As usual, Easter weekend featured a much lighter AAU schedule than any other spring weekend. This provided a great opportunity to stay local and look for some diamonds in the rough. That being said, the land ended up not being rough at all and plenty of gems were to be had at Skidmore College. The Skidmore College Hoop Fest Girls' Basketball Classic featured a mix of teams from more prominent 518 programs like New York Havoc, Albany Capitals, and Saratoga Sparks, along with other local teams and squads from Vermont & Pennsylvania. The standouts, along with players that performed as well or better than previously seen, right here:
Alivia Paeglow (Colonie 2019) - Paeglow's skill set is an uncommon mix, as a 5'10"ish PF with the ability to put it on the deck from the perimeter and finish with layups or floaters using either hand, and she also showed the ability to pull up and hit the midrange J. When she's fully invested, and she certainly was for every minute on this day, she can be a monster on the glass with her strength and athleticism. She picked up for a Capitals team other than their top team, which is who she usually plays for, and she dominated for long stretches of all three games. Paeglow is attracting some early Division II attention, and what her potential could be was on full display throughout the day.
Hailey Ballard (Queensbury 2020) - Playing with a local South Glens Falls based team, Ballard - a Queensbury varsity starter who missed a good chunk of time late in the season - was more actively involved at both ends through the two games I saw than any time I've seen since Queensbury's season opener at Holy Names in the winter. A 5'11" F that has more athleticism than most people would know what to do with, she killed the opposition by running the floor and beating her matchup down the court for buckets, along with catching and finishing in the half-court over defenders and through contact. The most intriguing part of her performance Saturday was that she attacked from a 15'-18' mid-post area and hit a variety of midrange jumpers & a couple floaters, an ability that I didn't see over the winter. Bright future for Ballard.
Dolly Cairns (Saratoga Springs 2020) - How good is Dolly, you ask? The surefire Division I talent PG was the standout of the day/night - and this was off of two night games with CD Premier after completing a four-hour practice with City Rocks, the team coaches will see her with on the circuit. Despite being younger than most that she was playing against, she looked like a woman among girls that got what she wanted when she wanted it. A true floor general running the point, she can create for herself and for others equally well, and she has the IQ to know when to do each. In the late stages of a game that became close, she took over and scored on several possessions nearly in succession, including an acrobatic finish through contact that was the best play that I saw here. Her ability to be trusted controlling the offense with the ball - and being able to keep defenses honest with her ability to score and set up teammates - will make her an extremely valuable resource for the City Rocks this year.
Ashlyn O'Neil (Galway 2019) - Ashlyn was as good and as confident as I've seen in my handful of times watching her to date on this day. The natural 2 guard played both backcourt spots in all of the games for CDNY Westside, which could help expand her game if a consistent move. She has a bit of an old-school flare to her game, which relies much more on fakes, jabs, and 1/2 dribble moves than flashier alternatives, and she certainly hasn't forgot about the use of the midrange game. She had defenders biting on a very good shot fake all day, and knocked down countless pull-up jumpers from 13'-18' off of them. Because her game relies more on deception and intelligence than just athleticism, I could see her scoring ability translating well to higher levels of play. As her handle and ability to play some more PG comes along, look out for Ashlyn making noise beyond the small-school ranks in the very near future.
Lilly Phillips/Sophie Phillips (Cambridge 2021) - Two for the price of one! Decided to group this listing together instead of separate them, but there's a lot to say. I've went from knowing very little about them three weeks ago & only hearing about Sophie, who moved up to Cambridge's varsity team at the turn of the new year and ended up being their 2nd leading scorer, to coming to the realization that both Sophie & Lilly are the real deal. I've seen them both go at some of the better players in the Capital District, many 2-3 years older, and look like they belong. Playing closer to their age group on this day, which is a rarity, the twins dominated at both ends throughout. The sisters, who look nearly identical, are 5'8"-5'9" guards with very good athleticism and length that's rarely seen at their height. They have slightly different skill sets - Sophie has a pure jumper, crisp ballhandling ability and the court vision that makes her equally successful as a PG or SG, and Lilly also has a pure shot with a great slasher's skill set and the ability to attack and finish with either hand from the wing. Their fundamental skills set them apart from most near their age, and their basketball IQs set them apart from most at any age. Their defense turned into offense for a lot of Saturday, as length and ability to anticipate turned into tipped passes, steals, and baskets - and both ate equally on this day. In a 2021 class that has an unreal amount of standout basketball players coming from small towns, these Wasaren League up-and-comers are up next.
Asia Winney (Scotia-Glenville 2019) - Saturday was an Ice Cube-approved good day for CDNY Westside. Along with the aforementioned O'Neil, Asia Winney looked as confident as I've ever seen her throughout the day, and her contributions at both ends were a major reason her team went 3-0. She was knocking down the perimeter jumper with consistency, and once defenses closed out on her, it turned into a series of layups and close-range baskets as she got by the first defender and was able to get into the lane. Defensively, her activity helped spearhead an effort that resulted in a great deal of turnovers for opposing teams. With this continued growth, she could be due for a breakout junior season at Scotia-Glenville.
Lexi Mercier (Hoosac Valley (MA) 2019) - Mercier, a 2 guard who was a cold-blooded 3 point shooter for a Hoosac Valley squad that made a Division III state final appearance for the 3rd straight year this winter, had to wear many hats for her Berkshire Blazers squad. She often ran the point and instead of using off-ball screens, catching & shooting, she had to handle the ball more often than not and create her own shot. She hit some tough shots against a lot of defensive attention throughout the day, as she accounted for over 50% of her team's offense. Her ability to handle and get into the lane was perhaps one of the most pleasant surprises of the day - in a very successful, yet tight high school system where she plays a pure 2 guard, this was previously unseen in winter watches. As she gets physically stronger and able to battle through contact throughout the game, look for Mercier's game to explode, as she already has one of the purest shooting strokes in the region.
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