USJN California Classic Top Standouts Pt. 1

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This weekend, Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, CA played host to the USJN California Classic as the first live period got underway. The event was held from Apr. 21-23 and featured some of the top talent from both Northern and Southern California. I was able to attend the event on Sunday, Apr. 23 and here's a look at some of the top standouts I saw.<br><br><strong>1. [player_tooltip player_id='209987' first='Morgan' last='Hawkins'] - Corona Centennial 2024</strong><br><br>Hawkins is a scoring point guard that loves to attack downhill. She's quick and decisive off the dribble and doesn't let the defense get set. She's a solid ball-handler who can control the tempo of the game. Consistently able to attack the basket and she can finish through contact or stop and shoot the little floater. Able to draw fouls consistently and get to the free-throw line. Able to get to her spots on the court.<br><br><strong>2. Krista Sheaffer - Sanger 2024</strong><br><br>Sheaffer is a wing with good size and can be a flat out scorer. She can rise up and shoot over smaller defenders. Able to put the ball on the floor in the halfcourt and finish at the basket. Also can hit the catch and shoot three-pointer. She's methodical in that scoring comes easy for her. She's a pretty good ball-handler for her size and is able to handle the ball on the break. Good playmaker in transition, keeping her head up and looking for teammates.<br><br><strong>3. Madison Gillett - Harvard Westlake 2026</strong><br><br>Gillett is a quick guard/wing who plays with a lot of energy. She's decisive with the ball and was able to consistently beat the defender off the dribble. What really stood out to me though was her defensive ability. She puts pressure on the ball and has quick feet. Slides over well to keep up with the ball-handler.<br><br><strong>4. [player_tooltip player_id='876153' first='Yeni' last='Denloye'] - Viewpoint 2024</strong><br><br>Denloye is a smaller, but tough and strong point guard. She's very quick in transition and looks to push the pace. In the halfcourt she can shoot the pull-up jumper in the midrange or attack the basket. She's small, but she's able to finish through traffic at the rim. She can play off the ball too alongside another ball-handler. She is a solid on ball defender who picks up defensively full court.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->