UNC Prospects Cook During Feast Week
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The Thanksgiving week is generally one of the biggest on the national high school schedule. The break from the classroom allows some of the biggest programs and best players to travel across the country to compete in top events.
This past week was no different. Besides some local play, there were big annual Thanksgiving weekend events in Atlanta, and Dallas, as well as the Carolinas, and in Orlando.
As always, many North Carolina Tar Heel prospects play on the top top teams, and in the biggest events. That means as usual, many familiar names were front and center during the busy week.
Link Academy has already gotten several games under its belt this season, and that was even before a busy week that saw action in Utah at the 5 for Fight National Hoopfest, and the Thanksgiving Hoopfest in Dallas.
They opened Monday with a 74-60 win over Canyon International. Jasper Johnson had 14 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists in the wining cause. Maybe most impressive was his 4 for 7 showing from three-point range. They continued their strong play the following night with a 77-53 beatdown of AZ Compass Prep. Johnson led his star studded team in scoring with 18 on just 10 shots. He made seven, including 3 of 5 from behind the arc. James Brown pitched in with 10 points and 2 boards. He went 3 for 4 from the field, 1 for 1 from deep, and 3 for 3 from the charity stripe.
Link went on from there to the Lone Star State for the Hoopfest. It began with a late Friday night affair against the host team, Duncanville. Link came out on top 75-55 then defeated Brennan 70-62 less than 24 hours later. Johnson had 14 points, 2 steals, and a rebound in the second game on seven shots. He was 2 for three from behind the arc. Brown had a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds. He also had a blocked shot.
We had an opportunity for the second time this fall to watch a heavyweight showdown between Prolific Prep and Columbus High out of Miami. ESPNU took full advantage of a pair of rosters that featured at least eight high major prospects, and the headliners that are A.J. Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer, and Cayden Boozer.
The game was a classic. Prolific Prep raced out to a big lead early, but Columbus closed the gap to 27-26 at the half. Columbus took a lead from there, and the two teams went back and forth for much of the second half. It appeared Prolific had put the game on ice late in the game. They pushed out to a 70-63 lead on the road with 29 seconds remaining. To make matter worse for the Explorers, Cameron Boozer was on the bench with five fouls. But Cayden Boozer and Jayden Richardson both knocked down three-pointers in the final 7.1 seconds to send the game into overtime. Columbus was three points better in extra time, and hung on for a thrilling 81-78 victory.
Cayden Boozer made a double-digit jump to No. 20 in this week's updated 2025 rankings. Don't be surprised if he gets a coveted fifth-star, and rises even more in the future. He has been at his best in the biggest games against the strongest competition. This one was no different. He led his team in scoring with 25 points. He has uncanny change of direction in the lane. He can finish in a number of ways, and there probably isn't a physically stronger point guard in all of high school basketball. Finishing through contact is a constant.
Boozer is one of the very best passers in all of high school basketball, and he understands how to run a team. When he gets into the lane which is often not only can he score, but he is going to find the open teammate when he draws help. Throw in his size, and you have a very high level point guard. On the flip side there is a noticeable hitch in his jump shot.
Cameron Boozer fouled out with 13 points. This was more of an up-and-down game, and the bigger Boozer brother never seemed like he totally got his feet under him as he battled foul problems. He did hit an early three, which set up a later drive and finish off a shot fake.
Cameron outplayed A.J. Dybantsa when the two teams met last month at the Border League event in Las Vegas. Although Dybantsa held on to the number one slot when last week's rankings came out, Rob Cassidy was quick to add that the lead was a precarious one, and Boozer was nipping on Dybantsa's heels.
Despite coming up on the short end of the scoreboard, Dybantsa put any current talk of a position swap to bed. He was overpowering with 35 points. He has a Euro step to either side. He creates space on his fadeaways which are impossible to defend thanks to his size and explosion. Dybantsa is also a living, breathing dunk in the open floor. He had a memorable reverse dunk on a fast break that started on the right side of the floor, and ended on the left side of the rim.
Prolific Prep went on to Orlando over the weekend for the Grind Session. They opened Friday night with a 61-31 win over the hometown team, West Oaks. Dybantsa had 20 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. His shooting was nearly perfect. He was 8 for 9 overall, 2 for 3 from behind the arc, and from the foul line.
Columbus ended up in Atlanta after Thanksgiving for the Hoopfest. Friday night's game was well marketed as yet another high profile showdown for the Boozer's. This time it was McEachern and Airious "Ace" Bailey. Columbus pounded one of the top programs in the Atlanta area 86-59, and Cameron blew the sold out crowd away. He won Most Valuable Player honors thanks to a 40-point barrage. He went 13 for 18 from the floor, and 3 of 6 from three-point range. He was also a perfect 11 of 11 from the foul line to go along with 10 rebounds. Cayden did not play.
