Big North Shootout: Experience is Overrated

The Big North Shootout is a team camp that's been around for 21 years. Taking place in beautiful Petoskey and Boyne City, this event brings quality teams and prospects to beautiful Northern Michigan year after year. Director Ray Kimball does an outstanding job running the event, and it's an event I look forward to covering, not just because it happens to take place in a resort town. There are always hidden gem prospects to be found from under-the-radar teams, and this year was no different. Portland is historically a very competitive D2 program. They graduated some very talented college prospects, but still have a cupboard full of promising young players who look ready to continue the tradition of winning. Here are five prospects from the Raiders and three more from St. Johns, two Capital Area Activities Conference teams, who stood out on Monday:   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">UPCOMING PGH EVENTS (Use "EvanBell10" code for discount)</h2>   The Freshman Showcase (2030s), August 22nd   <a href="https://events.prepgirlshoops.com/e/2390/register/michigan-freshman-showcase">Registration Link</a>   The Expo (2027-2029s), September 26th   <a href="https://events.prepgirlshoops.com/e/2420/register/the-expo-michigan">Registration Link</a>    Oakley put herself firmly on our radar this spring with CCE on the PGH Circuit. She has a robust, filled-out muscular stature and competes with a high motor that immediately catches your attention as a guard prospect. Oakley slashed to the basket and was effective as a facilitator for St. Johns. She threw an overhead pass on a rope over the top for an assist, saw no mid-line defender, ripped by off the dribble, then beat the help to the spot and finished off two feet. Oakley drove hard to the basket to cause a foul and continued to impose her will around the basket. She used a quick double crossover move to create a driving lane, shifted gears, then scored a strong and-one finish through contact. Oakley chased down an offensive rebound, elevated off two feet, and swished a baseline floater. She took a defensive rebound 94 feet up the sideline with pace and finished the contested layup. Oakley sprinted ahead in transition, caught a pass in stride, and finished the layup going full tilt. She scored a strong offensive rebound put back off two feet, and played almost the entire game without a break. Oakley answered a three with a smooth triple of her own off the bounce from the slot. She had a great showing at the Big North Shootout and is undecided about her intended major.     When you see a prospect that's nearly 6 feet in length moving like a guard, you tend to notice. Add the fact that Gwen is an incoming freshman who hasn't hit her fundamental ceiling yet, and now you have the makings of an elite prospect. Gwen had a breakout day for Portland at the Big North Shootout. She broke the middle school high jump record (5'2"), and that athleticism translates to the basketball court. Gwen caused havoc with her length at the top of the zone. She turned deflections into steals and motored up the court for quick fast break layups. Gwen swiped the ball away up top, used long pushout dribbles with both hands to create separation, and finished with her left off two feet without slowing down. She slashed to the hoop after a quick crossover for a drive-by layup with her off hand and went up strong into contact. Gwen used a quick rip move to create space and drained a deep pull-up jumper up top off the bounce. She split the gap on a hard drive and used a sweet fake-pass move to score with her left. One of Gwen's highlights came when she caught a pass on the wing, ripped by a defender using one dribble, took two long strides, and dropped in the floater over the help after faking a pass. I seldom see a prospect get to the rim from the perimeter in one dribble. That was the exclamation point to an impressive day.     Kennedy is going to be Portland's maestro for the next few years. She's poised and confident running the offense as the lead guard. Kennedy has the ball on a string, creating separation from defenders with quick, change-of-direction crossovers. She knows where the ball needs to go and dished out many dimes throughout the day, including back-to-back assists on consecutive possessions. Kennedy threw an overhead entry pass on a rope to a cutter and fired a pass ahead in transition for another assist. She's fast, sees the floor well, and immediately looks to push the tempo. Kennedy is confident and accurate from beyond the arc. She buried a silky smooth step back three from the wing off the bounce and another off the catch. Kennedy penetrates, causes the defense to collapse, and fires passes out to open shooters. She plays hard on both ends and had a great day at the Big North Shootout.     