swellafelon wrote:
Went to the game Friday night at Hinsdale Central and saw the host Red Devils and Matt Rafferty beat the Lyons Township Lions and Harrison Niego 66-57.
I haven't seen so many white people in one place since I went on an Alaskan cruise sponsored by the Nordic Society of Lutheran Actuaries. But 86 was right that it was a great atmosphere. A standing room only crowd of 5000, with blue clad Lions students and white clad Central students trading cheers back and forth. They even had Wayne Mesmer doing the National Anthem.
Niego scored 20 and got off to a hot start, hitting a couple of threes early. I really like his jump shot coming off a screen or off the catch and shoot. He gets it off quickly, with nice rotation and trajectory. He has nice shooter's touch; one three hit the rim and rattled around and in like a free throw. Where Niego got in trouble was when he drove to the basket. He converted one or two, but had one blocked by Rafferty, was called for a charge, and got tied up or turned the ball over a couple times. He's not a good finisher, and should learn to shoot a floater like J.R. Blount.
His ball handling was good, but he played off the ball a lot and another player often played the point. His passing was better. He made a couple of great passes underneath for easy layups. On the dribble, he definitely like to go to his right. Harrison made one really athletic move while scrambling on the floor for a loose ball; he grabbed the ball and in one motion threw it against the opponent's leg and the ball went out of bounds. I didn't really concentrate on his defense much as I was too busy watching Rafferty when Central had the ball.
All in all, I thought Niego was definitely worth the Loyola offer. He was more athletic than I thought, and has a very good perimeter game. His brother Connor, a sophomore, also showed promise. I'm thinking a Gordon Hayward type player if he continues to develop.
As for Rafferty, he scored 29 points, but he did it in such an unspectacular fashion that you really didn't notice until you looked at the stat sheet. He hit 4 3s, but his shot is kind of funny looking, basically a set shot where he pushes his shot like a shot put, with little wrist action. The shot has a flat trajectory. But it works for him, so who am I to criticize.
He made a couple of nice baseline drives and reverse layups, shot a good-looking baby hook that he didn't convert. Made a couple turn-around jumpers in the lane. He gets up and down the floor well, although he did seem to run out of gas at the end of the first half.
His rebounding was okay, but he didn't create much space for himself, and didn't get much elevation. His passing out of double teams down low was good.
All in all, I can understand why some high majors have said Rafferty is too small for power forward and too slow for small forward at their level. I think he is a prototypical mid-major player, and would fit in well at Loyola because of his versatility and ability to knock down the 3. Comes across as a great kid who is motivated and coachable. He has a good frame that should accommodate some extra muscle. I see him as a Ben Averkamp type player, who doesn't look very pretty but gets the job done.
I read on Twitter that an unidentified Loyola assistant was at the game, so it seems we're still in the hunt.
Nice scouting report Swella. So we must not be recruiting Niego as a point guard? I guess I'm still higher on Rafferty than I am on Niego. Size is one reason, and positional fit is another. Plus, it's a little off-putting to hear that we're the best program recruiting him. Maybe he's a sleeper. Hopefully if he comes, he brings his brother. Sounds like that kid can play. And if the demographics were how you described, it was probably Matt Gordon at the game. Dildy and Robinson would've stuck out.
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