Jason Jordan wrote afterwards, "Boozer just couldn’t be stopped. Whether he was posting up, running point-forward or knocking down threes, Boozer was just too big, strong and versatile for McEachern."
Columbus had another matchup of nationally ranked teams, and this time they fell just short to Wasatch Academy out of Utah by a score of 75-73. Cameron Boozer had another big game with 26 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists. He went 8 for 14 from the floor, 2 for 4 from deep, and a perfect 8 of 8 from the foul line. After a slow start he ended up averaging 26.3 points for the week.
Cayden Boozer had 10 points, and 9 assists, against only a pair of turnovers. He went 5 for 9 from the field, but did not have a three-pointer in four attempts.
Holy Innocents kicked off their season with a pair of tight wins that would not have happened without the performances from Caleb Wilson. They opened with a hard fought 63-60 victory over St. Pius X Catholic by a score of 63-60. Wilson had an absolute stat stuffing type of outing. He finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists, and 7 blocked shots.
He capped that off four nights later in another three point win. This time the Golden Bears took down Tucker 64-61. This time Wilson eclipsed the rare 20/20 plateau with 27 points, and 20 boards to go along with six assists, and three blocked shots.
After the Thanksgiving break they got back onto the floor Friday against Wheeler in the prestigious Holiday Hoopsgiving event in Atlanta. Holy Innocents fell short 66-58 in the battle of Atlanta powerhouses. Wilson still had 25 points and 16 rebounds, along with three assists, and two blocked shots. He was 10 for 18 from the field, and 0 for 3 from deep. They fell short to Woodward 69-49 on Saturday as well. Despite the score differential, Wilson still ended with yet another double-double giving him a perfect four game sweep for the week. He had 13 points and 14 boards giving him averages of 21 points and 15.5 rebounds.
Perry opened up the season Wednesday in the LIV8 Invitational in the Phoenix area. They cruised to a 74-46 victory over Catalina Foothills behind 16 points from Koa Peat. He knocked down a pair of three-pointers in the win. Game number was Friday against another local rival, Mountain Pointe. Perry won easily 62-25 behind 20 points from Peat. He won MVP honors for his play in the second game. Perry won its third game in the three day tournament Saturday.
Caleb Wilson is not the only five-star in Atlanta that Hubert Davis is watching closely. Bryson Tiller also has a North Carolina offer, and he has been showing why on the court.
The Overtime Elite league took some time off over the holiday break. It was well earned. They City Reapers had already played nine games amassing a 6-3 record. Bryson Tiller headed to Thanksgiving averaging 11.4 points, and 7.7 rebounds per game. He is shooting 39.5% from two-point range, and has shown some struggles from deep. He has made only 2 of his 21 attempts for 8.7%.
Nobody had a busier week that Wasatch Academy. They opened against two powerhouse programs in Utah before heading cross-country to Atlanta for more brutal matchups.
They couldn't have begun the week against a tougher foe. Montverde Academy was too much to the tune of 88-53. Isiah Harwell led Wasatch in scoring with 17 points. He also had two assists, and a rebound. They bounced back the following night with a 76-66 victory against Orangeville Prep out of Canada. Harwell was efficient. He was 7 of 10 from the field, and 3 for 5 from deep for 18 points. He also had 4 rebounds, and a pair of rebounds, steals, and blocked shots.
Wasatch returned to the floor Friday morning in Georgia. They fell 65-56 to Dream City Christian out of Arizona. Harwell had 11 points, but was only 5-14 total, including 1 of 5 from three-point territory. He did add 5 rebounds.
Harwell's squad rebounded nicely on Saturday against nationally ranked Columbus and the Boozer brothers. The Wasatch guard totaled 15 points, and 4 rebounds as they pulled out a 75-73 thriller. Harwell made three of seven trifecta attempts, and went a per four for four from the foul line.
Over the three game stretch against very high level competition Harwell averaged 14.7 points, and 3.7 rebounds. He shot 47.1% overall, and 41.2% from three-point range.
Jason Jordan was in Atlanta and wrote afterwards, "As a big guard, Harwell creates matchup problems with his size and athleticism. He scored just 11 points and grabbed four rebounds in Wasatch Academy’s 65-56 loss to Dream City Christian at the Holiday Hoopsgiving on Friday, but guarded all five positions and drew significant attention in the lane, which gave his teammates better looks on the perimeter."