Top 250 Expo: Best 5 newcomers among the 2023s

Exposure. If there is one overarching reason to participate in showcase events this is it, especially for players who have yet to get the opportunity to make an impact in either AAU or high school basketball. That’s why nearly 200 players signed up for the Prep Girls Hoops Top 250 Expo Oct. 3, including almost 60 from the class of 2023. Among them were more than a dozen sophomores who we had never formally evaluated before. We watched them all and these are the five who made the most memorable impression. <img class="alignnone wp-image-209141 size-thumbnail" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/57_Jordan-Munson_1-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Jordan Munson – guard, Tracy-Milroy-Balaton Every time we scout a showcase – really any time we go looking for new talent – we are always hoping there will be one player who stands out head and shoulders above the other kids on the court. We’re looking for athletes who come equipped with natural abilities and have made themselves into players with quality skills and high potential. At this year’s Top 250 Expo, the best of the 2023 newcomers was unquestionably Jordan Munson. The 5’8 combo guard also runs track and plays volleyball. She has quick feet, excellent speed in the open court and the ability to burn defenders one-on-one. She is long and fluid, moves well laterally and is explosive. In other words, she is an athlete. Jordan hails from Tracy, which is located about 90 miles west of Mankato on Highway 14. The Panthers compete in class AA where they won 15 games last winter before falling in section play to the high-flying offense of Jackson County Central. Tracy-Milroy-Balaton does not consistently publish its statistics but for the games that were enumerated last winter it was Munson who led the team in scoring. She is also a great defender who uses her length and quickness to break up a lot of plays and produce a ton of steals. In the grand scheme of things, Tracy is a low-profile program and so is Jordan’s AAU team, the Southwest Slam. Thanks to the visibility offered by the Top 250 Expo, Munson is now firmly on our radar and should also be on yours. <img class="alignnone wp-image-208554 size-thumbnail" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/130_Evelyn-Wiltrout_1-scaled-e1602715318325-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /><img class="alignnone wp-image-209203 size-thumbnail" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/150_Maraya-Wiltrout_1-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Evelyn Wiltrout & Maraya Wiltrout – forwards, Cambridge-Isanti Whether it’s a blessing or a curse, we normally evaluate twins together for about the first year of their high school basketball careers only separating them in the Prep Girls Hoops rankings once their differences become more obvious over time. At this point we’re just trying to tell Evelyn Wiltrout (left photo we think?) and Maraya Wiltrout apart! At 6’0, Evelyn is slightly shorter than Maraya. Both have big frames and plenty of strength. Their foot speed and quickness and conditioning have all improved this year. In truth, everything they do has improved because they have dedicated themselves to long-term skill development with Barry Peterson of Boost Basketball. The work is paying off handsomely. Evelyn may be the more athletic of the two. She’s a versatile inside-out player, can take it off the dribble and is developing a nice game in the mid- to low post. She is a solid ball-handler for her size and is working hard to become a consistent three-point shooter. Maraya is a big presence in the low post. She has a nice mid-range jump shot and is starting to have some success beyond the arc. We watched the pair again on Sunday at the Breakdown Fall League and they were terrific, combining nicely with D1-caliber point guard [player_tooltip player_id="30162" first="Mikayla" last="Aumer"] to score in a variety of ways. They also pulled down a ton of rebounds. That bodes well for the Bluejackets who have to replace [player_tooltip player_id="1975" first="Jana" last="Swanson"] (Bemidji State), a walking double-double. We’re bullish on the possibilities for the Wiltrout twins, high-character kids who aren’t afraid to do the work necessary to get to the next level. <img class="alignnone wp-image-209197 size-thumbnail" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/139_Audrey-Jakway_1-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Audrey Jakway – forward, Mounds Park Academy Six-foot forwards with big bodies are always in short supply so when a player like Audrey Jakway takes the court we always sit up and take notice, and we’ve taken note of Jakway a lot this fall. She is participating in the Prep Girls Hoops Fall Exclusive on Friday nights as a member of the Sparks, where she is teamed with 2024 standout [player_tooltip player_id="208290" first="Nicole" last="Maenke"] of Shakopee. While Nicole is all about speed and quickness, Audrey is all about strength and power. At the Top 250 Expo Jakway showed that she can be a handful down low at both ends of the court. She has quality footwork and can execute a nice drop step and finish with either hand. She rebounds hard and cashes in on a lot of second-chance points in close. Audrey tied for the team scoring lead at Mounds Park Academy last winter at nearly 12 points per game. She made steady progress throughout the season and was in double figures in 9 of her last 10 games. Jakway, who played AAU this year for Minnesota Stars Knight, is working to improve her foot speed and quickness. <img class="alignnone wp-image-209163 size-thumbnail" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/85_Kate-Adams_1-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Kate Adams – guard, Wayzata It’s not easy to get noticed at Wayzata. The Trojans have a ton of talented players – perhaps more than any other program in the state going all the way down to travel ball – and the 2023 class includes such luminaries as 16th-ranked prospect [player_tooltip player_id="108312" first="Abby" last="Krzewinski"], #39 [player_tooltip player_id="108345" first="Brynn" last="Senden"] and #72 [player_tooltip player_id="148340" first="Shannon" last="Fornshell"], which leaves quality players like Kate Adams and Aliya Goodnature well down the food chain. Adams is doing her level best to move up and the work is beginning to pay off. The 5’9 guard from Minnesota Stars Knight has a strong lower body and a sizeable frame. The lefty has nice mechanics and her shooting appears to have improved a lot. As we have seen through three weeks at the Fall Exclusive (she’s on the Mystics), and again at the Top 250 Expo, Adams is a high-energy player with a consistent work ethic. Right now Kate is better in the half-court than in transition and excels in more structured basketball than in run-and-gun. The important thing is the improvement, however, and we’ll be watching for more in the months ahead. <img class="alignnone wp-image-208572 size-thumbnail" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/189_Lily-Peterson_1-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> One more newbie of note Since we like to give readers a little bit more than expected, we’ll offer up one more bonus name. That would be 5’5 guard Lily (the other one) Peterson from Andover and TC Metro Storm AAU. This Peterson should not be confused with the highly familiar [player_tooltip player_id="57132" first="Lily" last="Peterson"] of Crosby-Ironton, a top 75 prospect in the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2021 who has committed to play next year at South Dakota School of Mines. This Lily is not quite so polished but she has potential. Peterson’s skill development is a work in progress, but her ball handling has improved, her shooting is getting better and she has dedicated herself to hard work and developing her overall game. Lily plays scrappy, is a strong defender, has good quickness, and is a highly vocal player with excellent leadership abilities. She tends to choose the simple play over the more risky option, which is always a good thing. Peterson is very coachable and carries a 4.0 GPA. We’ll follow her development and see where it goes.