Border Wars Part Deux: NoCal .vs. SoCal
Words. HShoop
Border Wars Part Deux: NoCal .vs. SoCal:
(Photo of Jeremy Tyler)
NoCal and SoCal have always had heated rivalries when it comes to basketball, whether it be street ball, high school or the Lakers versus Kings match ups some years back. And to be quiet honest, there hasn’t been much of a rivalry lately as the Lakers have dominated the Kings and SoCal has dominated the high school ranks. Still let’s see how this year’s crops of NoCal all-stars fair against their SoCal counter parts.
NoCal:
PG: Jared Cunningham 6-3 170 (San Leandro HS) Arizona St.
SG: Chase Tapley 6-2 SG (Sacramento HS)
SF: Reeves Nelson 6-7 215 Sr. (Modesto Christian) UCLA
PF: Brendan Lane 6-9 200 Sr. (Rocklin HS)
C: Greg Smith 6-8 230 Sr. (Bethel (Jesse M.) HS)
Bench: Chris Brew PG 6-3 Sr. (St.Mary’s HS) UC Santa Barbara, Xavier Thames PG 6-3 Sr. (Pleasant Grove HS), Niyi Harrison 6-7 F Sr. (Bellarmine Prep) Santa Clara
SoCal:
PG: Darius Morris 6-3 170 Sr. (Windward HS)
SG: Hollis Thompson 6-6 180 Sr. (Loyola HS) Georgetown
SF: Jordan Hamilton 6-7 220 Sr. (Dominguez HS)
PF: Renardo Sidney 6-9 250 Sr. (Fairfax HS)
C: Jeremy Tyler 6-10 C Jr. (San Diego HS)
Bench: David Wear 6-9 PF Sr. (Mater Dei HS) UNC, Travis Wear 6-9 PF Sr. (Mater Dei) UNC, Michael Snaer 6-4 SG Sr. (Rancho Verde HS), Roberto Nelson 6-3 SG Sr. (Santa Barbara HS), Solomon Hill 6-6 SF Sr. (Fairfax HS)
Guards: SoCal has the size and talent advantage in the backcourt. While NoCal’s Cunningham might offset Morris, Thompson would have a field day on the shorter Tapley on the offensive end of the court. SoCal wins the backcourt match up.
Forwards: Jordan Hamilton and Renardo Sidney would be a tough match up for most high-major college front lines. While Nelson would be able to check Hamilton due to his toughness and work rate, Lane would be in a world of hurt when Sidney unleashes his offensive arsenal on him. Advantage SoCal.
Center: Tyler has more upside, but right now Smith is a better all around athlete. Smith is also stronger than Tyler, but Tyler’s length and shot blocking ability should give him fits in the post. While this is the best possible match up for NoCal, Tyler .vs. Smith would be a stalemate.
Bench: It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that SoCal’s bench would give NoCal’s starters a run for their money or even beat them. The Wear twins would just have their way in the paint while NoCal’s big guards score almost at will. NoCal gets the nod again.
Verdict: Again, SoCal wins in a landslide. The strength of their starters and bench would just be too much and eventually wear down the NoCal squad by say…the second quarter.