Day One - Best of the South Notebook from Justin Byerly
It's always good to be back in Downtown Atlanta. July and travel basketball. College coaches are back in full force with the transfer portal wrapping up. It feels like the Best of the South that we have been a part of in the past. The humidity is something else for a guy from the mountains of North Carolina but I will take it.
Mid-Pro Academy Has The Goods
Between Iowa commits Brock Harding and Owen Freeman along with Ty Pence and Danny Stephens, this group is fun to watch. They play a solid team basketball and they have some firepower on the inside, an electric tough-nosed guard and role guys. In their two games yesterday, Mid-Pro won both. They won by a combined 31 points. Pence led the way against Florida Pro finishing with 16 points. He was making shots from the perimeter and scoring inside. Pence told HoopSeen that he is considering ISU, Belmont, Illinois and Wake Forest with a decision coming in the next couple of weeks.
Murder Was The Case That They Gave Me
94-Feet's Kamari Slaughter was a new name that I have added to my personal database. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard from Indiana was a guy that made a case for himself against some quality competition and in front of college coaches. Against the always talented Atlanta All-Stars, Slaughter went for a 20-piece. He has good size at the combo guard position and he plays with a great motor. Our Justin Young saw him in Louisville back in April and thinks he is a guy that only helped his recruitment during the first day of The Best of the South.
Xavier Booker Brings The Coaches
Playing with George Hill All-Indy, the consensus top-10 player in the country brought in a who is who of college coaches over the course of the first day. Oregon's Dana Altman, Kansas assistant Norm Robertson, Miami Head Coach Jim Larrenega along with assistant, Texas Head Coach Chris Beard and assistant, Purdue's Matt Painter, Michigan State assistant and Auburn along with some we missed were all here for George Hill All-Indy and Florida Pro. The big man scored 19 points.
Providence Finds Em'
Providence assistant coach Jeff Battle has annually been one of the top recruiters in the country and he finds guys. This time around, George Hill All-Indy combo guard Garwey Dual is the guy that the Friar's evaluated and have landed. Dual might have been the best overall performance I saw from a guard during the first day of the huge event. Dual can impact the game in so many ways. He has the size, the length and the scoring ability to make an impact at the next level. On the score sheet, Dual did not impact the game much, only scoring 4 points but it was his motor, his ability to wreak havoc on the defensive side of the ball and his rebounding that helped George Hill get the win. A lot to like with this one heading to the capital of Rhode Island.
