Hampton, VA: Travel legs? Nervous? Left your game in the luggage that was delayed? Well, it’s Day 2 of the 2018 Boo Williams Nike Invitational, and there are no excuses!!!  Young girls are having to find the balance of helping their team win and proving to themselves, parents, college coaches, media, and scouts that they have what it takes to play at the next level.  Here are a few outstanding basketball players that did all the above.

2021 Damiya Hagemann 5’9” PG Michigan Crossover EYBL 16U
Damiya is scary good. Maybe even supernaturally good.  She can see everything even your thoughts.  Ok, that might be a bit of a stretch, but I can say for sure that Damiya’s court vision is beyond her years. Not only can she see but she can make the pass with the right speed, location, and timing.  She put on a clinic on how to be an elite PG and leader on the court in Crossover 16U’s 64-38 win over Team Takeover.  She dictated tempo.  She scored on all three levels.  She made life easy for her teammates.  No exaggeration, every prototypical skill you need from a point guard was on display.  Still, her most significant shining attribute is her love for the game and passion she plays with.  When on the bench she’s not resting with a towel on her head…sitting back with arms on each chair beside her…asking mom for Gatorade.  NO! NO! NO!  She's pumping and priming her teammates.  Encouraging them to take it up a notch.  Damiya is the girl I’d want to build my team around because she makes everyone and everything better.

2022 Brooke Daniels 5’9” G Michigan Crossover 14U
Every game, there comes a time when you need your best one on one player to break a defender down and get the team a bucket.  Enter Brooke Daniels: she’s not the one you want to try that strategy against.  Team Takeover decided to deploy this strategy with their best one on one threat, and Brooke Daniels didn't even allow this girl to get a shot off.  Not one…not two…not three (where’s Lebron when you need him?) but four straight possessions. I’ll admit, we (media/scouts) don’t write about elite defenders as much as we should, but Brooke is a GLOVE on D.  She has some development to do offensively, but I can’t tell you how many times I write about a great offensive player who plays horrible defense.  Brooke is one to keep an eye on.  She has a big heart.

2020 Shaulana Wagner 5’10” G Michigan Crossover 16U
I'm going to call Shaulana “The Menu”!  What do you want to order?  Do you want defense? She got that.  Do you want tenacity? She got that.  Do you need a side of rebounds? She got that.  Do you want confidence? She got that.  You want a between the legs, behind the back, crossover, in-and-out to a scoop layup over the other teams 6’1” big?  SHE GOT THAT TOO.  And that’s just in the three quarters I saw her play against a tough Team Takeover group.  Shaulana Wagner is one half of the most entertaining duo at the Boo Williams Nike Invitational (Damiya Hagemann).  Flash with a lot of substance. Shaulana Wagner is garnering the attention of the top universities and colleges in the country.  And she should be.

The Imports

2023 Amiyah Reynolds 6’0” PG Michigan Crossover 15U
A good friend of mine (ok, it was Jason Wilkins, Lady Baller Insider CEO) said to me a couple of months ago, “All it takes is one game…”  He’s right, every kid needs a breakout game, and Amiyah had hers in a 50-47 Crossover win versus the St. Louis Eagles.  At 13, 7th grader, Amiyah Reynolds is competing with freshman and sophomores.  She more than held her own.  Reynolds was able to lead her team to easy baskets in transition with pin-point passing.  She drilled two crucial triples and set-up her bigs for easy buckets.  Amiyah is a smooth and very skilled basketball player.  She’s long and has a slight build, but it’s her excellent basketball I.Q. that allows her to compete at a high level.  She finished the game with 15 points and five assists.

2022 Mila Reynolds 6’2” F Michigan Crossover 14U/Michigan Crossover 16U
There’s no doubt Mila Reynolds has a lot of potential, but potential can be tricky.  You cant when potential matures.  You can only hope potential matures and the right moment and for Mila, it did!  She had a great day with two double-doubles for Michigan Crossover 14U.  Scoring 18 points vs. New Jersey Freedom and 17 points vs. Team Takeover.  Little did she know she would get the call to fill in for an injured player on the Michigan Crossover 16U team that had earned a birth in the Platinum Championship Bracket vs. Cal Stars.  Although the loss to Cal Stars was disappointing, Reynolds didn’t disappoint.  She finished with a handful of rebounds and 11 points in 14 minutes including a deep three that gave CO a 1-point lead late in the 4th quarter. Her skill, size, and length continue to cause significant problems for opposing defenses no matter what level she is playing on.

The Exports

2021 Ally VanTimmeren 6’2” F Lady Gym Rats Gold (IN)
The first thing that grabbed my attention was that Ally has improved facing up and making decisions from the high post and short corner. She knocked down two jump shots from 15-18 feet. She commanded the defenses attention with sound movement from low post to high post. She made strong moves over her right shoulder with nimble feet and powerful finishes. The work on her body is undeniable.  She has picked up muscle.  Ally helped rite the ship for the Gym Rats when things seem to be slipping away vs. Essence (FL).  Vantimmeren was steady and therefore instrumental in a great comeback win.

2020 Carlee Crabtree 5’10” G Lady Gym Rats Gold (IN)
Carlee was clutch down the stretch of an overtime win vs. Essence. This game was a classic example of allowing the game come to her.  Carlee doesn't force anything.  She is the consummate teammate: she plays hard on defense, reverses the ball when she needs to and is always where she needs to be on offense and defense.  Carlee was ready.  Ready to make an impact.  She made a hustle play and layup to cut the deficit to two points with 2 minutes left. Later on, she made a half-hook off the dribble to tie the game the with: 28.3 seconds left. These were her only two field goals, but they were vital nonetheless.