Battle at the Berkey: Sunday Standouts

The Battle at the Berkey is a two day event hosted at Smithville High School which has a good balance of Ohio and out of state teams, in this article we'll break down the Sunday standouts.    One of the most talented scoring guards in western PA, Pratt had a big game as Aliquippa finally beat an Ohio opponent on third third try this season. Pratt uses his quickness and change of direction to get past the primary defender and also knocked down a couple tough shots from the outside. For Pratt to take the next step in his game, his processing as a passer needs to increase, if he can start setting his teammates up more consistently he will become more intriguing to Division I college programs.     Bluffton did a nice job of moving the basketball and working to get open shots. Donaldson was on the receiving end of a handful of spot-up jumpers and converted a high percentage of them. A steady point guard who could get his team into the offense, Bluffton is a team that can make a run as their tough schedule as prepared them well postseason action.     A really intriguing prospect out of Michigan, Houser has a lot of things you'd look for in a wing forward. For starters he has an excellent frame and is an impressive athlete. Defensively he made plays by flying around the court using his long wingspan and athleticism. On the offensive end Houser wanted to get to his left hand downhill and either score at the rim as a driver or roll man in the pick and roll. Finally, House knocked down a couple jumpers as well. I expect Houser to be a name GLIAC and regional Division I coaches get very familiar with this summer.     Delaware Hayes was led by superstar Landon Vanderwalker who finished with 29 points and 22 rebounds. I wanted to spotlight a new player from their team who had his best game of the three I've seen this season and that's [player_tooltip player_id='1832084' first='Chase' last='Griggs']. Griggs knocked down a pair of triples off Vanderwalker offensive rebounds and does a great job of moving without the basketball. On cuts Griggs found openings and scored a couple of times on the baseline. Add in his timely shooting and it was a strong performance by a complimentary piece in a big time environment.     Sow had some loud buckets in Montour's victory over North Canton Hoover. One of the tallest players in Pennsylvania, Sow was playing above the rim offensively with a couple of dunks. Light off his feet and flashing the ability to handle the basketball, Sow was a tough cover all game. At the end of the second and third quarters Sow had buckets just before the buzzer sounded and these plays helped Montor extend leads they would narrowly hold on to. A name to watch at the Division I level, Sow is already committed to Ut Martin.     The Vikings were scrappy and clawed back to threaten to pull off a stunner in the final minute of the game. Hershberger was my standout performer for North Canton Hoover as his slashing ability was making plays all game. With enough juice on the ball to create from a standstill, Hershberger has the talent to create something out of nothing. Throw in some acrobatic finishes and it's tough to stop Hershberger when he's attacking downhill. In the fourth quarter Hershberger started finding the range from the outside, knocking down a 3-pointer on the wing and off a pin down in the fourth quarter.     All it took was about two minutes for Barnett to earn standout performer status. In the second quarter, Barnett knocked down four 3-pointers in rapid succession to blow the doors off a close game and Brunswick wouldn't hold back with a comfortable victory when it was all said and done. Watch out for the Blue Devils who have really hit their stride recently with some marquee wins as we head closer to playoff action.     In a battle between Division III powerhouses, Lutheran West got the victory over Lexington to wrap up the event. Monroe knocked down shots for the Longhorns and scored in transition in a scoring by committee type game for Lutheran West. Good to see Monroe gain some confidence as a shooter with his new team after transferring in from Akron STVM. One of the more talented wings in Ohio's 2027 class, we'll be tracking to see if Monroe can continue this upward momentum.

The Battle at the Berkey is a two day event hosted at Smithville High School which has a good balance of Ohio and out of state teams, in this article we'll break down the Sunday standouts.