Kids Who Surprised Me This Weekend

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Yesterday, I talked about some of the standouts of the Champions Challenge. Today, I'd like to highlight some kids in the 17U and 16U divisions that surprised me most.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='884001' first='Cassidy' last='Hemauer']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hemauer hasn't been one of the premier players in the Classic Eight in her time. However, Hemauer is always on the floor and can hurt opposing teams on both ends of the floor. We saw why this past weekend. She's a physical wing who can dig in and defend multiple positions, stretch the floor, make shots, and is reliable with the ball. I liked her when I saw her playing with Muskego, and she's a kid who intrigued people this past weekend. She's the type of player every coach at the high school level would want on their team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='890999' first='Sophie' last='Busch']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It flew under the radar, but Appleton North had an outstanding year, finishing as "best of the rest" in the FVA behind Hortonville, Kimberly, and Neenah. Busch was integral to that Lightning group and continued playing well at the Champions Challenge. Busch showed some shot-making ability from the mid-range area and the perimeter, which I expected. However, I thought she defended much better than I expected. She's a solid on-ball defender but an excellent help-side defender. Busch earned a handful of steals by digging in on drives and getting her hands on the ball. I took her name down after this weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='886257' first='Mya' last='Joy Hemmer']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I remember watching Hemmer about two years ago, before her first season in high school. I knew Hemmer had plenty of talent, but she was already better than I expected. She plays a physical style of basketball while also having more touch than I remember her having. She knocked down a few shots that looked excellent out of her hands. Hemmer and [player_tooltip player_id='734932' first='Lillie' last='Johnson'] are excellent grassroots basketball pairing, and their games complement each other well. That [program_tooltip program_id='715386' first='Great' last='Northern Elite'] 16U group is a must-watch for Regional Scholarship-Level programs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='874695' first='Addison' last='Betker']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Racine native is not the most athletic guard you'll see, but Betker figures out ways to make things happen on the floor. She may not be as fast as other guards, but she uses her physicality to keep defenders on her hip and finish around the rim by using her body to shield her defender. I thought she played well while playing up an age level against some talented groups that her team squared off against in Appleton last weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->