Brooks DeBartolo Thanksgiving Shootout: Standout Players

The 2nd Annual Brooks DeBartolo Thanksgiving Shootout featured nine teams over the course of two days. A lot of Tampa Bay talent was present, and two teams (Spruce Creek and Fort Myers) made the trip to take part in the shootout. There were a lot of big prospects in this shootout so you were bound to see college coaches, media, and even players from other local teams who came to watch their travel ball teammates. The best game of this tournament ended up being the last game played between Brooks DeBartolo and Seffner Christian in a game that Brooks held on for a two point victory. The team that impressed the most was Plant HS with Brooks DeBartolo coming in at a close second. Here are some of the standout players I saw this week from each team (minimum 2 games played):   Plant Panthers (3-0) Honor Culpepper '20 looks strong after missing last season to a torn ACL. She scored 26 points over the two games on a very balanced Plant squad that was the most impressive team in this shootout. Honor hit 6 three's in those games and distributed the ball well to her teammates. She played hard, crashed the boards, and is a huge re-addition to the Panthers for what should be a big year. Kendal Cheesman '21 would be my MVP vote for the week. She put up 35 points over the two games, and did a great job of slowing down Chaniya Clark of Fort Myers. Kendal blocked shots, hit threes, had an improved mid-range game, and she was strong around the hoop at 6'2. Nyla Jean '21 was fun to watch as she contributed 27 points for the Panthers. No one could really stop her to the rim, and she played against two very good guards in Peryonna Sylvester (Spruce Creek) and Janay Outten (Fort Myers). Nyla and Kendal just might be the strongest 2021 duo in the state.   Brooks DeBartolo Phoenix (3-0) Triniti Youngblood '21 is a talented guard on a guard-oriented Phoenix team. She usually gets matched up with opposing teams big as she has the physicality to keep up with them. Trinity is tough to stop on the drive, has a nice mid-range game, and can hit from deep too. Amarie Godwin '21 plays hard all of the time. I need to start keeping track of her rebounds, because she's all over the glass on both ends. Amarie scored 28 between the two games with 17 of those coming in a big win over Seffner. Brionna McClinton '21 is an under-the-radar player for me. She doesn't get enough credit for how valuable she is for this team, but I'm sure her coaches/teammates know how important she is. Brionna was huge in the second half over a big early season victory against Armwood and finished with 13 points in that game. Jaela Davis '22 can shoot the ball from anywhere. It was great to see her get some buckets around the hoop and even from mid-range since I was already well aware she can stroke it from deep. Jaela is a tough, quick defender that had a big game against Seffner by putting up 16 points on a high percentage from the field and FT line. Maia Lewers '23 is a freshman that should be on everyone's radar. This team has five solid players, and Maia is most definitely one of those contributors. She had a huge bucket to seal the win against Seffner and is going to have a great career after a strong start.   Seffner Christian Crusaders (3-1) KK Davis '20 was the best passer of the shootout. She did a great job of penetrating and kicking to the open player for some easy looks, or she read the defense and took it herself when defenders didn't collapse hard. The Western Carolina commit will need to continue to be a key leader and facilitator for this team to make a deep run. CC Mays '20 is a hard-nosed player on both ends of the court, and another leader for this team. She is committed to play at Marshall next year, so she is ready to put her focus on the senior season ahead as one of the best guards in the area that can do it all. Chimera Iloanya '21 was one of the best posts in this tournament who can score at all three levels. She has a soft touch, rebounds well, and blocks shots on the other end. College coaches will need to get on this talent now. Tajah Spaulding '21 made some big buckets against Brooks that brought the Crusaders within striking distance. She made all of the necessary plays when Seffner Christian needed them, and is a very welcome addition to the team after transferring from West Florida. Nini Davenport '23 also had some big 3's for Seffner in the best game of the shootout. She's going to be an impact Freshman this season on a very strong Crusaders team.   Armwood Hawks (2-1) Taviyanna Habib '21 was very impressive in their win over Booker with 24 points and 11 rebounds. She's a terrific athlete that will have to step up and help lead a young Hawks squad. Maraya Cheek '23 was the most impressive Freshman in the shootout. She scored 23 points in the two games with 15 of those against Booker. She is really good at getting to the rack and finishing for two. Between her and Keyara Bromley, they are one of the toughest 2023 duo's in the state. Keyara Bromley '23 is one of the top prospects in the 2023 class. She put up 13 points and pulled down 13 boards in the second game against Booker in the tourney. The potential is sky high with her height, build, and amount of skill she already possesses.   Booker Tornadoes (1-3) Cashanti Bradley '20 was the leading scorer for the Tornadoes with 27 points in the shootout. Booker had two tough games, but Cashanti had 6 threes in the two games they played against those two Tampa teams. Jaela Dennis '20 had difficulty scoring against Tampa Bay Tech, but rebounded with a 10 point performance against Armwood. She's an unselfish PG who finds the open player, but can score at the rim through contact when needed.