Player Spotlight: Austin Jenkins of Austin Hyde Park

The last few months have been a whirlwind for Hyde Park's lanky F Austin Jenkins. After a so so summer last season where he was on and off Jenkins approached his senior year with a vengeance.  He's met a new friend in the "weight room" and has also gotten tougher mentally.  Put that together with his nice perimeter game and the ability to push the ball in transition and you've got yourself a player! 

After an excellent performance in Denver, CO two weeks ago at the Double Pump Spring Classic Jenkins caught the eye of the folks at the Air Force Prep School.  Last Wednesday they visited Austin, watched Jenkins work out and have offered him a scholarship.  The great thing about the academy preps are that the player's NCAA "clock" doesn't start which preserves all of his college eligibility while it allows him to mature physically, emotionally & academically (He has top notch grades too).  Throw in a cool $900 bucks a month too and it's a heck of a deal.

2011 F 6'7" Austin Jenkins of Austin Hyde Park

Expect Austin's college choices to widen as the season progresses and he has a chance to show off his new game to the D1 coaches in July.-Coach Max Ivany

San Antonio Area Super Team Announced

The San Antonio Express-News has announced their Area Super Team.  Once again they are dominated by Texas D1 Ambassadors alumni. (six of the ten) We are proud of these players and their accomplishments and wish them the very best in their educational & athletic endeavors.

2011 Cole Martinez       San Antonio Central Catholic    uncommitted
Martinez was the Express News Player of the Year & he was the D1 Nation's pick as the San Antonio POY as well.  The purest shooter in the area and an excellent student as well, Cole set himself apart with his clutch play time after time over the course of the year.  In a big game, you want him taking the shot!  Currently unsigned the 6'2" guard is a still for a D1 looking for the zone buster.  It is likely that Air Force's Prep School will offer him in the next couple of days.

2011 Tre Demps            San Antonio Reagan                  Northwestern
Since moving from California to Texas for his sophomore campaign Demps has shown magnificent strides in his game.  He has matured physically and is a strong athletic player who is ready for the rigors of the Big Ten. The son of former NBA player & New Orleans GM Dell Demps has forged his own identity.

2011 Max Yon               San Antonio Reagan                  Air Force
It's appropriate that high flying Max Yon is on his way to the Air Force Academy.  They've got a steal in him.  His athleticism & aggreesiveness in attacking the rim is superior. Yon had a dozen D1 offers but opted to serve his country. He could be an NCAA D1 swimmer as well.

2011 Dylan Elias           San Antonio Taft                        Northern Colorado
Elias is tough physically & mentally.  He committed to Northern Colorado after his Texas D1 Ambassadors group attended a team camp on the campus at the end of his sophomore year.  He has never wavered in his commitment and is looking forward to joining fellow San Antonian, Paul Garnica in the backcourt.

2012 Matt Gramling     San Antonio MacArthur            Lafayette & Army have offered
Gramling is the only underclassman on this year's squad.  It's a testimony to his ability and mature game.  He can run a team, rebound and score the ball. He's yet to play on the spring/summer circuit as he suffered a nagging ankle injury in the State Playoffs.  Look for him to add to the two offers above as he gets seen by the various scouting services and college coaches.

2011 Clark Lammert    San Antonio Churchill    
Lammert is one of those guys who just knows how to win.  He's 6'7" and skilled.  Unselfish & hardnosed, he blocks shots, scores baskets & rebounds hard. He has a couple of great college opportunities that I will announce on this site in the next couple of days as he makes one last campus visit and makes a decision.         

Congratulation to these other young men and their families as well!  Please keep me posted on your future commitments.-Coach Max Ivany

2011 Jonathan Holmes San Antonio Antonian               Texas
2011 Jeremy Espinoza  Uvalde                                       uncommitted
2011 Deondre Logan    San Antonio Taft                      uncommitted
2011 Madison Turner   Boerne                                      uncommitted

Unsigned Senior Event: May 1st Houston, TX

For anyone in the Austin, San Antonio, Houston or Dallas area who is making a last ditch effort to be seen by JuCo, D3 & NAIA coaches  (no D1's will be present per NCAA rules) I'd like you to consider the event outlined below.  I rarely endorse anyone unless I know them extremely well. In this case I do.  A.W. Robinson is one of Houston's most outstanding basketball trainers.  He's always looked out for players in the Houston area who were down to their last opportunity. He was instrumental in the development of his brother, who went on to star in the Big East with Villanova.

He has the ear of a number of coaches, as do I and he has always given me great insight into the evaluation of players.-Coach Max Ivany

San Antonio Stevens Brandon Thompson To Long Island

San Antonio Stevens PG Brandon Thompson was highly touted coming out of high school.  An outstanding summer with the Texas D1 Ambassadors & a subsequent excellent senior high school campaign had many high majors calling the 6'1" guard. Thompson cut his list down to Texas Tech, Georgetown & Arizona State.  He fell in love with ASU's beautiful campus but the basketball was not a fit.  After a frustrating freshman campaign with the Sun Devils, Thompson decided to transfer to South Plains Junior College where he had a banner year, being voted all conference.

