Holiday Tournaments: New Names Underclassmen

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the best parts of watching volume games at holiday tournaments is the uncovering of new prospects.&nbsp; These are based on purely the 40+ games I evaluated from the tournaments at Jack Tosh, Hinsdale Central, Pontiac, Pekin, and Collinsville.&nbsp; Here is<strong> Holiday Tournaments: New Names Underclassmen!</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2454188' first='Maharri' last='Thatch'] (Glenbard North – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thatch caught our attention for Glenbard North as a guard that just kept making plays.&nbsp; Nose for the ball and can shoot it a little bit from three as well finishing with 9 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2323275' first='Adam' last='Flowers'] (Hinsdale South – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We had heard some buzz about Flowers coming into the season and over the holiday's we got our first look at him against York with his high school team.&nbsp; Despite their team losing big we saw some things to like with the 6'1” shooting guard.&nbsp; Long arms and an athletic frame.&nbsp; Clean release on a catch and shoot three.&nbsp; Athletic finisher at the rim.&nbsp; Went for 7 points against York.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2734418' first='Evan' last='Brewer'] (Granite City – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 6'5” post from Granite City made an impression in their first round game recording 11 points.&nbsp; Good strength and knows how to use his body down low.&nbsp; Seals on the interior, put backs, and finishes out of the dunker spot.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1977254' first='Luke' last='Smith'] (Belleville Althoff – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Smith was the other Althoff 2026 we really liked.&nbsp; The 6'2” two guard is a plus shooter from three draining a pair of them with a quick release.&nbsp; Has a nose for the basketball and once he sees his role grow he will be an even more impactful player.&nbsp; Had 10 points vs Mundelein.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1552447' first='Tyler' last='Thompson'] (Triad – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thompson was one of the breakout performers at the Collinsville event.&nbsp; The 6'6” four man has a long and thin frame.&nbsp; Sound shooter from three that let it fly from deep a little bit too much settling for those shots.&nbsp; Had the game winner in their one point victory over Carbondale on a finish out of the dunker spot while scoring 10 points.&nbsp; Lot of projectability to like here.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jerrance “JJ” Howard (Carbondale – 2027)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Howard is the son of SIU assistant coach [player_tooltip player_id='2323611' first='Jerrance' last='Howard'].&nbsp; The 5'9” floor general banged in a three early on.&nbsp; Plays with good pace and is a solid passer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2823690' first='Jaxon' last='Marlow-Evans'] (Carbondale – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Marlow-Evans is a 5'11” point guard that has a good mid-range game along with being able to hit from three.&nbsp; In their first round loss to Triad he had 8 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jalen Coleman (Belleville East – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coleman stands at 5'10” and made noise in the final game of the first round against Collierville (TN).&nbsp; The scoring combo guard hit a pair of threes and mixed in a couple drives to the rim for 12 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2323312' first='Karson' last='Komnick'] (Lincoln – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This rangy shooting guard is worth keeping tabs on.&nbsp; Wasn't super productive in either game we evaluated, but like the frame, length, athleticism, and overall skill set.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2734458' first='Alex' last='McKie'] (Morton – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is a sophomore wing worth keeping tabs on as he can really shoot the basketball knocking in several in their win against PND.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1874876' first='Trey' last='Brost'] (Bolingbrook – 2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The coach's son is getting major minutes coming off the bench as a sophomore.&nbsp; In the championship game he drained a pair of threes and looks to be the next in a long line of talented shooting lead guards for Coach Brost.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->