INDIANAPOLIS — As basketball bloodlines go, they don’t get a whole lot better than Kayana Traylor’s.
The 2018 guard for the Indiana Flight 17 Strike squad has a father who played at Iowa (Jeff Walker), a mother who played at LSU (Danielle Traylor) and an aunt, April Traylor, who starred at Florida State.
And, partly because of her pedigree, Kayana might turn out to be the best of them all.
Kayana Traylor is a 5-foot-9 point guard with excellent ball handling skills, an ability to slice up opponents in the open court and a knack for finishing around the basket. Her future appears limitless, and no less than three Big Ten schools have offered scholarships.
“She played in our national division last year as an eighth grader,” Flight coach Gregg Mason said Friday during USJN’s 2nd Annual Midwest Summer Showcase, “and I was a little worried at times. But the kid can hold her own, that’s for sure.
“One thing about her: She’s an excellent basketball player for sure, and a good teammate to her team, but she’s a heck of a kid.”
She isn’t kind to opponents. Traylor’s lightning crossover rivals that of any of her peers, and while teammates have determinedly attempted to force the left-hander to use her right hand, they often find only partial success. That is, they succeed in forcing her to use her right hand, but Traylor still finds a way to finish the play with her left hand.
“People are always like, ‘Force her right! She can only go left!’” Traylor said.
“My right hand’s looking a lot better. I’m able to go right now, even if I finish with my left.”
Ross leads Gym Rats 14 to title game
Ellen Ross’ game is better experienced in person than described in words. Listed at 5-10, Ross is effective inside against taller post players, can handle the ball well in the open court and has a burgeoning midrange game.
But that probably doesn’t do justice to a player who just finds a way — aggressively, doggedly — to be the most effective performer on the court.
“She’s kind of been groomed to be a post player in her early years because she grew quickly, and her father is 6-8,” said her Indiana Gym Rats 14 coach, Carol Duncan, a former Purdue player.
But Ross, a 2018 forward who plays at Fort Wayne (Ind.) Bishop Dwenger, figures to be a wing-type player at the next level.
“She’s been working on her ballhandling. It’s improved immensely,” Duncan said. “She’s confident bringing the ball up against the press. She looks great right now, being able to move laterally and being explosive to get up and get rebounds. Even though she’s maybe 5-9 or 5-10, she plays bigger because of that athleticism.”
To further develop, Duncan said, Ross will need to expand her range to the three-point line while also finding a way to avoid contact, preferably with the use of a pull-up jumper.
In any case, Ross is a nightmare matchup these days — and might be just as much of a nightmare in college.
“She’s going to be a three or four,” Duncan said. “If she were to be a 3 and they put a 5-8 guard on her, she’ll post up and eat them up. She’s eating up 6-foot post players (now). There’s a lot she can develop in the next couple years with her skills.”
On Friday, Ross led the Gym Rats to a 78-56 victory against Illinois’ CHE Lady Dribblers 13 squad and a spot in Saturday’s title game for Pools Q-T.
Well-rounded All In Athletics thriving
Illinois’ All In Athletics 17 Truding squad boasts a prototypical player at each of the five traditional spots on the court.
There’s a heady, pass-first point guard in Madie Kaelber (2016); a dead-eye perimeter shooter in off-guard Maddie Welter (2016); an athletic slasher at small forward in Tessy Onwuka (2016); a stretch-4 in 6-foot-2 Valparaiso commit Caitlin Morrison; and a 6-3 back-to-the-basket post in Harvard commit Jeannie Boehm.
So it’s little wonder that All In cruised into Saturday’s title game for Pools A-D, beating Indy Magic 17 Blanding 69-53 in the semifinals.
“When we rebound, we can run, and we’re really good in transition,” coach Matt Truding said. “We’ve got shooters who can spot up, and we’ve got bigs who can run the floor. We’re hard to guard that way.”
Chicago Hoops Express 17 sets up showdown
All In will face a familiar in-state foe in the finale: Chicago Hoops Express 17, led by four Division I commits.
The squads will square off at 12:40 p.m. Saturday in a followup to their previous encounter this summer, a CHE victory in the Illinois state AAU tournament.
“They’re good,” Truding said. “I’m looking forward to a good battle.”
CHE rolled past the (Illinois) Midwest Wildcats 62-43 in the semifinals behind Kathleen Doyle (Nebraska commit), Alyssa Moore (Wisconsin-Milwaukee), Frannie Corrigan (Illinois State) and Maryam Wilcher (Indiana State).
Coach Jerald Davis said his group hasn’t lost a game this summer when his entire squad has been intact (Doyle missed time with a broken finger on her non-shooting hand).
“We’ve had a real good run,” he said.