Brooklyn stood out with St. Johns at the Big North Shootout because of her relentless effort and determination. She was active on the boards and attacked hard downhill to score layups off the dribble. Brooklyn used a shifty double crossover move in transition to go by a defender for a layup and immediately looked to score after grabbing rebounds on the defensive end. She competed with a high motor and played heavy minutes for the Red Wings. Brooklyn is a varsity golfer and is currently undecided about her intended major.     Maggie has length and athleticism as a wing-guard prospect that gives her a high ceiling. She competes with a relentless motor and an endless supply of energy on the court. Maggie earned trips to the free throw line by driving hard to the basket and outworking the opponent for offensive rebounds. She got downhill and scored multiple layups in traffic with defenders contesting the shots. Maggie showed her perimeter range by sinking a smooth corner three from the corner and stayed active on the defensive end. She stood out with Portland at the Big North Shootout, and a breakout sophomore campaign is just around the corner.     Leigha is one of the strongest forwards in Michigan, and it showed during games with Portland at the Big North Shootout. She jumped to the ball on defense and ripped it right out of an opponent's hands twice. Leigha doesn't quit on a play and bulldozes her way right to the rim through contact to score layups. She scored catch and finish layups going full speed with smooth transfers and stepped outside to hit multiple threes. Leigha used effective pivots to create scoring angles and finished with great touch in the paint. She converted contested shots with and without the backboard, depending on the situation. Leigha was a rebounding machine. She was very effective at facing up and attacking off the dribble to score layups and get to the free-throw line. When she drives full speed, it's best to avoid taking a charge. Leigha converted free throws efficiently and dominated in every phase for Portland. As the senior, she will lead this very talented Portland team.     Kamri is a very promising point guard playmaker who made a big splash for St. Johns at the Big North Shootout. She moved her feet and reached in quickly to poke the ball away while defending a breakaway. Her quick hands and pressure on the perimeter generated steals. She used a sudden behind-the-back dribble to create a driving lane, got to the third level, and converted the contested layup. Kamri kept her balance against a physical defender, went by with a crossover, absorbed the contact, and scored the bucket. She fought to get over screens and made a great bounce pass feed through defenders. Kamri split the gap on a hard take to the basket, caused a foul, and dropped in the free throw straight through the net with balanced feet and a confident follow-through. She used an impressive combination of crossovers with a spin move to penetrate off the dribble, then added a smooth transfer to her left to convert the tough layup in traffic. Kamri will be an exciting addition to the lineup this winter.     Selia is clearly going to be a force in the post for Portland. She was dominant at the Big North Shootout. Selia scored several layups in the paint throughout the day. My notebook is full of catch and finishes by #30. She caught passes with strong hands and finished efficiently off two feet. Selia went up strong and beat a double team in the paint using a nice pivot with a soft baby hook release. She sprinted the floor, caught the pass in stride, and finished off two. Selia walled up on the defensive end to block a shot and worked hard for rebounding positioning, then ripped the ball away aggressively for the offensive board. She sealed defenders deep with a strong stance, presented an easy passing target, and used powerful drop steps to score contested layups off two feet. Selia is going to be a matchup problem for opponents this winter.

The Big North Shootout is a team camp that's been around for 21 years. Taking place in beautiful Petoskey and Boyne City, this event brings quality teams and prospects to beautiful Northern Michigan year after year. Director Ray Kimball does an outstanding job running the event, and it's an event I look forward to covering, not just because it happens to take place in a resort town. There are always hidden gem prospects to be found from under-the-radar teams, and this year was no different. Portland is historically a very competitive D2 program. They graduated some very talented college prospects, but still have a cupboard full of promising young players who look ready to continue the tradition of winning. Here are five prospects from the Raiders and three more from St. Johns, two Capital Area Activities Conference teams, who stood out on Monday: