Together On 3

Wrap-Up of the @WisconsinBlaze Hardwood Hustle: There were only 3 girls' games on Sunday, so I worked on reviewing results & my notes during the boys' games in between to compile a tournament summary (& have been typing those up around work responsibilities early this week). I saw every team, most of them multiple times, in 4 of the top 5 divisions. Below I have included the results for the top 5 divisions and the all-division teams for the 4 divisions that I saw the most as well as miscellaneous "awards" with individual write-ups (scroll down to the bottom). [The all-division teams are based on player performances in the games that I saw, but also influenced by their team's success and the player's long-term potential.] . Program of the Tournament: WI Blaze WI Blaze took the top 2 places in the 17U Platinum and 17U/16U Gold divisions. WI Blaze 2026 Inferno beat WI Blaze 2026 Black on Sunday for the championship in the top division, while WI Blaze 2028 Inferno won an exciting OT game vs. WI Blaze 2027 Inferno to take the title in the second division. In addition, WI Blaze 2028 Black won the 15U Sapphire division to give WI Blaze titles in 3 of the 4 HS division titles. Non-Blaze Team of the Tournament: Great Northern Elite 2028 Great Northern Elite 2028 went undefeated to win the 16U/15U Onyx title. They survived a furious comeback by Together on 3 2027 for a 33-32 semifinal win and then doubled up Southern Lakes Ballers 2028, 50-25, for a decisive championship game victory. Forward Adrian "Addie" Bowerman (5'11" F) was a force inside and off the drive to lead the way while their aggressive press led to many steals and fast break opportunities for their athletic perimeter players that include Kwynn Voskuhl (5'9" W), Breyelle Bowers (5'5" G), Bristol Shamion (5'9" W), Audrey Williams (5'3" G), Princess Pierre (5'5" G), Skylyn Baxter (5'9" W - @SkylynBaxter ), and Lauren Jungwirth (5'7" W). Other than their 1-pt win over Together on 3, they won all of their other 3 division games by 15 or more points. [They did suffer a loss to WI Blaze 2028 Inferno, the 17U/16U Gold division champion in an exhibition game.] Most Competitive Division Top-To-Bottom: 14U Platinum Of the 10 division games, 9 were decided by 12 or fewer points & 8 of those were by single-digits. WI Legends 2029 State Blue and WI Lakers 2030 UA both finished 3-1, but the Legends edged the Lakers 41-39 in the final game to take the championship. Team WI 2029 Black finished 3rd at 2-2, but handed the Legends their only defeat. WI Blaze 2029 Black and United Hoops 2029-Eversoll were 1-3, splitting with 3rd place Team WI in 1-pt games. . 17U Platinum Results: 1st--WI Blaze 2026 Inferno 2nd--WI Blaze 2026 Black 3rd--Team WI 2026 Black 4th--WI Blizzard 2026-Hawley All-Division Team: 1st Team: *Co-MVP--@melaina42 (5'11" F, '26) of WI Blaze (pictured, #42) *Co-MVP--@AwutAlic (5'11" W, '27) of WI Blaze (pictured, #23) @UWECWBB commit @livwitkowski (6' F/C, '25) of Team WI @julieyn_martin (5'10" W, '26) of WI Blaze (pictured, #4) * @alissa_ebel (5'11" W, '27) of WI Blaze (pictured, #20) @AllysenBuss (5'4" PG, '26) of WI Blaze (pictured, #0) *see more below 2nd Team: @UWECWBB commit @_emily_vogel_ (5'10" W, '25) of Team WI @andreawaldera (6'1" F/C, '26) of Team WI @Emma__Sampson16 (5'11" F, '26) of WI Blaze @JaslineLoynes (5'7" W, '26) of WI Blaze @AmayaBrooks28 (5'8" G, '26) of WI Blizzard . 17U/16U Gold Results: 1st--WI Blaze 2028 Inferno 2nd--WI Blaze 2027 Inferno 3rd--WI Legends 2026 State 4th--United Hoops 2027-Eversoll 5th--Team WI 2026-Schmeling 6th--Northwood Flash 2027 7th--Team WI 2026 Red All-Division Team: 1st Team: *MVP--@MyleeRedman (5'8" G, '28) of WI Blaze * @PaigeBrafford (6'2" C/F, '26) of Northwoods Flash @MorganJ2524 (6' F, '27) of WI Blaze @brooklynn6138 (5'6" G, '27) of WI Legends @madi_springer25 (5'5" G, '27) of WI Blaze @GraceRuys5 (5'8" W, '28) of WI Blaze *see more below 2nd Team: @lucy_norville (5'10" W, '27) of WI Blaze Grace Warborg (5'6" G, '27) of United Hoops @MorganMocadlo24 (5'7" PG, '28) of WI Blaze @BellaBiese (6' F, '28) of WI Blaze *Kinley Peterson (5'7" G, '29) of WI Legends *see more below . 16U/15U Onyx Results: 1st--Great Northern Elite 2028 2nd--Southern Lakes Ballers 2028 3rd--Together on 3 2027 4th--WI Blaze 2027 Black 5th--MN Heat 2027-Bernardy 6th--WI Academy 2027-Shepard All-Division Team: 1st Team: *MVP--Addie Bowerman (5'11" F, '28) of Great Northern Elite (pictured, #35) Kwynn Voskuhl (5'9" W, '28) of Great Northern Elite (pictured, #1) Ella Maltby (5'7" G, '28) of Southern Lakes Ballers * @bschmidty24 (5'10" F, '28) of Together on 3 Theresa Behnke (5'6" G, '27) of WI Blaze Kenzie Anderson (6'1" F, '27) of MN Heat *see more below 2nd Team: @SiennaBlohowiak (5'3" PG, '27) of Together on 3 @McKennafreier (5'10" W, '27) of WI Blaze Bristol Shamion (5'9" W, '28) of Great Northern Elite Addi Butalla (5'3" PG, '28) of Southern Lakes Ballers Lauren Loucks (5'8" F/C, '28) of Together on 3 . 15U Sapphire Results: 1st--WI Blaze 2028 Black 2nd--WI Legends 2028 State 3rd--WI Blizzard 2028-Stricker 4th--WI Blaze 2028 Red 5th--WI Academy 2028-Lillis [I only saw 2 games & didn't get to see the top 2 finishers in this division, so I don't have a good basis for naming an all-division team.] . 14U Platinum Results: 1st--WI Legends 2029 State Blue 2nd--WI Lakers 2030 UA 3rd--Team WI 2029 Black 4th--WI Blaze 2029 Black 5th--United Hoops 2029-Eversoll All-Division Team: 1st Team: *MVP--Anastasia Gouge (5'4" PG, '30) of WI Lakers Alana Baker (5'10" W, '29) of WI Legends *Nicklyn Lile (6' F, '30) of WI Lakers *Elle Baker (5'5" PG, '29) of United Hoops @Veronica_Hoell (5'10" W, '29) of WI Blaze @GGardow24 (5'8" G, '29) of Team WI *see more below 2nd Team: Maci Healy (5'7" W, '29) of WI Legends Paige Healy (5'7" W, '29) of WI Legends Nora Smith (5'10" F, '29) of United Hoops Kollyns Zastrow (5'8" W, '29) of Team WI Camryn Koehler (5'5" G, '29) of WI Blaze . Top Prospect: Awut Alic (5'11" W, '27) of WI Blaze Alic was the most athletic player in the gym, but her skills have been rapidly developing over the last 2 years to catch up to her athleticism. She is smooth with the ball, can absorb contact & adjust to finish, & has great court awareness to set up teammates off the break/drive, including some gorgeous no-look passes. She can hit the 3 & elevates well to get into her shot smoothly off the dribble. She is very disruptive defensively & tenacious on the boards. Alic has multiple D-I offers, but should continue to turn heads in July. Blue-Collar Baller: Melaina Granquist (5'11" F, '26) of WI Blaze Granquist was one of my favorite players to watch this weekend. She is a physical, tough-nosed player that is versatile offensively. Granquist is aggressive on the boards, always seems to be around the ball, & just continually makes plays that help her team win. Granquist has offers from every level (D-III up through D-I) now with a recently posted offer from Western Illinois last month. Breakout