Madness in March- ToC

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Madness in MarchIt has been quite the year for former ToC teams and players! State Championships, All-Americans and NBA All-Stars have been all the rage this past winter. Let’s start on the High School level STATE CHAMPIONS

  • Five 2016 ToC teams have won post-season championships!  Anaheim Esperanza (30-3) won the California Division II state championship with a 72-65 victory over Moreau Catholic.  Kezie Okpala had a sensational season for the Aztecs!  Okpala averaged 30 points and 11 rebounds per game.  A shout-out goes to Coach Mark Hill and his squad for a tremendous season.  Travis Kettering, Brendan Harrick, Jared Obermeier, Brandon Alpern and the Geiger Brothers were amazing every step of the way.
  • The Spartanburg Day School Griffins (30-6) finished as State Champions in South Carolina.  6’7″ Jr. Zion Williamson averaged 37 points and 15 rebounds per game and was a viral sensation with his thunderous dunks and highlight reel performances.  Junior guard Chandler Lindsey also got into the highlight groove with some incredible dunks of his own!  Congrats, Griffins and Coach Lee Sartor!
  • Faith Christian School played a rigorous schedule which helped lead them to another Virginia State Championship!   The Warriors were led by 7’2″ Sr. Brendan Newton (20 ppg- 14 rpg) and Noah Barnhart (15 ppg).
  • Wesley Christian School, KY and Redemption Christian Academy, NY both won National Championships within their school’s federation affiliations.  RCA’s Chris Duarte was unstoppable in the post-season averaging 33 points an outing.

HIGH SCORERS

  • Several ToC performers lit up the scoreboard this past season!
  • Cooper Neese of Cloverdale averaged nearly 30 points per game and became Indiana’s 7th All-Time leading scorer with 2,496 points!  Neese will participate in the National 3-point competition in Phoenix on April 2nd.  He will attend Butler University next season.
  • Other top scorers included: Zion Williamson, Spartanburg Day 37 ppg; Taylor Bruninga, Illini Bluffs 33 ppg; Kezie Okpala, Esperanza 30 ppg; Parker Stewart, Union City 29 ppg; Courvoisier Mc Cauley 28 ppg and Jalen Moore, Cloverdale 27 ppg.

SPECIAL ITEMS OF INTEREST

  • The Washington Panthers had another tremendous season finishing, 24-6.  Devin Whitelow collected several awards throughout the season and will be attending Winona State University in the Fall.
  • Several ToC teams finished the season with over 20 victories: Wesley Christian (33), Esperanza (30), Spartanburg Day (30), Redemption Christian (24), Washington (24), Legacy Charter (24), Harvest Christian (24), Illini Bluffs (24), Faith Christian (23), Chicago Uplift (23),  Sunrise Christian (23), Union City (20), Chicago Kenwood (20) and St. Louis Miller Career (20).
  • Former ToC stars Mohamed Bamba (Westtown School) and Brian Bowen (La Lumiere School) were named to the McDonald’s All-America Team.  Bamba recorded 17 points and grabbed 5 rebounds in the game.

COLLEGE NOTES

  • Three former ToC stars were named to the NABC All-America team.  Nigel Williams-Goss (Findlay Prep- 2010) of Gonzaga was named to 2nd Team while Valpo’s Alec Peters (Washington- 2012) and Wisconsin’s Ethan Happ (Rockridge- 2013) were named to the 3rd team.   Peters became the All-Time leading scorer and rebounder for Valparaiso!  Paris Lee (Proviso East) of Illinois State was named HM All-America.
  • Three former ToC standouts are a part of the NCAA Final Four!  Nigel Wiliams-Goss of Gonzaga, Dylan Ennis (Lake Forest Academy- 2009) of Oregon and Ran Tut (Brehm Prep- 2010) of South Carolina will be in Phoenix for the Final Four.
  • West Virginia’s Jevon Carter (Proviso East) was named the NABC College Defensive Player of the Year!
  • The ToC All-College Team consists of the following players
    • Player of the Year: Alec Peters, 6’9″ Sr. Valparaiso, 23 ppg- 10 rpg
    • Nigel Williams-Goss, 6’3″ Jr.  Gonzaga,  17 ppg- 6 rpg- 5 apg
    • Ethan Happ, 6’10” So.  Wisconsin, 14 ppg- 9 rpg
    • Trevon Bluiett, 6’6″ Jr.  Xavier, 19 ppg- 6 rpg (Indianapolis Park Tudor- 2011)
    • JeQuan Lewis, 6’1″ Sr.  VCU, 15 ppg- 5 apg- 3 spg (Dickson County-2012)
  • You can check out all the other top players on the Where are they Now? link of the NEWS Section!
    • Most Improved Player- D.J. Wilson, 6’10” So. Michigan (Sacramento Capital Christian- 2013)
    • Top Freshmen- Austin Wiley, 6’11” C  Auburn (Spain Park- 2015) and Xavier Sneed, 6’6″ SG Kansas State (Hazelwood Central-2015)
    • Top Small School Players- Lane Mahurin, 6’8″ Sr.  Indiana Wesleyan (Rockville- 2012) and Torren Jones, 6’9″ Sr. William Penn University (Chandler Basha- 2010)
    • Top JUCO Player- James Batemon, 6’1″ So.  North Dakota Science (Milwaukee Riverside- 2012)

NBA NOTES

  • The LA Clippers’ DeAndre Jordan was named to the NBA All-Star game alongside Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans. Jordan is the 2nd former ToC performer to be named to the NBA All-Star game!  Davis was named MVP of the game, recording 52 points on the night!
  • Buddy Hield (Sunrise Christian- 2011) of the Sacramento Kings and Myles Turner (Trinity- 2013) of the Indiana Pacers star in the NBA Rising Stars All-Star Game.
  • Wayne Selden (Tilton School- 2011) became the 33rd NBA player from the ToC!  Selden is currently playing for the Memphis Grizzlies after a short stint with the New Orleans Pelicans.
  • Yogi Ferrell (Indianapolis Park Tudor- 2011) signs as a free agent with the Dallas Mavericks and scores 32 points in his very first game with the team.