2022 New Years Classic - Recap Day One

2022 New Years Classic - Recap Day One By Michael Wholey 1/13/21 1:00 PM EST The 2022 New Year’s Classic was held in Miami this past weekend at SLAM! Academy. The two-day event had some of the state’s top teams and players including the state’s # 3 ranked team St. Thomas Aquinas, six-time state champion Miami Country Day, and Batavia High School out of Illinois. The event also featured some of the state’s top talent in the classes of 2025-2027 with several of the youngest teams in the state such as Somerset Academy Silver Palms, Kings Academy, and SLAM! Academy. Here is a recap from day one of the event.   <img class="size-medium wp-image-375494 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/495A6586.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Day One (January 7, 2022) Final Scores Doral Academy (41) - Somerset Silver Palms (72) St. Thomas Aquinas (74) - Batavia HS (52) King’s Academy (42) - SLAM! Academy (56)     <img class="wp-image-375496 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/98-DSC08140-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="185" height="279" />Day One (January 7, 2022) Top Individual Scorers [player_tooltip player_id="265967" first="Brooke" last="Carlson"] (Batavia - IL) – 29 points Stephanie Vega (Somerset Silver Palms) – 25 points Ji’Miyah Branton (SLAM! Academy) – 19 points [player_tooltip player_id="219942" first="Reina" last="Green"] (St. Thomas Aquinas) – 17 points [player_tooltip player_id="243907" first="Ashley" last="Martinez"] (Somerset Silver Palms) – 16 points Bre Gustava (St. Thomas Aquinas) – 13 points Alexia Sanchez (Doral Academy) – 13 points [player_tooltip player_id="151282" first="Alancia" last="Ramsey"] (St. Thomas Aquinas) – 12 points [player_tooltip player_id="248417" first="Sophia" last="Kateris"] (King’s Academy) – 11 points [player_tooltip player_id="331736" first="Karla" last="Quintero"] (SLAM! Academy) – 11 points Shanaii Gamble (Somerset Silver Palms) – 10 points Daijia Lopez (SLAM! Academy) – 10 points   GAME ONE Doral Academy (8-9) <img class=" wp-image-375499 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/32-DSC08038-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="142" height="213" />In game one of the 2022 New Years Classic, Doral Academy did all they could to hang tight with Somerset Silver Palms but in the end, it was not enough. Doral was led by Junior 5’5 Guard Alexia Sanchez, who scored a team high 13 points including three 3-pointers and was a perfect 4/4 from free throw line. The guard orientated team also got contributions from for Junior Guard Sophia Ojeda who chipped in with 9 points and Freshman guard [player_tooltip player_id="221639" first="Gianna" last="Robles"] who scored 7 points. Sanchez, Ojeda, and Robles have been leading the team in scoring throughout the season and are a big part of the team’s game plan and scoring efforts   Somerset Academy Silver Palms (10-6) <img class=" wp-image-375503 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/495A6545.jpg" alt="" width="169" height="254" />Somerset is one of the youngest teams in the state loaded with players in the classes of 2025-2027 and it was on full display this weekend! In game one of the event, 5’7 Guard Stephanie Vega led the way with 25 points, 15 of those coming in the first half! Vega is in the class of 2026 and is a versatile scorer who can fill it up in a variety of ways. She knocked down open shots, attacked off the dribble and played at a high tempo all game! Fellow member of the class of 2026 [player_tooltip player_id="243907" first="Ashley" last="Martinez"] was in double figures as well with 10 points along with class of 2024 Shanaii Gamble who also had 10 points. The youth for Somerset Academy got even younger as class of 2027 guards [player_tooltip player_id="248643" first="Naya" last="Hardisson"] and [player_tooltip player_id="243916" first="Victoria" last="Valle"] chipped in with 8 and 7 points respectively.     GAME TWO St. Thomas Aquinas (13-1) <img class=" wp-image-375514 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/495A6701.jpg" alt="" width="153" height="229" />St. Thomas Aquinas (STA) entered the event as the highest ranked team, with a # 3 ranking in the state of Florida according to Maxpreps. The Raiders took care of business vs Batavia, who came from Illinois to take in some top-notch competition over the holiday break, defeating them 74-52. STA was led by Junior guard [player_tooltip player_id="219942" first="Reina" last="Green"] who dropped all 17 of her points in the second quarter, knocking down five consecutive 3-pointers to break the game wide open! The impressive 2nd quarter performance increased