The first round of the 2011 Nike Global Challenge began on Friday outside of Portland with two close games in the afternoon and two blowouts in the evening.

USA East 89, Chinese-Taipei 79

Cameron Biedscheid: Shooting 10-for-15 from the floor, Biedscheid led all scorers with 23 points and earned his nod as my player of the game. Biedscheid looked to gun his own shot from the onset of the game and showed why Notre Dame may have the Big East's next pure scorer coming to campus in 2012. He scored in a multiple of ways, but his game is mostly based on his mid-range jumper, which was absolutely hitting today.

He doesn't profile as promisingly for the NBA game as several of his teammates, but we have seen players of his ilk absolutely thrive in college.

Nerlens Noel: The first half allowed Noel to showcase his game when it was played more in the half court, as the second half opened up considerably. Noel, a member of the 2013 class, is the youngest player on his team but showed considerably maturity and an advanced basketball IQ. He has the potential to be an utterly dominant defensive force at the center position that we see only every few years. Noel had four blocks in the game despite being rarely challenged by a Chinese-Taipei team that had a maximum height of 6-foot-6. 

The most impressive aspect of Noel as a shot blocker is actually his restraint. He doesn't try to block every shot, which is so frequently the default for even the most seasoned vet. Noel does a good job of staying on his feet when necessary, aided by his quickness to the jump.

Omar Calhoun: Similar to Biedscheid, Calhoun is a Big East recruit (Connecticut) that hasn't met a shot he doesn't love. Calhoun had the first big dunk of the day with an impressive one-handed slam on a breakaway. He brought the ball up a few times, showing some good potential as a lead guard.

Ricardo Ledo: Ledo is the furthest along physically on USA East. He showed his excellent body control in the air and overall strength. Ledo had a vintage Tayshaun Prince block from behind on a Chinese-Taipei fastbreak and he also had a dunk off the backboard on a breakaway. Ledo finished with 13 points on 6-for-12 shooting.

Canada 85, Brazil 74

Andrew Wiggins: Even though the top three players of the 2013 class are here this weekend, Wiggins' performance was the highlight of the day for me. Wiggins is at the top of the 2014 class and it is difficult to imagine a better 16-year-old. 

He scored within a second of hitting the floor as a reserve for Team Canada, finishing a quick layup on a baseline out of bounds play. Wiggins showed his intuition for moving into space in the halfcourt. He caught one ball underneath the bucket and came back to the other side for a reverse layup by feeling his way on the court.

Wiggins picked up a few first half bucket, but had a great stretch in the third quarter that began with a powerful one-handed slam. He then hit a three-pointer and that was quickly followed by a tomahawk jam setup by how well he moved into space to get himself open.

In these spurts that led to 24 points in 24 minutes on 9-for-16 shooting, Wiggins demonstrated why he is one of the most complete prospects we have ever seen at his age. He is a preternaturally gifted in those ways we saw from Kobe Bryant at a similar age and if there was one player from Day 1 that you would wager everything on becoming a superstar in the NBA, it would be him. 

Anthony Bennett: With advanced physical maturity, Bennett presented an intriguing counterpoint to the youth of Wiggins. His high motor and football player build allowed for him to be effective. He had a workmanlike 15 and 10.

Sim Bhullar: There is no way you can understate his size and players of his ilk are always appropriately and fondly labelled as 'project', but expectations for his potential should be very restrained. He had two easy dunks in the first half, but only played 15 minutes. Bhullar struggles to get up and down the floor, but has actually impressive agility for his size. He sat most of the second half and will face Noel on Day 2.

USA Midwest 103, Germany 58

Because this game was over so quickly, individual analysis proves almost entirely meaningless. This team had the most cohesion of the day and pushed the tempo throughout and prevented Germany from dirtying the game the way Chinese-Taipei did against USA East.

Garry Harris was the standout performer even though everyone played well. He proved his versatility as a scorer and his physical maturity was palpable.

Jabari Parker had a strong first showing, demonstrating his advanced ability on the catch-and-shoot. Parker also created off the dribble with a strong handle.

Archie Goodwin had just six point on 3-for-8 scoring, but he is a candidate for a rebound game on Saturday.

Alex Poythress looked like a jack of all trades type of player and Jarnell Stokes had a strong 15 and 12.

USA Midwest's two point guards, Marcus Paige and Terry Rozier, both had highly effective games and were largely responsible for the blowout. Rozier looked like the better pure point guard in this one, though he struggled with his shot.

USA West 105, Puerto Rico 74

Aaron Gordon: Coming into the game, his teammate Julius Randle was supposed to cap off the class of 2013 trifecta, but Gordon had the superior performance against Puerto Rico. Gordon is always going to bring a lot of energy and activity, but he supplemented that with several nice moves out of the post. He showed good touch around the bucket and also had multiple power jams. Gordon is a clear top-10 player in the 2013 class, but he can move up the boards with more performances like Friday's.

Julius Randle: Randle has the body and athleticism of a power forward, but showed more of the perimeter aspects of his game. He showed his gifted hands when he saved a bad pass with one hand and quickly transformed it into a power move for a dunk.

He had a disappointing game offensively where he struggled to get going. Randle had a one-handed slam on a fastbreak where he held nothing back and that may give him some momentum into Saturday's showdown against Jabari Parker.

Brandon Ashley: In a way that is similar to Ledo, Ashley is a top tier recruit of the 2012 class that looks too advanced for the competition in terms of age and game maturity. Unlike Poythress or Daniel Ochefu, Ashley and Ledo would probably be better served being in Los Angeles for the adidas Nations.

Ashley showed his very smooth and sophisticated offensive game. He was at his best in the mid-post and going coast to coast for a high degree of difficulty left-hand finish.

Dominic Artis: He showed some of his elevation on his jumper, scoring 12 points on 5-for-8 scoring. He didn't bust out, but he seemed to be on the verge.