3A Regional Championship Standouts
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The NCHSAA Regional Championships were held on Saturday with some strong matchups at the 3A level. In the Eastern Region, Rocky Mount Gryphons took on the Cape Fear Colts with the Gryphons punching their ticket to the state championship game…
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Continue ReadingThe NCHSAA Regional Championships were held on Saturday with some strong matchups at the 3A level. In the Eastern Region, Rocky Mount Gryphons took on the Cape Fear Colts with the Gryphons punching their ticket to the state championship game on Saturday. Rocky Mount will take on the West Rowan Falcons after they defeated the East Lincoln Mustangs on Saturday.
Let’s start with the Eastern Regional Championship.
Kira Jones
Kira Jones
Kira Jones was ready to play from the jump immediately gaining possession and finding her open teammate underneath the basket. She was patient handling the ball waiting for a play to develop and getting the pass to her teammate at the perfect time. She didn’t shy away from contact driving hard to the hoop banking the shot in from the paint. Her quickness on defense was an asset playing off the ball denying the pass to her opponent.
Caroline Thiel was a strong presence inside being able to grab rebounds and make some nice cuts in the paint for her points. She showed off her range shooting the ball from deep, too. She protected the paint blocking shots as players tried to drive against her. She had some nice second chance points off her offensive rebounds.
Nyla Powell
Nyla Powell
Nyla Powell was another strong presence inside battling through contact to score some points. She was persistent going after rebounds. She was effective at sealing off her defenders protecting the ball as it was getting passed to her, and she was already in position to score some points. Offensive rebounding was a big piece of the Gryphons’ victory, and it was due to her presence around the rim.
Jayda Angel has excellent change of direction moves that she uses to get her defenders off their feet and put up her shot. She was very effective on the full court press grabbing steals and quickly scoring two points. She had a nice stroke from deep creating her own space with her handles. She was stripping the ball from her opponents and pushing it up full court to score some points on both sides of the rim.
Now, let’s see the standouts from the Western Regional Championship.
Tiara Thompson
Tiara Thompson
Tiara Thompson seemed to have a speciality of popping the ball out from underneath her opponents’ hands. These steals she would push right up the court with ease getting by her opponents and attacking the rim. She found her open teammates cutting up the court for some fast breaks as well. She makes strong adjustments at the rim scoring no matter who is trying to stop her.
Emma Clarke
Emma Clarke
Emma Clarke was protecting the paint blocking shots as players tried to drive against her. She runs the floor well being ready for the pass in transition to score some points. She found the openings on the block making her cuts and sliding in the gaps at the perfect times.
Demya Phifer
Demya Phifer
Demya Phifer continues to leave it all out on the court hustling back on defense to deflect some passes. She can push these steals up the court on her own or find an open teammate for some points. She battled through contact when she attacked the basket herself.
Jamecia Huntley uses every bit of her height to cause problems in the paint knowing how to control her body to not get the foul called. She uses shot fakes to get open and pull up for her jumpers. She was constantly moving on offense finding the openings and flashing in and out of the paint to shift the defense.
Highlights
Lauren Arnold did a nice job sliding to the block getting the pass and bucket. She uses her body to protect the possession and battle against contact all over the court. She slid into passing lanes grabbing the steal, and she can certainly handle these all the way up the court herself. She was cutting to the hoop with speed staying ready to catch the pass and score.
Emma Montanari was getting inside for rebounds even scoring from offensive boards showing off some nice post moves like her power dribbles to get the ball up and in the hoop. Her jab step is very effective getting her defender off balance as she drives around them and scores battling contact for some old fashioned three point plays. She did a nice job moving laterally on defense to keep her opponent in front of her.
Hailey Mcfadden
Hailey Mcfadden
Hailey Mcfadden was a strong presence in the paint being persistent going against contact for some rebounds. She seals off her opponents making sure she is the only one who can catch the pass or rebound. She did a nice job starting with her back to the basket, turning to square up, and bank in some points.
Kiara Anderson
Kiara Anderson
Kiara Anderson was another excellent ball handler for her team using her crossovers to get to the rim and score some points. Her quick closeout caused problems for her opponents on defense as she was constantly able to put a hand in their faces as they shot the ball. When breaking the press, she was able to recognize when and where traps were coming in order to avoid them as she got the ball up the court.