PGH Kentucky Top 250 Expo: Illinois Players

There was a nice contingent of Southern Illinois players that made their way down to the PGH Kentucky Top 250 Expo. The girls are all players for the Brad Beal Elite organization and are coming off a strong summer session. Here is a breakdown of their talents that were on display in Louisville. [player_tooltip player_id="160147" first="Lamiya" last="Terrell"] Lamiya is a 2022 Point Guard that has extensive varsity experience for Belleville West. She has played an important role for them since early in her freshman year. Lamiya has good ball skills and quickness that allow her to penetrate into the lane where she can score or dish. She does a nice job in the lane using a variety of creative finishes to get her shot off against taller defenders. When she is locked in the best part of her game is her ability to defend and pressure the ball. Lamiya has exceptional quickness and is aggressive in trying to pressure the ball and get steals. Being an undersized player she will need to maximize her 3-point shot and mid range game to improve her scoring in addition to getting stronger to absorb the contact dished out at the highest levels. [player_tooltip player_id="148167" first="Laylah" last="Jackson"] Laylah is another Point Guard out of the SWC. She is a 2023 that plays for Belleville East. Laylah had a strong freshman campaign contributing on the varsity from day one. Her biggest strength is her scoring ability. Laylah has what you might call in the gym range. She is never afraid to take an open shot and she can hit them. What I really enjoyed seeing out of her was the leadership and take charge approach that came out by directing traffic and moving her teammates around. The other part of her camp that I really loved was watching her try to expand her game. Laylah knows that she cannot rely on moving farther and farther out to get off shots. She knows she has got to beat girls off the dribble to get more space to shoot. So, she used this camp to work on that. Success wasn’t always there but she did not give up. Eventually she was getting fouled and reaping the benefits of her effort. Laylah will never be as tall or as fast as some girls she plays against  but she is smart and a hard worker. She will always figure it out. [player_tooltip player_id="194520" first="Tyler" last="Butler"] Tyler is a 5’10 2021 Forward from Belleville East. She is the poster child for a lunch pail player. When the lights come on Tyler goes to work and you better be ready to battle her for 32 minutes. Tyler is a very good rebounder on both ends and has a nice game in the lane. She has a variety of moves in the post that she can use to score and has a nice 8-10 foot jumper that she can hit. During this event Tyler had those same skills on display. She gives effort on the offensive boards and in an event like this many players do not want to box out. Tyler also will go hard on the break by running to the rim, which many 4/5’s don’t want to do, so she picks up easy points. Tyler has the potential to be a good 4 at a small college and will get even better when she expands her range and can hit free throws more consistently. [player_tooltip player_id="195138" first="Zsana" last="Hawkins"] Zsana is a 5’10 2023 Post player from O’Fallon. As has been previously noted, I have seen Z play extensively and written about her many times. So, I will try not to bore you with the same old info. Simply, her strong body allows her to be tough to guard in the post and tough to keep off the boards.I saw Z venture out of the low block more during this event. She was setting high ball screens and would either pop for a potential outside shot or roll hard to the rim. She took one 18 foot jumper that I saw, it did not go in but that is exactly what she should be doing in an event like this, expanding her game. Z is constantly trying to get better and I have said many times, she is a tireless worker. She will get everything from her ability that she can. [player_tooltip player_id="148160" first="Jailah" last="Pelly"] Jailah is a 5'9 2023 Guard from East St Louis. Jailah is another player that had a big impact on her varsity team as a freshman. She is long and very athletic. She could easily be a track star if she wanted to be but she uses that speed and length on the basketball floor instead. What I really enjoyed was watching Jailah work from the point guard spot. She showed handles I had not seen her display and the ability to break down her defender. Jailah was not actively looking to get to the rim, she was playing the facilitator role by getting defenders to help and then dishing to the open shooter. That is a skill that plays into her hands very well. A  5'9 point guard that can defend and run the floor is a valuable commodity to college coaches. Jailah is continuing to work on her shot and I have made it no secret, if she can hit a good % of her 3-pointers, you can call it a wrap. You will have to just hope she has an off night because I do not know how you guard her at that point.