AAU Shootout offered a sneak preview of 2024 rankings

The first official ranking of the Prep Girls Hoops class of 2024 will be released this week, but if you were at the first game of last Saturday’s AAU Shootout you have already seen more than a half dozen of the talented players who will comprise the Freshmen 50. In fact there were eight players in that game between the Minnesota Rise and Fury 2024 Premier who have earned a place on our list, and several more who will probably be added when the prospect rankings are expanded early in 2021.  Care for a sneak preview? Let’s go back to Saturday at 8 a.m. when the game opened with a pair of aggressive drives to the hoop for two points apiece by <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="215987" first="Daviney" last="Dreckman"]</strong> of New Ulm. The stocky, strong 9th grader is already a varsity veteran, and she played like it against the Fury. She has excellent handles, with the ability to beat defenders one-on-one consistently, and the kind of confident, assertive demeanor you want from your best players. That’s why Daviney will be in the Freshmen 50. Dreckman scored 9 points in the first half to help stake the Rise to an impressive lead of 31-14. She had some help courtesy of the twins from Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart. That would be <strong>Kristi Kottke</strong> and <strong>Rachel Kottke</strong>, who were on fire throughout the contest as they moved the ball effectively, defended with passion and knocked down some big shots. Kristi made three triples in the first half. while Rachel added two more after the break as the sisters combined for 22 points. The Kottke’s didn’t make the Freshmen 50 but they came close. [caption id="attachment_209144" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="wp-image-209144 size-thumbnail" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/60_Kadence-Hesse_1-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> [player_tooltip player_id="178265" first="Kadence" last="Hesse"], Sleepy Eye &amp; Minnesota Rise.[/caption]In the second it was the game management skills of point guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178265" first="Kadence" last="Hesse"]</strong> that stood out. The freshman from Sleepy Eye is an excellent tactician. The 5’9 Hesse has the vision and timing and patience all great point guards have, in addition to super light feet and well-developed skills. Despite a sleight frame, Hesse’s long list of assets make her a scholarship candidate for sure. The Rise went on to win the game 57-34, and we are happy to report that both Hesse at #25 and Dreckman at #46 have earned their way into the first 50 ranked prospects of 2024. While this wasn’t the Fury’s best day that doesn’t take away from the fact that this is going to be a very good squad in the short term that will yield some excellent collegiate athletes over the long haul. You can be pretty sure that the Fury’s top scorers on the day will eventually be among them. That would be <strong>Aubrey Heyer </strong>of Chaska (sister of University of Minnesota commit [player_tooltip player_id="12714" first="Mallory" last="Heyer"]) along with big power forward <strong>Trinity Wilson</strong> of Lakeville North. The pair combined for 20 points on Saturday. They won’t be among the top 50 but both were in the conversation. So who did make it? The answer can be found with a measuring tape. As we know, college coaches working the recruiting trail absolutely love length and Fury 2024 Premier has plenty. That’s the primary reason why no less than six players from the squad have made the Freshmen 50. The highest-rated member of this Fury team is the newest player on the roster. That would be 5’10 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178262" first="Emma" last="Frost"]</strong> of Andover, who moves over from Crossfire. The versatile, athletic guard enters the rankings at #27. Frost will be joined in the top 50 by no less than five teammates: <ul> <li>5’11 forward <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="215972" first="Norah" last="Danielson"]</strong> of Delano at #30</li> <li>6’0 forward <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="215979" first="Cece" last="McNair"]</strong> of Prior Lake at #37</li> <li>6’0 forward <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="215982" first="Kayla" last="Christy"]</strong> of Elk River at #41</li> <li>5’10 guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="215984" first="Kiera" last="O’Rourke"]</strong> of Holy Angels at #43</li> <li>5’10 forward <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="215989" first="Julia" last="Thoms"]</strong> of Prior Lake at #48</li> </ul> It’s an impressive group of prospects for sure, a collection of players with length, skill and athleticism who have barely begun to demonstrate their full potential. Congratulations to the first eight members of the Prep Girls Hoops class of 2024. We look forward to watching for the next four years. Stay tuned. The complete Freshmen 50 list will be released this weekend.