Though his team was a bit shorthanded, Leo Papile had confidence in his Boston Amateur Basketball Club (BABC) 17U squad heading into this past weekend’s Adidas 3SSB national championships but acknowledged that there was little room for error in single-elimination bracket play.
That ultimately caught up to them. BABC’s championship dreams ended Friday morning, when they suffered an upset 67-63 loss to Phenom United in the round of 16, which snapped their winning streak at 15 games. They rebounded in the consolation bracket by grabbing wins over Austin Rivers SE Elite and Team Lillard before falling in Sunday’s ninth-place game to D1 Minnesota. BABC ended its season with a 26-6 record.
It was another strong season for Papile’s group in its second on the Adidas circuit. But after an opening-round tournament victory over Midwest Basketball Club, BABC had an uncharacteristic performance in the second round, where turnovers and missed free throws put them into a hole they couldn’t dig out of.
Joson Sanon (Fall River, Mass.), one of the best scorers on the Adidas circuit, finished his BABC career with some strong performances, including a 31-point effort in the loss to Phenom United and 32 points against Team Lillard. The standout 6-foot-6 wing is now set to join Arizona State to begin his college basketball career this fall.
Oswin Erhunmwunse, who played most of the spring with BABC, did not play in the national championships after the big man enrolled early at Providence and started practicing with the Friars.
BABC’s 17U squad will say goodbye to some of its best players, including Sanon and Ebuka Okorie (Nashua, N.H.), but will reload in anticipation of an exciting spring in 2025. Big men Ben Ahmed and Collins Chidera Onyejiaka both played up for the 17U squad and will return next year, and they’re also set to return standout juniors Sam Fleming (Springfield, Mass.) and Amir Jenkins (Worcester, Mass.).
There was other action featuring AAU squads from around New England this weekend, which came during a live recruiting period when coaches can watch players in person. Here’s a quick recap on how some of them performed:
– The BABC 16U squad’s winning streak ended at 17 games with a 71-59 loss to Wildcat Select in the first round of the 16U Adidas national championships on Thursday. They went to the consolation bracket, and responded with a win over Iowa United before falling to TN Impact and then finishing its weekend with a victory over Davis Brothers Elite. BABC’s 16U team finished the season with a 34-7 record.
– Mass Rivals’ 17U squad, led by Sebastian Wilkins (Canton, Mass.), opened its week at the Adidas championships with a narrow loss to Team Loaded (VA) in a showcase game, before losing its first tournament game, 68-44, to D1 Minnesota. They responded with wins over the Arkansas Hawks and Brookwood Elite before wrapping up their weekend with a loss to the Washington Warriors.
– Expressions Elite’s 17U squad, which includes Dwayne Aristode and Jaylen Harrell (Roxbury, Mass.), began Peach Jam pool play with a 1-1 record over the weekend. They defeated Vegas Elite on Saturday before dropping their second game to Drive Nation. Pool play continues on Tuesday against the Florida Rebels.
– Expressions Elite’s 16U squad, one of the strongest teams on the Nike circuit, holds a 2-0 record so far at Peach Jam after weekend victories over Team United (NC) and Team Final (PA).
– Middlesex Magic 17U finished the Under Armour regular season atop Division B with a 10-3 record after a strong weekend in Georgia that included dominant victories over Arizona Select and Team Charlotte. They’ll look to defend their 17U national championship this weekend at the UAA finals in Chicago, which start Friday. Ryder Frost (Beverly, Mass.) leads a loaded Magic squad.
– Middlesex Magic’s 17U Hoop Group squad won the Hoop Group Showcase League (HGSL) championship with a 54-45 victory over George Hill All-Indy on Sunday. Teagan Swint (Newton, Mass.) led the way with 18 points, and Matt Gaffney (Malden, Mass.), Charlie Williams (Meriden, N.H.) and Thomas Ferdinando (Andover, Mass.) were key contributors as the Magic won four consecutive games to claim the title.
– Team New England’s 16U team captured the HGSL championship with a 70-63 win over TNBA Ohio on Sunday. Jabari Edmonds (Providence, R.I.), a Class of 2027 guard, was instrumental in TNE’s title run, which included a 26-point performance that propelled them to the semifinals.
