Another one of Oklahoma’s top available senior guards saw his prep career come to a close. He went out torching the nets at Lloyd Noble Center. Benton went 5 of 6 from three in the contest, with all the threes seemingly being loud, pivotal threes that would either drag Holland Hall back into it, or temporarily put them ahead.  In that regard, the game was a fitting display of the impactful senior’s career. Benton is an outstanding shooter, while his height and frame make him a gritty contributor on both ends of the court with drives and gritty defense.

A sharpshooter earlier in his career, Benton has been one of the steady grinders who has put his head down and expanded his overall game. He’s already started to fill out his 6 foot 3 frame, which has made him a stronger  scorer at the rim and a more physical defender as well. Those improvements have turned him into a player who can be impactful even when teams focus on taking away his three point shooting capabilities.  At the high school level that involves a strong mid-range game, while for the next level it likely means he can be a player who can slot as a versatile backcourt piece early on. Growing into a bigger role as an upperclassmen.

As the main focus of the Tulsa Memorial defense, it was a quieter night for the senior. But when called upon, he buried big three after big three. This included a pair of dagger threes in the final frame that helped keep the opposing Chargers at arm’s length. He connected on at least four threes throughout the game, often a step or two behind the line. Benton’s unselfishness is a good trait to have when projecting how he’ll fit in at the next level.

The catalyst for writing the article was watching Benton on Monday, leading his Dutch to a victory. Which capped their pre-holiday break schedule with a 7-1 mark. There’s been a steady evolution to his game over the last year, and the win against Victory Christian was further confirmation of that. Benton only scored 13 points, but he was still the best player on the court.  He never looked to force shots and showed trust in his teammates. Which empowered the Dutch’s role players to step up, especially from the perimeter. And he left his mark on the defensive end. He was a big help on the defensive glass with how he high pointed rebounds, and recorded a handful of “grown man” steals where his tenacity and improved strength allowed him to straight up rip the ball away from opponents.

From being a quality shooter with an emerging crafty off the dribble skillset as a junior, to a complete prospect. The Dutch senior has done one of the best jobs of maximizing his skillset and talents for his final year of prep basketball.

Benton feels like a perfect fit for a four year program.  As he has a high floor and is a small miss player.  Watching the clear work he has put in to evolve his game and his body (strength), indicates that he would make a team better at the very least as a competitor in practice as a underclassmen. And will keep adding to his game till he’s a bigger contributor as an upperclassmen.  Benton looks the the perfect “program prospect” that helps provide a stronger floor for a winning program to be built up.

Benton opened the game with a triple, and closed it with a pair of late triples. In between he did a little bit of everything on his way to 21 points. When Chargers closed out too heavily to run him off the line, he put his head down and got to the rim.  He finished through contact and would relish the physical nature of the game. He also busted out a very smooth, one legged fadeway jumper from about 12 feet out at one point.

It’s a testament to the work ethic of Benton, of how he’s matured into an overall scoring threat. And has already started to add the muscle that will be needed to compete at the next level.

Holland Hall opened their first full season in Class 5A with a big district clash against Edison. It was a battle of two teams that reached the Class 5A tournament last season, and would be a tone setter over who potentially could be the favorite to win District 5A-4. The Dutch successfully defended home court, with a 62-46 victory. And senior Benton’s 27 points were a huge reason why. As a junior, Benton went from “just a shooter” to a crafty overall scorer. Now as a stronger and more confident senior, he’s one of the most complete scorers in 5A. This could set the stage for a huge week for Benton and the Dutch, as on Friday they also host Tulsa Memorial.

Expected to be one of the top scorers in Class 5A this season, Benton is an efficient shooter who has gradually developed a strong off the dribble game. Always competitive, this spring and summer particular seemed to indicate that he was ready to take the reigns for the Dutch. As in multiple viewings, he was impactful all over the court, and particular looked strong when playing through contact on drives. With Holland Hall steadily establishing itself as one of the top programs in the 918, Benton will have a chance to finish his career with another State Tournament appearance in 5A as the leader of his talented squad.

After a strong junior campaign, Benton has continue to elevate his all around game. But as evident this week at UCO’s team camp, his jumper remains silky smooth. Closes out and pressure don’t seem to phase him, as he drained three pointer after three pointer in two viewings this Monday.  Benton has the size and craftiness to be more than just a shooter, but odds are his ability to change games from beyond the arc is what will get his foot in the door with college coaches.

Benton has matured from a long range specialist with the ability to hit in the mid-range, to a consistent scoring threat off the bounce.  He’s not going to “wow” with a quick first step, but he has a mix of a quality handle, wingspan and good strength that allows him to navigate his way inside. He consistently found ways to the paint and midrange, allowing him to get quality looks against a stingy Putnam City West squad. It was especially impressive how relentless he was on Monday night in his third game of the day. As he also started the day with a similarly impressive off the dribble scoring display against Norman North.

Benton was an active defender who makes the most out of his abilities with a combination of aggressive and smart defending. The scrappy guard was seemingly always racking up deflections and causing general havoc. The way he competes on defense will likely help him standout to college coaches. On the offensive end, he had his best moments in the win against Tarrant, where the sharpshooter played his role as a floor spacer and hit a couple threes.