Big 8 Week 1 Team of the Week
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The Wisconsin basketball season is officially underway and the stars shone brightest in the Big 8 conference. Dominating bigs, shifty guards, and stat-stuffing forwards put on for the likes of Janesville-Craig, Verona, Sun Prairie, and Madison West. Here is the…
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Continue ReadingThe Wisconsin basketball season is officially underway and the stars shone brightest in the Big 8 conference. Dominating bigs, shifty guards, and stat-stuffing forwards put on for the likes of Janesville-Craig, Verona, Sun Prairie, and Madison West. Here is the conference’s Week 1 Team of the Week:
G: Reagan Briggs Reagan Briggs 5'9" | SG Verona | 2024 State WI — Guard — Class of 2024 — #22 overall recruit #8 Combo Guard — Verona
Through the first two games for Verona Area High School, it’s clear that Briggs has already made a jump from last season to this campaign. Brookfield Central on opening night was fodder for Briggs, who dissected the Lancer defense on cuts off the ball, got to the rim as she desired off of drives, terrorized the offense by cutting passing lanes, and hit her open three-point shots.
And that’s where we get to the biggest area of improvement through the young season for Briggs. Her shooting touch looks much improved. Though her jumper itself isn’t pristine–elbows a little out, base a little wide–small adjustments have drastically increased her efficiency from beyond the arc. Jumping and releasing higher has led to a much softer jumper. And the results are evident. Against Central, Briggs posted 18 points, half of those came from beyond the arc. Following that performance, Briggs hit five three-point shots in a tough-fought win against Pius XI Catholic. If this is just the beginning for Briggs, she’s in for a monster sophomore campaign.
G: Brooklyn Fleming — Guard — Class of 2023 — Unranked — Madison West
Flemming was a constant problem for Milwaukee Hamilton in West’s 81-37 drumming. As Hamilton fought to keep the game within punching distance, Flemming hit big shot after big shot to halt the opposition’s momentum. She demonstrated a comfort shooting both off of spot-up looks and off the dribble. The spacing she provided softened the paint for her West teammates, creating driving lanes and easy opportunities.
Along with her shooting touch, Flemming played phenomenal defense at the point of attack. West racked up a frankly bonkers 31 steals, four of which Flemming is responsible for. Her length and ability to capitalize on poor passes created havoc on inbound plays and any kind of offensive initiation from Hamilton.
F: Marie Outlay Marie Outlay 5'9" | CG Sun Prairie | 2023 State WI — Wing — Class of 2023 — #29 overall recruit #12 CG — Sun Prairie
On a night where Sun Prairie was without one of their foremost sources of offense in Antionique Auston Antionique Auston 5'8" | CG Sun Prarie | 2023 State WI , Outlay dominated. If you were to describe the perfect game out of your wing player, it may look something like what Outlay provided for the Cardinals in their opening night win against Marshfield: 20 points, 7 boards, 5 assists, and 6 steals for the versatile junior.
She absolutely swallowed up the ball handler at the point of attack and dominated Marshfield with her pressing prowess. Her vision both in the half-court and on the break was extremely impressive, and something we didn’t see a ton of last season. This growth–on top of her excellent off-ball movement and ridiculous IQ–makes Outlay an even more intriguing prospect.
F: Mya Nicholson Mya Nicholson 5'10" | SG Janesville Craig | 2024 State WI — Forward — Class of 2024 — #13 overall recruit #2 CG — Janesville-Craig
Speaking of teams missing key players — Janesville-Craig came into their opener against Stoughton without both of their starting guards. And Mya Nicholson Mya Nicholson 5'10" | SG Janesville Craig | 2024 State WI stepped up in a big way in their absence. Though usually a forward, the Class of 2024 top-20 recruit played the point and dominated the game; 23 points and 11 boards for Nicholson in the loss.
With the effervescent green light from anywhere inside half-court, Nicholson showed off the same tantalizing skillset as last year and then some. Last year Nicholson demonstrated range extending beyond 23 feet and took it a step further for her sophomore jump. A new toy in her arsenal — the step-back three — made several appearances in this one. On top of her abilities in the post and tight handles, the Big 8 needs to watch out for #24 in white and blue.
C: Paige Lambe Paige Lambe 6'2" | PF Verona | 2023 State WI — Forward/Center — Class of 2023 — #34 overall recruit #6 PF
Lambe has looked like a dominant inside presence for Verona through their first two games. Alongside the aforementioned Reagan Briggs Reagan Briggs 5'9" | SG Verona | 2024 State WI , the two have taken their games to a new level in spite of the absence of starting point guard Taylor Stremlow Taylor Stremlow 5'8" | PG Verona | 2024 State WI . Lambe built on her aggressive play style and channeled that into a new repertoire of moves and finishing ability around the rim, as well as having slightly improved shot mechanics.
The junior is averaging 17 points a game in two wins and is doing it by getting the looks she thrives off of. Putbacks and great positioning have been a given for Lambe in recent years, but this year she’s added a variety of post moves to boot. A reliable post hook over her left shoulder, as well as a spin-move along the baseline, have made her virtually unstoppable if she gets to her spots on the low block. She’ll need to add some strength to become a truly elite prospect, but through two games she looks like a two-way force and the best true big in the conference.