LA GRANGE, Ill. – Approximately 220 players, from 18 states and lands from outside of the continental US of A, were on hand for Saturday’s first day of the two-day Pangos All-Midwest Frosh/Soph Camp at the Park District Athletic Facility in this Chicago suburb.
And, while there wasn’t, say, something approaching a definitive top 3 or so players during the two games each of the 24 camp teams played, there were dozens of players who played well to very well when I watched them.
Among those were a bunch of freshmen “point guard-types” from within and around Chicago.
Two of those were teammates on “Kansas”, with very different type bodies and approaches.
The 5-foot-9, 150-pound (or so) Noah Mister (Kenwood Academy in Chicago) used his darting quickness on the dribble, and nifty pull-up jump shot, to attack defenders subtly.
But the 6-2, 180-pound (or so) left-handed Jameson Coulter (Rich Township in Olympia Fields) beat down those who tried to check him with his power and forcefulness and his dandy skill with the ball in his hands, of course.
Mister and Coulter also had one of the better “wing-types” I saw Saturday, in 6-6 Payson Nietert (pictured) of Lin-Marr High in Marion, IA, who oh-so-easily dropped in three deep 3s over four possessions of the first game Kansas played Saturday.
Others of that ilk Saturday included Jayden Crutcher (EIyria in Ohio); a 2021 standout at this same event, Ian Miletic (Rolling Meadows in Illinois); Xzavion Mitchell (North in Oshkosh, WI); Justin Bowen Jr. (Oak Park, IL, River Forest) and Jayden Savoury (Orchard Lake Saint Mary’s), who was one of a half-dozen or so skilled kids from Michigan on hand.
Among others from the Class of 2026 who were comparable to most of those in that class that I saw at the first Frosh/Soph camp stops (Long Beach, West; and Duncanville, TX, South) were 6-7 Braden James (Grand Ledge in Michigan); 6-6 Gabe Weiss (Washington County in Springfield, KY); 6-7 Claude Mpouman (Culver in Indiana) and 6-7 EJ Hazelett (Franklin Central in Indianapolis).
Action resumes Sunday with the final round of “camp games” tipping at 9 a.m. and Top 60 and Top 30 all-star games rapping things up at 1:15 and 2:15 p.m., respectively.
As is the case with all Pangos events, BallerTV will live-stream and archive all games played.
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