10 players who raised their stock in January
Four or five games and three weeks of play may not seem like a lot of basketball, but in a pandemic-shortened season with a maximum of 18 regular-season games, it’s a lot. By my math that’s a about a quarter of the campaign already in the books, and that’s more than enough time to raise one’s stock in the quest for a berth on a college basketball roster.
So far this season we have seen about two dozen games and more than 40 teams, and watched bits and pieces of many more online. From that somewhat sizeable sample we have come up with 10 players who have raised their stock the most so far in the 2021 high school season. Here they are.
Camille Cummings Camille Cummings 5'8" | CG Centennial | 2022 State MN – 2022 guard, Centennial
Sometimes the light bulb just turns on and players figure things out. The result is almost always the same: a big spike in their level of play and a much bigger impact for their team. That’s exactly what we have seen so far this season from Camille. She has always been a very nice player. She’s 5’8 and athletic, with quick feet and terrific handles. But in the past, Cummings was a high-risk, high-reward performer who could light it up or let you down. Last summer Camille appeared to have an ‘Aha!’ moment. She changed her outlook and her approach to training, and those choices have paid off handsomely. She’s making better decisions, has learned how to change speeds to great effect, and is doing a nice job of deciding when to attack and when to dish. More importantly, Cummings is defending better, protecting the ball better and passing better. With less focus on trying to score so much, her scoring output has more than doubled and she currently trails only North Dakota commit Jodi Anderson Jodi Anderson 5'11" | CG Centennial | 2021 State MN in the Centennial lineup. Funny how that works! Add it all together and Camille is the biggest stock riser we saw in January. She’s currently ranked #93 but not for long.
Lilly Meincke Lilly Meincke 5'10" | CG Lake City | 2022 State MN – 2022 guard, Lake City
Lilly has been a strong varsity performer since earning a place in the starting lineup as a freshman. At 5’10 and pretty well put together, Meincke has size and length and strength. Watching her this summer with the Wisconsin Playmakers it appeared as though the three-sport performer was playing with more confidence and aggression. After watching her in Lake City last week, that impression has been reinforced. The spotlight may have gone to her teammates Grace Bany Grace Bany 6'2" | C Lake City | 2021 State MN and Natalie Bremer Natalie Bremer 5'11" | CG Lake City | 2022 State MN for breaking career records last week, but it was Meincke who set the tone early with her aggressiveness and touch around the basket. Lily has a well-rounded game. She can handle the basketball, gets to the hoop with force, and can post up and score inside, too. She guards all five positions, sees the floor very well, and makes good decisions. Ranked #52 in 2022, Lilly is a scholarship-level prospect and a standout student.
Haylie Strum Haylie Strum 5'6" | CG Stewartville | 2023 State MN – 2023 guard, Stewartville
The first time we saw Haylie play in December of 2019 at the HVL-TRC Showdown in Rochester, she was a force to be reckoned with, and she was a 5’1 9th grader at the time. Today she has grown to 5’6 and is dominating games on a regular basis. Stewartville was 4-0 going into Monday night’s contest in Byron and Strum has put up some impressive numbers, including a 27-point, 11-rebound, 4-assist performance against a very tough, very tall team from Lake City. Haylie is averaging about 18 and 7, or roughly double her output as a freshmen. Much was expected from Strum following the graduation of Lily Welch Lily Welch 5'7" | CG Stewartville | 2020 State MN and she has delivered even more. Strum has very quick feet and hands, is an excellent ball-handler and a great tactician with a high basketball IQ. She has no fear and possesses that inner toughness that all great point guards seem to have. Strum is currently ranked #73 in the sophomore class and is moving in the right direction.
Emily Glass – 2023 guard, Rogers
There are a lot of great guards in Minnesota’s class of 2023, so it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle when it comes to making a big impression. We have been watching Emily for the past two years in summer ball where she has been coming along nicely while waiting her turn for some varsity action at Rogers. Well Emily’s turn has come, and with the graduation of Ali Karels Ali Karels 5'5" | CG Rogers | 2020 State MN and Alaina Brenning Alaina Brenning 5'9" | PG Rogers | 2020 State MN (Upper Iowa) Glass has stepped up and stepped in for new coach Patrick Bowlin. The 5’6 shooting guard looked good when we saw her against Elk River. Give her a little time and just enough space and she’s going to bury the long ball more often than not. I liked how comfortable Emily looked on the floor. She’s averaging over 6 points per game so far on a team where the majority of the shot attempts go to top-10 prospect Ellie Buzzelle Ellie Buzzelle 5'9" | SG Rogers | 2022 State #60 Nation MN (Grand Canyon), and rightly so. If Emily continues to improve she’s going to play at the next level.
Sonya Potthoff Sonya Potthoff 5'9" | CG Mahtomedi | 2023 State MN – 2023 guard, Mahtomedi
There’s one thing we know for certain about Sonya: she isn’t going to get outworked. Potthoff has invested a ton of time and energy in herself. The returns on that investment have been superb. She practically lives in the weight room and has the strength to show for it. She puts in a ton of time in skill development, and the improvement is obvious. Now that work is all paying dividends as Potthoff has started her season off with a bang. The 5’8 combo guard had a pair of 18-point games recently and is averaging over a dozen points per game. We watched her last week against Minneapolis Southwest. She was quick and confident and on target, looking every bit the veteran. The Zephyrs have some really nice guards, including Zoie Centers Zoie Centers 5'5" | PG Mahtomedi | 2022 State MN , Zoey Washington Zoey Washington 5'9" | CG St. Croix Lutheran | 2023 State MN and Ella Hronski Ella Hronski 5'11" | SG Mahtomedi | 2021 State MN , but Potthoff has worked her way into the picture rather nicely. She’s currently ranked #103 and is trending upward.
5 more stock risers we highlighted recently
We’re certainly prone to repeating ourselves here – how can you not when some kids keep impressing over and over? – but in this case we wanted to include five stock risers who were written about already during the first three weeks of play. All five are deserving of the extra recognition. Click the links in blue to read the article in question.
Tori McKinney Tori McKinney 6'1" | CG Minnetonka | 2024 State MN – We profiled the 2024 point guard from Minnetonka in our 5 Athletes Who Impressed in Week #1 rundown. Tori is rated 20th in the freshmen class.
Maci Farmer – The 2023 combo guard from Jackson County Central has been on a tear, and she was also included in 5 Athletes Who Impressed in Week #1. Farmer is currently not ranked.
Hannah Hanson Hannah Hanson 5'9" | CG Rochester Mayo | 2023 State MN – The 2023 guard from Rochester Mayo earned our Defensive Player of the Week award for Jan. 18-23. She was lauded in our recap of The Week That Was #2. Hanson is #39 among the sophomores.
Alyssa Stamer Alyssa Stamer 5'7" | CG Hutchinson | 2022 State MN – We have always liked watching the 2022 guard from Hutchinson, but Alyssa is taking it to a new level this season. She was also among the players highlighted in The Week That Was #2. Stamer is rated #114 in the class.
Anna Vaaler – The 2024 forward is among the most notable freshmen stock risers we’ve seen so far. Anna was expected to be a year away but her current performance was chronicled in Week 2: The 10 Best Freshmen on our Radar. Vaaler is currently not ranked.