8 teams remain heading into Saturday’s action

NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. — And then there were eight…
The 40 programs competing in the Nike EYBL were trimmed down to 24 qualifiers for this week’s Peach Jam. After Friday’s pool play games, which played out in front of the vast majority of college basketball’s most notable coaches, only eight teams advanced to Saturday’s quarterfinals.
Coming into the day on Friday, only one program, Team Durant, had already punched their ticket. That meant the stakes were at their highest. Between that and the hundreds of on-looking college coaches, the atmosphere was unmatched from start to finish.
Here’s a look at who is marching on:
PRO SKILLS

Bryson Howard has been one of the biggest stock-risers of the entire EYBL season, and so it seems only appropriate that his squad has advanced. The strong-bodied 6-foot-5 wing was barely a high-major prospect, never mind nationally ranked, when the spring arrived. But Howard burst onto the scene and played his way into the top 30 heading into this summer.

Howard’s recruitment has surged in correlation with the likes of Connecticut, Duke, Houston, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Texas, all now involved.

Over the last 48 hours, he’s taken his game to unprecedented levels once again. He went off for 37 points on 14-19 shooting from the floor and 4-5 shooting from behind the arc against the Utah Prospects on Thursday and dropped another 25 to punch Pro Skills’ ticket to the quarterfinals on Friday. They may also have another stock-riser to know in Aeneas Alexander, a sweet-shooting 6-foot-8 southpaw who has recent offers from Tulsa and UNLV among others, but could see higher levels come in after this week.

EXPRESSIONS ELITE

Expressions was the team that no one expected to be here. Playing in a loaded pool with Oakland Soldiers and Mokan Elite, they opened the week with three straight wins, which proved to be enough to get them to bracket play. A team without a true star, they’ve done it by committee. Cam Hailey has shown skill and poise as a true point guard, landing his first high-major offer from Arizona State in the process.

Jaxson Terry, Desmond Bellot, and Jaylin Williams-Crawford have also been two-way contributors who have helped their run. Williams-Crawford is a high-level athlete and defensive standout, while Bellot is an aggressive scorer who has risen to the challenge on the defensive end as of late as well. Terry is a physically powerful presence on the perimeter with an advanced feel for the game. In total, they don’t have the biggest individual names, but they’ve bought into defending, sharing the ball, and are still playing because of it.

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TEAM MELO

With Carmelo Anthony in attendance, Team Melo finished with a 4-1 record to win their division. Chase Foster had 21 points against Vegas Elite and continues to intrigue with his physical tools, developing skill, and still untapped upside. Ethan Mgbako stuffed all columns of the stat sheet in that one with 18 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and three steals, and then went for 23, 16, and 8 in the team’s second game of the day.

On the recruiting trail, Foster’s list has continued to expand with Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, Villanova, Pittsburgh, and Texas A&M all offering this week.

Pitt has already hosted Mgbako for a visit, while he is often linked to LSU and Mississippi State as well.

Orlando Ranson is another name to know for Team Melo. The highly skilled guard and tough shot-maker is already committed to St. Joseph’s and could be a key part of their future as he grows into his body.

NEW YORK RENS

We reported earlier this week that there is increasing momentum for Najai Hines to remain in his original graduating class of 2025 and join a college program, potentially as soon as next week. Right now, though, he’s one of the most physically dominant big men in the EYBL, and on both ends of the floor with his rebounding and shot-blocking. While Hines anchors the interior, Jasiah Jervis has been the team’s chief perimeter threat with his versatile attack and no wasted motion in his game. Jervis has continued to take his recruitment to new levels since arriving in Augusta with Texas, Tennessee, Maryland, and Oregon all jumping in this week.

Rising junior guard Anderson Diaz, No. 26 in the national class of 2027, has also provided an offensive spark plug with his shot-making and smooth attack.

TEAM WHYNOT

WhyNot may have the deepest team left in the field, even without Tajh Ariza in action. Christian Collins is one of the best long-term prospects in the country and is being pursued by Duke, Kentucky, Alabama, and others.

Earlier this week, we highlighted breakout performances from Trevon Carter-Givens up front and Kaiden Bailey in the backcourt. Now, S.J. Madison looks like he could be up next with recent offers from New Mexico and UNLV, and a two-way impact on the wing that should attract interest from the highest levels. Julius Price is a strong-bodied floor-spacer in the backcourt who holds a recent offer from Cincinnati.

TEAM CP3

Cole Cloer is a big wing and one of the best pure shooters in the national senior class. Not surprisingly, that has garnered recruitment from some of college basketball’s very best, with head coaches from Alabama, Florida, Indiana, Louisville, NC State, North Carolina, Connecticut, and Virginia all following this week. Cloer even rose up for a couple of violent dunks Friday, showing off his underrated athleticism. Team CP3, which has had Chris Paul on the bench this week, also features Kendre Harrison, who is committed to Oregon for football but still a nationally ranked basketball player.

BRADLEY BEAL ELITE

Coming off last year’s Nike E16 championship, BBE has been considered among the favorites all season long. They, too, have one of the league’s biggest spring risers in J.J. Andrews, who has already come off the board with his commitment to Arkansas. This week, they’ve managed to survive and advance despite having only six healthy bodies for several days. Marquette commit Sheek Pearson returned to the line-up Friday, giving them some much-needed size up front, while players like Trey Pearson, Jamison White, and Quentin Coleman have all taken their recruitment to new levels this week. The question going into Saturday is just how fatigued they are after having to persevere through such limited depth for the last 9 days.

TEAM DURANT

Team Durant is led by the top-ranked rising junior in the country, Baba Oladotun. A 6-foot-10 jumbo wing, he’s oozing with long-term upside with his combination of positional size and playmaking ability. The buzz this week is about whether he will stay in that 2027 class, or move up to 2026, with Kentucky being one of the schools that has followed him through the week.

The tip of the spear for Team Durant all season long though, has been Anthony Brown. He went off for 37 points, on 5-for-10 shooting from downtown, while handing out five assists earlier in the week, and has been followed by the likes of Mississippi State, Oklahoma State, Maryland, Memphis, VCU, Tennessee, Villanova, and Vanderbilt.