Ask Po Po #13: What are the Requirements to be Academically Eligible to Play College Basketball? New Eligibility Standards start in 2016

View Ask Po Po #13 at PatoshaJeffery.com

Rodrea Echols shine at 2015 Big State Flava Jam

Blue Star Media was in attendance at the Big State Flava Jam. This is what they had to say about Overton's Rodrea Echols:

Another player we’ve watched over the years is finally on her final summer tour is Rodrea Echols.  The Memphis native has been playing up since a young age and her time has definitely arrived.  A 2016 “power” guard for the Sophia Young Elite, she has the attention and BCS offers that reflect the level of her game.  You would definitely categorize her as physically strong and playing with a maturity that is beyond a lot of her scholastic peers.  Echols doesn’t get the “college ready” banner quite yet with the need to find more consistency and a greater focus off the ball defensively.  However, at her best, she’ll challenge any backcourt opposition with her ability to create looks off the drive and the pull up.  The stroke and touch are there as well to necessitate a quick closeout creating a decision on the lesser of evils for defenders.

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MAM Hiring Part Time Coaches

Memphis Athletic Ministries will again partner with Up2Us, an accomplished, nationally-respected organization that supports youth development programs that use sports to improve the lives of kids across the country. We are delighted to announce that we have been awarded the opportunity to hire seven (7) new coaches beginning this Fall. 

Coach Across America (CAA) is a program launched by Up2Us to provide the support needed to train and host highly effective coaches in sports and youth development. CAA’s mission is to lead the United States in training and supporting expert coach-mentors in the nation’s most under-resourced communities to promote health and nutrition, educational success, civic engagement, and positive personal and social development in youth.

Now we need your help! MAM must secure seven coaches by August 1st. In order to meet that goal, we need lots of help finding talented individuals who want to share their love of sports while helping kids learn and grow.  

General Position Information:

The Coach position will begin on August 1, 2015 and will end no later than July 1, 2016 (1 year commitment required).

Training will include an all-expenses paid training retreat to Boston, MA from August 14-18.

·         Coaches will work with middle school students 20-25 hours/week, typically during after-school and evening hours.

·         Salary: $10/hour for 900 hours during the one-year employment period.

·         Receive a $1,000.00 Award upon completion of the CAA program.

To apply: Please send an email to explain interest in this opportunity and include a current resume with 3 professional references to: Rajah Brown (rbrown@mamsports.org).

Please contact Rajah Brown at 901.461.6269 for more details.

2015 MAYB Tournament Schedule for This Weekend

Tori Sewell, Teal Battle, Jasmine Carson, Lanetta Williams and Jayla Hemingway standout at 2015 Run 4 the Roses

Premier Sports Group Media was in attendance at the Run 4 the Roses tournament in Lexington, KY.

Check out what they had to say about several Memphis area players:

2016

Tori Sewell, 5’10 wing, Memphis Elite-Williams (Arlington HS, Millington, TN) – Tori is a long athletic wing that shoots the three ball with deep range. She has the ability to attack from the wing, but also does a great job of seeing the floor and dishing off when needed. Low to Mid D1.

2017

 Teal Battle, 6’1 foward, Team Penny (Olive Branch HS, Memphis, TN) – Teal is an athletic forward that plays extremely hard. She plays outstanding defense and is all over the floor diving for loose balls. She is very solid around the basket offensively and is capable of shooting the mid-range. Mid to High Mid D1.

2018

Jasmine Carson, 5’8 guard, Team Penny (Central HS, Memphis, TN) – A very savvy guard with great vision of the floor. She did a great job of running the baseline and knocking down the three from the corner. Carson is an above average athlete and continues to get better each time we see her. Mid-Major prospect.

2019 

 

Lanetta Williams

Lanetta Williams, 6’3 post, Team Penny (Central HS, Memphis, TN) – Basketball runs through the veins of the Williams family as her dad plays pro ball overseas. The lefty post has big time athleticism and is fairly skilled. The potential upside of her game is what truly intrigues those that watch her play. BCS prospect.

Jayla Hemingway

Jayla Hemingway, 5’10 guard, Tennessee Flight 15u EYBL (Houston HS, Memphis, TN) – A strong athletic guard with good court vision. Hemingway does a very good job of getting to the basket by using her size. She rebounds the ball well and understands how to play in transition off of the rebound. Jayla is one of the more sought after players in the 2019 class and should be no stranger to coaches at the top BCS schools.

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Lady Silver Foxes #2 at 7th grade AAU Nationals

Team members are:(front) #33 Alexis Anderson, # 00 Chloe Moore-McNeil, #11 Tristan Trevathan, (standing) #23 Kyla Taylor, #25 Madison Johnson,  #2 Yasmine Pankey, #32 Sadie Williams, and coaches Tory McNeil, Stephanie Williams, Cam Pankey, and Richard Trevathan.

The Lady Silver Foxes recently traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio to represent West Tennessee while competing at the 2015 AAU 7th Grade DIII National Championships June 28 - July 3. The team brought home the silver ball after going 6 -1 in the tournament. They defeated KY Legacy Elite 47-27, OH Cincy Royals 54-19, TN Team Pride 57-46, IN Garden Sparks 62-42, OH Cincy Swish 51-36, and TN Trotters 45-33 before falling 39-46 to TN Team Pride in the National Championship game. The Lady Silver Foxes finished the spring/summer season with a 27-4 record.

