12/31/2019 basketball Edit

Future NC State players play well at 48th annual John Wall Invite

Jacey Zembal • TheWolfpackCentral

Writer

The 48th annual John Wall Holiday Invitational is in the books, and one NC State signee was able to create some shuffling in the record book.

NC State senior signees Josh Hall and Shakeel Moore of Hickory (N.C.) Moravian Prep, and Apex (N.C.) Friendship senior signee Nick Farrar all had big moments. In particular, Farrar finished with 98 points in three games to finish tied for ninth all time in points scored at the event, which previously had been called the GlaxoSmithKline Holiday Invitational and HighSchoolOT.com Holiday Invitational in recent years.

NC State junior commit Terquavion Smith of Farmville (N.C.) Central also gave a glimpse of his impressive physical talent.

Below is a rundown of the NC State signees, one commit and junior targets:

Hickory (N.C.) Moravian Prep reclassified senior guard Shakeel Moore had some of the top dunks at the John Wall Holiday Invitational. (Jacey Zembal/TheWolfpacker.com)

Senior small forward and NC State signee Josh Hall, Hickory (N.C.) Moravian Prep

Game one vs. Kinston (N.C.) High (Dec. 26): Hall was smooth in going 8 of 17 from the field, 1 of 5 on three-pointers and 4 of 8 at the free-throw line for 21 points in a 58-53 win over Kinston (N.C.) High. The Rivals.com five-star recruit added 12 rebounds, two assists and one block.

Game two vs. Phoenix (Ariz.) Hillcrest Prep (Dec. 28): Hall had to battle against four ranked players who are 6-7 or taller, and all of them are listed among the top 25 in their respective classes. He had 27 points, six rebounds and two steals in a 69-65 loss. Hall went 9 of 26 from the field, 2 of 10 on three-pointers and 7 of 13 at the free-throw line.

Game three vs. Jackson (Miss.) Callaway (Dec. 30): Moravian Prep topped Callaway 62-48 in the third-place game Monday. The flow of the contest wasn’t always there and part of that was due to some foul trouble. Hall went 6 of 13 from the field, 1 of 4 on three-pointers and he split his two free throws for 14 points. He added five rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Senior combo guard and NC State signee Shakeel Moore, Hickory (N.C.) Moravian Prep

Game one vs. Kinston High (Dec. 26): Moore went 3 of 7 from the field, 1 of 2 on three-pointers and 3 of 4 at the free-throw line for 10 points. He had five assists, one rebound, one block and two steals in a 58-53 win over scrappy Kinston. He became a fan favorite with his thunderous forays into the lane.

Game two vs. Phoenix (Ariz.) Hillcrest Prep (Dec. 28): Moore’s energy and athleticism in the press nearly helped Moravian Prep pull off a major upset. He had 21 points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals in the 69-65 loss. He went 9 of 18 from the field, 3 of 7 on three-pointers and he missed his two free throws.

Game three vs. Jackson (Miss.) Callaway (Dec. 30): Moore picked up three fouls in about 5 1/2 minutes to start the game. He was limited to 16 minutes played, and had four points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal. He went 1 of 2 from the field, missed his lone three-point attempt and made both free throws in the 62-48 win.

Senior power forward and NC State signee Nick Farrar, Apex (N.C.) Friendship

Game one vs. Hillside (N.J.) The Patrick School (Dec. 27): Farrar had been looking forward to this game for weeks, and just last week No. 1-ranked junior wing Jonathan Kuminga became eligible for The Patrick School (TPS), spicing up the matchup. Farrar exploded for 24 points in the first half, and TPS had to switch to a zone defense to contain him. He hadn’t made more than a few three-pointers going into the game, but he finished 5 of 6 on three-pointers en route to 35 points. He went 11 of 17 from the field and 8 of 12 on free throws. He added four rebounds and one assist in the 70-64 loss.

Game two vs. Raleigh Broughton (Dec. 28): Farrar had to turn around and play at 11 a.m. Saturday morning. He shredded Broughton’s zone for 35 more points and did whatever he wanted on the court. He shot 15 of 22 from the field, 2 of 5 on three-pointers and 3 of 7 at the free-throw line in the 76-68 win. He added four rebounds, five assists, one block and one steal.

