The Expo: Team 12 Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's my final list of standouts from the teams I covered back at the Illinois Expo earlier this month.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Kenric Buchanan</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The biggest thing to stand out from him was his hustle. At one point, he lost the ball in transition and sprinted to the other end to take the ball back from his opponent. Physical 6'2” guard from Plainfield South.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2617407' first='Julian' last='Overton']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overton was a solid on-ball defender when watching him. Turned that into some challenging, yet creative finishes on offense. Moves his feet well with the ball in his hands.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2617446' first='Rico' last='D'Alessandro']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Physical 6'4” 2026 from Maine South. Outstanding upper-body strength which allowed him to make an impact in lots of ways. Finished a lot of tough layups attacking from the outside and displayed a smooth touch with both hands. And-one buzzer beater at the first half of the opening game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2617441' first='Patrick' last='Irvin Jr']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another strong guard to watch from Walter Payton. Displayed great vision with the ball in his hands. Had more assists than anyone I covered. Avoids turnovers.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2617399' first='Jayden' last='Madden']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>6'9” F kept tons of plays alive on the interior with his superb length. Sometimes giving players little to no chance of being able to make a play around him.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Stephen E George</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>George was a physical interior presence. Did an excellent job boxing out on the glass and setting screens with his big frame. Key second-chance bucket in the 2nd half of the first 5v5 game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2408504' first='Cole' last='Bero']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I saw a lot from Bero. He was a very good communicator on the defensive front and did an excellent job cutting off driving and passing lanes. Offensively he did a good job controlling the ball and finding open shots. Came through big at the end of his first game with a midrange jumper and a corner 3-pointer to push the lead to six.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->