National Prep Championship X-Factors

With the main bracket of the National Prep Championship tipping off on Tuesday as 16 teams vie for the national title, we decided to take a look at X-factors from each of the top several seeds.    Blair enters the week as the top-ranked prep team in the country and the bracket's #1 seed, led primarily by its explosive guard play from McDonald's All-American Deron Rippey and Rhode Island signee Jaen Chatman. But what puts the Bucs over the top is when they get Awaka playing at his best, with the top-100 junior imposing his will in the paint on both ends of the floor as a complement to the firepower in the backcourt. He's shown added explosiveness near the rim as of late, both as a finisher and shot-blocker, and is deceptively comfortable moving his feet on the perimeter when switched onto smaller players. Awaka projects clearly toward the high-major level, but can still be a bit inconsistent in his output at times; if he's anything close to his best in West Hartford this week, Blair is going to be a mighty tough out.     Putnam has built a dynasty over the past half-decade in the prep school landscape built largely on the back of a tough-nosed, defense-first culture. This year's group is no different but is complemented by the explosive offensive exploits of Taggart, a repeat junior from the Rochester area. Simply put, Taggart is as microwaveable a shooter and scorer as there is in prep school, with the ability to get hot at a moment's notice and connect on a half-dozen or more 3s before the defense is even able to react. He's a bit streaky at times but if he can get going in a game or two this week, it could prove to be the difference for Putnam in taking home the hardware.     Newman comes in fresh off a second consecutive AAA title led by a slew of D1 commits and a pair of high-majors in [player_tooltip player_id='2638999' first='Lucas' last='Morillo'] (Illinois) and McDonald's All-American [player_tooltip player_id='1532640' first='Quinn' last='Costello'] (Michigan). The Cardinals' heartbeat, however, tends to come in the form of Geremia, one of four Ivy League pledges in the Newman rotation. A battle-tested guard with unsuspecting toughness, he's a knockdown shooter who can connect in bunches from the perimeter but has also grown into a dependable ballhandler and secondary facilitator. His tough-nosed approach combined with his spurtability from the perimeter and steadiness for a team lacking a pure point guard could be the ultimate separator if Newman is to capture the crown.     Cushing is known most for its tandem of [player_tooltip player_id='2465117' first='Ryan' last='Moesch'] at the point and [player_tooltip player_id='2470882' first='Theo' last='Edema'] in the middle, but the Penguins have another name beginning to emerge nationally in the form of Blenman. A skilled inside-out frontcourt presence, he's spent much of the year playing his way back into peak shape after missing extended time over the spring and summer with a foot injury. To that end, he should now be playing his best basketball, giving Cushing an added dimension with his ability to initiate offense from the post or operating in dribble handoffs. If he can give extended minutes as a complement to Edema in the frontcourt, it will make Cushing especially tough to beat coming in on the heels of a NEPSAC AA title.     IMG comes in as the presumed favorite among the non-Northeast programs, sporting a tight rotation of talented pieces at each spot in the lineup. The Swiss-army knife who often holds it all together is Colyer, a Florida native who does a little bit of everything on both ends of the floor. He gives the Ascenders a potent multi-level scoring threat in the halfcourt but is also able to thrive as a secondary ballhandler or play a point forward role at times, showing impressive feel as a playmaker. When he's knocking down shots consistently, he can look the part of a potential high-major prospect and make IMG a potential contender to win it all.

With the main bracket of the National Prep Championship tipping off on Tuesday as 16 teams vie for the national title, we decided to take a look at X-factors from each of the top several seeds.