Player: Mylee Redman (5'8" G, '28) of WI Blaze Redman played a small role for a senior-laden Laconia team that reached a Division 3 state semifinal (after 3 straight state championship game appearances in Division 4, including titles in 2023 & 2024). Laconia graduated 5 of their top 6 scorers and Redman appears poised for a breakout season to help fill that void. Whether gliding to the basket in transition or getting downhill to the rim off the drive, she used her athleticism and handles to get to the rim and score seemingly anytime she wanted to in stretches this weekend. She moved back and forth seamlessly between playing the point and the wing depending on who was on the court with her, was active defensively, and hit some perimeter shots to complement her driving. Redman helped lead WI Blaze 2028 Inferno to the 17U/16U Gold championship over the older WI Blaze 2027 Inferno & earned my division MVP as a result. Yooper Hooper: Adrian "Addie" Bowerman (5'11" F, '28) of Great Northern Elite While Great Northern Elite's aggressive press set the tone in most of their games, Bowerman's presence inside gave opposing teams fits all weekend. She displayed good footwork and touch to score around the basket off the post up or drive, & played physical and aggressive to clean up the offensive and defensive boards. [For those of you not from the upper midwest, Great Northern Elite is from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where locals affectionately refer to themselves as "Yoopers".] Favorite Head-to-Head Matchup: Anastasia "Ana" Gouge (5'4" PG, '30) of WI Lakers vs. Elle Baker (5'5" PG, '29) of United Hoops WI In one of the early Friday games, Gouge and Baker went toe-to-toe in a 14U Platinum division game. Both showed poise at the point, crafty scoring abilities off the drive, and tough on-the-ball defense to make the other work for everything. Keep an eye out for these 2 over the next 4-5 years. Intriguing Prospects (that I had never seen before): 2026: Paige Brafford (6'2" C/F, '26) of Northwoods Flash At 6'2" with a strong, yet athletic, build, Brafford immediate draws an observer's notice. What drew my notice once her first game started though was her intelligence on the court--knowing when to slip the screen in the pick & roll, recognizing when she had the mismatch off the switch & immediately posting up & calling for the ball before the defense could send help, & showing patience in catching & scoring on the move or off the post up. Hailing from Division 5 Three Lakes HS (co-oped with Phelps HS for girls' basketball) in northern WI, Brafford is not yet a household name, but she is a sleeper that small colleges in the Midwest should have on their radar. 2027: Alissa Ebel (5'11" W, '27) of WI Blaze Ebel plays up an age-group on the WI Blaze 2026 Black team. She is disruptive defensively with her length and athleticism, & versatile offensively with her abilities to hit the 3, to use her length to score around the basket off the cut or drive, and to get out in transition and glide to the rim on the break. With additional polish offensively and added strength, Ebel has the potential to steadily rise up the WI 2027 rankings over the next year and a half. 2028: Bristol Schmidt (5'10" F, '28) of Together on 3 Schmidt was missing from the Together on 3 lineup when I saw them at the PGH Legacy Region Finals the previous weekend, but she made a huge impact this weekend as they lost a 1-point decision to eventual 16U/15U Onyx division