RELATED:  Samuel Griffin So Smooth at Pangos Southeast

The Pangos All-Southeast Frosh/Soph Camp wasn't big on numbers, so the Cream of the Crop All-Star Game held at the Lake Brantley Sports Complex in Altamonte Springs, Fla. was reserved for the event's 20 best players with an emphasis on individual matchups that camp's scouts and coaches wanted to see.

When the dust settled, the nine sophomores (2019) and lone freshman (2020) selected to play for the White club put their stamp on the camp by dominating the Black club in the Cream of the Crop game to the tune of an easy 103-74 victory.

Leading the way for the victorious white club was team MVP Luke Anderson, a talented 6-foot-8 sophomore forward from Lakeland (Fla.). Anderson made an impact on the camp's first day, and was originally seen as a "borderline" selection to the top game. He then went out and proved he belonged, knocking down open shots from the perimeter, making the correct reads on offense, and crashing the boards with a vengeance. Anderson finished with an efficient 18 points and six rebounds.

Another standout for the wining White club was Darin Green, a 6-foot-4 sophomore shooting guard from Wharton (Tampa, Fla.).  Green didn't score much (four points), but he was steady and graded out higher in his matchup with 6-foot-4 sophomore Austin Van Zyl of York Prep (Rock Hill, S.C.). Green was one of the best outside shooters in attendance, as he put on shooting exhibition in an earlier Sunday game.

Strongman Blake Hinson, a 6-foot-7 sophomore power forward from Deltona (Fla.), ran the floor and finished all but one of his 2-point field goals after missing two early 3-point field goal attempts.. Hinson, a physical specimen with a solid perimeter game, finished with 21 points and five rebounds.

Scoring a game-high 25 points while grabbing four rebounds was athletic freak Niven Glover, a 6-foot-3 jumping jack from Oak Ridge (Orlando, Fla.). Glover attacks the rim with a vengeance and for the most part intimidates defenders from mounting a serious defense against him around the rim for fear of getting "posterized". One player who wasn't afraid to challenge him, 6-foot-9 sophomore Omar Payne of Osceola (Kissimmee, Fla.), became a victim by challenging him. Glover rose over the top of him to throw down a vicious power dunk that was not only the signature play of the Cream of the Crop All-Star Game, but the dunk of the camp and arguably the dunk of the entire five-camp tour.

Glover's dunk evoked images of a young Schea Cotton (the 1990's wunderkind power dunker from Southern California whose NBA career never materialized) for Frank Burlison of BurlisonOnBasketball.com. Glover does have that kind of power and leaping ability, and is aware he needs to shore up the mechanics of his perimeter shot and improve off the dribble in order to maximize his potential. Glover is eager to put in the necessary gym time in order to shore up his offensive game and was humble enough to realize he still has ways to go to be an elite high school player.

While Glover may have "caught" Payne, it didn't affect his overall performance in the Cream of the Crop game or on the camps' second day. Payne gave maximum defensive effort and was named team MVP with 10 points, five rebounds and a game-high five blocked shots. Payne's athletic, upright style evoked images of Clifford Rozier, a 1990 McDonald's All-American out of Southeast (Bradenton, Fla.) who was recruited to North Carolina by legendary coach Dean Smith. The scouts in attendance wanted to see a matchup between Glover and Anderson and ironically both of them came away as game MVP's.

Another high anticipated matchup came between point guards Tre Mann, a 6-foot-2 sophomore from The Villages School (Wildwood, Fla.), and Samuel Griffin, a 6-foot-1 sophomore from Norland (Miami). They were the two most talented true lead guards in attendance and it was Mann coming away with the more impressive performance despite playing for the losing black team.

Mann finished with 13 points and four rebounds and proved to be a bit more explosive off the dribble than his counterpart from Dade County, who netted one field goal and five assists. Griffin came out like gang-busters on day one of the camp, but Mann closed a bit stronger.

Glover came away as the co-Camp MVP with 6-foot-7 C.J. Walker, a 2019 sophomore from Orlando Christian Prep. Walker finished the Cream of the Crop game with eight points and five rebounds for the Black club.

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of www.ebooksnet.com. He can be reached at [email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter: @RonMFlores

The post Athletes GALORE at Pangos Southeast Camp! appeared first on www.ebooksnet.com.

RELATED: Athletes GALORE at Pangos Southeast

The Pangos Frosh/Soph Camp tour hit a new region for the first time -- the talent-rich state of Florida. When one thinks of Florida, football may be the first sport that comes to mind, but there is an abundance of hoops talent. With the event stopping in the Sunshine State for the first time, the overall number of camp participants was not high (60), so expectations were tempered. It also was a good opportunity for the players who did show up to get a honest evaluation from the media and scouts on hand, and as expected, a handful of standouts.

In a camp environment, one of the standout guards did something "new" to get the attention of the cameras -- he played winning basketball and started his approach on the defensive end. Samuel Griffin, a 6-foot-1 sophomore (2019) point guard from Norland (Miami) won over the traditional media and scouts, and the BIL crew, by doing it the right way -- playing aggressive defense and playing an unselfish brand of basketball on offense while making the correct reads.

"When you do the little things, it helps you on offense," said Griffin, who started for the Vikings as a freshman and started playing at seven years old. "Playing for a state-title winning coach like Lawton Williams III gets you used to winning and you have to play hard."

Watching Griffin, it's evident he's been taught the game well. He immediately finds his man and the ball on defense and quickly gets into help position when he's off the ball. The well-built sophomore is also a hellacious rebounder and is arguably the most physical guard we've evaluated on the Pangos Frosh/Soph tour this fall in terms of boxing out and battling bigger players on the boards. He simply makes other guards not want it anymore.

Offensively, Griffin displayed deep range on his jumper and one of the best intermediate games among the campers. Because of Griffin's smooth starts-and-stops, his pull up off the dribble is a lethal weapon. To top it off, he's a smooth and confident ball-handler. Simply put, there is not much to dislike about Griffin's game.

Rim-Rattling Performance for Niven Glover 

Griffin's approach to the game may be unique in this camp environment, but attacking the rim with explosive finishes is a sure fire way to get noticed. No one at this camp (and few along the camp tour for that matter) does it better than 6-foot-3 sophomore Niven Glover of Oak Ridge (Orlando, Fla.). Glover's combination of first-step explosiveness and verticality makes defenders wince or avoid him completely despite being a tad undersized for his position. Glover is a powerful finisher to boot and hit a solid percentage on his jump shot. He does push his jumper and needs to get his legs more into the shot, but it's not hard to like his overall offensive package.

Another sophomore wing with an outstanding first day was 6-foot-7 sophomore C.J. Walker of nearby Orlando Christian Prep. Walker is explosive around the rim and similar to Griffin, gets his game going from the defensive end. Near the end of his first game, he came up with three spectacular blocks. He's also a long-strider in the open court and oozing with potential. It's no wonder programs such as Louisville, Iowa State and LSU have already offered him a scholarship.

Others who turned heads with their defensive ability included 6-foot-5 2020 prospect Selton Miguel of West Oaks Academy (Orlando, Fla.), which opens at No. 18 in the preseason FAB 50 National Team Rankings, and his high school teammate Christian Lora. The latter is a 6-foot-11 space eater who knows how to use his big body to keep smaller players out of the paint. Lora is not afraid to throw his weight around, has good instinct and solid touch on his close range shots.

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of www.ebooksnet.com. He can be reached at [email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter: @RonMFlores

The post Samuel Griffin SO SMOOTH at Pangos Southeast! appeared first on www.ebooksnet.com.