Players who caught our eye on Day 3 of the state tourney
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LaLa Woods, Wheeling Park, PG, Fr., 5-6 – Talk about a great debut at the state tournament. Helped by knowledge from sister Shanley, who made multiple trips with the Patriots, LaLa Woods put on a show. She looked nothing short…
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Continue ReadingLaLa Woods, Wheeling Park, PG, Fr., 5-6 – Talk about a great debut at the state tournament. Helped by knowledge from sister Shanley, who made multiple trips with the Patriots, LaLa Woods put on a show.
She looked nothing short of fantastic on her first trip to the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center.
All her tools were on display. Her nice basketball IQ, ability to slice through the lane, and patience to adjust to a legit shot-blocker in the paint helped her stuff the stat sheet. Simply put, she again looked like her sister Shanley on the court. LaLa tallied 14 points on 6 of 13 shooting, pulled down 6 rebounds, grabbed 8 assists, and swiped 6 steals.
Alexis Bordas Alexis Bordas 5'8" | SG Wheeling Park | 2025 State WV , Wheeling Park, SG, Fr., 5-6 – Wheeling Park’s other freshman sensation shared in her teammate’s good fortune, right beside Woods.
After missing her first three shots, one of the top scorers and rebounders in Class AAAA did exactly what was expected of her. She rebounded and scored.
She poured in 24 points, not being bothered one bit by the alleged Charleston Civic Center curse on great shooters. She hit on 45% of her shots, including a pair of 3s. She coupled that performance with a dozen rebounds.
Perhaps the biggest thing she showed in the game was her ability to stay patient and find her good shots. Jefferson knew who she was and put a long and lanky defender on her. Those limbs only mattered so much. Bordas worked herself open and smartly showed advanced shot intelligence for a freshman.
Kenzie Clutter, Cameron, PG, So., 5-4 – Clutter projects as a wise floor leader capable of using her high basketball IQ in identifying her team’s needs. She’s always observing, always listening. When she’s quiet, it’s a bad thing for opponents. When she’s talking, that’s an even worse thing for opponents.
The latest example was in the Dragons’ semifinal game against Tucker County. She identified that the biggest problem for the Dragons was dealing with the Mountain Lion’s length.
Her response? She went into court commander mode accompanied by a defensive twist. She tallied 10 assists with three blocks and two steals to go along with 8 points. It was an excellent game for her court awareness.
Sofia Wassick Sofia Wassick 5'7" | PG Morgantown | 2024 State WV , Morgantown, So., PG, 5-8 – Sofia Wassick Sofia Wassick 5'7" | PG Morgantown | 2024 State WV ’s speed sets her apart from other prospects around the state.
Her tempo and movement open up multiple options. One night she could be the kid who grabs 10 steals and speeds around the court dishing out assists and playing decoy. Another night she could be a team’s leading driver while running the head of a stifling press. And still, on other nights she could roll it all together into one.
The latter happened in the Mohigans’ state tournament opener against Spring Mills. In their 49-25 win over the Cardinals, Wassick really was everywhere. She tallied 18 points, on 9 of 14 shooting, pulled down 10 boards, grabbed 6 assists, and swiped four steals. Most impressive of all? She turned the ball over zero times in 28 minutes.
Kilah Dandridge Kilah Dandridge 5'8" | CG Saint Maria Goretti (Maryland) | 2025 WV , Spring Mills, SF, Fr., 5-10 – Kilah Dandridge Kilah Dandridge 5'8" | CG Saint Maria Goretti (Maryland) | 2025 WV looks comfortable on the basketball court.
Call her right at home, even. She owns real estate in the paint, on the wings, atop the key, she’s everywhere. No lease necessary.
There’s no inch she doesn’t know.
No crack’s going to trip her up. She’ll shoot from both 3-point lines if she has to. It’s true. No surprise, the obvious stayed true during her state tournament debut Wednesday against Morgantown. Though the Mohigans brought a strong defense, Dandridge never panicked and simply went about her business. She played aggressive ball for a half and still lead the team when things unfolded in the second half. She tallied 10 points, 5 rebounds, an assist and a steal in a hard 32 minutes.
Jayda Turner, Huntington, SF, Jr., 5-8 – Turner shows a quick shot she can whip out if she’s coming off a screen or a pick.
She squares her shoulders fast, jumps up solid, and releases with a full follow through. Adapting to someone in her face would do her well, but that’s something easily worked on in practice.
Against Jefferson in the Highlanders state opener, she showed exactly what goes right when she’s on from behind the arc. She converted 4 of 9 triples on the way to a game-high 18 points.
Taylor McHenry Taylor McHenry 5'6" | CG Gilmer County | 2022 State WV , Gilmer County, G, Sr., 5-7 – McHenry continues flashing her defensive chops in the postseason.
Only now, she’s mixing in a bit of an offensive game in her repertoire. Her length confounds her defensive assignments, while her range leaves everyone unsure of how far out her defender should follow.
In the Titans state semifinal win over Webster County, McHenry’s defense shut down one of Class A’s leading scorers in Sydney Baird Sydney Baird 5'7" | CG Webster County | 2023 State WV . The Highlanders all-time leading scorer compiled just nine points on the evening on 4 of 7 shooting, or well off her 23.6 points per game average. McHenry also swiped five passes to go along with
Jazmyn Wheeler Jazmyn Wheeler 6'1" | PF Cabell Midland | 2023 State WV , Cabell Midland, PF, Jr., 6-1 – Jaz Wheeler’s offensive game is miles ahead of her defense.
The Knight possesses a good understanding on how to get into the lane and then make a slick offensive move for points once she’s there.
Her height gives her an advantage in West Virginia, but she’ll need more moves in college. Her long arms and smart IQ mean she’s able to improve those parts of her game. That offensive attack rose to the forefront in the Knights’ state tourney opener against Capital. With leading scorer Jayda Allie Jayda Allie 5'8" | SG Cabell Midland | 2023 State WV struggling from the field, Wheeler put the team on her back. She showed off her low post moves with a 25-point, 12-of-15 from the field, performance.