FAYETTEVILLE — Little Rock Christian sophomore guard Layden Blocker showed again Tuesday night what the fuss is all about.
Blocker had 18 points as the Warriors (2-0) downed visiting Cabot 69-57. Senior guard Tre Jones led Little Rock Christian with 21 points and junior forward Creed Williamson added 15.
Blocker and Williamson are recruiting targets of Arkansas in the class of 2023.
Blocker (6-2, 160 pounds) was coming off a 35-point effort in his team’s 74-50 win over Joe T. Robinson on Nov. 10. He has a big fan in former Arkansas star and NBA player Corliss Williamson, now an assistant at Little Rock Christian and Creed Williamson's father.
“Layden is going to be a special player,” Corliss Williamson said. “Watching him play every day in practice, I see something new every time. His maturity at his age and his understanding of the game is kind of ahead of his age group right now. He has that drive to be great and to want to be great and he definitely puts the work in.”
Arkansas has offered Blocker, along with Auburn, St. John’s, Oral Roberts, Tulane, TCU, Virginia Tech, Southern Miss and Central Arkansas. Blocker likes what he sees from Razorbacks head coach Eric Musselman.
“I like Arkansas’ coaching staff,” Blocker said. “The coaching staff is very energetic. (Musselman) looks like he is a very good coach. He is a very energetic coach and I want that type of coach. When the team is energetic, I like the coach toe be energetic, too. I like a fun coach.”
Blocker had 28 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds and three steals and Williamson 23 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks in a 69-64 double-overtime victory over Watson Chapel on Nov. 7 in a benefit game.
“It is real fun to have him around,” Creed Williamson said. “He had gotten real athletic now and is finishing above the rim all the time. He has always been a good shooter, but he has really been working on his body and I can see that now.”
Blocker, who was offered by Arkansas along with Williamson on Oct. 6, will see time at both the point and off-guard spots this season.
“If a team…is aggressive, then I should have the ball in my hands,” Blocker said. “If they are not that aggressive, then I think I would play better at the two.”
Little Rock Christian coach Clarence Finley starts Jones at point guard alongside two guard Blocker. Blocker averaged 15 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals as a freshman last season.
“When (Jones) is in, Blocker can just concentrate lot on shooting the ball and getting to the rack, but he can still get there from the point,” Finley said. “He can really shoot the three, too.”
Blocker was a standout at the 15th annual Pangos All South Frosh/Soph Camp in Duncanville, Texas, on Oct. 3-4. He is also receiving recruiting attention from Baylor, Texas Tech, Texas A&M and Missouri.
He and Little Rock Central freshman forward Annoy Boateng (6-5, 200) were both named to the Top 30 game at the event, which featured 219 campers from 13 states.
Grassroots.net ranked Blocker as the 19th-best prospect at the Pangos event.
“The camp, that was very fun and a good experience playing against older competition…and nationally ranked people," Blocker said. “I did good at the camp, even against the five stars that were there. I feel like I still proved myself that I could be high level and up there with those guys.”
Blocker was named to the Class 5A All-State team and was one of two freshmen named to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Underclassman Team last season.
Little Rock Christian will face a challenging nonconference slate that includes games against EStem, Little Rock Mills, Little Rock Central, Pulaski Academy and Pine Bluff.
Christian's conference includes Jacksonville, Sylvan Hills, Maumelle, Little Rock Parkview, Little Rock Hall, Benton and Beebe.
“We are in a different conference this year it is going to be a little bit more athletic than the conference we came out of,” Finley said. “There are well-coached teams and great athletes also. So it is going to be a challenge for us…We know the (conference) is going to be a dog fight every Tuesday and Friday night.”