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PLEASE CONTACT US AT
Chick-fil-A Classic,
Post Office Box 9462, Columbia, SC 29290
Email us with questions
to Gary
Fulmer
Phone: 803.600.1957
Check out the Scores for the Chick-Fil-A Classic! Click here to view the All Tournament Team
The Warriors of Oak Hill Academy (VA) defeated the Panthers of Paul VI High School (VA) to claim the Classic I Championship Trophy by a score of 76 to 55. After surviving a scare and holding on to defeat W.J. Keenan the night before in the semi-finals by a score of 69 to 68, the Warriors took command early and led throughout the game. Oak Hill was red hot shooting and shot 58% from the floor (31-53) for the game. Entering the game, both teams were undefeated and USA Today had Oak Hill (20-0) ranked as the nation’s #1 team and Paul VI (11-0) ranked as the #24 team in their Super 25 rankings. Oak Hill was led by D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera’s 17 points and Tyler Lewis’s 13 assists (a tournament record). Smith-Rivera was named the bracket’s Most Outstanding Player. Lewis and Jordan Adams were named to the All-Tournament team along with Paul VI’s Stan Robinson.
The Lions led 25-20 at the half but the Vikings scored the first eight points of the second half to give Spring Valley a 28-25 lead. Spring Valley increased their lead to as many as 6 points in the second half before West Charlotte fought back and regained the lead again on a tip-in by junior center Kennedy Meeks with 2:52 remaining. The Vikings Devante Brooks tied the game with a 3-pointer at 46 all with 1:21 remaining and the scored remained tied the rest of regulation play. The Lions outscored the Vikings 14-11 in overtime to claim the championship. Game Coverage Chick-fil-a tourney draws premier field (The State) Hicklin elevates LR at Chick-fil-A Classic (The State) Stars come out at Classic (The State) Chick-Fil-A Classic Tips off (St. Andrews Patch) Tournament a slam dunk for local economy (WACH) Top 10 Plays Recap The Tenth Annual Chick-Fil-A Classic will leave a lasting legacy... There were lots of great players at the now 2nd rated high school boys holiday basketball tournament held at Richland Northeast High School in Columbia, SC. As always, the Oak Hill Academy contingent was stocked full of Division I prospects. Another few nationally prominent programs strutted in their conglomeration of future big time college stars: United Faith (NC), La Verne Lutheran (CA), Upper Room Christian (NC), Arlington Country Day (FL), and Paul, VI (VA). There were renown public school programs like Southwest Dekalb (GA), Westtown (PA) , and West Charlotte (NC) with high D-I players dotting their rosters, as well. Let's talk about the obligatory best players in the tournament and then we will get to the legacy piece mentioned in the headline. The rankings don't say as much, but the best player in the tournament was University of Arizona commit, Grant Jerrett. Jerrett is a long and angular 6'10 highly skilled jumping bean. He has a marvelous left hand for finishing around the basket and "Good Gracious" he loves to get into transition and finish waaaaaayyyy above the rim. He catches oops and has a wicked post up game that includes step backs, up and unders, and reverse/inside pivot moves. Jerrett can also face you up for the 18 foot jumper or he can take you left or right to complete his forays to the cup. A lot of guys ostensibly were better by ranking. They weren't. Jerret was the class of the tourney. Rodney Purvis(Upper Room Christian Academy) is always a crowd pleaser. They say he isn't a point guard but his skill set says potential future NBA playmaker. He has the size, explosiveness, handle, and court vision to excel at his college destination (North Carolina State University) and depending on what kind of year he has his freshman campaign of 2012-2013, that year may be his first and last. Purvis is the new age pg, able to score off the bounce and get others involved. While Purvis is more Iverson than Isiaih, he is streaky good as a shooter and does have all it takes to be special. Shaq Goodwin was better at the Peach Jam in Augusta, GA this summer but he was plenty good in Columbia, as well. Quite simply, he's a ManBeast . Goodwin is all of 6-8 240. He has shoulders Hulk Hogan would be proud of and he uses them to shovel out all the room he needs close to the basket. Goodwin does not have a special handle or a basket of great moves and, quite frankly, I'm not sure he wouldn't be better served as a tight end in the mold of a Jimmy Graham or Tony Gonzalez, however, as a high school basketball player he makes the all-Larenz Tate team (A Menace to Society). UNC commit Brice Johnson (Edisto High School, SC) was another guy who looked better this summer when he was eating higher nationally ranked players for lunch. The 6'9 Johnson is bouncy and active. He goes after every rebound and blocks shots like a junior John Henson, but this environment shows he is an unfinished project offensively. The other stuff though? He has those things in abundance. Oak Hill Academy had two guards to gush over. First, Damien Wilson is one of the few players I've ever seen at a high school basketball game that can bring a crowd to its feet on a MISSED dunk. Wilson is a world class caliber leaper whom a track coach would love to train for the long, high, or triple jump. Great run jump athlete. D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera has an old man's game. He ain't flashy. He ain't into trickeration. Yet, he's a truck with a lead guard mentality and bulldozer's way of getting to the hoop. Smith Rivera is all of his 6-3 listing and a solid 215 ponds. There were several more outstanding players in the tournament that will make a lot of noise at the next level like Word of God Christian Academy's uber-talented guard set of nasty pg Josh Newkirk and all world dunker Donte Reynolds, Paul VI's smooth wing Stanford Robinson, Oak Hill's all court guard RJ Currington, West Charlotte's nationally known 6-9 300 pound Oliver Miller clone Kennedy Meeks, and Westown's rawboned Daniel Ochwefu. But, the legacy of this tournament will be three underclassmen South Carolina guards featuring 6-2 Keenan High School 10th grader Marcus Stroman, 6-3 freshman sensation Perry Dozier, Jr., and 8th grade phenom (That's right, 8th grade!) 