Superstar Events: Spring Classic- Scorers and Facilitators

The guard position was well represented over the weekend. The Spring Classic hosted some of the top point and shooting guards in Indiana.    Evan is a hard-working player who can shoot the ball from deep. I watched him knock down two threes in the game against Apex Elite Basketball. He plays with maximum effort on both ends of the court. Whether it's chasing down loose balls, taking charges, grabbing rebounds or being a solid defender, Evan was always around to make a play. Offensively. He was very knowledgeable about using screens and finding ways to get open. He handled the ball well and showed off his play-making ability with great passes. On defense, he applied great pressure on opposing guards attempting to handle the ball. Evan is the ultimate team player! With his continued growth and maturity, transitioning to high school basketball will be easy. Keep working Evan!!     The first strength I noticed in this young man's game was his ability to shoot the ball. It didn't matter which IBC defender guarded him. Chavis was in a type of shooting zone where he couldn't miss. I watched him knock down five threes in two halves of play. He also showed the ability to handle the ball and get to the basket. Chavis had a highlight play in the game. On offense, he hit the opposing defender with a nasty crossover and step-back. The move allowed him to create space for an open three which he confidently nailed. On defense, he fought through screens and stayed attached to his opponent by applying great pressure on the ball. He made ball handling a difficult task for IBC guards. Great young player with a bright future ahead of him. Keep shooting Chavis!!     Maddox is a shifty point guard who played fearlessly against Blackout 2030 Gold. He handles the ball with skill. Whenever he was in isolated match-ups, Maddox easily drove by his defender and made plays. Whether it was scoring at the basket or hitting teammates with flashy passes, Maddox always created positive outcomes. He showed his shooting skills from the mid-range area of the court. During the game he scored on multiple pull-ups from the perimeter. If Maddox had an open look from beyond the arc, he did not shy away from it. Some he made, some he missed. His aggression on offense was constant throughout the game. One of his biggest strengths was his leadership. Maddox was always communicating with his teammates on both ends of the floor. Calling out plays, switches in defense and overall encouraging words were a major part of his game. He's a great young player who will continue to improve his overall basketball skills. Keep it up Maddox!!     Keegan is a tough minded guard who has the ability to shoot. He displayed some feistiness on the basketball court. Keegan played with no fear, despite being the smallest player on the court. Keegan handles the ball, drives by defenders, knocks down threes and scores in the paint. This little guy had an impressive package of skills within the Apex Flight offense. Whenever he drove into the painted area, Keegan's shot of choice was the floater. He always scored it over taller defenders attempting to block away his shot. In two halves of play, I watched him nail three shots from beyond the arc. On defense, Keegan was a pest! His quick hands and good movement allowed him to generate multiple steals from the opposition. I really enjoyed watching him play. I have always had a soft spot for the little guy. Keep it up Keegan!!     This is my second write-up of Elijah. He continues to be a well-rounded player who does it all on the basketball court. The last time I watched him play as a forward. This time around he handled the ball as the primary facilitator of the IBC offense. He always found a way to make plays by throwing nice assists to his teammates. Most of his passes led to easy scores at or near the basket. Elijah played a great all-around game to help lead the IBC Sigmund squad to a big time win. He has the ball handling skills to create off the dribble. Many of his drives allowed him to score on lay-ups, while others saw him kick out passes on the perimeter. Elijah excelled at drawing in the defense with the dribble drive. He also used his size advantage over the Richmond All-In guards by posting them up and scoring in the paint. Elijah was great at creating space and knocking down mid-range jumpers. He took advantage of this situation on numerous occasions. He finished the game with (8 points, 4 assists, 5 rebounds, 4 steals) Keep balling Elijah!!     Bennett is a skilled guard. He played the position like a “prototypical point guard” Bennett is an excellent passer who always looked to set-up IBC Sigmund players for high percentage shots. Bennett made elite level passes to players streaking down the lane and on the perimeter. On some occasions, he threw flashy bounce and behind-the-back passes. These dimes were on the money and led to easy scores. Bennett showed the ability to beat defenders off the dribble and score in the paint. He's a great perimeter shooter from mid-range. He also showed the capability of making shots from beyond the three-point line. I watched him knock down two threes and numerous mid-range shots throughout the game. As he continues to grow and mature, Bennett shows traits of becoming an elite player in the future. Keep it up Bennett!!     In my opinion, Zach was the team's best shooter. He always managed to find ways of making himself available on offense. He stayed in motion by running around player screens and creating space using the dribble. There was a sequence during the game, when Zach went on a scoring spurt. He knocked down two consecutive threes and energized his teammates. He also showed the ability to beat his defender and score in the paint with either lay-ups or floaters. Zach displayed enough skill to play both guard positions. Due to his scoring prowess, he seemed to be more effective as a shooting guard. Defensively, he was great at timing passes, jumping the lane and stealing the ball. Zach was able to do this on numerous occasions. His shooting ability and overall skills will allow him to have a successful high school career.

The guard position was well represented over the weekend. The Spring Classic hosted some of the top point and shooting guards in Indiana.