City of Basketball Love

By CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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The MADE Hoops circuit concluded the final July live period with its Summer Finale at the Convention Center in Oaks, Pa from Friday through Saturday. There was plenty of talent and college coaches from all three levels — as well as a few local faces the CoBL staff hadn’t yet put eyes on during the AAU season this summer.

CoBL had staff throughout parts of all three days, including a 63-62 win for the York Ballers over Team Mamba in the 17U championship game. Here’s who stood out to the CoBL staff over the course of the weekend:

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Andrew Alekseyenko (2025 | Team White Mamba 17U)
Alekseyenko had 15 points, 13 rebounds, a block and a steal in a close title game loss to the York Ballers. The 6-foot-7 wing/forward from Rivers School (Mass.) plays with strength but also has a smoothness to his game and that blend has helped him earn eight offers this AAU season, including one from PenHe showed off some skills with the ball in his hands and finishing ability inside, going coast to coast once or twice. He didn’t knock down any perimeter shots but looked comfortable pulling up. The work on the glass speaks for itself as he had no issue carving out space for himself and locating the ball high.

Nolan Barnes (2026 | Philly Pride 302 17U MHC)
Playing up an age group, Barnes kept his team in the game against Rens United CT. He can really score the rock, shooting the ball particularly well Saturday both off the bounce and catch-and-shoot. He navigated the floor as well, showing off some terrific vision in transition. It wouldn’t be surprising for him to see a big role increase at Lenape (N.J.) this season.

Grady Burt (2025 | Team Final Black 17U MHC)
Burt had his offensive game going well during the weekend. The rising senior at CR North impressed with his outside shooting, hitting 4-of-5 from deep in a 20-point outing Friday against Brebeuf and 3-of-6 in a 19-point effort Saturday against 6th Boro. A 6-foot-6 wing, Burt can shoot over defenders but he also has a quick release and is always shot-ready. In Saturday’s win, Burt added a presence on defense with a couple blocks and five rebounds, following six boards on Friday.

Landon Carson (2025 | East Coast Cyclones 17U MHC)
A graduate of Elizabeth (N.J.) who’s going to do a prep year at Peddie School (N.J.) this winter, Carson impressed on Friday night, exploding in the second half for 15 of his 21 points to lead the Cyclones to a win over Midwest Elite Cincy. A 6-4 guard, Carson is a big combo guard who’s smooth on the ball, showing his abilities to facilitate from the point of attack by making a number of good passes on the move with his left and right hands, and his four assists were a testament to his ability to keep the ball moving. When he went for his shot, he showed the ability to pull up and knock down shots in the mid-range, and had a great left-handed finish where he absorbed contact with no problem. 

Brian Carter Jr. (2024 | Boom City 17U MHC)
One of a number of still-available 2024s getting one final weekend to impress in front of the college coaches, Carter’s effort was apparent Friday night as he went for 22 points and eight rebounds for Boom City in a loss to Kulture. The 6-6 wing flashed his skillset with a turnaround 15-foot baseline jumper but got so much of his production just by playing hard, crashing the glass and moving well off the ball, his teammates finding him for several cutting layups as he displayed good body control getting to the bucket and finishing at the rim. 

Asher Elson (2025 | New York Gauchos 17U)
There weren’t too many more intriguing prospects than Elson, a long, lanky 6-foot-10 wing from South Shore (N.Y.) who has Power 5 offers. Elson scored 15 points and added a handful of rebounds and a block in a game against Team New England that featured a lot of size. Elson stepped out and hit a pair of threes beyond the arc, scored off fadeaways and even slammed one home. He wasn’t the primary initiator and put the ball on the deck a little bit as well. He’s a player brimming with potential on both ends but showed he is already quite productive

Ace Flagg (2025 | Team White Mamba 2025)
Flagg, a 6-foot-7 wing/forward from Montverde Acad. (Fla.), was a two-way force in an exciting championship game. He scored 20 points and added eight rebounds, three blocks and a steal. The lefty put pressure on the York Ballers defense as he attacked the hoop and finished 10-for-11 from the stripe. His length and athleticism helped him produce similar results on the other end of the floor where he contested shots but also held his ground down low. There were some fun battles inside between him and York Ballers big man Ben Rill.

