Ohio Freshman Showcase: Mike's Standouts

The Prep Hoops Freshman Showcase brought out some top talent to Fieldhouse USA with many of the top 2030 players in Ohio participating. In this article we'll take a look at the standouts lead scout Mike Roth caught at the event.    One of the more physical players at the camp, Kelley was playing like a big guard on Saturday morning. Not afraid to hit you first on drives, Kelley would get downhill and bump the defender to create the space to score at the rim. It's tough for a lot of young players to learn how to use contact to their advantage and Kelley already has that mastered. Kelley also had some nice dishes to teammates on drives when the defense tried to collapse onto him to stop him from scoring in the paint. One of my favorite players to watch at the camp, Kelley looks like a player who should put up a lot of points in his varsity career at Kent Roosevelt.     The largest player at the freshman showcase, Begley is one of the biggest players in Ohio regardless of class. That size certainly draws eyes to him and I really liked the work Begley put in defensively on Saturday morning. Begley moved his feet well on the perimeter when switched onto guards and was working to defend against pick and rolls in space. With his length, Begley can back off of a guard and still block or alter a shot due to his size. Offensively, Begley looked to pass out of the post and had the right idea when giving the ball up. It took him a little while to get comfortable scoring in the paint but Begley got better as a scorer as the day went on. I also was extremely encouraged by how hard Begley was playing at the end of the day and really showing impressive stamina and effort to wrap up the showcase. Name you'll be hearing a lot about in Dayton over the next four years.     I liked Childers length and how he used his long wingspan on both ends of the court. Childers scored off a couple cuts and simple drives to the rim. Nothing flashy about his game but he was very effective. On a team that had a lot of players make an impact, I liked that Childers found ways to get involved without preventing his teammates from also showcasing their skills as well. At a Cardinal Mooney program that could use his length defensively, I could see Childers making an impact at the varsity level sooner rather than later.     One of the top players in Ohio's 2030 class, Thomas Jr projects to be an immediate contributor for New Albany at the varsity level and a name Columbus basketball fans will be immediately familiar with if they watched the Buckeyes in the 2010's. Thomas Jr is an elite shooter on the wing and his shot is incredibly pure off the catch with range stretching out a few feet behind the 3-point line already. Thomas Jr also found success attacking closeouts on the perimeter as defenders would sprint out to try and contest his shot, only to have him drive right by them and score. I liked how Thomas Jr played on balance, taking 3-pointers with his feet set and playing under control as a driver. Top prospect to watch in central Ohio!

The Prep Hoops Freshman Showcase brought out some top talent to Fieldhouse USA with many of the top 2030 players in Ohio participating. In this article we'll take a look at the standouts lead scout Mike Roth caught at the event.