Modesto, CA – Last weekend, Simply Basketball hosted its 4th Annual, also referred to as Volume 4, Battle of NorCal Showcase event at Modesto Junior College. This event has been held at Modesto Christian High School the past 3 years but due to scheduling conflicts, it was moved to MJC, which is a nice gym and easily accessible to the public. This annual event brings out the top talent in NorCal, as well as top prospects from the Central Section, with past participants including the likes of BJ Davis, Zion Sensley, Tounde Yessoufou, Miles Byrd, Jamari Philips, Joseph Hunter, Mikey Lewis, and many more.
The Battle of NorCal is made up of four teams that represent four different regions of Northern and Central California with the format being two semifinal games, a consolation game, and a championship game. The teams are named as follows: The Bay composed of players from San Francisco Bay and surrounding areas, Team 916 made up of players from Sacramento and surrounding areas, Central Team consisting of players from Central California, and Team 209 with players from Stockton and surrounding cities. This year’s event had a slight change, with the Central team being renamed to Extended Family, and made up of players from the Central Valley and natives of Northern California that have relocated to other parts of California and beyond.
The Bay squad took home the championship last year in a win over the Central Team and looked poised to repeat for this year’s rendition of the Battle of NorCal, but would have to get past Team 916 in the opening game of the showcase. On paper, it looked like The Bay would run away with this game, but 6’5 junior wing/guard Andre Gomez (Grant/Sacramento CA) and 6’4 senior Jaden Spears (PHH Prep/Phoenix AZ) kept Team 916 close, combining for 14 of the teams 34 points in the first half. The Bay held a 10 point lead and a comfortable cushion going into the half, mainly behind the play of 6’4 senior shooting guard Luke Isaak (San Ramon Valley/Danville CA) who connected on 3 threes and displayed his elite perimeter shooting.
Team 916 got within one possession in the 3rd quarter before The Bay squad got things flowing in the fourth quarter to roll to a 94 to 70 win and a spot in the championship game. The Bay was led by 6’1 senior lead guard Semetri Carr (Redwood/Larkspur CA), who scored 8 of his team high 14 points and a pair of threes; Isaak finished with 11 points, and three other players scoring 9 points a piece. Spears led all scorers with 15 points and Gomez added 9 points.
The second semifinal game was between Team 209 and Extended Family, which saw Team 209 jump out to a big lead behind the dominant play of 6’5 senior wing/guard Anthony Moore (Lincoln/Stockton CA), who would score 14 of his game-high 20 points in the first two quarters. Team Extended Family would take the hits early but regrouped and closed the gap to a 10-point lead going into intermission, 44-34. Extended Family would get scoring contributions from 10 different players with 6’2 junior lead guard Ja’Vance Coleman Jr. (Bullard/Fresno CA) leading his team with 5 points.
Juniors 6’2 lead guard Rodney Westmoreland III (Santa Margarita/RSM CA) and 6’2 combo guard Dalen Felder (Bullard/Fresno CA) heated up in the 2nd half to close the gap and even pull ahead for a few plays in the 4th quarter, with both players scoring 9 points after the break. Extended Family also got some interior scoring from 6’7 senior forward Emmanuel Jamgbadi (Prolific Prep/Napa CA) with 8 of his 10 points coming after halftime. Despite the 2nd half push from Extended Family, 6’4 senior combo guard Gavin Sykes (Modesto Christian/CA) started cooking and scored 10 of his 17 points with some big buckets down the stretch to help Team 209 edge out a 78 to 74 win over Extended Family to advance to the championship game against defending Battle of NorCal champs, The Bay. Westmoreland led Extended Family with 11 points.
Between the Consolation and Championship Games, Simply hosted the first Chuck Hayes Challenge, which featured some youth players from the Chuck Hayes club program. This was followed by the annual 3-point contest that was won by sharp-shooter Luke Isaak and a dunk contest that was won by 6’4 senior wing/guard Isaiah Akerman (Aptos/CA).
