Lions Rock Potter’s House, Score Season High 83 Points
November 30, 2011

The Potter’s House is a tough place to play. Ask visiting coaches and they will all tell you that it takes a special performance and effort to come out of the Potter’s House with a win. Tuesday night, The Rock showed they are a special team beating the PHCA Lions 83-58. In what was set up as a “let-down” game for The Rock coming off of two big wins against United Faith and The Miller School at the Charlotte Hoops Challenge last weekend. The Lions came out and established a 7 point 1st quarter advantage (18-11). The Rock would move ahead in the second quarter only committing 2 turnovers in the period, something that has plagued them all season. Potter’s House hung close behind 15 first half points by Travis Littles to trail 38-26 at halftime. Coach Justin Harden challenged his team to be up by at least 20 points with 4 minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter so that the crowd would not be a factor.  His team responded in resounding fashion going on a 15-5 run to open the quarter and establish a 22 point lead with 3:58 remaining. The Rock would outscore PHCA 27-12 in the quarter and eventually take a 30 point advantage in the 4th quarter before settling for 25 point victory. “I am very proud of my team today because they were set up to play poorly, but, for the most part, they didn’t,” said Coach Harden. “And when I challenged them at halftime to take the crowd out of it and not let it stay close in the second half, they came out and did just that.” The Rock was paced by junior Christian Benzon who had a team-high 19 points, 7 assists, 4 steals and 0 turnovers. The Rock had 4 other players score in double figures: sophomores Mitchell Wilbekin (12), DeVaughn Jenkins (12), and Pape Diatta (10) and Senior Ousmane Ba (11). The Rock improves to 7-1 on the season and will face Faith Baptist (GA) at 6p in the first game of the Gatortown Hoops Classic at The Rock School this Friday, December 2nd. They will face Covenant Christian (GA) at 12p on Saturday.

The Rock Finishes 2-1 at Crusader Classic
November 20, 2011

The Rock won 2 games and loss one, but know they let one slip away from them and could have finished the event 3-0. The Rock battled Central Park Christian (AL) in their first game on Friday, November 18th. The two teams met twice last year with Central Park defeating the Lions easily in both games. The last meeting took place in the championship game of the NACA National Tournament in Dayton, TN.
The Lions showed growth as they took a commanding 20-14 lead in the first quarter and stretched it to a 25-14 lead early in the 2nd period before turning the ball over 10 times in the quarter to lead only 32-29 at halftime.
Coach Justin Harden had to make halftime adjustments, going to a zone to try to prevent the Lions from incurring anymore foul trouble as 3 Lions players had 3 fouls in the first half. Thirty total fouls (15 each team) were whistled in the first half. When the Lions went to the zone, they seemed to play complacent allowed the Eagles to take a 4th quarter lead on a ¾ court buzzer beater 42-40. The Lions cut it close on back to back 3 pointers by Mitchell Wilbekin, but the Lions played loose with the ball all game and turned the ball over 5 more times in the final period and could not catch CPC who went on the win 60-55. “it was obvious that we did not take care of the ball,” said coach Justin Harden. “Even though we forced 28 turnovers, we turned it over 27 times and that should not happen at this level of basketball. We are better than how we played today. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the win, but maybe our guys will learn from our mistakes.” Junior Christian Benzon led the Lions with 17 points and 7 steals. Junior Glenn Feidanga added 13 points. The Rock’s record is 2-1.

The Rock had an opportunity to quickly rectify their poor performance from earlier in the day when they took on Charlotte based American Basketball Institute. Once again, the Lions started hot in the first quarter on a 9-0 run and finished with a 22-4 lead. The Lions allowed ABI to get back in the game in the second quarter committing 5 turnovers and missing several lay-ups. Coming out at half, the Lions got going again scoring 14 points in their first 7 possessions. Despite the on slot of points, ABI didn’t fold and The Rock was unable to completely put them away. The Lions won the 3rd quarter 22-17 and had a 57-35 lead going into the 4th quarter. The Lions would battle through more turnovers (9 in the 4th quarter) to win 77-53. The 77 points are the most scored by the Lions this season who made 29 field goals, also a high for the season. “What’s crazy is that we had 20 turnovers and still scored 77 points,” said coach Justin Harden. “We have to learn to take better care of the ball. But give it up to ABI, because they never stopped playing hard. They didn’t just fold or give up. But we have to learn how to really put a team away when we have them down. Sophomore Mitchell Wilbekin led The Rock with 18 points on 4-7 shooting from deep. Juniors Christian Benzon (16), Glenn Feidanga (13) and Alain Chigha (11) scored in double figures also. The Rock’s record is 3-1.

