California Live: Under-the-Radar (Pt. 2)

Devin Ugland June 21, 2023 @ 01:30 PM

<p>IRVINE — Southern California played host to more than 160 boys high school basketball programs over the weekend for the inaugural California Live scholastic event. Those teams were given the opportunity to play in front of more than 190 college coaches over the course of three days. I spent most of my time watching games at the Irvine and Tustin High sites and below are players I saw who are flying under-the-radar and deserve some more recognition.</p>   <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1256578' first='Cole' last='Epperson'], Jesuit</h4>   <p>Epperson is a versatile 6-foot-7 forward with an advanced inside-out scoring touch. The rising senior can knock down the face-up three-ball, expose mismatches by taking slower defenders off the dribble and is effective in pick-and-roll action due to his hands and touch at the rim. The one thing that was consistently great from Epperson throughout the event was his motor. He played tough, physical and with great energy.</p>   <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1896215' first='Devin' last='Hamilton'], Montgomery</h4>   <p>Hamilton has made continuous strides with his game and has gone from freak athlete and high motor guy to a prospect with some skill that's transferrable to the next level. The 6-foot-4 wing is a physical and explosive downhill driver and finisher in transition settings and can also knock down a stop-and-pop mid-range jumper with great elevation on that shot.</p>   <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Jacob De Armas, Mira Costa</h4>   <p>De Armas was one of the biggest sleepers to emerge over the weekend and it helped that he helped lead his team to a championship game so they had the opportunity to get to one of the main sites. The 6-foot-3 wing is an athletic and high motor slasher and finisher in transition who gave maximum effort on each and every possession. De Armas attacked the rim with confidence and aggression leading to multiple paint finishes for himself or kick-outs to teammates.</p>   <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1253220' first='James' last='Moore'], Clayton Valley Charter</h4>   <p>Moore is a strong-bodied 6-foot-1 combo guard whose best attribute is the motor he plays with on both ends of the floor. His combination of speed and strength allows him to get into the paint with ease where he can absorb and finish through contact. Defensively, Moore is a guy who consistently sits in a defensive stance, keeps his man in front of him with his lateral speed and strength and has great anticipation in passing lanes.</p>   <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1817935' first='Jared' last='Mims'], Alemany</h4>   <p>Mims is a small, quick, shifty and crafty point guard who is difficult for defenders to keep in front. The 5-foot-7 rising senior uses the three-point shot to set up his shot fake into a consistent two-dribble pull-up jumper at the mid-range level. Despite a lack of size, Mims is a crafty finisher around the basket. He showed impressive defensive feel when pressuring the ball and speeding up his assignment.</p>

IRVINE — Southern California played host to more than 160 boys high school basketball programs over the weekend for the inaugural California Live scholastic event. Those teams were given the opportunity to play in front of more than 190 college coaches over the course of three days. I spent most of my time watching games at the Irvine and Tustin High sites and below are players I saw who are flying under-the-radar and deserve some more recognition.