Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com MAY 2020 39 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL bound, has great size for a guard. She can make the most immediate impact in a couple of different categories." ALASIA HAYES 5-7 • Murfreesboro, Tenn. • River- dale H.S. National Rankings: No. 44 by ES P N HoopG urlz and No. 130 by Pros- pects Nation Statistical Over- view: Hayes, who has two older sisters playing at Middle Tennessee State, av- eraged 23.7 points per game as a senior after a 13.5 figure her junior year. She also averaged 7.1 re- bounds, 3.9 assists and 2.9 steals per contest during her final season that finished 19-12. McGraw's Take: The Irish missed on a couple of top-five prospects at point guard this year — Paige Bueck- ers (Connecticut) and Caitlin Clark (Iowa) — but ready or not, Hayes might have to see action there as a freshman while spelling Gilbert. "She had a great year, she's fast, she can guard and pass … but point guard is the toughest position to play for a freshman," McGraw said. "Lind- say Allen [in 2013] was the only one who came in and took over the first game. "Even with Skylar Diggins [2009-13] it took her the first month or so of games." ALLI CAMPBELL 5-11 • Altoona, Pa. • Bellwood- Antis H.S. National Rank- ings: No. 27 by ESPN H o o p G u r l z a n d No. 21 by Prospects Nation Statistical Over- view: Led school to two straight PIAA Class 2A state titles before this season's run was canceled after a 26-2 mark. Her 3,019 career points made her the 10th girl and 14th player overall in Pennsylvania history to reach the 3,000 benchmark. As a senior, she averaged 28.6 points, 8.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists per con- test. She converted 65 of 166 three- pointers (39.2 percent), and was 259 of 671 (38.6 percent) from long range during her career. McGraw's Take: The addition of Campbell and Westbeld with their perimeter shooting to join Brunelle should help spread out defenses much more in the future. "With what we run, we can play Sam, Maddie, Alli together and have a big team — but also a very skilled team who can shoot threes and drive," McGraw said. "… I don't think we'll see a lot of zone next year, but we'll fig- ure out some sort of motion where we can get everybody on the perimeter. "The question for all freshmen is how ready are you to play a game that goes so much faster? The high school that she played at, the competition wasn't at a high level. For some kids it takes a couple of weeks, some a couple of months, some the whole year to re- ally figure it out." AMIRAH ABDUR-RAHIM 6-2 • Marietta, Ga. • St. Francis H.S. N a t i o n a l R a n k - ings: Not rated Statistical Over- view: After playing only four games as a junior before getting injured, she aver- aged 14.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.4 blocks per contest for a 28-4 team. She converted 170 of 283 field goals (60.1 percent). McGraw's Take: From a prominent basketball family that includes older brother and former NBA All-Star Shareef, she is projected as a com- plementary figure such as 6-1 Ariel Braker was from 2010-14, starting 70 of 73 games her last two seasons on a star-studded lineup. "She can guard the point guard, play the point in the press and can make the free-throw jumper while playing the high post area," McGraw said. "We expect her to rebound, block shots and play defense. She's built like Ariel Braker." NATALIJA MARSHALL 6-5 • Queens, N.Y. • Christ The King School National Rankings: No. 34 by ESPN HoopGurlz and No. 19 by Prospects Nation Statistical Overview: Sidelined in December with ACL surgery after av- eraging 13.4 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.1 blocked shots as a junior for the New York State Class AA Federation champ. McGraw's Take: Needing much more size, the program signed one of its top targets in Marshall. "What I really like is she is a great communicator, a leader, a real vocal player," McGraw said. "She will be the one talking the whole time, get- ting everybody in the right spots. "We're hoping she will be cleared, without taking contact, before Sep- tember. She's only [four] months out of surgery." ✦ The Transfer Market Free agency in NCAA sports is hotter than ever, and Fighting Irish head coach Muffet McGraw is open to adding a graduate transfer to the 2019-20 roster — as long as it doesn't create internal issues. Among the 12 scholarship players next sea- son, eight will have at least three years of eligibility remaining. "Team chemistry is really important," Mc- Graw emphasized. "We will have a pretty full roster and we think we've addressed our needs. … What we really still need is a clear leader, somebody who's been there and can lead a young team of freshmen and sophomores." A prime target had been 6-1 Liberty gradu- ate transfer Keyen Green, who received her undergraduate degree in May 2019 and is working toward her MBA. However, the 2018 Big South Player of the Year, who missed the 2018-19 season with an injury, selected the Tennessee Volunteers. What made Green appealing was she was a strong low-post player, and the Irish are in des- perate need of rebounding help after finishing last in the 15-team ACC in rebounding margin per game (minus-5.0, way behind No. 14 Pitt at minus-1.4). The two areas where McGraw was seeking help was at point guard and in the blocks, but particularly proven leadership . "What you also look for is, 'Can she do something that nobody else [on the team] does?'" McGraw said. "At point guard, I think we'll be fine with Katlyn [Gilbert] and Alasia [Hayes] — but if there is somebody out there who has played in the Final Four, then we would look at them." — Lou Somogyi