Winter Series Finale Elite Performers

Winter Series Finale Elite Performers

May 2, 2022

8th Grade Division Elite Performers

8th Grade Division League MVP: Jordyn Jackson (Team Takeover): Since participating in the league in session II Jordyn has been clearly the best player in the league. Standing at 6’0” with a guard skill set she has become a mismatch nightmare for any defender who is guarding her. She is a downhill player with elite level athleticism and natural instincts that help her with scoring the ball. She can score the ball for all three levels and can offensively and defensively play and guard all positions on the floor. No doubt if she continues to develop at this rate she will be a power 5 kid at the next level.

Lebrea Carter (Team Takeover): LB was an unsung hero for this TTO team the entire league. She elevated her game to all star status this winter and being able to see her progression over the past two years you can see the work that she has put in to bring herself to this level of play. Playing hard is a

skill that she has mastered but beyond that her improvement to her shooting has opened up a lot of scoring opportunities for her game. She is finishing through contact now and has even added a little bit of confidence to her ball handling abilities. She is already a rebounding machine and is becoming more comfortable guarding players on the perimeter. If she can continue to develop into a true wing player then the sky’s the limit for how far she can go in this game.

Isabella Allen (K – Low I): Isabella did a great job doing the fundamental things you would want your post players to do. She ran the floor well, caught some passes that most would’ve dropped and finished well around the basket. She is becoming a rebounding machine, she finds a way to win whatever rebound battle she has with the opponents center. The most impressive part of her game is her ability to move without the ball to remove her defender from help position and/or position herself to create opportunities for dump offs so she can get some easy baskets.

Anna Weber (Mid Atlantic Magic): did well living in the paint this weekend and as a guard that is something all coaches love to hear. She uses her jumpshot as her biggest decoy because she knows defenders will over play her on the shot. She does a lot of ball fakes to get by her defender and get deep in the paint. She also did well moving without the ball utilizing a lot of back door cuts and off ball screens to catch the ball in the paint and make plays.

Ava Yoon (Team Final): Ava is the engine that makes this Team Final group go. She does a great job accelerating her teams offense and making them catch up to her level of pace. As the ball handler she puts pressure on the defense because she likes to test the gaps in the defense and make plays. Her team does a lot of trapping defensively and subsequently she gets a lot of off ball steals reading the offenses next pass.

Jordyn Palmer (CC Storm): You can make the argument that Jordyn was the most dominant player in the finale weekend. She was a woman amongst girls, she was completely dominant on both ends of the floor particularly in their upset win over Team Thrill in game 1 of pool play. She is a super athletic wing player that does a little bit of everything from shooting the three, to rebounding and going coast to coast, to making some tough passes in traffic. I look forward to seeing her game progress to the next level.

Arielle Lopez (Top Notch): Ari did a great job being the floor general for her team this weekend. Throughout the entire tournament she has been showing flashes of greatness but this weekend she put it together consistently. She has great range on her shot, she can shoot it from pretty much anywhere on the floor over half court and shoots at an efficient rate. She has the ball on a string and is in complete control weaving in and out of traffic with no problem and always has her head on a swivel looking for the next play.

Jessie Moses (Top Notch): She was the other half of this Top Notch back court that caused terror on all defenses throughout the four sessions. She has a pure scoring mentality and can give you points in a variety of ways truly living up to her name Jessie Buckets. Her shooting efficiency is abnormal for a kid in the 7th grade and when you combine that with her shifty call handling and her toughness around the basket she truly becomes a player where it’s tough to guard her with just one player.

Kamryn Derba (MCW Starz): It’s no secret Kamryn is probably one of the best shooters in the 2026 class in the Northeast region, but what I liked about her game this weekend was that she was showing some versatility. Rather than forcing some deep long range shots when being heavily contested, she took advantage of the defenses over aggression and drove the ball to the basket a few times. That made the defense be a bit more honest which actually opened up some room for her to get her shot off clean and once she has both going she’s impossible to stop.

London Caldwell (New Heights): The more I watch this kid the more I appreciate what she brings to the game. She plays with a chip on her shoulder and has a different level of competitiveness and toughness than I’ve seen by most in this division. She does whatever it takes for her team to win playing multiple positions on offense and guarding anyone on the floor on the defensive end. Her passing ability is an unspoken part of her game, she threw a few no look passes that left me in awe.

Brianna Holt (New Heights): What I love about Winter Series is you get to see the growth of the athletes over a four month period and the development from session I to session IV for Brianna has been outstanding. She was very active on both ends of the floor, defensively she was an enforcer in the middle denying any easy baskets from coming inside. Offensively she is still a bit raw but you can tell she is becoming more confident scoring in the post and she already does a great job cleaning up the offensive rebounds and finishing.

