With its cache of shooters and an early 3-point onslaught, Scotland Campus Sports coasted to a thorough 91-48 trouncing of Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Baltimore on Monday.
After catapulting to a No.1 ranking among Class of 2021 point guards in Estonia, Johannes Kirsipuu lived up to the lofty expectations enveloping his name overseas.
The returning starter poured in a game-best 21 points, drilling four first quarter 3-pointers which staked Blake Kingsley’s team to a commanding 20-3 lead.
Kirsipuu dropped out of bed seemingly ready to ignite Scotland’s furious catch-and-stick game. He bagged two 3-pointers in the game’s first 48 seconds and never relinquished the hot hand, hitting 5-of-5 from downtown.
Gerald Jarmon III and Oli Jacquot each doled out five assists, triggering a balanced attack which erupted for 48 points at halftime. Scotland, which shook off a spate of early jitters following a two week layoff, kept their foot on the opponent’s necks during the second half.
One of the game’s unique subplots was the return of 6-foot-7 Class of 2020 guard/forward Louis Bleechmore, who finished with 11 points. The springy Australian missed several weeks with an injury and returned to action, announcing his presence with a loud first half dunk (plus the foul) on a transition leak out.
The Class of 2019 Jacquot, also out of Australia, found his teammate motoring up court and fired in a baseball pass. Scotland was paced by significant off the bench production.
Bleechmore, who has a Division-I offer from Bryant on the table and is earning burgeoning interest from the likes of Yale and Fairfield, will shoulder the role of swiss army knife this season.
He’s shown an aptitude at guarding multiple positions and fronting the post defensively. At the same pace, he’s increased his 3-point range and transitioned to playing off the ball alongside Kirsippu in the backcourt.
The addition of Jarmon III gives them a heady, high-engine guard who can playmake in the half court set and also score it all three levels.
“We were hungry,” said Kirsipuu, who had a game of 10 3-pointers while rising to relevance as a little known freshman. “We hadn’t played much so we were eager to come out and get going.”
Since the training regimen and team practices began in August, Kingsley waxed poetic about shedding complacency. This young core is becoming more and more cognizant that hitting a team in the mouth early, especially in a gimme game of this type, is anticipated. The depth was evident as Amiko Khazalia supplied quality minutes off the bench.
“Coach wanted us to play aggressive, play fast, and play good defensively,” said Kirsippu, who said he’s improved his shooting and tuned up his focus on defensive communication. “I thought we did it and really bought in collectively.”
Kinglsey said he was impressed with his team’s full throttle effort and refusal to take anyone lightly.
“We took advantage of the opportunity to get better as a team,” said Kingsley, the second year head coach.
“We need to clean up some turnovers but we made up for it with some hot shooting.”
