GILBERT, Ariz.—Blue Star Media is fortunate to have experienced journalists Tony Bleill and Fred Kroner in our corner at the 2015 Nike Tournament of Champions.  As the media sponsor of the TOC, we’re committed to providing coverage from start to finish from several different perspectives.  We’ll be providing evaluations and photos as always along with courtside insights and observations from Tony and Fred.  They’ll also be providing the game coverage of championship play as the six divisions look to crown champions for the 19^th year.  We’re excited to have them as part of the Blue Star team and look forward to their efforts throughout the event.

TONY BLEILL

Sunday is an off day at the Nike Tournament of Champions, which means Bellevue (Wash.) senior Anna Wilson is free to find a TV and check out her famous brother, Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, take on the Cleveland Browns.

But, alas, big brother will have to make do without the faraway cheers of Anna. She’s headed to a Phoenix Suns game that afternoon.

“We’ll keep tabs on my brother,” Wilson said Friday after her team walloped Mountain View (Meridian, ID) 82-65 in first-round play of the John Anderson Division. “I’ll be back here in Arizona when they play their last game (against the Cardinals).”

Wilson might have a well-known brother, but she has a well-established name of her own among the basketball cognoscenti. Ranked 42nd in her class by Blue Star, Wilson is a heady point guard who is more than willing to share the ball and create for others. Against Mountain View, she had 21 points and probably could have scored twice as many.

And this despite a burdensome travel schedule that would make even the hardiest business travel weary.  Bellevue played conference games on Wednesday and Thursday, then awoke early Friday to fly to Phoenix. They arrived at 3 p.m. but were stalled at the airport for another 90 minutes, and then the rush was on to make a 7 p.m. tip.

“So it was like: Sprint to get food, get your uniforms on, we’re going to the gym,” coach Leah Krautter said.

It hardly seemed to faze the Wolverines (7-0). Perhaps that’s because they’re good at making adjustments on the fly. Wilson, a Stanford signee, and teammate Quenessa Caylao-Do, a Colorado recruit, both transferred to Bellevue this season. Wilson came from Collegiate School in Richmond, Va., while Caylao-Do moved from Todd Beamer High School in Federal Way, Wash. The transition appears to be seamless.

“This team is amazing,” Wilson said. “Everyone is just super nice and we’re really pumped for this season.”

Said Krautter: “It’s been fantastic. She is such a nice person and really a team player. The girls took to her right away. They voted her our captain. She’s the type of person who really understands the game and is willing to give advice, and the girls really took to it because she does it in a way that is just strong (leadership).”

Wilson’s Wolverines got the best of another backcourt star, Mountain View senior Destiny Slocum. The Maryland signee, ranked 10th by Blue Star, had 23 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and four steals.

SPECIAL VICTORY FOR RIVERDALE BAPTIST COACH

Riverdale Baptist (Upper Marlboro, Md.) coach Sam Caldwell spent several minutes after his team’s 66-43 victory against Homewood-Floosmoor (Ill.) in the Joe Smith Division trying to track down someone — anyone — who might know where the game ball was located.  Caldwell wanted to secure it for a special reason: It was his 200th career victory.

Caldwell, 46, in his third season at Riverdale and 17th overall, beamed a wide smile after the milestone win, procured against a solid team that placed fourth in Illinois’ large-school class last March.  And as a result, Caldwell on Saturday earned a matchup against his cross-country pal, Long Beach (Calif.) Poly’s Carl Buggs.

“I get to see my good buddy Carl,” said Caldwell, who briefly greeted Buggs moments before the third quarter began.

“We have a nice bond, a friendship,” Buggs said. “We go way back.”

“I’ve been a big fan of Carl, he’s a great coach and he’s getting the best out of his kids,” Caldwell said. “And he’s a great guy.”

Their teams have squared off in previous TOCs, but the last meeting, Caldwell surmised, was about three years ago.

“His kids are always going to be ready to play. That’s why we come to Nike TOC: It’s the best in the country,” Caldwell said. “This is the ultimate test.”

Caldwell’s team, considered among the nation’s elite by reputable rankings, features four Division I recruits: Maryland’s Kaila Charles, Iowa State’s Nia Washington, Georgetown’s Morgan Smith and UNC Greensboro’s Mangela Ngandjui.

LONG BEACH POLY SURVIVES SCARE 

Buggs’ team nearly didn’t make to Saturday’s quarterfinals. His Jackrabbits trailed nearly the entire game against Wesleyan (Norcross, Ga.) before pulling out a 54-51 overtime decision.

Poly trailed 16-3 after one quarter needed a three-pointer from guard Danae Miller with three seconds left to force OT.