Great Job Ladies!!!!

Memphis Adds Transfer Ashia Jones (Covington)

The University of Memphis women's basketball team has signed transfer forward Ashia Jones it was announced by head coach Melissa McFerrin, Monday.

Last year, Jones was an Associated Press and WBCA Honorable Mention All-America honoree as a sophomore at UT Martin, also garnering Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year and OVC Female Athlete of the Year honors. The Covington High School graduate finished fourth in the country in scoring in 2014-15 with a 23.4 points per game average, becoming the third-fastest player in Skyhawk history to the 1,000 career point mark (57 games). She also set single season records at UT Martin last year in points (772), field goals made (287) and 30-plus point games (10).

The 2014 Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year, Jones also tied the UT Martin single game scoring record last season with 44 points in a game against Murray State on Jan. 31, 2015.

As a transfer, it is likely Jones will have to sit out the 2015-16 season and will be a junior on the Tigers' roster in 2016-17.

"Ashia expressed a very strong desire to be at the University of Memphis," McFerrin said. "She saw an opportunity to compete at a national level and is fully embracing that challenge. Ashia brings a unique combination of defensive passion, competitiveness and scoring ability to our program. She understands our expectations. She is not fearful of the responsibility to produce for her team. She grew up in the shadow of Memphis and is excited to be a Memphis Tiger. We are confident she will be impactful and will continue to grow and mature on and off the court."

Named the TSWA Women's Basketball Player of the Year last season, Jones played her prep career at Covington High School under coach Dion Real. She helped her team to a 34-3 record and a state tournament quarterfinal appearance in 2012-13, the program's first state championship appearance since 2002. She was a Commercial Appeal Best of Preps honoree and was a TSWA Class AA all-state honoree.

The daughter of Wesley and Angela Jones, Ashia was also a member of the National Honor Society at Covington High School. With Jones' addition, the Tigers now have a full 15-scholarship roster. Jones will be the fifth newcomer to a Memphis roster that had no seniors last year. She will be joined by freshmen Milena Bajic and Brianna Porter, and junior college transfers Loysha Morris and Alexis Robinson.

Nina Davis (Central) and USA Squad Cruise to Win

Read entire article on Baylor's women's basketball site

Academics lure Ridgeway's Beasley to Illinois

From Commercial Appeal

Ridgeway basketball standout Brandi Beasley committed to the University of Illinois for all the usual reasons. She liked the coaching staff and she felt like part of the family when she took her official visit.

But the Illini can offer Beasley something that no other school can and that’s the main reason the senior will be playing basketball in Champaign starting in 2016.

“The thing that actually sold me is they have the top civil engineering program in the world,” she said. “I work out with (local AAU coach) Javonte Holmes and his father is a civil engineer and that’s what got me interested.”

On the court, Beasley has done a solid job engineering the Roadrunners’ up-tempo offense for the last three seasons. She was one of three AAA Miss Basketball finalists this past year after averaging 16 points, five rebounds and six assists for a team that won its first 26 games and was nationally ranked before losing to Arlington in the AAA sectionals.

She said her skills should translate well to college.

“I love the style they run,” she said. “They’re a fast-break team and a lot of their offense runs through the guards. They have high expectations for me to come in and play right away.”

Another area player who shouldn’t have to adjust her game to fit in is Central’s Miyah Barnes, who recently committed to UAB. Barnes stands just 5-3 but has the requisite long-range shooting stroke and skills the Blazers need.

“Not just shooting but coming in as a point guard,” she said. “They’re looking for me to be a leader and be part of a new beginning.”

Barnes, a three-time all-metro player, chose UAB after her recent official visit. She chose the Blazers after considering Louisiana Tech, Houston and Southeast Missouri.

“On my unofficial visit, it was just (things like) watching practice,” she said. “But then when I had my official visit, they made me feel like I was already on the team. We had a barbecue. ... I felt like I was part of the family.”

Barnes is the second area player to commit the Blazers this summer, joining 5-10 DeSoto Central post player Imani Johnson.

Arlington standout headed to Wake Forest

From Commercial Appeal

Arlington’s Raegyn Branch is as serious about her work off the basketball court as she is on. And she’ll be getting the best of both worlds now that she’s made her college choice.


Branch — a 6-2 post player who helped lead the Tigers to the AAA state tournament for the first time in school history in March — announced Tuesday that she has verbally committed to play at Wake Forest. She chose the Demon Deacons after receiving interest from Minnesota, Louisiana Tech, UNC-Charlotte and Seton Hall.

“They have a (good) medical school and I want to go into medicine,” said Branch, who hopes to be an orthopedic surgeon. “And it’s the ACC; there’s good competition, playing against a lot of the top schools.”

Wake Forest — which finished 13-20 this past year in a league that produced eight NCAA Tournament teams — will be getting a player with a nice game around the basket along with the ability to step out on the wing and the passing skills to find open teammates on the perimeter.

And with her decision out of the way, Branch will now be able to focus on helping the Tigers build on the successes of least season, which ended with a loss to Morristown West in the state quarterfinals that left them with a 26-10 record.

“It (the recruiting process) was fun,” Branch said. “At times, it was stressful to think about where I was going to go but I enjoyed it.”