The Stage: Scotty B’s Sunday Notebook
The countries largest live period event Prep Hoops The Stage concluded on Sunday. Time for us to examine what we saw in The Stage: Scotty B’s Sunday Notebook! Iowa Barnstormers 16U Have Depth and Star Power We opened day…
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Continue ReadingThe countries largest live period event Prep Hoops The Stage concluded on Sunday. Time for us to examine what we saw in The Stage: Scotty B’s Sunday Notebook!
Iowa Barnstormers 16U Have Depth and Star Power
We opened day 3 with the Iowa Barnstormers 16U impressive performance against Team Eleate from California. The Barnstormers showed tremendous depth along with several potential stars. The first player that popped off the floor was Caden Wilkins. Strong bodied 6’5” wing that is super crisp with his movements, has range on his shot, and can put it on the deck finishing through contract. High-major prospect. His wing mate Kareem Earl also showed D1 ability without question. Slender scoring guard that hit an array of threes particularly liking spot ups from the corners. Cut off the ball on scores to the basket, hook shot, and scored in transition with athleticism. Asher Wade is a true five man that has legit size and can play bully ball on the interior. Good passer and finished dishes himself around the cup. Their point guard Treyton McCain pushed the tempo in transition and shot it well from distance.
Minnesota Fury 17U Tops PLUTO in OT Classic
This was a really fun contest! Minnesota Fury won it in OT behind a monster day from Max Shikenjanski. The combo guard was in a zone from distance! He nailed seven triples en route to 34 points. Such a quick release on his shot and was constantly moving. What separates him is his ability to score in more ways as he created his own shot from the mid-range and got to the rim for scoop shots and layups. Matthew Bothun stands at 6’8” with a thin and rangy frame. He presents quite a bit of projectability with his pick and pop shooting and mobility on both ends.
PLUTO face up four Kadyn Betts showed out in front of the high-major and mid-major coaches on hand to see him play. Great frame with the ability to score from all three levels. Hit several threes and baseline jumpers. The athleticism and ability to create own his own off the bounce were also on display. Rim runs and is an active defender in the paint. Went for 30 points in the loss. Also liked what we saw out of his wing running mate Marzouq Abdur-Razaaq as the 6’6” wing was aggressive taking it to the basket off the dribble and crashing the glass on the regular.
Ball4Lyfe 17U Plays Above Rim on Both Ends
What a dominant performance Ball4Lyfe 17U had against Alabama Celtics in a PHC southeast battle. Anquan Boldin had 12 points in the win with some of the most spectacular moves of the weekend with thunderous baseline dunks and flying high for swats over and over. High-motor kid that projects as a D1 wing. Kyle McNeal also chipped in 13 points using his long strides on straight line takes getting to the cup and foul line.
Chicago Lockdown 17U Caps 4-0 Weekend as Moore Shines in Front of Coaches
The Chicago Lockdown group went 4-0 in Indy finishing off with a nice win over North Dakota Phenom. Matthew Moore was the story of the weekend for Lockdown. The Hillcrest product picked up multiple offers after his weekend. Athletic four that was one of the best rebounders at the event, swatted shots on the regular, and used his athleticism so well on the defensive end. Offensively he finishes with pop throwing down dunks and has a nice hook shot to go with it. Dylan Schmidt had a nice event as well combining his sharp shooting and defensive capabilities to make an impact. Jimmy Navarette is another small college wing to track on this squad with his toughness and multi-level scoring to go with his defense. Marist guard Lierre Collier did a nice job running the show getting others involved and utilizing his athleticism on the defensive end.
North Dakota Phenom scoring guard Anthony Doppler caught our attention. Solid shooter from distance that is a scrappy player.
Illinois Bears 17U Win at Buzzer Against In-State IBA Illinois Stars
This was one of the most fun games of the weekend. As the lead Illinois scout there were a TON of ranked prospects on the floor. The Illinois Bears won on a put back at the buzzer by Tyler Franklin. The story early on was their smoking hot shooting as it was Curry like across the board with Kade Lustenberger hitting shots from all over the floor (10 points), Cade Altadonna banking in mid-range shots from tough angles (12 points), and then Caden Hawkins from Carterville had the game of his career with 20 points as everything the point guard threw up went in from threes to floaters. Cobden’s Tyler Franklin played a huge role in the win with a 19 point outing owning the glass inside, spacing the floor with a couple threes, and finishing with physicality on the interior.
For IBA Illinois Stars it was the Bryce Coleman show. The Niles Notre Dame small forward had one of his best performances we have seen from him. Great size and we liked how he combined power drives with feathery jumpers. Set up the defense with one and two dribble pullups where rose over them for scores from mid-range and three. Rebounded well for his position and threw strong outlets. We had him for 23 points. Marmion Academy combo guard Collin Wainscott is a fiery lead guard that can really shoot it from distance as he had 13 points. Will O’Shields put his name on our radar as the DePaul Prep athletic forward is a physical presence on the glass defensively, and plays well in the open floor.
Quick Hitters
Atlanta Timberwolves interior duo on the 17U level impressed with their size and skill. Sean Cusano stands at 6’7” with the ability to stretch the floor and play big inside. His center next to him Domas Kauzonas is a true five at 6’10” that snatched rebounds in bunches and was nifty finishing around the hoop with efficiency.
In the Team Rose vs Mid-Mo 17U game it was a pair of two guards that were going back and forth. Kros Barrett from Curie mixed in long balls, one on one scores, and getting loose in transition with his burst for 26 points. On the Mid-Mo side it was Kyle Eckhoff that showed scoring pop, especially in the second half with a several quick and easy threes.
TreyDez Green from the LA Broncos is going to be one of the most coveted two sport standouts in the country in 2024. Also a highly touted football recruit the 6’8” lefty four man went to work again against Team Eleate scoring over and over again for 32 points. Great combination of physical tools, power moves, and touch around the basket. Also an excellent rebounder. Has high-major hoops recruit written all over him!
Kyle Olagbegi from the Illinois T-Wolves is a player that small colleges should target. The 2023 wing brings a ton of versality to the table on both ends. He can post up smaller defenders, handles well in space, and is a decent pull up shooter. That is addition to being a plus multi positional defender and rebounder.
Illinois Jaguars 17U capped off the weekend with a nice win over Grittin Elite Bordas. Point guard Emory Marshall had quite a game to close out the weekend for the Illinois Jaguars. Slick ball handler that netted 19 points in the win. Chicago U-High point guard Benjamin King also had a strong outing with 19 points as well. Nice backcourt for the Jaguars this spring/summer to watch!