Tuesday Night Across the State: Best Committed Performers

The stars showed out last night as we move away from holiday tournament season. These performers have already chosen the next step of their basketball careers, and if their future coaches caught them playing last night, they'd be smiling from ear to ear. Here are some of the top committed performers from Tuesday, January 4th: [player_tooltip player_id="132379" first="Lily" last="Krahn"] | Prairie du Chien | Class of 2022 | Guard | #5 Overall Prospect | University of Wisconsin-Madison In a Division 3 matchup between two top 5 teams, [player_tooltip player_id="132379" first="Lily" last="Krahn"] was the difference. She looked so comfortable against West Salem offensively, despite the different coverages the Panthers were throwing at her. Rarely did Krahn get the benefit of single coverage, yet she torched WSHS to the tune of 24 points in a 14 point win. Krahn attacked in transition to avoid double teams, showing off her tight handle and ability to finish through contact. It also helped that Krahn can launch from up to 25 feet. Her jab step alone created the requisite space for her quick release. She progressively picked up her operating speed over the course of the game, tweaking her decision to accommodate the defenders she was seeing. When the second half rolled around, she had fully adjusted to the double team and started to use West Salem’s strategy of face-guarding her against them, creating driving and passing lanes for her teammates. The Badger to-be had to of put a smile on Coach Mosely's face. [player_tooltip player_id="132371" first="Lily" last="Hansford"] | Appleton East | Class of 2022 | Guard/Wing | #3 Overall Prospect | Oregon State University Few things in Wisconsin prep hoops are more exciting than when [player_tooltip player_id="132371" first="Lily" last="Hansford"] gets it rolling from beyond the arc. Tuesday night’s contest against Oshkosh West was an example of this phenomenon. Hansford opened the game hitting four three-pointers in the first five minutes, each one creating a larger roar from the bench than the one proceeding it. Hansford scored 22 points in the half, 18 of which came from three-point land. Her catch-and-shoot speed and efficient shooting motion make her the most lethal shooter in the state, but what makes her an even more valuable player is her length on the defensive end. She covers gaps extremely well, and if one of her teammates overcommits on the baseline help, she can zone off the weakside effectively. Hansford finished with 27 on the evening and the future Beaver further proved why her jumper is one of the most deadly weapons in the state. [player_tooltip player_id="132376" first="Jacy" last="Weisbrod"] | Aquinas | Class of 2022 | Wing/Forward | #13 Overal Prospect | Northern Colorado Weisbrod is a nuclear scorer. She isn’t the most explosive athlete, but it doesn’t matter against her Division 4 rivals. She has so many different moves in her bag of tricks to get to her spots and get her shots off. Against Sparta, she was on automatic. She demonstrated proficiency on catch-and-shoot opportunities, but also came off of screens tightly and cut sharply to find open looks. Weisbrod also flexed her ability to pop off of screens, an essential weapon considering her season-long efficiency from beyond the arc. Her 6/12 shooting from downtown marks the sixth time this season that Weisbrod has shot at least 50% from downtown. Weisbrod finished with 32, but what most impressed me was her presence on the defensive end. She was a presence on the interior, blocking multiple shots and altering others while collecting 14 boards. For as polished a player as she is, she keeps showing improvement. Northern Colorado got a good one. [player_tooltip player_id="156071" first="Macy" last="Donarski"] | Aquinas | Class of 2023 | Guard | #4 Overall Prospect | Saint Louis Weisbrod’s pick-and-pop ball handler/partner in crime was Donarski, who paced the offense with her passing ability without needing to dominate possession. She routinely found open shooters and cutters, providing six assists and 10 unofficial hockey assists in Aquinas’s drubbing of Sparta. Donarski demonstrated a lot of patience running the offense, often resetting the possession on plays gone wild. But what made Donarski’s performance so special was nothing her defense, where she dominated the point of attack, stunted ball handlers attempting to initiate the offense, and quickly cut off passing lanes. She finished with 14 steals. <em>14 steals. </em>The future Biliken demonstrated all-state level defense, turning her tenacity into easy buckets and an easy win for the Blugolds. [player_tooltip player_id="156050" first="Grace" last="Grocholski"] | Kettle Moraine | Class of 2023 | Forward | #2 Overall Prospect | Arizona State University Grocholski is one of the smoothest scorers in the class of 2023 and Mukwonago experience the brunt end of that efficiency. Her touch in the paint on short jumpers and put-back attempts paced the Lasers, with Grocholski herself finishing with 25, none of them feeling forced or out of the flow of the offense. Her ability to create space in close corners amplified that touch, using pivots, post spins, fades, and jabs to get her shot off amid tight pressure. The Junior forward also played great defensively, locking down the paint with physicality and maximizing opportunities to attack passing lanes. Grocholski is a gamer in every sense of the work and will be a great addition to Charli Turner Thorne’s squad in Tempe.