PGH Freshman Showcase Team Nine Breakdown (Part One)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last weekend, in Appleton, we had our third PGH Freshman Showcase. I enjoy seeing the new faces of high school basketball before the season, and plenty of players at the event will make their mark on the high school season this winter. Today, we're discussing all the players from Team Nine of the 5v5 portion of the event and highlighting what they brought to the floor. We'll keep this up until we wrap up all ten 5v5 teams that played at the Freshman Showcase.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='875015' first='Samantha' last='Zilm']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zilm showed her athleticism in Appleton during the Freshman Showcase. I thought she made multiple plays on the defensive end of the floor when I watched her play. I also liked her ability to read the game on both ends of the floor. Her ability to make plays on the defensive end of the floor will help her get on the floor as soon as possible and make an impact.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='900155' first='Ella' last='Baier']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Baier is a physical kid who isn't afraid of contact. She was willing to play through and create contact around the basket. Baier also defended at a high level on the perimeter. Another thing that I liked about what she did on the floor was her willingness to pick up her defender full court and pressure the ball whenever she got a chance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1224295' first='Brynlee' last='Krueger']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The future Middleton guard is a player who clearly has an excellent work ethic. She takes everything in the game seriously and competes whenever she's on the floor. I thought she handled the ball well and showed that she can change directions well. She is also a threat to score from every level of the floor on the offensive end. From watching her play, I also believe that Krueger will figure out a way to maximize her talents. She approaches the game the right way.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1221992' first='Aubry' last='Mangan']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mangan is a skilled shooter who can knock down shots on the perimeter and space the floor for any offense she plays in. I thought she played through traffic well on the offensive end of the floor and bent the defense to keep her from scoring in the paint. I also thought she was willing to dig in and rebound on both ends of the floor. She will play at Grafton this winter, and I'm eager to see what she can do with a group with plenty of potential this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->