Hampton, Virginia……….. After getting shocked in their own Spring Fling Tournament last week,The Playaz Gold team wasn’t sure what the beginning of the Nike E.Y.B.L. Summer Season would bring! The question was answered in fine fashion as The Playaz Gold  went 5-0 during the weekend at the Boo Williams Sportsplex in Hampton ,Virginia! This was the first phase of the Summer Season, as they also have to go to Texas and California and finish at The Nike Peach Jam in North Augusta, South Carolina July12-15 for the Nike E.Y.B.L. Championship! The Playaz proved they would be in the mix the entire way! This weekend they defeated The Family( Michigan), Charlotte Royals(N.C.), Team Texas Titans(Texas), Tennessee Travelers(Tenn.) and Spiece( Indiana)! The Titans game was especially exciting as The Playaz trailed by as much as 18 points and came back to win the game 64-61! The Playaz were led by the play of Kyle Anderson, Savon Goodman, Derrick Wood and Myles Davis in this contest and the majority of the weekend! Anderson(top right) led the weekend in assists and was at or close to a triple double every game!  Goodman(top left) put up nice numbers and was the best athlete on the floor most games! He is a special talent! Wood(right) did things off the dribble and from the perimeter! And Davis(left) had games where he shot the ball with the best in the country, including an 8″triples” game! He averaged 20 a game for the weekend! The Playaz also got great effort from Chris Jones, Jerome Frink, Vance Matthews and Zaire Williams! They go to Pittsburgh this weekend for the Pittsburgh Jam Fest, before doing their next Nike E.Y.B.L. session in Dallas April 29 – May 1!

The Playaz Red(16’s) also were at Boo Williams this weekend and had an up and down weekend! This team was the defending Boo Williams champions, but came short handed as 6’8 bigman A.J. Sumblin could not make the trip due to an illness! They still reached the Silver bracket semifinals, but came up short to CP3 in an entertaining game 63-60! They finished the weekend 3-2 with close loses to CP3 and Mack Irvin Fire team in between beating Westchester(N.Y.) Hawks, All Ohio and Houston Hoops ! Still,they got good efforts from Joel Hernandez, Kavon Stewart, Reggie Cameron, Mike Young, Geno Thorpe, DeAndre Noble, Josh Marquez and Jared Hall as they also prepare for the Pittsburgh Fest! The Playaz Black (15’s) finished the weekend 1 – 2 with a couple of close losses, including one to Team Melo!

AROUND THE TOURNAMENT: There was  tremendous talent all over and trying to see it all was difficult, but fun! the Drew Gooden Soldiers(Ca.) were an impressive team as was Mack Irvin Fire(Ill.) as each went 5-0 for the week!  Particularly impressed by some individual players like Dajuan Coleman of Albany City Rocks(N.Y.)(right), Julius Randle of Texas Titans(Tex.)(left) who is considered the top player of 2013! Other top players were Ricardo Ledo(City Rocks),Justin Anderson( Boo Williams), Alex Poythress( Georgia Stars), J-Mychal Reese(Houston Hoops), Steve Taylor( Mack Irvin), Omar Calhoun( N.Y. Gauchos), D’Vante Smith- Rivera( Spiece) James Robinson( Team Takeover)and Matthew Jones( Team Texas Titans)! Of course their was even more talent in the room!

Special Shout goes to Mack Irvin Fire’s Sophomore Billy Garrett(right), who has verbally committed to DePaul! This website may use the word “Family” at times and it is a true statement about certain young individuals due to the history this website has had with the person and again, Billy is family and the whole Hoop Journal Family and friends from New Jersey are very proud of what he has accomplished and will continue to in Chicago! We miss you! Also Prayers go out to Matt Johnson of The Playaz, Get Well Soon!

Here Is HOOP JOURNAL’S All Journal Team from Hudson County:

1.) KYLE ANDERSON  Jr- St. Anthony: One of the best Junior’s in the country,the All-State Anderson can do it all!His play helped St.Anthony win the mythical #1 team in the Country title! A Point -Forward at 6’8, the former Paterson Catholic standout is a stats sheet stuffer! Averaged 14 points, 5 assists, 6 rebounds and 2 blocks a game and seldom played the 4th quarter! May be a Highschool All-American before it’s over next year!

2.) REGGIE CAMERON  Soph.- Hudson Catholic: The former Paterson Catholic player got his chance to shine and became the go to guy for an up and coming Hudson Catholic team! Averaged a double-double with 19.1 points a game and 10 rebounds in helping the Hawks go from 11-11 to 22-6 and a league title this season! Has outstanding range at 6’7 and is being courted by Division 1 schools already!

3.) JEROME FRINK  Jr – St. Anthony:  A monster under the boards, Jerome was the post presence for the #1 team in the country! Averaged nearly 10 boards a game,Frink was the unsung hero in many games as his relentlessness and ability to follow shots was a tremendous asset for St. Anthony! Will be even more of a scorer next season!Division 1’s are calling!

4.) LUCIOUS JONES  Sr. – St. Anthony:  Jones was a versatile player for St. Ant’s this season and more times than not, covered the toughest player on the opposing team! Was a good perimeter shooter this season and has strong athleticism! As of this write up,looks like Robert Morris is the choice for school!

