high school basketball – Page 8

15-year-old New York HS basketball star Jo-Jo Wright killed in car crash

15-year-old New York high school basketball star Jo-Jo Wright was killed in an automobile accident Wednesday afternoon.

According to Newsday, Wright was on his way to a local gymnasium for a workout when the 2012 Honda CRV carrying Wright, who was sitting in the backseat at the time of the accident, and a teammate collided with an 87-year-old male driving a 2006 Toyota, per police. The collision caused the CRV to hit a pole. Wright was rushed to Nassau University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

“I am devastated,” Uniondale coach Tom Diana said. “He was the best. A different kind of kid. He was funny and playful and full of life … And he might have been one of the most talented players to ever walk the halls at our school. He had a great future.”

Wright starred at Uniondale High School in Long Island and made an instant impact as a freshman last season, earning All-Long Island boys basketball team honors after averaging 19 points, nine assists, six rebounds and three steals per game. With Wright running the show, Uniondale went 20-2 in 2019-20, including a 19-game winning streak and a trip to the Nassau County championship game. Wright was also part of the New York Lightning AAU program.

“I know this gets lost because of what a great basketball player he was, but he was an even better person,” Diana said. “He had goals but he was always a good person.

“[Wright] wanted to be a big-time player and he had a work ethic to match that,” he added. “I don’t know who worked harder. It’s great when your best player is also your hardest worker. I have no doubt he could have become whatever he wanted in basketball.”

New Jersey girls basketball standout barred from wearing Black Lives Matter shirt

Manchester Township High School star and North Carolina commit Destiny Adams was recently forbidden from wearing a Black Lives Matter shirt.

Manchester Township High School senior girls basketball standout and North Carolina commit Destiny Adams was recently forbidden from wearing a Black Lives Matter shirt during pregame warmups in an effort to bring awareness to social and racial injustice in the United States.

Adams, who is Black, went before the Manchester Board of Education last week, delivering a speech on why she felt she should be allowed to wear the shirt. However, the board ruled that shirts worn during pregame warmups must only reflect the school name — a decision Adams thinks was made before the board listened to a word she had to say.

“I was hurt because I took my time to write a speech and try to make them understand my view, because I know it’s hard because they don’t experience it,” Adams said, per Daniel LoGuidce of the Asbury Park Press. “For them to not even discuss it with each other … it was hurtful. It didn’t sit right with me.”

Adams attended the meeting with her father, Dennis, who is the principal at Manchester, and her mother, Lisa, a lawyer. Both parents spoke along with their daughter, but in the end, Destiny’s proposal was not even voted on by the board of education.

“I thought they would have somewhat understood,” Destiny said. “It’s like they didn’t really listen to me.”

According to the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA), there are standards for in-game uniform attire, but pregame uniform and warmup attire falls under the discretion of the member school.

“We as a Board of Education are elected to represent the whole school and our uniforms have to be uniform, that’s the whole thing,” Manchester school board president Ken Pate, who is white, said at the meeting. “So we’re going to ask that the uniforms have the school name and the student’s name if they choose and nothing else.”

Although the Manchester school board shot down Destiny’s bid to make her voice heard — a decision that made her strongly consider transferring out of the school district — her days of speaking out are far from over. Once Destiny arrives at North Carolina next year, she will once again do everything in her power to find ways to bring about positive change.

“As long as I can be a part of that,” Destiny said, “[To bring] a lot of awareness.”

Parents fighting for Georgia HS basketball player suddenly deemed ineligible

Grovetown High School standout Jadis Grant was suddenly ruled ineligible in early January.

2021 was supposed to be the year Georgia high school basketball standout Jadis Grant leads his team to a championship and solidifies where he will play at the next level.

Instead, he’s spending it on the sideline.

Grant was suddenly deemed ineligible earlier this month after a Grovetown High School counselor made a mistake putting his class schedule together. According to the Georgia High School Association, “a student is required to pass classes that carry at least 2.5 Units counting toward graduation the semester immediately preceding participation.” Grant was scheduled to take four classes instead of five, leaving him short of the unit requirement.

“Supposedly the counselor didn’t know he played basketball at the time and gave him four classes instead of five classes in the first semester,” Grant’s father, Marlo, said of the situation, per WJBF.com.

