England U16’s Compete in Milton Keynes

As part of the selection process for the England U16 roster that will be heading to the Division B European Championships in the F.Y.R. of Macedonia this summer, Head Coach Simon Fisher’s side competed at a three team tournament in Milton Keynes on Friday, consisting of Barking Abbey and Milton Keynes Lions.

Results From England U16 Milton Keynes Tournament:

Barking Abbey beat England U16’s 82-59
England-Mo Soluade 13 points, Sam Round 13 points, Ben Mead 9, Cameron Mackay 7. Barking Abbey-Lucky Olaniyi 15, Simonas Bublys 15, Louis Annan 11, Dominic Norton 10.

Milton Keynes beat Barking Abbey 71-52
Leading scorers TBC

Milton Keynes beat England U16’s 76-70
England-Mo Soluade 13 points, Sam Round 22 points (6/10 triples), Dwayne Orija 7 points, Dennis Kaka 6 points. Milton Keynes-Jack Thompson 19 points, Jamie Stapleton 16, Reiss Haggith 13, Connor Washington 12.

Notes

• The full roster of players in attendance for England was as follows: Mo Soluade, Dennis Kaka, Jefferson Davis, Jack Griffiths, Tamas Okros, Sam Round, Brandon Hitchman, Dwayne Orija, Kingsley Okoroh, Ben Mead, Jamal Tahraoui, Cameron Mackay. Elliot Spence was also in attendance with the team but in plain clothes at the end of the bench.
• England starters were Jack Griffiths, Dwayne Orija, Mo Soluade,  Ben Mead & Kingsley Okoroh.
• Worth bearing in mind both Barking Abbey and Milton Keynes were suiting up players a good few years older (1992’s and in some cases 1991’s) than the England side who were 1995 born.
• Kingsley Okoroh has improved a lot from when I saw him last summer, but remains a project-has crazy potential, and put in the right situation could excel. He brought the highlight of the day with a big two handed smash down the lane in the first game against Barking Abbey.
• Sam Round is an absolute gun. When he gets going he gets gooooing. Had a stretch of hitting 6 straight triples against Milton Keynes-would’ve been 7 but he was just inside the line on the last.
• Mo Soluade has also improved since I last saw him. Though he did decent offensively in both games (13 in each), it was his all around game that impressed me. He had a number of nice passes, has ridiculously long arms which allows him to play the passing lanes well and rebounded the ball. A little turnover prone but again, a world of potential.
• Barking Abbey’s Zak Wells (1993), who is still in the England U18 squad vying for a place in the team that goes to the Europeans, has improved drastically since Christmas at the Haris Memorial Tournament. He has the size (7ft, 245lbs) and is slowly gaining the skills needed to be a force inside.
• Perhaps to be expected being a couple of years older, but both Connor Washington (1992 born, former England U18) and Jack Thompson (1991 born, was at GB U20 training camp last year) were dominant for Milton Keynes.
• First visit to the MK Lions Arena and I was impressed what they’ve done with the place. A converted warehouse yes, but perhaps more importantly a basketball only facility. With a second court being installed before the end of the year, it is a huge boost to the Milton Keynes Lions and local basketball community. I’m tellin’ you, purpose built basketball facilities are the way forward. It is what the UK needs.
• Massive thanks to Angela of the Milton Keynes Lions for her hospitality on the day, couldn’t have felt more welcome-it was much appreciated.

Did you attend? What did you think of the games? Who do you think are shoe-ins for the final squad? Drop a comment and let us know!