Total Athlete Prep Tip Off: Top Performers

The Total Athlete Prep Tip Off was my first event of the high school season where I was able to get a look at five Ohio prep teams and three out of region prep teams. In this article I'll break down my top performers from Saturday's action.    In what was the most exciting game of the day, Sergi helped lead Andrew's Osborne Academy past a gritty William Academy team. Sergi has a quick first step and was living in the paint all day. Able to attack going either direction, Sergi is a player you can't shade to one side or the other. I was impressed with Sergi's touch on layups and free throws but he didn't take many 3-point shots. The next time I evaluate Sergi, I'll be looking for him to let it fly from beyond the arc with no hesitation. Based on what I saw on Saturday, Sergi looks like a no-brainer Division I target at the low to mid major level. I expect him to get some serious interest this winter if he continues to play like he did this weekend.     Hunter was getting busy all game on both ends of the court and did what was needed to lead his team to victory. Hunter provided tough on ball pressure defensively and forced a handful of turnovers. Offensively, Hunter was tough to stay in front of at the point of attack and used his impressive burst and change of direction to attack the basket. Hunter also had a couple impressive coast to coast buckets where he'd grab a defensive rebound and take it all the way to the other end. At the end of the game Hunter had a strong and-1 finish to help secure the win.     One of the more impressive wing shot makers in the 2026 class, Pendergrass has extended range well beyond the 3-point line and hit some tough shots throughout the day. Pendergrass did settle a couple times but it was usually after he had hit a couple shots on previous possessions. With a high release point and consistent form, Pendergrass has the ability to shoot over smaller defenders. After showcasing his elite shot-making ability, Pendergrass had some strong finishes in the paint. I think Pendergrass has the talent to hit the ground running at George Mason and play right away, a trend in the 2026 class with recruits committing to programs where they can find minutes as freshman.     I liked all the little things Ansong did on both ends of the court. For starters, Ansong tipped a few loose balls back to where his team could control possession. Ansong also protected the rim and set strong screens. As a scorer, Ansong had a couple reverse layups where he used the rim as protection. Not the most skilled big you will see but Ansong helps you win games at the prep school level and will do the dirty work in college as well.     One of the more improved post grad players from Ohio, Hoerner has done an excellent job of improving his body over the past year by slimming down and able to move his feet quicker and play for longer stretches. This has also allowed him to show off more of his perimeter based offensive game where he took a handful of 3-pointers with confidence on Saturday. After missing his first couple 3-pointers, Hoerner got hot and helped get his team back in the game with his scoring ability. Tough to find bigs as skilled as Hoerner is hard and I expect his recruitment to pick up this winter, he was already a priority for regional Division II programs before he announced a post-grad year at AIA Prep.     This was the biggest mismatch of the day and Ross could be found dunking or blocking shots basically every other minute he was on the court. Nobody on Redemption Christian could handle Ross in the paint as he grabbed numerous offensive rebounds and had some spectacular dunks. Impressive job by Spire's post grad group to handle business as easily as they did.

The Total Athlete Prep Tip Off was my first event of the high school season where I was able to get a look at five Ohio prep teams and three out of region prep teams. In this article I'll break down my top performers from Saturday's action.