Save the Best For Last: SC Standouts from Final 2025 Live Period

This past weekend was the final live period event of the 2025 AAU campaign, bringing a close to grassroots ball for this year.    Such an occasion can particularly be bittersweet for a senior given it will be their final time sporting their AAU uniform. All that remains between now and the start of the season are a few non-travel events such as the upcoming Prep Girls Hoops Freshman Showcases, Sophomore ID Camps and Expos.    A number of noteworthy names from the Palmetto State delivered strong closes to the 2025 club campaign. Without further ado, here is who finished with a flourish at the final live period.     The 2028 prospect from Team Elite Hubbard 16U based in Georgia participated in both of the final live period events of this year's AAU campaign. She participated in the March to Dayton in Ohio from July 11-14 then was back stateside at Rock Hill for this year's Adidas championships. Earlier in the spring, Earle actually made an appearance in Guntersville at the Prep Girls Hoops Circuit's Roll Tide Rumble back in April. Earle is a gifted 3-point shooter who can throw defenses off guard with how she can attack the rim and knows how to turn defense into offense. Earle, whose career included a stint with Legacy Early College, looks ahead to the 2025-26 season with 5A Division 1 Mauldin.      Speaking of noteworthy prospects that were part of that Adidas live period get-together in Rock Hill, Bostick made her presence felt throughout that weekend. She may only be a 2029 but she plays up in class on the [program_tooltip program_id='713005' first='Upward' last='Stars'] 16U 3SSB team. The season Bostick put together in 2024-25 as an eighth grader proved she will be the centerpiece of all things 4A South Florence for the next several seasons as long as she is wearing Bruins blue and gold. She averaged 14.2 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.1 steals last season. Among the many positive aspects to her game are getting to the free throw line, handling the ball with the right or left hand and the ability to attack in the either the halfcourt or full court as if she were a one or a two.      That final AAU tournament is always a memorable one for every senior. Rush was no exception as she wore the [program_tooltip program_id='783909' first='Palmetto' last='76ers/A'ja Wilson Elite'] jersey one more time at the Nike Tournament of Champions in Chicago. Rush places plenty of emphasis on long-range shooting but can play the more conventional big role with her back to the basket. The length Rush possesses combined with her 6-foot-3 frame can make things very difficult for opposing defenses. Rebounding is another one of her strong points. Rush has had a busy offseason between the offers she has received and her transfer to 5A Division 1 Wando.      Following an appearance at Run 4 Roses, Parks and her FBC BounceNation NextUp Lady Wolves team returned to Derby City to take part in the NE2K National Championship. Parks helped her team advance to the semifinals of the tournament where they matched up against Georgia Queen Elite Black 2026. Her team may have come up short, but she still tallied 21 points and eight rebounds in her final travel effort. Parks is another who has had a busy offseason with the offers she has received and she now looks forward to the 2025-26 season with a 1A North team that was an Upper State finalist last season.      Adams finished her 2025 grassroots season in Pennsylvania at the Under Armour Rise finals. Her team finished 4-2 in the Keystone State in large because of Adams' play. When guarding the rising star from 3A St. Joseph's Catholic, the main thing one has to look out for is her ability to make 3-pointers. Adams also knows when to score and when to pass and has no issues setting up her teammates to make plays given how gifted a ball distributor she is. Handles are another plus to her game and she is taller than many guards at 5-foot-10. Adams has played at the varsity level since she was a seventh grader and averaged 12.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and two steals a contest for the Knights who were 3A Upper State finalists last season.     Watts was also present at the Under Armour Rise finals in Pennsylvania competing with FBC Reign UA Rise 2027. She averaged 10.3 points per game in the Keystone State. In one of the games, she was hard to contain from behind the arc as she drained four 3-pointers. Watts also averaged 4.7 rebounds and 2.1 steals during the final live period event. She especially made an impact on the defensive end of the floor as she caused plenty of deflections with how she clogged up the passing lanes for opposing lanes. Watts also plays volleyball alongside basketball. She has played at the varsity level since the eighth grade and averaged 8.4 points and 1.3 steals last season at 5A Division 2 Lucy Beckham.      There are few better ways than to put a bow on someone's AAU career than how Alexander did with her Phoenix Elite 17U team. It was one of the 2026 teams that was at the Lakepoint Sports Complex in north Georgia. She and her team went undefeated at War Games and were crowned champions at ATL Summer Slam. Alexander is undoubetedly one of the premier bigs in the state and she already has championship hardware from her stint at 2A Andrew Jackson. Her interior presence will be a major lift to Camden as coach Lewis Mungo's Bulldogs will once again be among the class of the 4A field. She was also recently awarded with an offer from Tennessee State and its head coach - WNBA champion Candice Dupree. Lenoir-Rhyne and its coach Emry Tsitouris also offered Alexander.     Haroski's final time playing AAU also occurred at the Under Armour finale in Pennsylvania. She and her [program_tooltip program_id='715412' first='SC' last='Eagles'] UA Rise 17U team played in six games in the Keystone State where she averaged 16 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists. Haroski is a skilled guard who has the handles of a point guard but the 3-point shooting ability of a two. She can handle the ball with either hand, makes the right passes, can also attack the rim with effectiveness and can match an opposing ball carrier step for step. Haroski can keep her hands outstretched on defense and that can enable her to come away with blocks. She averaged 12.3 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.5 steals last season and has received a large number of college offers.      Murrell wore the Legacy North 17U uniform this past weekend at the Nike Nationals in Chicago. Her team won its bracket in a victory on Monday over GBL Premier 17 EYCL. At 6-foot-2, she certainly helps a team's rebounding efforts in addition to adding scoring depth in the frontcourt. Murrell places plenty of emphasis on defense – including blocking shots and taking charges. Setting screens is another positive aspect of her game. Murrell transferred from Legion Collegiate and will be part of one of the premier 4A teams in the state in South Pointe. Her career also included a stop at 1A Lewisville.      Blackmon's final AAU event of the 2025 grassroots campaign occurred during the mid-July live period when her One Force 16U BSTL team took part at the USJN invite in Dayton. The combo guard from 2A Atlantic Collegiate can be accurate with the 3-point shot. Blackmon's defense can also confuse many opposing ball carriers leaving them turnover-prone. She knows how to reach for the ball at exactly the right times to get said ball carriers to cough up the rock and those miscues can even become a Blackmon transition basket. Blackmon was a major reason why the Armada took a massive leap last season en route to a 2A tournament berth in only the school's second year of existence.       Speaking of One Force standouts, Woodham spent her time with her travel team at the Nike Tournament of Champions in Chicago at the final live period of the year. She is an efficient floor runner who knows when to score and when to pass. Woodham displays how effective she can be as a ball handler and transition playmaker and has no problems drawing contact to get to the free throw line. Finding lanes to attack the basket is another positive element to her skillset. Woodham had a breakout freshman season in 2024-25 averaging 14.1 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.4 steals at 4A Darlington and is poised for even better with the Falcons when the season tips off in November.      Given Team KB AAU is based in Charlotte, one would expect said squad to feature names from both sides of the North Carolina-South Carolina state line. McIlwain is one of the Palmetto State standouts and she took part at ATL Summer Slam in Georgia for the final live period of 2025. She was recognized as a Player of the Game following one of the contests in the Peach State. McIlwain looks ahead to the 2025-26 season with a 5A Division 1 Clover team that was one of the toughest to defeat last season. This will once again be the case for coach Shakkia Walker's team given the talented veteran core the Blue Eagles will unleash on opponents.

This past weekend was the final live period event of the 2025 AAU campaign, bringing a close to grassroots ball for this year.