ATL Summer Slam – Home State Heroines (Part 1)
Georgia was one of the epicenters of the high school and travel basketball landscape this past weekend – and many of the state’s premier players took advantage of their home court advantage. Insider Exposure hosted ATL Summer Slam the few…
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Continue ReadingGeorgia was one of the epicenters of the high school and travel basketball landscape this past weekend – and many of the state’s premier players took advantage of their home court advantage.
Insider Exposure hosted ATL Summer Slam the few days after it hosted War Games in many of the same facilities. Among those was the Suwanee Sports Academy located northeast of Atlanta in Gwinnett County. As expected given it was the last live period of the year, there were lots of teams on hand and lots of coaches.
We at Prep Girls Hoops were on hand as well. Here is a look at some of who were there representing the host state.
Atiana Gilcrist – 2024 – Peach County HS – Macon Mystics – Here is the gist on Gilcrist – there is a reason she is on the radar as one of the rising juniors throughout the Peach State. She can be very accurate from behind the 3-point line and will frustrate many an opposing team and coach as she is prone to pick up steals. She stands at 5-foot-2 and operates mostly in the backcourt as a point guard. At times, it can appear as if she is one step defensively of where an opponent could be offensively and she finds herself at the right place and right times to grab rebounds. She had seven points in a matchup with Team Militant Gold 2024.
Rionna Byrd Rionna Byrd 6'1" | C Veterans | 2024 State GA – 2024 – Veterans HS – Macon Mystics – Warhawks fans will be excited to see what awaits its star rising junior forward in the coming seasons. She stands at 6-foot-1 but can give a team productive minutes virtually anywhere on the court. As a scorer and as a rebounbder, she is a consistent threat to manage double-doubles on a game by game basis. Her defense and ability to come away with steals only add to how much of a multi-dimensional player she is. Byrd scored six points in what was a defensively-minded matchup with Team Militant Gold 2024 on Saturday at Suwanee Sports Academy.
Angel Tilton – 2023 – Curtis Baptist Academy – Georgia Sting – Prep Girls Hoops remembers seeing Hilton when the Crusaders competed in the SCISA playoffs and earned a victory over Andrew Jackson Academy at Northside Christian in Columbia. Tilton, who is used to sporting black and red (Curtis Baptist’s colors) has also played volleyball. She plays with a high basketball IQ and can keep herself out of foul trouble. Tilton also will have occasions where she absorbs contact and heads to the free throw line. The points that she puts on the board are complimented by the steals she collects as a defender. Tilton finished with seven points in Georgia Sting’s matchup against TTG Freeagents.
Hannah Heinen Hannah Heinen 5'9" | SG Lake Oconee Academy | 2023 State GA – 2023 – Lake Oconee Academy – Georgia Sting – Heinen stands at 5-foot-9 and combines the height seen more commonly in threes and fours with the guard play of a one or a two. Another attribute she possesses that is more indicative of ones or twos is her 3-point shooting. Those skills are what makes her versatile and why she has played minutes as a small forward. Heinen can get crafty with her passing (and her shooting) and is a heads up player who takes zero plays off. She led her team with 13 points as Georgia Sting took on TTG Freeagents on Saturday.
Aaniyah Allen Aaniyah Allen 5'6" | PG Elbert County | 2023 State GA – 2023 – Elbert County HS – Lady Grinders 2023 – The only currently listed point guard on the Lady Grinders 2023 current seven, she is also the lone Blue Devil represented. Allen efforts for rebounds – many of which she is successful in hauling in. Those offensive boards can turn into two-point putbacks and she thrives as a heads up player. She also has no problems taking contact and getting to the free throw line. Allen finished with eight points in a matchup that pitted Lady Grinders 2023 against Team Strive Blue. She is coming off a 2021-22 that saw the Blue Devils win its first ever 2A GHSA championship after defeating Rabun County at the Macon Coliseum.
Kiara Turner Kiara Turner 5'9" | SF Laney | 2023 State GA – 2023 – Laney HS– Lady Grinders 2023 – Turner powered the Wildcats to a 17-8 mark in 2021-22. This included winning all but one of its 14 contests against Region 4-AA foes. She is one that opposing coaches have to watch out for. Turner stands ready to box out in case of a missed free throw and will connect on midrange jump shot. If she gets fouled, she has no problems converting as well from the free throw line and will try her hand at 3-point jumpers as well. Rebounding is another strong suit of Turner’s game. She tallied 10 points in a Lady Grinders 2023 matchup against Team Strive Blue.