PCB XLeague Review: 2020 & 2021
Last Fall I wrote an article about Evansville and its under-recruited talent-base, calling it “The Lost World”, and paralleling it a little to the movie. This past Sunday, I traveled to Evansville to take in the tournament portion of the inaugural Pocket City Basketball XLeague for girls. While their boys’ league is entering its 8th season this coming weekend, this was somewhat of an experimental season for the girls in an attempt to see if it could work. Not only did it work, but I would anticipate it at least doubling in size next year. It was entertaining and highly beneficial for me, as I came away with several names I did not have in the database, plus I had the opportunity to see a handful of girls I have heard of but either never seen or only seen on video. Below is a look at seven girls in the classes of 2020 & 2021 who I thought stood out Sunday with their play.
Maci Foster, 2020, 5-6 G, Gibson Southern H.S.
Maci may not be as flashy or have the “wow” factor of some of these other girls, but I don’t know that I saw another girl play with a better motor, more grit, and defend as hard and as technically sound as she did. She is an absolute scrapper, she’s tough-nosed, and she’s physical, despite being smaller in stature. Offensively, she took care of the ball, didn’t force any shots, and played her role well. But defensively, she was outstanding. She was good on the ball, she was always in the right position to help, and she played both the passing lanes and driving lanes very well. She is the type of kid who can help Gibson Southern be a top team in Class 3A this season.
Gabby Joyner, 2020, 5-8 W, Evansville North H.S.
Gabby joined the Indiana Elite S.W.I.S.H. 17U team for the July stretch, so I got to see her a couple of times in Louisville and Indianapolis, but she looked even better in this league. She is a long, wiry strong, talented, run & jump athlete. Offensively, she is a point forward type who sees the floor very well and is a willing passer, but she’s also capable of blowing by most defenders off the bounce and getting to the rim. Defensively, she plays with a great deal of versatility because of her length, quickness, and athleticism, and she can defend some ‘1s’ plus most ‘2s’ and ‘3s’. She will need to make her jumper a little more consistent and work on her left, but she could be an outstanding “sleeper” recruit for some small college.
Mallory Hickey, 2021, 5-6 W, Pike Central H.S.
Mallory is an intriguing wing prospect, and she looks like she plays a very steady, solid all-around game. She has good strength at her size, she’s a decent one-directional athlete, especially attacking the basket, but she was also a shot-maker when I was able to see her. She shoots a pretty ball from the perimeter, and I think it’s that specific skillset that opens up driving lanes for her at times. She isn’t afraid to attack either, she absorbs contact well, and she earns repeated trips to the free throw line. I do think she’ll need to be a little quicker at the defensive end of the floor, but she definitely competes and has a good all-around feel and understanding of the game.
Avery Neff, 2021, 5-4 G, Heritage Hills H.S.
Avery is somewhat of a familiar face, as I’ve seen her multiple times over the last couple of grassroots seasons. She is smallish, but she has really good length at her height, she’s fairly quick, and she’s extremely feisty and tough-minded. She actually looked much stronger this past weekend, and she played much stronger as well. I primarily knew her as more of a combo guard who was a really good perimeter shooter, and while she still knocks down open jumpers consistently, she is attacking the basket with much more regularity. I think she has solid point guard skill, but for both her travel team and her high school team, she plays off the ball quite a bit. She is a really nice small college point guard prospect, though, in my opinion.
Jazlyn Sander, 2021, 5-6 G, Northeast Dubois H.S.
Jazlyn is someone I was unfamiliar with entering the day, and I’m not sure that she’s ever going to draw a lot of media headlines, but I was really impressed with her ability to adapt to most situations and play with a steady demeanor. She’s a little slender still, but she has some length, fluid athleticism, and she plays with a quiet toughness about her. She handled the ball quite a bit and took care of it well, plus she was a willing and capable passer. I think if she can prove to score it a little more consistently, she’ll draw some small college interest, because she just has the right mindset to help a team win by being that “glue” kid.
Emma Shelton, 2021, 5-9 F, Jasper H.S.
Another familiar face for me, I have seen Emma at a number of showcases and grassroots tournaments over the past six months. Like I said a couple of weeks back following a showcase event, she is continuing to really work on drilling her perimeter skillset. She is strong, physical, and tough-nosed, but now she is starting to knock down the 3-pointer a little, plus she’s handling it in transition and attacking the basket from the perimeter much more confidently. Her motor has never been a question, so as she continues to develop this perimeter skill, I think it will really help her be a nice inside-out forward who will attract a number of small colleges because of her versatility.
Amaya Thomas, 2021, 5-10 F/C, Evansville Central H.S.
I have had Amaya’s name for some time now, and she averaged 11.9 points and 7.4 rebounds per game last season, so I figured she could play a little, but I was really impressed with her combination of size, power, hands, and footwork. She has broad shoulders, a strong frame, and she loves to play with physicality. She is always in the right position at the right time, she times rebounds well, she establishes position both in the post and on block-outs, and she just has a highly productive style of play. She is a “fit” kid who reminds me of interior players at specific small colleges in Indiana, and I think if she can work to get at least some visibility this coming year, she’ll play at the next level.