Carolina Tune-Up 2021

Mooresville, NC – The NCAA COVID-19 Dead period ended earlier this week, and with the resumption of the normal NCAA DI Women’s Basketball Recruiting Calendar, the July viewing periods are right around the corner. Several programs headed to the suburbs of Charlotte this past weekend to get some work in and get ready, as Carolina Girls Hoops hosted the #CarolinaTuneUp. 

 

We have been mentioning some of the standouts each day, and there has been a strong social media presence all weekend for the event. Keeping with our recent coverage format, we now want to highlight some of the programs in attendance and give you the 411 on some of the players that suit up for them. Let’s get right in to it!

 

It’s only fitting that we kick things off with a program from the Carolina’s, and the FBC Carolina Elite Hawks showed well with their 2025 and 2023 teams here at the Tune Up. Let’s break it down with the older group first. Kamari Thompson is an offensive rebounding juggernaut out there. The 5’9 2023 tweener handles it well enough to play the wing, but you certainly want her hitting the boards as much as possible. Put out a double-double alert here for this one. And look out for 2023 Kamya Hatten as well. Hatten is a locomotive out there at times, at her best when she can get going and attack from the open floor. The spin move is a personal favorite of hers, and she can score or find open teammates off of it. Then you have 2027 post Khalia Hartwell leading the way with a big 6’3 frame for the 2025 Hawks group. Hartwell is aggressive when she catches inside, and possesses some advanced footwork that is very useful. 2025 guard Zykera Brown is another headliner, and can be quite the bully out there. Brown is a power guard who loves to get to the rim, and does so with physical ease. This is a key player who puts up key performances.

 

Hoopers NY made the trek down I-95 and I-85 from the Big Apple, and brought plenty of offensive fire power with them. 2023 Georgia Tech commit Nicole Melious is a known sniper from well beyond the arc. If she’s bringing it up, you better meet her way early or she will make you pay, and don’t even think about going under on ball screens. She’s doing a good job of sharing the basketball too, and making the right decisions. She’s joined by another high-powered offensive-minded guard in 2022 Nicole Sanfillippo. This kid recently reopened her recruiting and multiple schools have pounced at the renewed opportunity. Rightly so, as this high energy guard can really go, and while she can hurt you from three, it’s her ability to get to the rack for clutch buckets that really leaps out. Sara Moschella is another committed 2023 playing up on their 2022 team. Moschella is very athletic, and it shows especially on defense and out in transition. She can really fly out there, and fires off some bullet passes on the move. Her game will benefit Navy in a couple years. 2024 post Natalie Fox is gaining a lot of traction on the recruiting front, with good size, solid activity on the boards, and plenty of paint scoring. The stock is up here. Another young player to watch out for in this program is 2023 scoring guard Kristina Rush, who went on a scoring tear all weekend for the 16U team.

 

Sarah Strong is the headliner for Strong Center 2024, and rightfully so at 6’2 with national rankings mentioning you regularly. Strong is a beast, and while her size and skill combination is celebrated, it’s her passing that at times deserves the most praise. You’d be hard pressed to find a better passer at her size, and she drops a bag of dimes off every game. But beyond her, we need to take time to commend the development of some of the other youngsters on this team. Emerson Thompson has always impressed as scoring option at the guard spot who is also fun to watch. Two 2025 guards also stood out as showing some very nice improvements, Danauje Brooks and Miyah Campbell. Brooks is a solid young combo guard with a nice pull up jumper for her age. She’s also got some speed and manages to come up with quite a few steals. Campbell is an athletic guard as well. She is a little hesitant to shoot the three at times, but if she keeps hitting them back-to-back like she did at the Tune Up, she is going to be real confident real fast.

 

Mt. Luxor had teams up and down the age brackets this weekend. One guard who really made their world turn was Re’Ale Walton, a 2024 combo guard that showed the ability to score or set up her teammates to do so. Kaiya “Yah Yah” Bond is an athletic 5’9 2026 guard/forward who we’d file in the wait and see category. She has a great look with the long arms and legs. Bond is still developing the handles and some other things, but she has lots of basketball ahead of her. Another 2026 player that got our attention was Shariah White, a 5’8 2026 wing/forward who found herself playing at a whole different speed than a lot of her contemporaries this weekend. This kid can fly down the floor, and gave us a look at a developing jumper, especially effective in the 15 foot region. See what she adds in the future.

