A team doesn't have to win every game in camp to illustrate what they're fully capable of achieving during their upcoming high school basketball season.' A highly-attended team camp in Charlotte, North Carolina, drew local teams and not-so-local teams in search of competition and intensity to kick off their summer training.' Teams ranged from those full of AAU superstars to lesser-known teams with players eager to make names for themselves.' Some teams are familiar, a twenty-minute drive down the road from the stunning Levine Center, the new addition to Queens University's beautiful campus in the heart of Charlotte.' Others are not as known.' One team drove more than eight hours to play in the three-day team camp.' Testing the highly coveted North Carolina and South Carolina high school teams, Chapmanville Regional High School from West Virginia made quite the impression in just 72 hours.
The results from Chapmanville's games are below:
Friday, June 21st
- Moravian Prep (NC) [50-70, L]
- South Point HS (SC) [54-33, W]
- Combine Academy (NC) [39-44, L]
Saturday, June 22nd
- Northwest Cabarrus (NC) [53-50, W]
- Butler High School (NC) [58-54, W]
- Independence High (NC) [66-70, L]
Sunday, June 23rd:
- Henderson Collegiate (NC) [61-46, W]
- Southwest Guilford High School (NC) [44-37, W]
- A.L. Brown Wonders (NC) [35-38, L]
Chapmanville had two players land on the list of player rankings from day one.' Andrew Shull (6'1, c/o 2020) just missed the top five, coming in at #6, while his teammate Obinna Killen (6'9, c/o 2020) earned #8 on the list.' Though they lost two games on the first day, this team showed promise and poise.' After both loses, they regrouped and prepared for the next game, knowing that they couldn't change the results.' The loss to Moravian Prep shouldn't be taken harshly, either.' With a team that has Josh Hall and Javarzia Belton and Jamahri Harvey, Moravian Prep is the team to beat.' Combine Academy plays tough.' A 66-70 loss to Independence, with AAU studs Anthony Allen, Omarion Brodrick, Jalen Hinton, and Nygell Verdier made for one of the best games of the entire camp.' Both teams controlled the tempo at times, made difficult shots, and maintained intensity all forty minutes.' The experience on both rosters has helped these teams shine in camp.
Chapmanville's roster is loaded with talented prospects.' Obinna Killen scored 24 against Independence High, with a monstrous presence in the paint and a smooth jumper from beyond the arc.' Phillip Mullins (6'3, c/o 2020) scored 16 against one of the better teams at this camp, Butler High School, helping his team get the win.' Killen also scored 16 in this game from day two.
Killen has received plenty of interest and DI offers and his play at camp shows he is absolutely deserving of those opportunities.' His teammate, Andrew Shull, has not received any offers heading into his senior season for Chapmanville but has turned some heads at camp.' His leadership, fluid shot, and speed make him an asset to this team.' His quick release and effortless pull-up jumper compare to those belonging to Wofford College alum Fletcher Magee.
After day two, the team from West Virginia earn the addition of two players on Coach Rick's player rankings.' Obinna Killen moved to #5, Andrew Shull fell one spot to #7, David Tubek (6'8, c/o 2020) came in at #16, and Philip Mullins (6'3, c/o 2020) joins his teammates at #17.' A special note about David Tubek'he has only been paying organized basketball since March.
Chapmanville brought the heat all weekend, especially on day three.' No surprise here, Obinna Killen scored 27 during the first game of the day, earning him MVP honors.' Killen and big man Tubek are an unstoppable duo down low for any team.' They work together extremely well, grabbing boards and making the second chances count.
Notably, day three was Chapmanville's most successful day: they won 2 of 3 games, and only lost their third by three points. In a back and forth game against Southwest Guilford High School, this team found themselves down by 7 at the half.' Southwest Guilford was consistently up by about 6 points during the entire first half and a scoring drought hit both teams to open up the second.' Shift point guard Andrew Shull unfazed and found his shot, hitting 4 threes and totaling 17 points.' Obinna added 15.
The last game, against the fresh-legged A.L. Brown group, which should be taken into consideration as the game of the day, drew a fairly decent crowd.' This was another low-scoring game with a slow start for the Chapmanville offense.' As always, Chapmanville started knocking down shots in the second half, eating into the 9-point deficit they had going into the half.' They clawed their way back into the game and took the briefly lead against the Wonders, led by the killer point guard Shull. The last five minutes of the game were back and forth with a sort of exciting energy.' Though they weren't able grab a win in their last game of camp, they played hard until the buzzer sounded.
Shull, Tubek, and Mullins all notched MVP honors this weekend as well, making it known that this team doesn't just rely on one player to get the win and that they have plenty of depth.
This team was one of the most fun to watch and talk to this weekend.' After a successful camp, Chapmanville has shown that they are easily a top contender for the state championship.' They are a talented, close-knit family on and off of the court, and will be welcomed back with open arms at any future Phenom events.