Miller wasn’t done. With her team down 51-49, Miller sank another three — from nearly the same spot — for the lead with 15 seconds remaining in overtime.

“That’s what she’s capable of,” Buggs said.

Such theatrics are becoming routine for Miller, who hit a game-winning three-pointer to beat Lynwood earlier this month.

“My shot wasn’t falling the whole game but when it comes down to it, you have to have the confidence to take that shot,” Miller said.

Miller’s dramatic shots overshadowed the roles played by the respective team’s stars, who attracted coaches from Connecticut, Stanford, Tennessee, Louisville and others. Poly’s Ayanna Clark, a USC commit who’s ranked fourth in the class of 2017 by Blue Star, returned from a concussion suffered in practice recently. She had 12 points off the bench.

Wesleyan’s Mikayla Coombs, ranked fifth in Blue Star’s junior class, struggled with her shot and finished with 10 points.

CENTENNIAL’S ETHRIDGE ONE TO KEEP AN EYE ON

Justice Ethridge of Centennial (Las Vegas, NV) is an emerging sophomore, and her performance in Friday’s opening round probably helped open some eyes.

Ethridge, a 5-foot-8 guard, scored 26 points in Centennial’s 61-45 victory against Dillard (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.).

“I’m trying to work on my midrange game and getting to the basket more, getting fouled,” the soft-spoken Ethridge said. “I kind of run away from contact sometimes.”

“She’s just an amazing player to me and sometimes she just plays as well and as hard as the needs to, depending on the competition,” Centennial coach Karen Weitz said. “Just highly intelligent, and I think Justice can play with some of the top in the country when she wants to. This is good for her. She looks forward to this, too.”

FRED KRONER

The fundraising at Springfield (Mass.) Central started last summer.  It began with a car wash put on by the girls’ basketball team.  The squad eventually raised the $10,000 that was needed for the public school to commute to Arizona and participate in the 19th Nike Tournament of Champions event, which started on Friday at various Phoenix-area sites.

Coach Erik Maurer is thankful to all who donated or helped spearhead the volunteer efforts.

Included in that group is his wife, Jodi.

“She took the lead and secured donations from several area businesses, so I could come here,” Erik Maurer said. “It has been a dream of mine to coach here.”

Jodi Maurer wasn’t one of the fans in the stands Friday when Southwest DeKalb (Ga.) edged Springfield Central 58-54 in first-round action in the Joe Smith Division.

“She’s back home watching our daughter (Madison, a freshman) play varsity basketball (at East Longmeadow),” Erik Maurer said.

His team’s four-point loss didn’t dampen his spirits about the five-day event.

“We wanted to provide our girls the opportunity to play against the best in the country,” he said. “I couldn’t be happier.”

ShaRaya Haines led Springfield Central with 15 points. Makayla Thompson scored 13 points.

“We only graduate one senior,” Erik Maurer said. “Maybe the opportunity will present itself to make it back. We’d like to get back every year.”

ALEXANDER REACHES 1000 POINT MARK

There was a momentary pause in the Southwest DeKalb/Springfield Central game with 3 minutes, 45 second left in the first half.  A basket by DeKalb’s Daisa Alexander broke the game’s final tie, 21-21.  The brief break near half-court enabled Alexander to receive the game ball, which was then taken out of play, after becoming the fourth player in coach Kathleen Walton’s 13-year tenure to reach the 1,000-point mark.  It was a surprise to Alexander.

“She knew she was close, but we didn’t tell her (she needed 11 points entering the game),” Walton said. “We didn’t want to ignore it.”

Alexander finished with a game-high 21 points, including 8-for-11 second-half shooting from the free throw line

Teammate Jada Walton added 16 points.

CHAMINADE SPOILS EASTSIDE OPENER

Friday was Opening Day for every school in the annual Tournament of Champions showcase.  For Paterson (N.J.) Eastside, the start truly marked a new beginning.

“Our first game (of the season),” coach Ray Lyde, Jr., said. “New Jersey opens today.”

Eastside was matched up with sixth-ranked Chaminade, from West Hills, Cal.  Against an opponent which is now 6-0, Eastside had more turnovers than points (9-8) in the first quarter and never recovered., dropping a 65-33 decision.

Duke signee Leaonna Odom scored 13 of her game-high 21 points in the second half to spark Chaminade.  The Eagles had a special support section.  The six squad members who weren’t in the game — regardless of who they were —  led cheers from the bench.

“They’re very enthusiastic,” Chaminade coach Kelli Di Muro said. “They wanted to enjoy each other and have a good time.”

The spirit has been in evidence all season, but is now magnified.

