Hidden Gems Dominating Their Conferences

As the season winds down, these unknown prospects deserve recognition. They may not have buzz state-wide, but opponents absolutely know them. Night after night, they're controlling games, swinging results, and carrying. their team within their conference. They've been productive, consistent, and their impact all say the same thing: respect is overdue.    Luke is a 6'0 Senior guard at Fairview who has been a steady contributor for them for the past few seasons, but is having his best season yet for them. He's not a player who will wow you with his stats, but he's been a player who is on the scouting report. He's been steady and is averaging 8.4 points and 4.1 rebounds a game, which indicates their willingness to do the dirty work. Luke has been a solid boarder, and he's willing to work on the defensive end of the floor, which has led to a few victories.     Mesa Ridge is sitting at an impressive 14-5 record on the season and is in 1st place in the conference right now. They have balance, bigs who are willing to work, and they battle on both ends of the floor. Their leading scorer is 6'2 forward, Eligah, and he's a name who deserves more praise than he's getting. He's averaging 11.6 points and 7.6 rebounds a game which is nothing to scoff at. He battles on the glass, protects the paint, runs the floor and finishes. He's also willing to dive for loose balls and be the effort guy if needed. He's really upped his game as he's gotten into league play and is coming off of a game where he finished with 20 points and 14 rebounds in a close game against Palmer on insane efficiency. He's a prospect who should be getting a bit more attention.     Sawyer is another prospect who has been overlooked. That University squad has been getting a bit more attention this year as they sit at 12-4 and are battling for 1st place in their conference. Their best player is 6'3 guard, Sawyer, and he's been a stat-stuffing machine. Sawyer is averaging 19.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists on the year. He's shooting nearly 40% from beyond the arc, has put up double figures in every single game this year, and has been their best on-ball defender as well at 2.5 steals a game. He's not a player we've written about, which is wild because he's been one of the conference's best weapons. Sawyer should be on more radars and has been on a tear. Solid year for him.     We're late to the party when it comes to Senior combo guard, Jacob Walker. He's been a force this entire year as he's put up double figures in every game. He's efficient and dangerous with the ball in his hands. He can play both on and off ball, space the floor with his outside shot as well as finish in transition. He's also the team's playmaker who reads double teams and finds the open teammate as well as grab boards and goes right up or starts the break. He's done it all for GVCA, and while we haven't been paying attention, tell that to everyone else in the 3A/2A Foothills League who has seen that team go 15-2 on the year and look like one of the contenders.     Bennett is not a team that gets too much publicity, but if you don't take them seriously, they will surprise you. They have been a middle-of-the-pack team that has been a bit up and down on the year, but they also have some flash to them. Their bright spot is 6'0 score first guard, [player_tooltip player_id='2478541' first='Austin' last='Stiers']. Stiers has been their go-to guy and one of the top scorers in the conference. He's putting up 15.7 points and 4.3 rebounds on the year. He's also dishing and running the show, but has been best as a scorer. He has a few 30-point outings on the year. He's been the focal point for the offense and has had some big moments. The team will look for him to keep up his solid play as he makes a big push to close out the year.     Denver Christian is another team that we haven't seen too much of, but looking at how they've performed on the season, that should change. They've battled and competed in games and have some solid wins on the year. They're competitors who find ways to get it done, and their best player has been 6'3 point/forward Jayden Cain. Cain is a rebounding machine who keeps plays alive, finishes in bunches, and competes on both ends of the floor. He's putting up 15.4 points and 6.4 rebounds a game, and he's had a double-double on four different occasions. He also has 27 blocks and 26 steals, which show his two-way abilities. He's a prospect to take a deeper look at.     Alamosa is looking for some bright spots in the season as it is slowly coming to an end. Their best player has given it his all, and while he's not a name that has been covered a ton over the years, he deserves a bit of recognition. He's sitting at 19.5 points on the season, is consistent and steady, and in each game, you know what you're getting. They put the ball in his hands and let him create. He may not be a known commodity, but opposing teams in his conference know that he's going to bring it.

As the season winds down, these unknown prospects deserve recognition. They may not have buzz state-wide, but opponents absolutely know them. Night after night, they're controlling games, swinging results, and carrying. their team within their conference. They've been productive, consistent, and their impact all say the same thing: respect is overdue.