Midwest Live: Saturday AM Ohio Standouts
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Midwest Live brought in over a hundred of the top teams from Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and West Virginia, teams played on Friday and Saturday morning, or Saturday evening and Sunday. In this article, I’ll discuss the Saturday AM standouts I…
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Continue ReadingMidwest Live brought in over a hundred of the top teams from Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and West Virginia, teams played on Friday and Saturday morning, or Saturday evening and Sunday. In this article, I’ll discuss the Saturday AM standouts I watched from the group of teams that played on Friday and Saturday at this great event.
A stock rising weekend for Nwokolo who had multiple big games for Reynoldsburg. Showing more off the bounce ability, Nwokolo was attacking closeouts from the perimeter and making a decent amount of shots from the mid-range off the bounce. With improved balance and pivoting, Nwokolo was more patient and finding more success in the half-court offensively. His best extended sequence was in a five possession stretch where Nwokolo had a hand down, man down 3-pointer then an alley-oop slam dunk and capped it off with a trail 3-pointer in transition on the wing.
Highlights
One of the top prospects at the entire event, Jones was making a statement for the defending state champs against top competition. The highlight of the entire event was when Jones dunked all over a Cass Tech defender in one of the best posters I’ve ever seen live. As a whole, Jones was very impactful on both ends of the court with a rotation block on a Cass Tech driver to the basket and on a mid-range pull-up. Hitting jumpers from all over the floor, Jones had a couple corner 3-pointers and made four in that win over Cass Tech. Finally, Jones had a nasty behind the back split dribble in transition which led to him getting fouled. High major programs are battling on the recruiting trail for Jones right now.
I was really impressed with Springer in the game I watched and the highlight tape he posted from the weekend showed that the things I saw in the one game I scouted were being shown in every game. An impressive transition athlete, Springer threw down a couple slams on the fast break with a head of steam. Able to attack a closeout, Springer had a nice take from the baseline and finished with his preferred left hand on the right side. Also active on the offensive glass, Springer got second chance points for himself. Finally, showing some more shooting consistency this weekend, Springer has always been capable of making shots but is starting to raise his percentage from beyond the arc.
A guard who keeps impressing me each time I watch him play, Zapolnik was impactful this weekend on an unbeaten Saint Ignatius squad. Super quick, Zapolnik can get by initial defenders and is fast in transition. His first step allows him to beat defenders to his spot and his ability to change speeds and directions is tough to stop. Impacting the game in a variety of ways by competing defensively, getting to the lane and kicking and knocking down floaters. At his size, Zapolnik won’t be able to finish at the rim past a shot blocker, so the floater is a really important shot for him to make consistently. A guard raising his stock with small college and scholarship interest.
Highlights
Only two southeast district teams were invited to midwest live with North Adams and South Point getting the exclusive invitation. Copas showed the small-town school could compete with a great showing against Lebanon in a big win. Quick off the bounce, Copas can score it in a hurry and after he got going early with his shooting ability, Copas used the extra defensive attention to make the right pass to teammates who were ready to score. His best play of the day came on a tough mid-range pull-up after a couple crossovers that was contested. Getting scholarship interest, Rio Grande has made Copas a priority as a local recruit.