With the Month of June hitting and High School Basketball heating up, I could get out and check out the FGR Summer League and the LBI Summer 16 Shootout this week, and some of the athletes and teams look as if they had not skipped a beat. Let’s look back at some of the week's highlights!
2024 Stephanie and Stacy Utomi | Arbor Prep
I hate always putting them together, but they are so electric and dominate as a duo it wouldn’t do them justice to separate. The twins used the FGR summer league Day 1 to show any and all that were watching that they are two of the best players in the state. Dominating the games on both ends of the floor, scoring in transition, in the post, slashing and knocking down the 15-footer, they were unstoppable. They are physical wings who play with a crazy high motor and move, getting their teammates involved. Look for a big-big year from the twins!
2025 Alli Zajac | Tecumseh
Alli is turning into a hard to guard complete inside out threat. She consistently scores in the paint, shot it well from the outside, and played downhill, attacking the basket off the bounce. The more her range increases, the more hopeless it will be for Tecumseh opponents, and by the looks of things tonight, those other teams are in trouble!
2026 Makayla Schlorf | Tecumseh
Makayla played extremely well tonight, pushing the tempo finding the open teammate for an assist or turning the corner finishing at the hoop. Makayla is a super quick guard who shoots it well and always seems to get her hands on the 50-50 ball. I look for her to play a huge role in the success of the Tecumseh squad this year.
2026 Vanessa Rodriguez | Gabriel Richard
Vanessa plays and scores the ball so well it’s easy to forget she is only a 2026 guard. On the first night of her team hosted summer league, she was electric with the ball in her hands, hitting it from deep, weaving through defenders, and finishing in traffic over taller players. She and Charlotte Miller in the backcourt move in sync and okay off of each other like they have been doing it for years. And let’s not forget her twin sister Ava is still out with an injury. Watch out, Catholic league; they are here for a while!
2025 Charlotte Miller | Gabriel Richard
The calm never, rattled piece to the FGR puzzle, Charlotte plays at a mature next level pace, always finding the right teammate hitting the shot when needed, and leading the defensive charge for her squad. She plays physical on both ends, and her competitive level is through the roof. Her with the twins and a few new pieces will have them competing this year for a trip to Breslin.
2025 Eliza Bush | Arbor Prep
Eliza does it all for Prep. She is a relentless defender, runs the show on offense, hits the open jumper, and she plays with a basketball IQ well beyond her years. Eliza might just be the most important player for Prep's run back to a state championship. Her intangibles make her irreplaceable.
2024 Kailee Adams | Parma Western
Kailee is a long physical guard who shoots it well from the outside and loves to mix it up on both ends of the floor. She took on the tough defensive assignments and did a great job slashing to the hoop and making plays for her and her teammates. Kailee will be a big time keep piece to Parma’s success this season.
2025 Ashlyn Morehead | Tecumseh
Easily one of the most improved players I have seen this off-season thus far. Ashlyn has looked very good the few times I watched her play this spring and summer, and she looks to be getting even better. Ashlyn is super smooth with the rock with a deceptively quick first step; she did a great job finishing with an assortment of moves around the hoop. She runs the show for Tecumseh with confidence and a little swagger, making her a tough PG to maintain. She shot it well from the outside, and I think she has more fun making the sweet pass off the bounce rather than scoring, making her a teammate's favorite.
2027 Brooklyn Covert | Clarkston
Brooklyn plays with a smooth pace and a nice twitch in her game, making her a hard guard to contain. She played well, beating her defender, attacking the hoop, and finishing or dropping a nice dime to a teammate. What really makes her effective is her willingness and ability to shoot it from deep, which makes her an even tougher guard to cover. Clarkston got them a good young one in Covert.
2024 Kate Stemmer | Saline
Kate looked to be in mid-season form, or maybe she is just showing that she is a vet, and this summer league thing is an old hat for her. She is a physical guard who is quick and has success at the one or two. She can shoot it from deep, and tonight she was beating her defender regularly, getting to the basket, and scoring through and around contact. Defensively she is a menace hounding the ball and making plays in the passing lanes. Look for Kate to not only lead her team but also to make a run for player of the year honors in the area.
2025 Bre’asia Gamble | Muskegon
Before getting banged up, Bre’asia was having a great day scoring in transition, making plays off the bounce, and playing an aggressive physical style that was giving her opponent fits. Gamble played hard every possession and showed she could finish inside and out.
2026 Mariah Sain | Muskegon
Mariah was easily one of the most electric players of the day, getting to the rack consistently, drawing fouls, and scoring through traffic. Sain is super quick, athletic, can shoot it from deep, and plays with extremely high energy. She is one of the best players in the class of 2026.
2025 Emily Van Timmeren | Grand Rapids Catholic Central
Playing rotation minutes throughout the day, Emily still showed why she is one of the hottest recruits in the 2025 class. She has an unbelievable court presence playing with a high IQ and making the game look easy while filling up the stat sheet. Playing a few minutes at a time she rebounded the ball, scored slashing to the hoop, and made plays for her and her teammates off the bounce and out the post. She does a great job making the game look easy!
