There was a flavor of crosstown rivalry between the Trojans and
the Bruins at the Men’s Nike Say No Classic Championship
game.
“I told Dijon early last week that he has to win on Friday
so we can go at it in the finals,” USC guard Desmond Farmer
said.
All went according to plan as Farmer of Hank’s Top
Prospects squared off against Dijon Thompson’s California
Team Select late Saturday in front of a packed Southwest College
gym.
Only one thing went wrong for Farmer, however, as California
Team Select captured the Nike Say No Championship, 93-84.
Even though it was not a Pacific 10 Conference victory or a
title, UCLA’s Thompson and newcomer Trevor Ariza brought back
a trophy nonetheless.
“Dijon told me at the beginning of this year that we had
to win it all or else,” California Team Select coach Thaddeus
McGrew said. “I challenged him and he responded by playing at
a high level and taking over as the leader for this
team.”
While the first half was jam-packed with enough fancy passes and
dunks to fill up any highlight reel, it was the match-up between
Thompson and Farmer that had the crowd hollering and hooting after
each exchange of possession. Farmer won the much-anticipated battle
with 26 points to Thompson’s 19.
Brandon Heath was the one that kept California Team Select in
the game. The majority of his 25 points came in the first half of
play when he connected on jumpers from all points of the court. His
ability to break down the opposition’s defense led to easy
scoring opportunities for others. Thanks to Heath, California Team
Select took a three-point lead, 47-44, heading into the second
half.
It was Hank’s Top Prospect’s quarter in the third,
and Farmer led the way with his dynamic intensity. At the 5:07 mark
of the game, Farmer rejected a Thompson five-foot leaner from the
left side of the basket, bewildering the crowd. Farmer’s
defense would lead to a transition basket for Hank’s Top
Prospects, tying the game up at 52 apiece.
“We’re both exciting ball players, and we’re
here to give the crowd what they want to see,” Farmer said on
his matchup with Thompson. “Bad blood nothing, we’re
friends.”
A few possessions later, Farmer gave the crowd what it wanted to
see as he picked off a pass and headed the other way. It was a
two-on-one fast-break and ended up with a lob off the glass to a
soaring Lewis Darby, who would finish the play with a two-hand jam
as Thompson, the lone man back, could only get out of the way. The
assist would be one of Farmer’s eight mesmerizing passes.
Thompson could not get anything going in the third, but Ariza
stepped it up for California Team Select, gathering on 10 of his 18
points, most of which came on slashing cuts to the basket.
Moreover, it was Ariza’s job on the glass that helped his
team the most, as he finished with 11 rebounds, four coming on the
offensive end.
“Trevor is beyond his years,” McGrew said. “He
plays multi-positions, and he has the uncanny ability to make
plays. “¦ He’s going to be an impact player, and in just
one year, they (UCLA) are going to see him blossom.”
Hank’s Top Prospects started the fourth quarter with a
three-point lead, 67-64, and after an Ariza lay-up, Farmer answered
back with two more electrifying points when he took two giant steps
and threw down an outstretched left-handed dunk.
Thompson finally woke up late in the fourth quarter. The
momentum of the game would switch over to California Team
Select’s side at the 5:50 mark when Thompson connected on one
of his four assists with a no-look pass to teammate Andrew Zahn who
finished with a two-hand, rim-rocking jam.
“I got lucky, Dijon broke down Desmond and the defense,
and I got open,” Zahn said. “It must have been the
Redondo connection.”
Thompson would take the lead back for good when he posted up and
floated two of his 19 over Farmer.
“It’s always been like that, and it’s going to
be like that next year,” Thompson said. “I go at him,
and he goes at me. “¦ We’re both competitors, and
we’re both not going to stop pushing.”