SCOTTSDALE, AZ - The annual HoopHall Classic West filled the Chapparal High School gym for the December starter for national events. Let’s run through the storylines of the action from Thursday and Friday. 

TOP DOGS 

Boogie Fland, Archbishop Stepinac (NY): Kentucky guards have to have a certain sort of flair to them. it’s required in Lexington. confidence paired with some swag has always worked for a john Calipari. Fland has it. we saw it on Friday night as he scored 27 points and collected 5 rebounds in his team’s buzzer-beating win over perry on Friday night. fland will be a fun prime time guard for Cal and the Big Blue Nation.

Anthony Baston, Jr., Notre Dame Prep (AZ): The Rice-bound guard was outstanding on Thursday night in a wild overtime loss to talent-rich Desert Mountain squad. He showed the full bag in this one. Baston scored a loud 39 points in the overtime game and found success at all three levels. He was at his best as an athletic slasher to the rim and challenged defenders to match his energy. That was a tall task because he emptied the tank on every possession. His motor yielded 15 collected rebounds in the action. For Rice, he’s got a chance to step into a role as an athletic defender as he eases into the collegiate game. 

Juni Mobley, Wasatch Academy (UT): With the ink dry on his National Letter of Intent to Ohio State and now with a couple of months of cross-country action with his new team, Mobley is starting to find his comfort zone on the hardwood with the Tigers. The Vegas native is known for being a go-to threat on the wing as a three-point shooter. And he’s still that guy. He’ll probably always be that guy. With a short bench, he's now a marathon man in the backcourt that will be asked to drive and kick, score in traffic and challenge defenders as a paint toucher. Mobley scored a team-high 22 points (9-16 FG, 3-8 from 3) in the win over AZ Compass Prep. 

HI, MY NAME IS… 

Kuai Alier Deng, Veritas (CA): The 6-foot-10 junior from Australia has been in the United States since September and he’s just now getting his feet wet on the American high school scene. Central Florida has made a small blip on the recruiting radar but things are certainly at ground zero. That should change soon. The tools are there for him to be a level-up prospect in the 2025 class. A downhill driver, Deng uses his length very well and scores at and above the rim. On Friday, he was easily the biggest revelation.  

Bhan Buon, Wasatch Academy (UT): The injury bug has already bit the WA rotation this season with Malick Diallo out for the year with an ACL injury. So, that means it is time for someone else to step up. The Tigers are hoping to see Buon step up and be the guy who can take those new minutes and produce. The available 2024 forward connected on some big three-pointers, worked well on the glass and thrived as a passer and on-ball defender in a one-sided game and win over AZ Compass Prep. To date, Utah Valley is the only offer while San Fransisco has shown interest but things are still quite open for the senior.

THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT 

Kaden House, Desert Mountain (AZ): Buckets, man. he’s going to get buckets. tough shots are in his bag and scoring off the bounce is like breathing. house came with it in a fun back-and-forth overtime battle against Notre Dame Prep.  There is a high-risk, high-reward quality to his game that says he's going to lean into his supreme confidence and just go with it. on Thursday, it mattered in the to win.

Miles Sadler, Canyon International (AZ): The speedy Canadian will be a fun one to chart in the coming years at the point guard position. He has poise, speed and a great awareness of how to run the action.

Jaion Pitt, Canyon International (AZ): The 6-foot-7 forward has been a model of consistency this season for the start-up program in the desert. He's a productive post player with hints a PJ Washington flavor to his game. Pitt, a class of 2025 forward, should be on top 100 lists before we get into travel ball in the 2024 calendar year. 

NOTES FROM THE NOTEPAD

Amier Ali will be an interesting player to watch at Arizona State. The well-traveled prospect has a modern game for a forward. He can shoot, run the floor and be a match-up problem because of his size and length. 

Baron Bellamy of Campbell Hall (CA) capped off Friday night with an efficient 19 points (7-7 FG, 5-5 from 3) in the win over Basha. The 6-foot-6 unsigned senior had the hottest hand in the gym on Friday. 

D'Andre Harrison was a steady go-to option for Perry in their loss to Archbishop Stepinac. the junior finished with 17 points and eight rebounds. 

SHOT THE OF THE DAY 

Danny Carbuccia hit the game-winner for Archbishop Stepinac in a grind-it-out win over Perry. The made triple was his only knockdown three of the night. 

Game winner from Danny Carbuccia to get Archbishop Stepinac a 53-50 win over Perry. @HoophallClassic pic.twitter.com/K6GFsFmoex

— Justin Young (@JustinDYoung) December 2, 2023