Links: Justin Simon on list for national award, Marvin Clark to play in 3x3 tourney

Want to see a Johnnie in action?

Marvin Clark II will play this weekend in the 3x3 Tournament for NCAA seniors, taking place in Minneapolis, part of the festivities around the Final Four.

The 3x3 game, now sanctioned by FIBA, is a half court game with 1 point inside the arc, 2 points outside the arc. East team has one sub. The game will be played in the Mall of America. First team to 21 points (or best score after 10) wins.

Clark’s team, which includes Butler players Nate Fowler and Paul Jorgenson, plus Providence’s Isaiah Jackson, will play on:

• Friday at 7:50 against the MAC team (which does not have a player taller than 6’4”). The MAC team includes former Xavier guard Larry Austin;
• Saturday at 11:10 against the Sun Belt squad; and
• 2:20 on Saturday against the MAAC representatives.

If the Big East team can get past those games, they will play Round of 16 and Quarterfinal games that will be watchable on Twitter.

Full schedule here.

And here’s hoping Clark gets around Minneapolis a bit — possibly the most underrated city in the USA.

Justin Simon was named to the list of finalists for the Lefty Driesell award, give to the top defensive player in basketball. Full list here.

St. John’s Shamorie Ponds was an Honorable Mention All-American, per the NCAA. (Markus Howard of Marquette was a second-team All-American). Full list and NCAA release here.

Also, former Johnnie Malik Ellison will transfer with his degree from Pittsburgh and be immediately eligible. Good luck to him. He’s a solid multi-use player who can fill in a lot of gaps, but perhaps would be better served to be on a more well-established program than St. John’s first two years or Jeff Capel’s first year at Pitt. Maybe CAA or MAAC, where he can really shine?