Reagan high school capped off a great week by beating #1 Wagner at home. In the same week where the Rattlers beat Top 5 Steele, the game was a great one for many reasons. A few thoughts on the game/players:
Deep Teams- Reagan won the close game with stars, Sabrina Berry and Moriah Mack sitting out significant minutes. Berry played in her first game of the season and Mack sat the entire second half for some reason. Speculation was that she is nursing a minor injury. Still, the Rattlers pulled off a huge win with players such as Tess Ramirez playing very solid. Ramirez kept a steady head and did a good job of not being overwhelmed by the intense Wagner pressure. Bailey Champion provided needed scoring. Imagine how good Reagan will be when all pieces are firing at the same time.
Wagner is also very deep. They feature 4 college bound guards in the Twins, Adrianne and Aundrea Davis(2012),Corrina Moncada(2014) and Deja Pettit(2013). Pettit shows flashes of brilliance. She can slash and has a street ball handle that appeals to the crowd. How deep is Wagner, the best guard is sidelined until early 2012, Ashely Ross. Forward Kiarra Rivera will play college basketball and is very solid post scorer, defender and rebounder. Sophomore forward Kaelynn Wilson has yet to earn significant minutes but would START on most other teams in the city.
Defense wins Championships- While many teams can pressure weak guards into turnovers in the full court, few teams lock up in the half court and rebound. Both Reagan and Wagner defend with great help defense and crash the boards to get needed stops. Both Tina Camacho and Terry Barton mix up defensive looks and have defensive weapons that they can unleash on the opposition. The entire Wagner back court can lock up like pit bulls and Reagan counters with arguable the best on-ball defender in the city, Moriah Mack. Reagan also uses the 5'9 athletic Wendy Knight to slow down scorers. Reagan also has the rebounding bully named Sabrina Berry and a huge body in Corrigan Tibbs. Wagner can board with ANY in the city with Kiarra Rivera and Tesha Smith.
Great Environment: It was the stark contrast in cheering that contributed to a great environment. The chants of Waaagner followed by TTTTT-Birds resonated through the gym. On the other side, Rattler fans enjoyed the prompting of traditional cheerleaders, back flips and all. Club teammates showed up to support club teammates, despite their own school rivalries. The Wagner Principal is as vociferous as any fan in showing his support for his school. He sits in the middle of the crowd and lives and dies with every play. The game at Reagan placed the crowd 60/40 Reagan's way and it is a shame that more high school games are not played on high school campuses. Last night had a football feel, with excitement and disappointment. Girls basketball SEEMED important to San Antonio last night! Even the officials were good!
Tesha Smith- The key to early Wagner success has been Tesha Smith. For anyone that saw a young Xavier McDaniel in the NBA, Smith is built in that mode. She rebounds, the best n the city, she blocks shots into the stands, she is effectively scoring and most importantly, she is the emotional spark plug for the T-Birds. Her intimidating presence adds fuel to the hectic pressure that the guards put on the opposition. Like the X-Man, who punched a young rookie named Michael Jordan in the chest for no reason other than intimidation, "Smitty" snatches boards and scowls in the process. In a telling play in a crucial part of the game, Tesha was having trouble with the band on her new goggles. She palmed the ball in one hand and snatched the band off with the other hand. She then launched the band into the stands before adjusting her goggles on her face. All while holding the palmed ball away from the closely guarding defender a' la, Wilt Chamberlain. She then made a good pass on the perimeter, crashed the boards and secured an offensive rebound and scored put back! She ran up the court clapping at her own accomplishments. She knew that sequence was worthy of self adulation.
Wendy Knight- The sophomore guard for Reagan finished with 15 points(paper had it wrong at 13) on a limited number of shots. She hit big shots, including a huge three and a big time pull up jumper in the face of a defender. In the two games vs Wagner and Steele, Knight averaged 16.5 pts while shooting above 50%. Knight is heady and does not wilt under pressure. In the crucial part of the game, it was Knight who was charged with making out of bounds passes vs Wagner's denial defense. She directed her teammates to flash to the middle vs the 3/4 court zone press, she ensured the spacing of the Rattler offense was appropriate to defeat help side defenders. Knight is regarded as one of the best prospects in the state for 2014 and is heavily recruited. She showed why this past week.
Adriane Davis- Davis is a Division 1 guard! I have been on the fence about her projected level, settling on Division 2 as her destination up until know, but no more. Davis has turned on that D1 switch. She always possessed the speed, quickness and tenacity on the defensive end to be elite. She has always been an aggressive slasher with a good handle. Now she is stretching the defense with the 3ball. She hit two huge three pointers to keep her team in the game. She still takes plenty of chances that end up being ill advised at times but it is that kind of moxie that allows her to be fearless and good! In a huge win over Top 10 Churchill earlier in the week, the University of Colorado came out to see Churchill star Leslie Vorpahl. The scout left with an additional file to open on the kid with 25 points and stellar defense, Adriane Davis.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
Rest In Peace!
