Philly Jam Fest: Day 1 Standouts

With so much action under one roof, it's safe to say there was a boatload of talent around every corner and on every court. Let's take a look at who made their mark on opening day of the month's final AAU event.   Kayden Baratta | Delco Goats   Kayden kept her foot on the gas from beginning to end and got herself a game winning basket in the process! She torched District One's defense with a slew of 3-pointers and electric rim-running. Her defense was pesky and bothersome as she applied pressure at the half-court to try and force turnovers. Down by a point in the closing seconds of the game, she caught a pass on a backdoor cut and dazzled with a spinning layup to lift Delco to a 53-52 win. When you never take a play off and fight until the very end, sometimes you're rewarded in a major way... and today Kayden's efforts paid dividends!   Kathryn O'Kane | Heat Hoops   Pushing the pace and showing off her speed, Kathryn slashed through the lane and shredded the baseline aggressively to get buckets against the Comets. She used her dribble to lose the defender in the back court and carve a straight path to the hoop for easy points. It wasn't all about offense though as she got on the floor, scrapped for possession and made some notable hustle plays.   Molly Rullo | Comets   Her length was a big problem for opponents today! She was clicking from inside and out, swishing 3-pointers and showing off her hard-nose play around the rim. A great combination of size and speed, she ran hard in transition to get ahead on rim runs on offense and set up quickly on defense to prevent quick baskets. Her long reach around the paint got her a few rejections and made girls think twice before entering her space.   Emily Knouse | Comets   Emily's versatility was flat-out impressive! She scored the ball at all 3 levels with confidence and efficiency. She showed off parking lot range in the first half, hitting two very deep 3's from nearly two feet behind the arc! Her footwork was on point and on one play, she spun her way beautifully into a mid-post fade-away which left my eyes wide open! She played smart on the drive and kick to draw defenders in and dish out to the perimeter. Defensively, she won the battle on the boards more times than not and proved tough inside.   [player_tooltip player_id='414395' first='Reese' last='Downey'] | NJ Soldiers   When breaking down Reese's game, most scouts, myself included, go right into her 3-point shooting prowess. And rightfully so, because she's jaw-droppingly incredible from long range! However, what stood out to me today was her ability to facilitate and dish out some tremendous dimes. I believe her passing is a very underrated part of her game. Her vision today against the Comets was sharp as she manufactured in traffic and found cutting teammates even through the tiniest of gaps. She delivered well-timed backdoor feeds and got everyone involved in the action. She was so much more than just a scorer today!   Riley Abernethy | Syracuse Nets   Riley let everyone know today that if their defense is lacking even just a little bit, she will make them pay! She lit it up from deep against the Comets, lining up 3's from the wings and corners; I counted four in total. It didn't stop just at offense though! She was fully committed on the defensive side of things, keeping active hands and applying ball pressure which, at times, was more suffocating than the humidity outside!   [player_tooltip player_id='926434' first='Lyla' last='Duskee'] | Syracuse Nets   Lyla's shot selection against the Comets was spot-on! She scored the ball in a number of ways, from layups, to put-backs, to 3-pointers and everything in between. She created from the high post either on the kick out or facing up and spinning her way to the hoop. She was fearless attacking the glass and impressive rebounding from her position. Her aggressiveness paid off as it earned her trips to the charity stripe for free points.   Emma Anthony | Lady Runnin Rebels   Hands down the best performance I saw today was by Emma "Sniper" Anthony. When I watch her play, I'm fully aware that she is lethal from 3-point land, but she took it to a whole nother level today against Mid-Penn Motion! She was absolutely TORRID!! At one point in the first half, she banged in three consecutive shots from deep. And these weren't just your typical toes-almost-on-the-line 3-pointers... these were from Caitlin Clark territory! The second half was a continuation of the first, with Emma banging in step-back 3's from the wings and stepping into straight-away daggers. She also showed off her ability to put in on the floor and penetrate the defense aggressively, earning and-1's and multiple trips to the FT line. What a performance!   [player_tooltip player_id='959826' first='Lily' last='DeRose'] | CJ Hawks   Lily's efforts led the Hawks on a furious comeback charge late in the second half against the Delco Goats. Although they came up a bit short, her incredible performance did not go unnoticed! Her motor never once slowed down as she remained aggressive from start to finish. Her 3-ball was clicking on all cylinders as the defense simply had no answer to try and contain her. She dropped long-range bombs from just about everywhere around the perimeter, getting to her spots quickly and releasing her shot even quicker! She was fouled on her 3-point attempt several times as the defense could not close out quick enough!   [player_tooltip player_id='414246' first='Emani' last='Resto'] | NJ Vols   Emani was the focal point of the Vols' offense today in a big win against CT D Athleticz. She was strong handling the ball and kept her dribble alive despite being bumped and pressured by the defense. She utilized the ball fake effectively and leaned into her mid-range shot beautifully. She did a great job in transition pushing the ball up ahead to beat the defense before it could establish itself. E got buckets at all three levels today and proved that she can confidently pop from just about anywhere. I loved her swagger and intensity out there!   Lauren Chain | District One   Lauren's performance against the Stingrays of Staten Island earned her an A+ for effort. Although the points didn't tally how she may have hoped, she played with the mentality that "shooter's shoot" and all shooter's are going to have rough patches from time to time, but it's about perseverance and sticking with it! Most importantly, it's about impacting the game in other ways when your shot isn't falling. And that's exactly what she did! She handled the ball confidently and looked to facilitate and find open players spaced out around the floor. She delivered post-entry feeds and distributed wonderfully around the perimeter. Never stationary, she moved well without the ball and executed quick rotations to get to her spots for a good look at the basket. Her body language was positive and her competitive spirit never lacked intensity.

With so much action under one roof, it's safe to say there was a boatload of talent around every corner and on every court. Let's take a look at who made their mark on opening day of the month's final AAU event.