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ibestofthewestblog · 5 years

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Sierra Canyon and the San Diego Tip-Off Challenge

This past week saw the debut of Sierra Canyon and company, as they traveled down to Montgomery High School for the San Diego Tip-Off Challenge. Thursday’s festivities tipped off on ESPN3 at 8 PM with a lively local crowd as well as a roaring uproar when Dwayne Wade entered the building to check-out his son Zaire Wade and the rest of the Trailblazers. In what was a blow-out, the Trailblazers won handily 91-44. Brandon Boston was the star of the show, leading Sierra Canyon with 22 points and Terren Frank chipped in 20 points. It was purely a David versus Goliath match-up, however, in this case David was without a slingshot as Goliath was dominating all night long. Here are some take-home points regarding their first game of the season:

This team has serious 2013 Miami Heat vibes to it

In addition to playing like the superstar-filled team of LeBron James & Dwayne Wade, this team fittingly has the offspring of the players. Bronny James made his highly anticipated debut, scoring 10 points off the bench, with his first points coming off a three-pointer. Zaire Wade had a highlight of his own as he soared for an alley-oop early in the game.

BJ Boston is the alpha dog of this team

With the absence of Ziaire Williams, who is waiting to clear eligibility clearance on December 29th, BJ Boston grandfathered into the leader of the pack. In such a star-studded team, Boston is not only older, but he is the highest ranked ranked of the bunch, tabbed as the ninth best recruit by the ESPN 100. BJ Boston showed a lot of composure, running the floor, grabbing rebounds, and finding the rim for easy lay-ups. Boston showed a lot of maturity as well, going for lay-ups instead of show-stopping dunks when he had the opportunity to do so.

Depth, depth, depth

Imagine a team where the depth goes beyond the starting line-up. Enter the 2019-2020 Sierra Canyon Trailblazers. The first game had Harold Yu coming off the bench, with his 7’3” frame immediately being a game changer. He blocked shots, grabbed rebounds, had an easy dunk, and even pulled up and made a three-pointer of his own. Bronny James, the exuberant, young superstar, helped the team come into another wind, as he received a reception of his own once being subbed into the game.

The rest of the games

The first true test for the Trailblazers began on Friday evening when they went head to head against the last team to defeat team in the CIF Open Division State Playoffs, the St. Augustine Saints from San Diego. The Saints are led by Coach Mike Haupt, who is known for his ability to bring together a group of individuals despite differences in talent. His teams play together, gritty, tough, and are the true epitome of one for all and all for one. Cathedral Catholic, the Trailblazer’s other opponent, is no stranger to high level competition as they they defeated Sierra Canyon in the state playoffs back in 2016. Cathedral is known to get highly touted players and have depth throughout their rosters.

This year, the Saints are anchored by versatile forward Chibuzo Agbo, whom has finally put together his game. Agbo can play inside, shoot it from deep, and this season has put the effort on defense. The Saints came out swinging, as they scrapped on defense, fought for rebounds, took care of the ball, and didn’t look intimidated. Their guard play proved solid, as they looked for opportunities for easy three-pointers and converted at the basket when possible. At halftime, the Saints trailed 27-24 and were in a good position for a battle. However, their one-two punch of Boston/Frank served too much for the Saints. They combined for 45 points, as Terren hurt the Saints from a myriad of positions on the court. BJ Boston made the defining play late in the third quarter, as he hit a three-pointer while falling to the ground, resulting in an and-one. 75-54, Sierra Canyon.

The end of the weekend’s trio of games in San Diego served as Sierra Canyon’s final test of the weekend in another team that defeated them in the state playoffs previously, the Cathedral Catholic Dons. The Dons are led by Obinna Anyanwu, Alex Wade, Thomas Nattariani, and Beon Riley, all Division 1 prospects. The Dons raced to a 12-0 lead, as they played off of the excitement of the San Diego crowd. The guard play of Wade, Nattariani, & Riley proved to be effective as they each proved to be ready for the opposition at hand. Obinna Anyanwu proved that he is amongst the State’s elite and perhaps may need to be in the ESPN rankings again. Sierra Canyon escaped with a victory in the wake of improved play from Zaire Wade, coming back up injury in a 59-46 victory.

Sierra Canyon does not have a point guard

Asides from Bronny James, who comes off the bench, the Trailblazers do not have a true point guard. Players from time to time take turns bringing the ball up the court, however, Sierra Canyon tries to mask this. They pressure the ball up the court, try to get turnovers, and try to advance the ball up the court and play uptempo. However, Cathedral Catholic wasn’t phased by this with their superb guard play and it showed.

They are still learning how to play with each other

This superteam is still in their infancy period, in which the loose parts are still trying to play together. As with any super-team, Coach Chevalier will have to discover his most valuable rotations and the players will have to play as a single unit. Although Brandon Boston and Terren Frank provided sparks throughout the tournament, the Trailblazers cannot simply hand them the keys when they need a bucket. Also, when Ziaire Williams comes back, they must learn how to add another wheel to the cog.

They will face stiff competition in the future

It was noted in the last article that the Trailblazers would be tested, however, the nation saw that on ESPN. Although on paper they look invincible, St. Augustine and Cathedral Catholic showed that on the court, they are a mere basketball team. With this comes human mistakes and miscues and at times on the court the teams looked equal. However, with the influx of talent on Sierra Canyon, they managed to pull away both games unscathed. With their schedule not getting easier, expect close games in the wake of national players and nationally ranked teams.

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