Early Risers in the 802: Tip-Off Weekend’s Top Players

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's the most wonderful time of the year; basketball season! 802 is back in action. Check out opening weekends top performers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Ele Sellers, 6'0 F - Middlebury Union High School Class of 2023</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ele woke up ready to get buckets on Friday, pouring in a game high 30 points in Middlebury's home opener. Sellers fills it up in a lot of different ways as a natural 4 with the modern inside out skillset. She's a three-level scorer, finishing around the basket with post flashes and rolls out of ball screens. In addition, she's a knockdown pick-and-pop threat and is coming along from three. Ele's deep bag anchors Middlebury's offense; I look forward to catching them against Essex on Tuesday 12/13.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='649624' first='Brianna' last='Brownell'], 5'10 W/F - Mount Mansfield Union High School Class of 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was apparent rather quickly how hungry Brianna was to get back on the floor. Brownell plays hard, hustling defensively to track 50/50 balls and long rebounds, and running lanes for transition buckets. She also showed her open court ability with a few nice takes off of her 10 rebounds, making plays for herself and others. Brianna did most of her scoring damage around the cup, finishing much of her 16 points off of wise cuts into the post. Brownell's double-double and unselfishness was integral to MMU's blowout win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='496126' first='Elyse' last='Macdonough'], 5'8 G - Rice Memorial High School Class of 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I wasn't all too surprised when Elyse poured in 20 vs Saranac after an off night in RMHS' last scrimmage. It's hard to contain someone who can put the ball in the bucket in a so many different ways. She's a threat at all three-levels, snaking into the second layer off of decisive perimeter moves and finishing well in the short range, or she'll maneuver around forwards for crafty finishes at the rim. MacDonough shoots it efficiently from distance and has wise shot selection to go with it. She's a flat-out gamer. I see another big year ahead.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='426304' first='Cora' last='Nadeau'], 5'10 G/W - North Country High School Class of 2023</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cora lit Rice up in North Country's last preseason scrimmage and didn't let up in the season opener. Nadeau filled it up against Lake Region, dropping 19 points. With Cora's three-level scoring and offensive creation, she's hard to limit. She can create space on the perimeter and get to the cup, yet she also has the green light to pull-up in the mid-range and from three. Moreover, she's a heady defender. Cora has good timing to block shots around the rim and nice perimeter positioning to contain wings. Cora will likely be a regular here.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='446535' first='Breya' last='Montague'], 5'9 G - Essex High School Class of 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last year we didn't see any of Breya due to a knee injury. Nonetheless, it's clear she's been preparing for this winter for a long time. Montague wasted no time to getting started, dropping 18 points against D1 Mt. Anthony in the North South Classic. Breya has nice pace to her game. She changes gears on the perimeter with crisp dribble moves to snake into the second layer, she can knock it down from the perimeter, and she has wise off-ball movement to create clean catch-and-shoot opportunities. I'll be catching Breya and Essex in action this week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='649620' first='Elyse' last='Berger'], 5'11 G/W - Champlain Valley Union High School Class of 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's rare that a stat line can reflect a player's playstyle so well, but Elyse's box score against Rutland says it all. Berger collected seven points, seven steals, five assists and five rebounds in CVU's road opener against Rutland in the North South Classic. With unique game, Berger operates both as a point guard and as a stout inside out wing. She's able to create plays in the halfcourt and push coast-to-coast off of rebounds and steals as well. Elyse is a do-it-all type with a great motor. Gotta love someone so impactful and so low maintenance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='496147' first='Kelli' last='Cieplicki'], 5'9 G/W - Rice Memorial High School Class of 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kelli put up a swiss-army knife type stat line herself in Rice's home opener vs. Saranac. Cieplicki provided six points, 10 boards, and six assists to the Green Knights' winning cause. On a Rice team with not a lot of size, Kelli will be called on to do a good deal of rebounding. Lucky for RMHS, she's highly capable of reeling in boards due to her wise positioning, anticipation, and physicality on box outs. Moreover, she has high hoop IQ. Her natural hoop instincts make her a wise passer, seeing back cuts and relocating shooters well before the defense. Clearly, Kelli can fill the stat sheet way beyond the pts category.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->