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Area cagers compete in Las vegas

From middle school to high school, youth basketball players get great competition at prestigious AAU Tournament

Although sports fans don’t always think of football and basketball during the summer, it’s an important time of year for both high school and middle school athletes looking to not only improve, but make a name for themselves.

One Havre athlete who has already made a name for himself around here and in college recruiting offices is Havre High’s Dane Warp. Warp is a three-time All-State performer in football and basketball for the Ponies and during the course of his busy summer attending various football and basketball camps, Warp recently took part in the Fab 48 tournament in Las Vegas.

Warp joined a team from Bismarck, North Dakota, and was one of just two Montana players to travel with the team. Overall, the team went 2-2 and in four games of action, Warp put up impressive numbers, averaging 18 points per game.

Warp, who was recently offered a basketball scholarship by Carroll College of the Frontier Conference, said that it took time to adjust to playing with a team of all-stars that has to share time to get everyone on the court.

“I probably could have done better, but it’s kind of different playing on those all-star teams where everyone shares time,” Warp said. “But I was able to play the guard against some really good defenders. Ball handling is huge there.”

While Warp is receiving interest from colleges as both a football player and basketball player going into his senior season at HHS, other local kids who traveled to Las Vegas to play basketball are just in the process of making themselves known.

That’s because a U13 team made up of kids from Havre and the Hi-Line traveled to Las Vegas to play in both the Las Vegas Classic and the Fab 48 tournament. LaVon Myers’ team is made up of Tanner Parsons, Taylor Parsons, Kellen Dietrich, Tanner Smith, Jace Leeds, Tyrel Kjersom, Keeley Bake, Griff Held, Teed Faught and Levi Torgerson.

“I just thought it would be good for these kids to come and get a chance to play against some of the top kids in their age group,” Myers said. “Some of the kids they are playing against are already getting looked at by big schools, so it’s a chance to play against some really high level competition.”

So far, Myers’ team has acquitted itself well. The team finished third at pool play in the Las Vegas Classic before being ousted by the seventh-ranked team in the country at the U13 level. The team came from Philadelphia.

“Kids from Montana usually don’t get to go up against this kind of competition, so I really wanted them to see that,” Myers said. “It has given them a chance to see some great players, some top-20 players at their position for this age group. But they have also had some other great experiences. Not only have they played against some great competition, they got to meet (Michigan State head basketball coach) Tom Izzo and some others. There are scouts everywhere, and it really gives them a chance to play against the best and get better.”

After being eliminated in the Las Vegas Classic in the first round of post-group play, Myers’ U13 team is now taking part in the U13 Fab 48 tournament and opened up with a hard-fought loss against a team from California. Myers’ team will finish up the tournament in Las Vegas this week.

 

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