Are They That Good?
That’s the question rolling around the city about Westbury Christian Girl’s Basketball. Right now, they are beating teams left and right and last night they toyed with a team that made it to the Region’s Final Four last season. Coming off of back to back Tapps State Championships, it appears the Lady Wildcats are on the verge of doing the same thing again. Led by Amber Orrange, the lightning fast guard who has mastered the art of “changing thou direction” and Fallon Ellis, this team got a boost when Caitlin Diaz and Sylvana Okde, two of the areas Top 2012 players, decided to transfer over. That boost went into turbo when Brianna Turner, the top freshmen in the country decided to make WC her home.
Orrange is the point guard that makes everything go, once again, the game starts at the one. She has excellent body control and splits the seams as good as anyone. This kid is headed to Stanford and will be teaming up with two of the greatest players to come out of the area, Nneka and Chiney Ogwumike. This pass first guard has continued to work on her jumper and for those who continue to slack off, she will make them pay.
Ellis is the kid heading to Iowa State and does a lot of the little things that may not show up in the box score. She loves using her body, however she can step out and nail the mid range. The question remains “Are They That Good” well, they are ranked up there with the top teams in the country, which means absolutely nothing to me based on things I’ve seen in the past. For me, I have to see for myself and if last night was any indication, they are a very good team, however I would love to see them against Hightower, Atascocita, Elsik, Northshore or one of the other top teams in the area.
Caitlin Diaz was already a star at Tomball before she came over. Her addition will pay dividends not only this year, but next year after Orrange and Ellis are gone plus future years because her younger sister also attends WC.
Okde, aka Silky, because of her smooth stroke is another key addition for WC. After asserting herself as one of the top shooters in her first two seasons at Dulles, she is now on center stage as WC will get national attention on the heels of Turner . Check out the video.
Turner appears to be reaching for the sky, it also looks like she’s up around the square but photos can be deceiving, I’m not! If I say a kid is this or that, I’m usually basing it on where the bar has been set. Right now, she’s ahead of any freshmen that has played in the city, no ifs ands or butts, it’s not even open for discussion. If she continues to improve, she will probably be the best player to come out of here. After opening her high school career with 29 points, I watched the kid score over 30 against a good Westside team, in fact if memory serves correct she was close to a triple double, that is scoring, rebounds and blocks, but do me a favor and copy this quote. “Before her career is over, she will pull off a QUINTUPLE double” and yes, I know it’s five. I watched Brittany Griner do it, even though she didn’t get credit for it, but it will happen.
The question still remains and to be honest with you, I believe they could compete with the top teams in the city but a lot will be told when they travel to Duncanville for the Sandra Meadows and to Lake Charles, LA for the Sam Houston Classic. Is another Tapps State Championship coming? Well, Turner is reaching for the sky!