SCBCA Summer Showcase: 2023 Part 2

Basketball in many ways is a year-round sport. While more attention gets specifically paid during the regular season and playoffs, those who play the game at a young age are used to sharpening their skills during the offseason as well as with their travel teams. One of the latest offseason camps to emanate in the Palmetto State occurred in North Augusta at Riverview Park – which, as its name suggests, sits right alongise the Savannah River – also the state line between South Carolina and Georgia. We at Prep Girls Hoops are familiar with Riverview Park from attending the A1 Hoops League travel session that took place back in mid-May and we returned to South Carolina’s riverfront for the SCBCA Summer Showcase. There was lots of representation at the event from the class of 2023 and plenty of standout players that turned in noteworthy performances. Here is a look at those who did just that. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="185433" first="Jaidah" last="Liebert"] – Spring Valley HS</strong> – As is the case with many of the state’s top ballers, Liebert has been active on the offseason scene – including recently in Rock Hill at the SCBCA Elite Camp and at the LBI Southern Memorial Showdown at Legacy Early College. Liebert is a guard that can go strong to the rim and will slice her way through defenders with a great deal of speed. Regardless of what an opposing team’s defense will throw at her, Liebert will find ways to score and make plays. She also asserts herself by attracting contact and finding her way to the free throw line. Liebert is a potent scorer who can also rebound. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-303269" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/06/CBFEEA1D-79A2-49BB-8673-217BE729AAC9-scaled-crop-1885x1238-1625053818-300x197.jpeg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="158943" first="Amiyah" last="Ferguson"] – Timberland HS</strong> – Wolves coach Allen Gethers’ team got a major boost when Ferguson transferred to Timberland after a tenure with Northwood Academy where she participated in a pair of SCISA 3A state championship games. Ferguson will add to a team’s offensive dimension with shots from long range and the ability to get to the rim. Both a point guard as well as a shooting guard, she will attract plenty of attention because of her scoring prowess which enables her to find open teammates. Defensively, she gives opponents a hard time with her ability to up an opponent’s turnover statistics. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-303271" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/06/AE15D4BC-92A9-484B-8189-76AD22D8402D-scaled-crop-1772x1164-1625054012-300x197.jpeg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="124108" first="Maliyiah" last="Mason"] – Gray Collegiate Academy</strong> – The Lowcountry was not the only part of the state that had a noteworthy transfer – the Midlands did as well with Mason heading from Irmo to coach Ashley Bruner’s staff at the War Eagles. Mason will go after rebounds in addition to being able to run from one end of the floor to the other. She will take a fair amount of shots from behind the arc along with displaying prowess with her ability to take care of the basketball. Given how she will be a primary playmaker on defense, she will attract plenty of defensive attention and she can find her way out of those situations. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-303841" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/07/4F906BCD-F634-4289-AC31-50B0C90278A8-scaled-crop-1920x1261-1625136446-300x197.jpeg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="264042" first="Braeden" last="Johnson"] – J.L. Mann HS</strong> – At 6-foot-2, Johnson is currently listed as the tallest player on coach LaMont Wakefield’s J.L. Mann team. As with anyone of that height, that will come in handy. It is one thing to have a big that can pass, but another than can create efficient feeds to teammates also near the rim to free her up. Johnson will grab rebounds, but also can get steals either by intercepting passes or as an extension of knowing where the ball is in relation to where she is. Coaches also want shot blocking out of their bigs and Johnson provides that for the Patriots. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="175385" first="Kaleyia" last="Brown"] – Stratford HS</strong> – Four of the current players on the 13-person roster for coach Kelly McNeil are part of Stratford’s class of 2023. Among those is the 5-foot-4 guard. Brown is fearless in attacking the rim and has no problem getting to the line if she were to draw contact. Teams love it when they have players who display unselfish ball – she will pass up open 3-point tries at times to find teammates and get them more involved in the offense. Brown has displayed her scoring excellence over the years in addition to forcing turnovers and making timely passes. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="299566" first="Yasmine" last="Cook"] – Stratford HS</strong> – Of course, Cook is another of those from the Class of 2023 that the Knights field and she brings her own skillset that proves to be an asset to Stratford. Cook is versatile in that she primarily plays the one and two positions but can also find time as a forward. Not only is Cook a scorer, but her ability to play the three or four comes in well via her knack for crashing the boards. She is able to take care of the ball while also getting teams to turn said ball over on defense. &nbsp;