Top Five Returning Scoring Leaders for 2021-2022

Arizona girls high school basketball has a bevy of returning scorers including an eighth-grader!. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="261444" first="<strong>Steffy</strong>" last="<strong>Cervantes</strong>"] is a five-foot-eight junior to be guard/wing who plays for Pope John Paul II in Avondale. She is the leading returning scorer in the state. Steffy averaged 23.2 points per game last season, hitting 54% of her shots from the floor. She also pulled down 4.8 rebounds a game and had 4.5 steals per contest. The Lady Lions finished with an overall 10-4 record, 6-2 in their Class 2A division. Her team lost in the state tournament to Phoenix Christian, 59-43. On February 21, Steffy poured in a career-high 40 points as Pope John Paul II beat Trimium Prep, 65-40. Last season she was selected as Player of the Game twice by Max Preps. As a freshman, she averaged 17.0 points and 4.7 steals per game. She also shot 90% from the foul line her first year on the varsity. In a total of 36 games over two seasons, she averaged 19.2 points per game. Her sister Keyla is a senior and captain of the girls’ basketball team. Now heading into her junior year, the sky is the limit for Steffy. &nbsp; <strong>Emma Slack</strong> is the second leading returning scorer for 2021-2022 and she is about to enter the eighth grade. As a seventh-grader, she averaged 21.2 points per game for Dream City Christian which is located in Glendale. The Lady Eagles finished with an overall 6-3 record in 2021 and were 3-1 in their division. DCC lost in the state playoffs to Ridgeline Academy, 64-45, although Emma scored 26 points. Playing now for new coach Prileu Davis in the 3A Metro Conference, Emma was selected as Player of the Game on three different occasions by Max Preps. The Lady Lions are members of the Canyon Athletic Association. Formerly the Joy Christian School, the name was changed to Desert City Christian in June of 2019. As she begins the school year later in the summer, Emma has tremendous upside as she gets better and better. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="65619" first="<strong>Ashiian</strong>" last=<strong>"Hunter</strong>"] is a five-foot-four guard for Mesa High school. Last season, as a sophomore, she averaged 20.9 points per game. She also recorded 3.1 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.9 steals. Mesa finished the season with a 13-5 record and 8-2 in their division. They lost in the state tournament to Xavier College Prep, 40-30. As a freshman, in 27 games, Ashiian averaged 16.1 points per game. This past January, against Mountain View High School, she was named Player of the Game by Max Preps. She poured in 31 points along with five assists, eight steals, and only one turnover. &nbsp; <img class="size-medium wp-image-213116 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/10/Ashiian-Hunter-1-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="300" /> During the first week of the regular season, as well as the last, Ashiian was named Player of the Week by the Arizona Republic. During the last week (February 22-27) Mesa won three games and she averaged 26.3 points per game, 2.3 assists, and 2.6 steals. AZCentral named her to the All-Arizona Girls team as a sophomore. She is a prolific scorer and led her conference in points per game as well as hitting three-point shots (42). She recently made the Lady X All-Tournament team and has a complete summer of grassroots basketball ahead of her. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="259202" first="<strong>Alyssa</strong>" last="<strong>Heath</strong>"] is a five-foot-seven guard for the Mohave High School Lady Thunderbirds in Bullhead City. She will be starting her senior year later this summer. She is also captain of the team and averaged 20.6 points per game last season along with 3.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.8 steals. Playing for Head Coach Corey Heath, Mohave had an overall 10-6 record last winter and 6-5 in their conference. In two full seasons, Alyssa - through 43 games - is averaging 19.1 points per game. She had a career-high of 39 points against Mingus and was selected Player of the Game by Max Preps for hitting five three-point shots against Desert Edge last February. Alyssa made First Team-All Region as a sophomore. One scout refers to her as ’" lightning quick, a fantastic shooter and no one is more competitive." She also excels on the Lady Thunderbirds track and field team, competing in the 100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters, and two relay teams - 4x100 and 4x400. Alyssa also made Honorable Mention on the Sports360AZ All-Academic Team with an unweighted GPA of 3.90. She is primed to have an outstanding senior season. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="259200" first="<strong>Jayla</strong>" last="<strong>Scott</strong>"] is a six-foot-one-point forward for Vista Grande High School in Casa Grande. The Lady Spartans finished 7-8 last winter and 4-4 in their division. Jayla, as a junior, averaged 20.4 points per game along with 12.6 rebounds and 4.5 blocks. She recorded a triple-double against Cortez last March in points, rebounds, and blocks as Vista Grande won, 64-47. In a total of 68 games over three years, she has seen her scoring average increase yearly (6.0 as a freshman, 11.9 as a sophomore, and 20.4 this past season) as well as improvements each year in rebounding and blocks and field goal percentage. She has been selected as Player of the Game a total of 17 times (November 2018-March 2021) by Max Preps. Jayla was nominated for Player of the Week in mid-February when she scored 34 points and hauled down 24 rebounds in a 64-32 win over Marcos de Niza. She was selected Co-Offensive Player of the Year in her conference as well as being First Team All-Region. With 789 career total points, Jayla should move past 1,000 during her senior year. She plays for Head Coach Ryan Barrett in the 4A Black Canyon Conference. "She can play just about any position besides the post and will occasionally bring the ball up the floor," said her coach. "She has taken her game to another level and can shoot, attack the basket, and has good post moves." By the way, Jayla is also an outstanding volleyball player. Over the last two seasons, she has played in 57 sets with 93 kills and a total of 54 solo blocks. &nbsp;