11p 6r 2a 1s 1b vs John Carroll

-Last night was probably the first standout performance that I’ve seen from Busse that didn’t involve a bunch of perimeter jumpers. The ETSU commit was getting to the rim, sticking putbacks, and took advantage of his reputation as a perimeter sniper to attack hard closeouts from the wings to get into the teeth of the defense. His best stretch of play came in the 1H when he plucked his matchup at halfcourt before hitting the transition lay up, knocked down a 3 off the bounce at the end of the shot clock, and hit a hot step floater off glass in the middle of the paint. His perimeter shooting usually opens up driving lanes for his teammates, will be interesting to see the gameplan versus a swarming Panthers defense in tonight’s game.

14p 7r 2a 2s vs Calvert Hall

-Busse had a red-hot finish to the end of the 1H, with the ETSU commit hitting 4/5 shots down the stretch of the 1H by chipping in on the glass and poking out steals. Busse got it going with a stop n pop in the paint, scored off a well-timed backdoor cut, hit a huge transition 3, and hit his defender with an up fake in the paint before stepping through to score at the rim. Loved the way that he used that shooting/scoring gravity in the 2H, dishing out several hockey assists within the Cavaliers’ offense to maintain their lead.

It’s been a nice start to the spring for Busse, who continued his strong play with WeR1’s 16U in a strong two-game showing. He began picking up some buzz over the course of the winter as the primary sniper for a balanced Spalding group, and it’s certainly still his smooth lefty jump shot that makes him most dangerous. But Busse has intrigued while showing off a more well-rounded on-ball skillset than seen in the past, operating for extended stretches as a lead guard while showcasing impressive vision and feel as a passer. Coming on strong with plans to return to Spalding before a post-grad year to enter the 2027 class, Busse is firmly on the scholarship radar at this point and is a name D1s should be beginning to monitor heading into the summer.

-The lefty sniper enjoyed a productive junior campaign after a growth spurt shot him up from 5’10 to 6’3 in less than one calendar year. Busse shoots it really well coming off of screens or movement, making several tweaks to his footwork that allows him to get his jumper off more fluidly from all 3 levels. While he can shoot it with the best of them, he’s beginning to see opportunities to attack closeouts and get into gaps in the defense to force rotations and create advantage situations for his team. Expect Patriot League schools to begin lining up for his services when they see his ability to score this summer.

15p 7r 3a 3s vs SFA (6/8 FG)

-Probably the most well-rounded performance that I’ve seen from the junior sniper as he contributed at the offensive end with his signature shooting but also defended and rebounded well. Busse got it going early in the 1Q with a curl into a pull-up 2 off the side ball screen. His defensive positioning and awareness has improved, jumping passing lanes to get the Cavaliers going in transition to give them an early lead that they never relinquished. The handle has improved and the timing of his passes in transition led to easy layups for teammates, love that he’s not telegraphing his passes and is waiting for the window to open up to cut down on tipped passes or turnovers.

Buses showed he could make his mark from behind the three point line cashing in often. He finished with 22 points in a win against Imani Christian. He was able to read and react to what defenses threw at him. He made plays for others. Busse plays with a chip on his shoulder whenever he steps onto the floor.

23p 8r 1s (5/8 3P) vs Fairfax Christian

-Busse got it going early from beyond the arc and never cooled off, shooting 63% from 3 in a big Cavaliers win. I liked the patience from him early, ducking underneath hard closeouts after he made his first three triples to hit a 1-dribble pull-up on one play and slicing to the rim to lay the ball up a few possessions later in the 2Q. The junior guard also hit the glass heavy at both ends of the floor, grabbing a long rebound with one hand before turning to rifle it to a teammate to secure a stop on a crucial possession down the stretch. After growing 3 inches this offseason, putting on some weight, and improving his handle– Busse is making a case for himself as a Division 1 basketball player.

Colt played extremely efficiently for Spalding in a nice win. He lit up the scoreboard with his prolific 3pt accuracy all over the perimeter, led the team with 23 points. Shooting was not his only contribution, he was very active on the glass. Almost reached a double-double grabbing 8 big rebounds. He made sound decisions when he was forced to put the ball on the deck, making a quick sidestep to line up a 3, or taking a dribble or two for the finish closer in. Made the simple pass over to the next open man at the right time, never held the ball too long or shied away from the open shot. Didn’t have to take more than a few dribbles for any of his field goals, played within the offense and took what became available. Really liked what I saw from Colt in this game.