One reason why Aiken is going to be such a tough match-up for other teams this season is because of their size in the paint and Blye was putting his height and physical tools to use on Saturday. Blye protects the rim just by standing around the paint as he deters smaller guards from even looking to drive to the rim to score. Byle also controls the glass on both ends of the court and fits well in the up-tempo system that Aiken plays as he runs the floor well for a big. A prospect with a lot of long-term upside, Blye is trending upwards as summer basketball continues.

One of the taller players in the class, Blye certainly has the physical frame to eventually become an impact player at the college level. After missing the first four games of the season, Blye has added rebounding and size to a talented Aiken squad fighting for a CMAC title. Blye’s best performance of the season came in a loss to Taft where he scored eight points and grabbed 10 rebounds. That match-up has been good for Blye as he had six points and 12 rebounds in the first meeting between the squads. Bigs always take longer to produce at the high school level so I wouldn’t be surprised if Blye takes a big leap as a senior or early in his college career.

Blye was hurt the first time I saw Aiken this year so it was nice to see him on the court making a big impact. Blye was the biggest player on the court and wanted to play hard at both ends of the court. Able to move his feet defensively, his massive frame deters opponents from trying to score on him in the paint and had two blocked shots. Blye had a putback layup offensively and grabbed three rebounds at both ends of the court. Name to watch in Cincinnati’s 2027 class.