Grant played at the beginning of the season, but was ruled ineligible on Jan. 5. It is currently unclear how the GHSA learned of Gant’s actual credits and who exactly reported the information locally. Grovetown High School admitted its mistake and filed a hardship waiver in an effort to get Grant back on the court, but it was denied — even though the school’s principal wrote a letter for the hardship application stating that Grant is on track to graduate despite not having a full schedule.

A letter from Grant’s counselor admitting her mistake was also included in the application, agreeing that Grant can graduate in May and stating that his athletic eligibility was accidentally overlooked due to the “challenge of navigating through the pandemic trying to meet the needs of all students.”

Grant currently holds scholarship offers from schools in Delaware and schools from a couple of other states, according to his father. If he does not get back on the court soon, though, those scholarship offers could dissipate, costing Grant a chance to further his basketball career at the next level.

“They’re blocking my kid at succeeding at something he loves to do,” said Marlo Grant.

WATCH: Mississippi State signee brings down entire hoop with dunk

Mississippi State signee KeShawn Murphy brought down the entire hoop with a dunk in an Alabama high school basketball game Friday night.

Backboard-shattering dunks happen few and far between, but fans are more than familiar with the thunderous slams.

The same cannot be said about what Mississippi State signee KeShawn Murphy accomplished in an Alabama high school basketball game Friday night.

Murphy did more than shatter the backboard with a dunk for Ramsay High School against Carver High School — he brought down the whole basket down.

A scary moment as the entire basket fell down.

(via @Videoboostt1, @kballer_21) pic.twitter.com/zxHfRNckaa

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 23, 2021

Fortunately, nobody was injured and the game will be continued at a later date. Ramsay led Carver 61-44 with four minutes remaining at the time of the dunk.

Murphy committed to Mississippi State in November and signed with the Bulldogs shortly after. A three-star recruit according to 247Sports, Murphy also held offers from Alabama, Auburn, UAB and Western Kentucky.

Which states are playing high school basketball?

USA Today High School Sports takes a look at which states are playing high school basketball and when amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are still plenty of questions surrounding high school sports amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but that has not stopped states across the country from tipping off their high school basketball season.

Alabama and Mississippi got the ball rolling by beginning on Nov. 5 and other states have followed suit. 30 states are currently playing high school basketball and five more are slated to begin within the next week and a half.

Let’s take a look at which states are in action, which are gearing up to get going and the one state that has completely scrapped its 2020-21 high school basketball season.

COVID-19 issues scrap Emoni Bates, Bronny James matchup

Saturday’s highly-anticipated matchup between No. 1 recruit Emoni Bates and Bronny James will not be played as originally scheduled.

James and other Sierra Canyon (Calif.) stars will not play in the “The Battle” in Fort Worth, Texas this weekend with COVID-19 issues keeping their club team (CBC) from attending. James and his teammates were slated to do battle with Bates and the newly-formed Ypsilanti Prep Academy in a nationally-televised matchup on Fox Sports 1. Ypsi Prep will now play Coronado High School (Calif.).

LeBron James Jr. (known as Bronny), other Sierra Canyon stars won't play in The Battle on Saturday in Fort Worth.
COVID issues will keep their club team (CBC) from attending.
No. 1 national recruit Emoni Bates will face new opponent.@SportsDayHS @247Sports @Rivals @usatodayhss

— Greg Riddle (@DMNGregRiddle) January 7, 2021

This is the second time a game between Sierra Canyon and Ypsi Prep has been canceled this season. The two were supposed to meet in November, but Sierra Canyon canceled because of COVID-19 concerns.

Bates, a five-star recruit and the top prospect in the class of 2022 according to 247Sports, is committed to Michigan State and is projected to be the first pick in the NBA draft whenever he becomes eligible to enter (current NBA draft rules require a player to be at least one year removed from high school before declaring, but that could change as early as 2022).

Ypsi Prep’s roster also features seven Division I recruits, including four-star 2022 shooting guards JaVaughn Hannah and Dillon Hunter and four-star center Shawn Phillips.

Bates and James have squared off before on the Nike EYBL AAU circuit, with Bates exploding for 43 points with LeBron James in attendance.

https://youtu.be/DEKtzKIMLzI

How to watch Michigan State commits Emoni Bates, Jaden Akins play Saturday night

Emoni Bates is back in action on Saturday at 9 p.m. against Duncanville (Texas) High School. How to watch the future Spartan:

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Emoni Bates is back on the hardwood tonight as Ypsi Prep travels to the Lone Star state to take on the Panthers of Duncanville High School. This is the second game of Ypsi Prep’s season after the Bulldogs fell to Team Sizzle on Nov. 12.

