The fourth year of the Generation Next Basketball Association came to a close on Sunday as elite middle school teams from across the Midwest took to the courts in Wisconsin in hopes of capturing GNBA Championship honors.  As the final horn sounded Ray Allen Select (8th Grade), Playground Elite (7th Grade), Made Men Basketball (6th Grade), and the Wisconsin Blizzard hoisted the top hardware.  Here’s a quick look at some players that stood out in the biggest games this past weekend…

SEE ALSO
2017 GNBA CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS
2017 GNBA CHAMPIONSHIPS DAY 3 RECAP – PART 1
2017 GNBA CHAMPIONSHIPS DAY 3 RECAP – PART 2

2017 GNBA CHAMPIONSHIP GAME TOP PERFORMANCES
Carter Capstran — 2021 — PF — Ray Allen Select
Has to be among the top six men in the GNBA this spring. He is a well-rounded interior player with the ability to rebound, play at the high post, the low post and has a good feel for playing in the paint. Capstran is also an aggressive rebounder and does a good job on the boards at both ends of the court.

Steven Clark – 2024 – G – Wisconsin Blizzard
While Knueppel was setting the tone on his end, Clark was providing the balance on his end as he poured in a solid 17 points on 6 of 10 shooting and added 3 rebounds in the championship game.  He showed range and excellent feel for a young player and his play early helped the Blizzard jump out to a big lead that they never gave up.  

Hayden Doyle — 2021 — G — Ray Allen Select
Kid broke out the mid-range jumper in Sunday’s championship game against Quad City Elite. He showed a smooth handle and the ability to stop on a dime and pull-up for mid-range J’s. Doyle is also an excellent defender and he and Ben Nau did a good job of bottling up Quad City Elite guard Jordan Rice, who had been on a tear this weekend, in Sunday’s championship game.

Greg Galloway — 2022 — F — Playground Elite
Galloway is a strong forward who uses good footwork around the bucket to free himself up in the lane. He had several good moments in the post in the second half of Sunday’s seventh-grade championship game against a talented Mac Irvin Fire team and finished with 13 points and 5 rebounds.  

Kenrick (Nick) Harrell — 2022 — SF — Mac Irvin Fire
Harrell is a smooth wing player with terrific size and length and a skill set to match. He can post up smaller players around the bucket, face up and beat his man off the bounce and has range out to the 3-point line. He finished Sunday’s seventh-grade championship game against Playground Elite with 12 points and seven rebounds.

Luke Haertle — 2022 — F/G — Playground Elite
Kid is just a basketball player and impressed off the Playground Elite bench for the second straight day. He has good size for a seventh-grader and while he isn’t flashy, he does a little bit of everything well and just gets the job done. He came off the bench again to provide a spark points against Mac Irvin Fire in Sunday’s championship game.

Ahmad Henderson — 2022 — PG — Mac Irvin Fire
Henderson is a diminutive point guard that plays much bigger than his height would suggest. He can stroke it from well beyond the 3-point arc as he showed in Sunday’s championship game against Playground Elite, but can also get in the paint and create for himself and others. He finished with two 3-pointers and eight points against Playground Elite, but he also set up teammates for several easy buckets and played with poise at the point.

David Joplin — 2021 — F  Ray Allen Select
Joplin continues to impress in the eighth-grade division and on Sunday he showed his ability to be a high level rebounder in the championship game against Quad City Elite. Joplin finished with a game-high 11 boards and added seven points and was a force in the paint at both ends of the court.

Trevon Jordan — 2021 — F — Quad City Elite
Big man came off the bench on Sunday to give Quad City Elite a boost in the championship game of the eighth-grade bracket against Ray Allen Select. He knocked down two 3-pointers and scored six points in what was a low-scoring affair.

Kon Knueppel – 2024 – F – Wisconsin Blizzard
A skilled and talented young player, Knueppel was exceptional in the championship game as he set the tone early and delivered a big time performance to the tune of 24 points, 13 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 steals.  He finished from multiple levels in a variety of ways and filled the box score while helping his team jump out to a big first half lead which they held on through a couple of 2nd half runs from Team Getshook.  An excellent overall performance.

Davius Loury – 2023 – F/C – Made Men
Another piece of a talented Made Men team, Loury served as a stabilizing force in the paint on both ends in the title game to the tune of 8 points 9 rebounds and 2 steals.  He was active, efficient, and productive on both ends and was a key factor in a balanced attack that pushed Made Men to the 6th grade championship.  

Randy McClendon – 2024 – F – Team Getshook
The lanky young forward did everything he could to keep his team in the title game as he battled on the glass and scored with consistency.  McClendon finished 22 points and 6 rebounds in the 5th grade championship on Sunday.

