Five players who are taking their teams to the next level

This article is for the five players who really helped their teams stand out among the rest. These girls have guts and grit, and they brought their teams the glory.    [player_tooltip player_id='1823377' first='Samarah' last='McClain'], she can rotate like a champ, she embraces challenges and performs well under pressure. Samarah showcased beautiful defensive rotations when she would consistently assist her teammates, and recover swiftly to eliminate several open scoring opportunities. At one point after defending a pick-and-roll, Samarah rotated to cover the open cutter while one of her teammates recovered to the ball handler.   Embracing challenges and playing under pressure is what Samarah does best. She constantly responded quite positively to adversity, while keeping an aggressive mindset and continuing to compete at an extremely high level. At the end of the match, Samarah was assigned to guard the opposing team's leading scorer. Rather than trying to avoid the challenge, Samarah faced the situation head-on. She competed for every possession and forced several different shots on the opposing team.       [player_tooltip player_id='1245633' first='Michaela' last='Clover'] had fantastic speed in transition, defended multiple positions, and could absorb contact. Michaela showed off her defensive versatility by effortlessly guarding several different positions and adapting quickly to different matchups. Throughout many points in the match; Michaela successfully guarded the opposing team's point guard, she would quickly switch onto the wing and was able to hold her own against the opposing team's post player after a defensive switch.   Michaela also had several chances to show off her excellent ability to absorb contact. She displayed fantastic physicality by maintaining control through contact and perpetually converting very difficult scoring opportunities for her team. At one point in the match, Michaela secured an offensive rebound in traffic, she took contact while going back up, but despite all that she still scored without losing her balance.     [player_tooltip player_id='1231634' first='Cailyn' last='Olechnowicz'] led her team by example, she kept her teammates engaged, and she has excellent agility. Cailyn showed her strong leadership by keeping up positive communication and making sure her teammates were engaged through the entire match. At a certain point, one of her teammates took a tumble and Caitlyn immediately helped them up while encouraging them to keep going and not give up.   Cailyn showcased her impressive agility by switching her directions and speeds, all while keeping complete control of the ball. During one stretch of the match, Cailyn caught the ball in a transition. She successfully executed a hesitation move, weaved through the defence, and finished right at the rim without breaking her stride even once. Cailyn combines her leadership skills with her fantastic agility, making her a crucial member of her team.     Tajaleya Smith-McCord can anticipate plays before they even occur, and she plays hard every possession. Tajaleya showed superb anticipation by expertly reading the court, disrupting the passing lanes, keeping an eye on the offense, and making plenty of transition opportunities for her teammates. During one point in the match Tajaleya, acting as defender, kept her focus locked on the opposing team's point guard. Tajaleya swiftly jumped the passing lane right before the pass was thrown, and executed a steal that led directly to a fast-break layup.   Tajaleya also made sure to play extremely hard for possessions when they came her way. After missing a shot, Tajaleya shrugged it off and sprinted right back on defense. Then immediately fought for the defensive rebound on the next possession. Tajaleya was completely relentless on every single possession, and constantly created several hustle plays on both ends of the court, showing she has what it takes to be a great athlete.       Nikyla Ranson, her footwork is excellent, and her explosiveness is off the charts. Let's start off with Nikyla's impressive footwork skills, she employed controlled pivots with very efficient movement, resulting in several scoring opportunities. At one point in the match, when Nikyla was acting as a post player, she expertly caught the ball on the block. Then used a very strong pivot and drop-step to cause separation, and she finished without even having to travel.   Now let's talk about Nikyla's exceptional explosiveness. She showed her skills with a fast initial step and constantly created separation off the dribble. When Nikyla was playing in a guard position, she caught the ball on the perimeter, then took an explosive initial step right past her defender. Nikyla then got to the rim right before the help defense could rotate.

This article is for the five players who really helped their teams stand out among the rest. These girls have guts and grit, and they brought their teams the glory.