COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Our second tip sheet from the United States Olympic Training Center covers the remaining 17 of 34 players that competed for the USA Basketball U16 National Team's 12 roster spots. This group includes nine of the players selected to the team.
Whitney Knight was one of two players from Bishop McGuinness High School's backcourt. At 6 feet 2, she had plenty of height and length to play in the backcourt. She came on late knocking down long-range shots. Physically, she's not as strong as the swing players the committee chose to play multiple positions and she rarely played the point where we're used to seeing her with her club team.
• Knight did not make the team.
There was an adjustment period for Alexia Standish of Colleyville, Texas. She started out really strong in the first few sessions and then struggled when the defense was more physical with her. Part of it was that she wanted to run what the coach called, but with everyone learning the plays on the fly, she was often stuck with the ball waiting for things to happen. By the last few sessions, she shifted gears and identified when things were breaking down and made a basketball play outside the play. She also shot the ball among the best in the trials from 3.
• Standish made the team.
The sole representative from Delaware, Betnijah Laney came in unsure of where she would fit in best, the wing or forward position. After a couple of sessions you could see she was most effective from 12 feet in attacking the rim. Her physical strength negated the length many of her defenders had as an advantage. She has strong, wide shoulders and when she used them to protect the ball she finished well in the lane. She should be able to play multiple positions depending on matchups for USA.
• Laney made the team.
It didn't take long for Ariel Massengale of Bolingbrook, Ill., to assert herself as a leader on the court. She had the confidence to step in and be the point guard her team needed from the first tip. There were taller, quicker and faster players vying for point guard roster spots, but the 5-6 prospect was the most consistent and steady player of all. She passed the ball well in transition, ran her team, defended, and, perhaps most importantly, she shot the ball from 3-point range consistently. For a player that looks up to Renee Montgomery, she has some similar attributes early in her career.
• Massengale made the team.
Already considered one of the best shooters in the country, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis came into the trials with perhaps the highest expectations. She is a player that thrives in more structured settings, so as the players got more comfortable with teammates and the plays being taught she became a bigger impact in the scrimmages. One thing is for sure, you don't go under a ball screen, if she's the ballhandler. Sunday morning was easily her best session where she added rebounding and passing to the expected shooting exploits.
• Mosqueda-Lewis made the team.
Another player with a reputation as a sharp-shooter coming in to trials was Bonnie Samuelson. The 6-2 wing-guard defenders pay when they didn't close out, but with so much athleticism and length on the floor she didn't get as many open shots as she's used to. Samuelson's not a player who creates a lot of shots for herself off the dribble and in this setting it hurt her. However, she did show improvement from last year in getting to the basket on dribble drives. As she gets more confident in that regard, she will find defenses playing her straight up more often.
• Samuelson did not make the team.
When Kacy Swain takes the court you expect her to plant herself in the paint and play the post. However, when the 6-3 wing from Temecula, Calif., handles the ball you see her skill set is better suited for the perimeter. She can create shots from the perimeter with ease. She actually spent a fair amount of time playing on the inside and did some nice things, but she doesn't normally play there for her club team. Confidence could be limiting her because she is capable of doing a lot on the court, if she wants to.
• Swain did not make the team.
Over the last year, one of our most common critiques of Bria Smith was inconsistency, but the New Yorker showed an awful lot of consistency at the trials. She made plays on both ends of the court in each and every session. Despite giving up inches to the interior players, she was one of the better finishers off the dribble. Her breakdown ability in one-on-one situations is rivaled by few. She keeps her body so low and compact that each and every move she makes is explosive and directly into the defender's hips.
• Smith did not make the team.
Kiah Stokes didn't come into the trials with the national reputation that some of the other centers had, but it didn't stop her from competing. She is very light on her feet and extremely active on the glass. Every session her presence grew. The Marion, Ia., native can play either the 4 or 5 for this team. In the post, she showed some of the best footwork at the trials. She just needs to figure out how to protect the ball when defenders are flying in to block her shot. Becoming a more consistent finisher will take her to the next level.
