Watertown Holiday Shootout Day 2: Best Uncommitted Performers

Day 2 of the Watertown Holiday Shootout Commenced on Tuesday and some upperclassmen went out there with something to prove. Here are the best uncommitted performers from Day 2: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="204158" first="Macie" last="Wieman"] | Reedsburg | Wing/Forward | Class of 2022 | Unranked</strong> Against Rhinelander, Wieman was the puppet master. Her passing ability in all contexts was magical. She knew where her shooters were moving to and consistently flung passes right into the shooting pocket. She seemed to process the court one step ahead of the defense, making automatic tap-back passes in the paint and slinging bullets to cutters. Her vision and unselfishly engined Reedsburg’s nuclear first half. The senior point forward dominated without having to score herself, making everyone around her better. But one of the most enjoyable and effective parts of her offensive skillset is her off-ball screening. Against Rhinelander’s 1-3-1 zone, #23 continuously set back screens and pin downs to open up shooters on the wings. This opened up even more space on the weak side, getting open looks and enabling better ball movement if the initial shot wasn’t there. Her screening and movement opened up what is already a titanic offense. Every team can use a player with as high a basketball IQ and engine as Wieman demonstrated in Reedsburg Day 2 win. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="132374" first="Mahra" last="Wieman"]</strong> <strong>| Reedsburg | Wing/Forward | Class of 2022 | Unranked</strong> Simply put, Wieman was on automatic in Reedsburg’s matinee win over Rhinelander. She punished the defense time and time again with her outside shooting while staying within the flow of the offense. And in transition, Wieman was prolific as a rim runner and trailer. The versatile senior just knows how to get open and is a perennial threat when she’s on the court. What makes Wieman really special is her movement and positioning. She doesn’t just stumble into scoring position, there are serious calculations and intentions behind her movement. And a ton of effort. Against Rhinelander and all year long, she’s taken pride in beating her matchup to the inside lane on offensive rebound opportunities or getting to the short corner on a scrambled set for an open look. All this is on top of the fact that she’s an excellent relocation shooter and burned Rhinelander with her ability to find pockets of space amid chaos elsewhere. She’s Reedsburg’s all-time leading scorer for a reason, and she went out and showed why on Day 2. <strong style="font-size: 1rem;">[player_tooltip player_id="156066" first="Julianna" last="Ouimette"] | Lakeland | Guard | Class of 2023 | #6 Overall Prospect</strong> In her role as the primary ball-handler for Lakeland, Ouimette impressed as a screen operator. Her ability to reliably create good shots out of high pick-and-roll and side pick-and-roll action was the primary reason Lakeland was able to overcome an early double-digit deficit and make this a competitive game. She consistently found ways to manipulate the defense and get clean looks, demonstrating the ability to score on all three levels against Pius XI. Now to the nitty-gritty of it all: screen operation is one of the hardest skills to develop at the high school level. PnR action out of an isolation half-court set is rare. But 10 clearly understands some of the timing/space creation nuances that running effective PnR requires. Ouimette would wait until the moment of indecision until attacking the drop coverage of the Popes. Equally impressive was her ability to get the defender on her hip after going over the pick. She adds an extra dribble or begins to stutter her handle to make defending her after the pick all the more awkward. All of this to say: #10 got buckets and helped others get buckets along the way. &nbsp;