Of the St. Louis American
*Here are some of the top players to watch at next Monday’s Dr. Martin Luther King Basketball Shootout at Vashon High. The event is presented by the St. Louis Gateway Classic Sports Foundation.
Normandy vs. University City, 1:30 p.m. – Normandy features on the area’s top sophomores in guard Anthony James and senior forward Corey Wright.. U. City features standout football quarterback Greg Clemons and Keith Bryant.
Cardinal Ritter vs. McCluer North, 3 p.m. – Cardinal Ritter is led by 6’3” senior forward Marquis Jones and 6’2” junior guard Deandre Gilmore. McCluer North features 6’3” sophomore guard Torres Roundtree, 6’3” sophomore guard Femi John and 6’0” senior guard Kenzie Burke. Ironically, North’s Roundtree and Burke have older brothers (Chris Carrawell and Ken Burke), who led Cardinal Ritter to state championships.
Vashon vs. East St. Louis (girls), 5 p.m. – East Side features the sister act of 5’11” senior twins Veronica and Victoria Smith and 6’1” sophomore Teandrea Smith. Vashon is led by 6’0” sister Heather Sistrunk and 5’8” senior Jaqueline Craig.
Vashon vs. East St. Louis (boys), 6:30 p.m. – Vashon is led by 6’6” junior Leon Powell, 5’10” senior James Washington, 6’6”senior Bobby Hill and 6’4” senior Brian Roach. East Side is led by senior Eric Harris. The Flyers have won five consective games after a slow start.
Tickets are sold separately for each session for $8 in advance and $10 at the door. They are sold at the participating schools or the St. Louis Gateway Classic Sports Foundation office.
Other Top Games to Watch:
Alton at Edwardsville (Friday, 7:30 p.m.) – These two teams are clearly the best on the Illinois side this season. Surprising Alton entered the week at 13-1 while Edwardsville is 12-0. Last season, two of the three meetings between these two schools were decided by a shot at the buzzer.
Fort Zumwalt West at Troy (Friday, 7 p.m.) – A Gateway Athletic Conference battle between the veteran Troy Trojans, who won the GAC last year, and the upstart Jaguars and their talented youngsters.
*The Suburban North Conference girls’ race is shaping up to be a good one this season. Heading into the meat of the season, Hazelwood East (10-2), Hazelwood Central (9-3), Hazelwood West (7-2), McCluer North (9-3), and Normandy (8-4) are the five contenders. Hazelwood West won the preseason conference tournament earlier this season. With the exception of Normandy, the rest of these teams are also in the same district as well, so they will all lock horns in postseason play.
*Top Tournaments
Top-ranked Vashon will be one of the teams to watch in this weekend’s Bass Pro Tournament of Champions in Springfield, Mo. Joining Vashon in the talented field will be Birmingham (Ala.) Huffman, who played in the Shootout in December, Portland (Ore.) Jefferson, Christ the King (N.Y.), Lafayette (La.) Northside, Sante Fe (Okla.) and Springfield Kickapoo. The tournaments runs from Jan. 13-15. After playing on three consecutive days on Wednesday, the Wolverines will play a fourth game on Monday against East St. Louis in the MLK Classic.
The Washington Tournament features an excellent field that includes undefeated Borgia, St. Charles, Jennings and Lafayette as the top four seeds. You can also see some excellent players in 6’4” Sanijay Watts (Jennings), 6’8” junior Josh Harrellson (St. Charles), 6’0” senior Alex Moosman (Borgia), 6’6” sophomore Scott Suggs (Washington), and 6’8” freshman Tyler Griffey (Lafayette). The semifinals will be on Friday at 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. with the championship game set for Saturday night at *30 p.m.
*The Northside Community Center Basketball Program will present its Dr. Martin Luther King Tournament from Jan. 13-15 at Whitfield School. Program director Leon Threat has put together an excellent field of teams at the grade-school level. The tournament features more than 60 teams in eight divisions from 16 cities and four states. Go check out some of the area’s top youngsters in action.
