Let’s take a look at some notable numbers for Jet Academy.

17U

It was a tough weekend for Jet Academy in Memphis as the team failed to register a win.  They came close in the final two games; a five-point decision to Boo Williams and a three-point loss to PSA out of New York.  JA’s main struggle appears to simply be making shots regardless of which side of the arc players shoot from.  The best the team shot from the field in any one game was 44.4%.  The other three games were under 40%.

Kevin Thomas, a 6’7 junior from Weston Sagemont, finished in double-figures in three of the four games, averaging 11.5 points per game for the weekend.  He also speared 6.25 rebounds a contest.  For his efforts, Thomas was given Honorable Mention All-Event status by one national outlet.

Jermal Jones, a 6’4 junior at Bradenton IMG Academy, also averaged double-figure scoring with 10.25 points per game.  He grabbed four rebounds an outing.

16U

This group had a much better time of it, finishing 2-2 from the weekend.  It arguably could have been a 4-0 weekend save for tough one-point losses to both Team Why Not out of California and Team Durant out of D.C.  In both games, JA shot better from behind the arc but the opposition made enough two-point shots and free throws to overcome that.  In the two wins, JA’s shot better than the opponent inside the arc and kept pace with them from distance and the foul line.

Nolan Nelson, a 6’8 sophomore at Creekside out of St. Augustine, asserted himself this session.  A consistent double-figure scorer, he averaged 14 points per game on stellar 65.8% shooting from the floor.  Nelson also grabbed 8.5 rebounds a contest.  Should this level of play continue, and we believe it will, Nelson’s national recruiting profile will grow significantly.

15U

The 15s finished the weekend at 2-2 but they sure made it interesting as both wins came by a single point.  Team Why Not out of California won the first game of the session on the strength of a 12-6 free throw advantage.  In Game 2 vs NW Rotary out of Washington state, Rotary shot an unconscious 58% from the floor overall compared to 37.5% from JA.  In the win over Team Durant, JA’s 11-3 advantage in made threes was the key factor while against the UT Prospects it simply came down to making more shots from the field to overcome the Prospect’s free throw advantage.

Ezra Gelin, a 6’0 freshman from Weston Sagemont, led the team in scoring for the weekend at 12.5 points a game.  He had ten rebounds in the contest vs. Team Why Not.