5 Takeaways From The Cannon vs United Faith Game!
I visited United Faith Christian Dec 9th to witness the game between United Faith of Charlotte, NC and Cannon of Concord, NC. Cannon won the game 71-21. The game got away from UF quickly as highly ranked junior Reigan Richardson…
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Continue ReadingI visited United Faith Christian Dec 9th to witness the game between United Faith of Charlotte, NC and Cannon of Concord, NC. Cannon won the game 71-21. The game got away from UF quickly as highly ranked junior Reigan Richardson of Cannon led the way. Early on Richardson set the tone by getting her teammates involved with nice passes to make sure everyone was engaged and getting touches. Cannon started out in a 1-3-1 trap defense along with pressuring the ball early which gave UF fits. After a few steals and lay-ups the game got out of hand fast. It seemed like there was a run there where Richardson was making lay-up after lay-up. United Faith fought hard but were over matched in this game. Here are 5 takeaways from the game!
Keys to United Faith improving
Let me start by saying United Faith played very hard. Not once did I see any quit or give up in them. The players never backed down from Cannon, however they just didn’t have enough. Bottom-line is that UF needs more talent. They need to find away to get some guards who can handle ball pressure and are strong enough to make plays. I think if the current guards they have can develop and keep progressing throughout the rest of the season, they can make some improvements as team.
Potential for United Faith
Josie Hester is a junior guard for UF who has a lot of fight in her. She has a shot that can fall for her and she isn’t afraid to take it! There was times in the game where she tried to keep her team close by going to the basket, taking threes and bringing the ball up the court. She pretty much tried to carry the load. There were two occasions where Richardson of Cannon was guarding her and Hester took her to the basket and drew 2 fouls. So again, she has heart and is the catalyst for UF. She still has to work on developing her overall game. I’d like to see her develop more of her mid range game. I think if she can get to the paint she can either hit the mid range shot or draw and kick to an open player. She needs to be able to help her teammates get easy looks in efforts to be a better overall team.
Rising Prospect-Anyia Brooks-Manning
Brooks-Manning is a freshmen for Cannon who is still raw but has potential. Right now she has the aggressiveness needed to be a difference maker one-day. She moves her feet well on defense and seems to be very active. She is able to find her way to the basket on offense which in the ling run could create offense for others. Again, she is young and still needs to develop her overall game but she is one to watch for the future.
Cannon
Cannon is good! Of course Richardson leads the way but coach Kelvin Drakeford does a good job getting his players to do what is needed. There were sets he wanted them to run and they executed on point. There were defenses he wanted them in and they were able to execute. He knew his team was superior so he pushed his team to stay aggressive by pressing to create a lead. He rotated his bench players well and gave everyone a chance to play. I think overall the team will go as Richardson goes. If her teammates can provide support and execute when needed the will have a chance win most games they are in. I’m sure they will play more talented teams down the road so they will need to ride Richardson and her teammates must step up when called upon.
Well she was the best player on the court. She is the number 2 player in the state of NC. I can’t wait to see her against tougher competition but I can see that she is a player. She does everything very well. She shoots the ball well, handles it well and the tangible that impressed me the most was that she was unselfish. She was intent on getting her teammates involved and engaged. Her skill level is very high and she is going to make some D-1 school very happy. In a blow-out situation, she did what she had to do as a star player. She controlled the game, played well and got the win. She will be one to watch the rest of the season as she leads Cannon the rest of the way.