Brooks' Notebook: Day Four - EYBL Championships Monday

Today was the final day of EYBL Nike Nations action. We crowned multiple winners, across multiple age groups throughout this weekend as a whole while seeing high level competition take place. This is one of those events that can change the trajectory to anyone who might show out so it's always fun to see who steps up following with some offers to get on campus.   Below we discuss some of the notes that I took in real time today while watching from the stands.   Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!    "To start our day we are watching Monika Diaz do WORK for her Cal Storm 17U EYCL team. This one is coming to a close and Diaz has been light outs from deep. She has to be 7-10 or 6-9 at this point from all over the floor from behind the three point line. She also has a few steals, assists, and rebounds but where she is shining over everyone else is from deep right now. If I had to give an MVP to this group when the buzzer sounds, it's going to Diaz and I think everyone who was watching would agree without question."     "If you ever play on an all-star type team while competing, you know that effeciency is what matters the most. Sarah Poepard was the definition of efficient in her team's 16U EYBL Championship this afternoon. She started her day off going 3-3 off the catch from three point lane and she never looked back. She might not be the strongest scoring threat with this crew but she can still make things happen in a hurry when the ball his her hands on offense and we saw up close-and-personal today in Chicago."     "Today during this Championship it has been somewhat of a coming out party for Jordyn Haywood in the scene that I've been curious where she has been the last few days. She has been putting up decent stat lines with this group playing off the ball but this is a Team USA player and one of their best so our exceptions of production from her are higher than most others. Haywood did a great job of getting to her spots at a steady rate and converting today. She also is boarding the ball and showing up as a stopper on the defensive end. When the final buzzer sounds, Haywood will be her team's top scorer of the day or close to it with some efficient numbers to look back on."     "When you figure out that Strickland is playing up a grade level and still putting up noteworthy numbers, you start to see the promise she is going to bring to the table as she grows up. Strickland is good going either direction off the bounce to hit a bucket from deep, she can catch and let it fly, and if she is over-played by the defense then she can get into the middle of things with her crispy handle."     "Madeleine Hamiel put together a MVP performance this morning to help her North Tartan 15U EYBL team to a National Title over a talented CyFair team. Hamiel was the only one throughout that recorded a double-double with 17 Points (6-15) & 10 Rebounds. Out of these 17 points, 6 of them came from the free throw line (6-7), showing that she was someone who wasn't afraid of contact at the rim. She did all over her production near the hoop in this battle and that is because she is natural mismatch as a strong 5'10 CC with physicality and self-awareness."     "Ballou competes with a ton of reach and athletic ability inside the lane. She pairs that with being a natural 6'0 at the Forward position. Several times today we saw her make impressive moves offensively, which led to buckets on the offensive end once she got down-hill. Definitely another prospect to know the name of. She has a lot of skill already but you can tell she still has a long way to go so who knows what she might turn out to be."     "We highlighted Birmingham yesterday but she is showing up yet again for her 16U AIA EYBL team as they dominate their Championship matchup. Birmingham has been doing it all. She is leading the team in scoring, she is bringing the ball down the court to run their offense and to run in transition, she is defending one of the best players from the opposing team, and she is leaving it all on the floor with maximum effort on loose ball situations. All in all, this has been a weekend to remember for BB. Now she just has to give it time and her collection of D1 offers will be stacked to the ceiling."     "If you are looking for a lengthy Forward at 6'0, that can spread the floor and hit shots from distance off the catch whenever she has time to set her feet, than look no further than Payton Fellows of Hoop Nerd Elite 17U EYCL. Fellows has demonstrated today that she is a willing attacker of the basket but if the defense wants to just sit under the basket than she can step out to hit a shot to keep them honest. In the first half we have seen some impactful moments from Fellows as a whole to keep her group in the contest and that's been noticeable from afar."     "Third day in a row mentioning Katie Muller and for good reason. Muller has been a big part of her team's offense yet again in the 17U EYBL Championship. She has only shot from distance so far, making a decent amount of her attempts. We are coming down the stretch of things and Muller just hit another big three to tie things up. All weekend long Muller was money on this National Title run. She should keep her head held high. This won't be the last time she is successful on a National stage on the hardwood."     "Rice has been the leader you want handling your team in this 17U EYBL Championship. She is commanding the pace of play, finishing at all three offensive levels, while being the main focus of the other team as they attempt to defend. Once Rice beats her initial defender, she has been hitting open teammates for assists in all sorts of ways. It's also important to note that she is showing up in all sorts of ways on the stat sheet with how she is competing. If Sports Academy Swish finishes this thing off, Rice should be named MVP."

Today was the final day of EYBL Nike Nations action. We crowned multiple winners, across multiple age groups throughout this weekend as a whole while seeing high level competition take place. This is one of those events that can change the trajectory to anyone who might show out so it's always fun to see who steps up following with some offers to get on campus.