UA Next City Classic Standouts

The first annual UA Next City Classic took place in Baltimore on Saturday on the campus of St. Frances Academy. It was a chance for Under Armour to showcase some of its best prospects on the UAA Circuit and high school scene similar to the way they used to in the Elite 24 event. The game was packed with talent from various classes, brought fiery competition and had the gym rocking from start to finish.   Team Fox, coached by San Antonio Spurs' guard De'Aaron Fox, would end up getting the win over Team Queen (Derik Queen) by a final score of 97-93 as [player_tooltip player_id='2625563' first='Quentin' last='Mosby'] buried the game-winning shot in the corner during the Elam Ending format to conclude the contest.   Below are the standouts from the event.    Branham strung together his MVP performance behind a game-high 23PTS on 8/17FG and converting on four triples. The Indiana pledge is heading into his first and last year at La Lumiere before heading to Bloomington to suit up for the Hoosiers and based off his showing on Saturday, head coach Darian DeVires is getting a high-level shooter from deep with some underrated ability making plays for both himself or others off the bounce. He also did his work on the glass as he hauled in eight rebounds and dished out four dimes.     I had a strong feeling that Jones would shine in this sort of event because of his intense competitive nature and it didn't take long for him to prove those feelings right. The 6'3" combo guard led Team Queen with a loaded stat line of 19PTS, 6ASTS, 4REBS and 4BLKS. It was a good indication of his overall activity and impact as it seemed like Jones was always involved in actions that resulted in good things for his team. He drilled shots off the bounce even from three when his defender could get a decent contest, attacked the rim in the open floor for authoritative finishes and consistently got into the paint to breakdown the defense in order to set up teammates with clean looks. He'll be one of the more translatable guards heading into college next fall and spending his senior season at Dynamic Prep will only add to that certainty. Jones has official visits set up to Boston College, Clemson, Maryland and Oklahoma State.     While Branham and Jones put together impressive scoring outings in their own right, Mosby was the most natural shot-maker in the event to me. In terms of sizing up his defender, getting to his spots and confidently rising up from a few feet beyond the arc, it doesn't take long to recognize the extreme confidence Mosby has in his scoring ability. There was a reason he led the UAA Circuit in scoring and he once again was one of the headliners in this game going for 17PTS on an efficient 5/9 3P. The threat of his pull-up from deep demands gravity, which bodes well for his ability to wiggle and blow by his defender in space where he can make good decisions off the live dribble as a balance combo guard. Mosby also accounted for four rebounds as he showed his new head coach at IMG, Jackson Johnson, that he'll be equipped with one of the better 2028 lead guards in the country.   Georgia Tech, Northwestern, Utah, Stanford and Washington account for a few of the programs involved here.     The 2029 class is LOADED with high-end talent and McDaniel is one of the top names nationally depending on where you look. If I did a notebook on Friday night's practice, he would've been the main topic of conversation with his elite leadership qualities, work ethic and overall presence that you only see in future professionals. A 6'7"-6'8" southpaw do-it-all wing, McDaniel left his fingerprints on this game as one of the lone underclassmen with impressive shot making off the bounce, particularly in transition where he stopped on a dime and pulled the trigger with confidence. As usual, McDaniel didn't force the issue much. He exposed mismatches, made the correct reads out of them as the defense reacted and was a force on the glass as shown by his double-double outing of 15PTS and 12REBS.     Another hyper-competitive guard in this group, Davis was expected to be a massive presence in this game not only because of his skill, but because it was another chance to play in his hometown of Baltimore. The quick, slippery lead guard found his way to the rim whenever he pleased and finished the job with acrobatic lay-ups to get the ball by the extended arms of bigs rotating from the weak side. There were a few instances where Davis forced a look or two in crunch time, but ultimately stayed fairly efficient in his 14-point performance going 5/12FG and pulling in 5REBS. Davis recently set official visits to Houston and Mississippi State.     Other than [player_tooltip player_id='2767538' first='Draydne' last='McDaniel'], Sanders was the prospect that left the biggest impression on me from a long-term perspective. It's hard not to let your mind wander when watching the 6'9"-6'10" forward who utilizes his elite length and fluid mobility with such effectiveness at the stage of his development. He plays with a chip on his shoulder that allowed for some in-game drama to take place between he and Branham, but it brought the fuel to ignite the gym more than it already was. Sanders finishes high and strong on dump-offs in the dunker's spot, has nice touch on his jumper that he showed knocking down a three from the right wing and doesn't hesitate to go up and alter attempts at the bucket. The promising 2030 prospect looked to fit in comfortably among the elite talent ranging from various classes as he chipped in with 10PTS (4/5 FG) and 5REBS.     This game offered an entertaining guard matchup between two of Baltimore's own in Jones and Darrell Davis. Although Jones doesn't play on the UAA Circuit, the UA sponsorship at St. Frances gave him the nod and if you're familiar with the southpaw guard's game, you knew he wouldn't go down quietly. He gets to spots with quickness and precision with the ability to pull-up in the blink of an eye and bury jumpers in humiliating fashion. He scored 12PTS in this one, but all of them were loud as he caught the crowds attention with a crossover, half spin into a stepback or using his crafty footwork on the way to the cup for scoop finishes. Jones also accumulated 4ASTS, 3REBS and 3STLS.

The first annual UA Next City Classic took place in Baltimore on Saturday on the campus of St. Frances Academy. It was a chance for Under Armour to showcase some of its best prospects on the UAA Circuit and high school scene similar to the way they used to in the Elite 24 event. The game was packed with talent from various classes, brought fiery competition and had the gym rocking from start to finish.