Jada Lynch (NJ Rise): Jada probably has the most mature game in the 8th grade division. Her athleticism and skill set is as dangerous a combination as they come. She does a great job finding ways to get in the paint with or without the ball and once she gets to her spots she becomes very hard to stop. She has a strong mid-range game and she can get there off the bounce and pull up or move without the ball and getting to the spots on the floor she likes and if defenders close out hard on her she has no problem getting to the basket and finishing.

Senaia Asanya (Lady Knox): Senaia did a great job of carving out her space early before she got the ball and got inside position on her defenders. Everytime she posts up her fundamentals are flawless and she gets the ball wherever she wants in the paint. Defensively she did a good job protecting the middle and she did a good job defending on the perimeter as well.

Jezelle Banks (New Jersey Sparks): Jezelle was back in superstar form this weekend after an ok session III she came to session IV with a chip on her shoulder and proved why she is one of the best 7th graders in the country. Her passion for the game is evident and she wears her emotions on her sleeve while playing which can be good or bad but in the case of this weekend it was great. Her hesitation dribble keeps the defense off balance and once she finds a lane she explodes to the basket and has a variety of finishes in her bag. She is a streaky shooter but when she is on she’s ON! A lot of her points come in transition as she constantly harrasses ball handlers with pressure and often comes up with steals that lead to easy baskets.

Taylor Brown (New Jersey Sparks): Taylor was the other half of the championship winning back court for the New Jersey Sparks. She possesses a gift that most players no matter what age cannot do and that is the ability to shoot efficiently off the dribble. She has a patented step back move which often leads to a three point shot that I’ve seen go in multiple times. She is a fast paced guard always looking to push the tempo and score in transition but if the scoring opportunity isn’t there she has no problem making the right play and kicking the ball which eventually leads to a basket.

7th Grade Division Elite Performers

7th Grade Division MVP: Micah Ojo (YKS): If you have been following the Winter Series all four sessions then it should come as no shock who the MVP for the 7th grade division is. Despite losing in the Championship during session IV, YKS has been absolutely dominant throughout all four sessions and has won 3/4 championships. She is the best player on the most dominant team. She started off slow this weekend but eventually got things rolling and picked up where she left off. Her versatility and positionless style of play makes her unguardable and all you can do is try to slow her down but there is no stopping her. She can score from anywhere and anyway you want. I look forward to following her career as we may be looking at the start of something really special.

Neveah Roberson (Team Takeover): Neveah was a big piece of Team Takeover’s championship run this weekend. She creates problems for the defense with her versatility on both ends of the floor. Standing at about 6’0” with long arms, elite level athleticism, and guard skills it became a huge task to try and contain her. Her shot blocking ability makes it hard for defenders to get anything going from the inside and one mistake or sloppy dribble and Neveah is going the other way and is turning defense to offense quickly.

Madison Smith (Team Takeover): The silent assassin, she doesn’t say much on the floor verbally she lets her game do the talking for her. Everything she does is with precision and efficiency, no wasted movements and executes. She has great size for the wing position and uses her handle combined with her athleticism and strength to get by her defenders and to the basket. She rebounds aggressively and goes after every ball in her area whether she has position or not she is going to rebound. She excels in transition she makes great reaction moves and finds a way to put the ball in the basket.

Geornae Davis (Team Takeover): Geornae was the presence in the middle for TTO. However she has great mobility and footwork for a post player and with some development I can easily see her turning into a forward that can stretch out to the three point line and be effective on the perimeter. She has a variety of moves in her post work arsenal and she runs the floor extremely well and even showed the ability to start the break herself.

Sydney Santora (Bensalem Lady Chargers): Sydney has some great poise for a 7th grader, when she has the ball on offense she takes a quick moment to size up the defender and read the defense and pick her points of attack. She has a quick first step that gets her by defenders and into the lane with ease, onces she gets into the lane she makes great decisions that often lead to easy baskets for her teams.

Ailynn Macauley (Lady Storm): The big fundamental, she doesn’t do anything fancy, just efficient. Every move she made was very strategic, she wanted to get to the rim but if you cut her off or over helped she had no problem making quick dime passes to the cutters. She has a quick release on her jump shot which helped her in her pull up game whenever she needed to get her shot off the dribble.

Ashley Macalla (Top Notch): Ashley showed a lot of improvement between sessions. She always had elite level athleticism which allowed her to blow by defenders or explode to the basket in transition. But this weekend she also showed the ability to shoot the ball with some confidence and she made a lot more than she missed. Once she got her scoring going all the other parts of her game started clicking including some monster blocks and rebounds that led to some easy coast to coast baskets for her.

Zoe Wasserlauf (Riverside Hawks): Zoe made her debut with the Riverside

Hawks this weekend and she did a phenomenal job leading this group to a 7th grade championship. Zoe is a quick guard with great change of direction moves when attacking the basket. She is a shifty ball handler but she doesn’t over dribble once she finds the lane she is looking for she attacks it aggressively and uses her patented floater to finish over defenders in traffic.

