2026 Summer Madness Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Summer Madness event put on by The Huddle Brand has turned into must-see action prior to June each year. Now in year seven, this could very well be one of the strongest field they've put together as over 15 teams will make their way to Suitland High school and compete in a tournament style field where a champion will be crowned on Sunday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Archbishop Carroll</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There's no way to replace the impact that Anthony Brown (Vanderbilt) brought for the Lions last year, but HC Malcolm Battle will put the right group with the right mindset together to be another tough out in WCAC play. 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2353541' first='Bam' last='Bolding'] looks to prove why he's one of the more underrated guards in the DMV while the 2028 trio of [player_tooltip player_id='2388168' first='Chima' last='Amadi'], [player_tooltip player_id='2610833' first='Truth' last='Kelly'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2194564' first='Donovan' last='Ford'] have all had nice starts to their spring in preparation of embracing bigger roles within the offense in 2026-27.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bethel</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>New HC Ahzar Shamsudeen has started his work at Bethel and in rather dominant fashion just based off their play at Capitol Hoops Summer League where they're 3-0, winning games by an average of 31.3 points. A few standouts have been 2027 Cam Prosper, 2027 Joseph McCarthy, 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2552618' first='Dhruv' last='Iyer'], 2028 Cam Jefferson and 2028 Tim Allen-Crank.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>City</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Knight enter this upcoming season looking to avenge a state semifinal loss after winning the Class 3A state title in 2024-25. 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2951999' first='RJ' last='Muhammad'] will have the controls to the offense as the point guard. 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2935812' first='Noah' last='Cowan'] and 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='3560519' first='Ethan' last='Chinnia'] will be key returners.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Clinton Grace</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Clinton Graces boasts arguably the most talented roster in the event headlined by the No. 1 ranked 2027 MD/DC prospect in [player_tooltip player_id='2139297' first='J'Lon' last='Lyons']. The talent certainly doesn't stop there as they return 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2353558' first='Isaiah' last='Carpenter'] and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2880748' first='Cam' last='Shields'] Jr., 2029 [player_tooltip player_id='2536485' first='Nas' last='Abraham'] (No. 2 ranked prospect in 2029) and 2029 [player_tooltip player_id='3068851' first='Jamar' last='Sims'] from last year's team. Impact transfers to watch will be 2028 Jaylen Allen, 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2500743' first='Cayden' last='Morrison'] and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2357976' first='Toran' last='Ayana'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Flowers</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another public school looking to avenge a loss in the semifinal of their respective class is Flowers. They finished last season 24-1 on the shoulders of 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2639998' first='Brandon' last='Brooks'], who was named MBCA Mr. Basketball for the state of Maryland after averaging 25.9PPG, 11.2RPG and 5.4APG during his junior campaign.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Gonzaga</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Purple Eagles have some of the more intriguing young prospects that'll five HC Keith Urgo plenty of rosters, but he'll have a senior guard he can lean on to help control things with his experience in 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2454543' first='Chase' last='Hogg']. 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2194753' first='Dave' last='Mbuyamba'] was a walking double-double as a sophomore and I expect him to be a force this season now that he's used to playing big minutes in WCAC play. 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2524418' first='Jahlil' last='Waheed'] still brings plenty of intrigue with his positional size and shooting as a 2-3. 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2758600' first='Patrick' last='Shime'] should look to step up and be a bigger piece to the puzzle as his ceiling as a wing remains high. 2029 [player_tooltip player_id='2974117' first='Dylan' last='Higginbotham'] made his mark as a freshman and will be on of the better sophomore guards in the league. 2030 [player_tooltip player_id='2886159' first='Khyri' last='Tomlinson'] will be one of the freshmen in the league who can immediately impact with his combination of size and skill.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jackson-Reed</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tigers took a hit losing a key piece to the transfer portal, but still has a dynamic duo in 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2623334' first='Lane' last='Mahan'] and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2876205' first='James' last='Walker'] to lean on offensively. Both have answered the call thus far in Capitol Hoops Summer League play and I'd expect that theme to continue here while 2028 Amir Bruntley runs the offense as the floor general.