Riverside Brookfield: Top Scorers

<p>The premier June event was back this year. The <strong>Riverside Brookfield Shootout</strong> hosted the best talent in the state this past weekend and like always PHI was there to cover it. In this article we cover the top scorers who lit up the nets at RB! </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1210440" first="Jake" last="Quast"] (Hinsdale Central)  G.    6’3</strong></p> <p>Jake was in a groove at R-B this weekend. The high motor guard scored in various ways. Quast showed extended range on his shot. As defenders start playing him tight Jake got free off various pin downs and staggered screens. In transition he made straight line drive layups with a couple of stopping pop pull up jumpers. Quast had scoring outputs of 34, 27, and 21 making him one of the leading scorers of the event. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="863619" first="Ben" last="VanderWal"] (Timothy Christian) F 6’7 </strong></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p>Coming into Riverside-Brookfield event I knew Ben would play well and he did not disappoint. The highly-skilled VanderWal put on scoring clinics. Ben can shoot from three.  He scores really well from his range and has multiple ways to score around the rim. VanderWal isn’t intimidated by size or strength as he always finds a way to score. Ben led the event in scoring and also had the highest single game scoring output.  His totals were (39, 29, 22 and 21) easily one of the hardest working players at R-B this year. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="989263" first="Asa" last="Thomas"]  (Lake Forest)  G 6’7 2023</strong></p> <p>I got my first look at Asa this weekend and I left the event impressed. Thomas is a poised shooting guard who shoots the ball from anywhere on the court. Asa is one of the new age players that you must guard as soon as he crosses the half court line.  Yes he has that type of range. At 6’7 he isn’t fazed by smaller defenders and just elevates over them for his shot. I’ve seen a couple times where he would make a drive to the rim or stop for a mid-range jumper. Thomas had the second best high scoring game with 37 points with his other two games of 30 and 24. I foresee many high majors getting involved with this prospect. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1049092" first="Toby" last="Onyekonwu"] (Plainfield East) G   6’2</strong></p> <p>One player that surprised PHI at R-B this weekend was transfer guard Onyekonwu. My first look was in a matchup against ([player_tooltip player_id="989263" first="Asa" last="Thomas"])  Toby was the player who started the game hot in front of many coaches.  Toby is a quick twitched guard who can make shots off the dribble most times with defenders in retreat mode. He gets a lot of lift on his shot and is able to make 3s from beyond the arc. What I like most about his game is that he can create for himself and others. Something we don’t see a lot from high scoring guards like Onyekonwu. Toby finished the event with 25, 25 and 23 in games this weekend. Nice to have talented players transfer back into the state.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1048307" first="Ahmad" last="Henderson"] (Brother Rice) G 5’9  2023</strong></p> <p>Definitely the smallest guard on this list Henderson can work as a pass first guard and scoring guard when needed. Ahmad is another guard you have to pick up right away when he crosses half court. He has deep range on his threes but isn’t limited as just a shooter.  Henderson is jet quick as well with the ball and makes plays for others when he garners attention from the defense.  Really good instincts.  Small but tenacious when attacking the rim. He reached 20+ points in all four games with totals of (29,25, 22 and 20). Very strong performance from a 5’9 guard.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Orlando Thomas (Rolling Meadows) </strong></p> <p>Shot making guard who played well off teammate Cam Christie. Thomas had two strong scoring performances this weekend. He had a 31 point performance against Timothy Christian. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Eliseo Gonzalez (Morton) </strong></p> <p>The mighty mouse guard fills it up in games. Shoots it’s well from three and can get in the lane with floaters and runners. Another addition to the long history of scoring guards at Morton. He put up 29 points on a tough Bloom squad. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="863583" first="Robbie" last="Avila"] (Oak Lawn) </strong></p> <p>Avila is definitely more of a facilitator from the forward spot. But he took on the role as a scorer with his high school.  The 6’8 big man made plays from the high post area showing great footwork and touch. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="925224" first="Nick" last="Martinelli"] (Glenbrook South) </strong></p> <p>Nick just always finds a way to score. Martinelli is multitalented forward who just has a knack for putting the ball in the rim. He used either hand and countless fakes or up and under moves to get around defenders.  He posted 31 on a pretty big De La Salle squad. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p>