NORTH AUGUSTA, N.C. -- The two finalists in what is considered the most relevant "national" tournament on the summer club circuit inevitably advance to the championship game because they are brimming with college prospects. This was abundantly evident during the Tennessee Flight's 65-62 victory over DFW Elite on Saturday. Mark Lewis and Lisa Bodine, national evaluators for ESPN HoopGurlz, offer their take on three players from each of the title-game participants.
Tennessee Flight (Mark Lewis)
Isabelle Harrison, Hillsboro High School, Tennessee: When the going gets tough, the tough get going … to the bench. Despite her steady play throughout the tournament, her slow start in the finals quickly took this 6-foot-4 post out of Nashville, Tenn., to the sidelines for the majority of the first half. Harrison more than made up for it during the second half, providing an inside presence that DFW struggled with and failed to respond to. Her physical length and impressive reach altered drive after drive by the constantly penetrating guards from. On the glass she pulled in more than her share of boards at both ends of the floor and was instrumental in limiting the second looks of her opponents. Harrison drained two high-pressure free throws during the game's final 30 seconds but committed a couple of critical personal fouls down the stretch, keeping the DFW hopes alive. On the whole, her continual improvement over the summer and her ever-increasing willingness to play a more physical brand of basketball is evident each time she takes the floor. Lining up alongside a top-tier, low-post threat at the college level would allow her to exploit her considerable potential.
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Mater Dei HS, California: Let's get the obvious out of the way -- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis can shoot the ball. No secret there. That being said, the DFW Elite might make the observation that there's a lot more that she does pretty effectively as well. Her performance during Saturday's championship game offered up a diverse display of skills and roles that would impress opponents and fans alike. The 6-0 guard from Anaheim, Calif., not only knocked down the perimeter shot, she created off the dribble, posted and scored
aggressively on the block, dished out a few assists and for good measure took a charge at the defensive end. Finishing the game with 23 points, the Connecticut commit left little doubt that she may well be the most versatile player in the 2011 class. It's not often that a shooter of Mosqueda-Lewis's caliber possesses the skills and instincts to develop her own scoring opportunities inside, mid-range, and on the perimeter. Wrapping up her club basketball career with a Nike Nationals title following a gold medal performance for USA Basketball in France this summer might be a difficult act for her to follow her upcoming senior year. Then again, she and her Mater Dei teammates are the defending state and national champions. Can you say "repeat"?
Rebecca Greenwell, Owensboro Catholic HS, Kentucky: This native of Owensboro, Ky., is no secret and has already been on the radar of recruiters nationwide for several seasons. If there were any doubters about the potential and future in front of the 6-foot guard, Saturday's championship performance should have taken care of any real concerns they might have had. Greenwell demonstrated maturity, instincts and skills at both ends of the floor in the Flight's win over the DFW Elite. Her ability to put the ball on the floor and attack defenders is an effective and challenging addition to her offensive repertoire. Using both her size and sharpened ballhandling, she created both scoring and passing opportunities against the quicker, but smaller, DFW defenders. As she's grown physically, the additional strength and her improving confidence have made her a difficult defensive assignment as evidenced by her final-game 11 points and multiple assists. Despite having three years of varsity experience, Greenwell is just entering her sophomore year and looks to just be hitting her stride, and her best may be yet to come.
DFW Elite (Lisa Bodine)
Moriah Jefferson, Glenn Heights, Texas: It was clear from the opening tap that Jefferson came to play, but whether it was nervous energy or youthful inexperience she picked up two quick fouls. Nine minutes into the first half her third foul sent her to the bench with five points. When Jefferson returned to the game in the second half she knew that she had a job to do and that was to keep her team close and be able to play her aggressive style of on-ball defense without picking up more fouls. She continued to be aggressive on offense, her ability to put pressure on the defense and attack the basket for anywhere on the floor kept the Flight defenders guessing what she was going to do next. With DFW down at the end of the game, Jefferson shifted to another gear, sinking a clutch 3-point shot to bring the game within two points. Then she let her defense go to work when she created back-to-back turnovers, one of which was converted into a score. Even without playing the entire game she lead DWF in scoring with 18 points and never stopped competing.
Krystal Barrett, Skyline High School, Texas: With her backcourt partner in foul trouble, Barrett did more than step up. She kept the game from getting out of hand by being aggressive and looking to score whenever she had the ball in her hands. She scored a key and-one bucket to close the DFW deficit to five points just when it looked like the Flight were going on another scoring run. Her speed with the ball and quick first step allowed her to score in transition
and attack the Flight's defense straight down the middle. Going into halftime Barrett was DWF's leading scorer with seven points and, to start the second half, her first basket was a 3-pointer to give her team the lead and a much-needed confidence boost. With the seconds ticking down on the clock Barrett was able to get her hands on the ball during a Flight inbounds play just to have it roll out of bounds. Barrett was disappointed that she was not able to keep the ball in play but she has nothing to be ashamed of, she left it all on the floor and carried her team when they it was necessary.
Amber Orrange, Westbury Christian High School, Texas: A Stanford commit, Orrange may not have started the game for DFW but from the minute she stepped on the floor good things began to happen for her team. She had to share defensive duties on Ariel Massengale, while trying to steady the DFW offense without Jefferson. In one crucial stretch at the end of the first half she had two baskets and two assists, including a fullcourt pass to Kyaris Johnson to cut the Flight lead to three points and a drive to the basket where she blew by the perimeter defense to give DFW a one-point lead. With the ball in her hands, Orange did her best to pace her team and at no point lost confidence in her teammates, continuing to look to create scoring opportunities. Her ability to penetrate the heart of the defense might have been more effective if DFW had utilized their post players, giving her more passing options. Orrange did what any big-time player would do at the end of a tight game -- look to score. Her 3-point attempt may have come up short but she proved that she has all the intangibles to be a great leader at the college level.
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Lisa Bodine is a national evaluator for ESPN HoopGurlz. A native of Queens, N.Y., she began her coaching career in 1993 with the NY Gazelles, has coached with D.C.-based Team Unique, and in 2009 she was named DAC Co-Coach of the Year after leading Wakefield Country Day School in Flint Hill, Va., to its first-ever conference title. She can be reached at lisa@hoopgurlz.com.
Mark Lewis is the national recruiting coordinator for ESPN HoopGurlz. Twice ranked as one of the top 25 assistant coaches in the game by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association, he has more than 20 years of college coaching experience at Memphis State, Cincinnati, Arizona State, Western Kentucky and, most recently, Washington State. He can be reached at mark@hoopgurlz.com.