The San Antonio basketball community mourns the loss of Oklahoma State coaches Kurt Budke and Miranda Serna. Many local kids attended the Oklahoma State Elite Camp this past June and had the opportunity to get to know both.
The loss of Coach Serna was taken especially hard for a few local prospects. Coach Serna visited Johnson High School and Boerne High school on numerous occasions last year.
A conversation with Coach Serna this past Monday is ringing in my head. Her enthusiasm and love for her job and school made you want to visit Oklahoma State and view what her excitement was about.
God Bless the family of all those that lost their lives in the plane crash. Thank you Coach Miranda Serna for touching so many of our lives!
The loss of Coach Serna was taken especially hard for a few local prospects. Coach Serna visited Johnson High School and Boerne High school on numerous occasions last year.
A conversation with Coach Serna this past Monday is ringing in my head. Her enthusiasm and love for her job and school made you want to visit Oklahoma State and view what her excitement was about.
God Bless the family of all those that lost their lives in the plane crash. Thank you Coach Miranda Serna for touching so many of our lives!
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Mid-November Quick Hitters!
-Brandeis should be a playoff team this season. Here is why:
College Players- Brandeis has 6 players capable of playing beyond high school. Mykel Costley, Hannah Thomspon, Rose Maldonado, Alyssa Browne, Kelsey Glassburn and Amara Parker all should have opportunities to play at some level after their high school careers are over.
Coach John Ince- Coach Ince is one of the few coaches in the city who consistently changes defenses multiple times in a game. This practice keep opposing teams from establishing a rhythm offensively.
27-5A- Jay and Stevens are a lock to come out of the district. While O'Conner's star, Ebony Easter, seems to be on a mission, they may not be deep enough to overcome Brandeis depth. Clark should make some noise but Brandeis should finish 3rd in the district.
- Stevens is a nightmare match up. Here is why:
They Defend Extremely Well- They defend extremely well with different looks and objectives. They press full court to create scoring opportunities through turnovers. They play a long passive aggressive half court trap to minimize the opportunities of the best perimeter player on offense. Then they bring a super aggressive Man defense that features great on ball defenders, Elexus Allen and Samira Rodriguez to harass the oppositions best ball handler. Allen and her long quick 6'0 frame causes on set of problems and then comes the small pit bull tenaciousness and speed of Rodriguez.
They are Deep- Stevens can go 8-9 deep with college caliber kids. The young and talented kids that can score. They have shooters. They have slashers. They have a true big body post option in Deleesha Monroe. They can bring a 6'0 jumping bean off of the bench in Amalya Lewinson.
They are Balanced- Samantha Herrera, Nicole Salazar and Julia Rendon can shoot the 3 well. They provide a solid threat to stretch the defense. They allow the slashers to have spacing to operate. They ability to hit the 3ball and attack the basket enables Stevens have a balanced scoring attack.
- Vying for the Top Spot for 2013:
Moriah Mack- Mack had 18 huge points in a big win over a very good Steele team. Mack has long been considered a remarkable talent. This blog predicted a Jessica Kuster-like breakout year from her and she is on track to do so. (Averaging 11.6 pts for the #2 team in city)
Brooke Allemand- Allemand had a great showing vs Canyon while being guarded by Chamaya Turner for most of the game. Her 22 points followed a 29 point performance in the first game of the season. All while playing the point guard and facing the brunt of the defense focus. (Averaging 19.3pts)
Chamaya Turner- Turner has been the best kid in the city for 2013 for two years. She stepped into Allemand's territory and hit 6 three point buckets against her in a close loss Tuesday. If Turner can consitently knock down jumpers, watch out!( Averaging 19.5 pts)
Leslie Vorpahl- Like Jay star Destiny Amezquita, Vorpahl saw the nasty side of the Twins, Adrina and Aundrea Davis on Tuesday. Vorpahl has played a more challenging schedule than Allemand or Turner so far. As predicted by this blog, Vorpahl has some adjustment this season as she is the obvious point of opposing defenders affection. She is getting the same treatment that Johnson's Recee' Caldwell received last season. Facing Box & 1 defenses in 5-A basketball is not easy! (Averagng 10 points)
College Players- Brandeis has 6 players capable of playing beyond high school. Mykel Costley, Hannah Thomspon, Rose Maldonado, Alyssa Browne, Kelsey Glassburn and Amara Parker all should have opportunities to play at some level after their high school careers are over.
