Pool B Breakdown of Peach Jam

BREAKDOWNS OF SPIECE INDY HEAT, NEW YORK LIGHTNING, MOKAN ELITE, TEAM PENNY, TEAM FINAL AND ST. LOUIS EAGLES

SPIECE INDY HEAT

Team: Spiece Indy Heat
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Record: 15-3
Peach Jam Schedule:
July 11 (9:00am) – vs St. Louis Eagles
July 11 (6:00pm) – Team Final
July 12 (12:00pm) – vs Team Penny
July 12 (7:30pm) – Mokan Elite
July 13 (12:00pm) – vs New York Lightning

Team Synopsis: Spiece has great balance as a team, including great wing play and amazing post presence. They will make for a difficult match up against any team. Along with being tremendous on the offensive end, Spiece knows when they need to lockdown on defense.

Guards: With the combination of James Blackmon (verbal to Indiana) and JaQuan Lyle (verbal to Louisville), this team is very dangerous. Both guards are very athletic and are capable of creating shots for themselves as well as others.

Forwards: With Trevon Blueitt on the wing, opposing teams should be nervous. Not only can he finish at the basket, but he can take his game to the perimeter with ease. With Trey Lyles in the post, Spiece has a dependable big man who runs like a gazelle in transition.

Center: On the inside, Spiece features Steven McElevene and Caleb Swanigan. McElvene is a very underappreciated piece of the puzzle. The 6-foot-10 big man does the little things to make Spiece efficient. Swanigan is a 2016 prospect who is just tapping into his potential.

X-Factor: Trevon Blueitt can push this team over the top when he is on his game. His presence gives Spiece a formidable top three and makes them a very tough out at the Peach Jam.

NEW YORK LIGHTNING

Team: New York Lightning
Location: New York, New York
Record: 11-7 (tied for second place in division B)
Peach Jam Schedule:
July 11 (9:30 am) – vs Team Final
July 11 (6:30 pm) – Team Penny
July 12 (8:00 am) – vs MOKAN Elite
July 12 (5:00 pm) – St. Louis Eagles
July 13 (11:00 am) Spiece Indy Heat

Team Synopsis: This squad loves to play at an erratic pace. The faster the game, the more comfortable they are. An extremely well-coached squad, the Lightning have weapons at each position and love to work in transition.

Guards: Their backcourt is very athletic, featuring guards who cause havoc on the defensive end and in transition. The diminuative Desure Buie splits time at point guard, creating open shots for his teammates. Recent Rutgers-commit Mike Williams can score from all over the floor. He teams with Khadeen Carrington, a gifted scorer who employs a terrific motor.

Forwards: Luis Montero is a do-it-all forward who can bring the ball up and create for his teammates, He has a knack to get to the basket almost and is an improving shooter. Angel Delgado is the best rebounder in EYBL, so his value goes without saying.

Center: Luis Santos and Jessie Govan are the men in the middle along with Delgado. Both kids are very strong in the post and have developing skills. Their biggest impact will be on the defensive end.

X-Factor: Simply put, the x-factor is the pace of the game. They work extremely well as a unit when they are running. If the Lightning can get up and down the floor, they should hold an advantage over their opponent.

MOKAN ELITE

Team: MOKAN Elite
Location: Kansas City, MO
Record: 11-7
Peach Jam Schedule:
July 11 (11:00 am) – vs Team Penny
July 11 (8:00 pm) – St. Louis Eagles
July 12 (8:00 am) – at New York Lightning
July 12 (8:00 pm) – vs Spiece Indy Heat
July 13 (8:00 am) – at Team Final

Team Synopsis: MOKAN is a very tough and physical team, especially defensively. If you don’t match their intensity and toughness, it will be hard to compete with them. They play together as a team on both ends of the court.

Guards: Lourawls Nairn is the engine that makes this train run. He is a hard-nosed point guard who does everything for his team. On top of that, he may be the quickest guard in the EYBL. Another key piece in the backcourt is Ben Richardson. Standing a 6-foot-3, Richardson is a tough two-guard who can score the ball in multiple ways. His presence is very important on the floor, as his shooting helps other teammates get open looks. They also feature Noah Knight, one of the top lockdown defenders in the EYBL.

Forwards: Juwan Morgan and Marvin Clark Jr. are two standouts in this group. Morgan is an undersized power forward but makes up for it with his relentless effort. He is a tough rebounder and finishes at the basket well. Clark is versatile wing player who can go inside or outside, depending on who he is matchef up against. He is returning from a broken foot, but was MOKAN’s leading scorer through the first EYBL session.

Centers: MOKAN doesn’t have a a true “center.” They mainly use Clark and Morgan as undersized big man, causing matchup problems on both ends of the floor.

X-Factor: Lourawls Nairn. If the speedy young man can help MOKAN control the pace throughout their earlier matchups, they will be competitive in every game. Marvin Clark is also an x-factor, as his return could lift MOKAN to new levels.

