2024 IYBL Back to School League- Championships- Standouts

Over the last two months, the Back to School League has provided the best coverage of talented Indiana ball players. Unfortunately, it all comes to an end on Sunday. These young men really stood out over the weekend.    Once a shooter, always a shooter!! This is my second write up of Jaxson. He can really put the ball in the basket from anywhere on the perimeter and behind the arc. He's an excellent spot up shooter who can knock down contested and uncontested shots. The improvement I noticed about Jaxson's game was his strength and getting to the basket. The first time I saw him play, he mostly shot jumpers and rebounded. After watching him play on Saturday, I can honestly say.. he's significantly improved on the offensive side of the court. Jaxson can put the ball on the floor and get around the defense. There were a number of occasions where he scored the ball through contact and converted three point play opportunities from the line. He still has the knowledge of finding ways to free himself up for open shots on offense. Using screens and constant movement within the offense allowed him to get clean looks at the basket. Especially, from the three point line. Jaxson's definitely the top three point threat on the Kokomo squad. He's still a really good rebounding forward who held his own in the paint among taller players. On defense, he really hustles and plays hard. Jaxson is the ultimate team player who'll do whatever he needs to help his team win games. Keep working Jaxson!!     Carter was unstoppable in Saturday's game against Hagerstown. He was able to get into the lane at will and make plays for himself or others. A really good ball handler who constantly blew by any defender who attempted to guard him. Carter's also a really good passer who lead his squad in assists. He really seemed to have a knack of finding open teammates which lead to easy baskets. I couldn't figure out his position because he initiated the offense as its main facilitator but scored the ball like a shooting guard. So I say he's a combo guard who happens to be able to play both positions at a high level. What I appreciated about his play style.. was the aggression he showed whenever he was on the floor. He was going to stay in constant "attack mode" and get to the rack no matter what. Carter can also knock down shots from both long and mid-range. On numerous occasions, I saw him make contested shots while being guarded by defenders. Defensively, he was a menace to the opposing Hagerstown guards!! I watched him force a number of turnovers with excellent on ball pressure. He also had multiple steals from shooting passing lanes. These steals were often fast-break starters. I strongly believe that Carter will have a big season this year at Lapel Middle School. Keep grinding young man!!     This young man is what I call a "glue guy!!" A person that does everything on the basketball court. Layton's the consummate team player who does whatever it takes to help his squad win. He's a really good scorer who constantly attacked the basket and either scored or drew fouls. A good free throw shooter who knocked down the most of the attempts he had. Layton can also handle the ball and be a play-maker for his team. On a number of occasions I saw him bring the ball up court and make pin-point passes which lead to easy baskets. He's a tough young man who didn't mind going into the paint and grabbing rebounds among taller players. I loved watching this guy play ball!! He even played mind games with his opponents and let them know about the score showing up on the score board. (of course his team was winning) This is the kind of fiestiness I can really appreciate from a player. On defense, Layton was literally all over the court. Whether it was locking down offensive players, diving for loose balls, blocking shots or forcing turnovers.. This young guy played with purpose! I look forward to seeing how his overall skills progress throughout the Middle School basketball season.     I really enjoyed watching Tyson play over the weekend. He really surprised me as he unveiled a skill set I didn't believe he had. Let's start with him being an elite shooter already at his young age. By watching this little guy play.. you would automatically know he's the team's best shooter. his teammates always looked for him behind the arc, whether it was during offensive sets or fast-breaks. It really didn't matter. I watched Tyson knock down four threes on six attempts from the floor. Somehow he always managed to find a way to get wide open for shots at the basket. He's very knowledgeable of how to use screens and maintain constant movement on offense to free himself. This is an excellent routine for a shooter to have and he's really good at it. Where Tyson surprised me.. was his ability to handle the ball in one on one situations while getting to the basket. It seemed like his who outlook on scoring changed in the second half of the game. There was a sequence where he blew by his opposition and scored through contact. This lead to an three point play opportunity from the free throw line. (of course he converted!) He also ran the floor and scored on a few layups in transition. Tyson plays with maximum effort! Even though he's one of the smallest players on the floor, he didn't let it hinder his ability of pressuring the basketball and being very pesky on defense. It was truly a pleasure watching this young man play. This is exactly why you can't judge a book by its cover. Keep shooting Tyson!!     Max is a really tough player who's physically strong in the paint. On many occasions, Max was able to score at will down in the box. Especially when there were smaller defenders trying to guard him. He literally backed them down and went right over the top of them. Sometimes through contact which often lead to three point play opportunities from the free throw line. If the defender was taller he would shoot fade-aways to get his shot off and convert. Scoring in the paint wasn't the only thing he could do. Max was able to create off the dribble and attack the basket along with knocking down numerous shots on the perimeter. These were either jump-shots, floaters and the occasional three pointer I saw him swish through the bottom of the net. He's an excellent rebounder who did most of his damage on the defensive end of the court. Many of the points he scored were on put-backs from offensive rebounds. Max was a beast on the boards! I believe he grabbed double digits in Saturday's game. He's a really good interior post defender who has no issues boxing out, grabbing rebounds or blocking shots. Max also showed the ability of guarding players out on the wing. As I said, he's a physical player who plays the game with a very fierce mentality. This young guy constantly plays hard and doesn't cut the opposition any slack on the basketball court. I'm very interested in seeing how Max continues to improve his game during the Middle School basketball season.     Kaleb's an above average ball handler who showed the ability of leading fast-breaks and generating easy scores for his teammates. He's also a good decision maker who excelled at playing both guard positions. I watched him make a number of flashy passes in Saturday's game. Whenever he had the ball as the primary facilitator.. Kaleb was able to run the Westfield offense with precision. He often found open teammates for easy shots inside and on the perimeter. Offensively, he's an aggressive player who loves attacking the basket and scoring. When he becomes a scorer, making shots is no issue for his young man. He can handle the ball and create off the dribble to free himself for open looks at the basket. Kaleb shoots the basketball with great form and ball rotation. Most of the baskets he scored in the game were from mid-range. He's very knowledgeable of how to move around within the offense in order to free himself up. I saw him confidently shoot a couple of threes and knock them down with no hesitation. Kaleb's a very fiesty player on the defensive end of the court. He likes pressuring opposing guards and generating turnovers. This guy definitely has the necessary traits of being a solid on the ball defender. Quick hands and feet will take him a long way on defense. Kaleb is a solid player who'll only get better as he continues to enhance his game.

Over the last two months, the Back to School League has provided the best coverage of talented Indiana ball players. Unfortunately, it all comes to an end on Sunday. These young men really stood out over the weekend.