Montgomery/Frederick County Rising Juniors to Watch: 4A East

The 2020-21 girls basketball season is fast approaching for high schools across the country, including Montgomery/Frederick* County schools in Maryland. At 4A, the competition is very tough, split between two different divisions. This article will focus in the East division, with seven programs who will be fighting for supremacy. With that being said, here’s a list of five rising juniors to watch out for this coming season. <strong>Emily Liu, SG Blair:</strong> Liu is a sharpshooter who can bob and weave through the lane. If she’s open from beyond the arc or even has a slimmer of daylight, she’s pulling the trigger, and she looks very confident shooting the three. However, Liu is far from one-dimensional, oftentimes driving into the lane for a runner, mid-range jumper or layup. She fights for rebounds in the lane, and on defense, she’s a fantastic on-ball defender, easily able to pick the pockets of any player she’s guarding. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25971" first="Angela" last="Nnabue"], PG/SG Sherwood:</strong> Nnabue lives inside the paint, and has exceptional handles to get her there. She thrives for the easy layup, but the journey to get there is nothing but easy. However, whether it’s dribbling through defenders, crossing someone up, or using a jump step for the close hook, she can do it all. Nnabue uses her size and strength to her advantage, can pick out teammates on the break no problem, and is a force to be reckoned with on defense, towering over other point guards to block a shot or force a steal. <strong>Maddie Tringone, C Sherwood:</strong> Playing as a traditional center, Tringone, despite her 6-1 frame, is anything but. She has range to shoot the midrange jumper from anywhere on the court. She’s not only a scorer, but a facilitator as well. Tringone has a very clean shot, and is able to get up and down the court very quickly. She thrives in the paint, grabbing rebounds and putting back up shots, or starting a fast break. On defense, watch out because any shot near her has a strong chance of getting blocked. <strong>Carmen Kweti, SF/PF Urbana:</strong> Kweti is versatile at forward and is a threat on both sides of the ball. On defense, her size at 6-0 allows her to get out on the perimeter to block a shot, or grab a rebound down low. She handles the ball well for a forward, but Kweti’s game is very much down low. Her long frame gives her more opportunities to catch passes and put up shots, and she’s an efficient shooter. Most importantly, she is agile and can break out on a fast break to either start one or receive a pass to finish one. <strong>Armada Barnes, PG Urbana:</strong> Barnes is a strong off-ball defender with great eyes for the game. She’s able to read and pick off passes through traffic to outlet for a fast break. And her passing is superb, a selfless player who gives up the ball to any open teammate she sees. That creates more open looks and more shot opportunities, but if Barnes needs to, she can patrol at the point, controlling the game tempo to what she wants, and wait for just the right opportunity to score. Stay tuned for more previews and scouting reports as the 2020-21 season comes closer. <ul> <li>Post edited to include Frederick County (Urbana)</li> </ul>