Frank Burlison

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.

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DUNCANVILLE, TX – Seven states were represented among my choices for the Top 15 performers during the two-day Pangos All-South Frosh/Soph at wrapped up mid-October 2 afternoon in the Duncanville Fieldhouse.

Six-foot-seven freshman Phoenix Woodson (pictured) – selected as the event’s overall Most Outstanding Player – was one of four Oklahoma-based athletes chosen to the camp’s Top 30 Cream of the Crop All-Star Game.

And he was joined on the list of the players that most impressed me on Saturday and Sunday by another Oklahoma freshmen, 6-6 Jalen Montonati.

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DUNCANVILLE, TX – The second stop on the annual fall Pangos regional Frosh/Soph schedule tipped off Saturday.

And it was quite the day, indeed, for the frosh portion of the All-South camp version of the camp in the Duncanville Fieldhouse in this Dallas suburb.

A flock of sophomores from throughout the southern region of the country were superb Saturday, among those being the New Orleans Isadore Newman trio of Christopher Cenac Jr.  (6-foot-8), Christopher Birden (6-7) and Kobe Butler (6-4).

Also in that category were the likes of Ethan Carter (6-7) of Fairburn (GA) Arlington Christian; Kentrell Martin (6-5) of Dover (FL) Strawberry Crest; Christopher Lindo (6-6) of Baton Rouge (LA) Madison Prep; Jaylon Dean-Vines (6-3) of Mesquite (TX) Poteet and Patton Pinkins (6-4) of Wolfforth (TX) Frienship – as well as a kid who came from the not-quite-so southern high school of Peoria (IL) Manual, 6-5 Dietrich Richardson.

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LONG BEACH – A hefty portion of the better western-based high school basketball players from the Classes of 2025 and ’26 wrapped up play September 25 afternoon at McBride High during the Pangos Frosh/Soph West Camp.

And, from the minute he walked into the building Saturday evening until he left Sunday afternoon, Tounde Yessoufou was on a different plateau than any of the other 200-plus players who participated.

The 6-foot-6 sophomore scored 28 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead the team wearing dark jerseys to a 119-113 victory over the white jerseys in the Top 30 Cream of the Crop All-Star Game.

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LONG BEACH, Ca. – Tounde Yessoufou continued to use his metaphorical – but powerful – hammer to pound away at the various “Best in the West and National” Class of 2025 ratings Saturday night during Day 1 of the two-day Pangos All-West Frosh/Soph Camp at McBride High.

The 6-foot-6 Santa Maria (CA) St. Joseph sophomore, a late arrival along with St. Joseph teammate, 6-3 freshman Julius Price, smashed rims and defenders’ egos with equal aplomb on the final (of 10) rounds of games Saturday night.

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