10 Players Opponents Find Downright Scary

Emily Ryan. Peyton Verhulst. Jaliyah Davis. Kiki Smith. Aubrie Kirscht. Jadyn Wooten. Kerenna Gerber. Kali Briar. Kylee Scheer. Smya Nichols. Oen Deters. Those players are among the select group of great, recent players that opponents feared having to take them on. A bunch more will be taking to the hardwoods this fall (especially in the senior class). Some are very well known. Many of those below are not but I am here to tell ya this batch are players, drawn from every classification, that opponents should be scared of.    The growth in Askew's game has been transformative in the past year. It has not just been skill development. Athletic, quick and fast with great hops Askew upped her physicality and aggressiveness heading into the 2025 6A state tournament. A total dismantling of Wichita East was the result. Askew is the top uncommitted player in the senior class.     The Pittsburg State University commit is one of the top offensive forces in the class. Bringing speed, creativity and athleticism to the table is one thing but her size sends her over the top. The prolific scorer also brings uses her quickness and smarts on the defensive end. Among the top end-to-end transition players with the ball it is dangerous to allow her to get a clean rebound and take off.     After a year away from the game Jensen took the floor by storm over the summer. She is a legitimate center with great size that few high school players can handle at all. And she has always had the ability to score it using her quick feet. What she showed over the summer is unexpected north-south speed, scoring ability going both ways, good hands and three point shooting. Her quick feet and smarts make her an effective defender who has no trouble clearing the ball to start the Maverick transition game.     Smith brings to the table terrific speed, quickness and a balanced game. But her chops is in playing elite defense. The Thunder play a strong schedule along with battling in one of the top large school leagues in the state. Night in, night out Smith takes on the most talented guards in the state and frequently shuts them down. Point guards not on the top of their games will have long nights because of this one.     In three of the last five years the Mustangs have had five loss seasons but have been unable to break through a sub-state final to go to the state tournament. The deep, talented and big Mustangs will be among the best teams in 4A and Pitzer will be a major reason why. 4A has few quality, true bigs so on a nightly basis opponents are going to struggle dealing with her. Pitzer brings a very solid frame, strength, interior footwork and transition speed to the table. This summer she showed the difficulty defenders had with keeping her off the glass and preventing Pitzer from getting good looks inside off entry passes. Look for a big season for the junior.     The Indians are legitimate threat to return to the 4A state tournament but it will not happen without Winter. Yes she is small and light. But as Valley Center found out early last season Winter can be absolutely dominant. She is the best point guard in 4A's 2027 class and it isn't close. A great all-around player with terrific vision and game IQ she will carry her team when needed. And against a very good VC team last season, without two returning all-staters not playing, she took over. Yes the Indians lost but VC could not stop her. Teammates have to always be aware of where she is because she will find them.     Boss had a huge freshman year. After racking up more than 550 points and reaching the 3A state tournament Boss was named first team all-state by KBCA, KSHSAACovered and SIK; non-senior player of the year by SIK and first team Flint Hills League. She also picked up a 3A state javelin championship. The swift and athletic shooting guard has a scorer's mindset to finish through contact and a very quick first step. She also is a dangerous perimeter shooter. That alone spells trouble but add the fact that she has solid size and good length and you have an instant match-up problem. Nearly everybody in the rotation returns so I regard the Indians as a favorite to return to the state tournament.     The returning unanimous first team pick and SIK 2A player of the year repeated as first team Crawford-Neosho-Cherokee League. And if you stand back far enough it is easy to see why. Up close you are gonna miss a great deal. Davis has strong handles and is a three level scorer who finishes well with both hands. She is also among the fastest players in the state with the ball. Very few defenders even remotely can stay within three steps. She has defensive chops as well. Terrific lateral quickness, quick hands and smarts to work over opposing point guards - when sister Janessa is not doing it - makes her a two-way force.     Hey class 2A...She's BAAACK!! After reaching the 3A state tournament as a freshman Rucker became a two-time Tri-Valley League first team selection and was either 2A first or second team by KBCA, KSHSAA and SIK in 2024. After going down mid-season with an injury the Lindenwood University commit is ready to wreak havoc on a league that returns only four all-league players. A high IQ talent and terrific shooter Rucker has a strong build and game on both ends that few opponents will match. Her experience enables her to know how to make everyone around her better. The Tornados will not be an easy out come post-season.     After averaging nearly 23 points per game a year ago on 50% shooting Wurtz could rack up 1600 career points by the end of the year. Following last year she picked up her third Twin Valley League first team selection and was a unanimous, first team all-state pick by KBCA, KSHSAACovered and SIK. Wurtz is a terrific athlete who either is a 1A champion or high medalist in 4 different sprint and jumping events. The speed and hops translate to the court. She uses solid handles, a quality ball fake and scoring ability through contact with either hand and variety of shots to rack up scores and trips to the free throw line. Pack in the defense, Wurtz will shoot the three at a 42% clip. Let her get into the paint, she is a walking three point play. A career 77% from the line, she shot 85% on 143 attempts in 2025. A talent even TVL teams do not want a bench player taking on. For most, it could get real ugly, real quick.

Emily Ryan. Peyton Verhulst. Jaliyah Davis. Kiki Smith. Aubrie Kirscht. Jadyn Wooten. Kerenna Gerber. Kali Briar. Kylee Scheer. Smya Nichols. Oen Deters. Those players are among the select group of great, recent players that opponents feared having to take them on. A bunch more will be taking to the hardwoods this fall (especially in the senior class). Some are very well known. Many of those below are not but I am here to tell ya this batch are players, drawn from every classification, that opponents should be scared of.