TN Week 5: Individual Player Observations (Part 3)
In this article:
The the holiday here, it means we are know at the halfway mark of the high school season….and great time to take stock of what has transpired so for this 23-24 season. Hagen Kirkpatrick TN #157 CG #11 HEIGHT 5'6"…
Access all of Prep Girls Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe the holiday here, it means we are know at the halfway mark of the high school season….and great time to take stock of what has transpired so for this 23-24 season.
Kirkpatrick is a high level shooter/scoring/play-making guard that has transfered from Pigeon Forge to Maryville Christian. Maryville Christian, all of a sudden, has the makings of a really competitive basketball team with a few high-caliber players. It will be really interesting to watch both how Kirkpatrick integrates, and how Coach Hudson uses her.
Highlights
Emma Rainey Emma Rainey 5'8" | PG Bearden | 2026 State TN
Emma Rainey Emma Rainey 5'8" | PG Bearden | 2026 State TN
Rainey is another product of the Bearden “glue kid” manufacturing system they have created. Rainey has stepped up as sophomore, and has slid right into a crucial role for Coach Underwood’s team. She’s the type of kid that plays the right way: two way player that takes pride on both ends, takes pride in doing the little things, getting on loose balls, making the right pass, etc. She’s another kid that has really used travel basketball with TFT ’26 Williams to help her as a high school player. Her TFT shares the load offensively, and values the extra pass. Her offensive role on Bearden has been extremely similar, and Rainey has been able to step in and provide meaningful minutes for a top 5 team in the state. On a team with Hodge and Cooper, etc, Rainey need to come in and be a star in her role, and she’s doing just that.
Katie Graves Katie Graves 5'8" | SG Heritage | 2027 TN
Katie Graves Katie Graves 5'8" | SG Heritage | 2027 TN
The ’27 guard has been a valuable piece of the puzzle for this very talented Heritage team. Graves, just a freshman, was a known “knock down” shooter coming into high school, and she’s been able to slide right into that shooting role. She’s also though generally played at a higher level than many thought she would as she’s averaging nearly 8 points vs a really tough schedule, scored 11 points this week vs South Doyle in a district battle.
Gray (a ’25) is off to a fantastic start for Trevevant. Her stat line makes her one of the most complete players in her class, and one that contributes in a multitude of ways across the board. She is averaging nearly 21 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 4.2 steals. Are you serious? Gray’s impact on winning for her team is hard to quantify because she does so much.
There are some kids that you could just watch play all day….and Heath is one of those players. She’s a 6’1 stretch big (’25) and has had a breakout year for Heritage. She’s consistenely scoring around 14 points, grabbing 8 rebounds, blocks 2 shots, contests everything in the paint, and what I like the best–she is incredibly comfortable stepping away from the rim to shoot threes. When your 6’1 shot blocker can pull the opposing big away from the rim, it changes the geometry of the court for your offense. Heath is a game changing offensive presense, and I’ve hear that her college stock is soaring right now (she just picked up an offer from the University of Pikeville with others coming soon).
Ella Wampler
Ella Wampler
Wampler has been a very steady presence for a really competitive Morristown-East club. She’s a kid with an old-school game: not scared to band and do the dirty work, helps in the paint and on the glass, but also a developing skill set. She’s averaging 13 points and 8 rebounds, and it’s that offensive end that Wampler has made the large jump. She’s provided the extra scoring that Morristown-East needeed.
Emma Millington
Emma Millington
Millington is arguably one of the best middle school scorers in the state. Even though she’s only a 2028, I thought that it was worth mentioning she scored her 1,000th middle school point this week while going onto score 32 for the game. She is already a lights out shooter, and no doubt could help some high school teams right now! She’s legit.
Cecilie Brandimore Cecilie Brandimore 6'3" | C Franklin | 2026 State TN
Cecilie Brandimore Cecilie Brandimore 6'3" | C Franklin | 2026 State TN
Brandimore has been turning heads all season long with her solid contributions on both ends. She been a constant double-double for Franklin girls basketball this season, and recently had 20 point, 23 rebound game, 4 block game in a win vs Cane Ridge. The 6’2 sophomore battled injuries her freshman year, and while you may have not heard of her yet, it was only a matter of time.
Wilhite continues to be one of the best ’27s in the state. Against a really tough Kingston team, on Tuesday, the freshman exploded for 33 points. As we are now entering the midway point of the season, Wilhite’s performances are beginning to become the new normal. This Cumberland County team will be scary from playoff time with their unique mix of skilled vets and freshies. Aliyah Hawkins Aliyah Hawkins 5’7″ | PG Cumberland County | 2025 State TN had a 21 point night on the same night–and if you are getting 50 points from the Cumberland County backcourt, the Lady Jets are winning. She followed that up on Tuesday with a 13 point performance cruising to an easy victory vs Nashville Christian.
The amazing thing about Wilhite, and you could say many of the same things about Lauren Clark Lauren Clark 5’10” | SG Cumberland Co. | 2027 TN ’27, is that she’s level of consistency for her age is simply off the charts. This Cumberland County team is already really good….and they’ve still got room to grow!
Werner continues to be on a tear as she has won back-to-back BCAT District 5-AA Player of the Week Honors. Once is happenstance…twice is trend. Werner has been doing it all season, but really put the state on notice with her 16 point, 7 rebound, 4 assists, 2 block performance in a win vs big time competition in Cookeville. With Werner’s development, Emma Cooper Emma Cooper 6’1″ | PF York Institute | 2026 State TN ‘s development, and Reese Beaty Reese Beaty 5’8″ | PG York Institute | 2025 State TN forever doing Resse Beaty things…you have to consider York a big time threat to bring home a 2A state title.
Caroline Holland Caroline Holland 5'2" | PG Sale Creek | 2026 TN
Caroline Holland Caroline Holland 5'2" | PG Sale Creek | 2026 TN
Holland has been a really consistent player for an upstart Sale Creek team all season. The ’26 hidden gem has averaged 9 points a game on the year, and has really come on strong as of late. She is averaging 2 made threes per game for Sale Creek, which makes her one of the better shooters in the class per game. You have to be impressed by any freshman that can walk on the varsity floor and impact winning, and Holland has done that in a big way.
Hayes has continued her to show out, especially last night, as she hit five 3 pointers on her way to 18 points. As the only returning starter from last year’s team, Hayes has been the focal point of every defensive game plan Grainger has faced, and Hayes continues to find way to get to her spots. And it’s never selfish way. It’s also in the flow of the offense, and in a “we over me” way. Really fun player to watch.