Derby City Tip Off: 2025 Standouts

The Derby City Tip Off brought four games to Louisville St Xavier on Sunday, December 15th. I was there all day scouting some of the top talent in Kentucky and in this article will break down the 2025 standouts from the action.    Kahnplaye had maybe the biggest stock rising weekend of any player in Kentucky. Going off on both Saturday and Sunday at this event, Kahnplaye is looking like a more confident player than the one I saw as a Junior. He's making tough shots all over the court and has soft touch where even on shots that hit the rim, they still have a decent chance of falling in the back of the net. I was also impressed with the progression Kahnplaye has made as a ball handler, using quick moves to create space to pull-up from the perimeter. As a team, Jeffersontown plays a tough and physical style of basketball that can overwhelm teams without a variety of ball handlers and decision makers. Their tenacity makes them tough to beat with how often they can turn you over.     One of the top prospects in Kentucky's 2025 class, Boone is a player who could have an instant impact at the college level. One of the best athletes and defenders in the Midwest, few players can turn defense to offense as quickly as Boone does. If you are late making a passing read in Boone's direction, he's going to steal your pass and finish with an acrobatic layup or dunk on the other end. Starting to show some progression as a 3-point shooter as well, Boone knocked down a couple deep 3-pointers. If Boone is consistently stretching the floor as a spot-up shooter, he could have a really valuable college career.     Without [player_tooltip player_id='1359140' first='Cole' last='Edelen'] for Male, they had to rely on some new faces to step up in a battle of two of the better teams in Kentucky. In stepped Gasaway who had a monster fourth quarter to help push his team to victory. The forward did a nice job finishing plays on the block and from the elbow after his guards would either beat the press or attack off the dribble. Gasaway also had a couple tough rebounds and knocked down a 3-pointer to help ice the game. Great performance by a role player in a big spot!     Louisville St Xavier dictated the game at home against Great Crossing and won comfortably against the number 1 team in the state. Their up-tempo style of play and ability to space the floor gave Great Crossing trouble all night. Nobody knocked down more perimeter shots than Krezmien, who was shooting the ball with confidence all night. When you can space the floor to five out at the high school level without sacrificing size, you can be really tough to beat. With Krezmien making shots and doing his best against [player_tooltip player_id='1130310' first='Malachi' last='Moreno'] in the post, he stepped up in front of a sold out crowd.     Few players step up in the big moments like Dawson has in his career. On a night where nobody else on his team could knock down a perimeter shot, Dawson was making shots and having an impact defensively. Those areas will translate to the next level as Dawson flat out impacts winning. I'll be very interested to see if these teams rematch in the sweet 16, would be interesting to see what changes to the style of game you'd see in March.

The Derby City Tip Off brought four games to Louisville St Xavier on Sunday, December 15th. I was there all day scouting some of the top talent in Kentucky and in this article will break down the 2025 standouts from the action.