Anytime Scotland Campus’ offense stumbles on a stagnant sequence, head coach Chris Chaney has a tendency to shout out the words “hot potato!” at ear shattering levels.
Chaney’s old school hoops vernacular ultimately calls for an instant uptick in ball movement. Scotland answers by whizzing the ball around until the right look is discovered.
By possessing multiple willing passers and often waxing poetic about the importance of playing for one another, Chaney certainly has the integral ingredients for the formula to materialize. That much was evident Monday night, as Scotland piled up a season-best 26 assists during a thorough 91-53 throttling of Navy J.V. at the sprawling Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.
“Again, that aspect has long been part of the culture we preach,” said Chaney.
“We emphasize extra pass basketball and unselfishness. When the ball moves around, when we get good looks at the basket, good things tend to happen. We’ve got a lot of guys who can score the ball and make plays. By getting the ball into the right people at the opportune time and by capitalizing on the ball movement, that’s how we best position ourselves for success. That’s a big part of our culture and what we do.”
Scotland was buoyed by relative balance in the scorebook. Reserve 5-foot-11 guard Ben Curtain, a Division-II caliber outside shooter out of Virginia, erupted in the second half, scoring 12 points on the strength of four 3-pointers. Despite missing a significant amount of the second half due to a minor injury, Weber State-commit Austin Galuppo scored 13 points.
Karim Coulibaly scored 11 points and pulled in nine rebounds, with the southpaw’s multi-dimensional offensive game on full display. Dequarius Nicholas‘ knack for hauling in rebounds and chasing 50-50 balls with relentlessness continued, as the high-engine 6-foot-1 guard secured seven boards to go along with 11 points. Jordon Jones and Akrum Ahemed, both whom appear hell-bent on ramping up their Division-I profile during recent performances, added 11 and 10, respectively. Jack Lawrence led an athletic Navy team with 12 points.
Scotland’s depth and comfort in employing 12 guys at all times was a notable factor. It ultimately overwhelmed NAVY, which has dealt with its fair share of injuries and suited up just eight players total.
Following a woeful 6-for-22 start shooting the ball, Scotland fended off a spate of early jitters. They quickly regrouped and began making the right reads, enforcing a shot-ready attack which enabled them to establish a commanding 41-16 halftime lead.
Scotland (22-0) swelled the spread to 34-14 as Nadolny grabbed a rebound, motored up the court and fired in a one-handed bounce pass to Coulibaly for a layup.
At a massive venue containing all of the Division-I amenities, Scotland’s perimeter game created the early advantage. The 6-foot-5 Galuppo popped off the bench to hit a trio of 3-pointers, the third of which gave Scotland a 21-7 lead while triggering a NAVY timeout with 11:14 remaining in the first half.
Following a sterling 12-point first half performance during this weekend’s 92-86 win over Fork Union Military Academy, Akrum Ahemed solidified his status as a burgeoning low-mid major prospect. He scored on a nifty stepback in the first half, bucketed back to back 3-pointers in the second half and played an active role clamping down on Navy’s shooters.
Division-I Southeast Missouri State (SEMO), of the Ohio Valley conference, has recently inquired about the crafty 6-foot-5 guard/wing. Ahemed brings intrigue with his ambidextrous finishing ability and a tendency to finish with his left hand authoritatively. Several top-tier Junior Colleges, including Eastern Florida and Panola (TX), have been in active pursuit of Ahemed.
While a full qualifier, these JUCO programs want to sell the New Jersey native on the option of playing one JUCO season and skyrocketing his Division-I profile with three full years remaining. After transferring from national power Oak Hill and playing more meaningful minutes under Chaney, Ahemed has certainly proved he’s got the overall skill-set and athletic capabilities to play at the Division-I level.
With his trio of first half 3-pointers and four total 3-pointers, Galuppo has now had four straight games of four 3-point field goals or more. He’s averaging 15.5 points during the last four games, stretching back to an 18-point performance during a win over Perkiomen Prep at Chambersburg High School during the 12th annual Dunks For Drew Charity tournament.
For the second straight performance, Clarence Nadolny flashed the all around skill set that’s helped him garner offers from Rutgers, Dayton, Georgetown, Hofstra, St.Bonaventure, Robert Morris, and others. No longer pigeonholed as a freakish athlete or strictly a high level finisher, Nadolny again showcased the 3-point stroke which reared its head during the FUMA tournament.
The native of Paris, France is playing more under control and spending less time forcing the issue, making good reads and controlling the tempo with the ball in his hands. He’s got all the intangibles as a finisher and an explosive athlete, snaring defensive rebounds and kick starting the break with gusto. By opening up his jumper and outside shot and (as he showed in Saturday’s aforementioned FUMA win) manufacturing points at all three levels, Nadolny has bought into the leadership component. Capitalizing on consistency and efficiency has been the biggest area of needed improvement for Nadolny, who has shed the erraticism originally attached to his game.
One of Nadolny’s biggest influences has been former West Oaks (FL) guard Sylvain Francisco, also a French guard who also goes by the nickname “Frenchy.”
Francisco levitated his game strongly during a memorable senior year at West Oaks, developing into one of the nation’s elite finshers and scorers.
He thrived in heavily anticipated, big stage matchups against guys like (current New York Knicks forward) Kevin Knox, at Tampa Catholic at the time. Francisco, who is currently playing professionally in France, improved tremendously from his junior to senior year, when he shouldered the playmaking and offensive weight. Nadolny appears to be undergoing a similar transformation at this stage.
