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Putnam's Hamidou Diallo does a bit of everything in big Hoophall second half

There was plenty of action at the Hoophall Classic (Photo: David Butler II, USA TODAY Sports)

There was plenty of action at the Hoophall Classic (Photo: David Butler II, USA TODAY Sports)

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – As the first half of Sunday’s Hoophall Classic matchup between Commonwealth Academy (Springfield, Mass.) and Putnam Science Academy (Putnam, Conn.) reached its halfway point, Putnam junior guard Hamidou Diallo was on the bench with his second foul, and just three points on 1-for-6 shooting. He sat the rest of the half, and his team went into the locker room trailing 31-27.

Diallo came out in the second half looking like a completely different player.

Diallo was all over the place on offense, as he notched 27 second-half points en route to Putnam’s 89-76 victory, and the team MVP award. He is ranked No. 11 in the ESPN 60 for the Class of 2017 and the No. 3 shooting guard.

“In the first half, I picked up two fouls, back to back,” Diallo said. “Coach had to pull me. But we finished off with a strong second half.”

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That strong second half was jump-started by Diallo, who at one point scored 10 consecutive points for the Mustangs.

“I just like to get going to the basket, and my shot will start falling eventually,” Diallo said. “That’s what I showed in the second half, and we came out with the win.”

Diallo went to the free-throw line 14 times in the second half – 16 times overall. Ten of his game-high 30 points came courtesy of the charity stripe.

“I love contact. When I get contact, it gets my motor going, and it just makes me go harder.” Diallo said.

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Diallo is just a junior, and the college offers are beginning to roll in. The Hoophall Classic gave him a chance to show off in front of scouts and coaches from all around the country.

“I have a lot of offers, I don’t really remember them all off the top of my head,” Diallo said, laughing. “A bunch of schools have offered me. The latest school to contact and offer me was Arizona, last night.”

Diallo said that given his play in Sunday’s game, he should be seeing more offers soon.

“They should offer me,” he explained. “This is something I’ve been waiting for, you know, I just hope it comes.”

Diallo added that the best fit for him at the collegiate level would be a school with a fast-paced offense.

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Sunday, Diallo opened up his entire bag of tricks in the second half. From mid-range jump shots to finding his way to the free-throw line, he scored from a variety of ways. With 4:57 remaining in the second half, a streaking Diallo received a lob pass from a teammate at the other end of the court. Diallo took three steps and elevated for a monstrous two-handed dunk, which ended with him yelling and pounding his chest in the direction of the coaches’ seating area.

“I just use [athleticism] when I go to the basket,” Diallo said. “Just go in strong and hopefully something good happens out of the play.”

Offense wasn’t the only area in which the 6-4 guard showed maximum effort. Any time Commonwealth went to inbound the ball, Diallo was there guarding the inbounder. Once the ball was in play, he was enforcing a suffocating brand of defense on the ballhandler. At the 11:44 mark of the second half, Diallo and teammate Tyreek Perkins tried to trap a Commonwealth guard off the inbound. Diallo tipped away a pass attempt to Perkins, who dashed to the basket for a layup. The ball rolled lazily around the rim and fell out, but Diallo was there for the put-back.

“That’s just me working hard on both sides of the court,” Diallo said in regard to his aggressive fullcourt press. “Because I know if I don’t work hard on the defensive side, the offensive side won’t come.”

 

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