EAST LANSING - The Tom Izzo Spartan Shootout brings together some of the top high school basketball teams in Michigan and around the Midwest each June.

Friday's games featured several outstanding teams and a number of talented individuals.
Chicago Whitney Young's Paul White was the highest ranked player in the field on the first day of the two-day event. White is the No. 29 player in the Class of 2014 according to Rivals.com.

Romulus High was represented by E.C. Matthews, Wesley Clark, and Leo Edwards. The 6-foot-4, 180-pound Matthews is ranked No. 99 in the Class of 2013 by Rivals.com. The 6-foot-8 Edwards, who began his high school career at Cass Tech, is one of the most improved in-state players in the Class of 2013.

Romulus went undefeated on Friday, finishing the day with a lopsided win over Whitney Young, who was playing without star Jahlil Okafor.

Several underclassmen stood out on Friday. Detroit Consortium's Josh Jackson, a member of the Class of 2016, had a strong outing in an overtime loss to Clarkston.

Lansing Sexton's Trevor Manuel emerged as one of the top players in Michigan for 2015 as a freshman standout for the Big Reds last spring. Manuel figures to be a key contributor for Sexton along with 2014 teammate Jaylen Hayes on a team that replaces a trio of D-1 guards in Denzel Valentine, Anthony Clemmons, and Bryn Forbes.

Marian Catholic point guard Tyler Ulis drew a lot of attention from Michigan State coaches on Friday. Ulis, who is the cousin of former Spartan standout Travis Walton, has emerged as one of the top point guards in the EYBL as a member of the Mean Streets 17-and-under ballclub.

Ulis has grown three inches since last summer when he established himself as a player to watch on the Mean Streets 15-and-under team that included Michigan State recruiting target Drake Harris.

Harris will be a player to watch on Saturday when he takes the floor with his high school teammates from Grand Rapids Christian.

Editor's Note: Michigan State recruiting target James Young will not be playing with his Troy High teammates on Saturday.

Click below for commentary and analysis from Jim Comparoni and Paul Konyndyk following Friday's games at the Tom Izzo Spartan Shootout.



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