Queen of the Rock: Sunday’s Action (15s)

<!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"small"} --> <p class="has-small-font-size"><em>The featured image is of [player_tooltip player_id='902152' first='Delaney' last='Noll'] (2028) of Homestead H.S. and West Virginia Thunder-Riego GUAA 15U.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This weekend marked the annual Queen of the Rock tournament. This year, the event was headquartered at the PSM Fieldhouse <em>(formerly SportOne Fieldhouse)</em> in Fort Wayne, Indiana. There were a number of quality programs in action, from shoe company teams to independent teams, as well as geographically from Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and other states. Below is a quick look at a handful of players who stood out when I was able to see them during Sunday's tournament action.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><font color="FFFFFF">.</font></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='879936' first='[player_tooltip player_id='874987' first='Janaya' last='']' last='Cooper'], 2028, 5-10 W, Fort Wayne Snider H.S., [program_tooltip program_id='716173' first='Always' last='100'] Elite 3SSB 15U</strong><br>- [player_tooltip player_id='874987' first='Janaya' last=''] has always been an impressive athletic talent, and now, she looks even stronger and is using more of a controlled explosiveness. She moves effortlessly around the court, and she can run &amp; jump with anyone in Indiana. Skillfully, her handle has improved immensely, and she is doing a nice job of breaking down defenders off the bounce, changing directions in traffic, and getting to the basket anytime she wants. Her shot has also become more consistent, and defensively, she is sitting down and locking up with greater urgency.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='992221' first='Brooklyn' last='Crim'], 2028, 5-8 W, New Palestine H.S., West Virginia Thunder-Horton S40 15U</strong><br>- Brooklyn was constantly on attack when I was able to see her team yesterday. She is very strong, almost powerful for a wing, and she is a downhill driver who loves to draw contact and attempt to finish at the rim. She has some skill/touch around the perimeter, but she's much more comfortable in the mid-post right now and using contact to be productive. She hustles everywhere, dives on the floor, plus she is an effective rebounder at her size.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='902152' first='Delaney' last='Noll'], 2028, 5-9 G, Homestead H.S., West Virginia Thunder-Riego GUAA 15U</strong><br>- Delany is a knockdown shooter who has done a nice job of making her game much more versatile. She is starting to handle the ball quite a bit, create and change directions against pressure, and she has a nice feel for the game in general. She still finds times to get rhythm around the perimeter and bury shots, plus she's defending with good technique and understanding. She has gotten noticeably stronger, and just everything about her game is more efficient when comparted to last year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>L.J. Ducolon, 2029, 5-11 F, Mt. Notre Dame H.S. (OH), West Virginia Thunder-Blum S40 15U</strong><br>- Being an Ohio prospect, I was not at all familiar with L.J. entering the game, but she played against a more talented opponent and seemed to fit right in. She has a strong, long frame for an 8th Grader, but she also has good all-around skill. Where she stood out was her ability to put the ball on the floor and attack the basket, change directions on the way, and draw contact to earn free throw trips. Right now, she is probably more of a face-up '4' who should eventually become more of a '3'.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Quinn Sowder, 2030, 6-2 F, Brownsburg H.S., [program_tooltip program_id='1002297' first='IGB' last='']-Shade GUAA 15U</strong><br>- Playing "up" two age groups, Quinn was often the best player on the floor in her games this weekend. She has nice height at her age, a wiry-strong frame, and once she's done growing, she will likely add more explosion as well. She is skilled, can handle in transition, use the dribble to get to the basket and score, plus she has touch and the ability to make shots at all three levels. Defensively, she doesn't shy away from contact, she rebounds aggressively, and she will block a lot of shots with her height/length. She has a very high ceiling.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->