River City Run: Day-2 Standouts
The featured image is of Mattie Clanton Mattie Clanton 5'4" | PG Meade County | 2023 State KY (2023) of Meade County High School (KY) and Team Firstep 17U. Sunday morning the PGH River City Run continued in Louisville, Kentucky,…
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Continue ReadingThe featured image is of Mattie Clanton Mattie Clanton 5'4" | PG Meade County | 2023 State KY (2023) of Meade County High School (KY) and Team Firstep 17U.
Sunday morning the PGH River City Run continued in Louisville, Kentucky, with more than 50 teams participating overall. While my primary responsibility was to cover most of the 17U teams this weekend, I was able to catch a handful of younger teams as well Sunday morning and afternoon. Below is a look at eight ladies who stood out in the action I was able to see throughout the day.
Leah Bachmann
Leah
Bachmann
6'0" | C
Columbus East | 2023
State
IN
, 2023, 6-0 C, Columbus East H.S. (IN)
– Leah has always been enjoyable to watch, because she plays with such an outstanding motor for a post. She has a strong, powerful frame, she seeks physicality, and she is an aggressive rebounder at both ends of the floor. I like how hard she runs the floor and establishes position early offensively, and if she gets to her spot, she can consistently score it at the basket. Defensively, she anticipates box-outs well, plus she also rotates to “help” well.
Kyra Brown
Kyra
Brown
5'4" | CG
South Charleston | 2023
State
WV
, 2023, 5-4 G, Capital H.S. (WV)
– Kyra was electric for much of the weekend. She is a quick, fast, and explosive guard who does a little of everything well. For a game and a half, she was on attack, getting to the rim with ease, and putting a lot of pressure on her opponents. Then she started burying shot after shot from the perimeter, and with deep range. For her OV Lady Dragons Gray team, she plays off the ball, but she’ll be recruited as a PG, because she has ball skill and can defend the position well.
Mattie Clanton
Mattie
Clanton
5'4" | PG
Meade County | 2023
State
KY
, 2023, 5-4 G, Meade County H.S. (KY)
– Mattie was good both days, but in the portion of the game I saw Sunday, she was one of the main catalysts in their success. She is a quick, fast, little water-bug guard who has great length at her height. She flies around the floor, and she can really defend the ball all 84-feet. Offensively, for this team, she plays mostly on the wing and consistently knocks down shots, but she’s another one who will likely be recruited as more of a PG because of her size and skill.
Sophie Johnson
Sophie
Johnson
6'0" | PF
Evansville Memorial | 2024
State
IN
, 2024, 6-0 W, Evansville Memorial H.S. (IN)
– Sophie had a pair of strong outings Sunday, and she has steadily grown her game the past couple of years. She is extremely long, bouncy, and fluidly athletic. She is a playmaker offensively, as she can push it in transition and create for teammates, but she also has touch to the 3-point line, plus she can finish in a number of ways, and at odd angles. Defensively, she’ll need to use her length to defend the perimeter a little better, but she rebounds and blocks shots.
Maddy King, 2024, 5-0 PG, Berea H.S. (KY)
– Apparently, Maddy was playing “up” with the 17U team to help them fill the voids of missing players, and she was impressive when I saw her. She isn’t very tall, but she’s strong for her size, quick, fast, and crafty with the ball. She has great vision, can make long passes on target in transition, plus she can break down a defense and find open teammates or finish with a variety of runners and floaters. And if that’s not enough, she can also shoot it outside.
Morgan Roberts
Morgan
Roberts
6'0" | SF
Fishers | 2024
State
IN
, 2024, 5-11 W, Fishers H.S. (IN)
– Morgan was good Sunday morning, coming up with big plays down the stretch for her team, trying to get them over the top. She just looks so much stronger and more fluid this Spring, absorbing contact better as she attacks the basket. She’s also shooting it more consistently from the perimeter, plus she continues to handle it more and more against pressure. She’ll still need a little more strength for the next level, but her growth the last couple of years has been fun to watch.
Amari Jackson
Amari
Jackson
5'8" | PF
Richmond | 2025
IN
, 2025, 5-9 F, Richmond H.S. (IN)
– This was my first time seeing Amari and her All-Area Basketball team. She is a long, wiry-strong, and bouncy athlete. She has tremendous feet/quickness, so much so that she defends most guards/wings very well, and with great effort. She is an excellent pursuing rebounder, and I feel like right now she excels defensively as much as anyone her age. Offensively, as she continues to build skill, it will likely help define her true position. For now, she’s just a ballplayer.
Leah West
Leah
West
6'1" | PF
Greensburg | 2025
State
IN
, 2025, 6-1 PF, Greensburg H.S. (IN)
– What impressed me the most about Leah over the weekend, is that while she may or may not grow, she has really worked on developing her game. She has always possessed a strong frame, really nice length at her height, but now she’s shooting the ball with range and consistency. Her ability to stretch a defense and keep them honest will go a long way. But let’s not forget she’s one of the more physical rebounders and top back-to-the-basket scorers in Indiana in 2025.