Hopkins return vital in Atascocita's resurgence

When a tournament is spread out, I try and dissect the bracket to look ahead to see who might be playing so I can catch the best games at one site. Based on Atascocita's early success, including a win over Dekaney, I expected to see them in the semifinals of the Katy Nike Classic. Well it didn't happen ta way, after a one point victory in the first round against CC Carroll, they lost in the second round to Katy Taylor so I still haven't seen them play and last night they had a chance to take on Katy Nike Classic runner-up Klein Forest

In showing how logic simply doesn't work in  GBB  you analytical folks, Klein Forest lost big to "The Taz" because the game is played where, "on the court". Move-in Erin Willis has been huge for Atascocita but one of the biggest reasons of their return is Hannah Hopkins appears to have recovered from her knee injury. I'll catch Atascocita in the Sandra Meadows Classic the day after Christmas as they go against San Antonio Brennan featuring that young lady that's going to set some three point records, freshman Megan Valdez

BOX SCORE

Region 3 is heating up

ROAD TO REGION 3 FINAL FOUR

Stratford almost got Cinco, two Ft Bend schools lost early and another pulled out a big win. Elsik almost scores 100, Hightower and North Shore win big, they'll knock eack other out, unless Clear Springs pulls off another upset, for one spot in the Regionals. Cinco edges Stratford, should make an interesting game against Bellaire, winner will face Elsik for another spot in the Final 4. Atascocita ain't no joke and they just might make it for the third spot. Channelview vs Elkins winner will meet Clear Lake to see who get's the fourth spot.

FORT KNOX

MacArthur (46) Madison (33)

The game started off slow and sluggish, ending deadlocked at 7.

Senior Meclescia Turner turned it on in the second period and Mac never looked back, she finished with 21.

Bria Lakes led Madison with 10, while Crystal Mathis Norris scored 10 for Mac.

The good news for the Marlins is they have only one senior so Kirby Caldwell has one more chance to make a run.

With three sophomores and three freshmen, led by Sade "SMOOTH OPERATOR" Adedapo, the future is bright for the Marlins.



Atacocita (60) Lamar (44)

Atascocita was ready, even before the game started. They knew what this meant and they wanted to send a message.

Michaela Burton, Lamar and Lauren Price, #4 for Atascocita

Katie Smith (15) and Akilla Hayes

Alycea Price

Lamar was down by double digits early and could never get anything going to really get back in the game. Alycea Price (10) and Michaela Burton (12) were high scorers for Lamar. Curtyce Know (23) and Lauren Price (14) were high for Atascocita.

Curtyce Knox is one of the top guards in the class of 2012, I'm talking about NATION

My nephew had his credentials and was sitting at the press table, keeping me abreast of the other games.

Atascocita's pressure too much for Klein Forest

One thing is for certain, Atascocita can bring the heat with multiple line-ups and they showed that last night against Klein Forest in their 63-49 victory. Hannah Hopkins helped get scoring frenzy going in the opening quarter with two big baskets but the heat applied from Erin Willis, Shae Moore and Shatarah Brown was in triple digits as they forced several KF turnovers

It didn't really matter what line-up Atascocita went with, they tried the twin towers a little bit with Hopkins and Anacia Wilkerson, who has been nursing a minor injury but created some problems on both ends, or they went with all guards, well basically all guards

Ekiyah "Big Play" Gray kept Klein Forest in the game with several big baskets as she led all scorers with 21 points, Jeliah Preston added 14, most of which came in the second half. What this game means for the KF Eagles is that they probably won't finish higher than third in District 13, this is very talented team and the playoffs are simply the most important thing and I keep going back to Pearland' s run to the area F-4 last season while the team that beat them by an average of around 25 ppg, Manvel, didn't make it

What this means for the other Eagles, Atascocita, is they're probably going to be soaring to a district tie with Dekaney since the teams have split. Acrobatic guards that can shoot and bring heat have created problems in the playoffs, especially when you have an abundance of them doing it at the same time and if they're clicking, who knows how far they can actually go. Willis (19) Brown 4) and Moore (12) led the way for "The Taz"

BOX SCORE

Chronicle Preseason Rankings

In order to save money, you could only view the Preseason GBB report from the Houston Chronicle online.

