5 youngsters on the rise at the Breakdown Tip Off

For players still in the nascent stages of their high school basketball careers, an event like the Breakdown Tip Off Classic offers a prime opportunity to live up to the hype. Maybe they're coming off a strong summer. Perhaps they've just earned their way into the Prep Girls Hoops Freshmen 50 rankings. Maybe we've noted their promise in previous tweets and articles. With the bright lights of television shining, and the eyeballs of influential scouts and coaches watching, the Tip Off is a big stage on which to do big things. Here are five youngsters who were on the rise this past weekend.   [player_tooltip player_id='515688' first='Lexie' last='Mathews'] – 2026 forward, Eastview   The kickoff of the Breakdown Tip Off Classic took place on Friday night and featured a matchup between the Crimson of Maple Grove and the Lightning of Eastview. The game included some star players of course, including (but not limited to) University of St. Thomas signee [player_tooltip player_id='215973' first='Savanah' last='Gardner'] and Michigan State commit [player_tooltip player_id='205298' first='Jordan' last='Ode']. Also on the floor was Mathews, a young player from Eastview making a name for herself in the 2026 class. Mathews is a 5'11 forward with a versatile set of skills. On the offensive end she can attack the basket or knock down shots from the 3-point line. On defense she's tall and long enough to guard players in the post, as well as athletic and quick enough to defend the perimeter. Despite the loss for Eastview, Lexie had a solid performance against the Crimson. She finished the contest with 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal. Mathews is ranked #39 in the Class of 2026.   [player_tooltip player_id='644100' first='Annika' last='Kieser'] & [player_tooltip player_id='659119' first='Maren' last='Day'] – 2027s, Wayzata   A young player making a big impact on the floor for a powerhouse program like Wayzata is something that will never fail to impress us. Two youngsters doing the same is even more astonishing, and that is exactly what we saw this weekend. Both top 20 prospects in the 2027 class, Kieser and Day were two of the most imposing underclassmen at the Tip Off Classic. The 5'9 guard Kieser (pictured above) is an all-around beast. She's athletic, competes hard, and plays with physicality and finesse. She had an outstanding performance Friday night against Lakeville South, providing a major spark off the bench and hitting 4 three-pointers, something we didn't see much from Annika in fall ball or at the Freshman Showcase. Kieser finished the game with 19 points and was the team's leading scorer.   While she didn't have quite as much of a scoring spree over the weekend, the 6'0 guard Day gave us plenty to take notice of. On the floor, Day is many things. She's smart, athletic, unselfish, a three-point sharpshooter, an impact player. We could go on and on. After this weekend, we're adding the adjective “reliable” to that list. With a deep program like Wayzata, you never quite know when a young player is going to break into the rotation, but for Maren, it seems like that has already happened. With 18 total points over 2 games, Day should be able to provide solid bench minutes for the Trojans going forward. With a prospect ranking of #16 among Minnesota freshmen, it's obvious what kind of potential Maren has.   [player_tooltip player_id='667778' first='Laila' last='Moses'] – 2027 forward, DeLaSalle   Saturday morning featured a matchup between the DeLaSalle Islanders and the Alexandria Cardinals. New to the varsity roster for the Islanders is Moses, a freshman forward and Top 25 prospect. Laila is a strong, well-built player who has a keen ability for rebounding and scoring the basketball. While she didn't see a ton of minutes against Alexandria, the ones she did get were beneficial to her team in the close contest. Of course, it was junior point guard [player_tooltip player_id='296527' first='Aneisha' last='Scott'] who stole the show, scoring 36 points in the 74-64 win over [player_tooltip player_id='346165' first='Hadley' last='Thul'] and the Cardinals. Moses has put in a ton of work developing her overall skill in the last year, and now that it's paying off we look forward to seeing how that helps expand her role on the DeLaSalle squad going forward. Right now Laila is all about potential. It's what lies ahead that has us intrigued.   [player_tooltip player_id='862785' first='Natalie' last='Thomforde'] – 2026 guard, Goodhue   Our last youngster on the rise is Thomforde, a crafty guard from Goodhue. The score was back and forth all game long Saturday night in the Wildcats' matchup with Hancock, and neither team led by more than six at any point throughout the game. Thomforde and MSU-Mankato signee [player_tooltip player_id='302307' first='Elisabeth' last='Gadient'] combined for 34 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 steals, but fell just short of taking down the Owls. Natalie wowed us all night long with her hustle plays, quick hands, ability to score all over the floor, and her consistent fight and tenacity. She was absolutely one of the best players in the game. Considering the loaded rosters for both teams, that says a lot. We last wrote about Natalie in February of this year, and it seems that she's gotten several inches taller since then to perhaps 5'10. Combine her already existing talent with some newly added height, and Thomforde should be a force to be reckoned with going forward.   PGH scout Ally McGinnis contributed to these evaluations.

For players still in the nascent stages of their high school basketball careers, an event like the Breakdown Tip Off Classic offers a prime opportunity to live up to the hype. Maybe they're coming off a strong summer. Perhaps they've just earned their way into the Prep Girls Hoops Freshmen 50 rankings. Maybe we've noted their promise in previous tweets and articles. With the bright lights of television shining, and the eyeballs of influential scouts and coaches watching, the Tip Off is a big stage on which to do big things. Here are five youngsters who were on the rise this past weekend.