Midwest Melee: Friday Night Lights

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The second to last stop in the spring session of the Prep Hoops Circuit returned to the greater Chicago area Friday night. The opening night of the Midwest Melee featured some outstanding performances from some new and familiar names. Following are five that caught my eye. <br></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1561076' first='Bryson' last='Chapman'] 6-5 2026 Evansville North (IN) </strong>There are many quirks to this strange and enjoyable job I am blessed to do. One of them is when a prospect seems to follow you around. I began and ended my tournament a week ago watching this forward turn in dominant performances at the Havoc in the Heartland. Kicked things off this weekend the same way. Chapman showed a quick second jump by basically playing volleyball on the offensive glass against Region Force 2026. Was just getting warmed up though. Had a nice floater while moving to his left. Finished off the troika with an easy dunk. In the middle showed off excellent ball handling for a player of his size and age. Also showed the ability to pass and get teammates involved. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1882238' first='Drey' last='Black'] 6-5 2025 Auburn (IL) (pictured) </strong>Athletic lengthy prospect was big in the post for Illinois Elite. Play allowed his squad to hold on for a close victory against Indiana Game Gold. Was an intimidating presence at the rim defensively. Had a a few nice blocks. Played with good verticality thar allowed him to avoid fouls. Offensively got the ball up to the rim quickly. A late “look what I found” basket showed this quickness. This basket was also key as it stemmed a late Indiana Game run. Scored 16 points in the opening victory. Showing some intriguing long term potential in the process. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Samuel Hirsch 6-3 2025 Fremd (IL) </strong>Came into Full Package Gold's opening matchup hoping to get better look at their sizable front court. While that front court played well and will probably merit some mention later in the week. Friday night belonged to this shooting guard. Came out hot and never really cooled off. He wasn't just hot from beyond the arc. Scored at all three levels. Was a “quick” scorer. Meaning he had a quick release and also got his feet organized in an equally quick manner. Finished through contact at the rim and even from the perimeter. Had a four point play as his team began to pull away in ameasy victory. Will definitely be making a point to catch more of this prospect later this weekend. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1578401' first='Jace' last='Jenkins'] 6-1 2025 Princeton (IN) </strong>Jenkins impressed me last weekend in Indy against some difficult competition at Havoc in the Heartland. Wasn't “supposed” to get any easier this weekend. As he was taking on a rising Michigan point guard from UTS Elite. The “supposed” in quotes in your clue. Jenkins wasn't having any of that. Really seized control of the contest early. Last weekend his deep shooting stood out. On Friday night his defense and ball distribution came to the forefront. Played with his head up finding <strong>Jay</strong> <strong>Summit</strong> on a nice lob early. Continued to shoot well from beyond the arc as well. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1766507' first='Mitchel' last='Edwards'] 6-7 2025 Carmi White (IL) </strong>While Jenkins set the tone out on the perimeter for Indiana Ambition. Edwards exploited a small UTS Elite frontline. Easily scoring and generally being a big presence at the rim. Showed a new feature in the up and down contest. Really got out quickly in transition. Fluid athlete who filled lanes properly and with purpose. Moved his feet well defensively and had nice block. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->