Louis Bleechmore was angry. He was angry at a few possessions gone awry. He was angry at perhaps a call or two that didn’t go his way.
Without the slightest morsel of hesitation, the bouncy Bleechmore channeled any lingering trace of frustration with an extravagant one handed dunk which catapulted the gym into a frenzy.
The wild dunk, on a level which only rarified athletes are capable of reaching, put Bleechmore’s stamp on Scotland Campus’ 69-43 home pummeling of Silver Oak (Md.) Tuesday night.
Bleechmore surged to the bucket, levitated his 6-foot-7 frame well above the rim, seized the ample hang time and crushed it in authoritative fashion.
The play was as pulsating as it was an appropriate punctuation mark on SCS High School’s second consecutive 20+ point drubbing of a nearby Maryland foe.
Once again, Blake Kingsley’s team displayed augmented bench depth. Tonight the spark was provided by the burly 6-foot-9 senior Austin Brain, who had eight second half points and established a commanding interior presence against the significantly smaller, guard-laden Silver Oak.
Jed Nicol-Darmady authored an instant impact in the first half, supplying quality minutes.
Bleechmore, who is shaping back to form following a nagging injury, scored 12 points. Oli Jacquot added 10. Silver Lake’s smooth stroking senior shooting guard, Yancy Bynum, led all scorers with 17 points.
The trigger-happy Bynum connected on a game-best five 3-pointers, four of which he hit during the first half.
After vowing to clean up turnovers and take better care of the ball, Scotland’s fluid ball movement and unselfishness enabled them to push the tempo and subsequently fatten the lead in the first half.
Aime Ciza corralled a rebound, pushed the ball up court like a guard and found Gerald Jarmon for a 3-pointer that gave SCS a 20-9 first half lead. With Khayden Stewart and Bleechmore each stabilizing the defensive end with in-traffic blocks, SCS continued to build on its lead.
Nicol-Darmady got into the lane with his left hand for a hard finish. Luca Tsurtsumia followed with a strong take and at-rim finish. Jacquot buried a 12-foot jumper and Nicol-Darmady knifed through traffic for a traditional 3-point play as SCS took a 38-21 lead it never came close to squandering.
The offense continued to prosper at the start of the second half. Class of 2021 point guard Johannes Kirsippu opened up the second half with a deep 3-pointer.
Jacquot, a poised Class of 2019 combo guard prospect, got loose for a nifty fade-away.
A widebody and space-eating big, Brain immediately registered his presence. He scored his first two points on a pair of free throws. On his ensuing possession, he posted up and went to his left for a four footer. While Brain’s face up game is still in the embryonic stages, there has been incremental improvement in the big Australian’s ability to catch and finish and bully smaller defenders to the rim.
As for Bleechmore, the expectation level continues to be ramped up for the surefire Division-I prospect.
Several coaches have pushed him to realize his potential this summer. After his aerial game showed out in spurts last season, Bleechmore has quickly evolved into an athletically gifted guard/forward who has proven he can really glide to the rim with relative ease.
Pushing Bleechmore, who is mild mannered off the court, out of his comfort zone and ingraining that killer instinct in him has become a necessity.
After all, some guys tend to intensify their level of play when heated. Bleechmore is one of those guys.
Tonight was indicative of this.
