Bumped. GO BRUINS. -N

UCLA bound, 6'9" Josh Smith, rated the #1 graduating HS center in the country had 12 points on 6 of 8 shooting in the first half and finished with 22 Points (10 of 12 FG), 16 Rebounds,   5 Assists , 1 block.  He only made 1 of 5 (maybe 1  of 7) Free throws, though. Kentwood won  67-58.

Watch the highlights from KOMO:

Smith showed excellent floor sense with great passing, blocked shots but SLOW on defense.  The announcers did say that he was only at about 70% following the knee injury that made him miss 6 weeks earlier in the season, so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

He definitely needs to lose some weight, and will need more than his size to be dominant in D1 play.  Josh was the #1 rebounder in the tournament and ended up the tourney averaging 23.2 PPG and 15 rebounds. During the post game interview, he conducted himself like a future Bruin: with class.  He credited his team, mentioning how they'd stepped up when he was out even though he will undoubtedly be the MVP.

Kentwood HS won the 4A state for the first time since 2004, when they had .  Robert Stuckey playing there.  (We all wish Robert Stuckey the best after he collapsed on the bench during the Piston's game.)

It will be nice to have more inside presence next year.  With his floor vision and BB sense, I can't wait to see him in a blue and gold jersey.