Grand Rapids, MI: It's hot oustide, it's July, basketballs are bouncing and coaches and parents are on adjacent sidelines in the MSA Fieldhouse in Grand Rapids, MI. This only means one thing, it is Day I of the 2019 LBI Summer Sizzler and we have the Day I recap for you with breakout stars, clutch performances and tough teams. 

2021 Alyssa Leister 5’10” SG Michigan Mystics Blackout
Leister once again showed her excellent versatility throughout the game against Always 100 Edmonds team today. The smooth southpaw pushed in transition and hit very simple, but super effective pull-ups. She drove from the perimeter nicely and used her length and outstanding jumping ability to finish inside with ease. Leister’s outside shot is a thing of beauty as well, moving without the ball-getting her feet set and then knocking down shots with a pretty lefty stroke. Alyssa’s defense is never a letdown. She managed to defend multiple offensive players and not seem out of sorts at all.

2021 Mackenzie Egger 5’10” PG Michigan Mystics Blackout
Mackenzie Egger’s style of play is exhausting. She comes out to every game with an undeniable desire to outwork everybody. From perfectly executed box-outs to not allowing her man to turn the corner on drives, to playing the point man on their full-court pressure. Egger also manages to play with the same amount of effort on the offensive end as well. She sets hard screens-every time, she drives with purpose, chases down the loose balls, and always crashes to boards well.

2023 Alison Stephens 5’11” SG Always 100 Black 2023
Alison Stephens came out on fire this morning. She was able to hit three triples in the first half alone against the talented MBA 2023-Randel squad. Her team’s dribble-drive style put her in an optimal position to be the beneficiary of hard drives and swift kicks. Solid basketball players don’t just score from one spot or one way. Stephens managed to get to the free-throw line off of tough drives, she crashed the offensive boards hard and was able to get a few put-backs for her team as well.

2023 Molly Stock 5’6” PG Always 100 Black-2023
Molly is no doubt the engine that keeps this train moving. With only one sub on her bench, Stock played the entire game before finally retiring only when her team secured a double-digit lead. This point guard is the head of this snake, she got her girls in the correct spots, ran the offense and led her team to a big win over a good team today. Stock hit several threes throughout the game, along with plenty of impressive drives that led to buckets; either from one of her many shooters or merely finishing the bucket herself.

2020 Lauren Barton 6’0” C CCE Cool 2020/21
Barton had bodies seemingly flying off her in the paint area all day. Some were her laying hard box-outs on unsuspecting rebounders, others were getting in her way from drives out of the high post, and then some, unfortunately, got tangled with her and got the worse of it. Barton is one of those players that knows her game and skill set and is not afraid to stay in her lane. She corralled every rebound in her area and always made trustworthy outlet passes. Lauren took care of the ball in the high post area well, and she is a sneaky good passer from there. Barton was no doubt a handful to deal with on the block. What she lacks in size for her position, she makes up for in ridiculous toughness, effort, and some downright dirty grit!

2023 Zoandria Bamm 6’1” C Jackson Jets Sunderman
Bamm flexed her muscles quickly against the Toledo Thunder team today. Her presence was felt from start to finish. Bamm grabbed double-digit rebounds and threw in several put-backs; she was just a problem to keep off the glass. Out of bounds plays were all but a sure two points for the Jets. Bamm ran the floor well and was even able to catch on the move and finish with some excellent footwork. When Bamm caught it in the high post area, she hit the waiting defenders with a couple of spin moves that kept her team with striking distance.

2022 Amanda Roach 5’7” PG Michigan Mystics Black 2022
Amanda Roach is just like a loaded train with a full head of steam coming at you all night long. Her strength and ability to beat her man from the top of the key was outstanding. She used her deadly in and out combined with her speed burst in the half-court setting to get her team some much-needed buckets. Despite her size, Amanda was able to finish at the basket with very crafty moves around much taller defenders. Roach was formidable when it came to the defensive end as well. She hounded and irritated ball handlers all night; she was relentless when pursuing the ball.

2022 Lauren Sollom 6’1” SG Michigan Mystics Black 2022
Lauren has always been a highly skilled and very talented young player. She’s progressed nicely as the years have gone on, but lately, she has seemed to blossom more so than ever before. Her length and athleticism allowed her to snag a bunch of rebounds inside, and block several shots that came her way. It may have taken Sollom a little time to heat up, but when she did, she went straight into a zone. She moved well without the ball and kept her energy level at a pace that most couldn’t withstand. She hit several deep threes from behind the arc which allowed her team to make a late comeback. Although they fell short, Lauren Sollom put her fingerprints all over the game.

2020 Mercedes Simmons 6’2” PF Level Up Express 17U
You hear the stories all the time of the kids who don’t start playing basketball until they became a teenager. They have great potential because of the athleticism developed in the other sports they played. They are usually tucked away in some town you’ve never heard of but wonder on to a bigger stage at an even later age and get discovered. They have a small-town feel and are polite and coachable. People quantify what they are seeing by using words like late bloomer or high-end potential or raw. When you see them, you think if someone could take her for a year to develop, they’d have something special. Some of those kids get someone to take an interest in them, they get hungrier, and they go on to become D1 scholarship players. 

