Who’s Next In 2021?
When our rankings were updated for the Class of 2021 towards the middle-end of March, I didn’t necessarily expand the list as much as I reevaluated positioning and adjusted some prospects accordingly. The plan all along was to expand the…
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Continue ReadingWhen our rankings were updated for the Class of 2021 towards the middle-end of March, I didn’t necessarily expand the list as much as I reevaluated positioning and adjusted some prospects accordingly. The plan all along was to expand the list in June to approximately 225 players, and that will remain the strategy moving forward. With that said, there are several prospects I already have in mind to be added at that time, and I wanted to highlight five unranked ladies who are likely to make their first appearance in June when we finish our next update.
Addison Ainscough, 2021, 5-10 SF, Barr-Reeve H.S.
Addison is a very intriguing forward prospect who put together a nice Junior season in 2019-2020. She is a little slender still, but she is extremely long and moves fluidly around the floor. She has the skill to handle the ball and find teammates, she’s capable of knocking down an open rhythm 3-pointer, but she’s probably best right now gliding to the basket or playing in the mid-post. I think her perimeter jumper will improve as she gains strength, but she does try to play physical inside and is a good rebounder. She averaged 15.6 points and 8.8 rebounds per game this year.
Olivia Allen, 2021, 5-7 CG, North White H.S.
North White has had a nice string of quality guards over the past few years, and Olivia is just another in that long line. She just finished her third Varsity season, and she is one of those players who is well-rounded and good at most things. If there was a knock on her entering the year, it was that she wasn’t a great outside shooter, going just 1-6 from 3-point range her first two years. But as a Junior, Olivia was 17-51 for a solid 33% outside. Add to that her ability to handle the ball, find teammates, and defend a variety of guards and wings, and she’s a really nice small college prospect.
Bree Noland, 2021, 5-11 PF, Perry Central H.S.
Bree is another 3-year Varsity performer who I haven’t heard anyone mention, likely because of her location and the fact she doesn’t play major grassroots basketball. She has an athletic frame with really good length. She plays with a motor and does a lot of really nice things in the mid-post and around the basket. While she didn’t shoot a great percentage, Bree did knock down 17 3-pointers this year, so that’s a developing weapon for her moving forward. Even though she missed several games her Sophomore year, she should still approach 1000 points and 600 rebounds for her career.
Riley Pennington, 2021, 5-9 PF, Carmel H.S.
Riley’s situation is a bit different than the other girls on this list, because she doesn’t attend a Class 1A or 2A school. Considering all of the talent around her at Carmel, Riley does play an important role for the Greyhounds. She is a strong, athletic, and high-motor forward who makes a lot of “blue collar” plays for them. She is a very good rebounder with some bounce, she’s a versatile defender who can switch to guards from time-to-time, and she’s an effective mid-post scorer who can keep defenses honest if they overplay her teammates. She might be a double-double kid at one of these other schools.
Aniya Washington, 2021, 5-4 CG, Tindley Accelerated H.S.
I was disappointed when I realized Aniya wasn’t already in our rankings…a complete oversight on my part. I have seen her in both her high school and grassroots settings, and she can really go. She’s shorter, but she’s strong, tough-nosed, athletic, and aggressive at both ends of the floor. She is a scoring point guard who does a nice job breaking down defenses to find teammates or score herself. She absorbs contact well, and she can also get after it at the defensive end of the floor. She averaged 17.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 4.6 steals per game this year and shot 74% from the line.