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5th Grade	6th Grade	7th Grade
8th Grade	Elite AAU

Tournament Rundown

Elite AAU

The Elite AAU Division was loaded with talent this year. Maryland United dominated the competition on their way to the programs first ever Turkey Tip-Off Title. Don Dentith's Feeder Program gave Maryland United a game in Saturday's nightcap on Court 1. DJ Brown owned the United big men on his way to 15 first half points, keeping Feeder in the game. In the end United's guard tandem of Carlos Horne, Charles Glover, and Craig Shields was too much for Dentith's guys as they rolled in the second half. Glover, the most explosive scorer in the division, dropped 13 second half points on his way to a 17 point night.Shields finished with 12 and Horne had 16.

Other Players to Watch:

Although his team only managed to go 1-2 for the weekend, PYO's Byron Whiting showed that he is one of the best pure scorers at his age. He averaged 15 points per game for the tournament while scoring 20 against Feeder in the opener. Whiting continually hit 3's with hands in his face, took his man off the dribble and finished at the basket with tenacity. Matt Possanza also stood out for PYO. The big man averaged 14 for the tourney while getting rebounds and playing solid defense in the middle. Possanza is a do it all big, he can shoot from outside and score inside 10 feet. Stephen Griffin might have been the most entertaining player. The Penn Jaguar's guard couldn't do enough to lead his team to a win but he did manage to impress. On his way to 15 points per game the athletic guard seemed to be able to get to the rim at will. He also knocked down some jumpers and helped his team handle pressure by being a great secondary ballhandler.

8th Grade

Plymouth Jr. ABA played outstanding basketball on their way to a victory in the finals against defending champion Hershey. Plymouth's outstanding guard play was too much for Coach Bernie Banas' team. 6'1'' swingman Brendan Kilpatrick did it all for Plymouth all weekend long. The versatile guard can shoot, handle, attack the basket, play any position on the court and has basketball savy most high school varsity players don't have. He had 22 points in the finals to go along with games of 15 and 16 points earlier in the tournament. Kilpatrick was the difference maker for Plymouth, but Kenny Williams play shouldn't be overlooked. Although Williams doesn't score much, he is the consumate point guard, always finding his scorers in good places and creating for his teammates. He also is the motor that makes Plymouth's great defensive attack go. His constant pressure made it hard for Hershey to find their big guys in the final. Coach Dave Forrest's gamplan for stopping Hershey star Matt Banas was as good as you can expect to do against the 6'5'' 8th grader. Banas used his versatility to score 14 ppg. The big man can shoot, post up, and handle and has a bright future ahead of him. Banas had 13 in the final despite constant double teams and attention. Hershey's other big man Cody Dielman never really got going and the guards didn't play as well as they had earlier in the tournament. Hats off to Hershey for another great year in the Turkey Tip-Off. Plymouth was just too much for everyone as they worked together and played excellent basketball on both ends of the court all weekend long.

Other Players to Watch:

Flemington big man John Osbourne led his team to the semi finals. His finesse play around the basket and ability to find open space in the defense to get his shots off makes Oz a special player. He averaged 16 ppg for the weekend as he found different ways to score around the basket and outside the lane. A very solid Branchburg team suffered two close losses to start the tournament, in both games blowing 10 point leads. Kyle Adam and Mike DeMarco impressed in both games. These two play very well together and are solid basketball players that have a great sense for the game. They combined to average almost 27 ppg in the first two games. SHYBA's Dan Filenki is a great slasher. SHYBA finished the weekend 2-1 and besides a tough loss to Plymouth played great basketball. Filencki can do a lot of things with the ball and plays within SHYBA's system well. Ryan O'Hara for Spring-Ford might have been the best shooter in the tournament. He is a threat to make shots from all over the court

