Gateway Conference Junior Standouts.
The 2022 Gateway Conference has come and gone and the Andrew Jackson Tigers took the crown this year, largely in part due to the play of their Juniors. In this article, we look at some of the talented Juniors on…
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Continue ReadingThe 2022 Gateway Conference has come and gone and the Andrew Jackson Tigers took the crown this year, largely in part due to the play of their Juniors. In this article, we look at some of the talented Juniors on Andrew Jackson’s roster and some of the other top juniors who impressed during the Gateway Conference Tournament.
Jasnea Hall-McDowell 2023 5’2″ G (Andrew Jackson). HAll-Mcdowell stood out with her quickness and all-out toughness. She might be one of the shortest on the court, but her athleticism helps her compensate. In the Gateway tournament, she had some nice scoring drives to the basket and was impressive on both sides of the ball, especially in the crucial moments of the game. Hall-McDowell also finished with an impressive 5 steals in the semifinal matchup against Mandarin. She is a very unselfish player who does a lot of things that don’t show up on the stat sheet.
Jada Jones Jada Jones 6'4" | PF Sandalwood | 2023 State FL 2023, 6’2″ C (Sandalwood). Jones led her team to the finals and scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the tournament opener. Jones then followed that up with a 22 point – 16 rebound effort against Ribault. Jones and her team were outmatched against Andrew Jackson, but her back-to-back double-doubles were impressive. Jones entered the finals of the Gateway with nine double-double performances and averaging nearly 14 points and nine rebounds per contest.
Alexia Taliferro 2023, 5’8 G/F (Andrew Jackson). Taliferro is that player that does a lot of the little things on the court. She helps with the press break, defends multiple positions, runs the floor well in transition, rebounds well from the guard position, and scores at all levels on the court, especially in the paint. Offensively, Taliferro can score on the inside and on the outside. In the Gateway finals, Taliferro scored 9 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, and dished out three assists.
Xaniya Jackson Xaniya Jackson 6'1" | PF Andrew Jackson | 2023 State FL 2023, 6’0″ C (Andrew Jackson). Jackson played very well in the Gateway tournament. She showed versatility with her offense including some nice mid-range jumpers in the semifinals. Jackson has shown that she can occasionally shoot the long ball. Jackson’s defense was really good in the Gateway Conference. In the semifinals, Jackson had four blocks and seven rebounds. In the Finals, Jackson recorded seven rebounds, two steals, and played some solid defense in the paint against Sandalwood’s defense.
Deaunna Rosier (2023) 5’4″ G (Raines ) played sparingly in the Gateway tournament, but when on the court, she looked the part and moreover played the part. Her quickness and ability to maneuver through the defense were noticeable. With more time on the court, the junior could put up some impressive numbers.