CHRON



PLAYERS


First Team
Tyler Gilbert, Jr, Post, Hightower
Taylor Gilbert, Jr, Post, Hightower
Courtney Williams, Jr, Guard, North Shore
Cassie Peoples, Sr, Guard, Cy-Fair
Amber Orrange, Sr, Guard, Westbury Christian

Second Team
Ronisha Majors, Sr, Post, Huntsville
Kendall Shaw, Jr, Post, Barbers Hill
Shernise Robertson, Jr, Guard, Cypress Falls
Curtyce Knox, Jr, Guard, Atascocita
Donielle Breaux, Sr, Guard, Elkins

Third Team
Rachel Mitchell, Sr, Post, Atascocita
Megan Shafer, Sr, Post, College Park
Deann Darjean, Jr, Guard, Yates
Taylor Schippers, Sr, Guard, Concordia Lutheran
Nicole Blaskowsky, Jr, Guard, Fort Bend Austin



Teams
Class 5A
1. Hightower
2. North Shore
3. Cy-Fair
4. Elsik
5. Bellaire
6. Cypress Falls
7. Atascocita
8. Elkins
9. Dekaney
10. College Park

Class 4A/others
1. Westbury Christian
2. Huntsville
3. Yates
4. Barbers Hill
5. Angleton
6. St. Agnes
7. Concordia Lutheran
8. Worthing
9. La Marque
10. Friendswood

           WHY NO AJ???

  Texashoops.com

I can only imagine how hard it is to pick 15 players, well actually I can't. Schippers is a prime example after being overlooked year after year, before I complained loud and openly, however it only takes a bit of common sense. Alix came in a did what no freshman has done before her, that was based on a number of reasons, but the point is she did it. Interesting that she was on the postseason list after her freshman season, so I'll just scratch my head and add it to the list of strange but true. Girl's Basketball in the Houston area is treated like a joke and if you've been around as long as I have, you would know what I'm talking about. I know why it's treated that way, I won't get into that, but it's not right.

Frantic Friday has promising players

It's that time of year when a triple header spread across the city might not be the best thing for someone with limited patience dealing with bumper to bumper traffic for hours however somehow I managed to accomplish most of what I set out to do. First thing was observe the progression of some of our teams younger players as Langham Creek battled Cy Springs in a fight to the finish. Crystal Battle and Kirsten Brown are a couple of freshmen who are nearing that turning point and their hard work is paying off

Time change at Westfield really messed my day up but I got their early enough to see EJ Bryant doing her thing on JV for the Mustangs against Atascocita

I also had a chance to see one of the best freshman in the country that isn't playing, Hanna Hopkins (Atascocita) who is out with a knee injury. You'll be reading a lot about this young lady on GPR over the next few years, I liked her the first time I saw her during the summer and she has a promising future ahead

Equally promising is the Atascocita team who has made leaps and bounds since seeing them a few weeks ago. Filled with young talented  players, sophomore Anacia Wilkinson and another freshman, Aimee Brown, these two along with Hopkins may be the "Big Three" of the future

Scratch that, you may be dealing with a Fantastic Four, even more Fantastic Five or a Terrific Team as several bright stars caught my eye. Sophomore Shae Moore led all scorers with 16 points followed by Aimee Brown (12), her sister Shatarah (11) and Brittany Bennett (10).

I'll see "The Taz" next week in Duncanville, they open up against Bishop Lynch on Thursday, I'll miss that one, but I'll catch their round two or three game for sure

Atascocita Too Strong For College Park

Atascocita's Rachel Arthur has been on a torrid scoring streak over the last month and she continued that shooting exhibition against College Park in which scored 8 of her 15 points in the opening period, this included 2 threes. Curtyce Knox came back from an ACL injury after only 5 months and I thought she was close to 75% in the Sandra Meadows Classic, well now she appears to be a little over 80% as the acrobatics and speed are showing little signs of a letdown.

Knox put on an exhibition of her own mostly in the second half and finished with 20. Lauren Price, the third of "The Taz" Big Three kind of filled in between as she finished the game with close to a double-double while joining Arthur and Knox by hitting a three herself.

What does this mean? Well it depends on how you look at it and as far as district, to be honest I've already given the title to The Woodlands however 6'0 freshman Anacia Wilkinson showed quite a jump from what I saw a month ago.

Using the phrase "you can't teach height" which only applies on the girls' side if you actually utilize your ability, Wilkinson is going to be a player before it's all said and done and for them to even think about having a chance to beat the Highlanders the next time around, this young lady will have to play big against Kelsey Lang, well  the "Big Three" will all have to go off as well

Alexia Standish dropped 25 for College Park who have been plagued all season by the loss of Megan Shafer to Rice and the loss of a couple transfers. At times they have looked really good but when your post, Armani Asberry, doesn't start and plays sparingly because of a virus, you have to face reality but nevertheless they put a up a solid fight and never quit. More than likely this was for positions 2 and 3 in the playoffs but I didn't expect The Woodlands to beat Atascocita last year, so.................

