Triad Area Teams Not to Sleep On in 2021
These teams will improve on last season’s record and though some will not be ready to compete for conference or state championships next season don’t sleep on them as they will exceed expectations and serve up their share of upsets. …
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Continue ReadingThese teams will improve on last season’s record and though some will not be ready to compete for conference or state championships next season don’t sleep on them as they will exceed expectations and serve up their share of upsets. Teams beware if you sleep on any of these teams you will come out of that game scratching your head and with a loss on your record. If you get the chance to watch any of them play you will see why they made it on this list and why all will exceed last season’s win record.
Northwest Guilford 25-4/7-1 Conference
A perennial powerhouse over the last few years with multiple 20 wins seasons and deep runs into the state playoffs and an appearance in the state championship game expect them to be at least as good as last year. Working against them is the fact they lost a solid senior class that produced the majority of their offensive output as well as some valuable leadership and experience which is why I left them out of the top 5 teams. But working in their favor is tradition, they have a solid program in place that has produced Division 1 players and knows how to win. Also they return a talented group of players that have been in the system and understand it and are ready to share the load and make sure the program has another successful season. Leading this group are sophomore guards Madison and Kailyn Young both are deadly shooters with Kailyn being a versatile player that can also play the small forward and is athletic and a great defender. Also returning are more shooters in Hannah Parker and Shaena Riddles both with good size and experience, rounding out this group is Jadyn Murray who will control the middle for all these shooters and is a solid 6’1” center who is amazingly quick for her size and has a nice mid-range jumper and plays staunch defense to anchor the middle. With the foundation in place and with these players and some good role players don’t expect this team to fall off too much and don’t be at all surprised if they are there come playoff time.
Walter Williams High School- 16-11/6-6 Conference
With 16 wins last season this team lost a few close games and even though they are losing 4 seniors the experience learned by the returning players leads me to believe they can achieve that 20 win season next year. This belief is enhanced by the quality returning players led by a couple of sophomores 5’9 Briahna Scott a long athletic player who can score in a multiple of ways but excels in the open court where she runs the floor extremely well and finishes at the rim as good as most, add to that her defensive instincts and ability and you can understand why she is ready to lead this team with the help of Jainasia Bailey a 5’1” sparkplug of a guard with crazy quickness with and without the ball and can get into the lane with ease and use her quickness to put unrelenting pressure on the defensive end. Complimenting these two are Talaya Smith a 5’6 guard who can play both guard spots and is a nice shooter from mid-range and deep her experience is going to be key to the success of the team. Jamera Shaw is another nice size guard at 5’7” that can play the guard spot but is also versatile enough to play the small forward position as well expect her minutes to increase this year and expect her to contribute whenever called upon and finally anchoring the middle belongs to Jahmaria Miles a 5’11 forward that can also play the center spot no matter which position she is playing expect her to stand out. She is athletic and moves and covers a lot of ground and space, she is learning every day how to contribute more on the offensive end, and by the time the season starts she will be ready to be a force down low for this team. They have nice role players to help out as well including a nice young big in 5’11” Faith Foster and as these players develop and as the season goes on lookout for this team come conference and state playoff time.
Forsyth Home Educators- 10-17/2-6 Conference
Leading my list of teams that did not have a winning record last year but I expect them to have one next season is this team that returns its entire roster from last year. With a year of experience under their belts and a year of playing together and in the system is just what this team needed and it should give them the push needed to win some of the close games they lost last season. It also helps to be returning a solid core of players led by 6’2” sophomore Emma Pendleton who already has made an impact in the conference and put everyone on notice by averaging nearly a double-double as a freshman last season. She is a solid build that controls the paint with her length and strength, she is extremely talented in the post understands how to use her body to seal off defenders and she dominates the glass on both ends and with a year of experience at the high school level expect her to be even more dominant this season. Another player to watch for is Regan Fowler a 5’8” versatile player who is comfortable at either the big guard or small forward position and is developing into one of those do-everything types of players. Along with her you have another versatile forward in 5’10” Madalynn McKinney who will be one of the most improved players in the area next season as she just works that hard and she has raw talent that is just waiting to be discovered. Add to these players a roster of versatile players that can play multiple positions and can match up with most teams and play an array of line-ups so that alone will assure they improve on last season’s record and with some luck they could even surprise some top teams.
