Trusted Choice Tournament of Champions games Friday 11-28- see Jordan Prosser

[Da Coach]

Prosser with a spectacular block and then a rebound basket on the other end to cut the score to 63-59. Then after a missed shot by Howe, Prosser again got a rebound of a Eureka miss, and was fouled again. He just made 2-2 to cut the lead to 63-61.

Howe scored and stole it again and scored again to go up 67-61.

Now time out with 1:09 left.

[Da Coach]

A layup made it 67-63, then after a turnover, Eureka had a couple shots, but missed.
Howe made it 69-63 with a couple free throws.

Then Eureka was unable to score again, and the final score was 71-63.

Jordan played a great game, but Eureka just doesn't have quite enough to compliment him. They are not a great outside shooting team, and Prosser is their only inside threat. So when teams double team Jordan, they have trouble scoring.

I'll have the final stats in a minute.

[ER3]

28 points, 15 rebounds, and 2 blocks for Prosser...
10-17 from the floor and 8-12 from the line....

Solid stat line for him, I'd say...

[Da Coach]

Jordan Prosser was 10-17 from the floor, he missed a couple long shots late. He was 8-12 from the free throw line for 28 points. He had 15 rebounds, and was credited with 2 blocks.

The final score was 71-63-
for Howe, 6'2" junior guard Andre Hampton was 10-13 from three point range, and had 35 points.

Eureka outrebounded Howe 37-20. Soph Josh Prosser had 4 points and 6 rebounds. Eureka was 4-16 from three, but were 25-49 overall.

I sat next to an assistant coach from a Division I school.
He didn't say who he was scouting, as coaches never like to reveal that info, but he did say that Bradley really got a good player with Jordan.

[shaunguth]

28 points, 15 rebounds, and 2 blocks for Prosser...
10-17 from the floor and 8-12 from the line....

Solid stat line for him, I'd say...

I'd say so! The thing is, it didn't even look like it to me. He plays so calm and is really fundamentally sound that his points add up quicker than you think. I was there with my 12 year old son and he told me that he's perfect for Bradley after he got the ball down low and then passed it out for the three-point shots, not to mention his ability to rebound. I probably won't be able to get to many more Eureka games, but very much look forward to seeing him in a Bradley uniform.

[tornado]

Here are Jordan Prossers stat totals for the two games he's played.....
I think they did pretty well given they played up in class against two larger schools.
(Eureka enrollment is 546, East Peoria 1181, Howe is 636 but they are a private school, so if they were in Illinois they'd be at 1018 enrollment)

Game 1 vs. E. Peoria: 23 pts, 16 rebs, 1 blk
Game 2 vs. Howe: 28 pts, 15 rebs, 2 blks
........so Jordan is averaging 25.5 ppg and 15.5 rpg against a couple of the strongest opponents they'll face this season.

Indianapolis Howe had a good SG, Andre Hampton who drained 10 of 13 attempts. His loud mouth that could be heard all over the arena, his taunting and trash talking certainly won't endear him to recruiters, though.
Howe has 6-9 Jordan Manuel awaiting word on eligibility, BUT they also have one other kid, a 6-10 center, Isaiah Hill, who is also a transfer and he is awaiting word on his eligibility.
If they have all those guys, this is going to be a tough team to beat.

http://www.indystar.com/article/20081119/SPORTS0203/811190377/1311/ARCHIVE

By the way, in the later El Paso - Cuba City (WI) game, El Paso center Codey Funk had 24 points and 24 rebounds (including 12 offensive rebounds)! This kid could be DI.

[shaunguth]

Here are Jordan Prossers stat totals for the two games he's played.....
I think they did pretty well given they played up in class against two larger schools.
(Eureka enrollment is 546, East Peoria 1181, Howe is 636 but they are a private school, so if they were in Illinois they'd be at 1018 enrollment)

Game 1 vs. E. Peoria: 23 pts, 16 rebs, 1 blk
Game 2 vs. Howe: 28 pts, 15 rebs, 2 blks
........so Jordan is averaging 25.5 ppg and 15.5 rpg against a couple of the strongest opponents they'll face this season.

Indianapolis Howe had a good SG, Andre Hampton who drained 10 of 13 attempts. His loud mouth that could be heard all over the arena, his taunting and trash talking certainly won't endear him to recruiters, though.

Almost forgot, JP is now the leading rebounder in TOC history and only needed his six first-half rebounds to get there.

Hampton did indeed shoot lights-out and broke the TOC single-game record for made 3-pointers with his 10 makes. And yes.....his constant yelling got very old very fast! I'm sure JL was very impressed with this shooter, but wouldn't even dream of recruiting the kid. Oh yeah....JL, EB, and CB were all there sitting near Jim Mattson.

[BradleyBrave]

Almost forgot, JP is now the leading rebounder in TOC history and only needed his six first-half rebounds to get there.

Hampton did indeed shoot lights-out and broke the TOC single-game record for made 3-pointers with his 10 makes. And yes.....his constant yelling got very old very fast! I'm sure JL was very impressed with this shooter, but wouldn't even dream of recruiting the kid. Oh yeah....JL, EB, and CB were all there sitting near Jim Mattson.

