PGH MI College Tour III GVSU: Meet the MVPs

Our third stop of the PGH Michigan College Tour was a mic drop. The quality and variety of clubs, talent, hosting facility, amount of college coaches on site, and format were exactly what we've all wanted to see for years. We've been waiting for a tournament that felt like a Michigan AAU State Championship was on the line, and that's exactly how this felt. At the home of back-to-back D2 national champions, Grand Valley State University, our staff emptied the tank to provide the best possible experience and live coverage we could. The positive feedback from college coaches, parents, and AAU coaches was overwhelming. Thank you to everyone who supported this and made an unforgettable weekend possible!   Here's how the HS brackets shaped out:   Diamond Champions   17U Mystics P24   16U [program_tooltip program_id='712670' first='Michigan' last='Storm Elite']   15U Mystics P24   Gold Champions   17U Mystics S40   16U 5Star Basketball UA Rise   15U [program_tooltip program_id='714462' first='Michigan' last='Premier'] Dean   Silver Champions   17U Always 100 E40 Skills   16U Lady Team Focus   15U [program_tooltip program_id='1239258' first='HB' last='Elite']   Bronze Champions   17U [program_tooltip program_id='1849321' first='Kalamazoo' last='Basketball Academy']   Every 15U-17U Championship Game received full-game coverage on X, intentionally planned to amplify the experience for the girls who battled to make it all the way to the finals. Let's meet the MVPs from the Championship Games!    Mystics 17U P24 left nothing to chance in the Diamond Championship Game. They jumped out to a huge lead early and never looked back. Mia was most effective at slashing to the rim, getting the advantage in front of the rim, creating driving lanes with her quick dribble combo moves/jabs, outmuscling defenders inside, and finishing. She absorbed contact on a drive to score a strong and-one layup with a soft touch high off the window, then completed the three-point play at the line. Mia finished with her left on a drive-by, sealed a defender after a cut, caught the lob entry with good hands, then scored with her left off two feet. She converted free throws at the line after drawing a foul on a drive, swiped the ball away on defense for another lefty finish, and went by again for another layup. Mia showed she has no problem going left and using that hand to score consistently in traffic. She led the squad in scoring and received Diamond Championship Game MVP honors.     Ashlyn had an outstanding weekend for [program_tooltip program_id='712670' first='Michigan' last='Storm Elite'] 16U, and it culminated in an impressive performance in the Diamond Championship Game. Ashlyn was a dynamic and poised ball-handler for her team, coming up big in crunch time. She moved her feet quickly to apply pressure and picked the ball-handler's pockets on the defensive end. Ashlyn drained a smooth wing three, drove into a jump stop, let the defender fly by, then pivoted to score with her left off the glass. She swiped the ball away for a layup, finished with finesse at the rim, created space with her shifty dribble combinations, and handled the ball confidently against length and pressure. Ashlyn led the way with 13 points and received recognition as Diamond Championship Game MVP.     Taryn anchored the interior for Mystics 15U P24, and her play ultimately led to a 15U Diamond Championship. Danyle's notes from the game included: "dominating on the boards, seals defender-holds and finishes with both hands with great footwork, rim runner, many blocks." Taryn scored through contact, finished well with both hands, and battled for inside positioning all weekend, leading to high percentage layups. She gets to her spots, holds her ground on both ends, and disrupts bigs well without fouling. Taryn received recognition as a Diamond Championship Game Co-MVP.     Elaina was an effective court general for Mystics 15U P24 all weekend, and that ended with them standing tall as the Diamond Champions. Danyle's notes from the Championship Game: "shifty crossover to get by defender, couple of wing threes, composed PG, handling pressure, good post-entry passer, hit big FT's at the end of the championship game." Elaina received recognition as a Diamond Championship Game Co-MVP.     Ryenn was a game wrecker for Mystics 17U S40 in the Gold Championship Game. College coaches lined the baseline, and Ryenn played like a scholarship was on the line--her motor kept running at full tilt all game, ultimately ending in an offer from Hope College. She closed out full speed to disrupt perimeter shooters and emphatically swatted a shot attempt in the lane with aggression. There was one play where Ryenn closed out from the paint to force a shooter on the wing to pass to the corner, then immediately raced over and kept that player from getting a shot away. She stepped outside to drain a corner three, corralled many rebounds on both ends, distributed passes effectively to open teammates, finished at the rim comfortably using either hand, converted free throws at the line, and scored putbacks. Ryenn made a smooth transfer to her left for an and-one layup, then completed the three-point play at the line. Her complete performance helped the team win the Gold Championship and led to MVP recognition.     