Dozen players to watch at Girls California Live 23 Basketball Tournament

More than 100 teams from five Western States will participate in the NCAA-certified scholastic viewing for college coaches and the public in Roseville

It will be wall-to-wall basketball for three days at the inaugural Girls California Live 23 tournament starting today at the Roebbelen Center in Roseville (Calif.). 

More than 100 teams and 1,500 athletes from California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii will partake in the NCAA-certified scholastic viewing for college coaches and the public. 

• SMALL INDIAN RESERVATION POWER TESTS HEARTBEAT AT CALIF. LIVE 23

The talent will be long and endless everywhere at the 160,000 square foot facility, with 12 games running simultaneously on adjacent courts from 9 a.m. to well into the evening. 

Here are 12 players to find and admire

Smari Bankhead, Windward-Los Angeles, F, 6-0, incoming Jr.: Strong and agile, Bankhead is making up for lost time, having missed her junior season due to injury. She has offers from Arizona, Fresno State, Ohio State and Mississippi State.

Nina Cain, McClatchy, G/F, 6-1, Jr.: A national recruit with offers from throughout the Pac-12 and well beyond, Cain is a 4.0 student who can do it all in high tops.

Morgan Cheli, Mitty-San Jose, 6-2, W, Sr.: The UConn commit is this event’s top talent and top recruit, able to score, defend and distribute. She led Mitty to a No. 9 national ranking and runner-up spot in the CIF Open Division, losing at the buzzer 69-67 to Etiwanda. Cheli, coming off an injury, had  24 points, six rebounds, five assists and four steals in the heartbreaking defeat. 

Morgan Cheli (right) did it all in the CIF Open Division championship game in March at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.  / Photo by Ralph Thompson

Devin Cosgrif, Bishop O’Dowd-Oakland, 5-10, G, So.: She received an offer from UCLA while in the eighth grade and has offers from throughout the Pac-12 and also South Carolina, TCU and Florida. 

Brooklynn Haywood, Camas (Wash.),5-9, PG, So.: A transfer from Union-Vancouver, Hayward is one of the most dynamic 2026 recruits in the Northwest, if not the country. She had two D1 offers before entering high school. 

Reagan Jamison, Camas (Wash), 6-1, G, Sr.: One of seven possible D1 players for the Washington 4A state runner-up. She has at least 10 offers, including Cal Poly, Portland, Penn and Columbia

Jhai Johnson, Oakland Tech, 5-9, G, So.: The daughter of longtime NFL quarterback Josh Johnson doesn’t just have game, she has hops. She was the only girl to dunk in the Oakland Athletic League Dunk Contest. She's much more than an athlete as she helped the Bulldogs to their fifth state title in March. 

Kamryn Mafua, Folsom, 6-2, F, Sr.: Verbally committed to Cal, Mafua can dribble, drive, dish, shoot and defend for the top-ranked girls team in the Sacramento region. 

Kamryn Mafua (14) led Folsom to a Sac-Joaquin Section Division 1 championship in 2022-23 with a 58-53 win over St. Mary's-Stockton.  / Photo by Ralph Thompson

Natalie Martinez, Piedmont, 5-7, G, Sr.: One of the top shooting guards in Northern California has offers from San Diego State, Cal Poly and throughout the Big Sky Conference. She's the definition of a basketball junkie. 

Harper Peterson, Whitney, 6-3, F, Sr.: Versatile, skilled and driven, Peterson has offers from Cal, Duke, Colorado, Florida, Ohio State and scores of others.

Mahogany Chandler-Roberts, Banson Tech-Oregon, 6-2, G, Sr.: One of the top talents in Oregon, Chandler-Roberts is a superb defender with offers from Arizona State, Cal and Washington State. 

Taj Roberts, La Jolla Country Day, 5-9, G, Sr.: One of the top combo guards in the state, Roberts has offers from Cal, UCLA, Kentucky, Arizona and Ohio State. She'll be asked largely to carry LJCD after the graduation of All-Americans Breya Cunningham and Jada Williams, a pair of Arizona signees.