Playoff Update: Winning With Excellence

Here are five prospects that put together meaningful contests last night, helping their high school programs keep their hopes alive and onto the next round of the Playoffs.   Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!    Some shots you never forget. Some shots are so monumental in your basketball journey that they become a staple as to who you are. Last night, we had one of those shots. With 12 seconds left in the game, Norris High School came down the floor, they ran a set, and they hit a 3 pointer to tie the game at 41 with 4 seconds remaining. From here, [player_tooltip player_id='820879' first='Ava' last='Markowski'] did the rest. She quickly inbounded the ball, received it back, and she threw up an attempt from three quarters court - eventually swishing it in at the buzzer to send her team onto the next round of the Playoffs. Markowski is a prospect that would be considered a deadly shooter with size and versatility. She stands around 6'0 and her shooting stroke always looks identical, no matter where she is letting it go from. In this instance, she had to shoot it as more of a runner because of the distance but nevertheless, it went it and Pius X moves on.     [player_tooltip player_id='302473' first='Taliyah' last='Jackson'] of PLV High School demonstrated last night that you have to pay attention to her or else she could kill you in a short amount of time. Jackson, a 5'7 SG, lived up to her positions name yesterday in her 24 point outburst. In this showing, Jackson scored half of her shot attempts from behind the arc and half within. She also finished 4-5 from the charity strip, really displaying the well rounded-ness of the outing. Whenever you go against PLV, you have to worry about their main producer in [player_tooltip player_id='766581' first='Rease' last='Murtaugh'] but if team's also have to worry about Jackson as well, things could get extremely interesting moving forward.     Bellevue East has some experienced guard play and that play shows up every time they take the floor. Someone for this group that has been fantastic this Winter is senior [player_tooltip player_id='896234' first='Bra'Ni' last='Jackson']. Jackson is a Seward CC Women's Basketball commit and I think she is someone that will be able to make some strides at the next level. Right now Jackson is a fast acting prospect, that can knock down three's off the catch or she can play off of her dribble. Whenever I've seen Jackson perform, most can't stick with her in the full court because of her speed and high motor. Last night Jackson helped her team in multiple statistical categories while being a senior leader. The Cheiftains have this "dynamic duo" at the 1 and 2 spots with Jackson and Wilson. When they are playing off each other at a high rate, they are very tough to slow down or stop. That's been obvious all season long and it was again last night.     [player_tooltip player_id='758994' first='Abbi' last='Durow'] is going to be a steal for some lucky college program following her high school career. Durow, the 5'8 CG, came to play again last night, helping her team to an 8 point victory against Lincoln East. She ended the contest with a game high 21 points on 7-10 shooting from the field. Durow has been a constant all Winter long. Her natural play making ability, her quick dribble, her instincts, and her knowledge of the game have helped her become one of the state's biggest stock-risers of the Winter. Every night that she has taken the floor this season, she has demonstrated that she is going to get a ton of buckets, while being a solid defender at the same time. She has a crafty ability to make something out of nothing and I'm hoping Millard South can ride this victory into a deep Post Season run before we know it.     [player_tooltip player_id='757592' first='Sanai' last='Foster'] of Omaha Westside led her team on Wednesday night in their 20+ point victory against Norfolk High School. Foster in this one could not be stopped by the hoop. Her mixture of height at 6'2 and her athletic ability made her a tough opponent to box out, stay in front of, or to keep from getting to any spots she really wanted to throughout the contest. She finished things off with 15 points on 58% shooting and she grabbed 6 rebounds, mainly on the defensive side of things. All in all, Norfolk just couldn't handle Westside as a whole. At the end of the contest, all 13 players who saw the floor for Warriors scored in one way or another. This speaks not only to how well Westside is playing right now as a group but it also speaks to what they might be able to do down the line, in the future.

Here are five prospects that put together meaningful contests last night, helping their high school programs keep their hopes alive and onto the next round of the Playoffs.