Game three vs. Durham (N.C.) Academy (Dec. 30): Farrar battled a zone defense again and had a pair of strong spurts to rack up 28 points and 13 rebounds in a 71-50 morning win in front of NCSU head coach Kevin Keatts and assistant coach James Johnson. Keatts watched Farrar in all three games. He went 11 of 20 from the field, 2 of 3 on three-pointers and 4 of 6 at the free-throw line. He finished the tournament with 98 points, which is tied with Tim Thomas for ninth all time for the most points scored in a single year at the event.

Junior wing and NC State commit Terquavion Smith, Farmville (N.C.) Central

Game one vs. Raleigh Broughton (Dec. 26): Smith went 6 of 23 from the field, 3 of 10 from three-point range and 3 of 6 at the free-throw line for 18 points in a 72-67 win. He added three rebounds and two steals. Broughton played a matchup zone and Smith was simply off on his shooting.

Game two vs. Hillside (N.J.) The Patrick School (Dec. 28): Smith bounced back with 24 of his 30 points in the second half and overtime in a 83-76 loss against the loaded TPS program from New Jersey, which featured the nation's No. 1-ranked junior in Kuminga. The loss snapped Farmville Central’s 43-game winning streak. Smith went 10 of 18 from the field, 3 of 9 on three-pointers and 7 of 11 from the line. He added four assists and three rebounds.

Game three vs. Raleigh Millbrook (Dec. 30): Smith faced a zone defense again and he went 2 of 10 from the field and 1 of 7 on three-pointers for five points in 26:16 of action during an 83-78 loss. He added two assists in the intense and physical contest.

Junior forward and NC State target Dontrez Styles, Kinston (N.C.) High

Game one vs. Hickory Moravian Prep (Dec. 26): Styles went 10 of 14 from the field, made his lone three-pointer and went 9 of 11 at the free-throw line for 30 points. He added 10 rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal. Styles proved to be a one-man show for Kinston, working the boards, hitting mid-range shots and getting to the free-throw line in the 58-53 loss.

Game two vs. Lincolnton Combine Academy (Dec. 28): Foul trouble held Styles to 14 points and 10 rebounds in 28:33 of action. He picked up his third and fourth fouls early in the third quarter, but didn’t foul out. He went 5 of 12 from the field, missed his lone three-point attempt and made 4 of 7 at the free-throw line.

Game three vs. Holly Springs (Dec. 30): Styles had an efficient performance, to finish with 18 points, six rebounds, four steals and two blocks in a 58-47 win. He accomplished that in just 23:01 of playing time, and with Keatts watching for the third straight game.

Junior point guard and NC State target Carter Whitt, Raleigh Leesville Road

Game one vs. Jackson (Miss.) Callaway (Dec. 26): Whitt went 5 of 12 from the field and 2 of 4 on three-pointers for 12 points. He added four rebounds, three assists, one block and two steals in 19:08, but got hit with a technical foul and ejected midway through the third quarter of the eventual 80-68 loss. NCHSAA rules caused him to miss the rest of the tournament due to the ejection.

Future 'Throw The O'

Recruits like to use the phrase “Throw The O,” which means a college coach should offer someone.

In this scenario, Lincolnton (N.C.) Combine Academy freshman point guard Robert Dillingham showed he is definitely someone to watch moving forward. He had 20 points, three assists and went 3 of 4 on three-pointers in front of NCSU assistant James Johnson on Saturday. Combine Academy won 71-46.

Dillingham also showed his wares with 18 points and three three-pointers in a 62-58 loss to Phoenix (Ariz.) Hillcrest Prep on Friday. He followed up with 10 points in a 61-48 win over Kinston High on Saturday.

Off The Board

Sophomore point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino picked Pittsburgh on Sunday night, which is his hometown. He moved from Pittsburgh to Charlotte, N.C., and attended Charlotte Northside Christian last year before following his Team Charlotte traveling team coach Jeff McInnis to his new program, Lincolnton (N.C.) Combine Academy.

Rivals.com ranks Hood-Schifino at No. 17 overall in the class of 2022. NC State had evaluated Hood-Schifino, but hasn't offered any players in the class of 2022.

Who Helped Himself?

Raleigh Millbrook junior post player Will Felton had three straight double-doubles for points and rebounds.

Felton opened the event with 12 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in a 52-50 win over Wilson Greenfield School last Thursday. He then faced the monumental challenge of playing loaded Montverde (Fla.) Academy on Saturday, and he had 16 points and 10 boards in a 82-53 loss. Millbrook bounced back to top Farmville Central 83-78 on Monday, with Felton getting 25 points and 14 rebounds.