 

ABC Lightning is a tight-knit, well-coached program that we always love to see in the gym. 2023 guard Staci Williams looks to follow up a very good summer of 2020 with more of the same in 2021, and you can tell this kid is working like she’s hungry. Williams is a competitor who plays to win, and has the game to back it up. 6’1 2023 forward Marlee Beam is long and skilled, and classmate 2023 6’0 forward Ayla Starck helps give the lightning that frontcourt 1-2 punch. This group plays well together because they’ve been together for some years now. We look forward to seeing them often this summer.

 

Points for creativity on a team name for H2 Lowco 2026, hailing from coastal South Carolina’s Low Country. 2027 lefty point guard Amirah Brown has a chance down the line, and is already doing some nice things. Lily Termini is a versatile 2026 wing type who just gets stuff done, rebounding, scoring, and defending. She produced for her team all weekend, and her footwork on the catch seemed very natural.

 

Keeping with the South Carolina trend, One Force had their own 2026 team in the building. 2028 Treasure Davis is a quick point guard who plays a couple of years above her grade level. Points off the bounce can come in bunches here, and she is only going to score more of those attempts as she gets older and grows. 2026 guard Teonna Draughn is a born athlete, elusive with the basketball and some pogo-stick bounce. This kid is a bucket for her age, thanks to a pretty electric first step and a weaponized jumper off the dribble.

 

I like the way the Palmetto Pressure came in and competed against some older competition. This is how young teams get better, just by going out and playing and learning. That experience will serve them well! 2025 guard Sian Banks was really a standout in the transition game all weekend, and was especially adept at using her right hand to get to the basket. She put up some numbers and was hard to miss for too long. Jazzlyn McMillan is only a 6^th grader, but she certainly doesn’t play like it! McMillan is skilled and does some nice things off the dribble, while also sporting a nice fluid jumper. 

 

The Lady Copperheads ventured down from Southwest Virginia with their entire program, and we liked what we saw for sure. 2025 guard Kenzie Board was fun to watch, with some shake and explosion off the bounce, and some advanced ball and body control to stop and go. Defensively she can contribute as well, and she gets excited about making plays down on that end. Another 2025 who stood out was Ashlyn Adkins, a quick and crafty 5’3 point guard who is quite a scoring sparkplug. For the 2023 squad, if you like a good shooter, check out Angelina Jones. Jones knows how to get open and shoots it without much of a conscience, regardless of prior outcomes. Their oldest 17U team has a mix of prospects in the 2022, 2023, and 2024 classes. Abbie Baker is a 6’0 forward with great size inside. Patience is a virtue that she possesses with the ball, with the ability to face up on the catch and survey the floor. The 15 foot jumper and even three-pointer are also in her arsenal. Kennedy Scales set the pace at the point all weekend, consistently scoring as she split defenders en route to the rim.

 

Other Players We Like

Tysonia Lowe is a veteran of some of our NYG Hoops events over the years, and it was good to see her out there again, this time with her Carolina Hoopers squad. The 5’6 2023 point guard made it happen and led the way for them, hands down. The shot can be a little all or nothing, but it sure does look pretty good off the dribble. Lowe attacks well, can split defenders and use the euro too. It should be an important summer for her heading into junior year. 

 

The Lady Hornets were out to defend the home city at the Carolina Tune Up. 2024 point guard Karianna Lee plays with some flash and personality, consistently penetrating into the paint with a nice first step. As a floor general, she communicates some with her teammates like you want to see, and if she starts to putting things together on a more consistent basis, look out.

 

Another Carolina club that got better here this weekend was the Lady Phenoms. The tough play of 2022 point guard Laila Anderson is absolutely to be commended. If you like a point guard who can defend and then distribute, she’s checking the boxes, and her output didn’t waver against tougher competition.

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