Kayleigh DeAngelo (WPA Bruins): I’ve seen a lot of shooters in my time evaluating talent… but very few as young and talented as Victoria. She gets her shot off with just the smallest ounce of room. She can shoot it from deep and her shot is so pure it looks like the net doesn’t even move after she shoots the ball. Having a dangerous weapon like that should be a cheat code because she shoots the ball at a high shooting percentage.

6th Grade Division Elite Performers

6th Grade Division MVP: Janiyah Hargrove (All Ohio Express): Janiyah has been the most consistently dominating player in the 6th grade division. Her team won 3/4 championships in the Winter Series and she was a big reason why. She already has great size compared to the other wings in her class but her athleticism and natural feel for the game make her a prospect with a lot of potential. She has a never ending motor that allows her to just keep going in everything she does especially offensive and defensive rebounding and defensive pressure.

Taylor Stanfield (All Ohio Express): Taylor has been the other superstar for this All Ohio Express team all four sessions. Her ability to impact the game without needing to score is what separates her from the pack. Her energy and effort is completely unmatched and she uses that hustle to make winning plays. She is a dominant force on the offense glass, she is a one man press defensively, and she is aggressive in the passing lanes all of which tend to lead to easy baskets that she gets herself just from her hard work.

Giovanna Burress (Harlem USA): Gigi has elite athleticism and a high basketball IQ, a dangerous combination at such a young age. She does a great job anticipating the next pass and getting off ball steals which lead to transition baskets for her team. She rebounds well at the guard position and uses her patented euro step to get by defenders and finish at the basket.

Kimora Pearson (Harlem USA): Kimora is a player with versatility that on any given weekend she can show you a new attribute to her game. This weekend she displayed her shooting ability and soft touch around the basket. She already has great ball handling skills for her age and size but now you add shooting to her arsenal it makes her a well balanced offensive player as she already is completely dominant around the basket.

Melody Vaughn (Philadelphia Belles): Melody was in Steph Curry mode all weekend long. She was knocking down shots from just about anywhere over half court with no problem. She is a natural scorer that has a high IQ on how to get the shot she wants. She makes the defense play honest because not only can she shoot but she has the ball handling ability to get by whoever she wants and finish at the basket as well. She is only in the 5th grade and her potential is limitless as she continues to work.

Cidney Stanfield (Philadelphia Belles): Cindy did a great job displaying her overall game on both sides of the ball this weekend. What impresses me most about her is her natural strength and athleticism and how it translates so well into her game. Defensively she is a menace to whoever she is guarding whether it’s on the perimeter or in the post she has no problem guarding any position with a lot of pressure on the offensive player. She gets by defenders quickly and does well getting to the rim and cleaning up any misses around the basket.

5th Grade Division Elite Performers

Kaitlyn Cummings (NY Extreme): Kaitlyn is not afraid of the pressure at all! In the younger divisions you tend to see a lot of trapping and fouling because they are younger and the athleticism hasn’t taken over yet but Kaitlyn played through all the physicality and chaos and made big plays happen for her team. She hit a few shots from the three point line and beyond that showing her range and she isn’t afraid to mix it up and drive to the basket from time to time as well.

Alliyah Hariston (Queen City): Alliyah is an explosive open court player. When she has the ball in transition you can almost guarantee two things: one she’s going to the basket and two she’s getting points one way or another. She is an active defender constantly harassing ball handlers and often turning them over and capitalizing on those turnovers herself with points.

Madeleine Hamiem (Fairfax Stars): Madeleine is a player that just understands how to play the game. When watching her play the first play of the game I saw her team shooting a free throw. She rebounded the ball, drop stepped and finished over two defenders. She has a quick first step and she does a good job reading the defenses mistakes and capitalizing off it with a basket. She runs the floor extremely well in transition and when she catches the ball she makes a great change of direction moves to finish at the rim.

Khloe Ison (Team Threat): Khloe is a tough guard that gives 100% every possession. She is a great finisher around the basket and has a habit of making highlight plays at least once a game. Her vision as a lead guard is already mature; she sees the game a couple steps ahead of the defense. She lives in the lane and once she gets in there just get ready for a show because something fun is about to happen.

Leah Dukes (Team Threat): Leah was the backcourt mate of Khloe and together they were a dynamic playmaking duo fun to watch all weekend. Leah was doing most of the scoring this weekend benefiting from the play making of Khloe but she was also making plays herself. She was getting by her defenders with no problem but she was crafty in using her dribble to set up her shot if the defender was playing too far back. She was not afraid to let it fly from anywhere on the floor and she was very aggressive driving downhill.