Freshman Showcase: Team 2 Evaluations

5’4 CG Grace Gaudard (aka Gigi) had herself a day. She didn’t let her size stop her one bit on either end of the floor and everyone loves an undersized guard who gets after it. She rebounded the ball offensively, making multiple pull up jumpers from the mid range. She is quick on defense having multiple steals and threw an absolute rocket half court bounce pass to an open teammate. At one point she dribbled around 3 defenders in the paint for a layup opportunity. Gigi did a good job handling the ball under pressure and finding open teammates. She’s someone who will make some noise in the Holt program moving forward.

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5’4 SG Taylor Allen Taylor Allen 5’5″ | CG Unknown | 2027 MI was one of the most team-first players on the court Sunday. She did great seeing her ball and man on defense, a strength today was her on ball defense and lateral slides. She did well keeping her eyes up while pushing the ball out with both hands in transition, leading to an assist. Taylor will be someone to watch with the Midland Dow program.

Yazmyne Morales was one of the most aggressive defenders on the court Sunday. She consistently applied pressure on her girl in both halves of the court. Her best plays came when stealing passes and finishing layups at the rim or finding teammates for assists. Yazmyne displayed off-ball awareness setting ball screens, cutting to open space, and converted contested layups in traffic. She handled the ball under pressure well, being able to dribble using both hands and demonstrate patience on offense. Kalamazoo Central has an outstanding two way player in Morales.

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Jordynn Ratliff stood out today as one of the most complete prospects on the court and top point guards at the showcase. Jordynn is left-handed and scored at all three levels: she’s explosive. She created space and shot accurately from 3-pt range. Jordynn goes downhill with force and had many finishes at the rim with contact. She had an excellent pull up game and in transition will find open teammates. Her on-ball pressure defense created havoc for opponents and led to defensive buckets for herself and teammates. West Bloomfield will enjoy having Jordynn join their high school ranks this season.

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5’8 CG Sydney Black is going to be a contributor for East Lansing day one. Her ball-handling at the showcase was one of the best as she could create space using advanced techniques. She had to have been one of the leaders in offensive rebounds and she finished at least four put backs, while being fouled. Sydney finished strong into defenders using both hands. She also showed her strength defensively applying pressure and forcing many turnovers. Sydney had a head turning spin and finish during the 2nd half of game one. She was a vocal leader on her team communicating where she was in help. Seeing her play today was a blast and she is someone you should see make an impact this upcoming season.

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Sophia Mator had some very nice plays at the showcase for team 2. She had a great baseline dribble to the basket and showed she can keep her head up and make the pass to her open teammates. She had a wonderful wing 3 from the dribble and also a good looking floater attempt. Sophia is someone who has the shooting mechanics, high release snapping her wrist, that shows they can shoot the rock. She had multiple deflections and put pressure on her girl. Sophia is someone you will want to see play at Airport this season.

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Brooke Skrabis definitely hit her stride as the day went on at the showcase. Her ball-handling stood out as a strength; she was able to drive to the rim and finish with both hands or dish to an open teammate. Brooke had multiple steals and once she got the ball, she took it to the rim and finished in traffic. Brooke’s poise handling the ball, ability to create space with her dribble, and quickness to the rim left an impression. Kent City has a great prospect coming up the ranks.

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Bailey Allison immediately impressed during the first game of the showcase. She is a power forward who dribbles well using both hands, while seeing the court and passing the ball. Bailey showed a high basketball IQ, finding open teammates closer to the basket when she received passes in the high post. She had strong two handed finishes around the rim and controlled the boards on offense and defense. She blocked shots protecting the rim and had an excellent give and go layup. Her all around game will be an asset for Lawton and she is a post player who I’m excited to see develop at the HS level.

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Height runs in the family and Calista Ivejaz is the latest sister to showcase her skills for PGH. There were many tall, strong, and skilled posts on the court today and Calista showed she can battle inside. She demonstrated good vision as she caught entry passes and made bounce passes to open teammates. Calista did well in help position, disrupting the passing lanes. She had quite a few deflections and steals. Calista also had multiple blocks today. Her offensive game started to come on in the later games as she hit a 3-pt shot. Her effort and hustle to chase down offensive rebounds was impressive to see. Calista made multiple free throws and released the ball with a high arc and finish. Seeing her develop and compete at Stoney Creek will be something to look forward to.

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Natasha Shell Natasha Shell PG Cass Tech | 2027 MI had a terrific day today at the showcase. She was one of the leading play-makers on both ends of the court today. Natasha applied relentless pressure on the ball, which led to full court transition layups. She showed her range by hitting a corner 3 and utilized the step back move multiple times. I wrote down “fast” in my notes multiple times for her today and her quickness laterally on defense created headaches for opponents. She had an impressive fake pass layup attempt and drive floater bucket. Natasha is an athletic CG that will contribute to Cass Tech without a doubt.

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