2025 #E75 North College Showcase Recap Pt. 3

Tuesday, June 24th, 2025

The end of our recap of the northern edition of the Elite 75 College Showcase is here!

Tune in as we introduce another group of 2026 prospects this week.

Merrick Smith, Kimball Union -  Two Division One offers are have been extended Smith's way since the Elite 75 last Wednesday, and it's pretty easy to see why. The 6'10 big man has continued to development his footwork in the post, and it allowed him to dominate as a scorer in that aspect. His team couldn't get off the court in the 3-on-3 station's as his touch around the rim kept leading to buckets. Outside of scoring the basketball, Smith's overwhelming length led to blocked shots in bunches, and he was able to pull in a ton of rebounds. Maine and Stonehill offered the Maine native, with more schools beginning to look his way.

Brandon Arnold, Kimball Union -  Like his teammate Merrick, Arnold also walked away with two Division One offers post-Elite 75 last week. A notable aspect of Arnold's game that we were impressed with is his heads up play. He's always examining the floor, and looking to make the right play with the ball in his hands. The balanced guard packs a strong build that allows him to penetrate the defense to score. Arnold is a pretty consistent spot-up shooter as well who is now on the rise in his postgraduate year.

Chad Cook, New Hampton -  The power that Cook provides as a versatile forward allows him to dominate at times, and has led to Division One offers being extended his way throughout the spring. Cook has size and elite footwork in the post to get around defenders and score around the rim. He can knock down three's, make smart secondary playmaking reads to spray the ball to the perimeter or cutters, and contributes as a tough defender. Another top name in the New Hampshire class of 2026 we have watched blossom over the past couple of years.

Mason Paquette, Holderness -  Paquette elected to take on a postgraduate season this year, after he capped off a dominant NHIAA career at Londonderry HS averaging 22 points per game. The 6'4" wing is a relentless finisher in the paint that can play off two feet, or score the ball when getting downhill. He's got some spin moves to get to the cup that caught our eye, while he's also a solid shooting threat with a good stepback move from outside.

Trey Jones, New Hampton -  Making his way up to New Hampshire from North Carolina, Jones looks the part of a major postgraduate addition to the New Hampton Huskies. He's a 6'6" wing that missed a ton of time with injury, and has shown he is ready to go. He anticipates the next play very well on the offensive end of the floor, creating for others, making timely cuts, and scoring on give-and-go's. He gets into his shooting pockets quick to knock down three's efficiently and swiftly, while playing above the rim as finisher. Jones' glass cleaning skills caught our eye as well. With his well-rounded, impressive skillset it will be interesting to see where he ends up recruitment wise as open gym season nears. 

David Ojesanmi, Proctor -  Ojesanmi's length and energy level on the defensive end stood out to us in his appearance as he was able to switch across the floor and crowd opposing players passing lanes.

Khari Bryan, Proctor -  Bryan brings a physical build to the court, and can run the offense as a traffic directing lead guard. In his showing, he made a lot of great plays for his team making smart passes and limiting mistakes with the ball. Bryan can shoot it a little bit from outside, but thrives as a downhill threat towards the rim, and can really defend the ball on the other end of the floor.

Finn O'Neill, Proctor -  O'Neill was able to carve out a role as an off-ball shooting specialist for Proctor last season, and thrived in it. He can make secondary reads off the ball to get open, or draw the defense out to open up lanes for his teammates. O'Neill has size for the position and looks to continue to add more facets to his game.

Ben Safran, New Hampton -  Safran's guard play stood out the other night as both a playmaker and a shooter. Safran's ability to thread passes led to some buckets for his team, and he poses a threat to shoot it from outside. He makes smart plays off the ball as a rebounder and tough defender as well. High-academic D3 prospect who's developed for years in the Huskies system.

Liam Henaghen, St. Paul's -  Notable strides and development has continued to take place for the talented rising junior forward. Henaghen's shooting stroke was a notable asset of his game we made note of in previous outings, and allowed him to connect on shots last week. He made great passes to get his teammates shots, knocked down tough fadeaways in the mid-range, as well as used some moves to get inside. Joining St. Paul's in the class of 2027, keep an eye on the continued growth he exhibits.

Kieran Sullivan, New Hampton -  A bit of an undersized wing, Sullivan makes up for it in various aspects of his game. He's got a lot of pop to get up above the rim and flush down dunks. Sullivan's motor makes a large impact on the defensive end of the floor, and he offers some outside shooting as well.

Javien Flores, Danbury -  Flores stood out as a guard who can impact the game in the paint led by his steonger upper body. He did a great job of rebounding the ball and altering shots, while displaying his touch from outside on three-pointers and in the mid-range.

Ezekiel Liu, Hudson Catholic -  The New Jersey native made the trip up to New Hampshire and was able to show off his finishing skill throughout the night. His quickness and eyes for offensive lanes allowed him to get inside the defense on multiple occasions and finish off the backboard.

Cedric Makelele, Edward Little -  Makelele's advanced guard play out of the Auburn/Lewiston area caught our eye in his appearance. He was able to create for his teammates with his handle and floor vision, while getting buckets for himself on drives. The guard can play through contact as a slasher, and made plays off two feet.

Jake Reardon, St. Paul's -  Reardon's slashing skill stands out as he can use his toughness and physicality to overpower defenders on the way to the basket. He has a blend of good footwork and moves as well that allows him to spin off of defenders on drives.

Paul Comba, South Burlington -  Comba's two-way play in the back court stood out to our scouts watching on last week. The South Burlington guard forced a ton of steals getting into defenders and swiping the ball away. He was able to get in the lane on drives, and plays with pace to manuever around the defense when slashing. Comba is a shooter too that showed off his release as he hit multiple threes.

Will Hoffmaster, Concord -  Hoffmaster's calling card is his elite defensive skills and motor which he showed off in his Elite 75 outing. He's a 6'3" wing that can switch across the floor. He showed off his defensive playmaking by grabbing steals and giving opposing players a hard time trying to get their shots off.

Xander McBournie, Trinity -  McBournie's outside shooting prowess was evident as he took over in one of his game sets. The Trinity HS guard rises into his shots, has range that extends far past the line, and can create separation off the dribble for pull-ups.

John Cubahiro, Westbrook (ME) -  Cubahiro's versatile scoring skill set shined in his outing. He was able to finish around the rim in a variety of ways on drives, most notably on contested reverse layups. His quick burst off the dribble is another asset to his slashing skills, while he made reads from the perimeter to get the ball to his teammates on the night too.

Nathan Johnson, Merrimack -  The 6'2 forward out of Merrimack New Hampshire showed off just how he can impact the game on both ends of the floor. He contributed on the offensive glass, while playing tough, physical defense on his assignment.

Jacob Purington, Berwick -  The big 6'7" forward showed some upside last week as a floor spacing threat with frontcourt size. Purington stepped into some shot's from outside, with a smooth release on his long-ball. He uses his body well to box out and collect boards, as well as play post defense.

Edison Onwe, New Hampton -  Another impact postgraduate forward for the Huskies, Onwe impressed at both the Elite 75 and his NEPSAC Showcase outing. He can step out to the three-point line as a confident standstill shooter with a solid form to his shot. His southpaw slashing skills caught our eye as well as he converted on step-through's in the lane and put some pressure on the rim.