Clutch City Classic countdown starts now

One thing I know and that’s “talent is everywhere” which is why I’ll be covering Prime Time Sports Clutch City Classic, I may even wear red in honor of the Rockets magical run when my hair all black however I’m ready for two things, action and excitement, well talented players for the next level as well so I guess I’m looking for more than two. Tip Sheets galore from multiple age groups coming, follow me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram as I’ll be dropping it like its hot all weekend, pictures included and not just mine

SCHEDULE

Facilities:

Texas Tornados Training Facility

Website: http://www.texastornados.org/
Location: 8835 Wheat Corss Drive, Houston, TX 77095

Fall Brook Academy

Website:
Location: 12512 Walters Rd, Houston, TX 77014

MI-3

Website: http://mi3center.org/
Location: 1135 Ella Crossing Drive, Houston, TX 77090

Hotels:

SpringHill Suites Houston Intercontinental Airport

Eagles star McElroy makes decision on where she'll fly next

Kiara McElroy gave me an up close and personal look when she came to our Houston Insiders tryout back when she was in the 7th grade and what immediately caught my eye was how she was a sponge, absorbing information during drills and implementing what she was told, it's just that simple, The talented young lady has had several ups and downs over her career but I love fighters especially those who show the ability to come back through adversity and with all of the nagging injuries this young lady had, she continued to show me what she was made of

Prior to her sophomore season in high school, McElroy put on a shooting exhibition in front of several big name schools by dropping three "four" point plays in a row and when you have that type of concentration, a light bulb should definitely go off. I think she finished with 8 or 9 threes in that particular game, I don't really remember but I do know this young lady dropped more four point plays than any player I've seen in my life over her career

McElroy's injuries had a lot of those same schools that were interested drop off however not to be discouraged she decided to take some visits and look for the best fit and when she flew to Colorado for a visit with Northeastern Junior College, she decided that was the right place for her. "Basketball is my love and for me to be going so far away from my family and Texas, I had to feel a connection with the coach, team and school " said McElroy " she also added "I know playing here at this level will help me become a better player and allow me to take my game to other heights"

A well rounded and thankful person, she also said "I truly believe that with God and my faith, I will succeed at Northeastern and the minute I stepped on their court, I had the vision of bringing my skills to Colorado" I mentioned she was a thankful person and told me she appreciated me helping connect her with numerous schools however I reminded her SHE did all of the work, I'm just the messenger but trust me, I think she'll be sending messages from the Rocky Mountains

North Shore's Blankenship makes decision

As impressed as I was watching Victoria Blankenship play with Corpus Christi Havoc prior to her sophomore season in high school, I was even more impressed speaking with her after the game. Oh yeah, she was with the right squad because she definitely created HAVOC on the court so her transferring to North Shore for her senior season solidified my thinking they were the team to beat in 6A Region 3 and as usual, I was correct

Blankenship was a key force averaging a double-double for the Mustangs and the talented young lady has decided her next stop will be Tyler Junior College. I asked Vicky B what sold her on TJC and she said  “I decided to go to TJC because for the first time in my life after moving from North Carolina to Texas and going through a very drastic move my senior year from Corpus to Houston Coach Tillis made me feel like I could make a home in Tyler.  She sold me on an opportunity to be myself and prosper and that's all I've ever wanted” and trust me, this young lady has that old school mentality that NO ONE will stop her from achieving her goals and I’m definitely betting on her

'17 Gonzalez continues to raise eyebrows

I saw the potential in Dannia Gonzalez a few seasons ago and as I always tell people when you find players that comprehend the game and play within their game, everything will fall into place and fall is the key word as in baskets as the Alexander star was named Laredo Morning Times "Offensive Player Of The Year" this past season

Every year, I've seen this young lady work on something different and the progression she continues to make shows her hard is paying off and after a solid showing in April for Sophia Young Elite Black, colleges are taking notice. Here's a video from last season, a new video is coming on this talented Under The Radar guard

Alexia Torres makes decision

There are so many diamonds in  the rough that I've simply watched from a young age and I knew Alexia Torres was going to amaze me years ago. Although I never caught her putting on a show for her Incarnate Word HS squad, I caught her numerous times doing some pretty unbelievable things with her San Antonio Islanders club squad

Some said she was too small, I said whatever, she simply got the job done and when you have certain things you can't teach, like comprehending the game and breaking it down, you're in the mix but what sealed it for me as far as evaluating her was watching her shoot the ball and she will go to St. Mary's University as one of the state's best long ball shooters.

