iKHONICS AAU Preseason Exposure Camp: Seven More Standouts

This weekend IKHONICS gym in Cedar Rapids, Iowa invited in over 30 players from all grade levels throughout two days to compete under one roof in a mixture of skill and competitive drills to help sharpen their abilities prior to AAU season.    In this piece we highlight seven notable prospects from the past few days. Each player listed did their thing and they ended up shining because of it.   Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!    There is a lot to like about [player_tooltip player_id='992377' first='Evie' last='Creighton'] of CR - Jefferson High School and [program_tooltip program_id='712377' first='All' last='Iowa Attack'] AAU. Creighton is a quick-thinking guard, that is skilled as a SG or PG. She can either be the one that needs to run the offensive system or she can play off the ball and be a scoring threat at all times. In my book, she is more of a natural SG than most others but she is also such a good handler of the basketball that she can consistently bring it up if need be. Creighton came to both days of this event and showed off her skill-set. She left a lasting impression on the coaching staffs as I'm sure she is going to be someone we hear more about over these next six months on the road. She consistently impacts the game on both sides of the ball and that is obvious.     This is going to be a major Spring and Summer for [player_tooltip player_id='782232' first='Lena' last='Evans'] on her recruiting journey and she did a thorough job of showing off her ability at this event. Evans, a 5'8 SG, is a tricky prospect to guard. She can do everything you would imagine on offense in the terms of scoring it herself from whichever offensive level, she can create for others around her at a higher rate than most, or she can play off of the ball and produce as a screener or cutter. She has a few go-to moves that she likes to break out in specific moments, like a pass-fake euro step or a smooth midrange jumper off of a catch from about 15Ft out. Either way, whenever she is on the attack and playing with confidence, she looks at her best. Not to mention, she is no slouch defensively. She can get up and be aggressive to force some turnovers or she can sit back and play smart. It just depends what her specific matchup might be. All in all, great showing from Evans on the weekend.     I was very impressed with [player_tooltip player_id='1221191' first='Ellie' last='English'] of BGM High School and how she produced against some other noteworthy prospects. English has nice height at 5'10, she moves like a mix between a guard and a forward, all while being extremely coordinated with her balance. When you combined those three things, you get an individual who can do some damage on the high school floor, with a ton of promise looking toward the future. English is one of those that doesn't do anything great but she does everything really well. She can use her height to rebound and score near the bucket, she can use her long first-step on the outside to bring out a post defender to the perimeter and than attack her for an easy finish, or she can screen away from the play to open up others within their offense. After what I saw this weekend, I expect English to put up some eye-catching numbers the next three years at BGM at the Varsity level as well as this Spring/Summer season with her [program_tooltip program_id='712377' first='All' last='Iowa Attack'] team.     Coming off of a State Title, CR - Xavier will have to find a new identity as they lose their star PG/SG in [player_tooltip player_id='311363' first='Libby' last='Fandel'] and their legendary coach, Tom Lilly, due to retirement. Someone that will be on their roster next Winter, who should start from the looks of it is SG - [player_tooltip player_id='1057468' first='Cayleigh' last='O'Brien']. O'Brien is as natural as they come as an offensive player. She gets the ball to go into the basket a lot and in several different ways. She isn't someone that is going to kill you with flash but with consistency. This weekend that was obvious. She was getting to either side of the hoop and finishing through contact, she stepped up defensively to make some stops against some of the best prospects in the building, and she demonstrated that she is a solid teammate all-around. I would like to see O'Brien become a little more vocal when she is out on the floor but that will come with experience and confidence so I'm not too worried about it.     There is just something about [player_tooltip player_id='832201' first='Elysionna' last='Westerfield'] and what she can bring to the floor. Westerfield is a different talent. She has decent size, she understands all situations on the floor around her, and she is pretty versatile in anything she does. I wound't say that she is a 1/2 or a 4/5 and she does possesses some athletic ability so she comes in as more of a 3 at the CG position at this time. In this event she had her moments. In competitive play she dominated smaller defenders near the basket but she also displayed that she can step out and hit a three ball, if others don't respect her from that distance. Defensively, she moved well with who she was guarding and she didn't seem to get beat much. She was disciplined to stay down on pump fake or things of that natural and that stood out. CR - Washington is going to be looking for another big Winter later this year. If players like this keep working in their off-season, who knows what they might do as a team when they all come back together.     [player_tooltip player_id='1098694' first='Kendyl' last='Aarhus'] displayed her impressive shooting ability at this event in both the 1v1 competitive drills and within her team's offense when they were scrimmaging. Aarhus also has the ability to put it on the ground but you can tell that she is always ready to let it fly from the outside. If the defense does over-play her shooting ability, she can drive past and get to the rim for a finish in a number of different ways. Aarhus would be categorized as a smaller SG but with how quick her release is, how fundamental her base is on the catch, and with her knowledge of spacing - she makes it work and it's never really an issue. This AAU season I am going to be around to see Aarhus compete and I am sure she is going to look like a well-seasoned product. She will be competing with a program that loves to shoot the three ball so that plays right into her strengths.     [player_tooltip player_id='881974' first='Emma' last='Zabel'] came into this event and showed off what she could do. Zabel is a 6'0 Center, that I'm starting to consider more of a PF after what I saw this weekend. Mainly because she has the ability to step out and shoot from the outside, as she also has the ability to take it in and play near the painted area. On the Varsity floor for high school ball, Zabel is their mixture of a C/PF, that holds it down in the middle. With some bigger prospects in the building over these two days, Zabel wasn't the tallest but she held her own. She played as physical as she could underneath against others that had 3-4 inches and 35+ LBs on her. This just shows the heart she competes with. She is never running from anyone and she is always willing to mix it up. As long as Zabel continues to keep working and she stays locked in, I'm sure she will be a player that produces over the next twelve months on whichever floor she is competing on.

This weekend IKHONICS gym in Cedar Rapids, Iowa invited in over 30 players from all grade levels throughout two days to compete under one roof in a mixture of skill and competitive drills to help sharpen their abilities prior to AAU season.