VISAA D-III Final Four Standouts (Part 1)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The VISAA private school semifinals and finals were held at Virginia State this weekend, and it's always one of the most entertaining and competitive weekends of basketball in all of Virginia. The 4 divisions featured some of the best teams in the state, and there was tons of talent across the board.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We continue with our standouts from the D-III classification and here's a look at part one of the many standouts there were.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1049866' first='Jovani' last='Galarza'] | 6'2” WG | Fairfax Christian '23</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fairfax Christian won their second state championship in the past three seasons, and Galarza was perhaps their most consistent player throughout the two games this past weekend. The 6'2” off guard is highly skilled as he knocked down shots consistently from deep, he made great decisions and rarely made mistakes and he's crafty off the bounce allowing him to make plays against more athletic players. He had 14 points in their championship win over LCA and was a steady leader throughout the two games.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1241902' first='Joe' last='Baldwin'] | 6'7” F | Fairfax Christian '23</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1603373,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/09/Baldwin-Joe-CBG-scaled.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/09/Baldwin-Joe-CBG-scaled.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1603373" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Baldwin is FCS senior leader who has been there longer than anyone else, and his versatility and athleticism was big for them throughout the weekend. The 6'7” forward showed his athleticism with a number of highlight finishes above the rim, he showed the ability to play and guard multiple positions and he protected the rim and made plays on the defensive end. He showed great energy as both a leader and a player and helped will them to two convincing wins and another state championship. He finished with 23 points in their win over Eastern Mennonite in the semifinal.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1489078' first='Nijel' last='Howard'] | 6'6” PF | Fairfax Christian '24</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1832692,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Howard-Nijel.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Howard-Nijel.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1832692" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Howard had a coming out party this past weekend, as the 6'6” forward is a name that we've known for a while but he was absolutely fantastic for them in their run to a state championship. He was a walking mismatch for FCS as he stretched the floor with his shooting ability, his length and athleticism was evident with his above the rim finishes and the way he challenged shots and he was aggressive on both ends looking to make plays and rebounding well. He scored 23 points in the state championship win over LCA.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1579097' first='Ke'Juan' last='Richburg'] | 5'8” PG | Fairfax Christian '24</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Richburg maybe didn't put up the numbers that the others did, but he was vital for FCS as their floor general and primarily ball handler and distributor. The 5'8” point guard played with great pace showing good burst and changing speeds well to get in the paint, he made great reads off the bounce finding cutters and shooters for easy shots and he set the tone defensively with his on ball pressure too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1253096' first='Davarion' last='Johnson'] | 6'0” G | Eastern Mennonite '23</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While EMHS wasn't able to repeat last year and beat FCS in the semifinals, Johnson put on an absolute show and was making tough shots from all over. The 6'0” guard showed that on the ball he can get downhill and finish at the rim or get to the line, he showed his ability to create space and knock down tough shots off the bounce and he moved off the ball where he showed deep range off the catch to easily make shots from NBA range. He finished with 17 points in their loss to Fairfax Christian.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Rell Hamilton  5'9” PG | Eastern Mennonite '25</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With Johnson leaving as the only senior on this EMHS team, they will be back and it will be Hamilton who will become the primary ball handler and one of their go-to options. The 5'9” sophomore was impressive in a number of ways as he showed good quickness and shift off the bounce to get in the lane, he made tough shots around the rim and he got to the line and made plays for others too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->