Diablo Inferno: Top 2023 Performers

<p>MISSION VIEJO —  Fairmont Prep and Capistrano Valley Christian would have met in the Diablo Inferno tournament championship game had they not been in the same league. What would have been a great Saturday match-up will have to wait until January 11, 2022 when the Huskies travel to play the Eagles in San Joaquin League play. In this piece we take an overall look at the top junior class perfomers from last week’s Diablo Inferno tournament hosted by Mission Viejo high school.</p> <p><strong>Ariik Maiwen</strong>, Capistrano Valley Christian - Mawien is a two-way impact guy with his ability to get out and score in transition in addition to his length and athleticism on the defensive end. In a win over a good Fountain Valley squad, the 6-foot-4 left-handed wing was a menace in the Eagles’ 2-3 zone defense. Mawien used his instincts and quick twitch athleticism to steal numerous cross-court passes and take them the length of the court for a transition bucket.</p> <p><strong>Athian Athian</strong>, Capistrano Valley Christian - The 6-foot-7 wing recorded a double-double in the win over Fountain Valley, scoring 15 points to go along with 13 rebounds and flashed improvement and refinement to his offensive skill-set. Athian knocked down multiple three-point shots off of drive and kicks, showing an uptick in shooting range and consistency in the process. Athian’s long, wiry frame at 6-7 should have college coaches making their way to CVCS games and practices over the next year.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="994904" first="Collins" last="Acheampong"]</strong>, Fairmont Prep - Acheampong is one of the more under-the-radar big men in Southern California. The 6-foot-9 center is an active offensive and defensive rebounder, improving rim protector and rim-runner and has good hands around the basket when catching and finishing out of the "dunker" spot on the floor. As Fairmont Prep continues its on-court success as a team, Acheampong’s stock will only continue to trend up.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="994969" first="Isaiah" last="Tolmaire"]</strong>, Mission Viejo - Tolmaire is a lightning quick point guard who puts relentless pressure on opposing defenses with his ability to push the ball in transition. The 5-foot-9 junior uses that burst of speed to blow-by defenders in the open court and get to the rim where he can finish with crafty layups and in the half-court he can explode into the painted area for pull-up jumpers or drive-and-kicks to open teammates.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="994928" first="JJ" last="Gray"]</strong>, Fountain Valley - Gray is an intriguing 2023 SoCal prospect for a variety of reasons, the main one being his shooting ability at 6-feet-6. Gray has one of the smoothest strokes in the region and is beginning to put together some off-the-bounce game as opposing defenses are looking to run him off the line. Another big factor for Gray as a prospect is his high academic credentials, which give him a lot of options when it comes to next level recruiting.</p>