Two-Way Terror: D2 North Country vs D2 U-32 Recap

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Early season favorite North Country gave U-32 all they could handle on their own floor. Check out the top performers from Wednesday night's contest!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sabine Brueck, 5'8 G - North Country High School Class of 2025</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The sophomore put together the most dominant performance I've seen yet this winter. Sabine's two-way talents were on full display against U-32. First, Brueck's defense was lock down. She limited U-32's strongest player with impressive denial, shadowing all of her movement. In doing so, Sabine picked up tons of pass deflections. In addition, Brueck must've been only a couple steals shy from double digits with her numerous on-ball and off-ball thefts. She reeled in 10 boards off of solid box outs and good elevation to snatch the rock. Lastly, Sabine led all scorers with her hyper efficient 27 points, mostly off of sneaky cuts into the second layer and slashes to finish at the cup. Brueck is a terrifying two-way talent with her hustle, IQ, and inside/out prowess.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='426304' first='Cora' last='Nadeau'], 5'11 G - North Country High School Class of 2023</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was a rather light workload for Nadeau as North Country extended the lead to 20+ early in the contest. Nonetheless, Cora chipped in a cool 14 points for North Country. Nadeau provided offense all over the floor, from a couple twos around the rim, to mid-range jumpers and a three. In addition, Cora rebounded the ball well and settled the offense in the halfcourt. She also forced turnovers and collected steals on the defensive end with heady anticipation, which sparked the break for easy twos. She's another talented two-way player for the early season D2 favorite in North Country. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Aaliyah Wilburn, 5'10 F - North Country High School Class of 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>An important role player for NC, Wilburn displayed some heads-up playmaking. She operated often in the high post out of NC's four high set and created from there. Aaliyah hit back cutters from the wing with slick bounce passes for in stride lays at the rim. She's also a tough pick-and-roll player, using her frame well to seal defenders and open up to the rim. Defensively she protected the cup nicely when U-32 got into the second layer. However, she also fronted the post and denied entry quite well, forcing turnovers as U-32 sought to feed the post. Aaliyah's wise playmaking makes NC's diversified attack even more balanced and effective.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Maya Auger, 5'8 G - North Country High School Class of 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Maya put the flamethrower away she'd been using the last couple weeks but nonetheless she still provided NC with a smooth 11 points. Auger found her offense on the perimeter for the most part. She utilized her shot fake well to get defenders off balance, feinted the drive with an attack dribble, and hit a pair of crisp sidestep threes. Moreover, she made multiple slip passes to back cutters, making for easy offense. Maya made contributions on the defensive end as well with a couple steals and on-ball pressure to cause faulty possessions. She too was light on minutes but produced regardless.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Cara Richardson, 5'10 F - U-32 High School Class of 2023</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In a game where U-32 had trouble getting anything going Cara Richardson was a bright spot in the dark. Richardson led U-32 with 19 of her team's 28 points. Cara filled it up in the mid-range with a number of jumpers on the baseline and the high post. In addition to that, she dropped in a few buckets around the rim, some off of her offensive boards. She also played solid defense on NC's post players and limited their production from the block. Cara's post defense and shot-making carried U-32.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='542229' first='Clara' last='Wilson'], 5'8 G - U-32 High School Class of 2025</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When you're being guarded by one of the best perimeter defenders in the state it can make for a long night. Nonetheless, Clara still proved an integral part of U-32's efforts. Wilson provided respite for U-32's ballhandling woes, taking good care of the ball and attacking the paint. North Country clogged her driving lanes well, but Clara made wise decisions with solid kick outs and a few dump passes to forwards. Defensively, Clara did her best to contain NC's guard play with her choppy closeouts and active hands. All in all, Wilson had her hands full on both ends but did well to execute U-32's gameplan.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->