Frank Burlison

MESA, AZ – Six 17s boys’ basketball teams finished the first weekend of the 2025 Nike/EYBL 3-zip after play wrapped early Sunday afternoon in the Arizona Athletic Grounds Sports Complex.

The Merritt Division’s Team Takeover, Oakland Soldiers, New York Rens and New York PSA were 3-0 while Team Why Not and CP3 were unbeaten in the Raveling Division.

As expected, the Team Takeover-Utah Prospects showdown was the most competitive game in the division Sunday, with the team based in the Metro-DC area prevailing in overtime, 82-78.

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MESA, AZ – A couple of “2-0 East vs. West showdowns” are set to take place Sunday morning in the Athletic Grounds complex on the final day of the first weekend of the 2025 Nike/EYBL boys basketball spring and summer season.

Team Final of Pennsylvania takes on the Oakland Soldiers on Court 3 while the Utah Prospects face Team Takeover (from the Metro DC area) on Court 14, in a couple of Merritt Division 17s games set to tip at 9:30 a.m.

Four top-tier prospects in the Class of 2026 will lead the respective squads, Jason Crowe, Jr.

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MESA, AZ – The Utah Prospects – after winning consecutive 17U championships on the adidas/3SSB spring and summer circuit – didn’t waste any time Friday night showing they are well-equipped to challenge for the ultimate team hardware against Nike/EYBL competition as well.

The Tim Davis– and Lynn Lloyd-led program, whose move to the Nike grassroots program was announced on Oct. 11, faced JL3 (the Houston-based program fronted by NBA legend John Lucas) in their EYBL debut Friday on the first day of the first EYBL spring session in the Arizona Athletic Grounds.

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LAGUNA NIGUEL – Twenty-three players cracked the list of BurlisonOnBasketball’s top SoCal freshmen for the 2024-25 season.

Only one of those helped his team win a CIF Southern Section championship – and a state title, to boot.

Cameron Anderson averaged just 14.9 minutes. 4.6 points and 3.7 rebounds per game as Eastvale Roosevelt’s top substitute.

But the 6-foot-4, 15-year-old was a key element in the Mustangs’ 35-3 season that included wins over Sherman Oaks in the CIF Southern Section and State South Regional Open finals, and against San Francisco Riordan in the State Open championship game in Sacramento.

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Hudson Mayes,  first-team, all-CIF Southern Section Open Division and BurlisonOnBasketball SoCal seniors squad from Redondo Union, announced on social media Friday that he has re-opening his recruiting.

The 6-foot-5 Mayes made the decision following Central Michigan University firing Coach Tony Barbee Thursday. He signed a National Letter of Intent with the program in November.

His move means that he is among the upper tier of “available” big guard/small forward “wing” prospects now available to colleges from the Class of 2025.

Mayes had one of the strongest senior seasons of any player in California, earning all-Platinum Division honors during the Tarkanian Classic and Classic at Damien in December where the Sea Hawks were a combined 6-2 in the two strongest tournaments in the west.

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