Ten Best: Sunrise Christian Select v. Link Year Prep

Wichita, KS- Although the high school basketball season had ended in the state of Kansas, the post-grad circuit is still finishing up as games are being hosted at Wichita Hoops as the Sunrise Christian Academy Select Team took on Link Year Prep from Branson, Missouri. Link Year featured a roster of all post-grad players while Sunrise Select incorporated a couple of post-grad players but mainly rotated their roster of younger international players throughout the game. A back and forth game between the two teams ended in a potential buzzer beater leaving seven seconds on the clock and Sunrise Select down by one with a sideline out of bounds opportunity. As time expired, Petar Krivokapic put up a shot from the perimeter that failed to hit anything and Link Year came away with the victory.

Link Year: 75 – Sunrise Select: 74

Ten Best

MVP: Ben Harvey (2018)- Link Year Ben Harvey was definitely the most talented player on the court finishing with 27 points including big baskets late to give Link Year the spark they needed for a last minute comeback. Ben is a post-grad player who attended Jonesboro High School in 2017. This 6’5’’ guard can stretch the floor or take his man off the dribble with his quickness, appearing to get in the paint at will. He is also a player that communicated well on defense and proved to be an effective on-ball defender against some of the younger prospects from Sunrise Christian. Ben is also deceptively athletic, he has multiple finishes above the rim, one of which was against contact late in the game and another proved to be the game winner. He is definitely one of Missouri’s top unsigned prospects. Best Defensive Performance: Jandan Duggan (2018)- Link Year Jandan was able to apply a lot of pressure on the Sunrise guards which pushed them out further to begin each offensive set and also forced a few turnovers. While Jandan did perform defensively along with many of his teammates, he had an offensive impact, particularly in the first half. Jandan had 16 points in this contest. Best Offensive Performance: Mike Hood (2018)- Link Year Mike had 11 of his 14 points in the second half to help propel Link Year to victory over Sunrise. Mike has always been a scorer, making his mark last season at his high school in Kansas City, Shawnee Mission West. He showcased that ability in this game with a couple of three’s and good drives to the basket.   Best 2018 Big: Spencer Hoffman (2018)- Link Year The 6’10’’ 248 pound postman from Oregon was a contributor for Link Year against the Sunrise Select team. He was able to disrupt shots at the rim and gave his guards the ability to put more ball pressure on the perimeter players of Sunrise which resulted in turnovers. On the offensive end, Spencer was able to contribute with 9 points. Spencer hails from Oregon as a very decorated high school player who decided to attend Link Year with a close friend of his from high school. Best Rebounder: Jevaughn Ferguson (2019)- Sunrise Select Jevaughn has a great motor that was on display during the game against Link Year. He was very active on both the offensive board and defensive boards while showcasing an ability to execute high-low passes as well to his partner in crime, Paul Otieno. At 6’7’’ and with a muscular build, the two-sport athlete is effective on the low block but seems uncomfortable on the perimeter when he has the ball. Great small-school prospect to watch going forward.   Best Under-the-Radar Performance: Bosko Bojovic (2018)- Sunrise Select At about 6’7’’ 220 pounds, Bosko is an interesting college prospect as he displayed the ability to guard bigger 4/5 men but is comfortable on the perimeter also. He has the ability to shoot from beyond the arc or make strong drives to the basket where he can clear space with his size. Bosko hails from Bosnia and is looking to attend school in the United States and has recently qualified to do so and has been getting interest from Division II schools as of now. Best Intangibles: Ramon Watson (2018)- Sunrise Select Ramon stood out as the player with the best intangibles on the court. He exhibited great effort defensively, was energetic, and constantly uplifting his team members through his actions and words. In addition to his contributions on the overall game, Ramon also scored 8 points.  Play of the Game: Winning Basket by Ben Harvey with 11 seconds to play- Link Year With an underclassman guarding him, Ben Harvey took advantage of the situation and got right into the lane for a contested but easy layup for Ben which gave Link Year the edge by one. Best Underclassman: Paul Otieno (2020)- Sunrise Christian Paul had a great game against Link Year, scoring 18 points while being active on the glass for Sunrise and finding himself in great positions near the rim to score. Paul is a 6’7’’ post who will see his stock rise tremendously if he grows a couple of inches. He already possesses a good motor, can rebound well, finishes around the rim, and has an athletic frame. He can be a high level prospect if he can do those things at 6’9’’ otherwise may struggle as he is not very comfortable outside of the paint.   Best Story to Watch Moving Forward: The potential evolution of the post-grad circuit The games being played this week at Wichita Hoops are featuring post-grad teams playing the the Central Post-Grad league which is a new venture this year. Generally there is not a conference schedule or specific league these teams play in, sometimes making it difficult to structure out the year. The CPG, as it’s being termed, is an admirable attempt to infuse some structure into this brand of basketball that is gaining popularity. If it grows after this year, it will give other prep programs the opportunity to send their teams to a post-season event and provide some much needed structure to each year on their schedule.