Outstanding Guards 5-5 or Smaller in the Class of 2023

The class of 2023 has some outstanding point guards five-five or smaller. Here’s a profile of some of them: &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="65619" first="<strong>Ashiian</strong>" last="<strong>Hunter</strong>"] is a five-foot-four point guard for Mesa High School. She also plays for her club team, Arizona Select. Playing for Head Coach Katie Fonseca, she averaged 20.9 points per game, 4.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 3.9 steals last season. Mesa went 13-5 overall and 8-2 in the 6A East Valley Conference, arguably the most competitive conference in Arizona. Mesa lost to Xavier Prep in the state tournament last winter, 40-30. Ashiian averaged 16.1 as a freshman and, this past season was selected as Regional Player of the Year Ashiian was also<img class="size-medium wp-image-213116 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/Ashiian-Hunter-1-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="300" /> selected as Player of the Game by Max Preps for a 31 point, 8 steal, and 5 assist performance with only one turnover against Mountain View High School in January. She was selected as Player of the Week by AZ Central during the first week of the regular season and also during the last week of the regular season. She is a prolific scorer ranking ninth in the state and also finished eighth in the state in hitting threes (42). In last fall’s Arizona Top 250 Expo, Ashiian had an outstanding tournament. One scout summed up her game this way. "She has a very good understanding of how to use her size as an advantage. She has a smooth-looking jumper and has developed a nice mid-range game. Ashiian excels in transition and her decision-making skills are solid for a 2023 guard. She was outstanding during the entire event." &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="138092" first="<strong>Hannah</strong>" last="<strong>Beard</strong>"] is a five-foot-five point guard for Verrado High school in Buckeye. She also plays for AZSurprise !5U, her club team. The Lady Vipers finished 18-2 overall and 6-1 in their conference. She averaged 4.0 points per game along with 6.2 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.5 steals. Verrado lost in the state playoffs to Millennium last March, 47-24. As a freshman, Hannah averaged 7.6 points on a team that finished 20-9 in the 5A Conference. She was selected as Player of the Game by Max Preps a total of 10 times during her first two seasons as a freshman and sophomore. Hannah was selected by AZCentral as one of the top fifty players in the state. One scout commented on her game. "She is one of the top distributors in the state. She can also dominate with her scrappy style of play without scoring high numbers. As a freshman, she had a team-best 5.3 assists and 5.1 steals." Another scout called her "a hard-nose defender who is proving she can run a team." Hannah is already being recruited by a number of colleges including some Historically Black Colleges. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="208241" first="<strong>Victoria</strong>" last="<strong>Cazares</strong>"] is a five-foot-five point guard for Pueblo High School who also plays with her club team, the Dizzy Squad. The Warriors finished 9-6 last March and were only 1-4 in their division. Playing for Head Coach Ismael Galindo, Victoria averaged 17.3 points per game last season along with 3.3 assists, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.3 steals. As both a freshman and sophomore, she was named Pueblo’s Girl Basketball Player of the Year. As a freshman, she averaged 19.0 points per game and her two-year average, in 39 games, is 18.3. Over her first two seasons, Victoria was named Player of the Game by Max Preps a total of 34 times. She had two outstanding games in 2021. In a loss to Deer Valley, she had 21 points, two rebounds, and two steals. In a win over Combs, Victoria had 25 points, five assists, and four steals. With two full seasons left - her junior and senior seasons - she is primed for breakout seasons. &nbsp; <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="65614" first="Aaliyah" last="Garcia"]</strong> is a five-foot-four guard for Dobson High School in Mesa. She also plays for her grassroots team, NWT. Last season the Mustangs finished with an overall 15-3 record and 7-2 in Conference 6A. While recovering from an off-season shoulder injury, Aaliyah averaged just 3.3 points and 2.5 rebounds in 2021. Dobson lost to Hamilton last March in the state playoffs, 57-31. Starting as a freshman, she averaged 8.2 points per game and shot 34% from beyond the arc. She made All-Region second team. Playing for her grassroots team in the Diamond Classic, Aaliyah was slowly working her way back into basketball shape. In 40 games over two seasons, she is averaging 6.7 points per game playing for Head Coach Henry Bribieseas. Now healthy, she should be ready for an outstanding junior and senior season.