Day Two of the 2021 Best of the South Showcase did not disappoint in any way, with players from around the country making the most of an opportunity to show off their skills. College coaches were dispersed around the 38 basketball courts placed within Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center—and they had almost too much talent to check out. Here are my three highlights from the day.

Phenom University Sinks 11 Threes In One Game

“He’s a shooter!”

Well, in this 15U matchup between Milwaukee’s Phenom group & Team Florida, you could’ve directed that to nearly everyone on Phenom’s roster.

Five players sank a deep-ball during their 67-59 win over TFL. Consistently throughout the game, Phenom swung the ball in search of open shooters—and it paid off.

Especially for 2024 guys Kon Knueppel & Jack Daugherty. But if you asked them about it, they’d call it a team effort.

“I guess it’s kind of all in our game, having a good shot,” said Daugherty, who finished with 17 points and three treys. “We work a lot on that in practice. If we’re not working on our inside game, we can work on the three, and that’s what we’re pretty good at.”

Knueppel credited the team’s unselfishness as a reason for their stellar shooting.

“We move (the ball) exceptionally well. Everyone wants to see the other person succeed,” said Knueppel, who chipped in 20 points and three treys of his own.

That unselfishness has translated into a positive sense of team camaraderie. The two spoke of how they’ve bonded over Bucks NBA Finals losses & joke-telling. Teammate Nick Janowski has the title of “Most Funny on the Team”.

But even amongst the laughs, everyone knows there’s true care within their core.

“If one of us realizes that we’re not having the best day, we can always rely on each other,” Daugherty said.

Jack is aiming to work more on his ball-handling skills, pull-up jumper ability, and baseline scoring. Kon echoed the same regarding ball-handling, and wants to put up at least 500 shots a day.

That number would be great to keep growing, considering that he’s already garnered offers from Toledo & Marquette. Kon says that he’s still in search of his first, but he’s keeping the faith that it’ll come in due time.

Christopher Brown Is Next Up For Team Florida

Listen, there aren’t too many 15-year-olds who have the poise that Brown does.

Standing at just 5’9”, the 2025 Orlando Christian Prep-bound point guard is a sharp-shooter who also knows how to penetrate the paint, find his open bigs, and finish in-traffic. He scored 27 points vs. “The Family” in their first game of the day.

Despite his name being thrown around as one of top players in his class, Brown credits his folks for helping him stay humble.

“I got my parents backing me up, helping me out with how to control that stuff, and how not to get into the hype of it & just stay focused to get better every day,” Brown said.

Brown’s dad is the coach of his 15U group. Sometimes, that dynamic can go one of two ways—for the better or worse.

Although, he insists that his pop knows how to walk the line in a great way.

“When we step on the court, he’s a coach, it’s not ‘daddy ball’ or none of that,” Brown said convincingly. “Off the court, he’ll be a dad. He’ll help me with tips in the game, how to be better on the court, and how to be more of a PG.”

Brown says he wants to work on becoming more explosive towards the rim. His quickness isn’t where he desires it to be. He also is aiming to get stronger to be able to take the necessary contact on the way to the rim.

Some of the guards he’s inspired by did, and do, just that.

When he’s not watching vintage International FIBA or NBA Finals matchups, he likes to check out the skills of Allen Iverson, Steve Nash, Steph Curry, and Damian Lillard.

He’s paying a lot of attention to Curry, being that Steph comes across a lot of high-ball screens and Brown expects to do the same as he grows in the sport.

“I watch so much basketball, that I’m always composed. No one can ever get me out of my game,” Brown said.

This mentality will bode well at a school such as OCP, a team fresh off a state championship this past March.

Brown already knows what he wants to create over there—a legacy.

16U Florida Hoopstars Start Hot With 4-0 Record

When I told head coach Dewaine Lyals about the “Best of the South” a few weeks back, he simply responded: “I’ll sign my team up this week.”

Fast-forward to today, and he has his 16U crew playing some quality ball in their first-ever trip to the BOTS—so much that it’s led to an undefeated record halfway through the event. They ended Friday with a 17-point win over Grindhouse Lakers, having four Hoopstars score in double-figures.

Let Coach Lyals tell it, and he’ll say it’s an awesome feeling.

“This group of kids, they’re special, man. No credit to the coaching staff, these kids work hard and they’re grinding every day,” Lyals said. “To come into something so huge, and win & produce… hopefully some of these kids can come away with some offers or some interest.”

In the Grindhouse win, Tae Floyd, Zechariah Poyser, Quincy Parker, and Caleb Rollerson all played as if an offer truly was on the line. They each put up 13, 14, 11, and 13 points, respectively. Rollerson, a 2024 guard from Citra-North Marion shot it well from deep, hitting three treys. While the rest did most of their damage inside the arc and in the paint.

Rollerson credits their ability to “play together”—and his teammates echoed.

“We have five new people, we never really played with each other,” said Parker, another 2024 guard from Ocala-Trinity Catholic. “But, the fact that we’re playing this good shows we can adapt.”

Floyd, a 2023 forward from Ocala-Westport, said that he finds out about a new ability his teammates have during every game. Poyser, a Wildwood Wildcat graduating in 2023, was hype to talk about how exciting it is to play well at an event this large. This excitement has definitely influenced a great team chemistry.

Whether they have debates about who’s the “Team Clown”, or about who would win a game of “King of the Court” between the entire team, these four and group as a whole will continue to ride for each other when it comes to beating an opponent.

The Hoopstars have two more days to prove themselves in-front of the top-level talent. Assistant Coach Ryan Harrison, who’s also the Wildwood A.D. & Girls Hoops coach, has full faith that they’ll rise to the occasion.

“One of things we have is a deep roster who can all fill in and get it done,” Harrison said. “When you’re playing in a multi-day event, you gotta keep fresh legs. We have to keep up our selflessness, and our willingness to play together as a team so everyone can benefit.”