Tournament Preview: River City Showdown

Written by Peyton Merriam On July - 7 - 2009Email Author

The past few months have been quite a ride for Tiger fans. From coaching changes to scrambling for the remaining top recruits for this year’s class, there have been a lot of ups and downs. Now with July among us and things are starting to get settled in, focus turns from 2009 recruiting to recruiting for the years to come. With events taking place all around the country, there are many opportunities for Memphis fans to get out and see a few potential Tigers. With that said, there are few better upcoming events than the River City Showdown Tournament that will be taking place the beginning of next week (July 13-15^th) in Memphis.

Basketball Events and Clinics (BEAC) has teamed up with the Memphis Magic AAU program to put together the River City Showdown. BEAC President, Ryan Luttrell, and Memphis Magic Director, Eric “Cowboy” Robinson, have put together a fantastic event featuring some of the nations top prospects. MemphisRoar will be on hand to bring you coverage of this event. Here is a little breakdown of what you can expect to see with this event.

Who? What? When? Where? Why?

Click for the Official River City Showdown Press Release from BEAC

Who will be there?

Here is a list of teams that are expected to play:

Memphis Magic Elite 17U & 15U (Joe Jackson, Jelan Kendrick, Tarik Black & Adonis Thomas)
M33M 17U (Bobby “Ray” Parks Jr., & Mardracus Wade)
Nashville Celtics 16U & 17U (Casey Prather, Austin Hollins, Kendren Johnson, Cody Henegar)
Texas D-1 Ambassadors 17U (Daniel Alexander)
Louisiana D-1 Ambassadors (Rashaun Claiborne, Jarred Harrison, Joe Charles & Phillip Carey)
Indiana Elite 16U (Dee Davis, Jeremiah Davis & Vincent Zollo)
Memphis Select 17U & 16U (Cedric McAfee, Jarnell Stokes, Octavious Ellis, & Terrence Durham)
YOMCA 16U (Andre Hollins, Marvin Williams & Wayne Martin)
Da House 16U (Troy Ambeaus, David Gardner & Jaylon Moore)
Memphis Stallions 17U & 16U (Chris Jones & Darius Paige)
Mid State Ballerz 17U & 16U (Joe Northington)
Arkansas Hawks 16U & 15U
High Level Basketball 17U & 16U
Novia Scotia Griffins 17U
Louisiana Future 17U
Memphis War Eagles 14U
Birmingham Stars 14U

Some notable prospects that Tiger fans should keep their eyes on:

Joe Jackson (2010)- Point guard for the Memphis Magic has been receiving a lot of attention, especially from the Memphis staff. Jackson has been a huge target as point guard for next year’s team that already includes commits from talented wing Will Barton and his brother Antonio Barton.
Jelan Kendrick (2010)- a brand new addition to the Memphis Magic, Kendrick is definitely someone to watch out for. Kendrick has sky rocketed through the 2010 rankings, making him one of the top perimeter players in the nation for his class.
Casey Prather (2010)- Prather, a talented inside-out small forward has been receiving a lot of attention for Coach Pastner and staff. Playing for the Nashville Celtics AAU team, Prather has gained the attention of many division one coaches, including Roy Williams, John Calipari, Billy Donavan, just to name a few.
Tarik Black (2010)- Another Memphis Magic player and top prospect for the 2010 class, Black posses a great skill set to accompany his size. Black is also receiving big interest from the Tigers for the power forward position.
Adonis Thomas (2011)- Just when you thought the Memphis Magic had enough division one talent, in steps Adonis Thomas, possibly one of the best prospects on the Magic team. As Thomas continues developing, many in Memphis believe he might be one of the best prospects the city has ever produced when it’s all said and done with. The Tigers are pushing hard for Thomas, in hopes of keeping the stud athlete home for his college year(s).
Keep your eyes on these prospects too, as they are equally as talented as some previously mentioned prospects: Bobby “Ray” Parks Jr. (M33M 17U), Mardracus Wade (M33M 17U), Andre Hollins (YOMCA 16U)

Along with all the top prospects attending, there will also be quite a few coaches coming to check out these prospects as well. Coaches from Memphis, Kansas, Kentucky, Villanova, UNC, Duke, all SEC schools, all Big12 schools, all C-USA schools, all A-10 schools, most pac-10 schools, including UCLA, and Stanford, are all expected to be in attendance. In addition to those big name schools, there will be many smaller schools such as MTSU, UT-Chattanooga, UT-Martin, New Orleans, Arkansas-Little Rock, North Texas, and many more!

What will be taking place?

The River City Showdown, featuring some of the nation’s top talent in the 2010, 2011, 2012 classes (and more)!

When are the times for these events?

The event begins on July 13^th and ends on July 15^th.

Click this image to see a breakdown of the schedule and games

One game of note is the Monday night game, at the Finch Center, between the Memphis Magic (Jackson, Kendrick, Thomas, Black) and M33M (Wade, Parks, and possibly Lacey). Game time is set for 7:15pm.

Also, at 11:45am on Monday, the Memphis Magic will take on the Nashville Celtics at the Finch Center.

Please visit our message board for additional information on times/dates of specific games. Games are subject to change and are based on seeding, so the schedule will change daily.

Where is the River City Showdown taking place?

The event is being held at four locations. Three locations are on the campus of the University of Memphis (Finch Center, Rec 127, Rec 109) and the other location is at Christian Brothers University.

Why should I go to this event?

Even if you are not a “recruiting” junkie, the River City Showdown provides some great entertainment and a chance to get out and get a look at some players that could be wearing the Blue & Gray in the years to come. Providing a great turnout and support to this event will reflect positively on the city of Memphis and the players that are coming to play in this event. Come out, enjoy some great basketball, and show these young men how dedicated Tiger fans really are!

How much will it cost?

Price for admission is only $10 for one entire day’s worth of activities (or just one game, if one so chooses to do so).

Can’t make it out because of conflicting commitments or out of town? Good news! MemphisRoar staff writer Clark Merriam will be in attendance for the entire event, providing live updates from the finch. You can follow Clark’s updates once the tournament starts at http://twitter.com/memphisroar.

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