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Hoop Group AC Jam Fest Notebook (July 14)

07/15/2018, 9:00am EDT
By Josh Verlin & Austin Petolillo

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin) &
Austin Petolillo (@AustinPSports)

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ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- The first-ever Hoop Group Atlantic City Jam Fest took over the AC Convention Center this weekend, with 14 courts hosting teams from 14U through 17U for a weekend-long tournament that also serves as the championship for the Hoop Group Summer League.

Here’s a notebook from the latter part of Saturday’s action, featuring early-round bracket games in the 17U and 16U divisions:

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Jeff Woodward (above) has become more mobile and improved his conditioning this summer. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Jeff Woodward (2020/Methacton)

Impossible to miss ever since he first popped onto the radar as a rising freshman at Methacton thanks to his now 6-foot-9, 260-pound frame, Woodward is really starting to make noticeable strides in his long-term productivity.

It’s not that Woodward didn’t know how to play; he was always a hard worker and willing passer out of the post, with above-average hands and feet. Instead, it’s the intangibles that are starting to work in Woodward’s favor.

Previously something of a plodding post who struggled to stay productive through the fast pace of AAU, Woodward proved his improved shape by playing all but a minute of an up-and-down contest, an 81-77 loss for his East Coast Power 16U squad at the hands of Lee Academy (Mass.). Even late in the game he was chugging up and down the court, closing out on shooters and getting his hands on second-chance opportunities.

“Even earlier this summer, towards the end of longer games when I’m playing a lot, I was getting pretty gassed,” he said. “After this game, I feel like I could go out and play right again.”

Woodward was coming off a strong start to the week, making the Top 20 All-Star Game at the Hoop Group’s Elite I camp in Reading after a string of impressive outings at Albright College. But so far, that hasn’t been enough for him to add to his offer list, which currently stands at one: Coppin State, which offered last summer.

Not surprisingly at his size and skill level, Woodward is getting plenty of Division I interest, with Penn and Columbia among several schools trying to get him on campus for camps this fall; Stony Brook, Brown, Princeton and Lafayette have also been in touch.

“It’s rewarding knowing that there are people out there and they recognize the work you’ve been putting in,” he said. “It’s fun, it’s exciting and I’m just trying to not stress out too much about who’s looking at me.”

As he prepares for his junior season at Methacton, where along with senior guard David Duda Jr. and East Coast Power teammate Brett Eberly he’ll be one of the featured pieces for Jeff Derstine’s Warriors, Woodward is benefitting from being used in a similar manner on the AAU circuit as in high school. Both teams like to get the ball into the big man in the high and low post, and space the floor around him for kick-outs when the double-teams inevitably come.

“[It] stays consistent with we’ve got really good shooters, at Methacton I’ve got Dave, here I’ve got Khai [Champion], Omar [Nichols], everyone’s a good shooter on our team,” he said. “Just knowing if I’m posting up and a double comes, or I’m not able to make a move right away, I can just throw it to a shooter and be confident they’re going to knock it down.”

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Sean Yoder (2019/Pennridge)

If Pennridge high school point guard Sean Yoder’s talents weren’t recognized by college coaches on the AAU circuit, they most certainly will be now.

Playing for East Coast Power 17U, Yoder and the team welcome two new big additions to the squad: La Salle’s Konrad Kiszka, and Westtown’s Jon Bol Ajak, both D-I prospects, both of whom will bring a lot more college coaches to their games.

“I think defenses tend to focus on them now, and that’s fine, we’ll just feed off of them,” Yoder said, “but they’re definitely the centerpieces of our team and everyone else plays off of them.”

Described in his own words as a “pass-first point guard,” the 6-2 Yoder’s strengths will be on display with two new weapons down low on the block; Ajak stands 6-11 and Kiszka 6-7, and they’re immediately the two tallest weapons on the team.

“They add another element to our team and that’s what we needed coming in,” Yoder said. “Two unselfish guys, they know how to play the game right, that’s what we’re all about.”

Prior to this offseason, Yoder already held an offer High Point, though it was with their old coaching staff. This year though, Yoder has has Colgate and Wagner offering him, the latter doing so this weekend in Atlantic City.

“I like every school that has offered me, so it’s good,” Yoder said. “I’m just weighing my options here and seeing what I can do in July, win some tournaments and get some wins.”

In addition to his three offers, Yoder has received interest from Marist, Penn, Columbia and Lehigh, just to name a few.

Yoder has only visited Colgate when they were showing interest in him and also visited Holy Cross, though they have yet to offer. None of his visits have been official yet.

“I plan on taking visits this August, weighing my options and seeing where I need to go,” Yoder said. “But I’m focused on July and winning tournaments.”

Heading into his senior year at Pennridge, Yoder has yet to decide on a timetable for when his commitment could come.

“I think I’m just feeling it out,” Yoder said. “I think playing in July with my team should help me big time but just feeling it out, getting a feel for each school, coaching staff, and atmosphere.”

