FOXBORO, Mass. – Sunday was a busy day in the Massachusetts AAU Tournament. It closed out a weekend of action in the oldest age group, while a few younger ones held their final rounds after the early rounds were held a few weeks prior. As such, it offered a look at a few key age groups.
The first one of note was the championship game in the 14-Under. The Mass. Commanders were fresh off a double overtime victory over the BABC Academy in the semifinals, but they showed no signs of wear against the Boston Spartans. The Commanders ran out to a 19-7 lead, then responded to a 6-0 Spartans run to get back into the game with a 26-3 run of their own to put the Spartans away early. After a 53-32 halftime lead, they coasted to a 94-64 win behind a well-balanced attack.
No scoring stats were available, but the Commanders played solid basketball from start to finish in taking it right to the Spartans. Christopher Camille, who will attend Brookline High School next year, might have the most upside, as he’s long and ran the floor for transition opportunities often. But he had plenty of help, from future school teammate Mark Barrett (also headed to Brookline), who has good fundamentals and hit from long range, to Jay Dieterele (headed to Franklin High School) and Jake Hughes (headed to Westborough High School).
The Spartans are hardly lacking talent, but they seemed rattled early and just never really got going. The one with the most upside might be Alonzo Linton (Nashua (NH)), who is lanky with a good frame, and capable of scoring and handling, but also had trouble finishing and didn’t show the best passing skills on the afternoon. Alvin LaBranche (South Boston (MA)) leaps out at you at first but didn’t play well. Jean Luis, a seventh grader from Quincy who played up, looks talented but was careless with the basketball on Sunday. Gabe DeSouza (Everett (MA)) can be a pest on defense.
BABC took home the 16-Under championship with a 72-46 win over Mass Elite, who edged out Middlesex Magic in the semifinals.
The 17-Under Division II championship went to Mass Elite Coughlin, 62-39 winners over Mass Premier Reidy, while the 17-Under Division III championship game went right down to the wire as the SNEBC Shockers held off MYCW 57-52 behind a 31-point outing from Emmanuel Bangandozou (Jr. PG, Worcester (MA) Bancroft HS).
That set the stage for the last game of the day, the 17-Under Division I championship. It was a battle, played within about a ten-point window, with neither Middlesex Magic nor the Boston Warriors ever gathering much momentum. Middlesex Magic led by one at the half, then held on at the end 57-55 win for their third state title in four years. Brandon Twitty (6’1″ Jr. PG, Randolph (MA) Catholic Memorial HS) led the way with 18 points to cap a nice day and Matt DeWolf (6’8″ Jr. PF, Barrington (RI) High) added 17. While Twitty will return to CM next season, the steadily improving DeWolf will head to Northfield Mount Hermon and repeat his junior year.
Here are a few players not already mentioned who also caught our attention with their play on Sunday.
Joe Bell (6’0″ Jr. SG, Concord (NH) Bishop Brady HS)
Josh Bradanese (6’6″ Jr. SF-PF, Billerica (MA) High)
Keith Brown (6’2″ Jr. SG, Pelham (NH) High)
Ian Carmichael (6’7″ Jr. PF, Lawrence (MA) Central Catholic HS)
Justin Connolly (6’5″ So. SF, Danvers (MA) St. John’s Prep)
Matt Donahue (6’3″ Jr. SG, Stonington (CT) High) (transferring to Northfield Mount Hermon and re-classifying into the class of 2017)
Alex Dubrow (Jr. PG, Foxboro (MA) High)
Cal Howes (Jr. SF, Maynard (MA) High)
Keyshaun Jacobs (5’10” Jr. PG-SG, Chestnut Hill (MA) Beaver Country Day School)
Isaiah Laurent (Jr. PF, Brockton (MA) High)
Jack Loughnane (6’1″ Jr. PG-SG, Dorchester (MA) Boston College HS)
Joey Luchetti (6’5″ So. SF-PF, Wayland (MA) High)
Brandon Moscat (Jr. PG, Woburn (MA) High)
Kyle Padmore (6’4″ Jr. SG-SF, Chestnut Hill (MA) Beaver Country Day School)
Bailey Patella (Jr. SF-PF, Lenox (MA) High)
Eric Sellew (Jr. PF, Concord (MA) Concord-Carlisle HS)