I think it should be noted that JP's double-double against Howe came against constant double-teaming which prevented him from getting clean looks almost the entire game. JP had to go and get the ball on rebounds or run the floor in transition to get involved, as Howe paid most of their defensive attention to him.

Howe also was playing without their top player, Jordan Manuel, who seemed healthy (he shot around at halftime) but was in street clothes. He was 6'8" but was wafer-thin, perhaps he didn't want to get broken in half or embarrassed. JP easily had a 40-50 lb advantage.

It looked like the coaches arrived close to the half, and were talking to JP's parents at halftime. Good to see coach out there keeping tabs on his prized recruit!

[BUBrave28]

I'm glad he signed earlier this month. I think there would be vultures circling after the year JP is about to have. If he can put up these numbers against these teams AND double teams, he is going to demolish people the rest of the season. I could see him avg 29-31pts, 17-20 boards and 2blks. That's good stuff.

[mrcoachdude]

I'm glad he signed earlier this month. I think there would be vultures circling after the year JP is about to have. If he can put up these numbers against these teams AND double teams, he is going to demolish people the rest of the season. I could see him avg 29-31pts, 17-20 boards and 2blks. That's good stuff.

I hate Vultures...they just keep circling....

[Beninator]

I'm glad he signed earlier this month. I think there would be vultures circling after the year JP is about to have. If he can put up these numbers against these teams AND double teams, he is going to demolish people the rest of the season. I could see him avg 29-31pts, 17-20 boards and 2blks. That's good stuff.

I hate Vultures...they just keep circling....

I'll post this again as it fits here, but after seeing JP, I am very surprised
that more Big Ten teams did not go after him more aggresively....
But I am glad they didnt!!! JP should get a lot of minutes next year
which is another reason to go to BU.

[BradleyBrave]

I'll post this again as it fits here, but after seeing JP, I am very surprised
that more Big Ten teams did not go after him more aggresively....
But I am glad they didnt!!! JP should get a lot of minutes next year
which is another reason to go to BU.

I agree. He has a 'Big 10' body for sure. His footwork and athleticism for someone his size were probably the most impressive things to me. He has been well-coached so far in interior fundamentals, which is very refreshing. I'm sure there will be some growing pains as he transitions to DI, but I do see him getting some minutes next year. We haven't had a true post player recruit of his caliber in a long, long time. Perhaps the thing about his game that excited me the most was that he didn't wander the perimeter trying to be something he isn't. He's an interior player, and that's where he plays. That's where he'll play for us, and he's doing to do a darn good job. Color me 'excited' about a recruit I never thought we would get!

[Da Coach]

Howe also was playing without their top player, Jordan Manuel, who seemed healthy (he shot around at halftime) but was in street clothes. He was 6'8" but was wafer-thin, perhaps he didn't want to get broken in half or embarrassed. JP easily had a 40-50 lb advantage.

Jordan Manuel (a junior) is embroiled in an eligibility issue with the Indiana High School Athletic Assn. That's why he didn't play.
He tried to transfer from Howe to Indianapolis Pike over the summer, probably on some bad advice from handlers. But the IHSAA has strict rules against transferring just for athletic reasons, and they deemed him ineligible at Pike HS. So he then transferred back to Howe, and is appealing to the IHSAA to be reinstated to play. However, since he did officially transfer to Pike, and then transfer back to Howe, the IHSAA is ruling that he will be ineligible for the year at Howe. He is appealing that ruling. Here is an article about Howe and a summary of these issues with Manuel.

http://www.indystar.com/article/20081119/SPORTS0203/811190377/1311/ARCHIVE

[BUBraves2006]

I agree. He has a 'Big 10' body for sure. His footwork and athleticism for someone his size were probably the most impressive things to me. He has been well-coached so far in interior fundamentals, which is very refreshing. I'm sure there will be some growing pains as he transitions to DI, but I do see him getting some minutes next year. We haven't had a true post player recruit of his caliber in a long, long time. Perhaps the thing about his game that excited me the most was that he didn't wander the perimeter trying to be something he isn't. He's an interior player, and that's where he plays. That's where he'll play for us, and he's doing to do a darn good job. Color me 'excited' about a recruit I never thought we would get!

A true post player? Are we sure Bradley is allowed to have these? Might we actually have to consistently get the ball inside?

It sure would be nice if the offense was run this way by choice, next year! Maybe the game against Richmond is a sign of things to come.

[Da Coach]

The TOCC tournament was as well run as any high school tournament I have ever seen. I have to compliment Shaun Powell and all the people behind this great tournament.
It is run like a professional operation! The stats crew was extremely efficient, better than at most college games. The stats were made available within seconds after games ended, as well as at every break in the game.
The teams were all treated extremely well, and there was food available all day for the players, team officials and media members.
I had the chance to talk with a few people from different teams, and it seems everyone was delighted with how well the travel arrangements and accomodations were handled. Even the game matchups were done well.

This was the first one I was able to attend, since I was with Bradley 2 years ago in the Chicago Invitational, and last year at the South Padre Island tournament. I hope this TOCC will continue here in the Peoria area for many years. Great job!