2023 Grassroots Finale: Yohance Connor, Eli Ellis headline Saturday morning
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA - We’ve made it to the beach for another year—well, I didn’t see the beach last year, and I haven’t this year yet either, but it’s there somewhere—for the Grassroots Finale.
The partnership with HoopGroup has seen the north and south meet in the middle with college coaches from both regions doing the same.
Because of the condensed live period, Saturday is abnormally long. These are some of the notables from the morning session.
Yohance Connor thrives under the bright lights
2026 guard Yohance Connor has consistently been a bright spot on a 1 of 1 Elite Rare team with no shortage of talent. On Saturday morning, he may have had the best game of his young career under the brightest of lights.
With rows of people lining court two for the Carolina matchup between 1 of 1 and Team Loaded NC, Connor was matched up with 2025 point guard Eli Ellis, and he didn’t back down from the moment.
Connor’s competitive edge showed throughout the game on both ends of the floor. Tasked with guarding one of the most elusive point generators in the country, Connor did as good of a job slowing Ellis as anyone. He stuck with Ellis and never let him go on one of his patented one-man runs.
Offensively, Connor dropped 19 points and made some outstanding passes.
He’s explosive, energetic and both shined through to get the weekend going.
While 2026 rankings won’t come out until later in the year, it’s difficult to imagine a scenario in which Connor isn’t in HoopSeen’s initial rankings of the class.
Eli Ellis wasn’t too bad himself
Yohance Connor was great, but Eli Ellis was as well. I haven’t seen Eli Ellis have an outright bad game this year.
He’s such a dynamic offensive player. His ability to score, draw fouls, and make elite passes is unrivalled.
Ellis showed that side of his game well with 36 points. He did a significant amount of his damage from the free-throw line. Ellis used his savvy to draw several fouls. He also hit shots from deep, as he’s known to do, and he finished creative layups at the rim.
Maybe it’s underrated, maybe it’s well-known, but Ellis’ defensive awareness gets lost against how great his offensive game is. He always seems to be in the right place at the right time on defense.
Bad Boys get some revenge
Bad Boys Basketball was one of the stories of this event a year ago. Behind herculean efforts from guard Casey Etienne, they went on a run that pitted them against eventual champs Team Push.
In that one, Push came out with the win to end Bad Boy’s season. On Saturday afternoon, Bad Boys got a win back thanks to a 3-pointer from guard James Saulsby that sealed the deal.
Saulsby ended the game with 14 points which included two 3-pointers. He’s been a guy who we’ve seen get hot from three in the past, so it wasn’t a surprise to see him be the one to knock down the winner from deep.
One of the stars of the game was Braylon Burbridge. He led Bad Boys with 17 points. Burbridge plays like a bracket buster. He’s a guard that’s capable of making tough shots and carrying a team’s offense through stretches.
Locals shine to start the day
In the first time slot of the marathon, a pair of locals shined for boo Williams’ 16U squad.
Sebastian Whitfield has an offer from Old Dominion—about 20 minutes away from the facility we’re at—and they were on hand bright and early for his game. Whitfield treated them to a good performance when he dropped 23 points in their win. A slashing wing, Whitfield had his most success when driving down hill, but he also dropped in a 3-pointer to keep the defense honest.
2025 guard Ashton Walker was outstanding as well. His passing was on full display with high level reads and on-target distribution. His effort at 8 a.m. was notable as well. Walker is a competitor. As far as scoring goes, he hit some shots and He’s a complete difference-maker when he’s on the floor.
More quick hitters
2025 F Cedric Taylor was sidelined with foul trouble early on for Team Scoots 2025 team, but his impact was felt in a significant way in the second half. He gave them a boost of legit size down low. He was a rim protector and limited Boo Williams to single-shot possessions with his rebounding.
During the same Team Scoot rally that Taylor impressed in, 2025 G Arnett Hayes exploded in the second half with over 20 points—including four 3-pointers. Hayes had some shining moments at best of the South a week ago, and he’s carried that momentum over to Virginia Beach.
Adrian Shackleton was great for Florida Pro in their first game. Shackleton is a great scorer, but his passing shined through on Saturday. He put guys in great situations to score. Oh, and he did plenty of scoring himself with 20 points. For college coaches in attendance, Shackleton is a name to circle in the packet.
Ben Nacey excelled at the forward spot for Team Push early against Bad Boys. He's a big body down low, and he stepped out and hit some jumpers. He's someone to keep an eye on from the area. He finished with 16 for them.
