5 2023s to Watch This Season
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With two years of high school basketball underneath their belts, and more AAU playing time to their credit, these 2023s are turning more heads with each passing game. Here is a look at five standout players with promise and rising…
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Continue ReadingWith two years of high school basketball underneath their belts, and more AAU playing time to their credit, these 2023s are turning more heads with each passing game.
Here is a look at five standout players with promise and rising stock.
Meghan Lamanna — New Providence/NJ Demons
Lamanna is a fast guard, with the ability to stop-and-pop at a moment’s notice.
She is dangerous from various ranges on the hardwood. She can connect from the top of the key, can hit from the left side of three-point land, and can drain it from the right side beyond the arc.
Rest assured, defensives will be hard pressed to stop Lamanna as she continues to grow her game physically and mentally.
Lamanna scored 595 points across her first two years at New Providence. The guard added 150 rebounds, 77 helpers, and 76 steals in 46 games.
She also plays AAU hoops for the NJ Demons, coached by the well-regarded Rich Leary, who prepares his girls thoroughly for combat. So, you can pretty much let the dice roll on Lamanna’s future success.
Rylyn Orlando — Manasquan/NJ Belles
Orlando came into Manasquan High School with not that much fan fare. Sure, a few high school hoop insiders saw the talent, but she worked hard with her AAU team, the NJ Belles, and other avenues to improve every day. It has paid dividends.
Quick, courageous, and competitive, Orlando dropped in a modest 69 points, collected 22 rebounds, and blocked and stole seven and seven, respectively, in 15 tilts in 2020-21.
Ariana Broughton — Liberty Jackson/NJ Belles
A rebounding force, Broughton is one of those tough, young ladies that comes prepared for a dogfight.
A left-handed shooter, the forward recorded 117 points, snatched 117 boards, and made 21 steals in 15 tilts this past season for Liberty Jackson, displaying a well-rounded game indeed.
But it is Broughton’s mettle that helps her standout while earning the respect of her basketball peers.
“I actually got the chance to play Ari during the (last) summer and she is such a fierce competitor on the court,” Gabby Recinto Gabby Recinto 5'10" | SF Cherokee | 2023 State NJ of Cherokee High School and AAU Exodos NYC said. “But off (the court), she’s just a great person to be around. She is so kind and so friendly, I really respect her as a player. I can’t wait to meet up with her again and hopefully we will get the opportunity to train together in the future.”
Broughton also plays AAU basketball for the NJ Belles – Truhan 2023.
Riley Allen — Chatham/NJ Demons
Allen missed her freshman high school season due to an ACL injury, but has been working hard to return to form and beyond. She registered quality numbers for the Cougars: 125 points, 37 rebounds, 12 dimes, and 10 steals in 12 contests this past year.
Allen is a proficient rebounder and defender, a good shooter, and a smart player. The physical aspects of her game should all improve as she is now 100 percent healthy and putting in the necessary effort to reach the next level, per source.
Futhermore, with the knee aliment behind her, Allen is benefitting from playing top competition on the AAU scene with the NJ Demons.
Elizabeth Archer — Oak Knoll/NJ Demons
Archer owns a strong, lean 6-foot frame and continues to work hard to improve her overall game.
When she is in a groove, the guard can drain buckets, especially with a formidable three-point jumper in her offensive arsenal toolbelt, rebound, and block shots with the best in Union County, where Oak Knoll is located.
In last year’s truncated high school campaign, Archer posted 86 points in seven games, good for a 12.3 average.
As a freshman, she put up 117 points and grabbed six boards in 20 contests. Archer also plays hoops for the NJ Demons.
— Jerry Del Priore