Bear Down Jamboree: Top Performers

Saturday was a full day at Butler High School for the annual Bear Down Jamboree and had several really competitive games. They were fun to watch as a fan and even better for evaluating some new faces in high school basketball this season. Here's a look at some of the top performers for the day. Shawnee vs Carroll County: Carroll County won the game behind the strong play of Senior guard Wyatt Supplee. Wyatt scored 36 points and did it in a variety of ways as he got to the rim with ease and hit a couple of open threes. Shawnee had a more balanced attack than Carroll County but came up short in the end. The most impressive prospect I saw was Sophomore Keyonie Rutledge. He has good size and length but you can tell he's trying to figure out his role in the offense for Shawnee. Senior Josiah Bivens was solid all day as well. Moore vs Taylor County: It was clear asking folks around the gym that this particular Moore team was going to be a complete mystery to everyone. Dowan Green was the most impressive prospect for the Mustangs and it's clear the Moore team will be a work in progress as Taylor County won the scrimmage 59-48 and won all 4 quarters. Taylor was led by Nick Knifley but the two standouts as far as next level potential were Seniors Zach Martin and Kybrin Smith. Smith has grown to about 6'5 and can really get to the rim about whenever he wants. He plays a lot like James Harden. He's left hand heavy as a driver and is always trying to draw a foul. Martin flashed big time potential at about 6'8 and finished around the rim well and showed a nice shooting touch at the free throw line. He was able to establish post position easily and is the type of kid who can be a difference maker in a region that is fairly wide open. Seneca vs Woodford County: This game was physical and chippy throughout and had several technicals over the course of the game. Seneca wound up winning the game after a dominant 4th quarter but Woodford actually controlled the first three quarters. Hunter Penn was very impressive with his combination of size and skill level. He also plays super hard and didn't get rattled when things got more physical. Seneca's got a team full of long athletic kids who really liked to press and run. Junior Marcel Railey caught my eye with back to back plays where he splashed a three and then took flight for a big time dunk. I'd be interested to see Railey again. Jeffersontown vs North Hardin: J-Town came in with several big question marks and an almost all new roster. There are at least 5 transfers that I know of there and according to folks in the gym, there are more than that. The most impressive new Charger to me was Jaylen Fairman. Fairman had the ball on a string all game long and was a willing distributor who was creating offense for teammates all throughout the game. I'm also high on Sophomore Brandon Rayzer-Moore. I already liked him a lot but he's grown and gotten even longer. Rayzer-Moore had a nice lob finish and plays the game without being sped up. Definitely a player to watch. For North Hardin, the biggest bright spot was Senior Naasir Johnson. Johnson showed his athleticism on multiple plays over the course of the game and is a player small schools should be looking at. Central vs Bardstown: Bardstown was out-manned without Senior JaRel Montgomery and Central's press really wore them down and they won the first three quarters and won the game overall. Louisville bound JJ Traynor bounced back from a slow start to end up with a solid stat line and was impressive in his college home city. Central was led by Shane Bibby who shot the ball well and played super hard all game but the most impressive to me was Junior Jaelen Leavell. Leavell is long and about 6'6 and had zero back down from going head to head with Traynor. He's a name to remember in 2021 and reminded me of former PRP player Darius Osborne. Butler vs Scott County: Scott County took the fight to Butler early but ran out of gas as the Bears turned it on in the second half. Senior Terrin Hamilton has added some bulk to his frame and played more aggressive than what he has shown as a role player in the past few seasons for the Cardinals. Terrin is 6'6 with a good frame and skill level and should be a D2 player at worst. Butler was led by Cam Underwood and Trey Minter who are very solid college prospects and have good academics to back it up. Turrell Cleaves, Jr. had a highlight reel dunk and is continuing to improve his game as he grows and develops. If he can get a midrange game, he becomes an even more dangerous player. Male vs Bourbon County: On a team full of Senior stars, it was Junior Cam Pope who stole the show for Male. The guard hit six threes in the scrimmage and most were touching nothing but the bottom of the net. Kaleb Glenn had some nice dunks, especially in transition but will have to become a better defender if he wants to stay on the floor. Glenn managed to get 7 fouls in the game, mainly off being attacked at the rim. Bourbon County had just gotten several players back from football and it looked like it. Amari Faulkner had a good showing for the Colonels. He showed an ability to score the ball at multiple levels and his length bothered Male on the defensive end. Bourbon County has a lot of nice pieces but players like Faulkner can make a huge difference in the 10th region.