11/24/14 schedule features N Shore @ Atascocita

I knew there were two but I'm going see Adriiana Jackson and her North Shore teammates today as they travel to Atascocita. I usually wouldn't make that long drive, especially after the temperature has dropped but North Shore won the Texas Invitational while Atascocita captured the Aldine Invitational so I'm thinking #NoMediocre should be a very exciting game

Jackson and Chasity Patterson made the Texas Invitational ll Tournament team, Dillard signee Jackson was the MVP while Erica Stewart, Shae Moore, Anacia Wilkinson and Hannah Hopkins made the squad at the Aldine Invitational where Stewart was named MVP

One game that's not listed is Dekaney @ Cy Ranch in an FBISD Tournament finals rematch, that game is also at 1pm but here is what's listed on chron.com

SCHEDULE

Atascocita places four on #AldineInvitational All Tournament squad

Erica Stewart, Shae Moore, Anacia Wilkinson and Hannah Hopkins were named to the Aldine Invitational All Tournament team, Stewart was the MVP. Atascocita, aka The Taz because I hate typing were impressive enough for me to take that long drive to where my GPS stops working tomorrow and watch them tangle with the area new #1 team North Shore

Read more

Game is @Atascocita time is 1pm, that's MONDAY NOVEMBER 24th

Cy Woods @ Atascocita in second Top 5 battle

The stage has been set, #1 North Shore hosts #4 Hightower in one game while #2 Cy Woods travels to #5 Atascocita as the race begins. Atascocita is the highest ranked area team in R-2 slightly ahead of Dekaney and all I go by, whether it's team or player rankings, is what I see, I truly don't care about others, that's just the way it is so with that being said, ladies, it's SHOWTIME because the game is played "ON THE COURT"

North Shore ends month #1 but Cy Fair's up next

I expected a fight between North Shore and Atascocita last Monday so I loaded up the truck and moved out to Beverly, well Will Clayton where the Eagles hosted the Mustangs. North Shore coming off a stunning championship at the Texas Invitational defeating Cy Woods in the finals while Atascocita also surprised me by defeating Port Arthur Memorial in the Aldine Invitational and I may as well throw in the hat trick because I was totally amazed that Cy Ranch beat Dekaney for the FNISD Tournament title but to be honest with you, that's what I love to see, the unexpected

I didn't expect Anacia Wilkinson @_AWXXIV  to start the game off with 8 or 10 early points including a three as she was simply on fire as she helped Atascocita jump out to a high double digit lead in thhe first half, Wilkinson also was huge in the Eagles Aldine Invitational championship as the Tennessee Tech signee wants to close out her career with a bang as she and her twin tower teammate Hannah Hopkins @hanalyhop are are combo to deal with. Hopkins caught fire in the second half and although a junior she has already committed to Rice and when the guards are clicking, like Shae Moore did down the stretch, this team will be a problem when the playoffs come around

Got a new rhyme for you just for Thanksgiving and it goes like this. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, #sizedontmatter ask Adriiana and Chastity. Well Adriiana Jackson @Roiiyalcranium  and Chasity Patterson @Lil_BitREAL are the fuel that starts the Mustangs engine and when they get going, those kids can create some huge issues on both ends. When you have as many high energy guards as the Mustangs, well this is why I initially had them as the top pick but the improvement of 6'2 Alyssa Okoene is simply icing on the cake. Tre Norris and Shae Johnson would be starting for most of the teams in the city however they provided a spark off the bench, on both ends plus once Deja Hughes is 100% , I think this team will simply be a problem for many

One thing is for certain, it doesn't get any easier for them to stay in that top spot because they face one of the toughest defensive teams Tuesday, they travel to Cy Fair and then that highly anticipated rematch with Cy Woods could happen in the Peggy Whitley classic next weekend so I'm thinking that's a Friday /Saturday stay for me

EVENTS

Tri-City Atascocita vs Hightower

THE GAME

Well actually it wasn't everything I thought it would be. Atascocita looked good most of the event but ran into a brick wall against Hightower. Several factors came into place, Rachel Mitchell was injured early, even though she returned and Lauren Price was playing in a Ganon Baker event, so this wasn't the real Atascocita. On the flip side, the Gilbert twins were amazing and to be honest with you, I couldn't tell them apart on or off the court. The Canes backcourt of Matthews and Heard was solid all tournament and as I've said before, this could be a Final Four preview for Austin. Curtyce Knox was as magical as ever, definitely one of the top 2012 players in the country and the addition of Parker

 will do nothing but help. Price is a key part of the puzzle and I can't wait to see them again at full speed. Needless to say, these are two of the top teams in the area and if you get a chance to catch them, you should.

Knox and Matthews