VA Top 250 New Names to Know
FREDERICKSBURG, VA — With the Prep Hoops Top 250 Expo officially in the books, the work begins for the staff. We will be providing comprehensive coverage from today’s event throughout the upcoming week. Today, we take a look at some…
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Continue ReadingFREDERICKSBURG, VA — With the Prep Hoops Top 250 Expo officially in the books, the work begins for the staff. We will be providing comprehensive coverage from today’s event throughout the upcoming week. Today, we take a look at some of the new names that stood out from the event, with a look at seven guys that we knew little to nothing about before the camp, but we sure know about them now!
Titas Mikalopas | 6’2” G/F | Tidewater Academy 2020
With one of the best names in attendance, Mikalopas comes from a small school in a big area and he showed that he can hang and bang with some of the best as well. He has a big frame for a wing, he showed a solid skill set that included the ability to make shots from all three levels and he made good decisions and took good shots throughout the event. He’s a sleeper in the 757 some small college coaches should take a look at.
Logan Barbour | 6’1” PG | William Monroe 2021
This isn’t the first time I’ve wrote about Barbour, but it has been over a year because he plays in a small market and so I decided to put him in this list. He’s taking good strides as it looks like he’s grown a couple of inches, he looks stronger and more explosive and he got it done against some very good guards at the event. He’s a competitor that knows how to play the game, and while he didn’t put up huge scoring numbers he made others better and took advantage of his opportunities. He can score in bunches when he needs to and showed that he can play with other talented players and put them in good situations with his playmaking as well.
Phillip Bou-Khalil | 6’6” PF | Carmel School 2021
One of quite a few new Carmel School additions that should make an immediate impact, Bou-Khalil was a workhorse in the post with a throwback kind of game. I don’t want to say he has an old man kind of game, but the way he used pump fakes, angles and great footwork around the basket to score the ball reminds you of the guy at YMCA everyone struggles to guard. He ran the floor hard and rebounded well every time he was on the floor and while he isn’t the most explosive guy he still was able to get it done below the rim.
Malakai Whittaker | 6’1” G | Carmel School 2021
Another new face at Carmel that stood out, Whittaker is a high motor and high energy guard that does a little bit of everything, but mostly he comes at you over and over again. He’s a good athlete with good quickness that allows him to slash to the basket where he can use his strength to finish through traffic, and he showed the ability to make shots from deep when he was open. He rebounded the ball well and brought it on both ends every game, and his energy is something that his teammates at Carmel should easily be able to feed off of.
Jahziel Mensah | 5’11” G | Harrisonburg 2021
It didn’t take long for Mensah to catch our attention as he was tailor made for a camp setting with his natural ability to score the basketball. He showed he can play both guard positions, he was able to create space and create shots off the bounce and he showed good three level scoring ability in isolation situations. He’s a good athlete who can push in transition and get to the cup, and while he plays in a smaller market he’s a guy that should score a lot of points and put up big numbers of the next few years.
Mahlik Munnerlyn | 6’4” G/F | Louisa 2021
It wasn’t just Munnerlyn’s hair that made us pay attention, it was also his frame, athleticism and high motor on both ends that had him flying all over the place making plays. In a camp setting where many guys want to showcase their abilities to make shots, he did that in spurts but he also did the dirty work as he rebounded, pushed the ball in transition and ran the floor hard without the ball to get easy buckets. With Louisa in a transitioning period after losing some of their top guys expect Munnerlyn to provide some big minutes and production for them this year.
Maureon Tisdale | 6’2” G | FUQUA 2021
Farmville isn’t exactly known to be a hotbed of hoops talent, but Tisdale is a guy that made a name for himself against some really good guards at the camp. He’s a big guard with a good frame that allows him to play on and off the basketball, he has a good IQ and feel for the game and when he competes he’s able to make some really impressive plays on both ends. He’ll be a guy we keep tabs on moving forward for sure.