CBG Fall Finale: MD/DC Upperclassmen Notables

CBG hosted its fall finale over the weekend down in Richmond, VA at Henrico Sports & Events Center where a loaded slate of games unfolded on Saturday. I was court side for many of the best matchups and will have content flowing through the MD/DC and Virginia site in the next few days.   I start with the upperclassmen from the MD/DC areas who strung together notable performances.    Jones didn't connect on his typical array of triples in DeMatha's win over Mt. Zion Saturday morning, but he was able to impact the game in other ways that certainly contributed to the victory. One aspect I liked was his relentless pursuit of the ball defensively. He pressured the ball beyond half court, caused his man to turn multiple times and was excellent at back tapping the bal once his man thought they escaped the pressure. It resulted in multiple turnovers and extra possessions for the Stags. As he initiated offense in the half court, he was effective in high DHO's with Jared Jeffers or Danny Abass as Jones received the handoff, turned the corner with his defender on his back and used mature pace as he got to the middle of the paint for floaters with touch.     Matthews made it clear from Mt. Zion's opening game that he was going to relentlessly attack the rim. In the with over DeMatha to start the day, Matthews was a frequent charity stripe visitor because of his aggression getting downhill and bulldozing whoever stepped in his way. Set to make a big jump inside of the top 10 when the rankings are updated, what makes Matthews so difficult to defend his explosive first step that can lead to big time finishes above the rim, but when the defender can anticipate the first couple of moves, Matthews has the imposing upper body strength to move guys off their spots with bumps while maintaining body control to finish the shots through harm. He made a couple of highlight reel blocks both as the on-ball defender or as he rotated over from the weak side, keeping his body away from the offensive player while airborne to avoid the foul.     We see Wylie pretty often and it's great to note that with each viewing, he seems to get better. In terms of upside, there isn't a much better argument for a prospect outside the top 15 than Wylie given his improvements, size and bloodlines. He may not be outside the top 15 for long once we roll out the updated rankings and this performance in a win over S3 Academy only added to the reasons why. Wylie made shots with confidence from the wings early, then spent the rest of the game using shot fakes off the catch to either free himself up for open mid range jumpers or force the next defender to step up as he delivered extra passes to teammates in the corner for three's . In the second half, Wylie spent a few of his offensive trips above the rim finishing high and strong on dump-offs from his penetrating guards. Another aspect that stood out was his willingness to communicate.     I already wrote on the 2027 prospects who are likely to receive a healthy bump in the rankings update next week. Jeffers wasn't included in that article, but I'll be a spoiler here and tell you that he's moving up. I won't give away just how many spots yet, but whenever you're in the top seven and move a spot or two, it speaks volumes. The upside with Jeffers is as high as anyone in the local class. His size at 6-foot-10, rim presence on both sides of the ball and the comfort that he showed knocking down three's with fluidity are all characteristics that you see players at the highest of levels bring. Still young for his grade, there are plenty of avenues to improve on for Jeffers before introducing that sort of talk as a potential draft prospect, but the makeup and budding two-way versatility at his size will support my claims long term.     Strong win from Prince George's County to start their day against St. Christopher's as they'd go onto build a 20+ point lead. Kuek seemed to be involved in the majority of possessions when he was in and it had to do with his activity in the passing lanes, willingness to crash the glass on both ends and finished around the rim in straight line fashion using his plus wingspan to convert on the opposite side of the bucket. His size, length and positional versatility should bode well for him carving out a nice role for this talented PGCA group.     Dickerson has steadily been finding his footing within this Mt. Zion rotation this fall to set himself up as a very valuable piece for the EPL and Grind Session program. His impactful positional size around 6-foot-4 allows him to toggle multiple positions for head coach Rod Harrison depending on the lineup. So far the past couple of months, he's played more off the ball as a 2/3 who can space the floor from the corners as a catch-and-shoot guy and has improved his awareness as an off-ball cutter compared to his underclassmen seasons at Bullis. What has impressed me the most is his willingness as a rebounder and vocal presence quarterbacking the defense from the backline or the weak side. He started the day off with a bang as Mt. Zion clawed their way back into the matchup against DeMatha after trailing by double-digits for most of the way before connecting on the game-winning triple from the right corner.

CBG hosted its fall finale over the weekend down in Richmond, VA at Henrico Sports & Events Center where a loaded slate of games unfolded on Saturday. I was court side for many of the best matchups and will have content flowing through the MD/DC and Virginia site in the next few days.

I start with the upperclassmen from the MD/DC areas who strung together notable performances.