Top 2021 Passers Outside Top 50
In an effort to highlight the the PGH Nebraska rankings in the most complete way possible, I’ve divided the 2021 class into 3 ranges: 1-25, 26-50, and outside the top 50. For each range I have chosen who I think…
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Continue ReadingIn an effort to highlight the the PGH Nebraska rankings in the most complete way possible, I’ve divided the 2021 class into 3 ranges: 1-25, 26-50, and outside the top 50. For each range I have chosen who I think are the best shooters, rebounders, passers, and scorers – 5-6 players for each category – and identified what makes them successful. Here are the best senior passers ranked outside the top 50.
Jayla Brehmer Jayla Brehmer 5'8" | PF Gordon-Rushville | 2021 State NE – 5’8″ PF – Gordon-Rushville
Jayla shows nice ability as a forward to pass the ball. Many of her best passes did not result in assists, or even assist opportunities and her 1.3 assists/game figure might understate her ability. She had several hockey assists or relief-valve passes that gave the offense an advantageous position. I could even see Gordon-Rushville opting to let her operate at the elbow with the ball at times given her overall offensive talent.
Hannah Strom Hannah Strom 5'7" | SG South Sioux City | 2021 State NE – 5’7″ SG – South Sioux City
Averaging 1.9 assists a game for the Cardinals last season, Hannah wasn’t relied upon for a heavy offensive offensive burden. Her role was a high volume spot-up shooter, and she thrived in it. But the tape shows she is ready for a larger responsibility in the offense. She has great basketball instincts on both ends of the floor. Many of her assists were of the full-court variety, leading a teammate in transition with an overhead pass or baseball pass. She is good at court mapping and knowing where the other nine players are and that can be put to use distributing the basketball.
Samantha Moore Samantha Moore 6'0" | PF Mullen | 2021 State NE – 6’0″ PF – Mullen
From her sophomore to her junior season, Samantha showed clear improvement in her playmaking ability. You could see it in her stats (Sophomore – 1.8 assists/game Junior- 2.9 assists/game) but also in her literal delivery. Her passes were crisper, they were made with more certainty and they arrived accurately more often. She is relied upon for a lot of scoring but I think her gravity as a scorer will require more playmaking as a senior.
Rachel Ecklund Rachel Ecklund 5'10" | PG Overton | 2021 State NE – 5’10” PG – Overton
In her junior season for Overton, Rachel Ecklund Rachel Ecklund 5'10" | PG Overton | 2021 State NE did a little bit of everything. If there was a best all-around player category for this series I’m writing (there is not) Rachel would make the cut. But she will have to settle for best passer for the time being. She accumulated 3.9 assists per game as a junior and most of those occurred when Rachel drew a lot of attention opening up a teammate, or when the defense fell asleep. She can consistently make the obvious pass, but she doesn’t see the unobvious passes. She doesn’t have that next level vision but she uses her all-around offense to create shots for others.
Alyssa Eichelberger Alyssa Eichelberger 5'8" | PG O'Neill | 2021 State NE – 5’8″ PG – O’Neill
Alyssa can pass with either hand and shows nice touch in a lot of situations. She can float it in over a big fronting her teammate. She’ll target the corner shooter and deliver a pass over multiple defenders. She even has a pocket pass she’ll break out sometimes when she gets in the lane. Her most common assist though is a bounce pass ahead in transition or to a teammate baseline cutting to the basket. She does have turnover issues. In fact, she led the team in them. If she can learn to maximize possessions all her numbers will increase and she could find herself moving up the rankings.
Reece Snodgrass Reece Snodgrass 5'6" | SG Central Catholic | 2021 State NE – 5’6″ SG – Central Catholic
Reece showed a lot of ability to distribute the ball in transition. And several of those transition opportunities were sparked by her defensive pressure. Reece or someone else on the team would force a turnover, and Reece would then navigate her way down the court until the window opened for the assist. Passing is much more than just the arm rotating to fling the ball toward a target. Reece knows how to zig-zag and hesitate to get defenders off balance and guessing.