Taylor WilliamsonBASKETBALL
ALCONBURY
Last week: Williamson, a 6-foot-2 junior, made good on what seemed an outlandish pregame assertion Friday by scoring 25 points and snaring 15 rebounds to lift the Dragons to their first victory of the season, 58-52 over visiting AFNORTH.
“We have a saying on the team,” Alconbury coach Jake Jacob said Wednesday in an e-mail: ‘Where’s the BEEF (balance, elbow, eyes and focus)?’ Taylor’s comment before the game was he ‘brought the whole cow.’ And the way he played, it showed.” Williamson not only brought the entire animal, he feasted on it, too. Nine of his 15 rebounds came on the offensive glass, an end of the floor where he had fielded just 15 percent of his rebounds previously. And seven of Williamson’s nine field goals came in the paint. The other two hoops were 10-foot jumpers.
All of Friday’s numbers were well above his season averages of six points and six rebounds per game. “Taylor had an extraordinary game last Friday,” Jacob said. “He came the gym more fired up and ready to play than I’ve seen all year.”
Shaionica SpeightBASKETBALLLAKENHEATH
Last week: Speight, a 5-foot-3 junior point guard and her team’s lone returning starter from 2009, more than doubled two of her season averages Saturday to propel the Lady Lancers to a 43-42 overtime victory over visiting SHAPE that breathed life into Lakenheath’s hopes for a second straight Region I big schools title.
“She is a dedicated basketball player and is coming into her own on this year’s team,” Lakenheath coach Matt Martinez said Monday in an e-mail after Speight, averaging 11 points per game, burned SHAPE for 23 on Saturday. “She is getting better every week, and her shooting and rebounding abilities make her a consistent and solid player for us this year.”
Speight, held to 12 points in Friday’s 37-30 loss to the Lady Spartans, upped her steals from 3.1 to 7.5 per game over the weekend, a key statistic in salvaging the split, Martinez reported. SHAPE completed its regular season with a 5-2 regional record. Lakenheath is 3-2, and a sweep of visiting AFNORTH this weekend (4-3 in Region I) would allow the Lady Lancers to tie SHAPE in the standings.
Selected by Stars and Stripes staff