Day two of Atlanta Jam treated us to a 12-hour day of some of the best basketball in the area, but three storylines stuck out to me for this Saturday’s Notebook.

Two Teams Combine For 20 Made Threes

17U squads Miami Prep and Skills Center Elite didn’t shoot the ball particularly well in their ATL JAM openers, on Friday. But on Saturday, when they faced off against each other, they both came to the court with fire in their hands ready to change their narrative.

Eight players combined for 20, yes 20, threes made during the game as Miami Prep pulled away with an 85-66 win over SCE. A stat that’s even more surprising to see, both teams had four players who made four, three, two, and one deep-ball, respectively.

Miami Prep: Sterling Young (4), Aidan Heusic (3), Fabian Díaz (2), Kane Kalinski (1).

SCE: Logan Hinsberg (4), Jasiah Taylor (3), Kenneth Gerread (2), Jesus Miranda (1).

Within the last 20 years, Miami Prep has had close to 300 players go D-1 via their program. They are definitely looking to continue their success in that area.

According to coach Art “Pilin” Alvarez, Sterling has interest from Arkansas State, Jacksonville, and UMBC. Point guard Sebastian Pacheco has interest from Barry University, FNU, and Tampa University. Combo guard Jeswel Vega has gotten some attention from Mercer University, FNU, and North Alabama. Kane, who’s class of 2024, has gotten looks from Mercer, Arkansas State, Iona, Central Florida, and Stetson.

So far, only Jasiah Taylor of SCE has garnered an collegiate eye. According to Taylor, he has some D-2 interest from Albany State, and he’s looking to grow that number this summer.

If these kids keep shooting it the way they did on Saturday, the numbers will definitely will grow.

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17U CP25-ALMS Red Can Be A Defensive Juggernaut

From the moment the referee hoisted the ball in the air for the opening tip, this squad was an absolute beast on the defensive end vs. the Florida Bayhawks. 

Hands were all in the passing gaps, hoopers were playing exceptional on-ball defense, kids were blocking shots off the glass, and fast-breaks were created off multiple steals throughout the game.

They did this well enough to earn a 56-22 point win over the Florida Bayhawks - Team Patterson, in what was the most aggressive defensive performance I’ve personally watched during this event.

Dom Williams, a guard who notched 11 points in the win, said it came down to the team’s mentality going into the game.

“You gotta have that DOG,” Williams said with emphasis.

Williams, who has zero interest or offers at the moment, said he knows how good is team can be and is aware of the work they’re putting in. He feels they can duplicate that type of energy at any time.

But still, he never underestimates the competition.

“We look at them like they’re the better team,” he said. “We just go out there and do whatever we gotta do.”

His teammate Josh Dukes, whose garnered attention from Millsaps College and Union University, admitted that his team hadn’t played up to its defensive capabilities the last few games - including some at the Bama Jam. Knowing that he and his team wanted to reverse the trend made all the difference coming into the game.

“We really had to focus on that today,” said Dukes, who led his team with 12 points in the win. “It was our main priority.”

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One Matchup Ends In A Tie

I don’t know what comes around more frequently, Halley’s Comet or a travel basketball game ending in a tie. Either way, you want to be around when it happens. And you’ll probably go, “Wow..”

The tie happened between the “Suns” and the “Triple Double Tarheels”—two Florida squads. The Suns had the game pretty sewed up at one point. They were up five with less than a minute to go. But, TDT clawed back, and found themselves down just three with the ball and a few seconds left on the clock.

After the inbound, the Suns fouled Charlie May before he crossed half-court, sending him to the free-throw line. Less than a second remained before the buzzer would sound.

May made the first, but they wouldn’t win if he hit the second. He would have to try the old “intentional miss & tip-in” trick—a rare feat.

But, not for Charlie, or his buddy Chandler Francois.

Just like they drew it up, May clanked his second FT off the back-iron & the ball floated right into the palm of Francois for the tap off-the-glass. Tie game.

The Tarheels went into a frenzy. The Suns went into disbelief. Both teams went into a two-minute overtime.

The Suns held the ball for the entire period, and ended up missing the game-winning shot. There were talks of a potential “sudden death” setup, but it was decided that it would end at 49-all.

TDT’s Nick Narzisi is the only Tarheel with any legit college interest. Piedmont College has given him some attention. Zayin Humber has minimal D-2 interest.

The Suns are dripping with offers. According to their coaching staff, Malik Siggers has an offer from Albany State. Ryan Sanchez, who put up 27 points in their final game of the day, has offers from Florida Memorial, Florida National, and Lynn University. Jordan Johnson has been offered by Lincoln Memorial, Florida Memorial, Florida Southern, and Albany State.

Jaylin Bain has a Florida Southern offer, along with Thomas University, and Coastal Georgia. Lionel Swaby has offers from the University of Maine-Augusta & Walla Walla University. Kyle Brown has been offered by Spartanburg Methodist, Friends University, Flagler College, Lynn University, Edward Waters, and Kansas Christian.