Bakersfield Christian's MLK Showcase: Top Bucket Getters

Bakersfield, CA - Last Monday, on Martin Luther King Day, Bakersfield Christian hosted its inaugural MLK Showcase, which featured an 8-game format with 16 teams. The event featured some intriguing match-ups between Liberty and Mission Prep; Centennial and North Bakersfield; Frontier and Porterville; and the headline game between the host team BCHS and Mesa of Arizona, and its nationally ranked standout sophomore prospect [player_tooltip player_id='1651788' first='Jakyi' last='Miles']. In this article, I take a look at 8 players that were the top scorers from the Showcase. I will follow this article up looking at other standout players from the Bakersfield Christian MLK Showcase. In this article you will find the following information: player's information, relevant statistics, and a brief description of each player's skill sets and how they performed in the games I watched. The players are listed in order of scoring, from the top scorer of the Showcase to the lowest scorer of the top bucket getters. We begin this article by looking at [player_tooltip player_id='1651788' first='Jakyi' last='Miles'].    Miles is a bouncy and athletic player that can score the ball from 3-levels, is lethal with the mid-range jumper, has the court saviness to find open players when on the attack, is active on the glass, and displayed the overall skill set that has him ranked in the Top 10 nationally for the 2028 class per ESPN (#10). The 6-foot-4 combo guard led the Jackrabbits with 8 points at the half against host team Bakersfield Christian, but he looked to be in cruise control and focused more on making plays for others. Miles went to work in the second half, scoring 18 of his single-game event scoring high of 26 points after intermission, as he got in his bag and connected on some of the smoothest jumpers I've seen from any player since I attended the 3SSB Invitational at the end of July. Miles has dynamic handles, uses the crossover, between-cross, behind-cross, toss-cross, in-and-out, and hesitation moves to get his defender off balance, gets great lift on the jumper with accuracy from the mid-range to the 3-point line, and is a creative scorer around height at the basket, with the Euro-step and reverse lay-ups, as well as the floater in his scoring arsenal. Miles displayed the ability to connect on the middy in a variety of ways, with the traditional stop-and-pop pull-up jumper, the spin-fade, half-spin into the pull-up, and the step-back jumper, with great body control to absorb contact in the air and still square his shoulders up to knock down contested jumpers. Miles hunts the mid-range jumper with confidence and efficiency, which opens up driving lanes for himself or teammates moving off the ball. Miles crashes the boards as was evident with his 8 rebounds, which limits opponents to single shot possessions, has the handle to push the ball up the court, and gives his team second chance scoring opportunities. Miles keeps the ball on a string to survey the floor, makes precise passes to open teammates cutting off the ball or off the drive and kick pass, as well as finding the diver on the pick and roll action, as well as up the court in transition to highlight his court vision, as was evident with his 5 assists. Solid perimeter defender with the length, active hands, and instincts to jump passing lanes, deflect entry passes, or poke the ball out to turn defense to offense. I had heard a lot of positives about Miles' game going into the MLK Showcase and he left no doubt that he is one of the best perimeter players I have seen from the national 2028 class and one to keep an eye on over the next two years.     Fomusoh is a lengthy and athletic player that scores in volume, excels in the open court, is active on the glass, is emerging as one of the top perimeter defenders in the Section, and had a monster fourth quarter to help his team keep even with the Stars to get to overtime, where his squad would pull out the 78 to 76. Fomusoh ended up with a game-high 25 points, tied with his teammates Ryan Shaw, to go along with 8 rebounds, 4 steals, and 1 block and has continued to be a reliable scoring punch for the G-Hawks this season. Fomusoh crashes the boards for second chance scoring opportunities, limits opponents to single shot possessions, outlets the ball quickly to get up the court for transition buckets, or makes the pass up the court to open teammates. Fomusoh has emerged as one of the premier defenders, on the ball or in traps, as he uses his length, lateral quickness, and active hands to poke the ball out, deflect passes, and jump passing lanes to turn defense to offense. Fomusoh has good timing on close-outs to block/alter perimeter shots, the bounce to deflect shots from the weakside, has the handles and moves to create off the dribble, and is a crafty scorer around the basket. High-level two-way player that continues to add to his resume with some big games this week against Bakersfield High and a league match-up against Liberty of Bakersfield.     