Thompson, shown below with Arizona State University

After looking at various opportunities, Thompson is now headed to the East Coast where he'll play at Long Island University.  He'll join fellow San Antonian's Julian Boyd of San Antonio Taft & another Texas D1 Ambassadors alumni Jason Brickman (San Antonio Clark).

Brandon has played for the Texas D1 Ambassadors all the way back to his 5th grade year.  He is one of my all time favorite players.  He was extremely coachable, always quiet & let his game do the talking.  He is an excellent defender, and is very unselfish.  Brandon's greatest asset is that he is a clutch shooter & decision maker.  He is a winner.  Best of luck at Long Island & congratulations to you & your Family-Coach Max Ivany & The Texas D1 Ambassadors Family.

Killeen Harker Heights Royce O'Neale has Signed With University of Denver

2011 WG 6'5" Royce O'Neale of Killeen Harker Heights has committed & signed with the University of Denver.  O'Neale spent most of his junior campaign recovering from a broken leg.  His senior year was an entirely different story as he was a double double machine for Coach Celneque Bobbitt, leading Harker Heights into the third round of the 5A State Playoffs. 

Denver runs a modified version of the Princeton offense, which means that a shooter like O'Neale should really prosper in that system where he'll have plenty of screens set for him.  He also rebounds extremely well at his position. The Pioneers currently play in the Sun Belt Conference & will be headed to the WAC for the 2012 season.

2011 WG Royce O'Neale has signed with the University of Denver

Royce played several seasons for the Texas D1 Ambassadors but this past year his mother took a position in Kansas and they elected to play their summer basketball with a team out of Dallas, TX.  Not wanting to disrupt his senior season his mom, Ms. Deborah Kingwood drove down from Kansas every Thursday this past high school seaosn to watch her son's weekend games. Now that's commitment!  Congratulations to Royce & His Family-Coach Max Ivany

Texas D1 Ambassadors @ Double Pump Tournament: Denver. CO

It was an early Saturday morning for Texas D1-Houston after their late night buzzer beating win over Double Pump Elite (CA). Their first opponent of the day was a Denver team, Next Level Elite.  Early road games are always a concern as players tend to not get rested while other guys sleep in their own beds.
Pool Play:

Texas D1 Ambassadors-Houston  64  Next Level Elite (CO)  46
All the typical concerns of morning games quickly went away as Texas D1 came out with energy and held a 38-21 halftime lead.  It allowed our young sophomores to get more opportunity and they really show signs of growing into higher levels of production.  The scoring was balanced as 2012 G Devon Turk had 11 points, 2012 F Maurice Letcher-Ellis, had 11 & 2011 Keynon Willis dropped 11  and chipped in with 7 boards.  2012 PG Alex Caruso had 7 points, 7 rebounds & 7 assists.
2012 Maurice Letcher-Ellis (left) of Houston Yates is a double double machine, while Houston St. Pius' Devon Turk (right) has as sweet a stroke as you'll see.


Texas D1 Ambassadors-Austin 59  San Diego All Stars Pump N Run  50
This was a nip and tuck game with Texas D1 trailing 25-23 at the half.  They were down by 9 at one point, but improved shot selection turned the game around.  The second half was like night and day as the final score was 59-50.  The entire roster contributed. 2011 Adam Whitlock hit three from behind the arc (12 points) & 2013 G T.J. Williams of Pflugerville showed great leadership. He scored 12, had 5 boards & dropped 5 dimes.
2013 G T.J. Williams (left) of Pflugerville continues to show his leadership and a nice mid range game to compliment his play making skills. 2011 Adam Whitlock (right) of Austin St. Michael's will knock down the open three pointer at a high percentage.


Bracket Play:

Texas D1 Ambassadors-Houston  82   Idaho Triple Threat  67
2012 Alex Caruso continues to impress at the national level.  He had a monster game, filling up the stat sheet. (6 points, 5 rebounds, 8 steals & 12 assists)!  2011 Keynon Willis led all scorers with 19. 

Chase Brogna         10 pts   3 assists
Devon Turk             11 pts
Jalen Washington    5 pts  7 assists
Maurice Ellis           14 pts  8 rebounds
Johnathan Motley   9 pts

Texas D1 Ambassadors 50  Arizona Magic Pump N Run 48
This game had many lead changes but neither team ever led by more than 7.  It was tied at the half, 21-21.  Texas D1 was sluggish and picked up a tech in the second half to fall behind 41-34.  At that point 2012 PG Michael Hardge of Georgetown took the game over. he scored 16 of the last 18 points as the D1 Ambassadors clawed back.  Hardge saved the best for last as he drove tomards the right baseline, pulled up and swished a jumper from 12 feet out for the buzzer beating win!  He finished with 22 points.  2011 Austin Jenkins of Austin Hyde Park had a great defensive game as he had 8 rebounds & 4 blocked shots.
2012 Mike Hardge of Georgetown brought his A game as he dropped 22 on Arizona Pump N Run.