Yoder said he’s been working on his ball-handling, awareness and his shooting as he’ll look to lead Pennridge to its first PIAA state title in school history. Last year, Pennridge fell in the first round of the 6A playoffs to Roman Catholic, 58-56.

“I want to win a state championship, everybody says that,” Yoder said. “And I know my guys at Pennridge are hungry, too, so I want to do it for them.”

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Josh Cohen (above) dropped 22 pounds and grew an inch since the last live recruiting period. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Joshua Cohen (2019/Christian Brothers)

One of the top big men in South Jersey, Cohen is hoping the changes he’s made to his body since the April live periods are enough to finally get his first scholarship offers.

Over the last two months or so, Cohen both grew an inch but also dropped 22 pounds, making him noticeably leaner and more mobile than ever before. Unlike St. Joe’s forward Isaiah Miles, who semi-famously had to drop Baconators from his diet to get in the best shape of his life, Cohen wasn’t a fast-food junkie, so it was more about small changes.

“Just more of eating the right stuff like chicken, rice, stuff like that,” Cohen said. “I ate less, and I ate better.”

Now up to 6-foot-10 and down to 230 pounds, Cohen certainly has the frame of a Division I prospect. He put it to good use Saturday afternoon, coming up with 15 points and nine rebounds (four offensive) to help Jersey Force-Woods to a 67-54 win over the LA Rockfish.

Though he’s not a polished big man offensively, Cohen is a plugger in the paint, getting several of his buckets on second-and-third-chance opportunities, both off his own misses and his teammates’. He’s got a solid motor and attacks the glass well, and his frame could now fit some additional muscle on it to fill back out.

So far, he’s waiting on his first scholarship offer, though both Fairleigh Dickinson and New Hampshire have been keeping a close eye on him, as has D-II Southern New Hampshire, and several other low-to-mid-major D-I types.

(Ed. Note: FDU offered Cohen on Sunday night, July 15)

“They wanted to see me in July, a lot of them,” Cohen said. “I’ve gotten a bunch of calls, like ‘listen, you need to improve your outside game, we’ll see you in July,’ that’s about it.

“Defense has been my whole May and June,” he added. “I’ve been able to play better defense, that’s what I’m trying to show.”

Though there’s only about two weeks left in July for Cohen to get out in front of as many coaches as possible, he said he’s not feeling any additional pressure to perform this month. In fact, he likes seeing the various coaches who are courtside to evaluate him, and see if he’s worthy of that coveted free ride.

“I’m fine with that, I really don’t get nervous,” he said. “It makes me play better.”

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Supreme Cook (above) has taken big strides in his skillset since last summer. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Quick Hits
-- East Orange rising senior Supreme Cook not only has a memorable first name, but his game has been memorable for some college coaches as well. Holding offers from NJIT, Robert Morris, and Coppin State, Cook is a 6-8 big who can hit jumpers and swat shots but is currently adjusting to being a wing player. In making the transition to big to wing, Cook says he is working on his ball-handling so he can be better equipped on the perimeter. Cook has received interest from schools such as George Mason and Brown and plans on visiting school after the live period. He has also said that he plans on committing after his senior season.

--Delbarton (N.J.) rising junior Jacob Sussman is one of many athletic guards on the NJ Shoreshots 16U team. The 6-5 Sussman displayed his athleticism on Saturday night by getting up and slamming down some rim-rattling jams as well as displaying his range by knocking down a few treys. Sussman currently has offers from Columbia and Stony Brook and also holds interest from Holy Cross, Lafayette, Siena and Brown. Sussman plans on visiting Lafayette and Brown once the live period ends and says he is currently trying to work on “being able to get to the basket in one dribble and on-ball defense.”

-- Pflugerville (Tex.) wing Ty Perry Jr. started off his week in the Northeast with a few impact outings at the Hoop Group’s Elite Camp in Reading, and followed that up with another strong game on Saturday morning as THP Elite beat SJ Hoops Elite 69-64. The 6-2, 170-pound left-hander finished with 20 points even, getting 14 of those after halftime; he hit three crucial 3-pointers down the stretch to help his team hold onto the victory, and also showed his slashing abilities with several tough takes to the hoop. So far, Perry said, only Northern Colorado has shown interest.

-- We wrote about Khai Champion earlier in the week at the Hoop Group Elite Camp, but the Shipley rising junior did score 31 points in the East Coast Power defeat at the hands of Lee Academy, hitting six 3-pointers along the way, so that deserved a mention. Also making some noise today: Andrew Seager (2019/Hun School), who had 19 points for SJ Hoops Elite in the loss to THP Elite; George Tinsley (2019/Abington Heights), who went for 13 points and 11 rebounds, with two assists and two blocks, as JB Hoops lost to the Middlesex Magic; Kyle McGee (2019/St. Mary’s of the Assumption), who had 16 points, six boards and two assists as Jersey Force beat the LA Rockfish 67-54.


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