2027 Standouts at River City Run part 2
Well, I posted this article before I wrote the intro paragraph. So I’m fired. Not really. But if you saw it before I added these words can you keep it a secret so my company doesn’t know? Thanks. The River…
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Continue ReadingWell, I posted this article before I wrote the intro paragraph. So I’m fired. Not really. But if you saw it before I added these words can you keep it a secret so my company doesn’t know? Thanks.
The River City Run has come and gone and I am gearing up for the next event I am covering which starts later today and here it is already about 1:15 am, I have already burned the midnight lamp and I am running on fumes. This article covers 7 players from the class of 2027 teams from last Saturday, but they aren’t all in the class of 2027. It was a joy to see such good basketball from this age group because it means the future of the game is strong.
It was only 1,000 years ago when I was watching my younger sister playing the game for one of the powerhouse schools of the Commonwealth and only 3 of the girls on her freshman team could really play. These days even the bad teams have players on them and the powerhouse are loaded with talent so deep that they sometimes have players signed to play in College that can’t make it on the court. What a great time to be covering Girls Basketball.
Addison Pyles
Addison Pyles
It is entirely possible that nobody had a better day than the one I saw Pyles have last Saturday. She finished the game with 29 of her teams total of 59 points on 9 of 12 shooting. And she missed one of those shots on purpose. Her Coach her at a time when she was asking to be substituted out of the game for a rest that she wasn’t coming out until she missed. The next time got the ball she didn’t just miss the shot, she missed the entire entire lane. She was pretty gassed.
I think her Coach has a good rule about not taking out his shooters when they are hot. I Coach a team that uses that same rule. But maybe he could make an exception the next time she is that hot and they are up by that much. Or maybe not. She still finished the day shooting 75% from three-point range, but without that one purposeful miss it would have been 82%. WOW.
Pyles was the epitome of starring in her role as a Stretch 4. She was deadly accurate finding space in the corner and knocking down threes. But she also ran the floor well, was active on defense and blocked or challenged multiple shots. To be shot a great shooter and a rim protector is a great combination to have on a team. I didn’t get any official Height for her, but she is probably about 6’1″, give or take a inch.
Ally Thornsley
Ally Thornsley
When I am watching two teams play that I am not very familiar with as I was during most games on Saturday, it can be difficult to notice some of the finer details of the game unless a player is truly outstanding in that capacity. As a rebounder and interior defender, Thornsley was phenomenal last Saturday. She collected multiple rebounds and was very active under the basket creating contact and holding it down in the paint.
She made an impressive block by walling up and moving her feet in a way that avoided any illegal contact but still took away the shot. She put back some offensive rebounds despite heavy contact and started the break with outlet passes and ran to the rim on the break for layups. She posted up or a sideline out of bounds play that they ran for her and scored with an athletic finish.
Thornsley plays bigger than she is and while it is too early to know how she will continue to develop or how tall or big she will be when she leaves high school I really like her game and her chances of playing on he next level based on what I know now. If she ends up about 6 foot tall she could get there with the type of game and motor that she has now. If she stays about the same she will need to develop some other skills and there is time to do that growth spurt or not.
Davyn Miller
Davyn Miller
Miller is one of those types of Guards that plays like nothing bothers her. She weaves in and out of traffic with the ball paying no more mind to the defenders than she needs to so that she does not run them over. She can also be explosive into the open space in the court where she can find a straight away. She made one very deep three and her shot looks good. She might need to shoot a little more. I was very impressed with her ballhandling and decision making facing a very quick team that was putting on an excellent full court press the whole game.
Her eyes are always scanning the court looking for an open teammate and always seems to give up the ball at the right moment. But she does need to work on her passing accuracy a little. She delivers the ball to the right person at the right time but the passes are often slightly too high or too low or too wide by the slightest of margins. But off by enough to rob herself of a few assists and cause some turnovers. Continuing (or starting ) to work in the weight room will probably fix that if lacking a little strength is the issue and it might be. Or maybe the issue is timing and that will probably work itself out by continuing to play. Getting her passes to be a little bit crisper is a must to take advantage of talent she has as a distributor.
Carlie Moss
Carlie Moss
Moss has size and she knows how to use it. As long as she continues to work and learn the game I really like her prospects for playing on the next level. She scored on a Baseline Out of Bound play they ran for her that gave her an open 3 footer and scored a layup n a fast break run out. She is still finding her way in some aspects of the game, but who isn’t in the summer before their Freshman year.
She did not shy away from contact but I have to give her the same advice I gave to another player at the River City Run. Hit harder when you make contact under the basket. You can scale it back when you start getting called for fouls but you have to take advantage of that strong body in the paint. You can get away with so much more bumping and shoving than you are doing before it becomes illegal contact. Not using the physical gifts that you have would be like the fastest player on the court refusing to run as fast as they can. You are allowed to push people around a bit in basketball and doing so will help to maximize your potential.
Dakhari Blankumsec
Dakhari Blankumsec
Blankumsec is a rim runner and rim protector with a ton of upside. I don’t have a ton of notes on her from what I saw but I remember she had a high motor, good agility and played with a lot of heart and hustle. Many time that is enough for a player with her physical gifts of speed, height and athleticism. She challenged shots every time she had a chance and blocked a few of them and she ran the floor well scoring a few layups in the process.
For a seventh grader, I would be very happy with where she is right now if I were her Coach. She really seems to enjoy playing the game and that is such a key to drive a player forward and get better. If she will put in the work I really like her prospects on getting a free college education down the road.
Alexa Lee
Alexa Lee
For someone that is not very big (only 5’6″), I saw Lee block 2 shots. She also did a good job moving without the ball and handling the ball against pressure defense. She made a dime pass from the right corner for an assist to her teammate on a dive cut late in the game to thread the ball through the teeth of the defense. And she kept fighting through a rough match-up for her team while they were outmatched on Saturday.
Kierstyn Earnhart Kierstyn Earnhart 5'6" | CG Brownsburg | 2027 IN
Kierstyn Earnhart Kierstyn Earnhart 5'6" | CG Brownsburg | 2027 IN
Earnhart showed an ability to score on the move with two impressive plays and while facing an opponent that had them outmatched scoring on the move was he only option. She drove the ball into the short corner on the right side and pulled up for a quick 8 foot jumper that looked really nice. The other play was an 8 foot floater she made after receiving the ball on a dive cut on the left side of the lane. Those were two big time shots for any player, but especially one so young. I get the feeling that if she were playing in a system running off screens to catch and shoot she would really excel.