Shaw is a versatile player that can score in the paint, as well as space the floor from beyond the arc, is active on the glass, can score in volume, and is a quality rim protector. The 6-foot-6 stretch-forward had a strong start to the game, scoring 7 points in the first quarter, but due to fouls saw limited minutes in the 2nd quarter. Shaw put on a dominant second half and overtime performance, as he would score 18 of his game-high 25 points after the break, connecting on 3 threes for the game and a pair of free throws in overtime to help the G-Hawks get a 78 to 76 win over North Bakersfield. Shaw pulled down 13 rebounds for a monster double-double and continues to put up great numbers and leads Centennial in scoring as a sophomore. Shaw crashes the boards on both ends, gets plenty of points off put-back rebounds, has the court vision to make the pass up the court off the defensive rebound, and has good timing and instincts to alter/block shots in the paint. Shaw moves well off the ball, gets to the open spot, and is accurate with the 3-ball off the catch. He has enough handle to attack off the perimeter, has a smooth face-up jumper, and scores through contact at the basket often, earning trips to the free throw line with regularity. Shaw has been one of the more impactful players for his team this season, and has been a huge reason that Centennial is looking to capture the SYL-River title back and, if placed in the D2 playoffs, a team that could compete for a Section title.     Kellogg is an explosive and athletic player that can score in volume, routinely gets paint touches to collapse the defense, and earns trips to the free throw line with frequency with his ability to get to the basket off the dribble. In a game that I had circled as one to focus on, as the Royals have added sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='3035416' first='Kason' last='Niko'] to its roster this season and Liberty seemed to be an ideal opponent in what could be a future playoff meeting in the D2 Section playoffs, the Patriots held a double-digit lead from the second quarter on. Despite the lack-luster showing from Mission Prep, Kellogg was one of two bright spots for the Royals, as he would do all he could to keep the game close, scoring 25 points, nearly half of the team's total of 51, and scoring in each quarter to show the balance over the course of the game. Kellogg has solid handles, uses the crossover, between-cross, and hesitation to get his defender off balance, has a quick burst off speed off the bounce to get by his initial defender, has a smooth stop-and-pop pull-up jumper, and is a creative scorer around the basket, with the use of the Euro-step, reverse, and up-and-under lay-ups to evade rim protectors. Kellogg excels in the open court, gets ahead of the defense to score in transition, can go coast to coast with the ball, as he is able to play fast but under control, and scores through contact at the basket, which allows him to draw fouls and get to the line. Kellogg is a solid on-ball defender with active hands, good lateral footspeed, and gets into his opponents dribbling space to generate steals and get out into the open court.     Saenz is a skilled and poised player that controls the pace of play, keeps the ball on a string to survey the court, has the moves to create his own scoring opportunities, and is a good positional rebounder. The 5-foot-11 lead guard had a tough go against South Bakersfield in a league match-up earlier in the week, as the Stars would fall to the Spartans. I was there for that games as well, and knowing Saenz and his approach to the game of basketball, I expected him to have a big game against Centennial of Bakersfield in the final game of the MLK Showcase, and that is exactly what he did, going for 24 points and 5 rebounds in a great overtime game that led to Centennial pulling out with the win in overtime. Despite the loss, Saenz hit several big shots and put his squad on his back down the stretch, as he would score 11 of the Stars final 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, but North came up just short. Saenz has dynamic handles, keeps the dribble alive to probe the defense, has a good burst off the dribble to attack openings in the defense, is a crafty scorer over height with the reverse or opposite hand finish on the lay-up, the floater from various spots on the floor, smooth jumper with accuracy from the mid-range to the 3-point line, and the court vision to make the right read off the drive and kick pass, up the court in transition, or to the diver off the pick and roll action. Saenz moves well off the ball, gets to the open spot, and is effective with the 3-ball off the catch. He is active on the glass, which allows him to push the tempo and set the offense up if the transition game is cut off.     