PG Anthony Crater (official thread)

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Brewster 72, MCI 50 (December 8, 2007)

The boys' varsity basketball team captured the Brewster Invitational Championship with a 72-50 victory over MCI. Brewster trailed 47-44 with a little over eight minutes remaining in the game and went on a 28-3 run to pull off the hard-fought win. Brewster was led by Mark Lyons (Schenectady, NY) with 17 points, while Charles Abouo (Logan, UT) added 13 points. Senior captain Emmanuel Negedu (Kaduna, Nigeria) was solid on the glass and chipped in 12 points and guards Anthony Crater (Flint, MI) and Trey Blue (South Holland, IL) contributed nine and eight points, respectively. With the win, Brewster improves to 9-1 on the season and will travel to Northfield Mount Hermon on Wednesday for a Class A road contest.

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Brewster 84, Northfield Mount Hermon 65 (December 12, 2007)

Brewster earned its tenth win of the season (10-1) with a victory over a talented Northfield Mount Hermon squad, 84-65. Brewster was led by Mark Lyons (Schenectady, NY) with 24 points, six steals, and four assists. Senior captain Emmanuel Negedu (Kaduna, Nigeria) added 18 points and a game-high 17 rebounds, while Trey Blue (South Holland, IL) chipped in 16 points (four three-pointers). Anthony Crater (Flint, MI) played another outstanding game from his point guard position with a team-high nine assists, as well as nine points and four steals. Brewster will host a very strong South Kent team on Friday evening at 5:30pm.

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Brewster 93, New Hampton 72 (December 15, 2007)

Brewster defeated rival New Hampton 93-72 at the Chris Polak Shootout, which was held on the campus of Southern New Hampshire University. Brewster was led by Arizona-bound Emmanuel Negedu (Kaduna, Nigeria) with 23 points (two three-pointers) and eight rebounds, while Trey Blue (South Holland, IL) added 21 points (five three-pointers). Senior co-captain Mark Lyons (Schenectady, NY), who signed with Xavier University contributed 16 points and four assists. Kellen Thornton (Country Club Hills, IL) had a game-high nine rebounds and BYU-signee Charles Abouo (Logan, UT) chipped in nine points. Brewster improves to 11-1 on the season and will be off until after the New Year when they host Phillips Exeter Academy on January 9th at 4:30pm.

[Buckskin86]

Great article on Noopy!

Anthony Crater soars through the air. The Flint native was destined for basketball stardom in Flint and a certain finalist for Mr. Basketball in Michigan. But he traded hometown glory for accelerated learning in a scenic but sparsely populated area of middle New Hampshire.

Ex-Flint hoops player trades in local stardom
Posted by Dan Nilsen | The Flint Journal December 23, 2007

First in a two-part series on Anthony Crater's move from Flint to New Hampshire for his senior year of high school.

WOLFEBORO, N.H. -- The wind blows hard and cold off Lake Winnipesaukee as Anthony Crater walks briskly from his dormitory to the dining hall on the Brewster Academy campus.

The Flint native barely notices. It's not unlike the Michigan winds that sweep over I-69, across the athletic fields and onto the bluff of his old high school, Southwestern Academy.

But this is a different world for Crater, and not just because the mammoth lake and nearby mountains have replaced freeways and auto plants as the backdrop of his scholastic life.

The 17-year-old is spending his senior year at another level -- a higher level of academics, discipline and basketball.

Once the pride of Flint hoops and a certain finalist for Mr. Basketball in Michigan this winter, Crater traded hometown glory for accelerated learning in a scenic but sparsely populated area of middle New Hampshire.

By his own choice, he left family and friends for the rigors of prep school structure, all in the interest of becoming a better basketball player more quickly.

"I like it here," Crater said over a couple of sandwiches in the Estabrook Hall dining room. "Back home, I don't think Southwestern would have had me prepared for college -- school-wise, basketball-wise, all around.

