Monday Elite 8 Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='206970' first='Madison' last='Martin']</strong> exploded to the basket for <strong>Little Elm</strong> right before halftime as I did my wraparound coverage to see as much as possible. She knocked down a free throw, which cut into the<strong> Hebron </strong>lead New subscribers use <strong><mark>simmiecolson30</mark></strong> to see even<strong> MORE</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Martin along with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='96128' first='Amarachi' last='Kimpson'] </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='307747' first='Shiloh' last='Kimpson']</strong> helped lead <strong>Little Elm</strong> to the Regional Semifinals, I managed to see bits and pieces of the game as <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='206965' first='Paris' last='Bradley']</strong> was creating some problems for <strong>Hebron</strong>. I did get a good look at<strong> Langham Creek </strong>almost pulling off an upset against <strong>Cy Springs</strong>, their exciting run in the second half got my adrenaline going but here are the standouts from that game</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>LANGHAM CREEK</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='96161' first='Aniyah' last='Sanford']-5'3 PG [2023]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sanford put together one of her best all-around performances I've seen her in, and I have seen plenty since catching her back in elementary school yet her "poise under pressure" coupled with "controlling the tempo" played a huge part in their almost pulling it off. She set her teammates up for gimmes, she dropped the long ball, as well as scored off the dribble yet her defense, as well as her "outrebounding" taller players was more than special. She's UNSIGNED but always remember #SizeDontMatter when you can play</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Eryn Lloyd-5'4 SG [2023]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lloyd is one of the most improved offensive players in the area over the past couple of seasons and that is part of the reason Langham went as deep as they did. She understands how to "score in the flow" yet her outside shooting, in clutch situations has been huge every time I caught them. Watching her explode to the basket was nice, she throws "on the money" passes with either hand, but she also steps up to the plate defensively, and her "on the ball" baseline-to-baseline heat was HUGE, one more time #SizeDontMatter when you can play</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='158882' first='Heather' last='Baymon']-5'6 CG [2024]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Baymon was one of those players I caught early yet wasn't on the roster so I HAD to find out what her name was because I JUST KNEW. Fast forward to now, she's one of the top guards in the state, watching her play the passing lane JUST DID IT for me because I watch her watching the floor so I know what's coming. Add her "stop and pop" jumper in transition as well as her acrobatic finishes makes her hard to handle, especially when she can get her shot off whenever she wants </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>CY SPRINGS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Di'Aunestie Henderson-5'9 SF [2023]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Henderson has been THE GLUE for this squad in every game I've caught. She understands how to get the momentum going for her team as well as change it if the opposing team is making a run. I love how she sets the defender up to attack off the dribble, yet it's equally impressive seeing her score around the basket, especially on putbacks, yes she rebounds on both ends of the court. Her midrange creates problems but so does her defensive pressure which includes playing the passing lane</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1188199' first='Melanie' last='Hodges']-5'10 PF [2025]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hodges continues to elevate her game as she's a different player from the Texas Jamboree when I saw her progression from her freshman season, but for me, that's one thing I always look for, remember I'm a real evaluator. She too was real, on the boards and on both ends of the court but her desire to go after the ball was a big plus, especially when you factor in how strong she is, but that the strength also enabled her to score powerfully around the basket, yes after contact included </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='388141' first='Ayla' last='McDowell']-6'2 SG/SF [2025]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>McDowell put on a show for the coaches who came from up north to see the game. I told them she might be the best player in the area and she comes out of nowhere to block shots and she proved me correct on both parts, one more time, I am a REAL EVALUATOR. Her pull-up jumper is something to see, she drops it from mid to long-range, and when you add that she's "long and athletic" which will always be the base, her intangibles are unlimited. Back to the shot-blocking, her timing is among the best I have seen, period, and when a defender gets past her yet her ability to regroup and "go get it" is second to none </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->