She played the one when needed, she showed she could defend and her ability to play the passing lanes ranks among the best I've seen in her class but when you have players that always have a knack for being around the ball, players that are willing to take the shot under pressure and players that can DELIVER better than my mailman, you've definitely got something

I asked Torres on why she decided on St Mary's and she said " I really liked how close it was to my home, my family and friends can still watch me and I think I can help the program" Torres also said " the atmosphere just felt right, it's a small close knit group"

I'm going to close this out like she does, at the buzzer for THREEEEEEEEE

'17 Starks continues torrid streak

One of the oldest sayings out there is "numbers don't lie" however that actually is a lie depending on what numbers you're looking at and how they were compiled and who is doing the compiling. This also ties into one of my favorite sayings "it's not what you do, it's who you do it against" so when you have players putting up numbers against D1 caliber competition over and over, one of the names that pops into my head is Aerial Starks

As a sophomore, Starks helped lead her A&M Consolidated team to one game away from heading to state however in the regional semifinals, she put on one of the  most memorable shooting exhibitions I've seen this century in the playoffs. This season, her school team fell just short of making it back to the regional semis however her averaging close to 20 ppg created even more buzz for the talented guard

Big 12, SEC and IVY League schools have taken notice and the young ladies options are endless and after a super closing during the high school season, Starks is ready to parlay that magic over to AD Elite this club season and of course, more will be coming

'17 Banfield adding icing to colorful cake

Anyone who knows me knows there is nothing I enjoy more than saying I told you so when it comes to spotting "can't miss" players at a young age and when you're batting a "hunnid" for over a decade, well that says it all. I think my first sighting of Marissa Banfield came when she was 9 or 10 playing against 12 and 13 year old players and just watching her mannerisms and ability to handle the heat running the one told me plenty

Fast forward to her junior season at Westbury Christian where she helped lead the Wildcats to the TAPPS 4A Championship game , they lost by two, but her efforts didn't go unnoticed. She led the state in made 3 pointers as well as being one of the leaders in assists as well as assist to turnover ration. With all of that being said, lights should be flashing among recruiters on this young lady being one of the top point guards in Texas

The game has and always will start at the one, no if ands or buts and Banfield is coming off a very entertaining start to the club season with her GTE squad. More coming as this talented young lady continues to send messages

Beth Hawkins makes it official

St. Agnes star Beth Hawkins has done some impressive things, both on and off the court and closing out her career making TABC All District in both basketball and academics sort of sheds the light on what I’m saying. Hawkins made St. Agnes Academy High Honors every semester and will have over a 4.0 grade point average plus she is a member of the National Honor Society, the Spanish National Honor Society, and the National Science Society.

Beth signed with Millsaps College, in Jackson, MS. It is a Division III school and plays in the SAA (Southern Athletic Conference).  There will be a combination of tough academics and she will do two practices a day when season starts in October and I asked her what finalized her decision

“It’s a Division III school but in a hard conference (Southern Atlantic Conference) with Birmingham Southern, Sewanee and Rhodes to name a few. The coach flew to watch me play in person which showed he was definitely interested in me but the academics, size of the school, and very friendly all played a role”  

There's no doubt in my mind that she will continue to excel both on and off the court 

Manvel's Lauren Taylor makes her decision

I can't remember the first time I actually saw Lauren Taylor play however during a fall league game at Yates three years ago, I had to find out who she was brought heat on defense, she was unconscious from long range and after that caught my eye, I've never stopped watching

Since then, she’s helped Manvel to several wins and picked up numerous accolades along the way including being a big part of their state championship so as talented as she is on the court, she’s also an outstanding student so I asked her on why she chose Dillard University

I chose  Dillard University for a variety of reasons; the coaches, who believed in me and gave me great advice, the family environment which is an important value to me, the staff & players who welcomed me with open arms, and the history and academic excellence of the university.  I feel by choosing Dillard University it will help me excel academically as well as athletically.  I'm looking forward to becoming a student athlete at Dillard University!  Go DU!"

Mailee Jones makes her decision

I love this picture almost as much as I truly enjoyed watching Mailee Jones operate on the court. I constantly stated she was one of the top guards in the state, I saw that a couple of years ago after seeing her in action and I'm truly happy for her and her family and the next chapter is about to unfold

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I'll close with one of her deep threes she'll close it out later