Yooper Hoopers: Week One

In case you didn't know, there is a vast area of land located on the other side of the Mackinaw Bridge known as Michigan's Upper Peninsula. A 'yooper' is a resident of the Upper Peninsula and we want to make sure the girl's basketball prospects who play across the bridge are receiving media coverage and recognition as well. Driving to games from Southeast Michigan is a challenge, but each week I will be tuning into games online. My goal is to help college coaches and our Michigan girls' basketball community in the south learn more about the best players in the U.P. Here are some of the Yooper Hoopers who stood out last week.    Kara is a shifty guard who has the speed to burn defenders with her crossover dribbles and bury triples with a quick release. She can stop on a dime and threw an excellent jump pass over her defender. Kara creates steals with her nose for the ball and led the Vikings in scoring with 15 points against Linden-Lake Hubbell. She showed off her 3-point accuracy by draining 5 triples from different spots on the court.     Emily delivered a 3-point shooting display that guided the Lakes to a solid win over a tough Baraga squad. She has college range, hitting multiple deep triples from a variety of spots across the court. Emily drained a staggering 6 triples and added another field goal to lead her team with 20 points. Her quick release and balanced footwork on the catch help her fire shots with defenders contesting the shot. Emily stole passes and pushed the ball in transition, dished strong passes to teammates, and created space with a variety of crossover combinations.     Mya is a tough forward prospect who gives the Vikings an edge inside. She muscled her way into position to corral several rebounds on both ends of the court and created steals. Mya fought for an offensive rebound and dished a pass out to a perimeter shooter for the assist. She was extremely effective at driving downhill against the opponent's forwards. Mya caught a pass in the high post and blew by her defender to score a contested layup. She caught another pass in the high post and used a spin dribble step through to score a contested layup off the glass. Mya finished the game against Lake Linden-Hubbell with 10 points.     Payton gave Lake Linden-Hubbell a spark on the offensive end and handled the ball with poise on Friday against Baraga. Payton used inside-out dribbles and jabs to create space from defenders while finding open space against the zone. She provided perimeter points for the Lakes, drilling a smooth wing 3 off the hop and a deep straightaway step-back 3 with little space. Payton converted a baseline drive floater, tossed long skip passes to open teammates, and hit smooth mid-range jumpers. She finished the game with 19 points and was crucial to the team's victory.     Lillie is currently our highest ranked U.P prospect and she surpassed 1,000 points last week in the first game of her Junior season. Lillie drove hard to the rim and finished contested layups at will. She buried two triples, added offensive rebound putbacks, and scored with a soft touch on her floaters. Lillie's 1,000th-point moment came in the third quarter as she used a double crossover dribble to beat her defender, avoided the help with a pro hop, and elevated to score a pull-up floater off two feet in the paint. Lille led all scorers with 25 points, which lifted Gladstone to a big win against Ishpeming.     Jenessa showed her competitive fire against Gladstone last week, guarding the opposing team's top prospect and keeping her team in the game with her efforts on offense. Jenessa buried multiple crossover dribble step-back 3s and drained five triples on the night. She tacked on free throws with sound shooting mechanics and took a defensive rebound coast to coast in transition to score a strong layup against a taller defender. Jenessa hustled to jump up for a block on a perimeter shot and secured rebounds for the Hematites. She finished the game with 22 points and had an outstanding night.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">At the Buzzer</h2>   Evan Bell is currently a scout for Prep Girls Hoops and Director of <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"> </a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/">             </a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"> </a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"> </a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"> </a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/">[program_tooltip program_id='923712' first='Prepare' last='2 Win Basketball']</a>                  . Our <a href="https://www.prepnetwork.com/frequently-asked-questions/">mission</a> at PGH is to cover as many athletes with D2, D3, NAIA, and JUCO potential in the state as possible. If you know a prospect off our radar, please DM Evan through Twitter @CoachEvanBell or email him at coachevanbell@gmail.com

In case you didn't know, there is a vast area of land located on the other side of the Mackinaw Bridge known as Michigan's Upper Peninsula. A 'yooper' is a resident of the Upper Peninsula and we want to make sure the girl's basketball prospects who play across the bridge are receiving media coverage and recognition as well. Driving to games from Southeast Michigan is a challenge, but each week I will be tuning into games online. My goal is to help college coaches and our Michigan girls' basketball community in the south learn more about the best players in the U.P. Here are some of the Yooper Hoopers who stood out last week.