Ron Massey FHC: Saturday’s Top Guards

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>LONG BEACH — The annual Ron Massey Memorial Fall Hoops Classic is one of the must-attend events of the fall and this year's kick-off event brought together some of SoCal's top high school programs and players Saturday at McBride high school. Below we take a closer look at some of the top guard performers from the games we saw on Saturday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2436300' first='AJ' last='Okoh'] | 2027 | Brentwood</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Okoh is a high energy point guard with elite quickness in the half-court and speed with the ball in transition. His mentality of always being in attack mode kept opposing defenses on their heels which opened up countless paint touch opportunities for him in open court settings. While he has plenty of scoring punch to lean on, Okoh made it a point to feed his talented teammates inside, and took his offensive looks when they came to him without forcing the issue.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2194692' first='Isaiah' last='Barnes'] | 2027 | Crespi</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Barnes is one of those two-way type of players who brings a combination of maximum effort and toughness which maximizes his impact on both ends of the floor. The 6-foot-3 combo guard uses his strong frame, fundamental approach to the defensive end and will to get stops to successfully defend multiple perimeter positions. Offensively, Isaiah was effective as a downhill driver and finisher who got into the body of defenders and scored through contact at the rim in a win over Roosevelt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">JoJo Wicker | 2026 | Millikan</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When Wicker has his three-point shot going there aren't many shooting guards who can match his ability to fill up the scoring column from deep. The 6-foot-2 senior was dialed in Saturday morning as he scored 24 points, including seven three-pointers. Wicker is lethal from distance with his feet set as his combination of balance and repeatable mechanics lends to his consistency from behind-the-arc.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1956462' first='Julius' last='Price'] | 2026 | St. Joseph</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Price was a scoring and playmaking threat during both of his games Saturday. The 6-foot-2 senior finished with 26 and 23 points, respectively, as he led Central California-based St. Joes to two wins on the day. Price is both a physically strong and athletically explosive combo guard who is best at using those tools to put pressure on the rim with drives and finishes at the rim. Price also had his pull-up jumper dialed in and his ability to be on balance, plant, elevate and release at the top of his jump was impressive.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2948285' first='Karter' last='Butler'] | 2028 | Corona Centennial</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Butler is a pure point guard who brought a pass-first mindset to the floor for Centennial. The 6-foot-2 sophomore has impressive feel for the game that allows him to orchestrate the Huskies offense and put teammates in positions to where they can be successful. Butler advances the ball up the floor in transition, doesn't over-handle, makes smart reads on his paint touches and delivers accurate and timely passes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2750232' first='Luke' last='Paulus'] | 2028 | St. Francis</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Paulus is one of the more under-appreciated underclass guards in Southern California but that shouldn't be the case much longer. The 6-foot-1 point guard is true to the position in that he has the innate ability to control the pace and tempo of a game. The high IQ decision-maker struck a good balance of scoring and distributing and showed the ability to manage a game but also flashed some scoring punch that included catch and shoot threes and mid-range pull-ups.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2425764' first='Semaj' last='Carter'] | 2026 | Roosevelt</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Carter did everything in his power to keep Roosevelt close to Crespi in a hard-fought fall matchup but his tough shot making ability wasn't enough to get the Mustangs in position to pull out the win. Carter, a strong, athletic, 6-foot-4 wing, was filling up the scoring column with off-dribble jumpers from three and mid-range levels of the floor and also used is physical and athletic tools to slash his way to the rim for strong transition finishes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->