2026 Secrette Carter | Belleville
Secrette can flat out shoot the rock. She has a pretty release, and range is not an issue. Today she was in her bag, showing that she can put it on the floor and create off the bounce. In a few instances, she was able to beat her defender with the dribble and drop a nice dime to a teammate for two. Adding that to Secrette’s offensive arsenal will make her an even more dangerous cover this season.
2024 Mia Wright | Belleville
Mia did a great job today, playing very aggressively in the paint on both ends of the floor. She scored multiple baskets on rebounds & put backs and did a great job catching and finishing in traffic. She was a force on defense, altering and blocking shots. With Belleville’s loaded perimeter, Mia will be a huge piece to the Tiger puzzle this year.
2024 Kayla Mount | Detroit Cass Tech
Kayla is a Physical post player who did a great job playing downhill, attacking, and finishing through contact. She Showed great hands and was extremely light on her feet. Kayla put up huge numbers today, showing a wide range of abilities. Kayla is definitely one to pay attention to for Cass Tech this season.
2024 Bailey Pickens | Detroit Edison
Bailey is a smooth combo guard who made big plays off the bounce hitting the pull-up or getting to the rack. Pickens is a scrappy, tough defender that caused multiple turnovers and got her team out in transition for easy baskets. DEPSA played short-handed today, but Bailey stood out as one to watch.
2027 Ciara Pongratz | Grosse Point South
Ciara is a Long guard with a nice shot from deep; she played with confidence and showed good court savvy for a youngster. Ciara did a nice job using her length to jump the passing lanes on defense and making plays in transition.
2025 Maddy Benard | Grosse Point South
Maddy wasted no time showing that she is back in the conversation as one of the top 2025's in her class. She is smooth with the rock, never using any wasted energy, never getting sped up, always under control, and she scores it at a high clip. Benard does a little bit of everything for her South Squad, but her strength is definitely effortlessly getting buckets!!
2026 Mariah Cross | Wayne Memorial
One of the best guard performances of the entire shootout was put on by Cross today. A super quick high, energy guard that got to the hoop at will knocked down the three, locked up on defense, and forced the pace of the game on both ends of the floor. Mariah will definitely be heard from as one of the best guards in the loaded class of 2026 in the state of Michigan.
2024 Riley Abney | Brandon
Riley balled out today. Playing almost every minute of all three games, handling the ball, running the show, and getting buckets in multiple ways is how Riley spent her Saturday. The jumper off the bounce was clicking, the float game in the lane was dropping, and she was taking the physical punishment and still finishing at the rim. I have seen Abney play a number of times, and this was some of the best ball I have seen out of her. Coaches look for a huge summer from the bucket getter from Brandon!
2026 Jayla Holiday | Lapeer
Jayla is a dominant figure on the inside. Jayla did a great job getting position and showing a soft touch at the rim. She moved well up and down the floor and was a solid defensive presence in the paint. Only in the class of 2026, the potential in this young lady is crazy.
2025 Molly McLeod | Birmingham Marian
When I tell you this girl is hot, I watched her at both events this week, and she has been shooting the leather off the ball. Running the point for Marian Molly has done a great job handling pressure and delivering the ball to the right spot but all that is overshadowed by her ability to shoot it from deep and shoot it consistently. In one game today against one of the state’s best, Molly hit four threes scoring 23 even though everyone in the gym knew she was getting the rock. Playing with a very short handed squad looks for her to get even more open looks when she gets Butler commit Mckenzie Swanson back on the inside.
2024 Christian Sanders | Detroit Renaissance
Sanders is the real deal at the guard spot, she is cat quick and explosive with the ball in her hands she gets to the basket and showed today she can consistently hit the long ball from deep. Her maturity at this point is breathtaking, and her leadership skills are over the top. Look for Renasance to have a huge year and Sanders will be one of the main reasons why!
2025 Collenna Bryant | Wayne Memorial
Lee Lee at the guard spot is electric, dominant, poised, tough, and doesn’t or won’t back down from ANYTHING! The complete show she put on today against some of the best teams in the state was jaw dropping and all while smiling and having fun. There isn’t much this young guard can’t do; the scary thing is that she is just getting started. The best player in the gym all day, her play spoke volumes about where she sits in the class of 2025!
2024 Daria Shelby | Belleville
Daria is one of the best all-around players I watched Saturday. She does a little bit of everything for her squad and does it all well. She is best when she is aggressively turning the corner and making plays off the bounce. She is a strong guard with a nice handle, finishes through context, and can shoot it from the outside. Defensively she is a terror in the Belleville press, hounding the ball and jumping the passing lanes. Look for her to be the leader of the pack for this young talented roster.
2027 Cee Cee Arico | Country Day
Cee Cee is a big physical guard who ran the show from the one and could get her shot against anyone while still running the offense. She scored the rock at all three levels, and besides hitting the three fairly consistently, she was very effective in attacking the basket off the dribble and powering through or around defenders for two. Arico guarded 1-5 successfully and had a big day helping her VERY, VERY short handed team to a 2-1 record.
