GymRatLIVE Albany Tournament: Lock-Up Defenders

Below are the five best defenders I watched this weekend up in Albany for the GymRat tournament. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/04/DSC_0816-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1650136046.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-415076 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/04/DSC_0816-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1650136046-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="282" height="185" /></a> [player_tooltip player_id="413575" first="Saige" last="Randolph"] ’23 G - Elevate <span style="font-weight: 400;">Saige is the type of player you want on your team. She may be the smallest player on the court but she very well may end up with the most rebounds. She follows the ball after every shot, dives for loose balls and will always make you fight. Saige is also a very vocal player, talking to her teammates and being supportive, communicating on defense and helping control the offense. You can tell by the way she plays she is very coachable and a great listener and will do anything to get the win. You will never question whether or not Randolph has heart and her athleticism most definitely stood out and made me keep wanting to watch her play. </span> [player_tooltip player_id="298626" first="Anna" last="Oliver"] ’25 G - Maine Firecracker<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/04/DSC_0604-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1650136130.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-415078 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/04/DSC_0604-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1650136130-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="280" height="184" /></a> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Oliver was definitely one of, if not the youngest girl that played in the 17u division, I was shocked to hear she was so young! You couldn't tell by watching her play because she looks like she has so much experience, she’s so comfortable on the court and makes everything she does look so easy. What also stood out to me about her was the fact that she was always the first and last girl on the court and at halftime, the second her coach was done talking to the team she was out there shooting. Who doesn't love a player with that big of a heart and that much love for the game? On top of all of this you had this girl younger than most of the others out on the court never afraid to step up on defense guarding whoever was in front of her with nothing but confidence.</span> <img class=" wp-image-415080 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/04/DSC_0793-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1650136269-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="251" height="164" /> [player_tooltip player_id="184009" first="Selina" last="Monestime"] ’23 G/F - MCW Starz <span style="font-weight: 400;">If you need a solid guard on offense and a dependable player on defense, Monestime is your girl. She somehow ends up with a crazy amount of steals that just leave you shaking your head wondering how she does it. Monestime is a self-controlled, balanced teammate that has her teams back and is not afraid to do the dirty work. She is not worried about scoring all the points, instead she cares about being a solid player.</span> <img class=" wp-image-415083 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/04/DSC_0533-scaled-crop-1767x1160-1650136477-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="274" height="180" />[player_tooltip player_id="287252" first="Fatim" last="Sarr Ndow"] ’23 F - NY Gauchos <span style="font-weight: 400;">Ndow is another girl I watched this weekend that had nothing but heart and love for the game. She is a player that is always ready to learn and grow. She focuses a lot on defense making sure she is where she is supposed to be while also working with her teammates. Fatim is a smart basketball player, quiet but explosive everywhere she is on the court. Getting anything off in the paint will be a challenge because she is a huge presence and will most likely end up with a powerful block. She gives any game she is in energy and always makes a difference. </span> <span style="font-size: 1rem;"><img class="wp-image-415085 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/04/DSC_0682-scaled-crop-1451x953-1650136560-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="283" height="186" />[player_tooltip player_id="413605" first="Ruby" last="Santos"] ’23 G/F - Exodus</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Santos was a very fun player to watch this weekend for many reasons, the biggest being she was definitely the most versatile player I watched. She was able to bring the ball up the court, do everything on offense and play tight, aggressive, smart defense the entire game. It is as if she never ran out of energy. She is everywhere on the court, following everyone, going after steals and loose balls. Santos knows where to be on defense and she always knows where to go making her stand out without having to score. </span>