Class AA
There aren't many in upstate NY that can score as purely as Amani Free, and she showed a lot of what's in the bag in her Cicero-North Syracuse squad's 66-53 W over Liverpool. The star 2018 and Quinnipiac signee pumped in a game high 27 points. Instead of relying on the perimeter jumper - one of her strong suits - she spent a lot of the night getting to the rim. Free is a strong, physical guard that although right-handed, loves to get to her left - and she did so seemingly at will. She also moved well without the ball to get a couple easy ones, and on top of that, she brought the physical edge that's so important in a rivalry game like CNS/Liverpool.
I've been singing the praises of Cicero-North Syracuse 2021 Jess Cook for well over a year now, and the strides she's made came to the forefront at the SRC on Sunday evening. She dropped 20 points in CNS' win. Her sheer size and strength was too much for Liverpool to handle, even if she was getting doubled, but her improved mobility is what caught my eye the most. I saw this start to come to fruition during the fall, and her ability to run the floor has only improved since. She now can grab a defensive rebound, make a rim run after an outlet and beat her defender up the court to get a layup or deep post position. Jess is already receiving early D1 interest, and continued improvements could see her recruitment quickly hit the next level with a good spring/summer on the circuit with I-90 Elite.
Not sure if anyone made a bigger statement than Madison Smith this weekend. The standout 2019 had a monster game for West Genesee, going off for a game high 27 points in 3 quarters of action. The 5'11" G/F has the ability to score at all 3 levels, and she showed it off time & time again. The perimeter stroke has improved drastically - she knocked down 4 of the Wildcats' 9 treys. Her biggest one was worth more, as a 4-point play just before the 1st half buzzer gave her team the lead heading into the locker room after what wasn't the best 16 minutes for them. She had 12 points in the 3rd quarter, one that WG won 27-7 to bring their lead up to 23. What I still love most about her game is the ability to move without the ball. The ability and IQ to know when & where to make cuts along with knowing when to cut to score & when to cut for spacing makes her a point guard's dream. Thankfully, her sister is a very good PG that creates, and they play off each other very well. To me, Madison has been a bit underrecruited to this stage, but I don't think that'll last much longer.
Speaking of sis... it's always worth the price of admission to watch Mackenzie Smith in action. Mix arguably the deadliest crossover in upstate NY, shifty change of speed, elite court vision, a package around the rim from NBA 2K, quick hands & feet on D, and a little Brooklyn swagger, and you have a dynamite point guard. Baldwinsville had a little success early in their attempt to bottle her up with their zone, but it didn't last long, as she came out of the locker room and sparked the huge 3rd quarter that put this one to bed. Expect more D1 programs to come calling in the near future on top of what's already piled up.
The Finals - West Genny/CNS is what the vast majority of people have been anticipating since word spread that Amani Free was back in town. Both teams took care of business, and here we are. Interesting matchup, as both teams have real firepower but contrasting styles. Amani Free, Jess Cook, Mackenzie Smith, Madison Smith, Catie Cunningham all on the court - I think that's enough firepower to go around. Get your popcorn ready!
Class A
Meg Hair is one of the smoothest players in upstate NY for one of the best teams in upstate NY. It was a light night for the Jamesville-DeWitt star 2018 & Penn signee, as many of them end up being, because of the score. Their 61-24 semifinal W on Saturday was the most lopsided result of the weekend. She still was able to score an efficient 22 points though, even with the early exit. Meg has been on a different level for years now, able to make things happen in transition or in the half-court, but the play that intrigued me most was the final play of the 2nd quarter. With the shot clock off, J-D went to a 1-4 low set and isolated Meg with the ball. She was able to make a quick dribble move, get to the elbow, use the defender's body to propel her stepback, quickly rise up and knock it down before the buzzer. Perimeter isos have never been her bread & butter; if she's adding that to her bag, look out.
The most underrated player in Section 3 might be Kasey Vaughan. She has battled injuries for over a year at this point, but it finally looks like the Jamesville-DeWitt 2018 G has a longstanding ankle issue under control. With her being closer to 100% and having the conditioning needed to give good minutes at a high level, it changes their team. That showed in spades on Saturday; they'd play close to even with Vaughan out of the game, and as soon as she entered, they'd go on a run to break it open more. A coach's dream with an extremely high basketball IQ and desire to guard the other team's best player. She had the assignment of CBA standout Brooke Jarvis whenever she was in, and Kasey did as good of a job as you could ask for. Great to see her back on the court.