“They’ve been hanging out more together,” Di Muro said.

The Eagles displayed their perimeter prowess in a third quarter when they scored more points (29) than they totaled the first half (28). Four different starters drained three-pointers in the third quarter, including two by Melissa Wright.

“We have a lot of threats,” Di Muro said. “We just need to get more consistent.”

THREE POINTER HELPS MITTY MOVE ON

The game of the day at the Highland High School gymnasium in Gilbert, was Archbishop Mitty’s 50-49 triumph over Miami Country Day.  The San Jose, Cal., school secured the win on a three-pointer by 5-2 sophomore Krissy Miyahara with less than 20 seconds remaining.  It was her third trey of the game, but was hardly a surprise to her coach, Sue Phillips.

“She’s a great story,” Phillips said. “We were in Spokane (Wash.) two weeks ago and she won the three-point contest.”

Miyahara was then matched up with the boys’ three-point champion, and she prevailed, hitting 13 of 20 attempts.

Phillips and Haley Jones led Mitty’s balanced attack with nine points apiece.  Kelsey Marshall led Country Day with 16 points.

GOOD COUNSEL MAKING THEIR CASE

Five of USA Today’s top 10-ranked girls’ basketball teams are assigned to the Joe Smith Division of the Nike Tournament of Champions event.  One of them is not Our Lady of Good Counsel, from Olney,Md.  Yet.  Coach Tom Splaine’s team made a case for some elite recognition in an opening-round game it never trailed against 10th-ranked Mater Dei (Cal.). The showdown of unbeaten teams belonged to Good Counsel, 49-41.

“I hope so,” Splaine said, when asked if he hoped the victory would make an impression on those casting votes in the poll.

Many of the 16 entries in the Joe Smith Division are preparing for competition unlike what they’ll see throughout much of the remainder of the regular season.

“We’re in a different situation,” Splaine said. “We’re using this tournament to get ready for league play. Our league is so strong.”

Junior Lindsey Pulliam led Good Counsel with 16 points. Splaine’s team took the lead from the outset on a three-pointer by senior Mariah Gray.

“She’s our unsung and unsigned senior,” Splaine said. “She did a great job defensively.”

Freshman Chloe Chapman, who is ranked as one of the top five prospects in the class of 2019, scored seven points but she showed her value beyond the offensive contribution.

“She is mature beyond her years and we rely on her for a lot,” Splaine said. “We’ve played a couple of years without a true point guard.”

Good Counsel (6-0) held Mater Dei to four first-quarter points while building a 10-point lead. The margin was expanded to 26-13 midway through the second quarter.

Georgetown commit Breonna Mayfield scored six first-half points and Splaine said the 6-foot-5 junior “came up big tonight.”  Allyson Rosenblum, a UCLA signee and a top 60 senior, led Mater Dei with 14 points.

ST. MARY’S EXHIBITS BOTH TALENT AND DEPTH

The nation’s top-rated girls’ basketball team, St. Mary’s, from Stockton, Cal., overcame a slow start against New Trier, from Winnetka, Ill., en route to an 86-56 victory.  With less than 10 seconds to play in the opening quarter, St.

Mary’s lead was 16-15. By halftime, the margin was up to 47-23.  Friday’s game marked the first start this season for senior Kat Tudor, an Oregon State signee who is regarded as one of the country’s premier perimeter shooters.

Tudor, who had been sidelined with a leg injury, drilled four three-pointers and ended with 13 points, three behind Nebraska-bound Micole Cayton and two behind Aquira DeCosta, who is ranked as the nation’s top sophomore.

“It will be fun when we’re at full strength,” St. Mary’s coach Tom Gonsalves said. “Kat gives us another dimension.”

With a 7-0 record and billing as the nation’s top team, there’s no sign of complacency at the high school with an enrollment of 800, Gonsalves said.

“There is so much competition in practice, Gonsalves said. “They can’t take a day off or someone will take their place.

“That’s the luxury of having 11 kids who could play Division I.”

Nine squad members scored at least five points against New Trier and Gonsalves acknowledged, “we’re a little deeper than I thought we’d be.”

New Trier was led by Harvard recruit Jeannie Boehm with 21 points.

Tony Bleill covered the Illinois women’s basketball team for 14 seasons for the Champaign News-Gazette.  He was one of 40 voters in the Associated Press Top 25 poll during that period as well.  He resides in Illinois with his wife and three daughters.

Fred Kroner covered girls’ high school basketball nearly 35 years for the Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette and selected All-State teams for 28 years. He was a voter for The Associated Press state rankings for 15 years as well. He resides in Illinois with his wife.