PGH Great Lakes Region Finals: Saturday AM 17U Difference Makers

Day One of the Great Lakes Region Finals featured a full slate of games. Every play counts when you're fighting for a chance to win a circuit championship. Teams emptied their tanks to win and advance in the brackets, with every 17U team opening the tournament with an opportunity to take home a Gold or Silver bracket Championship title. My coverage this weekend is all about the 17U prospects, and here are a few who started the morning strong on opening day.    Chicago Hoops Express 17U needed a powerful performance from their star forward to close out a gritty opponent and they got it. Keyera used her length, mobility, and athleticism to solidify the advantage inside, rotating from the help side to block multiple shots and force misses. She demonstrated excellent passing vision, dishing out assists from the high post, and not forcing the issue. Keyera finished well off two feet, drove hard to the basket to earn trips to the free throw line, and scored the go ahead bucket in the closing seconds of regulation. She continued to make her mark later in the day, pivoting to score over long defenders with great touch in the paint, grabbing offensive rebounds, and added an emphatic swat after anticipating a euro-step move on a drive.     Riley impacted every aspect of the game for Kentuckiana Hoops 17U E40 on Saturday morning of the PGH Great Lakes Region Finals. She sprinted in from the perimeter to secure offensive rebounds and jumped into passing lanes for steals, then pushed the ball up the floor with pace, changing hands comfortably with her eyes up. Riley has a high IQ off the ball, scoring many catch and finish layups off speedy basket cuts. She dished out crisp passes for assists, went up strong to snatch rebounds at their highest point, and knocked down a smooth corner jumper. Riley continued to play well in the afternoon, scoring through contact after driving hard to the rim. She added a backdoor cut catch and finish and-one then tacked on the free throw.     Veronica turned in an impressive morning and consistently operated at a high level for Kentuckiana Hoops 17U E40 throughout day one of the PGH Great Lakes Region Finals. She ripped the ball on a drive by then dropped in a soft floater, pushed the ball up the court with pace using both hands in transition, and dished out several assists. Veronica's pressure and quick hands created steals on the perimeter and resulted in transition points for the team. She drove hard to the basket to score layups in traffic, finished effectively off two feet, and earned trips to the free throw line. Veronica worked hard an maneuvered into position to grab offensive rebounds.     Madelynn's high IQ instincts as a facilitator, toughness, and gritty defensive presence made her a Saturday morning standout for Team Compete 17U at the PGH Great Lakes Region Finals. She created separation against pressure after securing defensive rebounds using a crafty combination of inside-outs and between-the-legs crossovers with her eyes up. I labeled Madelynn as "court general" and she had the ball on a string. Madelynn took one dribble and zipped a bullet pass into the low post for an assist. She penetrated off the dribble, made the help commit, then dished the rock to open teammates for assists. Madelynn created multiple steals on the defensive end and competed hard for every 50/50 ball. One of her highlights was a fast break coast-to-coast layup through contact for the and-one aft securing the defensive board, plus the free throw.     Molly was captain clutch for [program_tooltip program_id='713043' first='Wisconsin' last='Impact'] 17U Overland during their double-OT thriller Saturday morning at the PGH Great Lakes Region Finals. Trailing in the closing seconds, Molly attacked down the baseline to score the tying basket to end regulation. She was a leader on both ends of the court throughout the game. Molly slashed and kicked the ball out to open shooters on the perimeter for assists, threw strong passes inside to cutters, chased down breakaways to poke the ball out from behind, and sprinted back in transition to stop fast break points. She rotated from help for a steal, stripped the ball on a drive, crashed the glass to secure rebounds, swished a smoother corner three, and dropped in a soft floater off a crossover dribble before the help could arrive. Molly's an effective facilitator who can slash and score, shoot from three, and make the tough plays needed from the lead guard spot.     Avery was an aggressive two-way guard who grabbed my attention on Saturday morning of the PGH Great Lakes Region Finals with Team Compete 17U. She persistently penetrated and attacked using her dribble to score layups and get to the rim. Avery drove hard, elevated, and finished a tough, contested layup. She split the gap with a burst and dropped in a smooth floater over the help defender. Avery used excellent punch steps to move defenders and create driving lanes. She stayed with plays, stealing away a rebound after a miss to score a tough layup and converted a sweet fake-pass and one layup after securing an offensive rebound. Avery shook her defender with a quick inside-out dribble to score a fly-by layup and was an active rebounder on both ends of the court.

Day One of the Great Lakes Region Finals featured a full slate of games. Every play counts when you're fighting for a chance to win a circuit championship. Teams emptied their tanks to win and advance in the brackets, with every 17U team opening the tournament with an opportunity to take home a Gold or Silver bracket Championship title. My coverage this weekend is all about the 17U prospects, and here are a few who started the morning strong on opening day.