Edouard Gauthier (2025 | Brebeuf 17U)
Brebeuf is a Canadian prep school that also plays during the summer as a grassroots team, so it had a deep bench and a lot of chemistry on the courts at Oaks. Gauthier was one of a number of quality prospects, a 6-6 point guard with good length and athleticism who flashed some real skill, including some impressive hangtime on an up-and-under layup as part of a 3-point play. He also knocked down a tough floater on the move and one 3-pointer as part of a 15-point, seven-rebound, two-block outing.

Ryan Jackson (2026 | York Ballers 16U)
Jackson is a 5-10 point guard from Central York who led a well-rounded effort on Saturday to knock off top seed East Coast Cyclones. Jackson has a nasty crossover he used to blow by opponents and he was in attack mode throughout the contest. He finished with 12 points and also had four assists, his ability to break down his man allowing him to find teammates around the floor for easy looks. When he really started feeling himself he walked into a pull-up triple, one of two makes that concluded his scoring in the game.

Bennett Kayser (2025 | Midwest Basketball Club 17U MHC)
Kayser is a 6-foot-6 wing/forward from Minford (Ohio) with some funk to his game.  He recently picked up his first Division I offer and it was easy to see why with an impressive outing against York Ballers in the semifinals. Kayser had 17 points in the semifinal. He keeps the ball high and his a high arching shot, burying a pair of triples. He’s most effective in the midrange and down low where he likes to throw his body around or got to turnaround fadeaway that seems unguardable at times with his high release.

Zach Kolaja (2025 | Jersey Force 17U MHC)
One of the highlight performances of the weekend was Kolaja’s 34-point showing on Friday night in a win over Maryland Movement. The 6-6 wing forward from Blair Academy (N.J.) started slow, missing a couple early shots, but his hard-working effort on the glass got him a few second-chance points, and once he saw the ball go through the net, it didn’t start. He opened the second half with back-to-back-to-back 3-pointers, hitting five straight from deep out of the half as he was 7-of-10 from the 3-point range (and 13-of-19 overall) for the game, doing a great job of crashing the weak-side glass for eight rebounds (six offensive). 

Ben Natal (2025 | York Ballers 17U)
Outside of fast break slam, Natal was relatively quiet in a semifinal win over Midwest Basketball Club. That changed in the title game as his 11 points, five assists, five rebounds, block and steal led the way to victory and himself to MVP honors. He made some contested looks inside, showed off a floater and has some terrific body control. The highlight play of the game may have been a wraparound dime into a sliver of space that didn’t even look like it was there.

Samuel Osayi Nosakhare (2025 | Team New England 17U)
There’s a lot to like about the 6-foot-8 forward’s game. The Putnam Science (Mass.) big man finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and three blocks against the New York Gauchos — his offensive board late setting up the game winning bucket. Nosakhare played both the ‘4’ and ‘5’ and has a real natural feel for both spots on the defensive end. He slides well and uses his length. He did most of his damage inside on offense, looking coordinated with his footwork inside, but he also stepped out to drill a three. Bryant and Saint Bonaventure both offered him after the weekend.

Trey Perry (2025 | Midwest Elite Cincy 17U MHC)
A physical 6-3 combo guard and Miami (Ohio) commit, Perry thrived by getting downhill to the bucket in a Friday night viewing. He was constantly taking his man off the bounce, able to left or right equally well, and he wasn’t bothered at all by defenders trying to body him up, as he was able to power through, get to the rim, and finish smoothly time and again as he went for 22 points; that physicality also worked on the defensive end, as he came up with four steals and forced the man he was defending to cough it up into the hands of one of his Cincy teammates on several other occasions. 

Jaeden Roberts (2025 | Team England 17U)
It doesn’t take long to see that Roberts is one of those players just wired to put the ball through the hoop. The wiry 6-foot-3 lefty point guard from Burke High (Mass.) is a twitchy athlete with a lightning quick release who can get his shot off from anywhere on the court. He had 16 points, four assists and two rebounds and steals apiece in a win over New York Gauchos. There were post ups, fadeaways, four trips to the foul line and plenty of driving and kicking. He was on attack mode throughout and that continued on the other end of the floor as well.

