California Live: Under-the-Radar (Pt. 3)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <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> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1502883' first='Jonathan' last='Moxie'], Santa Margarita</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Moxie is just an all-around solid point guard who acts as an extension of the coaching staff on the floor. The 6-foot-2 rising senior gets his team into offense, can bring the ball up against pressure, doesn't commit many careless mistakes and can really defend his position. Moxie knocked down open three's off the catch and was a paint touch guy in transition. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Korin Hull, JSerra</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was my first time getting an extended look at Hull and I came away impressed with his shot-making abilities off the catch and off the bounce. The 6-foot-2 rising senior has a smooth three-point shooting stroke off the catch, and while that seemed to be his main source of offense at California Live, he showed some off the bounce game where he got to two feet and hit some fadeaway jumpers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1572964' first='Mark' last='Lavrenov'], Rocklin</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Larenov led Rocklin to the a championship win of the SCIBCA division mainly due to his versatility at 6-feet-7. The rising junior can stretch the floor to the three-point line, score with his back to the basket and face-up at 15-feet and beat his defender off the bounce and finish through contact. Lavrenov was one of the more skilled big men we saw at Cali Live as he averaged better than 15 points and eight rebounds per game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Nathan D'Abreu-Noronha, Archbishop Mitty</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When you list off the things you look for in a glue-guy or a point guard or a team leader, D'Abreu-Norohna checks them all off. The 6-foot-1 senior-to-be is a steady ball-handler and decision-maker who plays with impressive toughness and basketball IQ. D'Abreu-Noronha's specialty is blowing by defenders and getting into the paint to score for himself or teammates. He's wise beyond his years on the court which makes sense due to his time spent playing for Portugal's U16 team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1314344' first='Zander' last='Jimenez'], Salesian</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jimenez is just a versatile and dynamic athlete who shined on the defensive end of the SoCal Chevy bracket as he helped his team to that divisional championship. The 6-foot-3 wing used his lateral speed and length to guard multiple positions effectively and took on many of the most difficult defensive assignments throughout the weekend. Offensively, Jimenez is a lane filler and slasher to the basket who can elevate and finish at the rim.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->