Final Tourney Weekend MVP Performers

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The final tournament weekend is in the books and there was great basketball being played all across the state. Prep Hoops Oklahoma was out in full force all three days covering various tournaments across Oklahoma. In this post, we're putting a spotlight on ten players that not only helped lead their teams to tournament titles, but they walked away with MVP honors. Now, there were some great performances and this post doesn't feature the only MVP performers. For example, for a more in-depth breakdown on the Douglass-Newcastle showdown, check out our recap <strong><a href="https://prephoops.com/2023/01/championship-scouting-douglass-vs-newcastle/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">RIGHT HERE</a></strong>. But here are ten that were notable and caught our eye over the weekend. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1719289"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"While Douglass beating Newcastle might have been the game of the night in Class 4A, Kingfisher beating Weatherford 61-51, handing the Eagles their first loss this season might have been the biggest statement in 4A. And helping extend Kingfisher's ridiculous winning streak at home was their senior [player_tooltip player_id='1719289' first='Caden' last='Kitchens']. The senior standout finished with a game-high 26 points as the Yellowjackets would use a 15-0 run in the first half to put Weatherford in a position they simply haven't been in before this season. We've written about Kitchens quite a bit this season because it seems like he's been one of the more consistent players for Kingfisher night in and night out and he's a big reason the defending champs are going to be in the mix again when March rolls around.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["1360350"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Broken Arrow remained the only unbeaten team in Class 6A with a win over Mustang to capture the Shawnee Invitational championship. The Tigers beat Mustang for the second time this season in a tourney title game after beating them at the Bishop Kelley tourney back in December. It was much closer this time around but the end result was still the same. The Tigers got the win and senior star and OSU signee [player_tooltip player_id='1360350' first='Connor' last='Dow'] walked away with MVP honors for the tournament. Dow is one of the best players in the state right now but what makes him and the Tigers so scary as a contender in Class 6A is their depth and production around him. He doesn't have to play Superman every night, averaging 30 points per game. But don't get it twisted, if the Tigers need that kind of performance, Dow can do it.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["981279"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"We'll be writing about Westmoore later this week in a practice report but there's no doubt that the Jaguars are arguably the hottest team in Class 6A right now as they won their 11th game in a row, beating Millwood to capture the John Nobles tourney in Moore. The Jaguars have been balanced all season but they also have an ace up their sleeve with senior sharpshooter [player_tooltip player_id='981279' first='Evan' last='Barber']. The Westmoore senior has been one of the best shooters in the state for a while now and he helped lead the Jaguars to the tournament title and walked away with MVP honors on Saturday night. Just like Dow and Broken Arrow, Barber has played a similar role this season for Westmoore. He hasn't led them in scoring every time out but if that's what they need, he can flip that switch and fill it up from the perimeter.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["1552319"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"We've been waiting for a performance like what Owasso freshman [player_tooltip player_id='1552319' first='Jalen' last='Montonati'] put on display up in Kansas over the weekend. In their championship game, the Owasso star would score 37 points as the Rams knocked off Blue Valley Northwest to win the Pittsburg, Kansas championship. Montonati came into this season with a lot of hype after picking up several D1 offers before his first ever varsity game. He certainly lived up to that hype over the weekend and it seems like it's only a matter of time before performances like that start to become the usual occurrence for the Owasso phenom. And as we've mentioned before, this Owasso team is talented but they are young and inexperienced. You can see them turning the corner and getting more and more dangerous as we get closer to the playoffs next month.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["1393777"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"It was time for Cascia Hall to bounce back and it came at the right time after they lost four games in a row. They would snap that losing streak by winning three games in a row, including a win over Grove to capture the Jay tournament championship. Leading the way was their sophomore standout [player_tooltip player_id='1393777' first='Jyson' last='Kim'], who earned MVP honors for his performance over the three days. Kim has been a breakout star this season for Cascia as he can do so many different things on the offensive end of the floor. This was something that we thought was possible back in September and October. Kim had a dynamic offseason and was outstanding every time we saw him playing on the Prep Hoops Circuit. Kim has kept that momentum going into the school season and has Cascia Hall as a dark horse to watch in Class 3A.