Film Review: Homestead vs. Carroll (FW)
This season, with all of the social media and internet streaming sites available, I have started reviewing games from earlier in the season, making notes on prospects and teams. One great resource right now is the partnership that IHSAA TV…
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Continue ReadingThis season, with all of the social media and internet streaming sites available, I have started reviewing games from earlier in the season, making notes on prospects and teams. One great resource right now is the partnership that IHSAA TV has formed with several statewide web streaming affiliates. You can go online, search the ihsaatv.com website, and typically find a game from most of your favorite high schools.
In this article, I wanted to focus on four players from each school who stood out to me for one reason or another. Homestead ended up winning the game, 67-29, but Carroll (Fort Wayne) did some good things throughout the game, especially in the first half. Below is a look at those eight prospects.
Sydney Graber, 2020, 6-0 F, Homestead H.S.
Sydney has had quite the transformation over the last eight to nine months or so. She is playing stronger, more aggressive, and more explosive in all directions. She is scoring the ball effectively at all three levels, knocking down shots consistently from the perimeter, scoring in the mid-post with jumpers & drives, and occasionally going to the low-post for easy baskets. If Homestead is to advance deep into the state tournament, Sydney will need to continue being a huge part of that reason. She is committed to Central Michigan University, and that looks like quite the “steal” at this point.
Rylie Parker, 2020, 5-6 G, Homestead H.S.
Speaking of stepping up their game this year, Rylie has had an outstanding first half of the season. She has always been a dangerous perimeter shooter, but she’s shooting it at such a high level right now, she has really helped balance out this offense because opponents can’t collapse on or send extra help to Graber or Patterson anymore. Rylie is a strong, tough-nosed, competitive, high IQ basketball player. She’s more of an off-guard than a point guard, but she can handle it and run offense from time to time. Rylie has signed to play at Purdue University Fort Wayne.
Ayanna Patterson, 2022, 6-3 F, Homestead H.S.
Last season, Ayanna entered high school with a lot of fanfare and several colleges having already offered. This year, a lot of that has calmed and she’s just going out every game and executing. She’s a tremendous athlete at 6-3, and she has a huge wingspan. She moves around the floor effortlessly, but she looks stronger, she’s playing stronger, and she’s scoring it more consistently away from the rim. She is without question a high-major Division-I prospect, but the next step will be to continue building her perimeter jumper and handle. As just a Sophomore, there’s plenty of time for her to do so.
Molly Stock, 2023, 5-6 G, Homestead H.S.
I saw Molly briefly over the Summer, but it was good for me to see her at greater length in this environment. She is a strong-for-her-age, fairly tough-nosed, and gritty guard. She has a solid handle, good natural instincts, and she tries to deliver the ball on-time and on-target. She is playing the backup point guard role for Homestead, but she can also knock down an open rhythm jumper, plus she’s a nice one-directional athlete attacking the basket. The only thing I might question is her lateral explosiveness, especially defensively.
Olivia Hoeppner, 2020, 5-6 G, Carroll H.S.
I’ve always liked Olivia’s all-around game, but I was really impressed with her play and potential from this game. She is fairly quick/fast, very feisty, and I just like how she gets after it defensively. She can defend the ball, she’s good affecting passing lanes from help-side, and she can fully deny and eliminate an opposing player if need be. Offensively, she has point guard skill and understanding, though she plays off the ball for Carroll. She is a capable perimeter shooter, she can dissect the defense with her quickness, and she can create offense for herself or her teammates.
Emily Parrett, 2021, 5-7 PG, Carroll H.S.
Emily combines with Olivia Hoeppner nicely to form a potent 1-2 punch in the Chargers’ backcourt. Emily is a long, smooth, and fluid athlete. She moves around the floor effortlessly and showcases a great deal of patience and purpose offensively. She is a really nice game manager, though she has the ability to create offense by slicing into the defense. She’s a solid perimeter shooter when in rhythm, and I think she’s a somewhat underrated defender. With her length and ability, she does a nice job off the ball. As she continues to add strength this next year, I’d anticipate her being a more aggressive scorer as a Senior.
Delane Sheets, 2021, 5-7 W, Carroll H.S.
Delane is a very unique type of ballplayer. She is built strong and powerful, but she’s also a deceptive athlete, plus she’s very skilled with the ball. When she was younger, she was more of a primary ball-handler, and she still maintains that skillset. She handles it well, she sees the floor well, and she can make plays from the wing that give an offense an additional threat opponents find tough to prepare for. She’s a solid rhythm shooter as well. I would like to see her take better angles defensively, especially being one-directional as an athlete, but her overall understanding and feel for the game are good.
Taylor Fordyce, 2023, 5-7 G, Carroll H.S.
Taylor is another kid I was introduced to briefly over the Summer, so it was nice to see her at greater length in this game. She is a strong wing guard, a solid athlete, and she plays with some versatility. She’s an aggressive driver off the bounce, she looks to have some touch from the perimeter, and she can even handle it on occasion and start the offense. Defensively she plays with a solid motor, but she’ll need to get quicker laterally and work on her all-around explosiveness. With the amount of opportunity she’s getting this year as a Freshman, I think she’ll see a much bigger role in the near future.
The feature image is of Ayanna Patterson of Homestead High School. Image is courtesy of the Patterson family.