Ben Nau — 2021 — PG — Ray Allen Select
A smooth ball handler and a true point guard, Nau got in the lane and made plays for Ray Allen Select all weekend. He has good size and length for a guard and made several key defensive plays in Ray Allen Select’s championship game win over Quad City Elite, reading the passing lanes and coming up with critical steals.

Courtney O’Hara – 2023 – F – Net Gain Sports
O’Hara was a beast in the title game as he delivered a near triple double with 16 points 11 rebounds and 5 assists.  He was active on both ends and found ways to contribute in dominant fashion with and without the ball.  

Eric Price — 2021 — G/F — Quad City Elite
Price continued his big weekend on Sunday with a strong performance in the championship game. He is a unique inside-outside player who uses his size and strength to his advantage. Price is a good rebounder, ball handler and the Quad City offense often runs through him. He led Quad City Elite with six rebounds in Sunday’s championship game against Ray Allen Select.

Derek Partee – 2022 – F – Mac Irvin Fire
A physical forward who can make things happen, Partee was active on the glass in the title game as he collected 10 rebounds did what he could in that regard to keep his team in the game.  He scored 6 points mainly on put backs and with a couple more finishes the outcome could’ve been a bit different.  His activity, physicality, and overall energy around the basket was impressive and his play was key to the Fire getting to the title game on Sunday.  

Greyson Pritzl — 2022 — SG — Playground Elite
Pritzl started Sunday’s championship game against Mac Irvin Fire with a bang, knocking down a pair of early 3-pointers that helped give Playground Elite an early lead. He added a third 3-pointer in the second half and also went 3 for 4 from the free throw line, knocking down several key free throws late in the game as Playground Elite held onto a lead for the title. Pritzl finished with 13 points.

Tanner Resch – 2021 – G – Ray Allen Select
The young 8th grade guard saved his best for last as he stepped up big in the final game and set the tone early with excellent perimeter shooting.  He finished with a game high 17 points including 5 trey balls while making big shots early in each half to continue to stop mini-runs by Quad City Elite and help Ray Allen to the 8th grade title.  

JT Seagraves — 2022 — PF — Playground Elite
An active and athletic big man, Seagraves took it to a bigger, more physical Mac Irvin Fire front line and set the tone early in Sunday’s seventh-grade championship. He had six points and three rebounds in the first half, and led Playground Elite with nine rebounds and added eight points.

Mantas Zilys – 2023 – SG – Made Men
The talented young guard was solid in the final game as he delivered 15 points and 2 rebounds while helping spread the floor with a couple of trey balls in the process.  When Made Men needed a big shot or a big play this young guard was in the middle of things making it happen and he was a big reason they were able to outlast a solid Net Gain team for the 6th grade GNBA Championship.  

2017 GNBA CHAMPIONSHIP ROLL CALL
8th Grade GNBA Champions – Ray Allen Select (WI)
8th Grade GNBA 2nd Place – Quad City Elite (IL)

7th Grade GNBA Champions – Playground Elite (WI)
7th Grade GNBA 2nd Place – Mac Irvin Fire (IL)

6th Grade GNBA Champions – Made Men Basketball (IL)
6th Grade GNBA 2nd Place – Net Gain Sports (MN)

5th Grade GNBA Champions – Wisconsin Blizzard (WI)
5th Grade GNBA 2nd Place – Team Getshook (MN)

ADDITIONAL 2017 GNBA CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND HONORS
8TH Grade Gold Champions – Butler Elite (WI)
8th Grade Gold 2nd Place – Yanders Law Blue (MO)

8th Grade Silver Champions – Iowa Barnstormers Gold (IA)
8th Grade Silver 2nd Place – Milwaukee Spartans Rebels Elite (WI)

8th Grade Bronze Champions – Team Ramey Black (MO)
8th Grade Bronze 2nd Place – Wisconsin Shooters (WI)

8th Grade Consolation Champions – Mercury Elite (IL)
8th Grade Consolation 2nd Place – Iowa Barnstormers Black (IA)

7th Grade Gold Champions – Made Men Basketball (IL)
7th Grade Gold 2nd Place – Illinois Irish Elite (IL)

7th Grade Silver Champions – Iowa Barnstormers (IA)
7th Grade Silver 2nd Place – Illinois Speed Blue (IL)

7th Grade Consolation Champions – Wisconsin Playmakers (WI)

6th Grade Gold Champions – Illinois Irish Elite (IL)
6th Grade Gold 2nd Place – Iowa Barnstormers (IA)

6th Grade Silver Champions – Team Ramey (MO)
6th Grade Silver 2nd Place – Ray Allen Select (WI)

6th Grade Consolation Champions – Illinois Attack (IL)

5th Grade Gold Champions – Illinois Speed Blue (IL)
5th Grade Gold 2nd Place – Illinois Speed White (IL)

5th Grade Silver Champions – All In Athletics (IL)
5th Grade Silver 2nd Place – Playground Elite Keys (WI)