The snapshot moments were jaw-dropping, and there were a lot of them.
In a showdown between the state’s top prep teams, junior Ty-Laur Johnson was the best player on the floor, scoring on all levels and finding ways to wow everyone in attendance. St. Benedict’s isn’t allowing fans at its home games right now, but if it was, they would have been on their feet all night.
St. Benedict’s coach Mark Taylor has coached some of the best guards to come through the state in the last 26 years, and what he’s seen from Johnson this winter has been elite. The junior added another signature performance on Wednesday, scoring 35 points in a 75-64 win over Blair.
“Every night we’ve played, (Ty-Laur) has been the best player on the floor,” said St. Benedict’s coach Mark Taylor. “I’ve had a lot of great guards - Jay Williams, Tyler Ennis, Trevon Duval, Melvin Johnson - and Ty’s as good in high school as any of them. What he does on the floor is special. He’s performing at a level that’s as good as any guard I’ve had and he controls the game for us.”
Johnson’s night started out slow with just two points in the opening quarter.
The junior started to heat up in the second though and made his first splashy play when he cut through the Blair defense, went under the net and laid the ball up and in. Minutes later, he pulled up with a defender in his face and drained a 3-pointer from NBA range.
By halftime, Johnson had 16 points. He scored another 19 in the second half.
Blair trailed by double-digits at the break, but closed the gap in the fourth quarter and made it a three-point game. St. Benedict’s went on a 12-0 run after that and Johnson scored nine points during that stretch, including a floater over a 6-foot-11 center that he let fly after getting by a D1 commit.
On top of his 35 points, the 6-foot guard also had six assists and four steals.
In a game full of stars, the Johnson shined the brightest. He’s currently ranked outside the Top 100 in his class by 247Sports, but Johnson is making a case that he should be considered one of the best prospects in the country. He’s also earned the right by be grouped in with Jersey’s elite talents.
“I try to work hard and be the best every day,” said Johnson, who has offers from Seton Hall, St. John’s and DePaul as well as interest from some top-tier D1 programs. “I have always been doubted my whole life. I think I’m the best and I try to play like I’m the best every night.”
Johnson stole the show against Blair and led a squad that also saw 6-foot-8 forward Ladji Dembele put together a memorable performance. The junior from Mali was unguardable at times, especially in the post. Dembele also showed a knack for stepping outside and draining shots as well.
He finished the game with 25 points, 12 points and three blocks.
“He shoots great and people don’t realize that,” said Taylor. “He plays for the Mali U19 National Team and he was the 2 guard on that team because everyone else is 7-feet tall. He’s used to shooting the 3-ball because he has to with them, so we knew he could shoot a little bit and I’m glad he made a couple big ones tonight. We’ve been joking with him at practice that he needs to shoot more.”
Conal Parnell also stepped up and came through with six rebounds and four assists.
On the defensive end, Jahlijan Grant and Omarion Jett-Dobbs were tough all night.
Oklahoma commit Otega Oweh finished with 22 points for Blair, but St. Benedict’s was able to stop him from getting into too much of a rhythm, especially late in the game when the Gray Bees pulled away. Sophomore guard Jayden Williams played well off the bench for Blair and had 18 points.
“Otega is a great player and he’s every athletic,” Taylor said. “He can get to the rim and he’s shooting the ball better this year, which makes him ever harder to guard. He were locked in though and we knew how to defend him. We went over it in practice, watched film and our guys did a really good job today.”
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Brandon Gould can be reached at bgould@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrandonGouldHS.
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