Month: November 2020

by Luke Daxe

Ivory & Smith Helps Northmont Clinch Their Home Opener Against Bellbrook

Clayton, Ohio — The 20/21 basketball season kicked off last night for Northmont and Bellbrook in a non-conference matchup, hosted by the Thunderbolts. Two very talented prospects in the area went head-to-head in Patrick Ivory and Gabe Pavlak. Early in the first quarter neither team could find their ice breaking bucket, but in the tail end of the quarter both sides began to find a rhythm. Bellbrook ran a very disciplined defense which caused Northmont problems on the offensive end. Charges galore were being drawn by the Eagles early on, but Northmont’s composure allowed them to start taking a slight lead before the break. After two quarters of play, Northmont lead Bellbrook  28-26. 

When play resumed after halftime, the energy remained the same for both teams. The third quarter was pretty back and forth, and almost even. Northmont edged Bellbrook 13-12 in the third. All game long turnovers were an issue for Northmont. They finished the game with 21 in total. Dominant play continued from Patrick Ivory in the second half, and Jordan Smith started to find his grove in the paint. Bellbrook began to slip further into a deficit, but did not stop giving effort. Northmont controlled the rest of the second half and it resulted in a season opening victory for the Thunderbolts, 53-47.

Gabe Pavlak had a very promising first half. He shot the ball well, and was a force down low. He was managing to get the basket with ese in the first two quarters. In the third quarter he began to slow down in scoring, but still managed to keep his team in a close game against a favored Northmont. In the fourth Pavlak went down with what appeared to be an injury to his right knee. His night ended there after putting on a good opening game performance. 

Patrick Ivory was the player to watch last night finishing the game with 24 points! The 6’5” guard was smooth on the ball all night, and was finding ways to score consistently. He shot 50% from the field last night, which is expected to improve as the season goes on. Ivory performed well on defense as well with 3 steals and 1 block. Patrick Ivory is expected to show out this season alongside Jordan Smith for Northmont.

Jordan Smith had a stellar performance for the Thunderbolts finishing the night with a double-double. With 15 points and 11 boards, Smith was working downlow all night. With him ripping down boards left and right, it allowed Northmont to move in transition, which was a pain for Bellbrook. Jordan Smith came out of halftime ready to play, scoring many of his points in the third quarter. He is expected to perform at a high caliber all season, and I would not put it past him. He is an athletic big, who excels on scoring in the paint, and snagging rebounds. Jordan Smith and Patrick Ivory are expected to lead Northmont all season, and did so last night against a well coached Bellbrook side.

by Jordan Harbeck

Midwest Basketball Club Surging In Success!

Dayton, Ohio–NBA general managers and owners around the league weren’t the only ones hitting big recently due to obtaining new talent for their organizations. One of Ohio’s most eminent AAU programs, Midwest Basketball Club, hit the jackpot with commitments from three of the nation’s top prospects.

With the regular season approaching for the Winter, the buzz around travel ball had died down. But, that buzz saw a resurgence on November 12th. The club announced the following via their twitter,

“We are excited to announce that our program will be representing Ohio on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit. Excited to use this platform for the betterment of our MBC Student Athletes.”

The Adidas 3SSB circuit features an ensemble of some of the nation’s most prestigious programs and top-notch teams.

The news didn’t stop there, releasing huge announcements the next two consecutive days. The following day, MBC released the first prospect who’d be competing for their 17U Adidas 3SSB squad, none other than Centerville’s Gabe Cupps. An astounding pick-up that astonished me and my colleagues at first glimpse.

But, the excitement wouldn’t stop there. The next day, two more huge commitments were made public. Not only would MBC return Centerville’s Rich Rolf for their program, but would make one of the biggest additions in the club’s history.

London, Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard would rock the blue, black, and white for the Summer of 2021. Sheppard is a name that many Dayton locals have yet to learn, but it’s certain the arguably #1 player in Kentucky’s 2023 class will fit right in alongside this group of Ohioans. 

’23 Reed Sheppard shows out with The Leftovers AAU team, alongside Cupps and Rolf. (Source: Absolute Basketball Experience with Jamie Shaw)

The three have already built chemistry together, competing during last Summer’s AAU season for The Leftovers. The unit also consisted of Dayton’s Jacob Conner, Tom House, and Tristan Klumb, along with a batch of other top prospects from states aside from Ohio. They dominated and proved to be one of the toughest teams to beat, winning the Big Shots 16U Orange Title.

Take a minute to “Meet The Leftovers” . . . (Source: Big Shots Nation)

Not only are they building up their program for a big 2021 season, the Midwest Basketball Club is already coming off a successful year, reporting four NLI signees from their 17U team on November 11th.

  • Payton Sparks
    HS: Winchester
    NLI: Ball State
  • Isaiah Walker
    HS: Wyoming
    NLI: Belmont
  • Ben Knostman
    HS: Tippecanoe
    NLI: Winthrop
  • Nate Johnson
    HS: Lakota East
    NLI: Akron

Not only do they have a ton of talent on the court, but also an honorable array of leaders behind the scenes. Last season’s 16U coaching staff who’s expected to move up for 17U, consisted of Moeller’s Demarco Johnson and Lakota Easts’s Clint Adkins, among others. With the addition of an Adidas 3SSB team at the 17U level, it’s been rumored there will be some huge new additions to the club’s staff.

Through their 17U teams, MBC’s prospects will compete at some of the highest levels. . . especially their Adidas 3SSB team! MBC will go head to head in a league full of top tier talented teams. Here’s a few of the teams, and their top prospects:

Joe Johnson’s Arkansas Hawks & Arkansas Commit Joseph Pinion

(Source: CP3 Camp Mixtapes)

Compton Magic & Mikey Williams

(Source: qwik11hoops)

D1 Minnesota & #2 State Ranked Eli King

(Source: Fresh Coast Hoops)

Dream Vision & Baby Embiid Jeremiah Nyarko

(Source: BallerVisions)

Grassroots Canada & Elijah Fisher

(Source: OverTime NXT)

Wildcats Select & #1 State Ranked Isaac McKneely

(Source: Big Shots Nation)

Team Harden & Phenom Bryce Griggs

(Source: TexasHoops Television)

And the talent doesn’t stop there!

Who else could possibly be paired with the big three of Cupps, Rolf, and Sheppard? Who will be coaching this talented group? More announcements are expected to come in the near future, and we will be in close coverage with the Midwest Basketball Club program!

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