5.) KEITH LUMPKIN  Sr. – St. Peters Prep: This Rutgers football recruit also made his mark on the basketball court! The 6’8 Lumpkin was a tough defender in the middle who finished his career as a 1.000 point scorer! Helped Prep win 4 consecutive Hudson County Tournaments, averaging nearly 14 points a game, 11 rebounds and 3 blocks!

6.) MYLES MACK  Sr. – St. Anthony: Myles had a dream season in winning the T.O.C. “Chip”and the #1 Team in the Country title! Mack was the catalyst for the extraordinary run that St. Anthony had and always stepped up in big games throughout the season! The Rutgers commit led the Friars with 15 points a game to go with 4 assists and 3 steals!

7.) KEVIN WALKER  Sr. – St. Peters Prep:  Walker was a four year starter for Prep and left his mark,finishing as a 1,000 point scorer and leading Prep to 4 consecutive Hudson County Tournament Championships! Averaged 12 points, 6 dimes and 2 steals this season!

8.) STEPHON WHYATT  Sr. – St. Peters Prep:  Probably the most improved player in the area this season, Whyatt flat out stepped up this year! He played huge in big games as evidenced by his 30 point performance against Memorial in the County Semi finals and his 23 against Marist in the finals! Finished the season averaging almost 17 a game and 3 steals!

9.) MARVIN WILLIAMS  Sr. – Marist:  Williams is a problem! He averaged 21 points a game this season for Marist in reaching the finals of the Hudson County Tournament! Big time mid range shooter, the 5’9 guard is deceptively strong getting to the basket! Has division 1 talent!

KAVON STEWART Soph.- Hudson Catholic: The 5’10 Stewart was tough to keep out of the paint for opponents as he quarterbacked the Hawks to a 22-6 record! His ability to get to the basket opened up room for his teammates! He averaged 11 a game and 7 assists and improved his mid range jump shot as the season went on! Will be the toughest guard in the County next year!

NOTES: Missing Lucious Jones and Kevin Walker pictures!

Here is Hoop Journal’s North Jersey Team from Passaic County:

 1.)  DAVE BURGOS  Sr. – Eastside H.S.:   Burgos came on the scene from New York and blew the spot up! Not only did he establish himself as the best point guard in the area, he led Eastside to an unprecedented Group 4 State Championship and a trip to the T.O.C.! Burgos averaged 17 points, 7 assists and 2 steals a game, but what he brought most was a relentless work ethic that became contagious to his teammates!

2.)  NICK DICRISTINA  Sr. – Passaic Valley:  DiCristina had a strong Senior season! Played point guard and off the ball this year averaging 14 a game in leading Passaic Valley to a 20-10 record! Had career games against Scotch Plains in Jingle Bells Jubilee and hit 6 “triples against Wayne Valley in a Group 3 State contest!  

3.)  TAQUESE FRANKLIN  Sr. – Manchester: Taquese is a 6’6 manchild who’s strength was tough on opponents! While a football scholarship awaits him, he has left quite a mark on the Manchester basketball scene! Had over 1,000 points and rebounds in his career and led Manchester to an impressive 20-7 record! Finished the season averaging 17 points and 12 rebounds a game!

4.)  CONNOR HEALY  Sr. – West Milford: Healy can light it up and proved it a few times this season in leading West Milford to a 19-8 record! He has very good range and can score off the dribble! Finished the season with a 14 point average and 5 boards!

5.)  DAVON JACOBS  Jr.- DePaul- Straight up relentless on the backboards! Even though he’s undersized at 6’1, he has a knack for coming up with the ball! Can score too! Led DePaul with 16 points a game and 7 rebounds! Brought toughness to his DePaul squad! also an All County football player!

6.)  DAWON LIGHTY  Sr. – Kennedy:  Lighty had a great career for the Knights scoring over 1,000 points and being a”triple” threat at all times! When he caught fire, could score from anywhere on the floor! Averaged 17.6 and led Kennedy to a Passaic County Tournament Title! Teamed with Jhamir White to give them one of best dynamic duos in area!

7.)  JOSHUA MARQUEZ  Soph.- DePaul: Marquez moved to the point this season and got better and better as the season went on! Always played fearless and was not afraid to take the big shot , as witnessed by his game winning shot at the buzzer against Wayne Valley late in the season! Averaged 13 points and 5 assists a game!

8.)  XAVIER NIEVES  Sr.-  Passaic County Tech: One of the most versatile players in the area, the 6’2 Nieves did whatever was needed for the Bulldogs to get a win! He led them in scoring at 15.8, but would go to the point which resulted in him leading the team in assists at 5.6 a game!Also averaged 7 boards in leading Tech to a 18-8 record!

9.)  DEANDRE  NOBLE  Jr. – Eastside: DeAndre came from Paterson Catholic and took on the role of a go to player! He was Burgos sidekick on their way to a State Championship! Noble averaged 15 a game and 7 rebounds and his putback at the buzzer against Bloomfield in the first round of the States proved to be the igniter to Eastside’s miracle run!

10.)  JHAMIR WHITE  Sr. – Kennedy:  Jhamir did a great job of proving what kind of baller he was after three years at Paterson Catholic! White took over the reigns for Kennedy and quarterbacked them to a Passaic County Title! Averaged 14 a game and 4 assists!