DelleDonne Paces Comets

Elena DelleDonne led the Comets to the brink of an Mid-Atlantic AAU Regional title, but will have to miss the championship game.

The Comets

ASTON, Pa. - Elena DelleDonne led her new club team, the Comets, to the brink of a Mid-Atlantic regional championship and a berth in the 16U AAU Nationals.

The No. 1 player in the 2008 class, according to HoopGurlz.com, DelleDonne scored 24 of her game-high 30 points during the second half of a 71-58 victory Sunday over the Rebels of Pennsylvania.

The Comets will face the Rebels again for the region championship of the double-elimination tournament on Sunday, May 20, at Archbishop Carroll High School in Radnor, Pa. The Rebels defeated the Philly Belles by six in a loser-out game to set up the rematch.

Kerri Shields

DelleDonne will miss the championship game because she will be in Colorado Springs, Colo., for the USA Basketball U19 Trials. The Comets would have to lose two straight to the Rebels to be denied the title. A second game, if necessary, would be Monday, May 21. The USA trials end on the 20th.

The Belles, which are led by Caroline Doty, the No. 12 overall prospect in 2008 who is committed to Connecticut, finished third in the region. The Rebels beat the Belles twice by six points; Doty fouled out with nine minutes remaining in the second matchup.

Grieving the death of her grandfather, who was put to rest on Friday, DelleDonne scored 37 points as the Comets beat DBL, the fourth-place finisher, 91-85 on Saturday. Becky Burke, who is committed to South Carolina, added 16 for the Comets. DelleDonne hit five three-pointers and was 5 for 5 from the foul line during her second-half assault on the Rebels on Sunday. Kerri Shields, an Archbishop Carroll sophomore, added seven points and seven assists for the Comets, while Laura Sweeney, a junior at Cherokee High in Marlton, N.J., led the Rebels with 19 points.

The AAU National Championships for Junior Girls (formerly 16U) will be July 4-10 in Orlando, Fla. The Comets will earn, at worst, a No. 2 or No. 9 seed, as the Mid-Atlantic representatives finished second and ninth at the 15U Nationals in 2006. The Comets lost in the 15U round of 12 to the eventual champions, Cincinnati's Finest and Tennessee commit Amber Gray. The Philly Belles finished second and DBL placed ninth.

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