Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) Memphis, Tennessee (April 26-28)

By: Joe Dillard

All Photo Credit: EYBL

April 26-28
Memphis, Tennessee
Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL)

In the first game of the E.Y.B.L. season for the E16 Boys Boo Williams squad as they went against JL3 out of Texas where they came out on fire running the lead up to 20 points in the game. They were led by Jaxson Thompson who had 18 points but that was not enough as Kobe Edwards displayed what efficient looks like going 8-9 and 3-4 from behind the arc while nailing all 7 of his free throws to lead Boo Williams to a miraculous comeback to win 88 to 83. Tyrese Hunter added 17 and the team as a whole shot 50-40-90 (field goals, 3pt, and Free Throws). This was a great effort from everyone who played, and the stat sheet showed that effort and grit were displayed when coming back from 20. Styles Clemmons, Keon Mitchell, and William Stevens all had double figures. In the second game, the boys faced Oakland Soldiers, and let me tell you that Myles Jones is a legit problem as he was cooking on all levels going for 24 points in 25 minutes while going 50-40-90 displaying his efficiency however Kobe Edwards matched him with an efficient 21 points on just 7 shots hitting both of his threes and going 7-7 from the free throw line. Swiss army knife Michael Phillips II put up 14 and was raising his stock showing his ability to fit anywhere on the court. Ruey Ruey also showed why he is on this stage going for 14 points but attacking the glass with 7 rebounds. The stat line was almost identical, and you must credit the coaching staff for overcoming a 26 to 11 deficit. Boo Williams’s squad gets the close win 77 to 73. In the third game, a 2-0 Boo Williams squad took on an 0-2 Team Thad out of Tennessee, and right out the gate Boo Williams boys dominated the beginning minutes of the game. Despite this being the last game of pool play, the scoring was very low as they won 60 to 54. Kobe Edwards and Michael Phillips II both had double figures to lead the way. This was one of those games where everyone played, and it seemed more of a scouting opportunity for the coaching staff. Either way, they came out on top to advance to the Platinum bracket. On Sunday they would advance to play Arizona Unity, and this is one of those games where you find out which kids react to adversity and a big challenge as both teams came out fighting as they would go back and forth with Arizona Unity going on a run right before the half and pushed it up to a double-digit lead until Michael Phillips II hit a three right before the half to bring the deficit to 7 points as Arizona Unity led 42 to 35. It was more of Arizona Unity in the second half taking advantage of their opportunities of open shots and offensive rebounds. Every chance that a Boo Williams player made a stop or steal or great effort play, it would not be rewarded with the bucket as several opportunities went unanswered and that pushed the deficit to 20 points at the end of the third quarter. The fight that Boo’s squad came out in the fourth quarter would be the lightning in the bottle you want to keep and play the full game like that. A plus 10 in the quarter called for an 80 to 70 loss as Kobe Edwards and Michael Phillips had a great weekend and this team has more room to grow despite the early success. They have been able to gel well and will start to play faster and more confidently with Atlanta coming up this week against Team Final out of Pennsylvania, Pro Skillz Elite out of Texas, and Florida Rebels.

In the first game of the E.Y.B.L. season for boys Boo Williams’s team came against Bryce James and SFG out of California. Although Bryce had only three points on one made three, it would be prospects Brayden Burries who scored 22 and Bryce Cofield who had 18 points. The top four scorers for Boo totaled 41 points as Ryan Crotty lead the way with 11 points. SFG would take this one from 67 to 56. Silas Barksdale, Sincere Jones, and Ashton Walker each had double figures with 10 points. In the second game, the Boys took on Drive Nation out of Texas, and in the first two games, they would see NBA legacy kids with Jermaine O’Neal Jr. playing for Drive Nation. Oneal Jr. would contribute with 8 points and plenty of great plays however it would be the trio of Jacobe Coleman (19), Jaden Toombs (16), and Leroy Kelly IV (13). Barksdale and Crotty were both in double figures. After the first two games they only managed to score 56 points in both games, losing on 74 to 56. The final game came against Houston Hoops out of Texas and after three games and a team who is just learning to play with one another, you start to see the progression for the team as the ball started to move faster and plays started to look in sync and in rhythm. Silas Barksdale led the way with 15 points and 7 rebounds to add with Kareem Stagg and Ryan Crotty who had 14 points each as Boo put four players in double figures with Micah Tucker getting 10 points as well. They will look to improve with the next session coming up May 3-5 in Atlanta as they will face All Ohio Red, Florida Rebels, and the Georgia Stars.