6-2 Seven Woods. Seven Woods (Hammond Academy)-Those in the Columbia, SC area say the already 6-2 Woods is as talented as former local McDonald's All-America Jerome "Buddy" Harper. Harper was a 6-5 wing that had Tim Hardaway's crossover, ridiculous springs for legs, quickness belying his 6-5 frame, and an automatic quick release jumper. Locals say Woods is his equal at a similar stage and that he will be one of the best to come out of the city in decades. Woods had a standout performance in the tourney and will be able to pick where ever he chooses to go to college. Perry Dozier, Jr. (Spring Valley High School)-The 6-3 Dozier, Jr. is 140 pounds soaking wet and at first sight gives pause as to why he is ranked amongst the top 10 players in the 9th grade class. Educated eyes however, know better. Dozier, Jr.'s father is a former 6-10 post player for the University of South Carolina. His uncle, Terry Dozier, was a 6-8 NBA wing who played for the Charlotte Hornets in the late 80's. Because of the length that runs in the family, Dozier, Jr. is expected to continue to sprout into the 6'6 to 6'7 range. He has grown at least two inches since this past May and seems to be getting longer by the second. At his current 6'3 he will be a dynamite player with added strength and maturity. If he stretches out as expected he will be a problem of significant proportions. The young Dozier is a wonderful ball handler who is deceptively quick and has the cool of a cat burglar. He has an innate knack for the game with a basketball I.Q. that is rare for a kid his age. At the Chick Fil-A he was so-so at times, seemingly deferring to upperclassmen teammates. Make no mistake, he knows how good he is and did things at game's ends that showed why he ranks so high nationally. First, the kid can flat shoot it with range. It's the staple of his game but he has so much more to him offensively. He has all the floaters, pull-ups, and ambidextrous driving ability that one needs to be a high level scorer. The key to his success is his confidence and mentality that he belongs. His ability to take big shots no matter the consequences is something you can't teach and big time college programs by the bushel are going to come calling. Marcus Stroman (W.J. Keenan High School)-The surprise of the tournament was South Carolina defending 2-A champion Keenan's one point semifinal loss to nationally top ranked Oak Hill Academy. Keenan lost but the game marked the coming out party of the 6-2 Stroman. It's known that Oak Hill perennially travels with a roster of 10+ Division I athletes. Their frontlines traditionally rival in size those of BCS conference schools. This is a school that numbers Carmelo Anthony, Rajon Rondo, Ty Lawson, Brandon Jennings, and Kevin Durant in there alumni pool. Marcus Stroman didn't care. What a wonderful experience it was to see the Keenan squad with no one over 6-5 and led by their tenth grade point guard show the delights of high school basketball at the local level. South Carolina high school coaching legend Zach Norris gave Oak Hill Coach Steve Smith fits with his ultra-prepared 2A squad. The defensive intensity and offensive efficiency with which the Keenan squad played was nothing short of spectacular. It was an absolute clinic in what a local program has to do to compete with such a highly touted nationally recognized program. None of it would have been possible without the aforementioned Stroman. Stroman is a very good athlete in a Chris Paul kind of way and his performance was extraordinary. He orchestrated the sort of game that just screamed, "Guys, I'm here and I'm not intimidated because I'm the best guy on the floor!" Stroman worked Oak Hills' top 50 ranked North Carolina State University commit Tyler Lewis like a part time job he could afford to lose. He simply had his way with a kid that is supposed to step in and play major minutes next year in the ACC. Stroman played all thirty-two minutes and knocked out a stat line of 23 points on 7-15 shooting, 2-7 from three, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists. Simply put, he was the only guy on the floor that did what he wanted when he wanted. He had a part in almost every big play of the game because he has NBA range on his J and the speed and quickness that won't allow more experienced players to stay in front of him. Tyler Lewis, nor D'vauntes Smith-Rivera, ever wants to try and guard him again. They may have originally thought he was some random small town talent. They left Columbia saying, "That kid is real!" In closing, the tenth annual Chick Fil-a Classic was a wonderfully run event by former South Carolina high school coaching great Gary Fulmer. They continue to bring nationally relevant fields each holiday season. Any hoop enthusiasts in the area next year should make this a destination point. All the major college coaches do. |
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Rated #2 Best High School Tournament (2011) Rated #3 Best High School Tournament (2010)
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