• Stokes made the team.
Everyone overlooks Alexyz Vaioletama because she has Mosqueda-Lewis and Jordan Adams on her high school team. She also now has them as teammates on the U16 team. The 6-1 forward from Fountain Valley, Calif., is a great athlete who can defend both wings and forwards. On the floor, she rebounds with the bigs and showed in spots that she can explode past the defense and finish at the rim. She shot the ball out to 16 feet, but isn't a player that will make the switch to the wing. She plays within herself and will fit in with the team whether they ask her to play five or 25 minutes per game.
• Vaioletama made the team.
Elizabeth Williams of Virginia Beach, Va., is one of the biggest shot-blocking forces in the country. The 6-3 post jumps quickly and hangs well, once airborne. When you see her use that strength and leaping ability on offense it makes you pause and consider how good this kid is going to be before she's done. She caught passes with a slick FIBA-certified ball that would have been outside the range of most players, barely hit the hardwood and then elevated up the basket to finish. She did so with both hands and usually capped it off with a slap of the glass. She didn't finish as consistently as she is capable of, but having seen her before it was an anomaly.
• Williams made the team.
Jewell Loyd of Lincolnwood, Ill., is an energy player, pure and simple. She instantly increases the pace of play by checking into the game. She is relentless on the court, makes things happen and is the first player to give a player a verbal boost. The 5-9 guard pushes the tempo so much that turnovers tend to come a little more frequent than expected for a player of her caliber. She showed some perimeter shooting ability, but could be a little more consistent.
• Lloyd did not make the team.
Much like Loyd, another freshman who could have easily have made the roster is Breanna McDonald. The 6-0 wing has a nice, strong frame. With the ball, she showed solid guard skills, including a nice handle, with some shake to freeze defenders. She also showed a pull-up in the 12-foot range. With her athletic gifts she could be a lock-down defender, which she showed in spots, especially on the ball.
• McDonald did not make the team.
Floridian Alexis Prince stands 6-0 and can play as a wing or forward. Watch her for a couple of possessions and you will see she is one of the smoothest athletes, regardless of class. She makes things look incredibly easy and sometimes appears as though she's not working hard. It's deceiving because she makes quick work of a relaxed defender. She has the length to play an inch or so taller than she's listed and that length is featured with the high release on her jumper.
• Prince did not make the team.
Breanna Stewart of North Syracuse, N.Y., not only made a loud and obvious argument to make the team, but she also made a case for consideration of the top spot in the 2012 class. She is at least the listed 6-3 and her wingspan is several inches wider than that. She blocked shots, finished in the lane and rebounded well. The biggest area for growth is typical of players her height at this age: she needs to get stronger. Despite her size, she also has a lot of redeeming qualities for the wing though it appears she'll be a forward-center on this team. She brings consistent effort to the court, which really suggests she'll reach her full potential over the next few years, while dominating the high school level.
• Stewart made the team.
One of four Texans invited to the trials, Courtney Williams, was the tallest of the point guard crop. The Houston native was a bit of a slow starter as well and had some good sessions late in the trials. She showed a smooth and fluid mid-range, pull-up jumper. She had trouble getting into the lane to create those shots with all the size on the court. Being tall, it is even more important for her to stay compact, strong and explosive on dribble penetration, so the reaching help defense doesn't derail her attacks to the basket.
• Williams did not make the team.
A player coming into trials with high expectations was Bolingbrook's Morgan Tuck. The 6-1 forward started out a little timid and it looked like the tremendous length on the court was too much for the budding star. Wrong. She warmed up in the middle of the trials and had about as dominant a two-session run as any of the front court players. She showed good finishing touch with both hands and she did it on consecutive possessions to show everyone that it was far from luck. Just when she was taking off she fell to the floor, tore her ACL and was unable to participate in the final three sessions.
• Tuck made the team.
