Illinois Tune-Up: Teddy’s Friday Notebook (Part 1)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's the first part of my Friday notebook from the Tune-Up. Happy Independence Day!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Outwork 17u Shows Potential</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Illinois outwork opened the morning in a physical matchup against All-in black. This outwork squad has a mix of 2027 and 2028 prospects to stand out. Early on, it was senior [player_tooltip player_id='2405962' first='Khaleb' last='Ervin'] and junior Javion Watkins. Both of them showed aggression near the glass which led to some strong takes in transition. That was complemented by a really strong fadeaway jumper to close out the first half from Ervin over two taller defenders. They also got various contributions from point guard [player_tooltip player_id='2125584' first='Angelo' last='Lazo'] in this stage. I was most impressed with Lazo's ability to attack the rim as he finished a few tight layups through space and also knocked down free throws at a solid clip. [player_tooltip player_id='2393484' first='Miguel' last='Gaspar'] opened the second half of this game with a catch-and-shoot triple in the corner on top of a nice assist to a cutting teammate. Giving them a 9-2 run to begin the half. Another three pointer from Javion Watkins added on to the lead before Gaspar hit his third one. A key 2nd half run put the game to bed as Outwork won by 20</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Names to know on 17u All-in Black</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Outwork opponents this morning surely had some names to monitor as they played a very competitive matchup. It's a smaller group. But full of hungry guards that can get the job done. Deerfields [player_tooltip player_id='2403394' first='Carter' last='Hart'] is one of those guys who has great length and showed tons of confidence driving to the rim early on. Then showed he can stretch out from keep and knock down contested three's to keep them in the game. He's a guy in this class who can surely grow a bit more and should not get overlooked by D3's from a long term perspective. To complement that is [player_tooltip player_id='2125623' first='D'Angelo' last='Perkins'] who can fly to the rim and create second chance opportunities for his team while also forcing misses on the defensive end. [player_tooltip player_id='2125661' first='Lincoln' last='Burke'] also flashed some shooting abilities with a pair of three's</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Looking at 15u Compete</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This Compete squad is a mix of Wisconsin and Illinois players located in the northwest part of Illinois (southwest for Wisconsin). They got off to a strong start against Ball Elite 15u with four different players finding the hoop. One of them being Trygva Collins who's has a smooth touch with creative finishes around the rim. As well as [player_tooltip player_id='2822876' first='Jeb' last='Wienen'] who has great strides attacking the rim and wasn't afraid to let it fly from deep. Collins also impressed me as the game went on with his on-ball defending as it often seemed like nobody could break past him. Then had a transition score to give them the lead early on in the 2nd hald and they expanded on it shortly after. A put-back finish from Wienen and a transition score put them ahead double digits. Then stretched out for a three-pointer in the closing stages of the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->