Kyla continuously carved up the defense on her path to the rim in the 16U Gold Championship Game. She finished through contact and showed great capacity to convert shots from difficult angles. Kyla changed directions suddenly, had the ball on a string, threw great entry passes with touch over the defense into the post, closed out hard on shooters to force misses, and generated steals with her scrappy ball pressure. Kyla's shifty moves and explosive burst going downhill resulted in several free throws. She knocked them down confidently from the line, barely disturbing the net. Kyla scored a sweet veer layup against a contesting defender and received Gold Championship Game MVP honors.     Hayden was an absolute warrior for [program_tooltip program_id='714462' first='Michigan' last='Premier'] 15U Dean in the 15U Gold Championship Game. She attacked downhill with determination off the dribble and converted key free throws at the line. Hayden knocked down a corner three, escaped pressure in the back court, grabbed rebounds with strong hands, and stole the ball away. Her toughness became apparent after she went down hard after a foul during a full-speed drive to the basket in transition. Shaking off physical pain, she knocked down both free throws. Hayden checked back in, shoulder taped, drained a three-pointer from the slot, and converted two big free throws in the last 30 seconds to help secure the victory. Her gritty performance earned recognition as the Gold Championship Game MVP.     Olivia had a huge weekend for Always 100 E40 Skills. In the 17U Silver Championship Game, she led the surge. Danyle noted specific moments that stood out, "ripped baseline and finished with a reverse layup, caught fire behind the arc and connected on five threes, used an effective hesi dribble to get past her defender, tough defender with active hands." Olivia turned in an impressive effort and received 17U Silver Championship Game honors as a result.     Isabella was productive in every statistical category for Lady Team Focus 16U, setting the standard for determination, and her all-out effort resulted in a 16U Silver Championship Game MVP selection. Isabella worked hard to move her feet and keep the ball contained on the perimeter. She racked up several steals and deflections, making her defense a deciding factor in the outcome. Isabella attacked off the dribble and dished out multiple split-second wrap-around assists in traffic. Isabella swiped the ball away at half court, muscled her way into position for offensive rebounds, closed out hard to block shots on the perimeter, patiently surveyed the scene until the right opportunity came along on the offensive end, and scored a sweet catch and finish with her left hand in transition. Lady Focus 16U won the Silver Championship, and Isabella's complete performance played a major role.     Maddie was an exciting prospect to watch during the 15U Silver Championship Game. She worked hard on the perimeter to move her feet and apply pressure, leading to multiple steals. Maddie went rushing in to fight for rebounds and distributed good passes into the post for assists. Her perimeter shooting was the difference in the game. Whenever the team needed a spark, Maddie stepped up to hit the big outside shot. She drained a game-high five three-pointers for [program_tooltip program_id='1239258' first='HB' last='Elite'] 15U, leading to a hard-fought win and a Silver Championship Game MVP selection.     Ashlyn is a pit bull point guard prospect who chases down ball-handlers with her all-out pressure and drives down the lane with fearless toughness. I'll paint a picture real quick: picked off a pass for a speedy layup, hard drive layup in traffic, backdoor cut catch and one, and-one drive in top gear, good footwork in the paint, shifty inside-out dribble layup, hesi crossover drive-by layup, shot out of a cannon and leaps up to snag a rebound, hard drive in transition for a layup. Ashlyn doesn't shy away from contact, and her clear two-way impact led to a victory for KBA 17U and a Bronze Championship Game MVP selection.

Our third stop of the PGH Michigan College Tour was a mic drop. The quality and variety of clubs, talent, hosting facility, amount of college coaches on site, and format were exactly what we've all wanted to see for years. We've been waiting for a tournament that felt like a Michigan AAU State Championship was on the line, and that's exactly how this felt. At the home of back-to-back D2 national champions, Grand Valley State University, our staff emptied the tank to provide the best possible experience and live coverage we could. The positive feedback from college coaches, parents, and AAU coaches was overwhelming. Thank you to everyone who supported this and made an unforgettable weekend possible!