon (r) looks great as he leads San Antonio Reagan to an early 7-0 record.


San Antonio Reagan 52  San Antonio Clark 50
This one went down to the wire, including Clark firing up a three that rimmed in and out at the end of the game.  Max Yon led Reagan with 16 points, and as I remarked to my friend , Blue Zertuche of Texas Hoops: "Can you believe the steal that Air Force has gotten with an athlete of this caliber?"  Zertuche concurred.  Reagan had what looked like an insurmountable lead late in the game until 2011 WG Jacob Palacios hit two long threes to make it a barnburner.  It should be interesting at Clark when footballer Ansley Benjamin is back in the mix with his tough inside play and physical presence.

San Antonio Taft 73  Pflugerville 70
The Raiders went on the road and took care of business as Texas D1 Ambassadors summer club mates Pflugerville's Deon Mitchell (Northern Iowa-17 points) was bested by Taft's Dylan Elias (Northern Colorado)

Dylan Elias (l) led San Antonio Taft to the road win over Deon Mitchell's (r) Pflugerville squad.

Austin Anderson 57  Austin Lake Travis 47
Yesterday's doormat, Anderson has infused it's lineup with young talent and they're making a little bit of noise out of the gate. 2012 G John Gramlich led the way with 18 points in the win.

San Antonio Churchill 81 San Antonio Stevens 73

My spotlight game of the day was the Churchill v Stevens battle.  Stevens features two D1 candidates in 2012 WG 6'5" Uche Ofoegbu & 2012 WG 6'5" Marcus Roper.  Churchill is led by the Lammert Boys; 2011 F 6'6" Clark their leading scorer & 2012 P 6'9" Connor Lammert in his first significant action since cracking his vertebrae last June.

This was a see saw battle until late in the 4th quarter.  Stevens got to the goal with regularity as Roper & Ofoegbu imposed their will on the smaller Churchill guards.  Churchill was playing without 2013 shooter deluxe Taylor Sutlive who's out for a few weeks nursing an injury putting most of the permieter burden on 2012 G Scott Mammel. Today, Churchill missed a lot of perimeter shots before they started to go inside and ply their trade in the paint.  It was then that the firm of Lammert & Lammert went to work.  They were particularly effective when the elder Lammert entered the ball from the wing, down low to his "little" borther, Connor.  Although lagging at times, and not in game shape he gutted it out and scored 19 points, double digit boards and altered numerous shots defensively.

It's time to invest in the firm of  Lammert & Lammert on the Futures Market. BUY BUY BUY!

Clark Lammert led the Chargers with 25 points, including one NBA range three pointer.   Uche Ofoegbu had 22 for the Falcons in the loss & Roper added 18.

Roper (l) & Ofoegbu (r) give Stevens a pair of lanky 6'5" WG who are high level athletes.

Navy Freshman J.J. Avila Goes Off For 31 Points!

True freshman 6'7" J.J. Avila of McAllen, TX & Texas D1 Ambassadors alum tore up Towson today in the Midshipmen's 89-84 victory.  Add 6 rebounds, 5 steals & 2 assists to his totals for the day. They're partying down in the Rio Grande Valley, you can be sure!.

J.J. Avila of Navy, shown below with the Texas D1 Ambassadors

Fun fact: Avila is the nephew of San Antonio Catholic Head Coach, Romy Vela.

Prior to his big outburst against Towson tonight, J.J. was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Week.  Click the link below to read the story.

http://www.navysports.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/112310aab.html

I just got off the phoen with proud Papa, Big JJ as he was leaving the gym in Maryland.  Man, was he pumped!  JJ, thanks for wearing the D1 Ambassadors colors and representing your family and country.  What a great performance!-Coach Max

High School Round Up: Tuesday November 23rd

Please email your game score to TexasBasketball@aol.com  OR text to 512-791-5455.  Include game high scorers.  Thanks.  Coach Max

Del Valle 70  Austin McCallum 66
DV notched it's first win of the season as 2011 G Pudgy Doyle had 19 & 2011 W Karim York (Santa Clara) continued his torrid scoring pace.
2011 W Karim York (l) led Del Valle while 2011 F Ta'Shawn Thomas (r) was on the boards for a stout 17 for Killeen High in their loss.


Harker Heights 66 Killeen 59
Harker Heights gets a leg up on bragging rights for K Town despite Ta'Shawn Tomas' (Houston) 12 points and 17 boards for the Roos.  2011 WG Allantae Faust had 11 points for Harker Heights .

Bastrop 59  Round Rock 56
Even without star QB and backcourt mate Josiah Monroe, Jordan Roach (South Alabama) tore up The Rock with 29 points.  2014 6'10" Leaonard Allen had 15 in the loss.

Austin Westlake 63 Cibolo Steele 42
In a matchup between two young teams, Westlake won going away behind 2012 G R.J. Rowan's 21 points & 2013 WG Vince Deblasio's 10.

Round Rock McNeil 70  Cedar Park  50
2011 G Blair Williams led the way for McNeil with 17 points.

Del Valle Hangs on against Hutto

Contributing Editor:

Joseph Dean

txambassadorsd1@yahoo.com

The Lady Hippos traveled to cardinal land last night to take on Del Valle. Del Valle who was District 17 4A champions & State Semi Finalist last year, seemed to struggle against Hutto. This was a tight game for all four quarters, with neither team being able to take command.