Summer Sizzler Watch List for Day II

2022 PG Soraya Timms Michigan’s Finest DeCook
Probably a little under the radar because of her size but she can play. She has a great handle and has a high basketball IQ. She’s a microwave as she can get hot from behind the arc quickly.

2021 CG Genevieve Decker-Terres Michigan Metro Cagers
Has great size and length at the guard position. She defended well, and she also attacked the basket.

LBI Summer Sizzler Day I Sharp Shooters

2023 Macy Winegar MBA 2023-Randel

2023 Alison Stephens Always 100 Black-2023

2020 Alyssa Welsh CCE Cool 2020/21

2021 Kristen O’Larry Toledo Thunder Pettaway

2021 Kailee Davis Michigan Crossover 16U EYBL

LBI Summer Day I Marquee Game

Michigan Crossover 16u EYBL 43
MBA 2020/21 Adams 40
Although the score didn’t depict the sheer amount of talent that flooded the floor during the Michigan Crossover 16u EYBL vs. MBA 2020/21 Adams game, there was standing room only to see this one as dozens of college coaches filled the sidelines. With a mixture of deflections, blocked shots and shot clock violations, the first half was a concoction of broken plays and effort buckets. To start the second half, however, the cream began to rise. Kaybriana Hallman, the highly coveted recruit from MBA got to the free-throw line and converted a couple of and ones. Jillian Brown was relentless when she decided to attack the rim, either finding Hallman streaking the court or throwing in a bucket or two herself. 2020 Lauren Ross added a buttery stroke from deep. She gave her team a nice boost with some energy giving threes as well. Crossover’s Ruby Whitehorn was so dynamic at times in that her leaping ability and the way she used the air space was like no other with tip-in put-backs sometimes off an ultra-quick second jump. Point guard Kailee Davis from Michigan Crossover was the difference-maker in the second half. She managed to hit several huge shots including long bombs from behind the arc and also a nasty left-handed floater late in the game to pull away from MBA. Davis was also able to throw in two more free throws at the end to seal the deal with a three-point victory. Michigan Crossover 16U has been competitive all summer, and at LBI Summer Sizzler, they continued that trend.

Summer Sizzler Day I Top Teams

MBA National 2022
Usually, when you hear people talking about a program having kids who play the right way, it involves efficient player and ball movement and some palatable sense of team chemistry on the court. Then I would submit to you that MBA National 2022 plays the right way. PG Abbey Kimball leads the charge for this selfless, dribble driving, three-point shooting, and high energy team. She scored on all three levels, but efficiently, as she plays her role and allows the game to come to her. PG Alli Carlson is jet quick and puts insurmountable pressure on the defense with her ability to go 0 to 100 in transition. On one play vs. Michigan Premier, she rebounded the ball with at one baseline and beat the other nine players on the court to the other end for a layup. I’ve watched a lot of basketball, and it’s rare to something like that. Guard Theryn Hallock has flat-out worked her way into a D1 scholarship. She’s edgy and has gotten faster, taller, stronger, and more skilled over the last two years. 5-11 Remington Ingraham 6-1 Molly Long, 6-2 Diamond Sawyer, and 6-1 Zoe Spoelman all rotate at the PF and C spots and offer versatility on both ends of the court. Guards Deyonce Thompson, Jada Washington, and Alaina Diaz both offer great energy off the bench. Thompson with a little more flavor to her game than the other two, but all three are effective off the bench. I see ten of these girls playing at the next level in some capacity. 

Common Bond 2021
Common Bond 2021 features a group of young, scrappy kids. 2022 Guards Lauren Dewolf and Mya Hicks lead the pack with their solid play and ability to apply pressure defensively for a majority of the game. Quickness and grit are the name of the game as Dewolf and Hicks are also able to get tough baskets when needed. 2022 Sophia Gray offers size and is the anchor for Common Bonds defensive attack. Gray is durable and has a physical style of play she uses to compete in the paint. Common Bond is a tough team, and they took on the composed demeanor of their Head Coach Tyron Hicks to gain leverage in their evening win over Michigan Cagers on Sunday at LBI Summer Sizzler.
 

Michigan Mystics Black 2023
Michigan Mystics Black 2023 merely is just finding a way to get it done. Everyone on their team sprinkles a little bit of their flavor into the game and WALLAAH...a win. 2023s Mary Copple and Layne Sleight drive the train and are great conductors. Copple has more of a classic point guard feel as she facilitates but is more than capable of knocking down the open three when the ball comes back to her. Sleight is more powerful and dynamic in the open court as she was able to get to the basket seemingly at will in transition. PF Alexis Boyke continues to be sold in the high and low post. Her versatility on the offensive end keeps defenses off balance. 2023 SF Macey Fegan was vintage in both games on Sunday as she seems to have strong starts and strong finishes. She can get the Mystics a bucket at any time and from anywhere on the court, and offers more versatility on defense than any other 2023 in the state of Michigan. It’s hard to win games at the 2023 level as there are very tough teams that have played each other multiple times this year, but the Mystics manages to get two tough wins on Sunday.