The 8 Best Players I Saw This Weekend
Over the course of the weekend, I made the short trip to Lexington Catholic to watch them host St. Henry high school then followed that up with a trip to London and South Laurel High School to watch 3 games…
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Continue ReadingOver the course of the weekend, I made the short trip to Lexington Catholic to watch them host St. Henry high school then followed that up with a trip to London and South Laurel High School to watch 3 games at the Raymond Reed Classic. Here are some of the best players I watched this weekend.
- Scott County’s Diablo Stewart – Diablo stepped up in a big way with Michael Moreno out against Trinity on Saturday. He scored 25 points but was only 6-19 from the field. It was the free throw line where he did most of his damage, going 11-12 at the charity stripe. Diablo was able to track down steals and loose balls late in the game which he converted into layups at the other end. Stewart is lightning quick and no one from Trinity was able to catch him in a foot race to the rim.
- North Laurel’s Reed Sheppard – Only an 8th grader, Sheppard is a name you will hear a lot in the future. His mom and dad both played at the University of Kentucky in the 90s and Reed is off to a good start in his high school career. On Saturday he scored 26 points on 8-14 from the field and handled Bardstown’s pressure relatively well. He also had a team high 7 rebounds from the point guard position. Sheppard is already in the mix for Kentucky’s best prospect in 2023.
- Lexington Catholic’s Luke Wedding – The long Junior made 7 threes against St. Henry on Friday night. He hit them in bunches and the Catholic guards did a good job of finding Wedding when he was open. Wedding was almost strictly catch and shoot and I’d like to see him put the ball on the floor and attack the rim in the future if possible.
- Trinity’s Kolton Rice – The point guard faced pressure of all kinds, all game long and did a good job of handling it for the most part. Rice is one of those players who doesn’t blow you away by doing any one thing great but does a lot of things well. Trinity hung with Scott County all game and the steady play of Rice was a big reason why with David Johnson hurt and Stan Turnier in foul trouble all game.
- Bardstown’s JJ Traynor – If Traynor were more selfish he could have had 30+ points against North Laurel. He ended up close to 20 but could have had more if he would assert himself. The 6’7 post/wing made some nice moves on the block and the perimeter but continues to flash enough of the high major prospect he can be that it is sometimes frustrating watching him be so passive. Traynor is one of my favorite players in the class but he’s going to have to get more aggressive to get the type of college offers he covets.
- Harlan County’s Taylor Spurlock – The long wing scored 20 points in a losing effort against South Laurel. The 6’6 Junior was 3-4 from 3 and 8-11 overall for the game and showed ability to score at all three levels. For Taylor to play at the next level he will have to become a more confident ball handler as he had several turnovers against the half court run and jump pressure of the Cardinals.
- St. Henry’s Wyatt Vieth – The 6’3 Sophomore had a quiet night against Catholic but still scored 18 points and grabbed 4 rebounds in a losing effort. Unfortunately, Vieth tired down the stretch and missed several shots in the second half after a strong first half was limited by a bit of foul trouble. Vieth is a solid prospect but will need to tighten up his handling to be considered a wing at the next level.
- South Laurel’s JJ Ramey – Ramey was showing all parts of his game Saturday as he was attacking the rim, posting up on the block and also playing good defense. JJ is a strong, athletic wing who continues to improve as a slasher and prove to be more than a shooter and dunker. The rumor is Ramey could commit to his college of choice as soon as this week.