- April 27, 2024
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I have now covered a full season of high school basketball in Sarasota. I know there is talent here, in terms of scoring and playing tight defense.
The second-annual Sarasota-Manatee Boys and Girls All-Star games, played March 18 at Sarasota High, proved me right in both categories — though not at the same time.
The first half of the girls game was full of tight defense — players did not want to take too many shots themselves, opting to pass to teammates instead. There was some rust to shake off at first, too. Most of the Sarasota County players had not played a competitive game in more than a month, since no area girls teams went too deep into the playoffs. The second half was fun to watch, especially Booker’s Cellexia Foster, who popped through Manatee County’s defense like a needle in their arm. Her efforts made for an intense game throughout, but ultimately Foster could not get enough scoring support from her teammates, and Manatee County pulled away to win 77-67.
The boys game went the opposite direction, and I was thrilled to see it. Ninety-five percent of the game was played with lackadaisical defense, and that is putting it mildly. Players were able to get off any shot they wanted, more or less. They took full advantage, opting to play “hero ball” on most open possessions, even throwing up some shots under the rare case of defensive coverage, just because they could. It was not always the most efficient offense, but it made for an extremely fast pace, which I loved. It is not basketball at its most refined, but it does allow the true explosive talent of its stars to shine.
Two players in particular shone even brighter than the rest. Riverview senior Brion Whitley scored 44 points and was named the game’s Most Outstanding Player. He scored from all over the place: Nailing three-pointers, converting ‘And-1’ opportunities and even slamming home a vicious alley-oop from Rams teammate AJ Caldwell that brought the crowd to its feet. Whitley is committed to North Carolina-Wilmington, and said on Twitter recently that he will honor that commitment despite the loss of UNC-W coach Kevin Keatts to NC State. His motivation for playing so aggressively was simple: He refuses to lose.
“I always come in trying to win it,” Whitley said. “I do not like losing. I never like losing. A coach once told me, 'Any game you play anywhere, play it as hard as you can. Even if everyone is playing around, you go as hard as you can.' That is what I wanted to do out here today, get good shots up.
“I'm a competitor, so I like if someone's up in me, playing hard. But it is fun. Playing defense hard or not, you can still show off what you got, and I'm glad I was able to do that today.”
The other standout performer was Booker senior Eunique Arnold. He racked up 26 points, but a lot of those came in the final few minutes with Sarasota County trying to mount a comeback. He put the team on his back and, alongside Whitley, led them to victory, including getting the go-ahead steal and dunk with less than 10 seconds to go in the game. Sarasota County would win 120-118.
Unlike Whitley, Arnold does not as of this writing have a college commitment. This game tape should help his case when college scouts throw on the film. His scoring ability is for real, and I hope he opened the right set of eyes with his performance.
I’d be remiss to not mention the reason for the two games existing. They benefit the Kyle Jutras Scholarship Foundation, which assists and gives scholarships to graduating seniors in Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties. Rob Jutras, the father of the foundation's namesake, hinted at the game he was unsure if there would be a third iteration of the All-Star games, but later clarified that he is planning on continuing the series into the future and making it the primary fundraising event for the foundation.
I, for one, hope that is true. When money is raised for a great cause, and players have the opportunity to showcase themselves, it's a win-win for everybody involved.