TEAM PENNY

Team: Team Penny
Location: Memphis, Tennessee
Record: 11-7
Peach Jam Schedule:
July 11 (11:00 am) – Mokan Elite
July 11 (6:30 pm) – vs New York Lightning
July 12 (11:00 am) – Spiece Indy Heat
July 12 (8:00 pm) – St. Louis Eagles
July 13 (8:00 am) – Team Final

Team Synopsis: They are the Suns of the EYBL. They want to get up and down the court as fast as possible on each possession. The utliize a press to speed the game up and make other teams uncomfortable on the court.

Guards: One of the most athletic groups in EYBL. They run the court well and excel in transition. With Anton Beard and Davell Roby in the backcourt, teams should be wary. Beard is a smaller point guard who has developed into a knockdown shooter. He uses his body well when finishing at the rim. Roby is a well-rounded player who creates a shot for himself and his teammates. Keion Peoples is their leader off the bench.

Forwards: The forwards stand out on this team. Leading the way are brothers Keelon and Dedric Lawson. Keelon, the older brother, is Team Penny’s leader, He is top in scoring and rebounding, while employing a relentless mentality when attacking the basket. Dedric is a very smooth player on the win. He’s an improving shooter and can get to the basket. Has fairly good handles for a younger forward.

Centers: Skal Labissiere is the only true center on the team, but he is all they need. He runs the floor very well in transition and is a very good rebounder. While he may not block every shot, he alters countless shots and is a force on every possession.

X-Factor: The heart and soul of this team lies in the Lawson brothers. They need to be on their game in the paint in order for Team Penny to stay competitive. Regardless of outcome, they will be a very fun team to watch in North Augusta.

TEAM FINAL

Team: Team Final
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Record: 11-7 (Wild Card berth)
Peach Jam Schedule:
July 11 (10:30am) – New York Lightning
July 11 (6:00pm) – vs Spiece Indy Heat
July 12 (9:00am) – Mokan Elite
July 12 (6:00pm) – vs New York Lightning
July 13 (9:00am) – vs Team Penny

Team Synposis: One of the quickest teams in EYBL from top the bottom, Team Final is a guard-oriented squad who are relentless attacking the basket. They were a consistent competitor throughout the EYBL regular season.

Guards: The guards are Team Final’s bread and butter. Ja’Quan Newton is the man that holds it all together. He is a fluid scorer who can score in a various ways while getting his teammates involved. Malachi Richardson is his running mate in the backcourt. The 6-foot-6 long, rangy athlete is very smooth player who plays within himself. Shep Garner is the primary ball-handler outside of Newton.

Forwards: The star of this group could be considered a guard as well, but Mikal Bridges is needed on the wing. The recent Villanova-commit is very disruptive on the defensive end of the court. He has a solid mid range game and is impressive when finishing at the basket. Nana Foulland is extremely effective on the boards, leading Team Final with 6.4 rebounds per game.

Center: Outside of Foulland, Eric Carter and Tony Toplyn are the only true big men on the roster. Both are very raw on the offensive end of the court but are solid, active defenders. The’re at their best when they are cleaning up the glass and starting the break.

X-Factor: Shep Gardner will decide how far team final go at the Peach Jam. He is the scoring option behind Newton, Richardson and Bridges and can create his own shot. If he plays up to his potential, Team Final’s backcourt is second to none.

ST. LOUIS EAGLES

Team: St. Louis Eagles
Location: St. Loui, MO
Record: 10-8
Peach Jam Schedule:
July 11 (9:00am) – Spiece Indy Heat
July 11 (9:00pm) – vs Mokan Elite
July 12 (10:30am) – New York Lightning
July 12 (9:00pm) – vs Team Penny
July 13 (10:30am) – Mokan Elite

Team Synopsis: The Eagles are a well-balanced team that plays team basketball and enjoys itself while doing it. They feature a more grind-it-out style than most EYBL teams, but have the ability to jump on you with quick offensive outbursts.

Guards: Three guys that standout in this group is Larry Austin Jr., Charles Glotta, and Cornell Johnston. Johnston is small guard that is smart with the ball. He’s very quick and uses his slim figure to get to the basket and find teammates. Chad Glotta is a knockdown shooter. If you give him any open space it’s going up and more often than not, it will go down. Larry Austin is the glue that holds everything together. He knows where every player should be on offense, making it easy to dissect defenses.

Forwards: Intriguing group who all have different roles. Like the rest of the squad, they are plus defenders who use their defense to start their offense.. The two standouts in this group are Jordan Barnett and Andrew Fleming. Barnett is very athletic, finishing at the basket no matter who is in his way. He is capable of hitting the open jumper once he gets rhythm going. On the defensive end, Barnett causes a lot of issues with his length and athleticism.. Fleming is an all-around solid talent. He doesn’t have any weaknesses in his game and can flat-out shoot it from distance.

Centers: Two centers on the roster are Ikeena Okwarbize and Justin Diecker. Okwarbize is a raw player on the offensive end, but has good hands and finishes at the basket. Diecker is a shot blocker. Bring it into the paint and he will disrupt it or block it. He is a plus rebounder at both ends of the floor.

X-Factor: The pace of the game.. They utilize the full shot clock and look to wear down their opponent. If they can keep the game at their pace, they will be right there at the end of every Peach Jam matchup.

Writting by: Jarrell Strong

Edited by: Alec Kinsky