Tyus Battle Reaches National SpotlightBy Jay Gomes (NJ Hoops)
As readers of NJ Hoops know we don't really cover or write about grammar school
basketball players. We usually wait until they get to high school.
There have been a few exceptions over the 17 year of NJ Hoops however. On a rare occasion we see players playing and excelling with players many years older.
The few that come to mind over the years are Derrick Caracter, Kyle Anderson and more recently Karl Towns.
Now we have to add another one to the list in 6-foot-3 8th grader Tyus Battle. We first saw him in July at the Joe Brown Tournament with the NJ Demons in the 17 & Under Division. He fit right in with his poise, skills and athleticism and one would never know he was that young.
We saw Battle three more times this weekend, once again with the Demons, but this time he was at the the Hoop Group Fall Jam Fest. He was playing in the Open Division with and against primarily high school seniors. He was one of the best players on his team throughout the tournament and helped lead the Demons to the championship round. He averaeged 9 ppg in the three contests with a high of 17.
Tyus's father Gary was a former Colonia High School star and Division 2 All American at New Haven and obviously taught the younger Battle well.
With a prospect that impressive speculation starts as to what high school and college he may like down the road. Gary told NJ Hoops that he would most likely choose from St. Anthony's, St. Joseph's Metuchen, Blair Academy or possibly even head to Florida to play for former St. Patrick's Coach Kevin Boyle.
I inquired if Tyus had a favorite college team growing up and Gary quickly responded "North Carolina. He likes the ACC." I asked what about the Big East and his repsonse signals hope for Rutgers fans. "We're Mike Rice fans." he responded.
NJ Hoops will be covering his career and development over the next five years and beyond.
NJ Hoops provides blanket coverage of NJ basketball all year long for the past 16 years and is proud to continue to be the NJ nominating source for the McDonald's All American game.
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