King Classic Watch

The King Classic, Saturday at KeyArena in Seattle, was most notable for its top teams, plus abundance of senior prospects, both signed and unsigned.

STORY & PHOTOS BY GLENN NELSON

SEATTLE, Wash. - As a showcase, the 2007 King Classic at KeyArena stood out more for its teams. The prospects were there, for sure. But the youngers ones seem to have hit a wall, while the seniors who are unsigned face that status because they lack a key element - mainly size.

Three of the best unsigned seniors - Anna Martin of Holy Names, Shauneice Samms of Mt. Tahoma and Jasmine Williams of Seattle Prep - were on display.

The most intriguing matchup occurred between Mt. Tahoma, a team from the south Puget Sound area looking for respect, and Garfield, a tradition Seattle power that is in somewhat of a rebuilding mode. During its closer-than-it-sounds 67-60 victory, Mt. Tahoma showed its trademark style of trying to make its opponent implode before it does by forcing others to play faster than they want. Garfield was a willing accomplice, but the game for the Bulldogs was a microcosm of their season so far - they managed to stay in the hunt throughout.

The day's opening matchup was between traditional, private-school rivals from the Seattle area, with Seattle Prep taking command in the Metro League's Mountain Division with (again) a closer-than-it-sounds 63-52 victory over Holy Names. Prep's depth of talent exceeds even Chief Sealth's in the Metro League, but the Panthers have yet to fire on all cylinders this season. Given its penchant for waking up down the season's stretch, Holy Names demonstrated the makings of a third straight appearance at State 3A.

After wreaking havoc at the 2A level behind Sara Mosiman, now a freshman at Washington, King's is back at the 1A classification, where it again is among the state's powerhouse programs. Seniors Danielle Clauson and Sarah Strand, who have been playing together since grade school, have the on-court psychic connection of sisters and are fun to watch. They led the Knights to a 59-42 victory over 4A Foss in the only laugher in the girl's set of games.

Ranesha Pate of Mt. Tahoma

Danielle Clauson, a 5-foot-10 guard at Kings, will compete in both basketball and track at Concordia, a small, private university in Portland, Ore., but why a larger program didn't nail her down for just hoops is difficult to understand. She has good size and length for either backcourt spot, is a clever and creative passer, can create her own shot and is a very clean shooter who gets good lift on her shot from al distances. Clauson also can be an accomplished handler of the ball, who gets low on the attack to muscle past defenders and employs an array of finishes.

Briana Lewis, a 5-9 guard at Garfield, has not really focused on pursuing a basketball career on the next level, but, as she did on Saturday, shows from time to time that maybe she should have. She is long, with track-level speed and shows nice, tight form on pull-up jumpers. Her technique breaks down slightly from the three-point arc, but Lewis demonstrates elite-level athletic focus on occasion. Saturday was one of those; she had 15 of her game-high 23 points during the ourth quarter, her output including a trio of three-points and several explosive moves to the basket.

Anna Martin of Holy Names Academy in Seattle has been too good on the low blocks, despite being only 5-11, so it's been difficult for her high-school and club teams to switch her out of post position. She obviously would not play there on the next level, thus the conundrum she has presented to recruiters. There's much to like about her game. Martin does a lot of the little things well. She blocks out, gets good defensive position, finishes and handles with both hands, passes well and plays hard all the time.

Ranesha Pate, a 5-8 guard for Mt. Tahoma, had an otherworldly run in the Washington State 4A tournament as a freshman, finishing third in scoring (20.7 points per game), first in steals (5.7), sixth in rebounding (10.0). After disappearing from the elite ranks her sophomore and junior years, she appears to be back. Pate has a nose for the ball, great explosiveness off the floor and off the dribble. She makes shots off her athleticism rather than technique, her tendency to cock the ball behind her ear on jumpers not classic but allowing her to hang in the lane for scores.

Sarah Strand of King's

Shauneice Samms, a 5-9 forward at Mt. Tahoma, has been the region's premier shot-blocker her entire high-school career. She has long arms, very good lift and extraordinary timing, which allows her to excel at the snuff, but isn't enough for the next level to negate her relative absence of height. Samms has worked on perimeter skills, and can knock down standstill threes, but her value remains down low, where she also is a very good rebounder (she had 20 boards against Garfield).

Sarah Strand, a 6-0 forward at King's, was a good signing for Montana State. She puts her length to great use from the perimeter, where she has very good, repeatable form on all forms of shots - catch-and-shoot, off the dribble and standstill - from all over the floor. Strand also can handle the ball a little, pass it very well and maintains good position on defense. She plays hards all the time and only her lack of breakaway speed prevented her from going to a higher-level college program.

Chaneika Williams, a 5-9 guard at Garfield, is appropriately heading to a high major Division I program in Syracuse. She is strong, fearless and tough, versatile and extremely coachable. To the last point, Williams pitched in for the undersized Bulldogs with a monster performance on the glass, helping her to 12 of her 20 points during the second quarter. She excels at breaking down defenders and creating her own shot, either at the rim or of pull-up variety about anywhere on the court, but also defends very hard and well, plus will step up at either end down the stretch of close games.

Jasmine Williams, a 5-9 guard at Seattle Prep, has been somewhat of an enigma. She has good size, skills and athleticism, but, much like the team she plays for, hasn't put it all together, though this is her strongest and most consistent season to date. She has breakdown ability and create her own shot, but prefers the left hand big time, probably because she's a much better shooter off movement.



Lily Ramseyer, a 5-11 guard at Garfield, has been adjusting to a new level of competition at the 4A level, having transferred from Seattle Academy, a Class 1A school. She has very good size and explosiveness for a guard and, when dialed in, can shoot the ball from just about anywhere. Ramseyer also is audacious enough to attempt difficult, pressure shots, but for the next level will need to temper her propensity to try doing a bit too much.

Demarea Caples of Garfield

Demarea Caples, a 5-10 wing, is the only one of the three very promising 2010 prospects on this list who still is humming along. She continues to play, as coach Joyce Walker likes to say, like her "smartest player ever," almost always in proper position at the defensive end, making the proper basketball play at the offensive end, and able to plug every need, from the post to the point. Caples can shoot the ball, but defers to her teammates and is a very intuitive passer. She plays hard, but is not explosive and could be a similar player at the next level with tigher ballhandling skills.

Yasmin Fuller, a 5-7 guard at Seattle Prep, is a definite gym-pleaser - the kind of kid for whom crowds chant and does not disappoint, at least in terms of entertainment value. She has great ballhandling skills and a penchant for making impossible, acrobatic shots. During the summer for Prep, Fuller seemed to fit into the Panther's team schemes very well, but now seems to have strayed into more individual play, which is a trap into which many young players fall.

Alyse Harris, a 5-9 guard at Garfield, had a strong start for the Bulldogs this season, showing good size, strength, abundant speed and athleticism and skills. She can attack the rim off the dribble, as well as shoot the ball out to the three-point line. Harris can be a far more disruptive defender than she's shown, and most of her recent struggles have their roots in the adjustment to the highest level of high-school basketball in a pretty talented region.

Shauneice Samms of Mt. Tahoma

Anna Martin of Holy Names

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