Standouts: Glenbard West vs Downers Grove North
Friday night we traveled to Glenbard West High School to check out Downers Grove North against Glenbard West. Each team had an intriguing 2019 prospect that we were looking to evaluate. There was another pair of juniors that put their names on the map as well in this one. Check out our standouts from Glenbard West vs Downers Grove North.
SF Evan Taylor (Glenbard West – 2019)
We didn’t see a ton of Taylor on the travel team circuit this summer, but really liked the growth we have seen in his game since last high school season. Taylor stands at 6’6” with a nice frame and length. Definitely passes the eye test from a prospect standpoint. He is best at getting into the mid-range and pulling up off the bounce for jump shots. Gets elevation off the floor and has a good stroke. At times he can lean a bit forward on his jumper not being as balanced as he could be. Also can stretch it out to three pulling up. Definitely most comfortable shooting the rock off the bounce. Good ball handler that can play some point forward late in the game when his team needs him to do that. Excellent wing passer with an overall quality feel for the game. Had a few turnovers, but overall was good with the rock. Not the most explosive athlete vertically or off the bounce. Takes quality angles to the basket and uses his long strides to cover a lot of ground. Defensively his coach put him on DGN’s star Henderson in the first half and he shut him down. In the second half he switched to Boston and did a solid job on him. Moves well laterally and contests with length. Taylor went for 24 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 turnovers. Will see a big bump in the next 2019 rankings update as he is a for sure D1 prospect with mid-major potential.
PF Caden Phillips (Glenbard West – 2019)
Phillips came up huge for Glenbard West. The 6’6” 205 pound post is a tough and gritty interior player. He was a beast on the glass all night high pointing rebounds in traffic and gobbling them up at an insane rate. Offensively he was most effective scoring on offensive rebound put backs. Plays really hard with a nonstop motor. He might have had 5 put backs in the game. Finished with 23 points and double digit rebounds. Projects as a really good small college player as he isn’t overly athletic or skilled, but just gets stuff done being a junk yard dog.
PG Semaj Henderson (Downers Grove North – 2019)
Henderson is a 6’1” point guard that we have heard some buzz about coming into the season. Power guard that really likes to shoot it from deep. In this game he took a lot of threes and some of them weren’t the best looks. Definitely has the ability to hit from deep as he drilled a few with a clean looking shot. Bit of a slow release. Tries to create space with a step back in the mid-range to get over bigger defenders. Doesn’t have that explosive burst off the bounce to get around people as Taylor held him down to only six points when he guarded him in the first half. His drives have to be more power than speed. Rebounds well for a guard and is active defensively getting a pair of steals. Look forward to evaluating him more throughout the season to see how his game progresses. He had 15 points. Holds a pair of D1 offers. D2 programs should also be monitoring him.
PG Trey Boston (Downers Grove North – 2019)
Boston was the surprise of the night. Had never heard anything about this 6’0” junior point guard. He went off in the first half right from the tip hitting threes. Shot it best off the catch from beyond the arc. Could also create some space on his pull up from mid-range especially on one play when he crossed his man and drilled a sweet 15 footer. Mixes in runners and transition finishes. Volume scorer that can be a bit wild at times with the basketball, but showed he could put it in the hoop. Would like to see more floor general skills out of him. He had 27 points. First evaluation, but looked like a potential D2 prospect.