High school basketball is officially here. With the countless preseason events such as Border League, The Ron Massey Memorial Classic, and the HS Fall Invite, it feels as if the season has been going on for months. However, while there have been some prep school tournaments, the OTE Season Opener is the official start to high school hoops in my eyes…and it started off with a bang that fans and scouts alike have been dying to see.
With RWE (Southeastern Prep from Orlando) and Fear of God (Calvary Christian out of Fort Lauderdale) kicking things off in front of the sold out crowd during opening night, it also provided a matchup of 6-foot-4 Beckham Black and 6-foot-1 Cayden Daughtry, the consensus top two playmakers in the nation. Ultimately, it was Fear of God that walked away with the 94-87 victory, but the spirited matchup showed the best of both catalysts.
Cayden Daughtry Shines
Walking away with the W and absurd statistical output, Daughtry showed you everything that he is. In fact, he put up a legendary showing against Black by posting 46 points, six assists, and six rebounds on 14-27 FG. The scoring catalyst was relentless with keeping his dribble alive, threw defenders off with his ability to utilize angles to get to his sweet spots, and proved that he can be a true three level scorer in his top-5 matchup. Toss in the fact that Daughtry has an innate ability to draw fouls ( made 14 free throws and likely drew over 15 fouls total) and you see why he is one of the more unique lead guards that we have seen in recent memory at the high school level.
“I didn’t like the way we showed ourselves on ESPN. I didn’t like the way that we came out against Spire,” Daughtry admitted after the game. “I came out with a different intensity, and that’s what I’m going to bring all year.”
Beckham Black Picks Up His Game
Starting off a bit more passive, Black let his overall game do the talking for him. At every bit of 6-foot-4, the Dallas product showed off his two-way ability as a physical guard to the tune of 18 points, nine assists, seven rebounds, and three steals in the loss while facing a flurry of defensive coverages out of pick and roll. He was more aggressive as the game got going late, but showed his ability to play multiple roles from the backcourt in RWE’s opener.
.@OvertimeElite is officially here,starting out w/bang of a Florida matchup. The nation’s top 3 players (Beckham Black, CJ Rosser, and Cayden Daughtry) pace RWE (Southeastern Prep) against Fear of God (Calvary Christian)in game stacked w/D-1 talent.Coverage later on @Ballislife https://t.co/RFNOlCSzaS
— Rodger Bohn (@rodgerbohn) October 22, 2026
Though Black and Daughtry was the marquee matchup, there isn’t a player in the senior class with more NBA potential than CJ Rosser and he showed it at OTE. The 6-foot-10 small forward proved that he could be engaged on both ends of the floor, containing virtually every position laterally while using his massive wingspan to create a ton of deflections and rim contests . On the offensive end, the North Carolina native showed his ability to draw fouls as a 3-point shooter, finish above the rim, and maintain a presence as a floor spacer. The 24 points, eight rebounds, five steals, three assists, and two blocks that he posted ultimately don’t tell the story of the impact that he had on the game.
Other Game Standouts
Sam Houston State coach Chris Mudge and his staff did it again with another stud recruit in Aiden Groce, as seen at OTE. The athletic Dallas playmaker is a long time backcourt running mate of Beckham black, but showed serious progress in his game. The two way point guard took it upon himself to guard Daugthry for the vast majority of the game, has improved as a shooter (hit three 3PT) and showed he can play on or off the ball. The two way intangibles that Groce brings to the table should enable him to earn time early on for the Bearkats.
Though he started off the game slowly, K’Nard Callendar bounced back with a strong second half to show why he’s going to be an interesting signee for the late period during Fear of God’s upset victory. The product of the Virgin Islands was near impossible to stop when he got the ball on rolls going downhill, was relentless on the glass, and played within himself during his 22 point, 16 rebound, 3 assist showing as the perfect glue guy alongside Daughtry. The energetic power forward has supplanted himself in the top-100 nationally and should continue to ascent if he keeps playing at this rate.
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