Several top former prep basketball stars from the St. Louis area showed up and showed out in the first round of the NCAA Tournament this week.
Former Chaminade College Prep standout Tarris Reed Jr. of UConn had a performance for the ages on Friday night in the Huskies’ victory over Furman. The 6’10” Reed scored 31 points and grabbed 27 rebounds as UConn outlasted Furman 82-71 in a first round game in Philadelphia.
Reed also made 12 of his 15 field goal attempts, dominating the game from start to finish. He became the third player since 1960 to record at least 30 points and 25 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game. In the first half, Reed scored 19 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, shooting a perfect eight of eight from the field.
The biggest surprise of the first round came on Thursday when No. 12 seed High Point stunned No 5 seed Wisconsin 83-82 in a first-round game in Portland.
St. Louisans Rob Martin (CBC) and Cam’Ron Fletcher (Vashon) played major roles in High Point’s big upset as they both registered double-doubles. The 5’10” Martin scored 23 points and handed out a game-high 10 assists. The 6’7″ Fletcher scored 14 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
High Point returns to action tonight to face No. 4 seed Arkansas in a second round game. Tip off is scheduled for 8:45 p.m. (CT). The game will be televised on TruTV. UConn will be back in action on Sunday to face No. 7 seed UCLA in second round action. Tip off is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. The game will be televised on TNT.