Freshman Year : A Look Back at 2022 Rankings

29, Nov 2022

Freshman Year : A Look Back at 2022 Rankings

Justin Byerly 0 Comments
Jayden Epps

Charlotte, NC

6' 2"
|
SG
Ezra Ausar

Charlotte, NC

6' 8"
|
PF
Deante Green

Swannanoa, NC

6' 8"
|
PF
Daniel Hankins-Sanford

Charlotte, NC

6' 6"
|
SF
Patrick Wessler

Charlotte , NC

7'
|
C
Liron Thomas

Durham, NC

6' 3"
|
PG
MJ Collins

Rock Hill, NC

6' 4"
|
CG
DJ Nix

Concord, NC

6' 7"
|
SF
Christ Essandoko

Winston-Salem, NC

6' 11"
|
C
Elijah Jamison

Louisburg, NC

6' 2"
|
SG
Cade Tyson

Monroe , NC

6' 5"
|
SF

The class of 2022 from North Carolina was another strong overall class, let's see how some of those prospects from our North Carolina rankings are doing in their first year at the collegiate level. 

 

Jayden Epps

Charlotte, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
SG
|
Height
6' 2"
|
School Team
Combine Academy
National
47
National Pos. Rank
11
State
1
State Pos. Rank
1

 

#1 Jayden Epps, Illinois - The 6-foot-2 guard is third in scoring for Illinois this season and is averaging 11 points and 2 rebounds so far. Epps played at Combine Academy in Lincolnton, North Carolina prior to singing with Brad Underwood's squad. 

 

Ezra Ausar

Charlotte, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
PF
|
Height
6' 8"
|
School Team
Liberty Heights High School
National
NR
National Pos. Rank
NR
State
2
State Pos. Rank
1

 

#2 Ezra Ausar, East Carolina - The big man out of Liberty Heights in Charlotte, North Carolina is averaging 2.7 points and 1.8 rebounds per game. 

 

Deante Green

Swannanoa, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
PF
|
Height
6' 8"
|
School Team
Asheville Christian Academy
National
94
National Pos. Rank
19
State
3
State Pos. Rank
2

 

#3 Deante Green, Florida State - After overcoming an ACL injury late in his senior season of high school, the Asheville, North Carolina native is averaging 1.4 points and .8 rebounds per game through 5 games and a total of 22 minutes on the floor. 

 

Daniel Hankins-Sanford

Charlotte, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
SF
|
Height
6' 6"
|
School Team
Chambers High School
National
NR
National Pos. Rank
NR
State
4
State Pos. Rank
1

 

#4 Daniel Hankins-Sanford, South Carolina - The Chambers High School standout is averaging 3.2 rebounds and 2.3 points per game for the Gamecocks. Hankins-Sanford was a huge addition for Team United back in Orlando in 2021 at our Grassroots Championships where he led them to the championship game. 

 

Patrick Wessler

Charlotte , NC

Class
2022
|
Position
C
|
Height
7'
|
School Team
Combine Academy
National
NR
National Pos. Rank
NR
State
5
State Pos. Rank
1

 

#5 Patrick Wessler, Virginia Tech - Virginia Tech Head Coach Mike Young announced that Wessler would red-shirt this season in Blacksburg. 

 

Liron Thomas

Durham, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
PG
|
Height
6' 3"
|
School Team
Bull City Prep
National
NR
National Pos. Rank
NR
State
6
State Pos. Rank
1

 

#6 LJ Thomas, NC State - Thomas is averaging around 8 minutes per contest for Kevin Keatts program and is averaging 2 rebounds and 2.4 points per game. 

 

MJ Collins

Rock Hill, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
CG
|
Height
6' 4"
|
School Team
Combine Academy
National
NR
National Pos. Rank
NR
State
7
State Pos. Rank
1

 

#7 MJ Collins, Virginia Tech - Collins, who spent half of his senior season at Combine Academy in Lincoln, North Carolina on a loaded squad has seen some time in Blacksburg, he is averaging 20 minutes per game and is scoring 3.4 points per game. He is also in the stat column at 1.9 rebounds per game. 

 

DJ Nix

Concord, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
SF
|
Height
6' 7"
|
School Team
Cannon School
National
NR
National Pos. Rank
NR
State
8
State Pos. Rank
2

 

#8 DJ Nix, Cornell - The Cannon School product is 2.3 points and 1.7 rebounds so far this season for Cornell. 

 

Christ Essandoko

Winston-Salem, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
C
|
Height
6' 11"
|
School Team
Winston Salem Christian
National
NR
National Pos. Rank
NR
State
9
State Pos. Rank
2

 

#9 Christ Essandoko, St. Joseph's - Due to eligibility issues, Essandoko is ineligible this season. 

 

Elijah Jamison

Louisburg, NC

Class
2022
|
Position
SG
|
Height
6' 2"
|
School Team
Liberty Heights High School
National
NR
National Pos. Rank
NR
State
10
State Pos. Rank
2

 

#10 Elijah Jamison, Milwaukee - The guard out of Liberty Heights in Charlotte, North Carolina is averaging 7.9 points while also grabbing 3.5 rebounds in 18 minutes of action per game for former Queens University Head Coach Bart Lundy. 

 

Notables 

 

#14 AJ Smith, The Citadel - The former Combine Academy guard is averaging 5.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. He is averaging nearly 15 minutes per game in Charleston, South Carolina. 

 

#16 Cade Tyson, Belmont - The big man from Carmel Christian in Charlotte, North Carolina is averaging 14.1 points and 4.1 rebounds. His scoring average is good enough for second on the team. 

 

#28 Karon Boyd, USC-Aiken - Another Cannon School product, Boyd is playing really well at USC-Aiken in his freshman season. He is averaging 10.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game. 

#27 Micah Handlogten, Marshall - The big man is averaging 7.3 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.2 blocks so far this season. 

#33 Chase Lowe, William & Mary - The guard from Charlotte, North Carolina is averaging 3 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. 

 

 

 

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Justin Byerly
State Editor

Justin Byerly has spent the past 15 years covering North Carolina prep and grassroots basketball. He has previously worked with The Recruit Scoop and Rivals.com. In addition to that he has contributed to The USA Today, Charlotte Observer, The Asheville Citizen-Times and The Sun News. He has held The Justin Byerly Upstate/WNC Showcase the past two years and has helped student-athletes from North Carolina and South Carolina receive college scholarships. He owns The Byerly Report scouting service that has over 100 college subscriptions. Justin resides in Asheville, North Carolina with his wife Danielle and four children.