MDPSSBT B Division Stock Risers

The fourth annual Maryland Private School State Tournament concluded over the weekend with the Boys B Division game on Saturday evening as the top-seeded Takoma Academy captured the title with a 73-62 win over No. 6 Mt. Zion Prep-Blue. Below are the prospects who helped boost their stock over the course of the tournament.    McKenzie took home tournament MVP honors as he led Takoma Academy to the first ever B Division title in MDPSSBT history. The smooth, southpaw scoring guard was the primary option throughout the season for the Tigers and proved his worth once again through this run as a guy who can create his own offense with regularity. Using the reputation he has built as a shooter to demand aggressive closeouts, McKenzie did a nice job of attacking the defender's top foot and straight-line driving to the basket where he used his length to finish on tough angles or force a ref's whistle with the contact he draws in mid-air. McKenzie averaged 19.7 points on 50 percent shooting from the field while grabbing 4.7 rebounds per game in Takoma's three wins.     Long quietly put together one of the better senior seasons in the MPSC as a well-rounded scoring guard who poses as a legitimate three-level threat. The 1,000-point scorer gets to his sport with impressive fluidity off the bounce and gets great lift while maintaining balance throughout the process. He can get downhill to the rim and use English on lay-ups to make life harder on rotating shot blockers, pull the trigger quickly when sizing up his defender from beyond the arc as well as shoot off movement off the ball coming off pin downs. While his first mission is to score it, Long doesn't turn into a tunnel vision type of guy. On paint touches he's aware of the defense collapsing and quickly delivers kick-out passes on target to shooters spotting up around the perimeter. He's an instinctual defender with quick hands that looks to turn steals into quick scores. Long averaged an impressive 19.7 points, 5.7 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game leading Mt. Zion to a championship game appearance.     Won't spend a ton of time on Yates considering he will be suiting up for Army football as a freshman, but cannot overlook his impressive tournament showing leading Saint James to a semifinal appearance behind 23 points, five rebounds, five steals and 3.5 assists per game. The senior guard capped his productive high school career and helped the program to a 20-9 overall record with some momentum in the coming years with some talented underclassmen.     Polk played hero in the semifinal game helping Mt. Zion to the championship game, banking in a floater as time expired. The quick-twitch point guard is a blur in the open floor and terrorized teams with his end-to-end speed throughout the tournament. The 5-foot-10 point guard averaged 18.7 points, 5.3 assists, 3.6 steals, three rebounds and over a steal a game. The loaded stat line is an indication of his activity and impact on both ends of the floor. Mt. Zion came in as the No. 6 seed and pulled off an admirable run to the title game led by their dynamic backcourt duo of Polk and Long, two prospects who should be on various levels of radars when it comes to college programs.     Arguably the biggest stock riser for me personally is Wylie, a skilled, 6-foot-7 southpaw hybrid forward who brings intriguing fluidity and versatility. As a result of his performance late this season, the upside is evident and so will be the bump he receives in the rankings update coming in a couple of weeks. New Hope was a semifinal exit against Mt. Zion as a result of Polk's buzzer beater, but in the two games Wylie averaged 15 points and five rebounds while shooting 55 percent from the field and 56 percent from three. One of his five made three's in the two-game span came in the quarterfinal upset with under five seconds left to lift New Hope over Severn. There's a ton to like here with Wylie and he cemented himself on our radars to watch closely heading into the spring/summer.     Gurdak was the most impressive freshman that I saw on the B side. The 6-foot-5 well-put together wing is a fluid athlete who brings a commanding sense of physicality to the floor. His older brother, Christian (Va Tech), was a bruising big man who shined for Gonzaga but his brother seems to have more of a perimeter-based skillset. He's another prospect that poses as a mismatch problem because of his combination of size and strength, which was on display when opposing wings tried to keep him away from the bucket. He absorbs contact well and maintains focus on finishes to convert through the harm. He's a capable shot maker from three to keep his defender honest as well. Gurdak's best performance came in the slim semifinal loss where he led the way with an impressive 26-point outing where the scoring ability was showcased. He averaged 19 points per game on 56 percent shooting from the field in the two games played.

The fourth annual Maryland Private School State Tournament concluded over the weekend with the Boys B Division game on Saturday evening as the top-seeded Takoma Academy captured the title with a 73-62 win over No. 6 Mt. Zion Prep-Blue. Below are the prospects who helped boost their stock over the course of the tournament.