In the third game of the Crusader Classic, The Rock faced Mt Zion (NC). For the fourth straight game, the Lions finished with 20+ points in the first quarter to lead 22-17. The Lions jumped out to an early 9-0 lead again in this one before squandering the big lead in the middle of the quarter on missed shots and turnovers. The second quarter seems to be where the Lions have difficulties as they had 7 turnovers in the period, including a stretch of 6 in 7 possessions. The Lions were able to play solid defense to take a 32-26 lead at half time. The Lions missed 9 free throws in the first half. The Rock struggled out of halftime only scoring 10 points in the third quarter thanks to Juniors Glenn Feidanga and Christian Benzon each scoring 5 in the period. The Lions came alive again in the 4th quarter as they were able to turn some Mt Zion turnovers into fast break opportunities and baskets. Feidanga scored 13 points in the 4th quarter make both of his field goal attempts and knocking down 9 or 10 free throws in the period. “Glenn was special in the second half; especially after the first half he had,” said coach Justin Harden. “I wasn’t sure how he was going to respond because he played about as bad as I have seen him play. But he came back with a fury and made some really nice shots. But he made free throws which he has done so far this season.” Feidanga led all scorers with 22 points (team season high) going 6-10 from the field and 10-14 from the line. Benzon added 15 points on 7-13 shooting and sophomore Mitchell Wilbekin had 14 points. The Rock’s record is 4-1. The Rock will face United Faith (NC) and The Miller School (VA) in the Charlotte Hoops Challenge November 25-26th.

In their second game, the Lions had to overcome limited rest and sleep. The Lions’ first game against Covenant Christian did not end until 1045p and they were scheduled to tip-off against Action Sports Academy at 930a on Saturday. The lack of rest didn’t seem to bother the Lions as they started the game on hot shooting making 4-5 3 pointers, 3-6 from inside the arc and 4-5 from the foul line to finish with 22 points in the quarter. Their scoring assault continued in the 2nd period equaling the total from the 1st period to finish the half leading 44-25.
Quality scoring and effective defense helped the Lions pull away and lead by as many as 30 points late in the 3rd quarter. Despite a valiant effort in the beginning of the 4th quarter by ACA, the Lions held on to win 71-49.
“I don’t think we have ever shot that well from 3,” said coach Justin Harden, alluding to the Lions making 12 out of 17 3 pointers. “That is not a strong suit of ours and we can’t rely on it to get us through very many games. They were a good team and the final score does not necessarily indicate the quality of the team they are. We just happened to shoot it well. But we also played some pretty good defense.” Sophomore Mitchell Wilbekin once again led the Lions in scoring with 20 points. Junior Glenn Feidanga added 17 points going 7-8 and pulling down 6 rebounds. Sophomore Pape Diatta had 5 points, 6 assists, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and a block. Junior Alain Chigha chipped in 11 points. The Rock’s record is 2-0. The Rock will face Central Park Christian (AL), American Basketball Institute (NC) and Mt Zion (NC) in the Crusader Classic in Ludowici, GA November 18-19th.

On Saturday, September 24th, The Rock had 4 juniors and a senior participate in two different showcases (THEworkout by Nike and The Dodge Florida Shootout) which featured players from around the state of Florida and Southeast. On Sunday, the sophomores of The Rock had their chance to showcase their talents. Check out what some of the scouting services covering the event said about the Lions.

Glenn Feidanga - Feidanga has a very good body for the four spot at college.  He runs the floor well, posts up strong, and goes after every missed shot.  He needs to improve the range on his jump shot as right now it isn’t reliable past ten feet. (sourcehoops.com)
Maybe the best rebounder at the workout on Saturday, Feidanga has wide shoulder and a strong base which allows him to carve out space in the lane.  The 6'8 junior has a good motor and makes effort plays at both ends of the floor.  His offensive skill set is developing and showed signs of that with a few midrange jumpers and moves with his back to the basket. (floridahoops.com)

Alain Chigha – A very smooth wing, Chigha has a quick first step to the hoop as well as a solid stroke along the perimeter.  He needs to get stronger and that sometimes keeps him from finishing as often as he should when he meets up with contact at the rim.  A good athlete with a long wing span, Chigha is tough on the defensive end. (sourcehoops.com)
This long, active, versatile forward showed his competitiveness on Saturday in St. Petersburg.  Chigha gives maximum effort at both sides of the floor, especially on the backboards.  The 6'7 junior runs the floor well and finishes in transition. Chigha perimeter skill set is making progress and will round out his game nicely. (floridahoops.com)
The event's most competitive guy two years running, he's a long and active small forward. The junior is tough in transition and working to improve his skill game. (rivals.com)

