Hustle in the Rockies: 16U Saturday Standouts
With Friday being such a hard act to follow, somehow Day 2 on Saturday found a way to raise the level of play at the Gold Crown Fieldhouse for #Hustleintherockies. A packed house and a full slate of 16U action,…
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Continue ReadingWith Friday being such a hard act to follow, somehow Day 2 on Saturday found a way to raise the level of play at the Gold Crown Fieldhouse for #Hustleintherockies. A packed house and a full slate of 16U action, meant every court had great competition and high-level hoops. I tried to get to as many games as possible, but with 4-6 games going at any time, I could only see so much at once. Here are my notes on some Saturday performances that stood out.
Kadyn Betts Kadyn Betts 6'7" | PF Huntington Prep | 2023 #90 Nation CO of PLUTO Prospects flat-out dominated all weekend. The versatile, do-everything, 6’7″ forward, showed why all the college coaches were at his court every game. I talked a little about his Post Game here, but Kadyn put the full package on display Saturday. He dominated the glass controlling rebounds at a high clip. I love his ability to take rebounds coast to coast and initiate the fast break off the glass. His teammates know to run the floor in transition, as Kadyn is a capable and willing passer. In the half-court, he can stretch the floor out to three, but he’s at his best when he’s attacking the rim and drawing contact, generating points at the free throw line. Look back historically at all the great scorers, they all were great at drawing fouls and getting free throw attempts.
Colorado Titans teammates Derryk Hall and Nick Roderick combined for 28 of their team’s 61 points in an early morning showdown with Colorado Mayhem (2). Derryk had 12 in the 2nd half and Nick was a monster in transition, scoring, as the Titans were able to pull away late.
Finn Horsfall Finn Horsfall 6'4" | SG Air Academy | 2023 State CO , PLUTO Prospects caught a heater and was ON FIRE Saturday afternoon. The Prospects rolled through all their competition, and the 6’4″ Horsfall was a huge piece. The smooth shooting wing couldn’t miss for a stretch and his teammates kept feeding him for 16 points. I loved how the Prospects used their offensive sets to take great shots on the day, and Horsfall was able to get great looks out of the flow of their playsets, and then was able to get into the paint using his pumpfake to either score at the rim or create good looks for his teammates.
I was really impressed with Colorado Mayhem’s Nasir Mills and his toughness and grit. The Vista Peak High School guard was a pesky defender all afternoon and was relentless in his attacking style. His ball-hawking defense led to fast break opportunities the other way with steals and deflections. I love his ability to play off two feet in the paint and absorb contact and still have the strength to finish. His teammates feed off his energy and toughness and Nasir did a great job of setting the tone for the Mayhem.
Trei Ginn from Colorado ICE 16U used his tenacity on defense to to get the ICE out in transition for easy scores and dunks on the fast break. Trei is the type athlete who not only has big bounce, but I love his “2nd-jump” ability, often getting his own misses and jumping multiple times battling bigger guys for rebounds. He had steady numbers all weekend, but Saturday scored in the mid teens, averaging about 15 pts on the day.
Archer VanSickle Archer VanSickle 6'4" | CG Valor Christian | 2023 State CO showed he is a force at the combo guard spot, playing some good minutes at point guard. He contributed 14 points in PLUTO’s win over the Colorado Mayhem, and I was really impressed with his overall game. I love his ability to shoot the ball when off the ball, and when facing full-court pressure he did an excellent job of not allowing the defense to speed him up. Staying calm under pressure is a huge part of the PG job, and I liked what I saw Saturday.
Charlie Dortch Charlie Dortch 6'7" | PF L'anse Creuse North | 2023 State CO | Jaedyn Brown | Silas McCurnin Silas McCurnin 6'2" | PG Poudre | 2023 State CO |
I talked about Charlie Dortch Charlie Dortch 6'7" | PF L'anse Creuse North | 2023 State CO 2023, Rocky Mountain Fever, in my Post Players to Keep an eye on, but I loved how balanced Rocky Mountain Fever was in their scoring and production. Jaedyn Brown from Pullman High School (Pullman, WA) had 15 points and Silas McCurnin added 13. The ability to be dynamic in their attack, mixing paint points from the big fella and the sharpshooting of Silas and Jaedyn, made the Fever fun to watch.
Stay locked in to @PrepHoopsCO, as I’ll continue to highlight guys who stood out from the rest of the weekend as well as my selections for all tournament team.
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