Wes Robinson (2026 | Total Skills 16U)
Robinson exploded for 22 points and eight rebounds, adding two assists, a block and a steal in a dominant win over the Southern Maryland All-Stars on Saturday. The 6-foot-3 lefthander has made strides in his ball handling, helling him operate as a driver in traffic and get into the lane where he’s a scary sight for opposing defenses. He opened his scoring with a three ball and pulled up for a few midrange jumpers but has a strong frame that allows him to play bully ball at times too, finishing through contact that  he often initiates. THe Methacton wing showed off some high flying ability with a fastbreak slam to finish off an impressive performance.

Kamryn Salters (2025 | Rens United CT 17U)
Salters, who plays his high school ball at Notre Dame Catholic (Conn.), showed a deep bag in a win over Philly Pride 302 on Saturday, doing damage inside and out. He’s got a pretty stroke with some driving ability and the 6-foot-3 guard even scored on a little jump hook when he got a smaller man on him inside. His scoring came through the flow of the offense, which helped run too, making sure his teammates got involved with some nice passing.

Chase Smucker (2025 | York Ballers 17U)
Smucker had things going offensively in the semifinals with 16 points and a pair of assists before showing off about every other aspect of the game in the championship with . The 6-foot guard from Lampeter-Strasburg compiled three six assists, six rebounds and a steal. He was in constant motion off the ball on the offensive end and found ways to cause havoc on the defensive end. He has range, is strong on the ball and has terrific vision to go with an unselfish style of play that helps the offense run.

Carter Wamsley (2025 | York Ballers 17U)
The 6-foot-6 forward from Eastern York was a consistent contributor in both the semifinal and title games on Sunday. He had 14 points, nine rebounds, three blocks and an assist and even took a charge in the semifinals, following that up with 14 points and three assists in the championship game. Wamsley can play back to the basket with some nifty footwork inside but he can also attack off the bounce and has some finesse inside. He stepped outside for a triple in the championship.  He has a motor that helps him produce and makes sure he remains active throughout the game.

Cameron Williams (2025 | Midwest Basketball Club 17U MHC)
Williams, from Elder (Ohio), had to be one of the best shooters in the building this weekend, lighting it up from deep against Jersey Force MHC on Saturday before doing the same against the York Ballers on Sunday. He finished with 20 points (three 3s) in the semifinal loss, once again showcasing a quick release and pure form. There was plenty more to his game as well as the 6-foot-3 guard used his body control and athleticism to finish inside and get to the line, adding a floater as well. He grabbed five rebounds and added a steal to his statline. He’s listed at 6-3 but looks a longer,

Tony Williams Jr (2025 | New Haven Heat 17U)
Williams turned in a monster effort as his Heat team rallied to down Kulture in the MHC 17U bracket on Saturday, scoring 29 points. Quick and athletic, Williams aggressive attacked the rim in the first half, drawing an and-one on his first make, getting high for a tip-in putback and drawing a couple fouls. In the second half, he got hot from the perimeter while maintaining his aggressive play.

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Honorable Mention

Brandon Ascione (2025 | York Ballers 17U), Nasir Barnes (2027 | Sideline Cancer 17U), Brandon Benjamin (2025 | Kulture MHC 17U) Timothy Bollin (2025 | Team White Mamba 2025), Cameron Brown (2025 | Boom City 17U MHC), Kabe Goss (2024 | Jersey Force 17U MHC), Jadon Holmes (2025 | Team New England 17U), John Jackson (2025 | Kulture MHC), David Johnson (2025 | Team New England 17U), Danny Keenan (2025 | New York Gauchos 17U), Alexandre Lelievre (2025 | Brebeuf 17U), Zaire Lott (2025 | New Haven Heat 17U MJC), Charlie Marcoullier (2026 | East Coast Cyclones 17U), Keegan Marascio (2028 | Total Skills 16U), Stesher Mathelier (2024 | East Coast Cyclones 17U MHC), Michael Mita (2026 | East Coast Cyclones 17U), Myles Montgomery (2025 | Midwest Basketball Club 17U MHC), Isaiah Muhammed (2025 | Team Final Black 17U), Devon Nelson (2025 | Team Final Black 17U MHC), Sean Pyles (2025 | Maryland Movement 17U MHC), Evan Romano (2025 | Kulture MHC 17U) Ben Rill (2025 | York Ballers 17U), Brandon Stores (2025 | New York Gauchos 17U),  Isaiah White (2026 | York Ballers 16U)