Louis Bleechmore–The 6-foot-6 forward is certainly wired like a guy hell-bent on proving he’s scholarship worthy, and he’s relished the last few opportunities to prove this. Bleechmore scored 14 points and ripped eight rebounds during Scotland’s 88-63 win over St. James on Friday night.
He was active at knifing to the rim and finishing through contact, a compartment of his game he’s developed throughout the course of this season.
The Australia native put an electrifying stamp on the game when he leaked out on the break, levitated and finished a high lob pass from Johannes Kirsipuu for a ferocious two-handed dunk as Scotland cranked up the lead considerably.
Taking full advantage of the timeliness of the big-stage moment, Bleechmore scored a game-best 25 points during a 69-56 loss to a Lincoln Academy team stacked with top-shelf talent. The victors featured high-profile recruits headed to the likes of Mississippi State, Dayton, and Hofstra. Bleechmore willed his way to the rim, attacking in steady fashion.
He shot 6-for-11 from the field, 2-for-4 from 3-point range, and knocked back a sizzling 11-for-15 from the free throw line.
Developing a sustainable killer instinct was an aspect Bleechmore invested much of his off-season devotion to. He’s beginning to blossom as a multi-faceted scorer who can handle the rigors of leading by example.
Gerald Jarmon–After missing the first two weeks of the second semester with a minor health issue, Jarmon has been a consistent go-to source for the Knights. He’s established himself as a skilled, deliberate and poised scorer who knows how to create his own shot and exploit defensive mishaps and lapses effectively.
Jarmon overcame a rocky performance during the brutal, lifeless loss to Wilson on Thursday to submit a game-best 20 points in the win against St. James, connecting on shots from beyond the arc and attacking seams in the defense. Scotland overcame a woeful first two quarters to shoot it at a scintillating 12-for-19 clip during the third quarter.
Johannes Kirsipuu–The 6-foot-1 Class of 2021 guard from Estonia has been a constant staple with his 3-point shooting. Similar to Austin Galuppo, the unrivaled 3-point grenade launcher on Chris Chaney’s 24-0 prep team, Kirsipuu possesses an innate ability to rattle off points in a hurry with his outside shooting. He’s proven this multiple times, most notably with four straight treys during a recent win over Mercersburg Prep.
Kirsipuu, who suffered a concussion at the end of the aforementioned win against St. James, scored 20 points (7-for-17 FG) and dished out five assists to go with five steals.
Khayden Stewart–The Class of 2019 guard has flowered as a confrontational defender with a knack for creating on-ball disruption. He was an instrumental figure in applying a thorough clamp down operation on Mercersburg Prep’s JJ Chou, a 6-foot-3 shooting guard with Division-I aptitude and Ivy League interest.
Stewart again stabilized Scotland defensively, applying pressure and coming up with three steals against St. James.
He’s been an effective presence on the glass for a guard, securing six rebounds during the aforementioned loss to Lincoln Academy. Playing bigger has been a necessity for all, with 6-foot-7 big Aime Ciza shelved with a foot injury.
With such an impact on the opposite side of the floor, Stewart has been quiet offensively. If he can tune up this area of his game and prove to be a viable supplementary scorer behind the troika of Bleechmore and Jarmon and Kirsipuu, he could certainly ramp up his future collegiate possibilities.
