Standouts from Oklahoma Border Wars

The <strong>Border Wars</strong> tournament featured some of the top talent from Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, and Arkansas. With over 30 teams competing at 7 different locations over the two day tournament, there was a lot of good basketball going on all over Tulsa. With so much diverse talent competing against each other, it was an exciting weekend for players and spectators alike. These are the girls who I was able to see who’s game stood out to me. <strong>Averi Zinn, Oklahoma Swish Blue, 2020</strong> Averi plays the point guard position on offense, and is a solid ball handler under pressure. She made some pretty awesome passes and showed that she has court vision while getting her team mates easy buckets. But her game stood out to me because she is an excellent defender. Her hands were always in the passing lane getting deflections, and when the game got close she was able to pick up her girl full court applying pressure to the ball handler. <strong>Kaylee Borden, Unity 17U, 2021</strong> Kaylee is a combo guard who is comfortable handling the ball up the court and getting the offense set, but she shines off the ball when the ball is reversed and she’s able to slice and dice the defense off of the wing. She’s able to score multiple ways. If you are too close, she is quick enough to drive past. If your are too far, hand down man died. And she’s not afraid of taking it into the lane and shooting a floater over bigger defenders. <strong>Stevie Stinchcomb, Oklahoma Shock, 2022</strong> Stevie is a lightning quick point guard who can go right or left comfortably while handling the ball or getting to the rim. She is always looking for an open team mate as she is a willing passer. Stinchcomb has an all around game because she is also very scrappy on defense, making it hard for her opponent to score. She is also showed the clutch gene by making big plays down the stretch of a close game. <strong>Toni Papahronis, Oklahoma Swish, 2022</strong> Toni is an example of how the game is evolving. She is taller than most girls on the floor, yet she plays like a guard. Her game is a hybrid. She can handle the ball after tearing down a rebound, and also pull up for three with a defender around. Toni is smart enough to not solely rely on her guard skills, as she will take a smaller guard to the post to finish an easy layup. <strong>Raven Jackson, Trae Young Elite, 2023</strong> Raven is a scoring point guard. A more than sufficient handle package allows her to create her own shot and also get team mates open. When she gets the outlet pass, her IQ is high enough when to push in transition and when to slow it down and run the offense. Jackson is also a flat out shooter. She hit four threes in the game.