(L) 2011 F 5'10 Monique Mc Elveen gave you 10 points & numerous rebounds.

(R) 2011 P 6'0 Summer Postell dropped sixteen to lead the Cardinals to victory. Summer will be taking her game to the next level as she has committed to Southeastern Louisiana University

2011 G 5'2 Haley Jackson was in rhythm last night. Haley gave you 17 points and attack the Cardinals defense throughout the night. Haley works very hard defensively and has lots of hustle.

Hutto Lady Hippos

# 5 Haley Jackson

Del Valle 40

Hutto 38

Other Scores

Mc Neil 44

Bowie 42

2013 G 5'7 Kendra King of Bowie was the leading scorer with 17

2011 G 5'8 Christina Robinson of Mc Neil has really played well early on this season

(L) Kendra King (R) Christina Robinson

Crockett 42  2011C 6'2 Angela Beadle of Crockett High dropped 20 to lead all scorers

Rouse 37

Anderson 70   2011 G 5'8 Kelley Gramlich led the Trojans with 19

Mc Callum 22

(L) 2011 C 6'2 Angela Beadle

(R) 2011 G 5'9 Kelley Gramlich committed to Clemson University

Hendrickson 52   2011 W 5'11 Kathyrn Tolbert lead all scorers with 22.  

Leander 48  2011 G 5'6 Sherryah Wallace lead Leander with 17

Stoney Point 37  2012 G 5'9 Cymone Jefferries lead the way with 15

Connally 35  2013 G 5'7 Kara Babola lead Connally with 10

(L) Kathyrn Tolbert
(R) Kara Babola

                                  

                                    

San Antonio Churchill 51   2013W 5'10 Carly Truesdale scored the key basket to get the win

Cibolo Steele 50   2011 W 5'11 Taylor Calvert and twin sister 2011 G 5'9 McKenzie Calvert lead all scorers

Truesdale is a high quality player with loads of potential. Carly opened the first two games of the season Scoring 20+ points per game. Monday night against Steele only scored 7 points, but with ten seconds to go down 50 to 49 she did a great drive and spin move to the basket and got fouled. Went to the line and drained both for the lead 51 to 50! That was final score! Nice win. Truesdale also receive honors from the San Antonio Express this week when she was presented with the game ball award.

  

 2013 W Carly Truesdale

Monday Night Girls Basketball: Akins VS Connally

Contributing Editor: Joseph Dean

txambassadorsd1@yahoo.com

D-1 nation was in the house last night for the match up between Austin Akins and Pflugerville Connally.

I had a chance to watch all three games last night and Connally pulled off all three against the Akins lady Eagles.

Connally freshman came out the gate very strong. They jumped out to a double digit lead early and Akins could not recover. 2014 F 5'8 Dominique White manned the paint for Connally last night. White has a nice mid range shot, and works well around the basket. Dominique was a key part to their victory last night.

2014 F 5'8 Dominique White

Connally High School

Pictured here with D-1 Ambassadors

2014 G 5'2 Milleena Vega kept the Eagles alive. Milleena did an excellent job of running the point and getting her teammates involved. The young freshman has lots of hustle with a high passion to win. Look for Milleena to be very successful this season.

2014 G 5'2 Milleena Vega

Akins High School

Freshman
Connally 37
Akins 23


Connally JV jumped all over Akins right from the tip. This is a very talented group with loads of potential. I have the privilege of watching them play early on and they look great.


2013 G 5'4 Cherise Patterson has great range on her shot. Patterson has nice ball handling with the ability to attack the basket. Patterson continues to show a nice skill set with a high basketball IQ.

2013 G 5'4 Cherise Patterson

Connally High School

Emerging prospect 2014 W 5'9 Shanequia Coleman has lead the way for the Connally Cougars. Shanequia has great athleticism with a high skill set. The true freshman excellent ball handling, passing, and shooting skills with the ability to get to the rack. With her size and skills look for Coleman to be a part of the Varsity roster real soon.

2014 W 5'9 Shanequia Coleman

Connally High School

Pictured here with the D-1 Ambassadors

College Coaches should keep their eye on her as she will be a nice prospect in the class of 2014

Connally JV winning this one by double digits

The final game of the game of the night was a good one. Connally who has a big front court seemed to man handle Akins around the basket. Akins who is loaded with guard play continues to attack the basket and could not be pressured.

2012 F 5'10 Autumn Shead controlled the paint for Connally. Autumn who is the daughter of Coach Shead with the CCYA tigers gets it from both ends. With her size and ability to block shots she made it difficult as the eagles attacked the basket. Autumn has great footwork around the basket and plays great defense.

2013 F 5'10 Autumn Shead

Connally High School

Mid-High D2 player with loads of potential

20111 G 5'4 Vannessa Winston brought out the big guns last night. Winston dropped double digits on the Cougars, as they had no answer for her. Vannessa has one of the sweetest shots around. The true point guard can score and drop plenty of dimes.

2011 G 5'4 Vannessa Winston

Akins High School

D-1 Prospect with Great Skills

Emerging prospect 2013 G 5'9 Kara Babola has a nice smooth game. The true sophomore has nice range on her shot with a nice skill set. look for Babola to be a key player for the Cougars, and emerge quickly as a nice prospect in the class of 2013.

2013 G 5'9 Kara Babola

Connally High School

Connally 56

Akins 42