Top Performers From the First Thursday of the Season

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With the first Thursday of the season in the books and 113 games played yesterday, plenty of kids excelled and deserved some recognition for their play. So let's talk about some of the best performers from last night's round of games.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='266998' first='McKenna' last='Johnson']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In her season debut last night, Johnson scored 36 points and recorded her 1,000th point in high school. The wing is a silky-smooth offensive threat who can score from anywhere on the floor at any given time. The Panther made six 3-pointers and led the next leading scorer by 21 points, which paints how good of a scorer the junior is. On any given night, Johnson can change the course of a game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='388287' first='Alayna' last='West']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Although La Follette lost a talented 2022 class, West is one of the most intriguing kids in the Madison area, and she showed why last night. In her first game without the 22s, West scored 36 points in the Lancers' first game of the season and grabbed 18 rebounds in their game against Janesville Craig. Even though the Lancers may not have the talent they did a season ago, West can still beat defenses consistently, and her rebounding is one of her best traits. A guard grabbing double-digit rebounders is eye-catching, but 18 rebounds are on another level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='347173' first='Violet' last='Morren']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Hillsboro center began her season with a 24-point and 12-rebound double-double. Morren did an excellent job over the summer, getting better as the AAU season went on, and played her best in July. Last season was up and down for Morren, with some highs and some lows. However, she seemed to hone in on what she does best and did those things every game. For instance, she did a good job beating her matchup to the block and got a fair share of transition baskets, which meant being in a good position, she should have an excellent senior campaign.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='156079' first='Lindsay' last='Steien']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last season, [player_tooltip player_id='189502' first='Allie' last='Ziebell'] and [player_tooltip player_id='209586' first='Teagan' last='Mallegni'] seemed to be battling all season long, indirectly, for the scoring title. However, Steien was in that race all season long. The left is a three-level scorer who could score in transition and half-court offense. What separated her from most others in scoring was how often she earned steals leading to excellent transition opportunities. Steien's scoring could help Blair-Taylor take the next step in the postseason this year. Don't be surprised if Steien leads the state in scoring this upcoming season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->