After the intermission entertainment, the table was set for the Championship Game between The Bay and Team 209. Team 209 came out hitting shots, with a pair of threes from 6’4 senior Zeke Davis (Lincoln/Stockton CA) and 6’5 senior Shamar Jones (Mountain House/CA) scoring 6 of his total of 9 points early in the game. The Bay would counter with impressive first half performances from 6’4 junior wing/slasher Andrew Hillman (Riordan/San Francisco CA) and 6’8 forward Tyriq McNeal (St. Patrick St. Vincent/Vallejo CA) scoring 10 points and 9 points respectively, as well as playing stellar perimeter defense and altering shots around the basket. Despite The Bay getting back into the game, Anthony Moore started heating up and scored 9 of his team-high 14 points before the break, to give Team 209 the 43 to 40 lead.
Entering the 2nd half, it was a bit shocking that The Bay was down but what was more impressive was Team 209 kept up its high level of play to hold a lead for a majority of the game. 6’5 wing/forward Darrion Lilly (Weston Ranch/Stockton CA) scored 7 of his 9 points after the half, as well as 6 points from both Gavin Sykes and 6’1 lead guard Donez Lindsey (Lincoln/Stockton CA), with Lindsey having the ankle breaking move of the event for one of his baskets. The Bay got some key contributions in the 2nd half, led by 6’5 senior Jalen Stokes (Dougherty Valley/San Ramon CA) putting up 10 of his 15 points connecting on 3 threes to lead The Bay in scoring. 6’4 junior Elias Obenyah (Salesian/Richmond CA) had some solid defensive plays and scored 6 of his 10 points in the 2nd half, as well as 6’9 forward/center Nes Emeneke (Riordan/San Francisco CA) scoring 6 of his 8 points and controlling the boards.
With the game going back and forth in the fourth quarter, its was eventual Battle of NorCal Most Valuable Player, Semetri “TT” Carr, that sealed the deal down the stretch, as he would score on two baskets, along with a pair of free throws to ice the game for The Bay to repeat as Champions, in a 79 to 74 win over Team 209.
The Consolation Game featured Extended Family and Team 916, which looked like it might be a blowout in the early going, as Extended Family got out to a nearly 20 points lead of 23 to 8. Extended Family had six players score at least 6 points in the first half, with big man Emmanuel Jamgbadi leading his squad with 8 points before the half. After a slow start, Andre Gomez of Team 916 started letting it fly and scored 12 points with a pair of threes to help close the gap. Jaden Spears chipped in 8 of his 14 points to do his part to make the game more competitive, as it was 52 to 38 going into the break.
6’9 junior forward Max Vanlaningham (Woodcreek/CA) had a great 2nd half showing, as he would score 12 of his 18 points after intermission and showed his ability to score in the post, as well as create off the perimeter and spread the floor with the jumper. Gomez kept up his level of play to finish with a game-high 21 points, but Extended Family had too much depth and got contributions from numerous players, en route to a 93 to 71 point win.
6’3 senior shooting guard Abram Potts (San Joaquin Memorial/Fresno CA) went off in the second half, scoring 10 of his 12 points and showed his shot making ability on and off the ball. 6’7 senior forward Javon Bragg (Corcoran/CA) displayed his versatility to score in the post and spread the floor with the 3-ball, as he would also score 12 points for Extended Family. 5’8 junior lead guat McKae Amundsen (Clovis North/Fresno CA) added 10 points and a pair of tough threes off the bonce. Extended Family was led in scoring by 6’2 combo guard Tyler Johnson (Bishop Gorman/Las Vegas), a native of the 916, with 14 points, a pair of threes, and in my opinion, the play off the game. Teammate Westmoreland got out in transition off a steal, and as he got closer to the basket he threw up the lob from the right side of the hoop to a slashing Johnson from the left side for a sensational dunk that showed his elite bounce and had everyone that was in the gym off their feet.