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["1372135"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"Broken Bow would knock off Madill 44-31 to capture the tournament championship in Atoka on Saturday night. Leading the way and walking away with MVP honors once again was their senior star guard [player_tooltip player_id='1372135' first='Kieler' last='Young']. The Broken Bow standout scored at least 30 points in all three games as they would walk away with a tournament championship. Young was a sharpshooter from beyond the arc and he was incredibly efficient as well. He finished the tournament going 12-26 from three-point range. Young is one of the more underrated prospects in the state's 2023 class. This kid has been lighting up the scoreboard from the very first few games of the season and he hasn't stopped throughout the year. If you're looking for a hidden gem that can fill it up from just about anywhere on the floor, Young is your guy.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_player":["967379"],"_player_evaluations_6_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"Bixby has won six in a row after losing to Carl Albert in the Bartlesville tourney title game. They dominated their way to the Will Rogers Invitational championship. The Spartans continue to have one of the top scoring offenses in the state and they are led by Notre Dame signee [player_tooltip player_id='967379' first='Parker' last='Friedrichsen']. The Bixby star scored 103 points in three days and picked up right where he left off earlier in the week when he scored 35 points in an overtime win over Union. Friedrichsen would score 43 in their first round game and then averaged 30 points per game in the semifinal and championship game to walk away with tournament MVP honors. Friedrichsen continues to be one of the leading scorers in the state but what makes Bixby a team to look out for is the fact that the Notre Dame signee has help around him.","_player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_7_player":["1761745"],"_player_evaluations_7_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_7_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_7_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_7_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_7_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"Maybe the most surprising outcome of the weekend was Bishop Kelley knocking off #6 Edison and then host Catoosa to capture the Port City title. The Comets got the week started by nearly stunning Nathan Hale and they would pull off another upset or two to get a much-needed tournament championship. Walking away with MVP honors was their senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1761745' first='Seth' last='Taylor']. The Bishop Kelley senior did a really good job of shooting it from beyond the arc and did most of his damage from three-point land. But Taylor would also get his teammates involved and he wasn't a one-man-band by any means as Catoosa attempted to shut him down and he found open teammates who converted on opportunities. We've mentioned how deep Class 5A is this year and the Comets are another team to watch.","_player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_8_player":["1238739"],"_player_evaluations_8_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_8_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_8_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_8_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_8_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_8_evaluation":"Last week, Metro Christian took over the #1 spot in Class 3A and they backed it up with a dominant performance in the Kiefer tournament to improve to 15-0 on the season. The Patriots were led by their junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1238739' first='Wyatt' last='Powell'] once again as he walked away with another MVP award following the three days in Kiefer. Powell and the Patriots won their first game by 80 (not a typo) and they they took down two Class 4A teams. Powell has been one of the breakout stars this season. He definitely is making the argument for being the most dangerous scorer in Class 3A right now. And he has guys around him making the Patriots a serious contender for the gold ball. But this week is going to be huge for the Patriots as they host Regent Prep Tuesday before road games on Thursday and Friday against Holland Hall and Victory Christian respectively.","_player_evaluations_8_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_9_player":["1068574"],"_player_evaluations_9_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_9_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_9_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_9_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_9_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_9_evaluation":"In one of the top tournament championship games on Saturday night, it was 6A's #3 Putnam City North taking down 5A's #1 Carl Albert 62-61 in overtime. While senior standout [player_tooltip player_id='1068566' first='CJ' last='Smith'] was the star of the tourney title game with 26 points and 10 rebounds, it was fellow senior [player_tooltip player_id='1068574' first='Zander' last='Baker'] who walked away with tournament MVP honors. Baker has been unbelievably consistent and the 1-2 punch of Baker and Smith has been tough for opponents to stop. Throw into the mix [player_tooltip player_id='1733862' first='Kejuan' last='Payne II'] and the Panthers are a legitimate state championship contender. Baker has one of the quickest shot releases in Class 6A and he showcased that on a big stage in one of the best tournaments of the week. That PC North big three of Baker, Payne and Smith is going to be fun to watch the rest of the way.","_player_evaluations_9_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":10,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-63cec2160c228"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->