Eddie Griffin Challenge- New Jersey Juniors

As promised, over the next couple of days, I will break down some of what I saw Sunday at Trenton Catholic during the Eddie Griffin Challenge. Yesterday, I posted an article about Seton Hall Prep's Dallas Anglin, who currently holds an offer from Saint Joseph's. Today, we will look at the individual games of a number of other New Jersey juniors. Tomorrow, we will look at the PA side, and then on Friday we will look at the sophomore game.

Jersey City's Saint Anthony High School has a reputation as one of the best high school basketball programs in the country, and for good reason. Coach Bob Hurley is one of the best there is at any level. The New Jersey juniors team featured three Saint Anthony players: Kyle Anderson, Jerome Frink, and Rashad Andrews. I watched those three, Dallas Anglin, Tariq Carey, and Brandon Taylor most closely, and their write-ups are below.

Kyle Anderson- Anderson, who attended Paterson Catholic prior to it's closing at the end of last year, is a newcomer this season to Saint Anthony. He will only bring one of the most well-rounded games in the country to Coach Hurley. Standing 6'8, Anderson is ranked the number 1 point guard in the country by Rivals.com. Yes, point guard. While he may not play strictly the point in college, and eventually in the NBA, Anderson possesses a great feel for the game and great ball-handling for a player his size. He is a triple-double threat every time out there, and he was close to one on Sunday. Anderson is able to shoot over smaller perimeter defenders, post up other guards, and create for his teammates with his tremendous court awareness. If there is one word to describe Anderson's game, it is smooth. Nothing ever looks forced. Nothing ever looks awkward. The one knock on Anderson by scouts is his lack of great foot-speed. While not the most fleet-footed player on the court, he more than makes up for his lack of explosive foot-speed with his size, length, and ball-handling. One particular play in the second half of Sunday's game saw Anderson grab an offensive rebound under the basket, with his back to the basket. Knowing that another NJ junior was behind him on the other side of the basket, Anderson calmly threw the ball backwards, over his head, to his teammate. He is a unique talent.

Dallas Anglin -see yesterday's article here .

Jerome Frink (pictured above)- Frink, a 6'5 forward from Hurley's Saint Anthony program, was one of the most enjoyable players to watch on Sunday. While not the biggest player on the court or necessarily the most talented, Frink has a blue-collar approach to the game that makes him extremely likable. Right now, Frink is probably considered an undersized power forward if you need to put a label on him. Although on the smaller side for a power forward, Frink has a very wide build with broad shoulders, making him difficult to move around the hoop. He finished the game with 17 points and roughly 7 or 8 rebounds. Most of his points came on dunks, putbacks, or free throws. Down the stretch, when New Jersey made their comeback, Frink was money from the free-throw line. He would pull down offensive board after offensive board, getting fouled going back up. Jerome also had one of the highlight-reel plays of the day. On a fast break, Frink crossed his man over and then took off from deeper than he should have. His dunk shook the rim and backboard violently, causing the gym to explode in hoots and hollers. I have no idea if Frink is being looked at by the Hawks, or what schools are looking at him. He is a player that I thoroughly enjoyed watching Sunday and a player to keep an eye on, especially under the coaching of Bob Hurley. If Frink either grows or develops a bit more of a perimeter game over the next two years, he could be a very good college player.

Brandon Taylor- Taylor was the lone player in the junior game from Trenton Catholic. The 6'6 forward had a decent game for the New Jersey team. He was able to hit a shot from 3 and score twice around the basket. Although skilled, Taylor did not display the killer instinct or tenacity of Frink or Amile Jefferson on the Pennsylvania side.

Rashad Andrews- Another Saint Anthony player, the 6'4 wing had himself a decent afternoon. He scored 5 points for Jersey. Andrews projects as either a 2 guard or small forward down the line. He is long and athletic, and appeared to be an above-average defender. The physical tools are there, and with Hurley's coaching, Andrews could develop into a solid college prospect.

Tariq Carey- I was interested in seeing Carey play, since he is a name I have heard quite a bit of over the past year. Carey, a 6'2 guard from Newark, has garnered a decent amount of Big East interest over the past year, and seems to have his eyes set on a conference like the Big East or ACC. In my opinion, both Carey and Dallas Anglin were the best New Jersey guards Sunday after Kyle Anderson. Carey is very quick and strong with the ball. Due to his size, colleges probably want to see him develop into more of a pure point guard to play at the Big East or ACC level. His perimeter shot struggled a bit in this game, but he still managed to score 8 points. I can see why high-majors are keeping an eye on Carey.

Check back tomorrow for the PA side.

Picture of Jerome Frink is from here