Day 2 of the 2017 Lone Star Invitational by NY2LA Sports was up and running bright and early in the Lone Star state. Teams filled the gym and the players came out ready to play once again for a long day of basketball. Xavier Pinson (Mac Irvin Fire) was exceptional with his effort, Nick Klug (WI Swing) earned some looks with his play early in the day, and several other players were putting up solid numbers across the stat-line to set up what we hope will be a fun Sunday of ball.

SEE ALSO
2017 NY2LA SPORTS LONE STAR INVITATIONAL DAY 2 RECAP – PART 1
2017 NY2LA SPORTS LONE STAR INVITATIONAL DAY 2 RECAP – PART 2
2017 NY2LA SPORTS LONE STAR INVITATIONAL DAY 2 RECAP – PART 3

17U NY2LA BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION TOP PERFORMERS
BENJAMIN DAVIDSON – 2018 – G – GRAND RAPIDS STORM
Davidson came off the bench for GPR in their final game Saturday and absolutely lit it up to lead his team to a good win. The 6’3” combo guard did a nice job mixing it up by knocking down some treys, sharing the basketball with teammates, and taking his defender off the dribble to score the ball at the hoop with a couple tough lay-ins and a short-range turnaround floater another time. He completed the game with an efficient 20-point effort padded with a nice 7 rebounds and 4 assists.

JOSEPH HEDSTROM – 2018 – C – MN COMETS ELITE
Hedstrom put together a solid day for himself, playing well in a nice win earlier in the day, and then really shining in another hard-fought win later in the evening. In the win over Mac Irvin Fire, Hedstrom was big inside and really disrupted some scoring opportunities for the other team, and then inside he finished really well at the rim. He made some bid buckets down the stretch of the game and played solid defensively, finishing with 17 points and 5 rebounds.

ANTHONY LYNCH – 2018 – SG – KESSEL HEAT BLACK
Lynch had a really nice showing for Kessel in a tough game later in the day. He was solid overall defensively, but really made some plays offensively, scoring from a couple different points on the floor, hitting from mid-range a couple shots and making some plays around the bucket others, finishing with a strong 17-point effort.

NICK KLUG – 2018 – PG – WI SWING
Klug had a huge game, finding his footing in this tournament by playing with high energy and picking apart the opponent’s defense both attacking the hoop and sizzling from the outside. The slender, but tough and quick guard was able to consistently get to the rim and finish over some long defenders inside, but he really caught fire in the game hitting 6 triples. He finished the game with 28 points.

XAVIER PINSON – 2018 – PG – MAC IRVIN FIRE ELITE
Mac got down early against a tough REACH squad, but the floor leadership and aggressiveness offensively by Pinson changed the game around. The slim 6’3” guard got by defenders with a combo of his quickness and excellent handle where he got to the cup consistently, finished plays at the rim, but also buried some big-time three’s. In a tough, down-to-the-finish loss later in the day, Pinson was again playing at a high level, going off for 22 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.

DJUAN SEAL – 2018 – SG – REACH LEGENDS
Seal played pretty well overall throughout the day, including a strong first half in their early game which included a couple high-flying throw downs on the rim, but it was his effort in a win during their evening contest that really showed what he’s capable of as he was dominant on the glass, pulling down 15 rebounds for his team. With the rebounds, he was finishing plays at the basket offensively and hit a couple shots as well, finishing that game with 15 points as well.

CORVON SEALES – 2018 – SG – QUAD CITY ELITE
Seales made some big plays in QCE’s early game, getting to the cup off the bounce for a couple scores, which also helped him get to the line a couple times, and then displaying a nice mid-range game as well. He was able to capitalize on a couple open looks from the three-point line also, leading his team in points with 19. Seales had another really good game in the afternoon as well where he was again hitting some three’s and making plays on the drive when the defense extended on him.

DAIJON SMITH – 2018 – PG – THE FORCE
Smith was lights out from the three-point line for the The Force, getting himself looks at times with good handles and a nice step-back game, as well as coming off screens at times and finding a good spot on the perimeter where he’d hit it off a catch and shoot. He had 18 of his 20 points off three’s (6).

DANNIE SMITH – 2018 – SF – MAC IRVIN FIRE ELITE
Smith was another player for Mac Irvin who just kept playing his game and being solid throughout their games Saturday, making plays when they were available and working hard to get good looks from the floor. He knocked down a couple tough shots and then finished at the basket when he could get there as well. He had a nice 17-point effort in their final Saturday game along with 5 rebounds and 5 assists.

