ESPN Recruiting Nation Basketball

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- As the days go by here at the City of Palms Classic, the intensity level picks up as teams vie for a spot in Saturday’s championship game while hoping to avoid being sent to the consolation bracket.

Without a doubt, the game of the day on Thursday started at 11 p.m. and featured a pair of ESPN 25 teams in No. 1 Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) and ninth-ranked Whitney Young (Chicago). Montverde needed overtime but held on for a 68-65 victory.

Let's take a look at some of the best performances from Day 3 on Thursday.

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FORT MYERS, Fla. -- We are starting to see some outstanding individual performances here at the City of Palms Classic. This event is stacked with talent at different levels. When I look at the Division I-level players I see size, shooters and skill. There has also been some great athletes in attendance.

Here were some of the top performances from Day 2 on Wednesday.

Best Defender

Jordan Bell (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Poly)

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The City of Palms Classic is filled with intriguing prospects looking to improve their recruiting stock against some of the top talent the nation has to offer. One such player is 2014 three-star combination guard Tadric Jackson (Tifton, Ga./Tift County), who leads his squad into action against No. 6 Long Beach Poly (Calif.).

Jackson is averaging 19.0 points, 6.0 assist, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game for the 20th-ranked Blue Devils. His ability to fill up the stat sheet is why a number of high major programs are trying to land this talented prospect.

"I have offers from Alabama, Ole Miss, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Georgia, Clemson, South Carolina and Memphis,” said Jackson. “I am receiving interest from Kansas, Michigan State, NC State, Ohio State and others. I really like [the team’s that are] recruiting me."

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