STORY & PHOTOS BY GLENN NELSON
It's difficult to be on a team with alpha-dog April Sykes, the No. 2 player in the 2008 class, and forge your own, elite identity, but it speaks volumes that Tiffany Hayes found a way this summer.
The Connecticut-committed guard was brilliant on individual stages such as the USA Basketball Youth Development Festival, where she was HoopGurlz.com's outstanding player, and the Nike Skills Academy. But she was equally brilliant in a team setting, instrumental as Essence won its last two tournaments of the summer - Basketball on the Bayou and the prestigious Nike Nationals.
Hayes, the Winter Haven, Fla., star, was the tournament pick for Most Valuable Player at Basketball on the Bayou and, in the estimation of this website, gave a repeat, MVP performance at Nike Nationals, which does not confer such awards. In each tournament, Hayes delivered a buzzer-beating, game-winning basket in a bracket game, drained back-breaking threes, attacked the basket off the dribble faster than anyone in the country, had a determined nose for the ball and was extremely disruptive on defense.
The following are our picks for Nike Nationals all-tournament:
FIRST TEAM
Brooklyn Pope
Tiffany Hayes, Essence: 'Nuff said.
Skylar Diggins, The Family: Diggins and Yvonne Anderson really set the table for a grand and somewhat surprising run to the quarterfinals.
Tierra Ruffin-Pratt, Boo Williams: Until their luck ran out against DFW in the quarters, Boo's formula for success was keep it close, then let Ruffin-Pratt win it at the end.
Nneka Ogwumike, Cy-Fair Shock 90: Cy-Fair was overmatched almost every time out in the backcourt, but Ogwumike overmatched everyone else.
Brooklyn Pope, DFW Elite Gold: She and Odyssey Sims carried DFW to the finals with stuff so scintillating, we'd be willing to pay to watch.
SECOND TEAM
Kelsey Bone
Kelsey Bone, West Coast Elite: There is no more offensively dominant post in the country - regardless of class.
Caroline Doty, Philly Belles: She not only helped the Belles to the Gold brackets, she keep her front teeth intact while doing it.
Lauren Edwards, Cal Swish: Shades of last year's Swish star, Jeanette Pohlen, Edwards can get it done in multiple ways.
April Sykes, Essence: She was dominant in pool play, then was the magnet in the brackets that pulled defenses away from her teammates.
Markel Walker, NYC Gauchos: The girl, at 6-1, is so physically and technically gifted, it's almost ridiculous - and she's a 2009, to boot.
RIM SHOTS
- China Crosby, the 5-6 point guard who had a huge impact for the Gauchos at Nike Nationals, is just a 2009 prospect but already has a school list. She is considering Connecticut. Duke, North Carolina and West Virginia. The Bronx, N.Y., of course, has plenty of time to blow up and next summer should be one of the more hotly pursued guards in the country.
- Danielle Parker, a 6-2 forward from Dulaney High in Timonium, Md., has committed to Delaware, according to the Wilmington News-Journal. Parker, who averaged 16.5 points and 13.8 rebounds as a junior, chose Delaware over James Madison. According to Veronica Algeo, Northeast expert for HoopGurlz.com, Parker is "an athletic forward who gets out and runs the floor like a thoroughbred, rebounds the offensive glass well and finishes well around the basket well, is a good and versatile defensive player as she can close on the perimeter, has decent lateral slides and is a physical post defender when called upon."
- Miami has received commitments from Riquna Williams, a 5-6 combo guard from Pahokee High School in Pahokee, Fla., and Jazmond Stringer, a 6-4 post from Southridge High School in Miami. Willliams, who was named Small School Player of the Year last season in Palm Beach County, averaged 21.7 points and 7.3 rebounds at Pahokee and was named second-team, all-state by the Florida Sports Writers Association. Stringer is a two-sport athlete who was being highly recruited to play both sports. Last season, the Miami Herald named her to the Basketball All-County third team after averaging 12.6 points and 8.0 rebounds.
- Catching up on honors: sharp-shooter TaShauna Rodgers of Boo Williams was named MVP of the AAU Junior Nationals. The rest of the AAU Junior All-Americans were Jordan Maden and Shekinna Stricklen of the Arkansas Mavericks, Alexa Deluzio and Andrea Smith of FBVA Orlando Comets Red, Brittany Schoen of Ohio Valley Storm, Monique Reid of the Kentucky Blast, Caroline Doty and Chelsea Shine of the Philadelphia Belles, Glory Johnson, Emily Pollock and Kamiko Williams ofTennessee Team Pride Gold, Shantel Poston of the Tennessee Wings, Ericka Warren of Texas Express, and Tierra Ruffin-Pratt and Ariana Moorer of Boo Williams.
- More catching up: Tiffany Hayes of Essence was MVP of the Basketball on the Bayou. On the all-tournament first team were Whitney Hand and April Sykes of Essence, and Brittney Griner, Destini Hughes, Odyssey Sims and Brooklyn Pope of DFW Elite Gold. The all-tournament second team consisted of Jordan Madden and Shekinna Stricklen of the Arkansas Mavericks; LaSondra Barrett and Crystal Riley of Tennessee Flight Silver; Amber Stokes of All-Ohio Black and Mo Bennett of Peach State Elite Black.
Discuss This on Our Message Board:
Click Here [0]
Glenn Nelson is the publisher of HoopGurlz.com. He also founded and coached the Dragons and Northwest HoopGurlz select girl's basketball teams. Glenn previously was the editor-in-chief at Scout.com and a longtime, national-award-winning basketball columnist and writer for The Seattle Times. His work also has appeared in several books and national magazines. He is co-author of "Rising Stars: The Ten Best Players in the NBA" (Rosen Publishing, 2002). For more on Glenn's World, click here [0]. He can be reached at glenn@hoopgurlz.com [1].
[2]