Emoni Bates will face off with another one of the nation's best prep basketball players, and teams, this weekend. This time, in an NBA arena.
The newly formed Ypsi Prep — featuring Bates, a top junior forward and Michigan State basketball commit — on Saturday plays Duncanville (Texas) High School as part of the Thanksgiving Hoopfest. (Last year, USA TODAY ranked the event, now in its 12th year, among the country's best high school basketball showcases.)
The Duncanville Panthers are led by five-star wing Ronald Holland, a consensus top-20 player of the 2023 class.