What Illinois Players Shined on Day 1 at UAA Finals?

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thursday was the start of UAA Finals in Chicago.&nbsp; I managed to get over to the Wintrust and catch the two Illinois programs. Here were the top players from the 17U and 16U games.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><u>17U</u></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1435692' first='Rykan' last='Woo'] IL Wolves 2026</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Woo was in tune from the start. Knocked down a pair of threes and attacked off the dribble and few times only to get fouled in the process. He was very aggressive looking to score. Rykan scored the first 16 points. It was my first time witnessing Rykan as the go-to scorer and as expected he shined. He finished with 32 points making 4 threes in the game. His ability to attack angles and finish consistently should be the final answer for any coaches who were on the fence about Woo as a player because he's shown he could do it all.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hudson Scroggins Elevate 2025</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hudson played well for Elevate in the showcase game. He found ways to score in a crowded paint area. Most of his buckets were from catching the ball in the high post and driving to the rack against taller defenders. Scroggins is a fundamentally sound player around the basket scoring layup after layup. A few times he drifted to the perimeter and hit a pair of threes to boost his team's lead to double digits. On defense he remained active and crashed the glass hard and got his hands on a couple of blocks. To cap off the game Hudson received an outlet pass while at half court that he dunked with two hands he finished with 15 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2839970' first='Jordan' last='Williams'] Elevate 2026</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jordan impressed the coaches who were there to see him. At 6'5 he looked the part of a legit mid major prospect. His lefty drives into acrobatic layups were the starters that led to mid-range jumpers and to end it all he got out in transition scored easy buckets off turnovers. Williams played with good pace and feel. He led his team in scoring with 16 points.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1845354' first='Oliver' last='Gray'] IL Wolves 2026</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gray looked gun-shy to start the game. A few coaches felt he passed up on a couple of open shots that he usually takes. Oliver picked up his play when Porter went down with a minor leg injury. In a close game the Wolves needed another player to step up and Gray did just that. He scored 11 points in the second hitting 3 from deep and scoring off a back cut for a layup. He finished with 13 points in the loss.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2323334' first='AJ' last='Chambers'] Elevate 2026</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Depaul Prep guard found himself running things as the lead guard with injuries to Brost and Pomis. He controlled the game with his defense and IQ for the game. AJ played at a steady speed. He managed to facilitate the rock to everyone by keeping them engaged. When he needed to score Chambers hit a couple of shots and drove to the bucket for tough finishers all in the second half. A good all-around performance on day 1.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><u>16U&nbsp;</u></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2125637' first='Jacob' last='Fuller'] Elevate 2027</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The big man nailed 4 threes en route to scoring 26 points for the game. Jacob is already considered a stretch forward for his perimeter shooting. It was his play around the basket that was the eye-opener. Fuller made plays in the post and looked like a natural. He is expanding his game a lot at the right time of the summer.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2125634' first='Hayden' last='Schroeder'] IL Wolves 2027</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hayden was going to work in the paint. Scoring off shot fakes and sweeping layups going towards the basket. Schroeder just has an old-fashioned game and it fits him well. He scored 17 points all in the paint and from the free-throw line.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2323592' first='Cole' last='DuBois'] Elevate 2027</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I was impressed with how well DuBois ran his team while playing at an up-tempo pace. He is a quick and jittery guard who loves to drive and dish. I watched several times as Cole touched the paint and dropped off a pass to someone wide open at the rim. He plays with the same motor on defense and it disrupts the flow of opposing guards. DuBois didn't look to score a ton but he managed to hit a pair of threes and two layups. He ended with 10 points and close to ten assists.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->