Battle At The Beach Top 2023s
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Thanksgiving week is always a time for early season tournaments and showcases and Redondo Union High School played host to the Battle at the Beach tournament the whole week. The event featured some of the top teams and talent in Southern California.
I was able to attend the event the final day on Saturday Nov. 27 and here’s a look at some of the top players from the class of 2023 that I saw.
1.
Sydni Summers
Sydni
Summers
5'4" | CG
Corona Centennial HS | 2023
State
CA
– Corona Centennial
Summers is a player I’ve watched for the past couple of years and her development has been very evident. She’s a lead guard at the next level; a very good ball-handler who runs the offense well. She’s strong, she can slash to the rim and absorb contact while finishing. She has a nice crossover and she can either hit defenders with a step-back jumper or take a couple of dribbles and pull up. She has a nice little scoop shot in the lane and she can draw fouls and get to the line.
2. Gizel Navarro – Cathedral Catholic
Navarro is a great shooter from three-point range. Really good catch and shoot player. She does her job as a shooter and doesn’t try to do too much. She’s a little undersized, but she is effective. She can handle the ball at times and attack the defense off the dribble. She has good handles and dribbles under control against the defense. She can really attack downhill with her speed.
3. Breya Cunnigham – La Jolla Country Day
Cunningham is one of the top post players in the country. I’ve also watched her play for the past couple of years and she’s really developed well as a post presence. She’s gotten much more coordinated and finishes much better through the defense. Very active around the rim and she crashes the offensive glass to get put-backs and gain extra possessions. Defensively, she can really be an interior anchor. Her size and mobility helps in her contesting shots at the rim.
4.
Londynn Jones
Londynn
Jones
5'5" | PG
Santiago | 2022
State
#9
Nation
CA
– Corona Centennial
A UCLA commit, Jones put on one of the best performances of the day. She dropped 45 points and did it using her full bag of scoring. She’s very quick off the dribble and tough for defenders to keep in front of them. Her handles are very good and she just blows past them to the rim. She has a nice little floater in the lane. She finishes strong over big defenders. She can pull-up in transition for three or she can hit defenses with the one/two dribble pull-up in halfcourt sets. Good playmaker too.