7th Grade

Perkiomen Valley won the 7th grade division by going 3-0 in an evenly matched pool. It was their two point win over St. Anne's in the opening game that ended up being the difference maker.All weekend long PV played team basketball on both ends of the court. They showed themselves to be well coached and unselfish. Stephen Leonard led the way for PV. He averaged 11 points per game for the tournament and seemed to be the spark for PV every time they needed to get something going. They key game for PV was against Spring-Ford on Sunday. Heading into the game 2-0 they controlled their own destiny. With a loss St. Anne's, Spring-Ford and PV would all be 2-1 and the champion would be decided by point differential. With the game close throughout the first half Leonard keyed a PV run late in the second half by scoring 9 points and securing a 14 point win. The solid shooting of Brett Davis and great all around effort by athletic wing Damon Page helped PV secure the title.

Other Players to Watch:

St. Anne's versatile big man Joe Foran had a great tournament. St. Anne's also played in the 8th grade division with mostly younger players and Foran proved to be a force even against the older kids. As he stepped onto the court later in the day against players his own age Foran averaged 16 ppg and nearly led St. Anne's to the title. Foran is a tough player who scores around the basket with strong moves and can hit the midrange jumper. Simmons for Spring-Ford had a solid tournament, providing scoring and great defensive play. Big man Myles Ragin was a force for the Montgomery Tar-Heels. He was easily the most dominant force in the division, averaging 11 points and dominating the glass in each Montgomery game.

6th Grade

The 6th grade division featured 12 teams playing in 4 pools. This might have been the deepest division at this year's Turkey Tip-Off! The entire weekend seemed to be leading up to two teams facing off for the title. Westfield and Willow Grove's "Wee R the World" went 2-0 in pool play and won convincingly in their semi-final games. The final featured two teams playing different styles. Brian Neely's Willow Grove team featured a majority of 5th grade players. They played a run and jump, in your face style that was too much for everyone one they face until Westfield. Westfield relied on ball movement in the halfcourt and solid half court defense. In the final Westfield coach Rick Elliot did a masterful job handling the Willow Grove pressure and limiting turnovers and easy baskets, which is where Willow Grove made their living all weekend. Coach's son Dylan Elliot was the most dominant player in the division and it showed in the final. As the biggest player in the division Elliot's ability to not only dominate down low but also rebound at will, hit the outside shot, break pressure handling the ball and come up with key buckets every time Westfield needed one was the difference. Guard Evan Garfinkel provided some big shots and secondary scoring to help Elliot out. Westfield won 52-38. This is a deep team that is going to have another fantastic season as they come off two consecutive league titles and a 40-5 2006-2007 year. Not to worry for Neely and his bunch, they will return a young team next year with tournament experience and a load of talent. Explosive guard Shawn Witherspoon averaged 17 points per game until the final where Westfield held him to only 6 points. Witherspoon's natural ability to break down defenses with the dribble and excellent floaters and finishes around the basket make him a player with skill far beyond his age. Brian's son Jordan Neely also showed a great skill set to go along with leadership ability and excellent defensive prowess.

Other Players to Watch:

Spring-Ford easily could have been in Westfield's shoes if not for a tough one point loss to the Field in pool play. This was one of the better games in the tournament. Paul Kakareka has put together a team that applies intense defensive pressure and can hit you from a bunch of different ways on the offensive end. Spring-Ford was led by another coaches son, Drew Kakareka, who leads him team like a true coaches son. Kakareka got everyone involved and chose his spots to score. Josh Tupper and Nick Stunek are both lethal scorers.Steven Schaffer for SHYBA had a excellent tourney averaging 15 ppg and dominating the low block. A pair of Pocono campers also had great tournaments. Andrew Riviello for Montgomery shot the ball well and kept his team in every game with his stellar offensive play. Jordan Jachim for South Parkland played defense like a monster and the little guy did an excellent job handling the ball and his team. Speaking of defensive monsters, Aaron Dean for Montgomery might have been the best defender in the tournament. He locked down the oppositions best players and filled passing lanes to rack up steals and easy baskets. A solid Perk Valley team that made the semi finals was solid across the board, Charleton, Kane and Wilson had nice tournaments for them.

