In one of the more exciting Championship games at the Lady X Tournament Millennium defeated Perry in an overtime thriller in which Tournament MVP Kassady Dixon delivered a last second assist to Sophomore Guard Mia Amundsen, who was able to drain a game winning 3 as time expired. The matchup showcased the 2018 Champion vs the 2019 Champion. While this year's tournament did not have all the perennials powers that it usually showcases, presumable due to it postponement from its June slot due to the the pandemic, it did not disappoint in terms of game play and excitement. What follows are some take a ways that we have about the teams that made the Lady X Tournament a success in 2020. Millennium (Finished #1 with an Overtime victory over Perry) is still talented. They have a D1 committ in Kassidy Dixon (GCU) and a top 5 Freshman in Ellie Guiney. However they are not still a defensive minded program. In the past the Tigers would hang their hat o...
The Tigers have completely owned the East Valley for the past 4 years. They have made 4 straight trips to the Final 4 in both 6A and 5A. Each of those trips they fell to West Valley powers Millennium or Valley Vista. Once, 2019, they were able to make it to the championship game, but fell again to Millennium. But against the rest of state and particularly the East Valley, they have won an astonishing 88 games with only 1 loss in that 4-year span. They truly have dominated the East Valley. Now with Millennium and Valley Vista losing so many top players to graduation and Prep Schools, is 2021 the year the Gilbert can win a 5A Championship? Time will tell.
The Tigers graduated 33 points a game from its 2020 Final 4
team. But with seniors graduation, comes plenty of opportunity for younger players to contribute in 2021. They will be led by some players with
extensive varsity experience. One
of these players is Nicole Evenson. She averaged
7 points a game in ’20. She can shoot,
drive the ball, and finish near the rim.
She has length that will be difficult for opponents to contend
with. She should be able to average
double digits in ’21 and will need to if the Tigers are going to be successful.
Next is Jaleah Hendrix.
This lightning quick guard can be a stopper on defense and has the
ability to run the show on offense. Her ability
to break down the defense, and lead the break, getting easy buckets is key for
Gilbert. She can be a pest in the Tigers
full court press forcing steals and getting deflections. However, there is talk that she may end up in
another San Tan Region school before November if not at a Prep School.
Gilbert will need the trio of Maliyah Ross, Kayden Long, and
Eileen Lucio to step into primary roles that they did not have to fill a year
ago. This group will need to
collectively score about 20 points, grab about 12 rebounds, and defend at a
high level. If they can do this, the
Tigers have as good a chance as any to bring home the Golden Ball Trophy.
In his first year in Arizona, Head Coach Dennis Carter showed
that he can game plan with the best of them.
He took over a Tiger team, who graduated 3 Division 1 players, and who many thought would fall to Casteel. The team
was able go undefeated in the San Tan Region sweeping Casteel in the process. Carter was able to get the Tigers to the Final 4 only losing to eventually champs
Millennium in 2 different contests.
Under his leadership Gilbert could see themselves back on the big stage,
this time cutting down the nets.
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