FCA I-85 Battleground Showcase – The Bigs

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>USE CODE “baxley30” FOR 30% OFF THE FIRST PURCHASE OF ANY SUBSCRIPTION</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2025 Fellowship of Christian Athletes I-85 Battleground Showcase was held on Saturday, December 13th at Franklin County High School in Carnesville, Georgia. Prep Hoops SC was in attendance for the event, checking out all 8 South Carolina teams, 6 Georgia teams, and 2 North Carolina teams. Check out my six stand-out bigs from this year's event:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1847523"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6941908e5ee27"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Headlining my list of bigs from the FCA I-85 Battleground Showcase is Daniel's [player_tooltip player_id='1847523' first='Jackson' last='Conley']. This was easily the best game that I've seen from Jackson, showcasing why an elite mid-major like Morehead State desired his services. Conley's size and skill were a problem for Franklin County early, with 10 points and 5 rebounds on 4-5 FG in the first quarter, so they adjusted by sending a double team almost every time he got the ball in the post. Even then, Jackson worked with a couple of impressive spin moves, high hook shots, driving finishes, and even tight-window passes out of the paint. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1986980"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6941908e5ee8d"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">RJ doesn't have the elite size like some of the other names in this group, but he was productive and important to his team's success this weekend. Stack went for 13 points and 9 rebounds in a matchup with Habersham Central, showcasing tons of activity on the offensive glass, some soft touch on jumpers in the mid-range and from three, and a decent handle to create shots. The Green Wave were down a pair of starters for this event, but it was encouraging to still see good things from RJ with defenses focused on him. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2300245"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6941908e5eed7"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">One of the bright spots in Seneca's loss to Wilson Academy was Russell's second-half play. He went on to put up 21 points, hitting mid-range jumper after mid-range jumper. This was an adjustment for Will, because Wilson Academy had too much size at the rim for him to play his normal game. Despite being down big for most of the game, Russell stayed very active off the ball and tried his best to get his teammates going. The Bobcats won't see another team with that type of size this season, so if Will brings some of the things he learned this game to region play, Seneca could stay at one loss for quite some time. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2385368"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":3234658,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6941908e5ef3a"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Mihalick is not your traditional big man by any means, but his size allows him to have a huge impact on the floor at the high school level. Jake is more than comfortable stretching out to the three-point line or playing off the dribble, but will also catch the ball in the post and work around the rim. He finished through contact on multiple occasions and was simply too long not to finish on others. Mihalick also protected the rim at a high rate on Saturday, adding 4 blocks to his 18 points and 10 rebounds. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2478479"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6941908e5ef82"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">The other Habersham Central big guy who stood out in Franklin County is Judge. At 6'7" 220 lbs, Wilbanks is capable of playing a bruising style of basketball close to the rim. He is an excellent passer, has a strong second jump, and good feet in attack mode. However, Judge also has a good handle for his size and will have inbounds sets run to get him open on the perimeter. I was a big fan of Wilbanks and his game on Saturday, racking up 24 points and 12 rebounds in a win over Easley. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":3236338,"_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Emmanuel Ouedraogo","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2030","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'10u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"77243","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Wilson Academy","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6941908e5f025"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">I was not familiar with Ouedraogo's game prior to this event, but I left Carnesville sky high on him and his long-term future. Emmanuel is a 6'10" 8th Grader who is far from your average prospect at his stage. He is a defensive game-changer who stays away from foul trouble because he remains vertical through contact, but he can also simply deflate balls if guards come into the paint without a plan. He is quite polished on the offensive end too, getting tons of touches and drawing fouls because opponents don't have an answer for his length. Emmanuel finished with 22 points, 13 rebounds, and 6 blocks in Wilson Academy's win over Seneca at the FCA I-85 Battleground Showcase. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->