champs, Great Northern Elite 2028 (GNE won every other game by at least 15 points), before beating WI Blaze 2028 Black 42-33 in the 3rd Place Game. Schmidt played physical inside, finishing through contact for numerous old-fashioned 3-pt plays. Her primary scoring moda operandi was using her physicality and footwork to score with her back to the basket off the post up, but she also showed the abilities to face up & drive from mid-range or the perimeter, to run the floor rim to rim to beat opposing 4/5s to the basket, & to move bodies and attack the offensive glass for putback opportunities. If she proves to be a consistent perimeter shooter in coming years to develop into a 3/4, she could prove to be a matchup nightmare for opposing HS coaches. 2029: Kinley Peterson (5'7" G, '29) of WI Legends Peterson normally plays on the Legends top 2029 team, but this weekend she more than held her own playing up 3 grade-levels while filling in on the WI Legends 2026 State team. She is a smooth, athletic left-handed guard that can run the team at the point, hit the 3, get to the basket off the drive/break, and defend all 3 perimeter positions. Peterson should be poised to contribute right away at Fox Valley Luthern HS next season. 2030: Nicklyn Lile (6' F, '30) of WI Lakers Lile is the younger sister of Kyrin Lile (6'1" F, '26 - @kyrin_lile ) &, already at 6', may be soon passing her up height-wise. Early in her first game, she showed the ability to score around the basket off the cut, offensive rebound, or post up, but later also showed the perimeter skills to handle the ball and attack the basket off the break or drive. Showing great versatility at 6' already as a rising 8th grader, Lile could be causing opposing Southern Lakes conference coaches sleepless nights for 4 years by the time she reaches high school. . @WisconsinBlaze @greatnorthernbb @vcteamwi @WI_Blizzard @wilegends Northwoods Flash @UnitedHoops4 @greatnorthernbb Southern Lakes Ballers @TogetherOnThree @MinnesotaHeat @WisconsinLakers

7 Shouts 4 Standing Out (7S4SO) & Newcomers to Note (N2N): Friday from the @WisconsinBlaze Hardwood Hustle in Appleton, WI: 7S4SO--Friday afternoon: @bschmidty24 (5'10" F, '28) of Together on 3 (pictured, #10) Addie Bowerman (5'10" F, '28) of Great Northern Elite Ella Maltby (5'7" G, '28) of Southern Lakes Ballers Elle Baker (5'5" PG, '29) of United Hoops WI @Veronica_Hoell (5'10" W, '29) of WI Blaze Alana Baker (5'10" W, '29) of WI Legends Anastasia Gouge (5'4" PG, '30) of WI Lakers . 7S4SO--Friday evening: Kayce Vaile (6'1" F/C, '20) of WI Blaze Alumni (UW-Oshkosh - @UWOWBB1 ) @gbphoenixwbb commit @rketty_hoops (5'10" W, '26) of WI Playmakers Thrive @PaigeBrafford (6'2" C/F, '26) of Northwoods Flash (pictured, #30) @lucy_norville (5'10" W, '27) of WI Blaze (pictured, #3) @brooklynn6138 (5'6" G, '27) of WI Legends @GraceRuys5 (5'8" W, '28) of WI Blaze Kaylee Gutchow (5'7" G, '29) of Chapman-North . N2N: @alissa_ebel (5'11" W, '27) of WI Blaze Bristol Shamion (5'9" W, '28) of Great Northern Elite @KoralynnT99137 (5'2" PG, '28) of WI Blizzard Nora Smith (5'10" F, '29) of United Hoops Camryn Koehler (5'5" G, '29) of WI Blaze Hadley Stenavich (5'11" F, '29) of WI Legends Nicklyn Lile (6' F, '30) of WI Lakers @daly_butler (5'3" PG, '30) of WI Blaze Payton Ninneman (5'7" W, '30) of Chapman-North . @TogetherOnThree @greatnorthernbb Southern Lakes Ballers @UnitedHoops4 @WisconsinBlaze @wilegends @WisconsinLakers @ThriveWi Northwoods Flash @NorthCba @WI_Blizzard