UAA Live Period: Kentucky/Ohio 16 U Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Under Armour Circuit made a stop in Cincinnati, Ohio for their spring live period. While the college coaches were mostly focused on 17 U teams, I watched all age groups at the event and in this article wanted to highlight some 16 U standouts from Ohio and Kentucky. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1543323"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"I caught Phillips last summer when he was with [program_tooltip program_id='2076317' first='Midwest' last='Basketball Club 3SSB'] 15 U but this was my first time getting to watch him play since last July. Phillips looked like he had grown an inch and continued to fill out strength wise. A very talented small town scorer, Phillips was aggressive taking 3-pointers with a quick release off the catch. Also in attack mode off the bounce, Phillips wanted to get into the paint and use his body on drives. A limited vertical athlete, Phillips best bet at the rim is to play off two feet and create contact with the defender to prevent the defense from getting a clear jumping lane to contest his shot. I also thought Phillips made the right pass when help defense came and in two on one transition situations.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["2388302"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Another small-town Kentucky prospect on the Stars 16 U group, Caudill was getting buckets from long distance on Saturday morning. When his feet were set from 3-point range, it usually went in for Caudill. Another limited athlete, I liked how Caudill figured out ways to move without the basketball to get himself open to fire away from long distance. One of the top scorers in the 14th region, Caudill should put up some huge numbers for Hazard the next two seasons.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["2248846"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"[program_tooltip program_id='2135129' first='Griffin' last='Elite'] 16 U had a tough weekend, going 0-4 with two losses by one point each. Despite the record, I thought Blaackar was an individual standout for his team. A talented guard on the ball, Blaackar could create space on isolations and get to the rim when he wanted to off the bounce. Able to finish with either hand at the rim, Blaackar can't be forced to attack one side or the other off the bounce. The jumper is a question mark for me as he didn't attempt many from the outside in the game I was at, knocking down one mid-range pull-up in the minutes I saw. Hoping to see Blaackar impact winning with his team as I continue to watch him develop as a prospect, lots of talent on this 2026 guard.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["2444625"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Playing some of the top competition across the UAA circuit, OBC 16 U went 1-3 this weekend. I thought this was a good measuring stick for their team as a lot of their talent is spread across the Akron area with guys like Peeps, [player_tooltip player_id='2444619' first='Jr' last='Jackson'] (Alliance), [player_tooltip player_id='2352778' first='Jayden' last='Carlton'] (Hudson) and [player_tooltip player_id='1943739' first='Brayden' last='Holt'] (Wooster Triway) all facing much tougher competition than they usually see at the high school level. I wasn't able to catch the program's one win Vs Wisconsin Playground Club but in the game I caught, I liked what Peeps brought to the table. High activity in the paint, Peeps created a couple extra possessions with active hands for rebounds and scored in the paint on reverse layups, tip ins and putbacks. Still a work in progress with his body, when Peeps adds weight to his frame he'll be even tougher to keep off the glass.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["1869632"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"Nova Village 16 U went 4-0 this weekend and I caught two huge wins for their team this weekend. Calloway is the engine to their offense with his ability to break the defense down off the dribble. Despite his lack of size, Calloway has strong shoulders and works to finish around shot blockers at the rim. Impacting the game at both ends of the court, Calloway provides a lot of ball pressure and Nova's entire team wants to turn you over defensively. I thought Calloway took some strides as a shooter as well, knocking down six 3-pointers in the final game of the weekend. One of the top guards in central Ohio, Calloway already led his team to a conference title as a Sophomore and will look to follow it up with a deep playoff run for a Bishop Hartley squad that returns a majority of their core.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["1943740"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"Maybe the biggest stock riser I saw all weekend, Mattucci exploded for TEN 3-pointers on Saturday evening in a blowout win over Pro One. I caught two of his games this weekend and while I didn't catch that one, the film I saw matched what I caught in the two games I watched live. One of the top shooters in the 2026 class in Ohio, Mattucci enjoys playing on a Nova Village squad that executes set plays and isn't afraid to make the extra pass to a shooter. Whether it was running off elevator screens or down screens against man to man defense or having his teammates swing the rock against the zone, Mattucci was shot ready this weekend as he made 19 3-pointers in four games this weekend. After being ran off the line against B-Maze Elite, Mattucci knocked down a couple mid-range pull ups, which was an encouraging sign to see. Still looking for him to improve his scoring at the rim, when he adds strength and continues to build confidence handling the ball I expect his rim frequency to rise. Overall, was very impressed with how Mattucci played this weekend.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_player":["2444616"],"_player_evaluations_6_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"Junk. Yard. Dog. That was something one of my high school basketball coaches used to preach to our team and few players exhibit that mentality better than Amankwaah. Guarding a top 50 nationally ranked prospect who was five inches taller than him, Amankwaah made him work for every bucket. I loved his competitiveness on both ends of the court and how fearless he played. Making a couple hustle plays going after loose balls and getting offensive rebounds, this is a wing forward who flat out helps you win. Combine that with the occasional contested layup finish or wide-open jumper and Amankwaah was one of my favorite players to watch compete all weekend.","_player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":7,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-664bc5f53527b"} /-->