CoBL Interstate Shootout: Individual matchups to watch (Sunday)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>City of Basketball Love will host its annual Interstate Shootout this weekend, bringing in over 100 teams from across the region to compete at the Sixth Man Center over the course of two jam-packed days. Take a look below at a handful of individual matchups we're looking forward to watching on Sunday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2028 CG Patrick Jajua (Pennsbury) vs. 2029 SG [player_tooltip player_id='3523011' first='Alex' last='Whitworth'] (Clearview)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This early morning (9:00am) matchup features two prolific young scorers who go about their business in contrasting ways. Jajua has shown flashes of brilliance since he first donned a Pennsbury uniform and is one of the more dynamic downhill creators in the region when he gets into a rhythm. Whitworth, on the other hand, averaged well into double figures last year as a freshman but does much more of his damage as a long-range sniper, with one of the more dangerous jumpers around.<br><br>Look for at least one of them to get loose for 20+ in a matchup of two suburban prospects who should both see traction at the D1 level in years to come. Jajua has already earned offers from Cornell and Penn with interest from several more programs. It's still a bit early on the recruiting front for Whitworth, whose dad (also his high school coach) played at Drexel, but his size, shooting, and early overall production point to a bright future.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2028 SG/SF [player_tooltip player_id='2450655' first='Rezon' last='Harris'] (Father Judge) vs. 2028 SG [player_tooltip player_id='3685149' first='Bol' last='Garang'] (Peddie School)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This figures to be an intriguing matchup on a team level with it being a rare time to see a PCL program take on an opponent from the MAPL or any other of the region's prep leagues. With a slew of D1 prospects on the floor on either side, our eyes will be trained on these two junior wings who both have a chance to break out this season.<br><br>Harris showed flashes last season before struggling to factor in during the postseason, but has all the tools for the very highest levels of the sport with elite positional size, dynamic shotmaking ability, and a burgeoning off-the-dribble package. He's already included in national rankings based on his long-term potential and has a slew of recruiting interest up to the high-major level. In contrast, Garang is flying much more under the radar having just arrived at Peddie for a repeat junior year after being tucked away in the Syracuse area up until now. Being off the beaten path in both high school and AAU, his recruiting traction to this point is limited, but he's a clear D1 talent who will make his debut in the next update of the NJ 2028 rankings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2027 PF [player_tooltip player_id='2633181' first='Justin' last='Ragsdale'] (Upper Dublin) vs. 2027 PF [player_tooltip player_id='1608249' first='Josh' last='Benka-Coker'] (Pennington School)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Taking things to the frontcourt, this projects as a pretty even matchup between a pair of versatile forwards who serve as lynchpins for their respective teams. Both are battle-tested with Ragsdale having played deep into the district and state playoffs and Benka-Coker performing well this spring and summer on the EYBL circuit. Benka-Coker brings some more physicality to the table while Ragsdale has more stretch ability, but both have well-rounded skillsets with projectable frames for the next level.<br><br>Neither prospect has received a formal scholarship offer thus far but both have received interest from a wide array of programs on either end of the D1 bubble. With Ragsdale being very young for his grade, a prep year could potentially be on the table, while Benka-Coker's recruitment has taken a turn with him deciding to play football this fall and recently receiving an offer from Samford.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2029 CG [player_tooltip player_id='3456169' first='Sol' last='Onwubuariri'] (Conestoga) vs. 2029 SG [player_tooltip player_id='2884538' first='Omar' last='Ayyash'] (Ocean Township)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There may be a couple comparable underclassmen matchups in terms of talent, but not between two young prospects who will both lead the way for their respective teams as only sophomores. Both play crisp games with advanced poise for their age, with Onwubuariri stepping into the spotlight for the first time after flashing last year as a bench role and Ayyash returning for an encore after leading Ocean in scoring as a freshman.<br><br>Onwubuariri is more of a dribble-drive artist with extreme polish to his footwork and finishing craft while Ayyash is more of a shotmaker who uses his stout frame to impact the floor game. A lot will be determined by their respective physical maturation over the coming years but both young guards should go on to make a ton of noise over the rest of their high school careers and find themselves on the radar of D1 programs before too long.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->