PGH GLK: 15U Pool A Saturday Stars

These 15U prospects had me on the edge of my seat on Saturday, filled up my notebook, and had my pen running out of ink during the games. Here are the Pool A 15U prospects who separated themselves at the Great Lakes Kickoff.    Farrah is the top-ranked forward in Wisconsin. After seeing her play with Team Prime Nation EYBL 15U at the Great Lakes Kickoff, I can certainly see why. She's long, physical, competes with a high motor, and has the fundamental skills needed to excel as a face-up driver or a traditional back-to-the-basket big. Farrah muscled into position for rebounds and dominated the glass on both ends. She caught passes inside with good hands and converted shots efficiently in traffic. Farrah finishes strong off two feet. She scored an and-one off a screen and roll, then completed the three-point play at the line. Farrah moved her feet to cut off drives and rotated from help position to block shots. She penetrated off the dribble to score layups and finished full speed at the rim.     Elly was one of the most complete point guard prospects I saw at the Great Lakes Kickoff, and she did everything to help Team Prime Nation EYBL 15U win on Saturday. She was a complete guard with one of the highest IQs on the court. Elly continuously penetrated the defense, got two feet in the paint, collapsed the help, and kicked the ball out to open shooters. She closed out hard on the perimeter to block shots, dove for loose balls, secured rebounds, and pushed the pace to create transition scoring opportunities. Elly used a jab, took one dribble to penetrate, then created space with a step-back to bury a smooth facial three up top. She had deep three-point range and used effective pivots in the paint to score floaters. Her shifty crossovers and behind-the-back dribbles made her difficult to contain. Elly was a court general, high-IQ defender (on ball and in the gap), maintained a balanced/wide athletic stance on defense, and cut off drives with quick lateral slides. She used textbook wall-up technique to block shots and force misses on drives without fouling. She sealed the victory late. Elly swiped the ball away to score a layup, then anticipated a pass on the next possession for another steal, then drove by for a left-handed finish.     Zaire has towering length and a fierce interior presence that immediately makes her stand out on the court. She had an impactful Saturday for Mac Irvin Fire Brown 15U at the Great Lakes Kickoff. Zaire tore a defensive rebound away from the opponent and defended the post very well, working to stay in full deny, and deflecting entry passes away. She blocked multiple shots without fouling, including a ferocious swat on a drive that sent the ball flying out of bounds. "Get that out of my house!" Zaire finished a strong and-one layup off two feet, scored another two foot bucket at the rim, and crashed the boards to secure rebounds on both ends.     Lilly was a defensive stopper for [program_tooltip program_id='1307580' first='Indy' last='One'] EYBL 15U at the Great Lakes Kickoff on Saturday, and she quickly turned defense into offense. Lilly had great awareness in help, and she stepped in front of passes to create steals. Lilly penetrated off the dribble to score a speedy drive-by layup and changed directions suddenly with a spin to cause a foul. She knocked down both shots confidently at the line. Lilly understood spacing, moving to the opposite block when a teammate drove to the rim and made smart basket cuts from the perimeter. She generated steals with her perimeter pressure, used a shifty double-crossover move to get downhill, and had explosive quickness in transition. Her length, strength, ability to create space off the dribble, off-the-ball instincts, and defensive impact left a lasting impression.     Ava had a very effective day for Team Prime Nation EYBL 15U at the Great Lakes Kickoff on Saturday. She caught a pass on the perimeter, used a quick rip move to beat her defender down the baseline, landed with a controlled jump stop, then stepped through to score with her left. Ava kept her balance in the paint and scored another step through with her left from a tough angle. She penetrated with a hard drive from high post to score a bucket off two feet, secured rebounds, and knocked down free throws at the line. Ava created steals, scored a strong and-one in transition, and made smart backdoor cuts.     Isla had an impressive Saturday for MBA UAA 15U at the Great Lakes Kickoff. She escaped a trap on the perimeter, used a quick crossover, hit the gas pedal, and scored through contact for the and-one layup. Isla completed the three-point play at the line. She swished a smooth three-pointer in the corner, split defenders with a spin dribble, and dropped in a floater over the help. Isla closed out hard to block a perimeter shot and was active on the boards. She attacked hard on a drive, then finished another strong and-one layup through contact. Isla has length, quickness, toughness, two-way abilities, and a high motor that gives her a high ceiling as a guard at the next level.     Arianna was electric for [program_tooltip program_id='1307580' first='Indy' last='One'] EYBL 15U on Saturday at the Great Lakes Kickoff. She ran the offense with precision as the lead guard and demonstrated a high IQ off the ball. Arianna penetrated on a full speed drive down the middle, got hammered, hopped up, and then knocked down both free throws from the line. She communicated actively on both ends of the floor and was a coach on the court. Arianna finished a flex cut with a layup off two feet, maintained a wide, athletic stance on defense, and kept speedy guards under wraps. She finished layups efficiently off backdoor cuts, drained triples from the wing and the corner, and has a silky smooth jumper that always looks like it's going in. Arianna created open looks for shooters on the perimeter by collapsing defenders with her explosive dribble penetration, then fired accurate skip passes to the open girl. She pushes the tempo in transition and is a superbly talented two-way court general with a very high ceiling.     Sienna was on fire in her second game for MBA UAA 15U on Saturday at the Great Lakes Kickoff. She started the game with a silky smooth straightaway three off the dribble, swiped the ball away on the perimeter, then took it up the court with blazing speed for a coast-to-coast layup. Sienna buried another triple up top and penetrated off the dribble to earn a trip to the charity stripe. She has elusive, sharp handles that make it difficult to keep her from getting to the rim. Sienna created steals with her pressure, dove on the floor to scrap for 50/50 balls, and used a fancy fake-pass move to freeze the rim protector to score another driv-by layup. She drained two triples earlier in the day and is a crafty two-way point guard prospect who looks ready for a breakout AAU season.     Journey makes the right plays, and that stood out on Saturday with [program_tooltip program_id='1307580' first='Indy' last='One'] EYBL 15U at the Great Lakes Kickoff. She crashed the boards hard, anticipated misses off the rim, and grabbed two offensive rebounds on the same possession. Journey penetrated with her downhill drives and made excellent passes when the defense collapsed. Shedrained a smooth three-point in the slot and fired a lead pass on the money to a sprinting teammate for an assist. Journey threw good touch entry passes into the post for assists and defended well, deflecting passes on the perimeter. She's a versatile and athletic prospect who has the capacity to excel at multiple positions on the court.

These 15U prospects had me on the edge of my seat on Saturday, filled up my notebook, and had my pen running out of ink during the games. Here are the Pool A 15U prospects who separated themselves at the Great Lakes Kickoff.