This could be said about the last few months in general as well, but Jamesville-DeWitt 2020 Gabby Stickle is getting better, and she's getting better fast. She's especially important on her Red Rams team - they're arguably the best team in the state in Class A, but most of the players tend to play it safe by nature, and Stickle is the one that will make things happen. That made her stick out in a positive way a couple weeks ago against St. John Vianney in New Jersey, and it continues to do so. She'll attack and finish, and she's also a deadly perimeter shooter when she catches in rhythm and lets it fly quickly. I love the improvements in Gabby's game.
I don't think Momo LaClair is a secret to anyone in upstate NY anymore. Jamesville-DeWitt standout 2021 PG is a high profile player, and she always backs it up. On top of the skill and IQ, she brings intangibles and 'the little things' that make a team great. She's one of the better rebounding guards I've evaluated, and she skied for a few in traffic in this game. Her 1v1 package is extensive, and although very unselfish by nature, she's starting to show signs of looking to be more aggressive on offense. With her consistent pull-up jumper, she can score at all 3 levels. It'll just make J-D even more dangerous as she asserts herself more.
Before the second Class A semifinal between Whitesboro and Indian River, I anticipated that Indian River standout 2018 Paige Leonard may have some issues with an always-stingy Warriors squad... nope. Her supreme athleticism was too much to handle at times, and she was able to make a new home at the free throw line. Out of her game high 30 points, 15 of them were from the charity stripe. The uncommitted senior just found ways to get it done.
Adrien LaMora grew up over the course of Indian River's semifinal game Saturday night. The promising Indian River 2022 finished with 15 big points and key contributions at both ends of the court, as IR was able to break the long streak of J-D/Whitesboro sectional final games with a 67-59 triumph over Whitesboro. With her 5'9"+ size, strength, and skill set, she's a particularly versatile prospect. I've seen her work in the post before, but her bread & butter was from 20'-21' in this game. She hit 3 threes, including a big one to beat the 1st half buzzer and extend Indian River's lead to 8 heading into the locker room. She can play at the wing or the 4, and will even get some spot minutes running the point. A lot to like about Adrien's upside.
The major growth in Whitesboro 2020 Kiley Snow's game starts with how she's adding onto her perimeter shooting ability. The 5'10" wing is a knockdown shooter that can get it going in a hurry, but she's noticeably making an effort to attack the basket more. As I told Kiley after the game, a year ago, I don't think she would've stepped if I put a $20 on the block. Now, she attempted 29 free throws in her last two games (16 in sectional quarterfinals, 13 Saturday night). Her fire & competitive edge is becoming more and more evident as she's getting older. If she improves over the next 8 months like she has in the last 8 months, it could pay serious dividends in the result of college coaches jumping on the bandwagon. She had 19 points & 4 rebounds in the 67-59 loss to Indian River.
They may not have won this game, but it's becoming more apparent that Whitesboro 2019 Hannah Scott is just a winner. The lefty true PG has made big strides over the last year and became the leader of her Warriors team. She'll pull up and knock down the 15'-18' jumper, but she likes to attack the rack and loves to get into the lane to create for others. She showed the ability to handle the ball against pressure Saturday night, including against a truly elite athlete like Paige Leonard. She had 17 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals in this one. Hannah is becoming a name to really keep tabs on in this junior class.
The Finals - The main story to me is that for the first time since I started doing this, it's not J-D/Whitesboro in the finals. Indian River - who seems to always get to the semifinals before usually getting knocked out by Whitesboro, although it has been J-D in the past too - has been playing very well of late, and it was encouraging to see the development of Adrien LaMora over the last few months. On the other side, J-D is taking it one game at a time. The 2-time defending state champions and a favorite to three-peat have weapons at every position and can dip deeper into the bench to get more weapons. The way they are playing now, it'll be a very tall task for anyone to top them. That being said, they're not looking past IR. This one will be Friday at the Carrier Dome.
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