The Montrose Christian squad was in Dayton, OH this past weekend, check out the quotes on how the 'Nova Commits Isaiah Armwood and Mouphtaou Yarou performed from ESPN.
James Bell's Montverde Academy was in Springfield, MA and there are some comments on his play as well...
Yarou is an effort guy who is built like a man and imposes his will on his opponent. He's an explosive athlete who is surprisingly skilled and displays a soft touch around the basket when he powers up in a crowd. His hands are strong. On the glass, he seems to be the one who usually comes out of the pile with the ball, keeping the ball high and delivering a good outlet pass to start the break. Yarou's not a great runner, he labors up and down the floor, but his effort compensates and he gets where he needs to be when he needs to be there. He will need to learn how to hedge screens -- Yarou is a target guarding high ball screens. With his big, strong body, Yarou marks his territory and occupies the lane, challenging everything that comes at him. He is a good shot-blocker who has learned when to tall up and when to leave his feet for the block. He has developed into more of an offensive threat from 15 feet and still has some good upside for the college level.
Biggest Surprise!
Armwood is physically thin -- old schoolers should think of Stacey Augmon -- but very active around the basket and in transition. He has great length along with quick hops that make him an effective finisher on the break and a good shot-blocker on the defensive end. He is an athlete with good lateral speed that alllows him defend multiple positions. Armwood gets after it on the offensive glass and had a couple of spectacular plays at the rim on putbacks. In both the half court and in transition, Armwood can put the ball on the floor and get it to the basket or dish it to a teammate. He is a difficult matchup for slower, less athletic power forwards when they play him at that spot; he can use his dribble and make a 15-foot jumper. He is improving from behind the arc, but is not enough of a threat to keep teams from backing off of him when he catches it and squares up. Strength training will be a big component of his success in his time at Villanova.
DraftExpress quotes on James Bell from the Hoop Hall Classic...
Slightly undersized for a small forward (or even the power forward position he plays at times), Bell is a physically developed, athletic wing player with a very versatile game. He is a tough, competitive player first and foremost, showing excellent defensive instincts, and being extremely physical both contesting shots on the perimeter and mixing things up inside. Despite his lack of size he showed no qualms about making his presence felt in the paint, primarily by crashing the glass, but also posting up.
An average ball-handler in the half-court, Bell can get to the basket thanks to his solid first step and aggressive mentality. He made a number of highlight reel passes to opponents cutting to the basket, and appears to be a real team player who plays extremely unselfishly---always cheering on his teammates in the game and from the bench. He displayed a very nice stroke from outside, hitting a couple of big 3-pointers in this game, although he also showed his age at times with some very poor decision making. Turnovers appear to be somewhat of an issue at this point, and he’s generally not the most polished player you’ll find offensively.
Obviously extremely young, and with a long ways to go before becoming a complete player, Bell has a really nice framework of tools and budding skills to build upon, and seems to be a really good fit for Jay Wright’s system at Villanova.
Big Thanks to Derp!