Gainesville v. P.K. Yonge: The Five Standouts
This Gainesville Hurricanes squad is pretty good. Good enough to seriously make a sprint towards Lakeland. On Friday night, the ‘Canes led the P.K. Yonge Blue Wave by as much as 31 on their way to a 60-45 home win. Five student-athletes caught people’s eye more than any.
Dallas Tealer – Gainesville: This senior guard can do a bit of everything. Agitate ball-handlers, stroke the three from the wing, and even catch an alley from time-to-time. Dallas’s motor is steadily on, never have to worry about him taking plays off. On the fastbreak, he makes solid decisions, always looking to pass or shoot at the right time. He finished with 11 points.
Christian Miller-Cardwell – Gainesville: Without a doubt, Christian is the best scorer on the team. He just has the ability to go get his own shot when the team needs it. He led all scorers with 15 points. In this particular game, while he shoots from outside very well, he looked like he improved his baseline-drive skills while muscling in tough buckets in the paint. If he can continue to be the scoring leader he he’s been as of late, come playoff time, just watch.
Jaden McKay – Gainesville: All hustle, can’t say anything else. I just like his on-court demeanor: hungry, talkative, supportive of teammates. He can get up for the rebound with anyone, really battles for them at the SF position. He knows how to go and get the steal if that cross-court pass is lagging. McKay is a scrapper who can shoot the midrange area well, if given the space.
Israel Wilcox Jr. – P.K. Yonge: I’ve been seeing Bizzy grow into his game since his freshman year. He definitely has not regressed. Israel’s a smaller guard, hoping he has one more spurt left in him. But for now, his dribble-drive has gotten stronger. Being the size that he is, he knows how to pair that with his speed to create space and get open mid-range jumpers. He scored 14 in the game. It also helps he needs room to make the extra pass leading to a bucket. His on-ball defending aggravates his opponents. Looking to see more of it.
Jalen Speer – P.K. Yonge: Only a sophomore, Speer may have one of the most polished skill-sets on his squad. He’s another guy in the city who can create his own shot and get a solid look at it. One thing about his game that I feel has grown over the season: decisions made after getting into the paint. He can give you a little floater or dish it off to the big man, effectively. Speer’s also one of the best three-ball shooters in the area