MONTVERDE, Fla. – Elite prospects brought their "A" games for the Sunshine Classic in the Sunshine State.
From elite guards imposing their will in the backcourt to high-flying forwards establishing their dominance in the paint, here are a handful of players who turned heads on day one.
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Castillo started slow in the first half but came out firing in the second half, showing off his impressive range and quick trigger. He pumped in 11 points, including three 3-pointers, in the third quarter. Kansas State coach Jerome Tang has a sniper coming to Manhattan next season. Castillo finished with 14 points in a loss.
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The Stanford signee was a pit bull of a competitor all night, hounding Sunrise Christian’s guards and doing it all on the offensive end. Crawford’s penetration and energy was overwhelming for the opposing backcourt at times and infectious for his teammates. He posted 16 points, six rebounds and five assists in a win.
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Aristode lived up to his hype of being one of the best two-way backcourt prospects in the 2025 class. At 6-foot-7, Aristode guarded nearly all five positions throughout the course of the game and scored in a variety of different ways. It's easy to see why high majors are lining up for the junior. He finished with 11 points and six rebounds in the win over Sunrise Christian.
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Newell’s length made him virtually unguardable in the paint all night against IMG Academy. Newell was relentless in his attack and showed a vast array of spins and counters to wear down the IMG frontline all night. Newell, a Georgia signee, finished with 18 points and five rebounds in the 86-69 win.
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Queen’s footwork is like poetry in motion, and he overmatched IMG Academy’s bigs all night with his ability to get to his spots in the paint then use his wide frame to create space and finish through contact. There was simply no answer for the 6-foot-9 forward, who finished with 25 points and 13 rebounds in the win.
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Freeman had his hands full all night fighting with Montverde’s unreal frontline, but the Syracuse signee gave it back on the offensive end, scoring 20 points and grabbing nine rebounds in the loss. Freeman’s versatility was a bright spot for the Ascenders in what was otherwise an overmatched outing.
