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Breakdown takes 2nd straight AAU Title

Orlando, FL- Team Breakdown won their 2nd straight 17U AAU National Championship by beating the New York Gauchos, 77-60, on Friday afternoon.  But the MVP trophy didn’t go to highly touted Brandon Knight or Kenny Boynton, instead it was unsung hero Keith Clanton that set the tone in the title game.

Clanton was the game’s leading scorer with 19 points and also did a tremendous job on defense, shutting down the Gauchos frontline.  The 6’7 forward dominated the first half, getting garbage points under the basket and impressively creating his own scoring opportunities off-the-dribble.  When his sharpshooting teammates got hot in the second half, he continued to play solid D and prevented any of the Gauchos forwards from becoming a factor down the stretch.

One year ago we added Clanton to our class of 2009 national rankings and we feel more comfortable than ever saying that he is a top 100 caliber player after his standout performance this week.  He’s got a great deal of skill for a player his size and handles the ball extremely well, makes good decisions and knocks down the open shot.  He can mix it up inside, too, and impacts the boards, coming up with key rebounds and put-backs.  We hear South Florida is his leader while schools like Miami and Central Florida are also involved.  Don’t be surprised if he gets some high-major attention if he holds out until the spring before making a college decision.

While Clanton was the key player for Team Breakdown, Kenny Boynton (6’2 Sr. G) and Brandon Knight (6’3 Jr. G) each did their part to ensure victory by scoring 17 points apiece.  With Team Breakdown holding on to just a one point lead in the fourth quarter, Boynton hit back-to-back 3-pointers and Knight got fouled while trying to posterize a Gauchos defender which gave their team the momentum they needed to pull away in the final minutes. 

Ray Taylor was terrific as always as he did a great job of handling the ball and controlling the tempo.  The electrifying 5’6 point guard is being recruited by South Florida, UAB, and Florida Atlantic, among others.  We recommend that you check out Taylor’s highlights by clicking on the Scouting Videos link on the left side of the page and finding his name in our video library.  The kid is just plain fun to watch.

The Gauchos got solid efforts from their backcourt trio of Russell Smith (5’9 Sr. G), Durand Scott (6’4 Sr. G) and Doron Lamb (6’4 Jr. G), who combined to score 45 of their team’s 60 points.  They gave it one hell of an effort, fighting back from a first half deficit to take the lead late in the 3rd quarter before running out of gas in the final minutes.  This Gauchos squad is one we’ll never forget.

Semifinals

The New York Gauchos beat the SYF Players, 67-60, in the first semifinal behind 21 points from Durand Scott, and in the second semifinal, Team Breakdown beat BABC by one point (67-66) in double overtime in what will be remembered as one of the best AAU games ever played. 

Phil Pressey (5’9 Jr. PG) was sensational for BABC as he hit a shot at the end of regulation to tie the game at 57-all and then in the first overtime, hit a 25-foot 3-pointer to force the second overtime.  His floater at the end of the game (that would have won it for his team) barely rimmed out.   Pressey finished with 16 points.

Brandon Knight had a huge game for Breakdown and scored 5 of his 23 points in the second O.T.  Kenny Boynton finished with  a solid 17, although he uncharacteristically slipped and lost the ball at the end of the first overtime when attempting a game-winning shot.