Page High School- 8-19/3-5 Conference
A program that is use to winning and being a factor not only locally but on the state level had a tough year last season but with adversity comes strength and if they learn lessons from the past season and put in the work they will be back in the mix next year. They only lost 2 seniors so the majority of their roster will be returning and that always bodes well for the new season as you can not play down the value of another year of experience. They will be lacking the size to make a huge impact in the conference and state but what they do have is a team of versatile 5’7’ to 5’9” players that can defend and play multiple positions. Leading the team this season will be returning captain Regan Maynard who will and can contribute in a lot of ways for this team as she can play all the positions on the floor with ease and her basketball IQ is off the charts she just understands and knows how to play the game and it shows in her play, expect her to have a standout senior year, helping her out will be more of those mid-height versatile players in Kirah Lineberry who had a nice sophomore season last year and will be called upon to step her game up and if her skills last year are any indication she should have no problem increasing her numbers and being a leader on this team she is just that talented. Melanie-Niebitsie-Livingston is also coming off a nice sophomore season and she is ready to also make an impact this coming season and her all-around solid basketball fundamentals assure she will. Manning the point guard and leading from the top will be Leila Hamoud a 5’2” guard that has good ball handling and passing skills but can also be called upon to make an outside shot when needed and her understanding of the game and system and what the team needs to get done will help make this team run smoothly. The rest of the roster has players that can step in when called upon and the more the season goes on the better this team will be so expecting double digit wins out of them and an upset or two.
Grimsley High School 7-17/3-5 Conference
Another team that only had single figure wins last season but that number will increase next season no doubt. They only lost 1 senior and return a team that had young players playing a lot of minutes and with that comes lumps and bumps along the way but with each one of those comes experience and wisdom and that is what this roster is going to be filled with going into next season. Leading the way next season as she did this season is one of the quickest guards not only in the area but maybe in the state in Destonie Tisdale. She created havoc for opposing teams with her quickness both with and without the ball she can get into the lane at will either in the half court or in transition and despite her size she can finish over and around the bigs. After an offseason of working on her outside shot if that develops this season to add to her arsenal she will be one of those unstoppable guards. Another guard that shined for this team last season was Tajamirah Russell who also possesses blinding speed but also can knock down the open jumper, she will provide the needed veteran leadership to this team and her skills will see her numbers improve and that alone should equate to a few more wins in those close games, also the third wheel of this small quick guard trio is Lauren Sells who has improved each season and is ready to have a standout senior year and in doing that will push her team and teammates to be better and that will reflect in their win record. Another player I expect to have a nice year is Saniya Arant she just showed glimpses of being a quality player last season and with the experience, she gained and an offseason to get better I expect her to make major contributions and finally they do have some size in 5’10” sophomore Aziyanna B who is learning to play the game and is a versatile big that will get better every day and every game and every practice and if she works as hard as she should in the off-season she will anchor the middle for a team with other role players ready to play that will win double figure games next season and if teams take them lightly they could add a big name scalp to their win total next season.
High Point Central 0-23/0-8 Conference
Now, this is probably a no brainer but hey this team showed you can play a whole season without a win but don’t expect that to be the case next season they are ready to win and win they shall next year. They lose only 1 senior and they return good players that are capable of winning and they will. Leading these players and ready to continue her rise and have a special senior year is Precious Hart McKenize. Now most people will think it is easy to be a good player on a bad team but the opposite is true when you can average double figures on a winless team when the other team always knows you are the best player and work to stop you it proves you got skills. She can score from anywhere on the court and plays tough unrelenting defense so does her best to put her team in a position to win and that is what she did this season. Her teammates now have another year of experience and after going winless will be more determined not to repeat that feat and ready to help make this happen is Briana Berry who learned a lot her freshman year and expect her to have a coming out sophomore year, she has the skills to do it and after averaging close to 8 points a game last season you begin to get a glimpse of her offensive talents. It is her maturity and game that will make sure this team gets a win and a few more wins along the way. Jamela Harden is a guard that is ready to impact the stat line and win loss record along with Anna Krajisnik whose improvement will bolster the lineup and with the rest of the returning players expect this team to put that winless season behind them and enjoy many wins this coming season.