KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The fourth stop of Nike’s Elite Youth Basketball League kicked off in Kansas City’s Hy-Vee Arena on Friday night and the EYBL brought the heat. A buzzer beater to decide a game between the No. 1 ranked prospects in the classes of 2025 and 2026, three-stars on the rise and much more headlined opening night activities.
AJ DYBANTSA COMES UP CLUTCH FOR SOLDIERS IN BATTLE OF TOP-RANKED PROSPECTS
AJ Dybantsa (Photo: Courtesy of Nike EYBL)
Since its inception, the EYBL has become known for not only the depth of talent but the league’s ability to produce elite level matchups on a daily basis and that was the case on Friday as the Oakland Soldiers and Arizona Unity tussled on the first floor of the multi-level facility carved out of the old Kemper Arena. The Unity are headlined by 2026’s No. 1 player Brandon McCoy while the Soldiers feature not only 2025 No. 1 AJ Dybantsa but the guy McCoy leapt for the top spot in 2026, No. 2 Tyran Stokes.
While the expectation was offensive fireworks, the actual product on the floor was a grind it out, defensive slugfest that came down to the very last second. Literally.
On the day he announced his transfer to Utah Prep for his senior season, the 6-foot-8 Dybantsa was in struggle mode offensively. His jump shot was off and he just seemed out of rhythm. At least until it mattered most. During the game’s closing minutes Dybantsa scored 10 of his game-high 19 points and included the scoring microburst was a big-time lob finish from Stokes in transition, three clutch free throws with 19 seconds to go and then three from about 28 feet as the buzzer sounded to secure a 60-57 lead. It’s no wonder why Arkansas, Auburn, Kentucky, North Carolina and a host of others are in hot pursuit and he continues to back up his top billing in the rising senior class.
His teammate Stokes didn’t have his best night either but did do some nice things. Stokes converted often at the free throw line, had four slick assists and along with Dybantsa teamed to really make McCoy work on the offensive end. Now let’s talk about McCoy. For long stretches of the game the 6-foot-4 point guard looked like the best player on the floor. Even though he was being played quite physically by the bigger Dybantsa and Stokes for long stretches, he still found ways to get paint touches, hit some tough mid-range jumpers, converted at the rim and stuck a clutch three of his own. Most notable was the work he did on the glass. Despite his slender frame, he fought on the interior and grabbed an impressive 12 rebounds to go along with his 15 points.
It wasn’t always pretty, but the game and the stars delivered and showed that they can grind things out just as well as they can thrive in a wide-open floor. We will be updating rankings during the month of June and somebody who is absolutely going to be in the mix is 6-foot-3 guard Courtland Muldrew of Team Thad. With five-star shooting guard Jasper Johnson in Colorado Springs for USA Basketball, Muldrew had his chance to shine and he was ready for the moment.
Playing against a stacked Expressions Elite team featuring a foursome of four-star prospects, Muldrew proved why he’s going to be in the mix for a move from three-star to four-star himself. He scored 26 points and grabbed three rebounds and was almost unguardable off the dribble. A quick twitch athlete with elite body control, Muldrew got into the paint on one slick drive and finish after another. If he wasn’t able to finish, he drew fouls more often than not and he mixed in just enough jump shots to keep Expressions honest while leading Team Thad to a 70-66 victory.
Muldrew told 247Sports that he’s been on the campuses of Missouri (offer), Ole Miss (offer) and Texas thus far. SMU had already offered entering the spring and in the last week he’s added additional offers from Colorado, Oklahoma and Washington. Like we said, he’s on the rise and colleges have taken the same notice that we ha
ve.