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Kipp</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I'm going to be using this stage to learn more about what Kipp will have the upcoming season after losing a bulk of production from last year's roster. One prospect that I am already aware of his 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2524445' first='Kaleb' last='Clark'], and I'd expect him to be a focal point for HC Jimmie Jenkins this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lackey</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The reigning champs of Class 2A lost their bell cow in Malik Gordon to graduation, but that means it'll be 2027 Travis Suggs' show to run from the guard spot. They return their big man in the paint in 2028 Tyzon Swann who proved that he can impact the game in multiple ways from the frontcourt. Look for other names to step up after last year's impressive run.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Largo</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>HC Rodney Ward returns his point guard in 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2571854' first='Ayden' last='Ashe'] who will be expected to be the straw that stirs the drink for the Lions. Other prospects to watch closely include 2028 Dechae Turner, 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2889362' first='Canaan' last='Ward'] and 2029 [player_tooltip player_id='3420821' first='Craig' last='Russell'] as others will be sure to emerge.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mt. Carmel</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One aspect of this event I'm interested in is seeing the group that HC Tony Martin rolls out. With departures from key seniors on last year's MIAA A Conference title team and the transfer portal, it'll force others to step up in big roles in order to sustain success. The anchor remains in 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2454529' first='Junior' last='Mancho']. Look for the duo of 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2364682' first='Kiyen' last='Alexander'] and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2547340' first='Antwan' last='Williams'] to be a key factors in the backcourt and will be expected to initiate much of the playmaking </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Riverdale Baptist</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another program that underwent a coaching change was Riverdale Baptist and James Parker looks to transition the strong culture he built at Fairfax Christian to his new home. 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2629848' first='Kyle' last='Logan'] is assumed to be a big piece for Parker along with 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2548905' first='Angelo' last='Cunningham'] from last year's roster. There is expected to be some turnover as is the case whenever a new coach enters the picture, so we will have our eyes closely on the team he rolls out this weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Southern Maryland Christian Academy</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>HC Hillary Haley had his group operating a year ahead of schedule last season, which means they'll enter this year with higher expectations given their trio of seniors who can move the needle. 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2724897' first='Corey' last='Hughley'], 2027 Ja'zeyere Thompson and 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='3198409' first='Timothy' last='Patton Jr'] will be the core of Haley's production. Looking forward to seeing who else emerges for the Mustangs as well as a freshman that enters the picture with some high praise.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Springdale Prep</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Lions come into this event led by 2027 point guard [player_tooltip player_id='2889373' first='Jay' last='Green'], who is expected to play a large on-ball role capitalizing off last year's run to the Maryland Private School State title. 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2370950' first='Larry' last='Duncan'] is an athletic wing with size who really started to shine in his role late last season. Our top ranked 2029 prospect in [player_tooltip player_id='2767938' first='Jordan' last='Costley'] will look to showcase the overall growth in his game while proving himself as one of the more lethal outside shooters in the area.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>St. Frances</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers will look to provide some flash and excitement as they boast one of the best guards in the DMV in 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2454534' first='Terence' last='Jones III']. Alongside him in the backcourt will be 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2954433' first='Chance' last='McCoy'] while 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='3142764' first='Jaliel' last='Spears'] and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2546066' first='Mikey' last='Williams'] will make up the main core for head coach Nick Myles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Theodore Roosevelt</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Admittedly so, this will be a great opportunity for me to get a look at the Roughriders, who finished last season with an impressive 28-4 overall record. 2027 Gabriel Hudgens and 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2623274' first='Zion' last='Copeland'] were impact guys on last year's squad and it'll be good to get an updated evaluation on them with how their individual games have progressed over the last few months.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->