Midwest Live: 16U Saturday Standouts

<p>I woke up to a tree blocking my only exit off the street, so I arrived a bit late to the Field House on Saturday. I was glad to get out of the house and into some air conditioning and have lighting and WiFi at my disposal. I hope everyone stayed safe last night, and the worst we all have to deal with is a few days without power. I spent the day watching the 16U and 17U divisions, and saw some much improved offensive play from yesterday. Here are the 16U standouts:</p> <p><strong>Ethan Wiley | Sal Elite</strong></p> <p>Wiley set the tone for Sal Elite with his energy on the defensive end. He made ball-handlers uneasy, causing them to dribble it off their own foot or force an ill-advised pass. He was active off ball, too, causing deflections and denying the ball. The Omaha South junior has a smooth jumper too. He was almost automatic shooting off the catch, but also showed some nice footwork on his stepbacks.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1023547" first="Connor" last="Hamilton"] | Lincoln Supreme National 2</strong></p> <p>The first play I saw from Hamilton today was a 3/4 court dime in transition through traffic to a streaking teammate. That was the flashiest play from him, but he was just as steady and in control throughout. He found gaps to drive through, and made the right decisions on whether to finish or kick out. He had several relocations into space off ball, and reliably knocked down the shot when the ball came his way. </p> <p><strong>Jalen Lang | Nebraska United</strong></p> <p>Lang is one of the better athletes in the 2023 class. The Lincoln Northeast point guard is an excellent rebounder. He was high-pointing everything, and ripping them down in traffic. His strength allows him to wall off defenders rather easily, and is unbothered by pressure defense. Lang absorbed contact on his way to the rim and finished several And-1's for Nebraska United.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1018716" first="Carter" last="Ruse"] | Lincoln Supreme National 1 (pictured)</strong></p> <p>Lincoln Supreme National 1 blew out Kingdom Hoops Navy late in the day, and Ruse led the team with 19 points. He hit several threes from the top of the key, and drove the ball pretty well, too. Even with his offensive usage, his energy did not dip at all on the other end of the floor. He contained drives well, and crashed the glass on almost every shot.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1165694" first="Justin" last="Bolis"] | Lincoln Supreme National 1</strong></p> <p>You will not find a more active player on a play-to-play basis than the Lincoln High big man. He has good movement skills, which allows him to defend a little bit on the perimeter as well as locking down the paint. He scored well when called upon, but made his biggest impact on the glass.</p>