KBC’s The Journey: Top 15u Performances
Lexington’s Kentucky Basketball Commission was host to the first ever The Journey tournament. Here’s a look at the top performers of the weekend. They are listed in no particular order. This list only features Kentucky players. Top 15u Performances: Manimal…
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Continue ReadingLexington’s Kentucky Basketball Commission was host to the first ever The Journey tournament. Here’s a look at the top performers of the weekend. They are listed in no particular order. This list only features Kentucky players.
Top 15u Performances:
Manimal Elite’s Justin Becker and Turner Buttry – Becker was very effective all weekend but especially against Team Thad where he was rebounding everything and finishing around the rim. In their lone loss of the weekend, Becker had 32 points and 10 rebounds against the Louisville Magic. Buttry was at his best when he was playing on the ball. Manimal was essentially playing two point guards all weekend but there were far fewer turnovers with the ball in Buttry’s hands. In the game against Manimal, Turner put up 20 points and 5 assists.
Louisville Magic’s Donovan Robinson – The guard was tough as nails all weekend, hitting shots and pestering the opposing point guards. Down the stretch of several games, Robinson was the best player on the court.
D1’s Jaxon Smith and Luke Imfeld – Smith picked up where he left off at the state tournament in March with a strong weekend scoring the ball. Jaxon has improved by leaps and bounds as a scorer and a growth spurt has helped him to become better at finishing around the rim, especially through contact. Imfeld is one of my favorite off the radar players in the 2022 class. Luke has started to become more than a catch and shoot player. If he keeps developing his midrange game and grows another inch or two, he can be a really nice player.
M.A.T.T.S. Mustangs Darian Lewis – Lewis was a kid I’d never heard of before Saturday but he took the game over down the stretch against the Magic and was borderline unstoppable. Darian was able to pick apart the defense and score with jump shots and getting to the rim. Fern Creek always has a ton of talent and Lewis is name to know moving forward.
Tri State Assault’s Rylee Sammons and Laithan Hall – One of the biggest surprises of the weekend was the Tri State Assault win over Team Thad in the tournament play. Sammons shot the lights out all weekend at 6’5 and Hall showed himself to be one of the steadier hands at the point guard position this weekend. Rylee looks like he could end up 6’8 or taller as he already has a crazy long wingspan. Look for both to be stars at Pikeville for the next 3 years.
Kentucky Future Elite’s Turrell Cleaves Jr. and Tim Hall – Cleaves and Hall are both two of our higher ranked players in the 2022 class. Hall was dominant in the low post and is an excellent rebounder already. If he continues to grow, his ceiling is crazy high. Turrell continues to flash high major potential. Once he puts it all together, look out. He can get downhill quickly and is always improving as a shooter. Once his motor starts running non-stop, he can be a special player in the 2022 class.