Showdown at Footprint: Sunnyslope vs. Notre Dame

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This afternoon, the AzHS Girls Basketball community was treated to a playoff preview at Phoenix's basketball mecca—the Footprint Center, home of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury. The matchup featured two Top 10 teams in their respective divisions: the 5A <strong>Notre Dame Saints</strong> (12-2) and the 6A <strong>Sunnyslope Vikings </strong>(11-3). Both teams closely mirror each other in style of play, overall team stats, and boast talented and deep rosters. Both teams entered this afternoon's game playing exceptionally well in the first part of the season—Notre Dame Prep, winners of their last 11 matchups, and Sunnyslope, winners of 9 out of their last 11 matchups.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["772667"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"[player_tooltip player_id='772667' first='Ayla' last='Keefe'] is a very intriguing prospect as her career begins. Standing at nearly 6'0u0022, Ayla projects as a player who will be able to play and guard multiple positions. Ayla, already as a freshman, creates problems for opposing defenses with her ability to rebound-and-push on her own, advancing the ball quickly with dribble penetration or early outlet passes. Perhaps where Ayla is most dangerous at this point in her career is catching the ball around the nail. Here, she has a variety of offensive choices, including shooting the 15-foot jumper, driving right or left to the basket, or kicking out to open wing and corner shooters. Ayla is very good at passing and finishing around the basket with either hand. She is shooting an incredible 52% from the field already in just over 100 attempts. Ayla's 15-feet-and-in game is going to continue to develop over the course of the season as she gets more comfortable, and I anticipate over the offseason seeing that range expand to 18-20 due to her shooting form being so good. Ayla will be a four year varsity starter with a list of colleges requesting her services.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["489170"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"[player_tooltip player_id='489170' first='Brooke' last='Nowak'] is a rising star in the Notre Dame program. Standing at 5'10u0022, Brooke is more than willing to crash the boards, using her strength to gather rebounds and then push tempo. In transition, she sees the floor very well, advancing the ball early to open teammates and then filling in open spots as a threat in the trailer position. Brooke also excels at sliding in from the weak-side for offensive put-backs and/or drawing fouls. She is a very good one-on-one defender, using her length and speed to bottle up opponents, and is comfortable guarding most positions from 1 to 4. Brooke's biggest strengths for the Saint program lies in her beautiful deep ball shooting. She is a legitimate zone buster and floor stretcher, ranking 2nd on the team in 3-pointers made over the past two seasons (40). As Brooke continues to turn up her aggression and offensive development, she will undoubtedly become a household name throughout the state.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["462054"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"Olivia is the glue player and coach on the court that every program needs. She contributes in every game, doing a little bit of everything (averaging almost 4 RPG, 3 SPG, and 2 APG while averaging 10.1 PPG over her three-year varsity career) and is a tireless worker. Defensively, Olivia is an excellent on-ball defender and an even better help-side defender, meeting attacking opponents a step or two outside of the lane. Olivia excels in the open court while pressing and can be a nuisance in 1v1 situations or playing the passing lanes. Offensively, Olivia frustrates defenders with her non-stop motion and excellent sense of finding open gaps to shoot or dribble drive into. She is lethal from beyond the arc, especially from the wings and corners. Every time I see Olivia play, it is clear what she has been working on outside of practices, continuing to stretch and improve her game. Olivia leads the Saints program in 3-pointers made over the past two-and-a-half seasons (54). With a list of interests at the next level, Olivia is poised to contribute immediately due to her overall game, work ethic, and coachability.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["663049"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"[player_tooltip player_id='663049' first='Lily' last='McCracken'] is the prototypical example of a combo guard. Standing at 5'8u0022, Lily plays both guard positions with great strength and relentless aggressiveness. She primarily runs the point, where she often has no problem using her speed and size to beat smaller guards when attacking the paint, allowing her to pull up with a shot or finish through contact. Lily is extremely dangerous with the ball in her hands in the middle of the court during transition and/or press breaks, where she sees the floor very well and makes quality decisions. Defensively, Lily can guard multiple positions and is a very good rebounder on both ends of the floor. With Lily's strong work ethic, I anticipate a significant jump in her offensive game, making her a name many coaches will show interest in at the next level.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":4,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65959c71811bb"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->