Gonzalez is a player that can score in volume, stays active around the basket, runs the floor well in the open court, and has a solid jumper. Gonzalez and the Bears were already underway in their match-up against Highland of Bakersfield in the 3rd game of the Showcase, as I got to the gym at the start of the second quarter. Gonzalez had a solid first half, scoring 10 points to keep his team close. Gonzalez continued with the hot hand in the 3rd quarter, scoring 9 more points to keep the score tied at 52 a piece. Despite his valiant effort and a game-high 24 points, Gonzalez and the Bears lost to the Scots, 74 to 69 in one of the most competitive games of the event. Gonzalez crashes the boards, gets buckets on the putback, limits opponents to single shot opportunities, and can space the floor with the face-up mid-range jumper. Gonzalez has enough handle to put the ball on the deck and attack from the top of the key, has the strength to score through contact en route to the basket, and gets fouled to earn trips to the free throw line.     Hoffman-Carter is a lengthy and skilled player that showed he can put up points quickly, can spread the floor from beyond the arc, and could be a critical piece to help the Stars in the scoring column, as it has been heavily reliant on the Saenz brothers this season. The 6-foot-4 wing/guard is a new addition to the Stars squad and he showed that he can be a major contribution with a strong outing against Centennial of Bakersfield, going for 23 points, connecting on 3 threes in the process, and a monster first half with 17 of his 23 points coming before the half, and his buckets would be pivotal in giving North the lead at the break. Hoffman-Carter has solid handles, uses the crossover, between-cross, and hesitation moves to create separation from his defender, moves fluid off the ball to get to his shot spots, squares his body up to be ready for the pass, and gets good lift on the jumper with accuracy from the mid-range to the 3-point line off the catch or the dribble. Hoffman-Carter has good body control through contact on the jumper, and is a crafty scorer around the basket. Big addition for the Stars and will be a factor in the rematch against South Bakersfield, which will likely be for first place in league.     Parra is a shifty and skilled lead guard that controls the flow of the offense, can light it up from beyond the arc, and has the court vision and decision making to make plays for his teammates. Parra and the Scots went back and forth against Selma, and the 5-foot-9 freshman hit big shot and big shot to help his team secure the victory over the Bears, as he would go for a team-high 22 points, connecting on 4 threes in the second half. Parra has solid handles, keeps the dribble alive to survey the floor, makes good reads to teammates cutting off the ball or off the drive and kick pass, uses the crossover, hesitation, and between-cross moves to get by his initial defender, and is a crafty scorer around height in the paint. Parra moves fluidly off the ball, gets to the open spot, and is accurate with the 3-ball off the catch, as well as the dribble. Parra plays with good pace and flow to keep his defender on his toes, and his shooting ability forces defenses to hyper-focus on him, which makes the use of the pump-fake or the hesitation moves highly effective for him to attack open lanes.

Bakersfield, CA - Last Monday, on Martin Luther King Day, Bakersfield Christian hosted its inaugural MLK Showcase, which featured an 8-game format with 16 teams. The event featured some intriguing match-ups between Liberty and Mission Prep; Centennial and North Bakersfield; Frontier and Porterville; and the headline game between the host team BCHS and Mesa of Arizona, and its nationally ranked standout sophomore prospect Jakyi Miles Jakyi Miles 6'4" | PG Mesa | 2028 State #11 Nation AZ . In this article, I take a look at 8 players that were the top scorers from the Showcase. I will follow this article up looking at other standout players from the Bakersfield Christian MLK Showcase. In this article you will find the following information: player's information, relevant statistics, and a brief description of each player's skill sets and how they performed in the games I watched. The players are listed in order of scoring, from the top scorer of the Showcase to the lowest scorer of the top bucket getters. We begin this article by looking at Jakyi Miles Jakyi Miles 6'4" | PG Mesa | 2028 State #11 Nation AZ .