The Ritenour Huskies have been one of the most improved teams in the St. Louis area this season. The Huskies entered the week with a 10-3 record against an upgraded schedule. Ritenour won the championship of the Warrior Classic at St. Charles West in early December and finished runner-up in the Chaminade Tournament to the host Red Devils.
The Huskies are an entertaining team that loves to run and press and push the pace at all times. The linchpin of Ritenour’s high-octane offense is 5’8” senior guard Robyion Hughes, who is averaging 19.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 3.5 steals a game. Junior Kobe Smith is a talented 6’4” wing player who is averaging nearly 16 points a game. Senior football standout Carl Garmon has also been good on the basketball court as well with his high motor and 10 points a game. Junior forward Nick Williams has been a much improved player in the low post. The 6’7” Williams is averaging 7.7 points and 6.5 rebounds a game while athletic 6’4” senior Demeetrie Beach averages 8.0 points and 5.7 rebounds a game.
Ritenour advanced to the championship game of the D.C. Wilcutt Tournament, where they will face host CBC.
Jennings continues its roll
The Jennings Warriors looked to be in a rebuilding stage after graduating five of their top six players from a team that won 20 games last season. Instead of taking a step back, the Warriors have continued their winning ways as they entered this week with a 13-2 record. The Warriors made an early-season statement by winning the championship of the Pattonville Tournament. They are also in the championship game of the Denver Miller Tournament at Kirkwood.
The Warriors have defeated some quality teams along the way such as Pattonville, Whitfield, McCluer, Parkway West and Kirkwood. The one remaining key player from last season’s 20-win season was 6’3” senior forward Rajae Johnson, who has been a pillar of strength for the Warriors. Johnson is currently averaging 14.9 points and 9.6 rebounds a game.
Jennings has also been bolstered by a pair of transfers in the backcourt. Junior guard Kyle Younge, a transfer from Riverview Gardens, has been one of the impact backcourt players in the area. The 5’10” Younge is averaging 18 points, three assists and 2.5 steals a game. He scored a game-high 32 points in a victory over host Kirkwood in the semifinals of the Denver Miller Tournament. Junior guard Terran Jackson, a transfer from McCluer North, is averaging seven points and nearly four assists game. Forward Jordan Brown also contributes 5.8 points and 3.9 rebounds a game.
STL represents in national rankings
The St. Louis area is well represented in the latest Rivals.com national rankings for the Class of 2018. The national recruiting site has four players from St. Louis rated amongst its top 150 players in the ’18 Class. Power forward Carte’are Gordon of Webster Groves was ranked No. 18. The 6’8” Gordon is a Saint Louis University commitment. Gordon’s teammate at Webster Groves, guard Courtney Ramey, was ranked No. 28. Guard Torrence Watson of Whitfield was rated No. 93 while 6’6” small forward Karrington Davis of Chaminade was rated at No. 137.
Ameritime Classic at Parkway West
The Ameritime Classic will be held next week at Parkway West. The tournament features eight quality area teams. The first round games will be on Monday, Jan. 23 with Parkway West vs. Parkway South at 4 p.m.; DeSmet vs. Lafayette at 5:30 p.m.; Hazelwood Central vs. Liberty at 7 p.m. and Hillsboro vs. Parkway Central at 8:30 p.m. The semifinals will be on Wednesday, Jan. 25 at 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. The championship game will be held on Friday, Jan. 27 at 8:30 p.m.
