Preview: Nike Extravaganza
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SANTA ANA, Calif. - The Nike Extravaganza begins Friday, and there will be plenty to pay attention to for Arizona fans as the field is once again loaded with talented high school teams from throughout the West.
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Here is a closer look at some of the Wildcat targets who will be participating in the two-day event, which is taking place at Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei.
Friday
Things get started at the Nike Extravaganza on Friday with six games - three of them are girls games - but the big contest featuring an Arizona target will take place at 7:30 p.m. PST.
Five-star recruit Stanley Johnson and the host team Mater Dei will take on Rialto (Calif.) Eisenhower in that contest. Johnson is coming off a game against Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco in which he scored 31 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for the Monarchs in a win over the Braves.
Saturday
The main day at the Nike Extravaganza is on Saturday when games begin at 9 a.m. PST and go all the way until the final game which tips off at 9 p.m.
10:30 a.m.: One of the morning games with intrigue is between Huntington Beach (Calif.) Ocean View and Las Vegas (Nev.) Durango. Ocean View point guard prospect Kendall Small has had some interest from the Wildcats as well as other programs.
The 2015 prospect and his team are currently 16-6 overall this season.
3 p.m.: Once the afternoon hits in Santa Ana, that's when things will really get fun. One of the afternoon's first matchups features Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman and Orange (Calif.) Lutheran. The Gaels of course have a pair of talented young big men with 2015 recruits Stephen Zimmerman and Chase Jeter.
The last time GOAZCATS.com saw Zimmerman he was able to perform well enough to earn a five-star ranking from Rivals.com. Jeter is a four-star recruit in the 2015 class according to Rivals.com.
4:30 p.m.: Right after the young guys play, Arizona signee Elliott Pitts and his team from Concord (Calif.) De La Salle will take on Santa Ana (Calif.) Foothill in the following game. The 2013 recruit has had a solid senior season so far for the Spartans who are currently 18-3 overall.
6 p.m.: St. John Bosco had a big game on Wednesday night with Mater Dei, and the Braves will have another one in one of the most intriguing games of the event when they take on Long Beach (Calif.) Poly. St. John Bosco features big-time prospects Isaac Hamilton (2013), Daniel Hamilton (2014) and Tyler Dorsey (2015). Isaac Hamilton and Dorsey are both five-star prospects while Daniel Hamilton is a four-star recruit according to Rivals.com.
Long Beach Poly also features some talented prospects with 2013 standouts Roschon Prince and Jordan Bell being the cornerstones of the Jackrabbits squad. 2014 prospect Kameron Chatman - a four-star recruit - recently included the Wildcats on his trimmed down list of schools.
7:30 p.m.: Another intriguing contest could feature two of the West's best 2014 point guards when Etiwanda, Calif., squares off with Los Angeles (Calif.) Loyola. We say could because there is chance that Loyola's standout point guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright might not be healthy enough to play.
The four-star Arizona target has battled injury this season and there is a chance he won't be able to give it a go. If he is ready, however, it could be a fun game as Etiwanda has its own star 2014 point guard in Jordan McLaughlin.
Both recruits hold offers from Arizona and McLaughlin recently included the Wildcats on his list of schools that he's focusing on as well.
9 p.m.: Wrapping up the tournament in the final game of the night will be Mater Dei which will take on Los Angeles (Calif.) Westchester. The Comets are currently 20-5 overall this season heading into Saturday's meeting with one-loss Mater Dei.
GOAZCATS.com will have plenty of coverage from Santa Ana, so continue to check back for updates from the Nike Extravaganza.
Click Here to view this Link.Matt Moreno
GOAZCATS.com Senior Recruiting Editor