The third stop on the 2022 Nike EYBL summer circuit was Louisville and Layden Blocker made himself right at home, balling out and leading Bradley Beal Elite 17U to a trio of wins.
Layden averaged 19.2 points per game for the five-game tournament, as BBE went 3-2.
2023 Four-star PG Layden Blocker went off in front of Bradley Beal 👀🔥@Laygogetit2 pic.twitter.com/VlrkdnCTEm
— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) May 29, 2022
The weekend began with a win over Seattle Rotary Style on Saturday, as Layden poured in 26 points, grabbed nine rebounds and played elite defense with four blocks in the 47-41 victory. Lathan Sommerville added seven rebounds, four points, four assists and two steals in the win.
🌪 TOUGH! pic.twitter.com/Pvexvecz4h
— Lathan Sommerville (@LathanSommervi2) May 31, 2022
The second game on Saturday saw BBE suffer its first setback of the session, a 67-61 loss to New Heights Lightning despite 14 points from Sommerville, 10 with seven rebounds for Blocker and 12 points from Desmond White.
But the BBE boys got back in the win column on Sunday, with victories over NJ Scholars and Team Herro. The game against NJ Scholars was Layden’s best of the weekend, as he posted a 27-point, 10-rebound double-double in the 62-56 triumph. That included a clutch bucket with 30 seconds left and the game tied, which eventually lifted Brad Beal Elite to the win.
Tie game. 30 seconds left. Layden Blocker says I got this 💥 the go-ahead bucket gave Brad Beal Elite the dub over NJ Scholars@Laygogetit2 | @BradBealElite pic.twitter.com/Ji0YoDnzlN
— NIBC (@NIBCOfficial) May 29, 2022
Layden Blocker with a statement win (27pts, 10 rebs, 3 dimes) vs NJ Scholars featuring the #1 player, DJ Wagner! pic.twitter.com/2c08TMoFd3
— pinto (@pinto479) May 29, 2022
I see you @PangosAACamp alum Layden Blocker! Outplayed top 2023 guard DJ Wagner today in Brad Beal's win over NJ Scholars: 27 pts (7/10 FG; 3/5 3FG), 10 rebs & 3 assists. Made a strong case for 5 star status today! @FrankieBur @ebosshoops @Cassidy_Rob @RonMFlores @Vanshoops
— Dinos Trigonis (@trigonis30) May 29, 2022
Layden Blocker @Laygogetit continued his strong play today putting up 27 points (10-13 FG), 10 reb in a 62-56 win for @BradBealElite vs the #1 ranked PG in the country Dejuan Wagner and the NJ Scholars.
This summer he’s consistently shown he’s one of the best PG’s in the country pic.twitter.com/GtR0YFSmjA— Marcus Wilson (@CoachWilson5) May 29, 2022
Sunday’s second matchup was another tightly contested one that came down to the wire. This time, it was Scotty Middleton drilling back-to-back threes in overtime to lift BBE from a 65-61 deficit to a 67-65 win over Team Herro. Scotty finished with 14 points, Layden added 16 and Desmond White led in the scoring column with 18 points.
17U Final (OT):@BradBealElite 67
Team Herro 65Brad Beal Elite prevails, there was just no quit in them. Scotty Middleton hit 2 3’s after BBE trailed 65-61 & that gets it done. BBE had 3 guys with 14+ points. Milan Momcilovic finished with 30 for Team Herro.@ScottyMiddleto9 pic.twitter.com/muiRgewxdN
— Relentless Hoops (@Relentless_Hoop) May 30, 2022
BBE wasn’t able to close out the session on a high note Monday, dropping the finale to Houston Hoops. However, the 3-2 weekend was a big step in the right direction for the 17U crew as they look ahead to the rest of the summer.