STA 21-17 first quarter lead to a 40-19 half time lead! While Green play was impressive, their depth was even scarier, capable of playing 9-10 players without a drop-in play! On the inside 2023 6’1 Forward [player_tooltip player_id="151282" first="Alancia" last="Ramsey"] controlled the paint, dropping 12 points and going 6/7 from the free throw line, on her way to a double-double! All in all, it was a team effort with 2022 5’7 Guard Bre Gustave reaching double digits as well with 13 points, 2022 6’1 Forward [player_tooltip player_id="154841" first="Jada" last="Green"] scored 9 points, and 2023 5’8 Guard [player_tooltip player_id="91641" first="Karina" last="Gordon"] and 2022 5’5 Guard [player_tooltip player_id="220011" first="Maya" last="Williams"] chipped in with 7 points each!   Batavia High School (10-8) <img class="size-medium wp-image-375515 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/0F22CA10-8161-4E70-AAC0-9BE4BABB7DA9.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />While St. Thomas Aquinas took the win, Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id="265967" first="Brooke" last="Carlson"] stole the show with her impressive play, doing everything she could to keep Batavia High School competitive and in the game. Carlson, a class of 2024 prospect, was the events high scorer with 29 points. She did a little bit of everything, knocking down two 3-pointers, attacking the rim aggressively off the dribble and getting to the FT line. Carlson is a savvy playmaker who is confident with the ball in her hands and aggressive attacking the rim! She could have gone for 30+ points but left a couple points on the board as she 5/11 from FT line. 6’5 Wisconsin signee [player_tooltip player_id="161014" first="Tessa" last="Towers"] battled [player_tooltip player_id="151282" first="Alancia" last="Ramsey"] on the inside, dropping 10 points and was close to a double-double with 8 rebounds. It was a fun interior battle, as Towers used her mass, size and strength to post up on the low block and finished well around the rim!   GAME THREE King’s Academy (14-5) <img class="wp-image-375519 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/495A6772.jpg" alt="" width="149" height="224" />King’s Academy entered the weekend with a 14-3 record, fresh off a championship in the Tamba Bay Invitational over the holiday break. Facing the host school SLAM! Academy, Kings didn’t have enough firepower falling to SLAM! 56-42. Freshman 5’10 [player_tooltip player_id="248417" first="Sophia" last="Kateris"] was the lone player in double figures, dropping 11 points including two 3-pointers. She is a young, skilled highly wing player who has excellent length and shoots a high percentage from the field. The youth was on full display with Kings getting contributions from class of 2023 wing [player_tooltip player_id="243926" first="Jordan" last="Race"] (7 points), class of 2024 guard [player_tooltip player_id="243896" first="Jade" last="Jones"] (7 points), as well as Seniors [player_tooltip player_id="244003" first="Monique" last="Joseph"] (6 points) and Margot McFadden (5 points) got in the box score as well!   SLAM! Academy <img class="wp-image-375517 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/72-DSC08105-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="143" height="215" />Leading the way for SLAM! was 5’8 Freshman [player_tooltip player_id="243897" first="Jim’Myah" last="Branton"], who scored 19 points, displaying a balanced floor game! She has a smooth offensive game, attacking rim off the bounce and contorting her body in a variety of ways, finishing at the rim in a number of ways as well as getting to the free throw line where she was 5/6. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id="331736" first="Karla" last="Quintero"] and Daijia Lopez both got into double figures, giving SLAM! three in double digits, with Quintero scoring 11 points (all in the 2nd half) and a perfect 3/3 from the free throw line while Lopez scored 10 and was also perfect from the line going 2/2.     Michael Wholey is the lead scout for Florida Prep Girls Hoop Florida and a former division one Assistant Coach at American University, University of Memphis, and Georgia Tech. Wholey and the rest of the Prep Girls Hoop staff, seek to cover the entire state of player, keeping subscribers up to date with player evaluations, recruiting info, and statewide news. Our audience often supplies us with some of our best information. If you have any information on players, teams, or statewide news in the state of Florida, emailing Michael Wholey at <a href="mailto:WholeyPrepHoops@gmail.com">WholeyPrepHoops@gmail.com</a> or DM him through Twitter or Instagram @WholeyPrepHoops.