Mike's Weekly Standouts

This week I attended just two standalone games, one in Kentucky and one in Ohio. In this article I'll break down my standouts from Louisville Seneca @ Louisville Eastern and Cincinnati Hughes @ Cincinnati Aiken.    Wheatley has been one of the more productive 2028 prospects at the varsity level the past two seasons and after a slow start to his sophomore season, he was dominant with a double-double performance in a win on the road over Seneca. Wheatley plays with a high motor and almost has a 'bull in a china shop' type aggressiveness and can go through defenders who aren't prepared for him. I was encouraged by Wheatley's perimeter shooting development and his rebounding on both ends of the court and the next step for Wheatley will be lowering his turnover numbers. Wheatley fits the gritty mentality Seneca plays with really well and I expect them to be a tough out in Louisville this year.     One of the more talented 2029 prospects in the state, Queen has a quick first step and has the dribbling ability to create space off the bounce. His most impressive offensive play was a reverse pivot that he used to get a jumper in the mid-range area. Athletically Queen has the frame you'd want for a young prospect, and he'll need to add strength over the next few years but should continue to mature. Queen finished well at the rim with an and-1 early and a euro-step finish in the second half. Expect to hear a lot more about Queen over the next few years.     One of the more notable transfers into Kentucky this year, Jung is a physical force who has dominated early on this season. Jung has the size and length to finish over shorter centers and showed off his soft touch on layups and post moves where he was able to shoot over a forward four or five inches shorter than him. I was encouraged by his touch on free throws and a couple left-handed finishes. When you look at the height, production and athleticism, it's easy to see why Jung is ranked in our top 10 and committed to a Division I program.     Mack has generated a lot of buzz as a freshman and it's easy to see why as he's already scoring the basketball at a high level at the varsity level. The lefty Mack actually appeared more comfortable using his right hand on layups and floaters, one of those floaters came just before the buzzer of a quarter. I also liked that Mack quickly advanced the basketball up the court with outlet passes to help start the fast break. Mack is one of the smallest players on the court and his physical development will be the most important aspect of his game to monitor over the next few years. One of the more talented 2029 guards in Kentucky!     Aiken and Hughes were going back and forth until a massive fourth quarter run helped Aiken turn a slight deficit into a double-digit lead in a highly contested conference clash. Carr-Short finished with a double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds. Best as a play finisher right now, Carr-Short had multiple finishes through contact and almost had a crazy poster dunk as the game was winding down. Defensively, Carr-Short was active with five steals and one block. Hoping to see Carr-Short take more care of the basketball whether it's when he's handling the ball, passing it or even jumping to passes thrown his way. If Carr-Short does that, he could average another assist a game and a few more points per contest as he's as talented as anybody in the CMAC.     The Hughes back-court is extremely talented and Hill plays with the ball on a string. Hill's best move of the day came when he dropped a defender on a crossover but missed the ensuing 3-pointer. Hill's passing was more impressive than the three assists would suggest, as he was consistently setting his teammates up in positions to score. Hill had a sweet lefty layup off a spin move early in the game but consistently wanted to get back to his right hand to try and finish the rest of the game. It's early in the season and this was Hill's lowest scoring night of the year but he still found plenty of ways to impact the game.     Jones is one of the scrappiest defenders in the CMAC, getting at least two steals in every game this season. Jones aggressiveness on the defensive end of the court caused numerous turnovers and Hughes was at their best in the open court. Also a capable perimeter shooter, Jones is shooting almost 30% from 3-point range and over 65% from the free throw line. Look for Jones and Hill to be the engines for Hughes this winter as they'll look to stay competitive in the CMAC.

This week I attended just two standalone games, one in Kentucky and one in Ohio. In this article I'll break down my standouts from Louisville Seneca @ Louisville Eastern and Cincinnati Hughes @ Cincinnati Aiken.