The Stars of Boo (Part II)

PHOTOS BY GLENN NELSON

Elena DelleDonne snares a rebound against The Family

HAMPTON, Va. - Though dominated by the Class of 2007, the Boo Williams Invitational all-tournament teams, as selected by HoopGurlz.com, also were well represented by several exciting 2008 prospects, including No. 1 in the class, Elena DelleDonne of Fencor. She is one of four 2008 stars to be selected to the second and third teams.

2006 HOOPGURLZ.COM ALL-BWI SECOND TEAM

(CLICK ON NAMES FOR PROFILES)

Cetera Degraffenreid of Tennessee

Ta'Shia Phillips of The Family

Kelley Cain – Georgia Metros - 2007
Cetera DeGraffenreid – Tennessee Flight - 2007
Elena DelleDonne – Fencor - 2008
Ta’Shia Phillips – The Family - 2007
Krystal Thomas – Orlando Comets - 2007

Kelley Cain looked good all weekend. Against teams she should dominate she did and she looked solid going against the All Ohio duo of Ayana Dunning and Jantel Lavender, and battled Ta'Shia Phillips, all very good posts respectively. She’s very smooth moving for her size and at her best using drop step. She also fills the lanes and can catch the ball and finish on the run. She rebounded well against the top competition as well. She’s also an underrated passer.

Krystal Thomas of Orlando

Cetera DeGraffenreid is a smaller guard but only in height. Her arms are ripped and she’s a tough player on both sides of the floor. Her quickness allows her get into people defensively and really put pressure on the ball handler. She’s fast and makes good passes in the open court. DeGraffenreid can shoot the ball too. She got into the lane regularly this weekend with a host of creative crossover and hesitation moves and led her team into the Gold Division semifinal.

Elena DelleDonne is just a ridiculous scorer and she knows it. Everything she does is with confidence which makes her even more dangerous. She has numerous ways to put the ball in the hole, pull-ups, dribble drive and a great post game that she could show even more. From the left box she has an unstoppable turnaround fade-away that is typically seen from NBA players – I’m talking fading behind the basket and it’s as good as a layin for her.

Ta'Shia Phillips has always had size and strength and she’s showing signs of a developing an offensive repertoire, which is scary. The rebounding and defense with her is a given. She put a nasty dropstep into a stepback fadeaway on Kelley Cain in the Silver Bracket championship game that had jaws dropping. She’s a capable mid range shooter that could be scary good if she continues to add ways to score on the block.

Krystal Thomas looked solid all weekend as well. She runs the floor like a wing and finishes both around the basket in the half court and on the break. Defensively she’s becoming a force utilizing her quickness. She showed some great pivot moves and as fluid as she moves and as coordinated as she is her ceiling is very high

Kelley Cain of the Georgia Metros

Elena DelleDonne of Fencor

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2006 HOOPGURLZ.COM ALL-BWI THIRD TEAM

(CLICK ON NAMES FOR PROFILES)

Chay Shegog of the Fairfax Stars

Jantel Lavender of All-Ohio Black

Chay Shegog – Fairfax Stars - 2008
Jantel Lavendar – All-Ohio Black - 2007
Alli Smalley – Alabama Lasers - 2007
April Sykes – Essence Basketball - 2008
Shela White – Boo Williams Summer League - 2008

Chay Shegog was impressive all weekend. She has a host of post moves and looks to have mastered the step-through crossover off the pivot. She was accidentally hit in the eye early in the second half of the Stars showdown with the Orlando Comets shortening her showdown with Krystal Thomas.

Alli Smalley of the Alabama Lasers

Jantel Lavendar has expanded her moves around the basket and attacked all defenders. She scored well but with Ayana Dunning on the floor she often didn’t have to guard the oppositions best post player so she didn’t get a great number of opportunities to show her defense against the other top posts.

Alli Smalley played solid for the Alabama Lasers. She shot the ball well, showed great speed pushing the ball up the floor and made great decisions with the basketball. She moves well and knows where to be on the floor.

April Sykes has scary potential. She’s a 6-foot scorer who can stick the J and create off the dribble. Just a sophomore she’s one of the top 2008 perimeter players you will find. Her form in nice and she’s got a smooth and quick release.

Shela White has the benefit of numerous weapons all over the floor with her BWSL squad. She gets the ball to them Kiser, Rodgers and Strickland where they need the ball. She is lightening quick and has one of the quickest pull-up jumpers around. She elevates and has great form. Defensively she’s great on the ball.

April Sykes of Essence Basketball

Shela White of Boo Williams

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Our Complete Boo Williams Invitational Coverage Menu:

Final Spotlight on Boo
The all-tournament fourth team, plus other top players, from the nation's elite spring viewing event for girls, as ranked by HoopGurlz.com.

Boo Photo Gallery
More images from the action in Hampton, Va.

The Top Stars of Boo (Part II)
The all-tournament second and third teams at the nation's elite spring viewing event for girls, as ranked by HoopGurlz.com.

The Top Stars of Boo (Part I)
The all-tournament first team at the nation's elite spring viewing event for girls, as ranked by HoopGurlz.com.

The Scoop on Saturday at Boo
Players from both coasts and everywhere in between were represented at the Boo Williams Invitational, with the cream rising to the top in pool play.

Women's Basketball Prospect Database
A listing of some of the nation's top prospects; this is an evolving list with recruits added constantly.

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Chris Hansen is the National Director of Scouting for Women's Basketball at HoopGurlz.com and Scout.com. Chris leads the panel that evaluates and ranks girl's basketball prospects nationally for HoopGurlz, Scout.com and Full Court Press (www.FullCourt.com). Chris has been involved in the women’s basketball community since 1998 as a coach, trainer, evaluator and reporter. He can be reached at [e-mail].

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Glenn Nelson is the publisher of HoopGurlz.com and the editor-in-chief of Scout Media (www.Scout.com), an online sports network and magazine-publishing company and subsidiary of Fox Interactive Media. Glenn also founded and coached the Dragons and Northwest HoopGurlz select girls basketball teams. He previously was a longtime, national-award-winning basketball columnist and writer for The Seattle Times. His work also has appeared in several national magazines and books. He is co-author of "Rising Stars: The Ten Best Players in the NBA" (Rosen Publishing, 2002).