Coach John Ince- Coach Ince is one of the few coaches in the city who consistently changes defenses multiple times in a game. This practice keep opposing teams from establishing a rhythm offensively.
27-5A- Jay and Stevens are a lock to come out of the district. While O'Conner's star, Ebony Easter, seems to be on a mission, they may not be deep enough to overcome Brandeis depth. Clark should make some noise but Brandeis should finish 3rd in the district.
- Stevens is a nightmare match up. Here is why:
They Defend Extremely Well- They defend extremely well with different looks and objectives. They press full court to create scoring opportunities through turnovers. They play a long passive aggressive half court trap to minimize the opportunities of the best perimeter player on offense. Then they bring a super aggressive Man defense that features great on ball defenders, Elexus Allen and Samira Rodriguez to harass the oppositions best ball handler. Allen and her long quick 6'0 frame causes on set of problems and then comes the small pit bull tenaciousness and speed of Rodriguez.
They are Deep- Stevens can go 8-9 deep with college caliber kids. The young and talented kids that can score. They have shooters. They have slashers. They have a true big body post option in Deleesha Monroe. They can bring a 6'0 jumping bean off of the bench in Amalya Lewinson.
They are Balanced- Samantha Herrera, Nicole Salazar and Julia Rendon can shoot the 3 well. They provide a solid threat to stretch the defense. They allow the slashers to have spacing to operate. They ability to hit the 3ball and attack the basket enables Stevens have a balanced scoring attack.
- Vying for the Top Spot for 2013:
Moriah Mack- Mack had 18 huge points in a big win over a very good Steele team. Mack has long been considered a remarkable talent. This blog predicted a Jessica Kuster-like breakout year from her and she is on track to do so. (Averaging 11.6 pts for the #2 team in city)
Brooke Allemand- Allemand had a great showing vs Canyon while being guarded by Chamaya Turner for most of the game. Her 22 points followed a 29 point performance in the first game of the season. All while playing the point guard and facing the brunt of the defense focus. (Averaging 19.3pts)
Chamaya Turner- Turner has been the best kid in the city for 2013 for two years. She stepped into Allemand's territory and hit 6 three point buckets against her in a close loss Tuesday. If Turner can consitently knock down jumpers, watch out!( Averaging 19.5 pts)
Leslie Vorpahl- Like Jay star Destiny Amezquita, Vorpahl saw the nasty side of the Twins, Adrina and Aundrea Davis on Tuesday. Vorpahl has played a more challenging schedule than Allemand or Turner so far. As predicted by this blog, Vorpahl has some adjustment this season as she is the obvious point of opposing defenders affection. She is getting the same treatment that Johnson's Recee' Caldwell received last season. Facing Box & 1 defenses in 5-A basketball is not easy! (Averagng 10 points)
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
College Connections!
Mizzou stars Christine Flores(Churchill) an Breena Brock(Wagner) pose w/ one of the Finest young fans in the city!-2011 POY, Erica Donovan (Jay)led NC State in scoring in her first college game w/ 11 points.
- Danielle Blagg (Smithson Valley)has started her first two college games scoring 9 and 11 points.
- Former Churchill star, Chirstine Flores moved into the Top 5 in career blocks for Mizzou.
- Speaking of Flores, she and Breena Brock(Wagner) combined for 53 points in win over TAMUCC
-Monica Engleman is a star! The former Madison forward is a consistent double digit scorer for Kansas. This blog faced some criticism when she was ranked as the best player in her class of 2009 for the city. The dissent has quieted!
-Meaghan Simmons(Steele) played in front more than 12,000 for her season opener against Pepperdine!
- Asha Hampton-Finch(Roosevelt) earned 31 minutes in a huge win over Rice in her first game.
- Speaking of Asha, her first assignment was to guard former district foe, Jessica Kuster(Reagan). Kuster tallied 22 pts and 18 rebounds in the loss to PAVU!
Distinguished Visitors!
Some local kids have some distinguished visitors coming to town:
Brooke Allemand(2013): University of New Mexico and UTSA on Tuesday
Leslie Vorpahl(2013): New Mexico State last Wednesday and Colorado on Tuesday.
Recee' Caldwell(2014): Missouri last Saturday. Oklahoma, TCU and Texas on Tuesday. Duke next Tuesday.
Briana Jones(2013)- UTSA is taking in her game tonight
Kyra Lambert(2015)- UTSA is viewing the match up vs Reagan.
Wendy Knight(2014)- UTSA is viewing the match up vs Steele
Chamaya Turner- UTSA viewing game vs Boerne Champion
Monday, November 14, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)