St. Louis Spring Showdown: Friday Standouts (Guards)
Here are some of the top guards from the first day of the St. Louis Spring Showcase, which is being held at Pattonville High.
Griffin Keebler 5’10” IL Fire: An excellent point guard who did a nice job of controlling the pace for his team at both ends of the court. He can handle the ball, distribute it and get buckets with excellent efficiency. In one sequence when his team was threatened, he with a couple of nice dimes and a pull up 3-pointer on the next three positions to stretch the lead back out. He is a talented floor leader who knows what his team needs at different times of the game.
Brenton Wagner 6’2″ SEMO Rogues: A Class of 2020 combo guard who good size and length and a very nice stroke from 3-point range. He knocked down three jumpers from long distance off the catch and looked good with a quick release. His size and length came in handy on the boards as he displayed good rebounding from the guard position.
Tanner Jennings 5’11” Machine Elite: A solid combo guard who played with a lot of confidence in the game that I witnessed. He knocked down four 3-pointers and scored a couple of buckets of the dribble drive. He was a confident ball handler who also made some nice defensive plays by shooting the passing lanes.
Caleb Oswald 5’11” SEMO Rogues: A solid combo guard with a strong body, which came in handy when he muscled his way into the lane for layups and floaters. He has good handles and he his a capable shooter from long distance.
Johnnie Walker 6’0″ SEMO Rogues: A very athletic guard who can attack the basket and throw down a dunk over a non-suspecting defender, as he did in transition in the first game. He has a physical body to go along with his explosive game. He did a nice job of creating shots off the dribble as he knocked down a couple of nice fade-away jumpers.
Jarred Johnson 5’10” Illinois Phantoms: A quick combo guard who displayed good scoring prowess with his ability to change directions and speeds while advancing to the basket. He could get to the basket and finish with both hands or draw contact and get to the free throw line. He also displayed a very accurate pull up jumper in the lane.