The National Championship brought a ton of talented teams to Kentucky to compete for the last live period of July. We walked around the 50 courts at the Kentucky Expo Center throughout the tournament taking note of players who stood out to us. Now when we say stand out, we mean a player who caught our eye for one reason or another. While that may be a team’s best player, it also could simply be a player whose effort made it impossible for us to not notice them. Below you can read about some of those players that stood out to us throughout the event. 

Please note: Some of the write-ups below were already featured on X (@riseupsports1) during the event. Please let us know if any of the information below is incorrect and we will get it fixed as soon as possible.

Madyson Dumphy

ProSkills Houston 15U NE2K | Class of 2027
Clean jump-shot. Good three point shooter. Gives it her all on defense and rarely allows a defense past her. Moves effectively off the ball and can command the game when she has the ball. Her assignment seems to be the best player on the other team, the trust that the coach has in her really shows.
-ETHAN GRANTZ

Kaylee McElroy

2026 Kentuckiana Hoops Wathen | Class of 2027
HUGE difference maker. Doesn’t make anything easy defensively – keeps the energy up and can jump out into the passing lanes for steals. Can do a little bit of everything offensively. Reliable ball handler, knockdown shooter, very nice finisher on drives.

Brooklynn Lucassen

Wisconsin Purple Aces 15U S40 | Class of 2027
Shooting lights out. Doesn’t need much space or time to get her shot off. Knocked down at least 5 triples. Good handles as well.

Baylee Warner

2027 West Virginia Thunder S40 | Class of 2027
Warner is a player who can stretch the floor. Runs the floor and creates spacing. Can score inside or outside of the perimeter and has good range on her outside shot. Very unselfish and makes nice passes. Rebounds well and played good defense.

Brookelyn Duckwyler

2027 Tri-State Pride NE2K | Class of 2027
Very tough overall. Can do a little bit of everything but a really hard defensive assignment because of her scoring ability at all 3 levels. Can finish some really difficult shots on drives and can handle a lot of contact. Good handles and very active defensively.

Samantha Coble

FGB 15U E40 | Class of 2027
Consistently moving and has a knack for finding the openings on the court. Can knock down shots inside or outside the perimeter. Rebounded well and got into the passing lanes defensively. Versatile with the ability to play multiple positions. Great moves and fakes with the ball to create space from defense.

Sarah Coble

FGB 15U E40 | Class of 2027
Lefty has a really nice shot. Off the dribble or catch, she can knock them down in a hurry. Showed great court awareness and threw some nice anticipation passes to get teammates open looks. Handled the ball well.

Cassidy Grau

2027 SMAC ELITE E40 | Class of 2027
Can knock down shots from anywhere on the court but did a great job of making aggressive drives to the basket once defense started collapsing hard to avoid her getting shots off. Can draw fouls, take contact, and knock down free throws. Good fight defensively.

Cami Bickett

Rise Up 2026 | Class of 2027
Great shooter. Tenacious on both ends of the court. Phenomenal effort rebounding the ball. Came up with A TON of rebounds just by playing with the effort she consistently shows. Great at attacking the rim and drawing fouls. Showed she can always get a step on defenders no matter who she’s playing against.

By Alyx

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