Colorado Hawks  95  Texas D1 Ambassadors-Houston 75
Not a lot to be said when your opponent comes out hitting 8-9 from the three point line and piling up a 60-33 lead at half time.  I was really proud of the team though because they could have folded their tent, but they gathered themselves and cut the lead to only 8 points with 5 minutes to go.  Poor free throw shooting then kept us from making one final push.  I've been doing this a long time and 2013 W Chris Thomas (son of NBA player Michael Ray Richardson)  was as tough a soph as I've seen.  He was freaky athletic and got to the rim most anytime he wanted.

The second half was a war of egos, and pride as 2011 Keynon Willis of Crosby dunked 6 times all over the opposition as we made our 20 point run.  Willis finished with 18 points and 15 boards. Alex Caruso also got in on the act, throwing down three dunks in that span finishing with 15 points & 6 assists.  If you like high flying acrobatics, then this was the game for you.  Close to 600 fans crammed in to watch this contest.

Two high major players:  2011 Keynon Willis (left) & 2012 Alex Caruso (right)

Devon Turk         15 pts
Chase Brogna      8 pts   4 assists
Maurice Ellis       10 pts  9 rebounds

Texas D1 Ambassadors @ Double Pump Event: Denver, CO

The Texas D1 Ambassadors are on a Rocky Mountain high at the Double Pump Event in Denver.  Played under one roof on 6 beautiful courts at the Gold Crown Fieldhouse this is the "The Pumpers" signature event of the spring.  Texas D1 is in the house with two teams; one from Austin & the other from Houston.  It's a beautiful, brisk spring day in Denver and it was also a beautiful day on the hardwood.

Texas D1 Ambassadors-Austin  60  Tru Playaz (CO) 53
Texas D1 came out blazing, knocking down four early three pointers and jumped out to a 15 point lead.  Mediocre shot selection on the next four trip, coupled with an opponent had the game quickly back down to a 3 point lead.  2012 PG Mike Hardge of Georgetown had two key steals for breakaway dunks to right the ship and they cruised to a 60-53 win.  Hardge finished with 14 points, 5 rebounds & 4 steals to key the win.  2011 W 6'5" Allante Faust also added 14 points & 5 rebounds.  2011 W 6'5" Brooks Pawsat had 10 points, including a couple of shots from behind the arc.  The prettiest play of all came from 2013 PG T.J. Williams of Pflugerville as the first half wound down, he spread the floor drawing three defenders as he went to the goal and then dropped the sweetest dime to Faust for the dunk at the 1st half buzzer.
2012 Mike Hardge (left) & 2011 Allante Faust (right) led the Texas D1 Ambassadors-Austin to the 60-53 win over Tru Playaz (CO)


Texas D1 Ambassadors-Houston 52  Double Pump Elite 50
This was the game everyone came to see.  Texas D1 was fresh off a 5-1 showing at the Fullcourt Press Easter Classic and a big buzzer beating win over Belmont Shore (CA) last weekend.  Now in our first game in the Mile High City the opponent was the host Pump Brother top crew, featuring 8 high major D1 players including 2013 Nigel Goss Williams of Findlay Prep, 7'6" Mamadou Abareguiye (yes, seven foot 6 inches!),  2012 Xavier Johnson of Mater Dei & Mamadou Dao of Stoneridge Prep to name a few.  Rivals, Scout & ESPN were all in the house for this one as it was standing room only in the gym.

This isn't our first rodeo on center court in front of highly touted opponents and our kids didn't back down.  Our frontline is big, but young and even sporting  several 6'8" players we looked like little kids out there at times as Double Pump had a couple of 6'9" and the footer.  Neither team hit many shots as the defense was intense and the referees let them play for the most part.  Double Pump was up 25-21 at the half and stretched out to a 9 point lead with 10 minutes left to play.  From that point on it was a war with the key shots over the next few minutes coming from 2012 Devon Turk of Houston St. Pius & 2011 Jalen Washington of Pflugerville Hendrickson who bagged a deuce of 3 pointers a piece.
Chase Brogna (left) & Alex Caruso (right) led Texas D1 Ambassadors-Houston to the thrilling buzzer beating win over Double Pump Elite (CA) 52-50 with 9 points a piece.

Nigel Goss Williams is a handful to say the least but he was made to work for everything he got due the the defense by committee by guards Alex Caruso, Chase Brogna & Jalen Washington.  It was truly a team effort down the stretch with everyone contributing including our trio of sophomores; Kendrick Morris, Johnathan Motley & Parker Callender.  The game was tied with 50 and with 11 seconds left, 2012 PG Chase Brogna drove the lane and pulled up for what looked like his trademark sweet jumper.  It was just short with 2 seconds left catching the front of the rim.  Then out of nowhere came Keynon "Slim" Willis as in one motion he slammed a two hander through the nets for the win.  DUNK!  Texas D1-Houston with the buzzer beater!
Keynon "Slim" Willis (left) had the dunk at the buzzer for the win, while 2011 WG Jalen Washington had 8 points (including two key three pointers, 4 assists, 4 rebounds & 2 blocks.


Brogna           9
Caruso           9
Washington   8
Turk               8
Ellis                8
Willis             7