Oak Hills Shootout: Top 2023 Guards
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I ended June with a trip to Oak Hills High School for the Highlanders shootout on Thursday. With teams in attendance from CIncinnati, Dayton, Columbus, and NW Ohio, the event had plenty of players and performers worth noting. I start…
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Continue ReadingI ended June with a trip to Oak Hills High School for the Highlanders shootout on Thursday. With teams in attendance from CIncinnati, Dayton, Columbus, and NW Ohio, the event had plenty of players and performers worth noting. I start my coverage off by highlighting the top performing guards from the day.
Dayjuan Anderson Ponitz
Anderson is making a case for being the best playmaker in the Dayton area with his recent play with Ponitz. The 6-foot-2 guard has unreal athleticism combined with versatility on the offensive end and stability defensively. Created opportunities on the offensive end not just for himself, but for teammates against a bigger and more physical Lakota West team. Anderson picked up an offer from Wright State in June and could see more offers come in with a solid July.
Anthony Ruffolo Anthony Ruffolo 5'10" | PG Archbishop Alter | 2023 State OH Alter
Ruffolo impressed against Hamilton and St. Xavier as a leader for the Knights. Standing at 6-foot-1, Ruff has great size for a PG and has shown he can fill up the scoring column for Alter. His shooting mechanics are great and he showed consistency making shots. His handle against St. X was especially good considering how great their defense is. Ruff is continuing to trend towards being a scholarship guard and will have a chance to continue shining with Wildcat Select this July.
Cooper Matthews Cooper Matthews 6'0" | CG Hamilton | 2023 State OH Hamilton
Matthews is a fantastic competitor and played well against solid defensive programs like Alter and Elder. While the shots weren’t falling for Matthews especially against Alter, he showed he has explosiveness and can get shots up against bigger guards. Matthews has good secondary speed and gets downhill quickly. With performances like this and with continued play with R4L Elite in July, Matthews could become a target for D3s regionally.
Daryl Cooper Miamisburg
Cooper continued to show what he’s capable of with the Vikings after playing well with Team Takeoff in Dayton. Cooper was a secondary scoring option for the Vikings a year ago and showed glimpses of being “the guy” against Mason. His combination of speed and acceleration, coupled with his agility makes him a solid scoring option off the bounce. Cooper has added a little bit to his frame and is certainly bigger than he was a year ago.
Grant Burkholder Grant Burkholder 5'9" | PG Newark | 2023 State OH Newark
Burkholder brings shoe circuit experience and confidence for the Wildcats. While playing in Cincinnati the senior guard put on quite a performance against Wayne. While slightly undersized, Burkholder makes up for his lack of height with a patient yet confident style of leadership and play in the backcourt. Brings good shot selection and team first basketball. Burkholder is a player I feel could breakout this Winter with Newark especially with a teammate like Steele Meister Steele Meister 6'4" | PF Newark | 2024 State OH playing alongside.