Recapping the Body of Christ Christian Academy.
Fresh off my move from Cleveland to Tobacco Road, a hoop head like myself naturually hit the ground running and had to get my fix for high school basketball. What better way than an all day prep school tourney, right? Enter Body of Christ Christian Academy.
Pastor Kelvin Redmond has a nice deal going in Raleigh. With a gym entitled the Dream Center that was built from the ground up less
than five years ago, you often forget that you’re at a small Christian school as opposed to a powerhouse 5-A high school. He brought in coach Darryl Harris, a former college player himself who spent many years running Rodney Rogers’ charity. Coach Harris did an outstanding job of getting the talent to BOCCA and the team certainly looks the part of a top notch program with their team decked out in Nike.
As far as the tournament itself was concerned, the comp was definitely legit. The prep division gave ballers who were spending an extra year at the prep ranks to get more looks or get their grades right and another shot to do their thing in front of college coaches. The high school division gave us a glimpse to peep a few of the top youngsters that North Carolina has to offer. Throw all of that in, plus a bangin’ hospitality room and you’ve got one happy camper.
Here’s a look at some of the standouts we saw:
Isaiah Hicks, 6-8, PF, Body of Christ HS, 2013
Hicks debuted amongst the group of initial PUNKS in our Fresh 25 for 2013 and has only gotten better since. We last caught the intriguing soph when he was a gangly 6’7 kid who wasn’t much more than a shot blocker. Fast forward 6 months and you’re looking at a viable offensive threat who runs the floor like no other and finishes above the rim on the regular. There’s a ton of optimism about the long term potential of this youngster, so much in fact that he already holds offers from nearly 10 big-time programs.
Darryl Davender, 5-11, PG, Body of Christ HS, 2013
While certainly on the undersized side, Davender was the fastest guard that we peeped at the BOCCA tournament. His speed combined
with a tight handle, enabled him to get past just about anyone who attempted to guard him. Davender really got sizzling during the second half where he scored 14 straight points with ease. Though more of a scoring guard at this point, don’t let the size fool you. This kid can go.
Curtis Diamond, 6-3, SG, North Carolina Tech, 2011
Diamond led his team to the ship of the HS division with his 33 point performance in the championship game. He doesn’t stand out in one particular facet of the game, but is a guy who will put points on the board no matter what. Body of Christ had troubles stopping his slithery slash game, which is a problem that we see continuing for opposing defenses at the next level.
Rawane Ndiaye, 6-10, C, Body of Christ Prep, 2011
A transplant from Woodrow Wilson HS in Dallas, Ndiaye is much improved since we last caught up with him a year ago. Having lost nearly 100 pounds over the last couple years, the big fella appears in much better shape and is moving the ball better than when he was hooping at Anthony Randolph’s alma mater. While he’s not a guy who is going to blow you away, the East Carolina recruit takes up space in the middle, rebounds the hell out of the ball, and even shows a jump hook with both hands. If he keeps improving at the same rate that throughout his college career, this may be a guy you hear a bit about in C-USA.
Detwon Rogers, 6-5, PF, Body of Christ Prep, 2011
Rogers held it down for the prep school team to the tune of 16 and 10 a game. Though a bit undersized for a power forward, he is perfectly capable of snagging boards and finishing amongst bigger foes. He showed off his skill level with a couple of faceup j’s and got the crowd hyped with some thunderous dunks. May not be a household name, but definitely a guy who should wind up on a D-1 roster next season.
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