CHANDLER, Ariz. – The weather in the Phoenix area for the Nike Tournament of Champions has featured seasonable temperatures in the low- to mid-60s most days.
For parka-wearing, wind-whipped teens from the nation’s heartland, anything above, say, 60 degrees is good enough to go swimming.
“This is so nice,” said Nebraska signee Jessica Shepard of Fremont (Neb.). “We were swimming. Right when we landed here it was 60-something degrees. We woke up the next morning and it had snowed 2 inches back in Nebraska. Wow. This is perfect.”
On the court, the Tigers have enjoyed their share of fun, too. They beat Bishop O’Dowd (Oakland, Calif.) in their opener, hung with powerhouse Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) before falling in the quarterfinals, and defeated Millennium (Goodyear, Ariz.) on Saturday to reach the fifth-place game. Fremont takes on another perennial power, Long Beach (Calif.) Poly, at 3:40 p.m. Monday.
“It’s been great for us,” Shepard said. “We’ve never really gotten to do anything like this before and a lot of these girls have never really traveled to play basketball before. Just to get to come here and play against these great teams, it can only make us better.”
Traveling to play against elite competition is nothing new for Shepard, Blue Star’s No. 3-ranked senior who has played for the talent-laden Cornhusker Shooting Stars and All Iowa Attack clubs. She’s also accustomed to the fast-paced, physical style that many TOC teams bring to the court. It has served as an introduction for some of her teammates, however.
“Here it’s a lot more physical than they usually allow in most (games), especially at the guard position,” Shepard said. “The posts, they usually let us bang around. But here it’s kind of like club ball. I like it.”
It shows. Shepard has been sensational in the TOC, averaging 30 points and 15 rebounds in three games.
Photo by Mark Lewis
MATTHEWS EMERGING FOR LONG BEACH POLY
Eliza Matthews is in her junior season at Long Beach Poly, but that’s a misnomer when describing her playing experience.
Matthews, an agile 6-foot-2 post, missed about 1 ½ seasons with an injury to her right knee that eventually led to surgery. The initial injury came shortly after the 2012 Nike Tournament of Champions during her freshman year, causing her to miss the final two months of the season. She had surgery in summer 2013 and missed all of last season, finally returning to the court this past summer.
“So she really hasn’t played a whole lot of basketball,” Poly coach Carl Buggs said.
Matthews has shined during the TOC, collecting 20 points and 18 rebounds in a loss to St. Mary’s (Stockton, Calif.) and finishing with 15 points and 11 boards in a win against Desert Vista (Phoenix).
Her game lacks a bit of offensive polish around the basket, but not much else. If Matthews adds some strength to her frame, she could be a force at the next level.
“It’s just getting some experience playing, and getting stronger, and playing balanced,” Buggs said. “She’s a little off-balanced too much. She has to settle down. But that’s just confidence and time.”
Matthews has made a verbal commitment to Cal State Northridge.
“I tell her, when people see you, they’re going to love you,” Buggs said. “She has nothing but upside because she’s just started back playing again. But core strength, just getting stronger and settling down a little bit and being more patient with her moves (is what she needs).”
Photo by Mark Lewis
BLACKMAN REBOUNDS AFTER DEFEAT
Blackman (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) entered the season as the nation’s No. 1 team by most experts but a November defeat against Potter’s House Christian (Jacksonville, Fla.) might have served as a wake-up call for the Blaze.
Since then, they’ve knocked off two nationally regarded teams in Myers Park (N.C.) and Elizabethtown (Ky.), along with three wins in the TOC. Blackman will face defending champ Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) in Monday’s title game of the Joe Smith Division.
“I think we really picked up our level of play after the Turkey Jamm (loss to Potter’s House),” Blackman coach Chad Hibdon said. “We laid an egg against Potter’s House. They were playing for blood and we were not ready. We were out of it. We regrouped. We played OK the next night, but after that we locked in. We knew we were playing two nationally ranked teams in Myers Park and Elizabethtown. That got our focus back. From that point, we’ve gotten better.”
Mater Dei and sharpshooter Katie Lou Samuelson will challenge the Blaze on Monday.
“They can really score the basketball. It will be a big, big challenge for us,” Hibdon said. “They are a consistent, perennial national power. They’ve got their standards of excellence and we’ll hope to compete and just fight and try to make it a basketball game.”
Photo by Mark Lewis