Emoni Bates and fellow Michigan State recruit Jaden Akins will have another tough challenge containing and keeping pace with Duncanville star Ronald Holland who is a top 20 5-star prospect in the class of 2023. This is something that Ypsi Prep is going to deal with all season long, meeting with the number one player in the 2021 class Chet Holmgren.

Saturday’s game can be watched on two different online streaming services (FloHoops, SUVtv). Both streaming services require a subscription, starting at $10. The game will start at 9 p.m. eastern time.

Emoni Bates and Jaden Akins will look to give Spartan fans even more reasons to be excited for the future of basketball in East Lansing.

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IHSA pauses winter sports, won’t begin basketball season before January

The few winter sports that were being held throughout Illinois and in Chicago have been put on hold until further notice.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, bowling, cheerleading, dance and boys swimming and diving have been suspended in wake of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s announcement that all youth indoor sports should be paused as part of his COVID-19 mitigation plan.

The Illinois High School Association will meet on Thursday to continue plotting out potential paths for IHSA sports through the remainder of the school year,” according to a statement. The IHSA invited Pritzker’s office to the meeting, but the invitation was declined.

“Although representatives from the Governor’s office and the Illinois Department of Public Health will be unable to attend the meeting, today’s updated guidance from Governor Pritzker will aid the Board’s decision-making,” IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson said. “We have asked Deputy Governor Ruiz and Dr. Ezike to engage with us in the near future, so that we can collaborate on developing a plan to safely conduct IHSA sports and activities as soon as possible.”

As for a potential high school basketball season in Illinois, don’t expect to see anyone on the court until the new year. Anderson’s statement referenced “creating participation opportunities in the new year for student-athletes,” likely meaning basketball season will not begin until January 2021 at the earliest.

Bronny James comes in ranked No. 24 on ESPN’s 2023 rankings

Bronny James, the eldest son of LeBron James, is one of the top 25 players in his age group, according to ESPN’s Paul Biancardi.

While the NBA has their plans set on a return to play at Disney World starting July 31, the path back for youth sports is significantly murkier, given that high school teams don’t have the same type of resources as professional sports leagues. As we’ve seen with Major League Baseball, even being a pro league isn’t a guarantee a path to play. As far as the NCAA is concerned, we still don’t know how that will play out. But there are tons of young athletes who are waiting in the wings, which was the focus of ESPN.com on Tuesday, in particular the boys basketball players from the class of 2023.

The top recruit is DJ Wagner, the son of LeBron James’ former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate DaJuan Wagner, while LeBron’s eldest, Bronny James, came in ranked No. 24 on the list of 25 players. Bronny just finished his freshman year at Sierra Canyon, where he was an important contributor for one of the best teams in the nation, alongside likely NBA draft picks BJ Boston and Ziaire Williams.

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The best teams in high school sports history

The high school sports landscape has produced some absolutely dominating teams throughout history-from the juggernauts playing under the now-infamous Friday night lights to the greats on the track, in the pool, on the court, mat, and field. Which …

The high school sports landscape has produced some absolutely dominating teams throughout history—from the juggernauts playing under the now-infamous Friday night lights to the greats on the track, in the pool, on the court, mat, and field.

Which ones are the greatest of all time, though?

That’s not an easy question to answer. Besides the school’s size (class/division), the different eras, competition, plus advancements in training and even technology makes for a lot of a grey area. (High school sports have been around since the late-1800s, too, so we’re talking about a lot of landscape.)

But when factoring in overall resumes—the dominance within the state and nationally, regardless of era—it’s hard to argue that these teams shouldn’t be considered the best in high school sports history:

(Note: Schools are listed alphabetically)

Albuquerque Academy Chargers Boys Tennis (Albuquerque, NM)

Recent domination on the tennis court takes us to New Mexico, where an excellent program has held serve with seemingly relative ease. The Albuquerque Academy’s boys tennis team has won 24 state titles, which includes an incredible current streak of 17 in a row. No other tennis team in the nation can say the same thing.

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