CORONA, Caif.- With Santiago Peak, the tallest point in Orange County, looming in the distance and serving as a backdrop to Santiago High School, middle school teams from all over the country converged in Southern California for what shaped up to be a weekend filled with some tremendous basketball. Hosted by Elite Girls Basketball, the 4th Annual Elite 8 Holiday Classic featured talent from the 2021 class all the way down to the 2024 class.
While the talent on the floor was young, it provided a glimpse of a promising future of prospects for recruiters who are already keeping a close eye those classes not yet roaming the high school hallways.
While the list of prospects that caught our eye was extensive, we spent time whittling down the names and came up with some athletes that stood out just a bit among the crowd. Here, listed alphabetically, are those athletes.
Kaylee Byon- 2022- 5-2- Point Guard- SoCal Select – Doesn’t pass the eye test, but is a really steady PG…Very good passer who displayed great vision multiple times…Has a good floater that she can hit from a variety of angles…Tough…Avoids screens well
Chaniya Clark- 2021- 6-4 – Center- Florida Future – Elite level post player…Big and strong…Rebounds well…Runs floor well considering her size…Great hands…Showed a soft touch around the rim…Rebounds well…Showed frustration when things went poorly; needs to improve this…Lots of possibilities
Madison Conner- 2021- 5-10- Guard- Dav White – Long, lanky guard…Good shooter from deep…One of those players that always seems to be around the action, making something happen…Needs to gain strength…Keep your eye on this one
O’Mariah Gordon- 2021- 5-5- Guard- Florida Future – Quick both with and without ball…Gets to the paint at will and has the athleticism to finish in a variety of ways…Good shooter from deep…Has a lot of dribble combinations she uses very well to get where she wants to go
Ashley Hawkins- 2021- 5-5- Point Guard- OC Mustangs – Traditional point guard with exceptional leadership skills…Controls the game and keeps team operating in the way she wants…Good passer both in half court and transition…Has the ability to score as a set shooter and off the bounce…Unselfish
London Jones- 2022- 5-7- Point Guard- Cal Sparks – Lefty point guard with a great handle…Gets through traffic while maintaining dribble…Active on defense…Nice looking stroke…Athletic…Has a high motor
Marley Langi- 2021- 6-0- Forward- EastBay Tigers – Good build, very strong…Has advanced post moves for her age…Can handle the ball a bit…Needs to work on condition a little… Rebounds well
Khylee Pepe- 2021- 5-11- Wing- SoCal Select – Strong, solid stretch 4-type player…Rebounds well…Doesn’t mind contact and finishes through it…Nice stroke all the way out to the perimeter…Can put the ball on the floor in the open court…Lots of possibilities
Kindyll Wetta- 2021- 5-9- Guard- Colorado Basketball Club – Tough, hardnosed guard…High IQ…Reads the game well and reacts accordingly…Isn’t overly quick or fast, but finds a way to get to the paint and score…Ball handling needs some improvement, but has promise…Watch closely
