Haris Memorial Tournament Begins, Day 1 Recap - Hoopsfix.com

Haris Memorial Tournament Begins, Day 1 Recap

The 5th Annual Haris Memorial Tournament opened yesterday at the Amaechi Centre, Manchester, with some of the top English basketball talent in the country on display.

Magic 1 vs Cyprus
In the first game of the day, Magic 1 took on Cyprus in what was always going to be a test for them. Going down 7-0 and having not scored for the first 4 minutes, things were looking bleak for Manchester in what was a scrappy start for both teams. Keeping their composure they battled back, tying the game up at 13 after one quarter. Going into the fourth, with Manchester leading 45-42, it was point guard Josh McGinn who proved the difference maker, scoring 10 straight points for the Magic to give them a 5 point cushion, 55-50, which they would ride out for a 61-54 opening game victory over Cyprus.

Josh McGinn, led the Magic with 15 points, Jack Crook had 11, John Gould had 10 and Dujon Lattie had 8. Point guard Michael Simon was unstoppable for Cyprus putting on a dominant display for his 26 points, whilst Kambouris Panayiotis added 10 as the only other player in double digits for the Cypriots.

Cheshire vs Luxembourg
Over on Court 2, Cheshire were taking on Luxembourg in what was a one sided affair with Luxembourg coming out with a 20 point victory, 73-53.

Luxembourg had an extremely balanced attack with all 11 players getting on the scoresheet, led by 12 from Tim Steffen and 10 from Tom Welter. Cheshire were led by Jack Griffiths’ 14 points, Greg Krippa’s 12 and Niel Gillard’s 10.

England vs Magic 2
Next up, was the first chance to see the potential 2011 England U18 team in action as they took on Magic 2, who are Manchester’s U16 team.  In what literally was a case of men against boys, Magic stood no chance from the beginning, going down 29-12 after the first quarter, 62-24 at the half, 92-39 after three, for a final score of 119-59.

Josh Ward-Hibbert led England with 18 points, John Stewart had a super efficient 16, Simeon Espirit had 11, Jamie Battish had 12, whilst Simeon Espirit and Raph Thomas-Edwards had 11 each respectively. Tamas Okros had a strong showing for Magic with 17 points, whilst point guard Adam Jones had 12.

Breitengubach vs Solent
The final game of the day saw German club side Breitengubach take on U18 Premier South side Solent. Solent caught everyone by surprise as they were leading the German side throughout the first quarter to take a 19-13 lead. It was a monumental breakdown in the second quarter which saw Solent score just two points that was the beginning of their undoing. Breitengubach ended victorious with a 68-56 win.

Lukas Wagner led Breitengubach with 14, whilst Philipp Daubner added 11. For Solent, Jack Preston had the second highest scoring performance of the day with 22, backed up by 10 from Ollie Robert and 6 from Dan Bryan.

Notes

  • England’s roster has changed slightly from the initial one that was announced-view the changes here.
  • It’s worth noting Josh McGinn and Jack Crook are still in England’s 24 man squad but are representing Manchester in this tournament. Solid first day for both of them, with McGinn shining for the Magic-if it wasn’t for foul trouble he could’ve been even better.
  • England starters-Joe Hart and Josh Ward-Hibbert in the back court, Simeon Espirit and John Stewart at forward, and Zak Wells at center.
  • Tough to really measure England playing against such inferior competition-I’m not sure much was gained for either team from the game. Despite the final scoreline, England showed some real weaknesses defensively-having a complete inability to stop Manchester’s fast break-something they’re going to have to sort today against Cheshire and Luxembourg.
  • Two very intriguing projects in England’s frontcourt-Zak Wells (1993 born) and Dylan Johns (1993 born). Both 7 footers they give England some serious height, but are both still pretty raw.
  • First look at Jamie Battish, who has come in from Australia and Skyler White who is based in America-both seem to be solid additions who have a chance of making the final England cut. Skyler White showed a few flashes of brilliance.

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