5th Grade

The 5th grade division seemed to also be heading for an inevitable matchup in the final. Hatboro and Abyssinian Church dominated their respective pools before matching up in a great final game. Although the 52-37 final makes it seem as though Ab Church ran over Hatboro, it doesn't tell the truth. Hatboro was in the game until the final 5 minutes when Church pulled away. Abyssinian was led by guard Shaquille White. White was the most unstobbable player in the division when he put his mind to it. He averaged 13 points per game including a 17 point outburst in the final. Jaquan Hickman played Shaq toWhite's Kobe. Hickman dominated downlow, averaging over 17 points per game and leading the tournament in scoring average for all age groups. He had 20 points in the final, it was his play and Hatboro's inability to stop him that was the difference. Hatboro is a fun team to watch play. They run 10 guys at you for the whole game and never stop playing hard. Each game they had 5 or 6 guys with 6-10 points each. They can all handle and shoot and their motor as a team never stops. Kevin Nichols is the guard that really helps make them go and Milo Luciano had a great tournament scoring the ball.

Other Players to Watch:

Dunellen guard David Johnson can score in a variety of ways and will be a player to look out for in the future. Adam Gallagher had a great weekend for a tough Maine-Endwell team thats only loss came to Ab Church. He put up 10 ppg and showed great ball skills and enormous potential. Both Spring-Ford teams had standouts as well. For the A team Olson averaged 10 a game and for the B's Alex Gouvei found ways to score with crafty moves from the peremiter.

*There were a lot of other players out there this weekend who had good tournaments and showed potential but because of limited space not all could be mentioned. Great job to everyone who played this weekend and keep working on your games. We will see you in the Spring for the Tournament of Champions and this summer at camp. Feel free to call (732) 50-BBALL with any questions regarding the Turkey-Tip or any of our other events and camps.

All-Tournament Teams
Elite AAU
Carlos Horne	Maryland United
Charles Glover	Maryland United
Craig Shields	Maryland United
DJ Brown	Feeder Program
Ko Khu	Feeder Program
Byron Whiting	PYO
Matt Possanza	PYO
Steven Griffin	Penn Jaguars
8th Grade
Brendan Kilpatrick	Plymouth
Kenny Williams	Plymouth
Jake Mascio	Plymouth
Matt Banas	Hershey
Cody Dielman	Hershey
John Osbourne	Flemington
Zach Schreck	Flemington
Wisely	Lower Macungie
Dunleavy	Lower Macungie
David Cotallese	Blessed Teresa
Dan Falenki	SHYBA
Ryan O'Hara	Spring-Ford
Mike Giacone	Westfield
Nathan Mitchell	Westfield
7th Grade
Stephen Leonard	Perkiomen Valley
Damon Page	Perkiomen Valley
Simmons	Spring-Ford
O'Hara	Spring-Ford
Myles Ragin	Montgomery
Joe Foran	St. Anne's
6th Grade
Dylan Elliot	Westfield
Evan Garfinkel	Westfield
Kane	Wesfield
Shawn Witherspoon	Willow Grove
Jordan Neely	Willow Grove
Drew Kakareka	Spring-Ford
Josh Tupper	Spring-Ford
Steven Schaffer	SHYBA
Gallagher	Maine-Endwell
Charleton	Perk Valley
Jordan Jachim	South Parkland
Andrew Riviello	Montgomery
Aaron Dean	Montgomery
5th Grade
Jaquan Hickman	Abyssinian Church
Shaquille White	Abyssinian Church
Kevin Nichols	Hatboro
Milo Luciano	Hatboro
Olson	Spring-Ford
Alex Gouvei	Spring-Ford
David Johnson	Dunellen
Adam Gallagher	Maine-Endwell