Fredrick Bitondo – Bitondo got better as the game went along.  He struggled early with getting the ball in the basket but when he focused on getting closer to the rim he had more success.  Ditondo is thin but he has a healthy dose of athletic ability.  He runs and jumps well, finishes on the break, and is especially active on the offensive glass. (sourcehoops.com)

Ousmane Ba – Ba has only been in the states seven months. He is still a bit raw and getting used to the fast pace of the game.  Still, Ba’s physical attributes are things that can’t be taught.  He runs the floor pretty well, is a deterring shot blocker, and is active on the glass at both ends.  Ba did show an okay touch with both hands around the rim and though he doesn’t always complete plays inside, you can’t knock his effort.  His best days are obviously ahead of him. (sourcehoops.com)
Ba has unique mobility for a high school player which his size.  Relatively new to the game, Ba is improving on the offensive end and showed signs of development with some moves with his back to the basket.  The 6'11 senior has god upper body strength and can change shots in the lane and dominate the defensive glass. (floridahoops.com)

Pape Diatta – Diatta had a solid, all-around game on Sunday morning.  He rebounded at a high rate, scored inside, and proved to be a solid ball-handler.  He needs to continue to work on increasing the range of his jumper as well as not float too much out on the perimeter. (sourcehoops.com)
One of the bigger players in attendance on Sunday, Diatta is an active, mobile forward who competed on the glass.  He has the ability to put the ball on the floor for a couple bounces and attack slower defenders.  The sophomore has good hands and is a prospect to keep an eye on. (floridahoops.com)
On one hand, there just weren't very many big guys on the floor Sunday. On the other, the few that were out there didn't get a lot of touches. That's why it was easy to like the play of the 6-foot-7 sophomore. He competed for rebounds, showed pretty good hands and did the most he could with few touches offensively. (rivals.com)

Mitchell Wilbekin – Wilbekin continues to prove he is one of the best players in the state when it comes to knocking down contested jump shots from all distances.  He knocks them down off the dribble, has a wicked step-back jumper, and when overplayed he can get to the rim.  Sometimes he worries more about drawing contact than finishing but that will change in time.  Wilbekin is a very good ball-handler and distributor and plays tough at the defensive end. (sourcehoops.com)
One of the top point guards in Florida's 2014 class, Wilbekin had a scorer's mentality on Sunday.  He was able to consistently connect from beyond the arc and showed the ability to create space for his jump shot.  He has a high basketball IQ and has the ability to be a distributor as well. (floridahoops.com)
The younger brother of Florida sophomore Scottie Wilbekin, the 6-footer was not shy about getting his shot off at camp. He really likes to let it fly from three-point land and is for the most part an accurate shooter. (rivals.com)

DeVaughn Jenkins – Jenkins makes his biggest impact at the defensive end where he is a very good rebounder and shot blocker.  Offensively he can face up and knock down the fifteen footer but inside he can be pushed off the block because of a lack of bulk at this time. Jenkins plays hard and is a prospect with a high ceiling. (sourcehoops.com)

Austin Harrell – We’ve seen him shoot it better than he did on Sunday but that didn’t keep him from making positive plays throughout the game.  He’s not yet a point guard but is improving in his ability to be a facilitator at the offensive end.  Harrell handles the ball well and can make plays at the rim.  Defensively, his feet and hands are quick and he brings an attacking mind set to that end of the court. (sourcehoops.com)

Christian Benzon – Benzon was arguably the most athletic player in attendance. The physical wing was a nightmare for most defenders trying to contain him. He was relentless attacking the glass on both ends of the floor and sprinted ahead of the pack looking for highlight dunks. In the half court, he is at his best when putting the ball on the floor for 2-3 dribbles and getting to the rim. His jump shot and ball handling are still a work in progress. (sourcehoops.com)

THEWorkout, present by Nike Team Florida, took place September 24-25 in St. Petersburg.  Juniors and seniors played on Saturday while the sophomores and freshmen got together on Sunday. The 16th Annual Dodge Florida Shootout took place in Daytona Beach, Florida on the campus of Embry Riddle University on Saturday, September 24th with players from 9-12th grade playing together.