Saturday Afternoon 16U Standouts at Hard Work Region Finals

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The action continued at the Hard Work Region Finals on Saturday as teams competed for a spot in the winner's bracket on Sunday—these players I've deemed to be the most impressive in striving for that goal.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2045262"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-668a20b80ab01"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700"> It was hard to pick who stood out the most from the UA [program_tooltip program_id='2076033' first='Wisconsin' last='Playmakers'] team because they all played a similar brand of basketball, but Anderson seemed to be making more plays than most. Anderson used his size to his advantage and could pick and choose when he went into the defender for a contact finish and when to fade away for a short jumper. Anderson was a strong defender both on the perimeter and in the paint, allowing him to guard 1-5 at any time.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2401356"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-668a20b80ab70"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Christenson is a very strong shooter, and he shoots the ball with confidence. In the one half I watched, Christenson knocked down two 3's and added a few mid-range jumpers as well. After each make, the defense would step up a little more, but Christenson would keep shooting until the defense made him stop. Few guys have that kind of confidence, but it was fun to watch it from Christenson.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":[2391096],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-668a20b80abb7"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Don't let the size fool you when it comes to Heikkinen because he plays the game a lot bigger than he is. Late in the game when it was still somewhat in reach for the [program_tooltip program_id='2075702' first='MN' last='Lightning'], Heikkinen took the ball to the rack with his mind set on getting a bucket. Rather than trying to get fancy, he just attacked fast and finished right over the top of a larger defender. He also knocked down outside shots, forcing the defense to respect his two-level scoring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1560793"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-668a20b80abf1"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Michaels found great success running the offense for his MN Select team against a younger D1MN team. Despite the loss, Michaels played a strong game on both ends of the floor. He was so quick on defense that it allowed him to pick up full court, and twice it led to fastbreak opportunities. Michaels added a three to his stat sheet late in the first half to keep the game within reach.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='2524650' first='Kwatamah' last='Silikpoh']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'10u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"77246","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Champlin Park","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"[program_tooltip program_id='2075431' first='D1' last='Minnesota']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-668a20b80ac7f"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Silikpoh is one of the fastest players with the ball I have ever watched. Following a defensive rebound, he darted down the floor like a torpedo, creating easy looks for teammates underneath the basket. Similar to [player_tooltip player_id='1560793' first='Lamont' last='Michaels'], Silikpoh's speed allowed him to be super effective on the ball, playing tight defense all the way down the floor. There was one finish at the rim that Silikpoh surprised me with because he was moving so quickly but changed his pace immediately, slowing it down for the finish.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->