LOGAN WINDELER – 2018 – F – EXAMPLE SPORTS
At 6’8”, Windeler has a long frame, but he really made his mark from outside. Windeler was still steady inside for a couple buckets and some rebounding, but it was his production knocking down three-pointers that showed up best and really helped his team build a lead and come away with a strong win later Saturday afternoon. He currently has offers on the table from American, Northern Michigan and Lewis.

2017 NY2LA SPORTS BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION STOCK BOOSTER
JALEN CHAVERS – 2018 – PG – EXAMPLE SPORTS
Chavers had a good couple games Saturday, making plays for his teammates and also creating opportunities to score for himself. He did a nice job handling the rock and putting pressure on the defense and then dishing when he needed to. The other times when the defense was more soft, he was able to knock in a couple mid-range shots or get to the cup for the finish, but also showed some range knocking down 2 treys. His best effort finished him with 14 points to lead his team in an early victory.

REGGIE CONLEY – 2018 – PG – TEAM ELITE CA
Conley put together a good game in Team Elite’s Saturday morning outing, where he broke down some defenders with the dribble and made some plays for his teammates, but he also did work scoring the ball a bit too, hitting a couple shots and then sinking a pair of three-pointers as well, good for 15 points in their game.

JOSH DAHLKE – 2018 – PF – WI PLAYMAKERS
Dahlke had himself a really good game early Saturday, knocking down a number of shots around the floor, and being a big presence inside defensively. He found good shots and sank them, and had a good dunk on a fast break later in the game to help really pull away from the opponent. Dahlke finished with 15 points and 7 rebounds.

RYLEN GRUNDY – 2018 – SF – MBA SELECT
Though the game didn’t go as Grundy and his team hoped, he put together a really nice overall effort in their final Saturday game. The 6’4” wing was really effective in the open floor where he had a couple nice finishes including an alley-oop slam which got some attention, and then later had a tip dunk in traffic which was great as well. Grundy also showed he can shoot it a bit, hitting a couple shots including one from beyond the arc, finishing with 15 points.

DEREK SABIN – 2018 – F – WI SHOOTERS
Sabin had himself a solid effort Saturday morning in a tough loss against the Martin Brothers. After struggling a bit to get his shot going Friday night, Sabin found his stroke in this game, showing what he is capable of shooting the ball by burying 5 three’s and finishing with 17 points. Maybe even more impressive was his work on the glass, getting engaged on the boards and pulling down 11 rebounds, including 4 offensive ones.

2017 NY2LA BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION STOCK WATCH
TYREE APPLEBY – 2017 – PG – YANDERS LAW
Appleby had an exciting day in front of the college coaches Saturday, making some splash plays that were sure to garner attention. He was excellent passing the ball in transition, he knocked down some tough shots throughout the day, and was really strong attacking the rim, including a very impressive poster slam in their earlier game, in which he had 17 points with 4 assists and 2 steals.

AGUEK AROP – 2017 – SF – OMAHA ELITE
Arop put together a well rounded outing for his Omaha squad during their morning game. He was big inside both finishing some plays to score, as well as on the glass pulling down several rebounds and playing solid defense. He is reclassifying and will attend Skills Factory (ISF) in Atlanta, Georgia next year.

FILIP REBRACA – 2017 – PF – COLORADO TITANS GOLD
Rebraca might be picking up some looks soon after a strong Saturday in which he played with good energy on both ends of the floor, showed a pretty well-rounded offensive skill set in which he was able to hit some shots away from the hoop, but looked comfortable playing in the post or catching and finishing at the rim. He was active rebounding the ball also.

NOAH THOMAS – 2016 (2017) – PG – AUSA PLATINUM
Thomas can do just about anything offensively for his team, continuing his hot play from Friday night. The skilled guard was able to knock down shots from all levels in the half-court, pulling up for mid-range jumpers off the dribble, sinking three’s with good efficiency, but also finishing at the hoop when he needed to get there instead. His quickness and ability to balance himself in tough spots for his shot was a problem from defenses during their Saturday games.

ALTON THOMPSON – 2017 – G/F – MAC IRVIN FIRE ELITE
Thompson plays above the rim often and put that on display again in a strong game against REACH Saturday afternoon. A couple big blocks defending the transition opportunities, got on the run offensively where he finished both with a couple nice lay-ins and a couple strong dunks, and he rebounded the ball really well throughout the game. He also showed off his mid-range jumper in their later game.