Kentucky 2A Championships: All-Tourney Team (Part 1)
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The Kentucky 2A Championships are back for Year 4. There are 8 girl’s teams across the state that won their sectional and made it to the state tournament. There were some very competitive games across the 3 day span. Here’s…
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Continue ReadingThe Kentucky 2A Championships are back for Year 4. There are 8 girl’s teams across the state that won their sectional and made it to the state tournament. There were some very competitive games across the 3 day span. Here’s a look at the 9 players that made the All-Tournament Team from the 2 teams that made it to the championship, CAL and Rowan County.
Knight is one of the top posts in the state, regardless of class. She is so strong and such a smart player. She’s so tough to keep off of the glass because she works really hard to get rebounds on both ends of the floor. She also is really hard to stop offensively as she has great touch around the basket and can take a lot of contact. Knight does a great job protecting the paint defensively as well, plus she can get into the passing lanes and come up with steals. She filled up the stat sheet in all 3 of CAL’s games. In Game 1, she finished with 17 points, 16 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 2 steals. In Game 2, she had 20 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks, and a steal. In the Championship, Knight had yet another double-double with 12 points, 15 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 steals, and 2 assists. Knight was named the MVP of the 2023 2A State Championships.
Wilkins is one of the top freshman in the state and she continues to show how valuable she is on the floor. She can play any guard position efficiently and she makes some great drives to the basket. Wilkins is crafty and can finish in creative ways around the rim. She caught the ball ready to fire and showed how quickly she can release her shot from deep. She’s got strong handles and she uses her length well to get stops on the defensive end of the floor. Wilkins has lots of moves in her bag and she keeps the defense guessing. She finished Game 1 with 16 points, 3 rebounds, 4 steals, and a block. In the next game, she had 18 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists. In the Championship, she set a 2A record by putting up 28 points to go along with 6 assists, 4 rebounds, and 3 steals.
Moore continues to get better and better, and she truly belongs in the conversation for some of the top post players in the state after watching her this past weekend. She’s got a ton of skills and she’s a smart player. She wasn’t forcing stuff, but when it was there, she took advantage and made the defense pay. Moore is a very strong defender as well. She can use her length to block and alter shots around the rim, plus she moves her feet well so she can step out and defend inside or out. In Game 1, Moore finished with 9 points and 5 rebounds. The next game, she filled up the stat sheet with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks. In the Championship, she had 11 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 blocks.
Duck is one of the quickest floor generals around. She’s so dynamic and can really handle a lot of pressure. She was running the point for CAL and she was really making a lot happen, whether that be creating for her teammates or scoring the ball herself. Duck has strong handles and she’s really tough to stay in front of. She can knock down shots quickly or she can finish in the paint or at the rim on her drives. However, when help defense steps over on her, she does a good job of distributing the ball. Duck had 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists in CAL’s opening game, and then had 6 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals in the following game. In the final game, Duck finished with 9 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, and a block.
Daniels was invaluable on the defensive end. She was very solid offensively as well, but her defense consistently stood out on the floor. She proved to be a lockdown defender who could slide her feet and stay in front of anyone she was asked to guard. Daniels was handling pressure and moving extremely well without the ball on the offensive end. She was really looking for her teammates and made some excellent passes inside and out. She also had some strong drives to the hoop and she continuously played through adversity. Daniels had 10 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal in CAL’s first game. In Game 2, she had 4 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists. In the Championship, Daniels finished with 3 assists, a block, and a rebound.
Ford showed why she is one of the top players in the state, much like she’s been doing all season long. She had 3 straight double-doubles as she helped get her team into the Championship game. She is an excellent ball handler, shooter, driver, passer, etc. She can really do a little bit of everything and it is crazy to watch team after team game-plan ways to stop her and yet, she still finds ways to score. Ford is such an impressive all-around player and her stat lines really speak to her complete game. In Game 1, she had 29 points, 17 rebounds, 5 steals, and 4 assists. In Game 2, she had 15 points, 17 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals. In the Championship game, Ford took over in the 2nd half and finished the game with 26 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals.
Chandler was extremely clutch this weekend, hitting some big time shots when her team needed them the most. What always impresses me about her game is how hard she consistently plays. I’ve never seen her slack off or take a play off. She can bring a ton of value on both ends of the floor. Defensively, Chandler can slide her feet to stop drives to the basket. She gets into the passing lanes for steals and isn’t afraid to be aggressive. Offensively, she constantly moves and works to get open. She can knock down shots or she can get to the rim. In the 1st game, Chandler finished with 15 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal. In Game 2, she had 10 points, 4 steals, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists. In the Championship, Chandler finished with 15 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and a block.
Highlights
Kandace Chandler
Kandace Chandler
Chandler was really solid for the Vikings throughout the 2A Championships. She wasn’t forcing a lot and she was just doing whatever it took to help her team come out with the victory. Her energy could be seen as soon as you watched Rowan County on the defensive end. In their first game, Chandler had 8 points and a board. In Game 2, she had 7 points and 2 rebounds. In the Championship, she added a rebound, but was very critical in her team’s near comeback in the 2nd half.
Olivia Beach
Olivia Beach
Check out the height and position for Beach… now you know why it is so impressive that she was able to hold her own against some players much bigger than her down low. She was getting into the passing lanes for steals and she was staying straight up when the offense caught the ball down low. Beach finished Game 1 with 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 steals. In the following game, she had 9 points, 4 rebounds, and an assist. In the Championship, Beach added 5 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 critical steals.