Wildcat Shootout: Surprises in South Georgia

When Shayla Smith asked me to come to the Wildcat Shootout back in March I quickly agreed to come after seeing the team list. I am very thankful I did as this area in rich in girls basketball talent from North Florida and South Georgia. Several players who I had seen before stood out and played up to their names and reputations, but it was the new names which a lot of game that was the reward of this trip. These players were not kids I had seen in person before, at least not for an extended time, but will look forward to seeing again. There were college coaches from multiple schools in attendance all three days of the event and talking with several, they were equally impressed.    Mallory was one of the most productive players scoring the ball in the paint, and in a variety of ways, for a very good Ribault team, who played the best competition at the event. Without a true post player and being the tallest player on her team, she did a lot of damage inside while showing a lot of skill and touch. She was excellent attacking the basket off the dribble, as well as running the lanes on the fast break and scoring in transition. In isolation situations she showed patience in allowing her teammates to clear out so she could go to work. There were no forced shots or wasted dribbles when she had the basketball in her hands. She was very efficient using or two dribbles as well as pivoting and using shot fakes to get the defender off their feet before finishing with nice touch around the rim. Mallory shot the ball from the perimeter as well. She performed very well in other areas of the game, rebounding the ball at a high clip while serving as a deterrent for opposing teams on defense.     As soon as Berg walked in the gym I immediately asked Shayla Smith who she was. Standing over 6'2' tall with broad shoulders it was hard to miss her as she and her teammates went to go stretch. When the game started it was clear that she was going to be a kid and a name that I will become very familiar with over the next four years as she is only now about to start her freshman year of high school at Ware County. She is not just a 2030 and big however, Berg scored three times in the first half of their game against Bradwell Institute after establishing post position and giving a target to her wings. Once she received the ball, she kept it high and showed a lot of touch finishing off the glass. A couple of those scores came off of good, old fashioned drop steps on the block. Once Maleigha started scoring, the fouls started coming when she received the basketball in scoring position. She looked very confident at the free throw showing good form and follow through. She was an active rebounder, again showing excellent mobility for her size and age, while also blocking multiple shots on defense. She is and will be a high division one target with one SEC school already extending an offer according to another high school coach at the event.     Skylar had one of the best finishing packages, specifically with her left hand, that I have seen since the high school season ended. She was able to use her shiftiness with the dribble to blow by defenders on the break and in the half court, before smoothly scoring at the rim. Her footwork was very good in tight quarters and at 5'7 she had no problem finishing amongst the trees. Wilson used spin moves, pivoted, and played off two feet before scoring the ball multiple times with her left hand. I can't underscore the level of difficulty on some of the lay ups she was able to convert. Skylar also should a big basketball IQ initiating and facilitating the offense and getting other talented scorers the ball in position to do damage. Defensively, Wilson was able to pick the ball off her man several times turning defense into offense converting easy baskets as a result. I was really impressed with her game and floor generalship for a kid just entering her sophomore season of high school.     I have seen Maleyah play a few (3-4) times in the past, but never without KJ Acree, who went down with an injury on the second day of the shootout. On day three it was up to Maleyah and [player_tooltip player_id='674576' first='Taylor' last='McKinzy'] to pick up the slack for Monroe against Ribault and Ware County. Hines wasted little time letting everyone in the gym know she was there in her first game of the day. You could hear oh's and ah's after she sprinted back in transition defense and volleyball spiked a Ribault player's lay up attempt off the backboard sending the ball almost back out past the three point line when it came off the glass. Over the next few minutes you could see why KJ Acree herself told me in March that Hines "was next". Elite athleticism, not good or great, Elite and standing at 6'1 she looks like she was born to play the game. She scored while being fouled twice the next few trips down the floor in emphatic and impressive fashion. She is a competitive player who took no plays off and fought through some bumps she took in the game. She has already earned multiple division one offers and that list is sure to grow as she continues to work on her overall game, something I know she has been doing a lot of. She has a very high ceiling and is nowhere near as good as she will be. She has the "it" factor and I found myself waiting to see what she was going to do next.     Taylor had a very impressive showing for Monroe the two days they were competing at Camden County doing what she does best, ripping the nets from three point range. Like Hines without Acree, she was forced to assert herself more on the offensive end and she did just that in their game against Ribault. Because she had the basketball in her hands more than usual, more of her overall game was on display. Taylor is a very long 5'9. Standing next to her she looks closer to 5'10 or 5'11 and has a long wingspan. McKinzy attacked the basket with very good results and more intention and regularity than usual filling the void left by Acree. She either scored or was fouled and got to the line, more often than not, where she shot the ball very well. She was impressive as usual shooting the ball from three point range, especially off the dribble. She is excellent in catch and shoot situations, so it was good to see her take and make long shots in transition as well as in the half court after she created the necessary space. Taylor holds multiple division one offers and is a highly sought after player by several in state schools.     Against a very good North Hall team who gave every team they played fits at the Wildcat Shootout, Roberts played an excellent game in helping her team almost pull off a massive upset. Roberts has very good size and used her strength to hold off defenders when handling the ball and power through contact around the rim. She did a nice job pushing the ball on the break against the North hall press picking a choosing when to score and when to hit her open teammates. She scored the ball from all three levels while displaying a calm and a lot of confidence leading her team. It was no surprise when I saw that she was the Region Player of the Year this past season and has already scored over 1400 points in her three years of high school. Roberts currently holds two juco offers from East Georgia State and Parkland College. She may have been the biggest secret or surprise of the trip for me and I believe she has the size and skills to be a meaningful contributor in the right college program.     Parrish is coming off her sophomore season that saw her stuff the stat sheet in the five major categories while also averaging nearly ten points per game for Camden County. She is another player where once warm ups began, it only takes a minute or two to figure out that she is a player. Parrish is probably best known for her ability to shoot the basketball from long range and over six feet tall. She did that in abundance making multiple threes in every game that the host Wildcats played. There is no doubt she a is a gifted shooter, but it was her effort on the defensive end that was a pleasant surprise. Parrish used her height, length, and leaping ability to erase and subsequently alter a number of shots throughout the course of the three days. Some of the blocks were in man to man defense, others saw Parrish come from out of her area to help prevent the opposition from scoring. Parrish also showed explosiveness finishing at the rim. She holds multiple offers from division one schools Jackson State, George Mason, and the latest coming after camp with North Florida.

When Shayla Smith asked me to come to the Wildcat Shootout back in March I quickly agreed to come after seeing the team list. I am very thankful I did as this area in rich in girls basketball talent from North Florida and South Georgia. Several players who I had seen before stood out and played up to their names and reputations, but it was the new names which a lot of game that was the reward of this trip. These players were not kids I had seen in person before, at least not for an extended time, but will look forward to seeing again. There were college coaches from multiple schools in attendance all three days of the event and talking with several, they were equally impressed.