"I'm not holding anything against Southwestern, but I just don't think it would have had me ready for Ohio State."

It's the same thing he said last summer, when he shocked the area with his announcement that he was leaving the state to spend his senior year at a college preparatory school. Ohio State, to which he verbally committed a year ago and with whom he officially signed last month, encouraged the move, he said.

At the time, he was headed for Hargrave Military Academy in southern Virginia but requested a nonmilitary school and lucked out when a last-minute opening popped up at Brewster.

"The whole military thing threw me off," Crater said. "I don't think I was mentally ready for a military academy."

"The thing we liked about him was he made other guys around him better," said Ohio State associate head coach John Groce. "He has exceptional vision; he can really see and make plays that a lot of guys can't.

"The thing we were concerned about was his growth and maturing as a person and student, regardless of where he's located."

Those concerns were raised during a campus visit by Crater and his mother, but Groce said it was ultimately the family's decision to seek a prep school.

"Here we just didn't feel like he was being challenged, and Noopy needed a little discipline," said his mother.

Oh, that was another issue. Buckeyes coach Thad Matta prefers to call him Anthony, and not the nickname Crater has carried since he was a toddler.

"To be honest," said Crater, "I'm tired of 'Noopy' right now. I feel like I'm 7 or 8 years old when you call me Noopy."

He was never going to be called Mr. Basketball, Crater believes.

"I had a chance, but I got dogged when I committed to Ohio State," he said. "Not so much to my face, but on the Web sites.

Ex-Flint hoops player trades in local stardom - News Now - The Flint Journal - MLive.com

[Napoleonbuck]

Amazing article.

Have to love kids who have their priorities in order.

[Buckskin86]

Part II

`Like college ball'
Crater playing at new level in New England
FLINT
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
Monday, December 24, 2007
By Dan Nilsen
dnilsen@flintjournal.com ? 810.766.6394

Second in a two-part series on Anthony Crater's move from Flint to New Hampshire for his senior year of high school.

Crater has shown he belongs at this level. The 6-foot-2 point guard has started every game in an 11-1 season so far, and had 11 assists and no turnovers in Brewster's only loss.

"Great passer, great basketball IQ," said Smith. "Very few kids these days understand how to play the game, and that's not true of Anthony. He's always thinking two or three passes ahead."

Crater is averaging 8.5 assists and less than two turnovers a game, and Smith's only complaint is that he doesn't shoot enough. He's scoring less than six points an outing.

"He's at the point now where people are playing off of him because they know he's not going to shoot the ball," said Smith. "I'd like to see him make them pay for that."

"My mom has played a big part in my life," said Crater, who will turn 18 next Sunday. "She made sure I stayed away from all the violence, all the gangs. She just basically kept my head on straight."

He came home for Christmas last week, but "home" won't be in Michigan for long. Jimerson is in the process of moving to Akron, Ohio, for a new job, a new life and a shorter drive to Ohio State games.

"I'm just ready to get out of Flint," she said. "There's so much stuff going on here. I'd be worried about him when he's here."

MLive.com: Everything Michigan

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Here is his bio at Brewster Academy....

Anthony Crater '08

• 6?2? 175lbs
• Flint, Michigan
  

To Attend: The Ohio State University

Honors:

• 2008 McDonald?s All-American Nominee (New Hampshire)
• 2007 Lebron James Skills Academy
• 2007 Steve Nash Skills Academy
• 2007 NBA Players Association Camp
• 2006 ABCD Camp
• 2-time All-State Selection (Michigan)
• 2006-07 Michigan Class B Player of the Year (Associated Press)
• #8 ranked point guard nationally- ScoutHoops.com
• #88 ranked player nationally in class of ?08- CSTV.com

Links:

• Ex-Flint hoops player trades in local stardom
• Crater excels in New Hampshire
• Ohio State signs 4 for 2008-09
• Crater signs with Ohio State