April 8, 2008
Towson, Md. - One piece of Mizzou Basketball's future was on display in the Baltimore area this weekend, as incoming freshman guard Kim English led the Baltimore All-Stars to a 107-82 win over the U.S. All-Stars Sunday evening at the Towson Center in Towson, Md.
English led all scorers with 18 point on 7-of-13 shooting and hit a game-high 3-of-5 shots from beyond the arc. The 6-foot-6, 200-pounder also added three steals and four boards in just 24 minutes to lead the Baltimore All-Stars to their fifth win over the U.S. team in seven years.
"I feel like I played well," English said. "I came out focusing on defense, because I knew we had enough scorers to beat a talented USA team. Sean Mosley (Maryland), Henry Simms (Georgetown), Troy Franklin (Towson), Terence Jones (Texas A&M Corpus Christi), Allen Cheaney (Florida), Omar Strong and myself all came together with an unselfish attack and balanced scoring. We wore the Baltimore jersey with pride, and came out with a win. I heard I finished with 18 points and four rebounds, but to me; the most impressive stat was holding such a loaded USA team to 82 points in 40 minutes."
English was named to the All-Tournament team along with Baltimore teammates Mosley and Franklin (MVP). U.S. Team participants Chris Turner, Xavier Gibson and Dee Bost also earned All-Tournament honors.
"It was an honor to play for my city. It's an event where all of our friends that have moved on to college come back to support us, so we have to perform... if we don't they will get on us," said a joking English. "Donte' Green (Syracuse), Malcolm Delaney (Virginia Tech), Jack McClinton (Miami) and Ricky Harris (Massachusetts) were all in attendance. Being from Baltimore, we don't feed into "names" or "hype", so we knew we were just as good as (the U.S. Team), or better. And I feel that mentality will stay with me throughout my career."
Although he is putting the final touches on his Notre Dame Prep career, English has already began preparing for his freshman season in Columbia, Mo., preparation that begins with morning workouts five days a week.
"I've been working out basketball-wise for 16 days since the end of my season, except for Sunday and Monday," English said. "I wake up at 7:15 a.m. and shoot hundreds of jump shots. I also focus on other areas as I try to eliminate all the flaws in my game. I recently started a weightlifting routine, because I know what a physical league the Big 12 is. I want to be ready physically to step in and help Missouri."
English anticipates a June arrival to campus along with fellow newcomers Laurence Bowers, Marcus Denmon, Steve Moore, Miguel Paul and junior college transfer Keith Ramsey.
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