Return of injured teammate gives Green Valley big boost

Spurred on by the return of a fallen teammate, Green Valley accomplished its goal by clinching a spot in this weekend's winners bracket at the Big Time Tournament on Thursday.

Moments before tipping off against Colorado's Jeffco Court, the Gators watched as senior-to-be Paul Thompson, who was seriously injured in an eight-car accident this week on U.S. 95, was wheeled into the gymnasium.

With Thompson watching from his spot next to the Green Valley bench in a halo neck brace, the hosts posted a 60-51 victory.

"For our kids, it probably reaffirmed that basketball is important but there's a lot of other things that can happen in life that overshadow that big time," Gators coach Larry Thomas said.

Thompson suffered two broken vertebrae and a broken hand in Monday's pileup but is expected to regain full mobility. His visit to watch his teammates play marked the first time he has been out of the hospital since the accident.

"The doctor told him, 'I'll have you playing in 100 days,'" Thomas said.

Now, regardless of their result against defending champion DC Assault today, the Gators will play in the top bracket of the single-elimination portion of the tournament, courtesy of wins on days one and two.

"We're where we want to be," Thomas said. "Now, we'll see how things go from here."

Scoring machine

Clark High School's Kevin Gaines wasn't about to let his Mad Moves squad drop to 0-2 in the tournament, so he took matters into his own hands Thursday.

The 6-4 point guard poured in 46 points -- the fourth-highest single-game total in Big Time history -- to lead his team to an 80-64 win over California's BWBA III at Cimarron-Memorial.

Despite the victory, Mad Moves may need a victory over powerhouse Illinois Fire tonight at 7:40 to advance to the winners bracket. That could be a very tall order for Gaines and company against a Chicago-based club that features three 6-10 players.

Ewell's time to shine

Although Gaines did the lion's share of the offensive work for Mad Moves on day two, Bishop Gorman graduate Darrell Ewell continued to turn heads with his solid play on both ends of the court.

And the 17-year-old, 6-2 guard-forward, who will attend Connecticut prep school Chesire Academy in the fall, recognizes the importance of playing on a squad with a highly touted athlete like Gaines.

"We've been playing together on this team since we've been sophomores," said Ewell, who scored 18 points. "As long as they're here to watch him, I might as well help myself get a scholarship."

Hustle award

Thursday's contest between the Las Vegas Panthers, the entry from first-year varsity program Palo Verde High School, and California's EBO Fresno, one of the favorites to win the event, had mismatch written all over it.

To no one's surprise, the game lived up to expectations, with top-25 prospects Brett Nelson (6-3, point guard) and Carlos Boozer Jr. (6-9, power forward), leading EBO to a 121-60 victory.

But despite playing in a gym jam-packed with Division I coaches, including Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, Kansas' Roy Williams and Arkansas' Nolan Richardson, the overmatched Panthers gained respect from those in attendance with all-out hustle for the full 40 minutes.

"We told them that playing hard is the main thing," Panthers coach Paul Sanchez said. "We're looking at this as a learning experience."

* TIDBITS: Defending champion DC Assault failed to impress fans or coaches in a 72-50 win over Team Texas Blue, the same club Green Valley defeated in overtime on Wednesday. Highly touted 6-7 post player DerMarr Johnson, rated by many as the top senior-to-be in the nation, struggled mightily, scoring just seven points and going to the bench after drawing a technical foul for throwing an elbow at an opponent. ... New University of Houston coach Clyde Drexler stopped by Green Valley to catch Houston Select's game against Washington's Friends of Hoop III. ... Friends of Hoop I point guard Jamal Crawford, one of the top prospects in Seattle, was recently granted a fifth year of high school eligibility, clearing the way for a return to Rainier Beach High School in the fall. ... The Las Vegas Heat's Casey Reid-Crockett, a 6-6 forward from Las Vegas High, received the outstanding camper award at the recent Blue Chip Georgetown College Camp in Kentucky. .. The Las Vegas Select evened its tournament record at 1-1 with an 81-51 rout of California club Canyon. Rancho High's Shon Atkinson led the way for the locals with 16 points. ... The Las Vegas Stars also picked up their first win, downing California's Los Alamitos, 78-57, behind 18 points from junior-to-be Jamaal Brimmer.

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