Versatile Defensive Senior Power Forwards – Preseason Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='318878' first='Arezo' last='Safi'] - Monarch </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Safi brings interior defensive upside along with consistent rebounding tenacity. The incoming senior power forward stands right around 6' tall, allowing her to comfortably match up with both frontcourt positions. Rebounding will be a clear strength of hers, given her combination of size, strength, and lateral mobility. Safi is excellent helping onto guards, where she is does well stopping drives. Monarch will have consistency on the boards, considering Safi along with returning juniors [player_tooltip player_id='318873' first='Amelia' last='Rosin'] and Caroline Walley made up nearly 75% of the team's rebounds per game. Last season, Safi averaged 10.3 points, 8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game. The incoming senior currently ranks 41st overall and 7th among power forwards.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='261800' first='Anila' last='Owens'] - Cheyenne Mountain</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Owens has shown dominance as an interior scorer with room to grow as a versatile defensive prospect. At her size, she does especially well providing a steady baseline of rebounds, contributing just over 28% of the team's rebounds per game. Her defensive upside cannot go overlooked either, where she can matchup one on one or rotate over as a weak side rim protector. Standing right around 6' tall, Owens has shown upside creating driving lanes through crossovers and hesitations. She may be deployed a post threat, consistently taking the contact to finish with the right hand. Keep tabs on her shooting consistency, as it will play a major role in her upside. This past season at Cheyenne Mountain, Owens averaged 13.8 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 2.6 steals per game. Within the senior class, she ranks 42nd overall and 8th among power forwards.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='118731' first='Abby' last='Saville'] - Rocky Mountain</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Saville is a physical threat around the rim, due to her wiry strength and constant hustle. Standing roughly 5'9, Saville brings unlimited energy as a paint scoring threat. She is capable attacking closeouts on the perimeter or filling space in the halfcourt for driving lanes. One key area for her is her driving confidence with the right hand, consistently utilizing the off hand to leverage space. Another key area is her offensive rebounding, notably contributing putback layups on a large portion of these attempts. While she has proven to be a tough cover getting downhill, continuing to develop the jump shot will be essential for her long term outlook. This past season at Rocky Mountain, Saville average 11 points, 6.5 rebounds (team high) while contributing 47% of her two point attempts. Coming into this season, Saville ranks 49th in the class and 9th among power forwards.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='95232' first='Charlee' last='Durtsche'] - Windsor</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Durstche is an aggressive defender, aided by positional versatility for a power forward. Standing right around 5'10, Durtsche does well jumping driving lanes. Her combination of aggressive hands and quick defensive rotations make a highly valuable team defender. Drivers will think twice about approaching the paint against her, given her attention to detail while rotating. She should be next up as one of the primary scoring threats, given the departure of Amelia Solt. This past season with Thompson Valley, Durtsche averaged 10.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 3.2 steals per game. The incoming senior currently ranks 37th overall and 6th among power forwards.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->