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Cloverdale's Stevens is Banner Graphic Player of the Year
CLOVERDALE -- A full season is a long time to need to be the best player on the floor every night.
But that's just what the 2013-14 girls' basketball season was for Cloverdale junior Bailee Stevens. Each night, she knew the offense ran through her to give the Clovers the best chance at victory.
While the opponents knew it too, Stevens still managed to shine, leading the county in scoring at 12.5 points per game and coming second in rebounding at 7.9 per game.
In recognition of her strong junior campaign, Stevens is the 2013-14 Banner Graphic Girls' Basketball Player of the Year.
Stevens is joined on the first team by Greencastle's Callan Taylor, Alex Basile and Jessica Lenihan, along with North Putnam's Bethany Wiatt.
Earning honorable mention honors are Amanda Barnes of South Putnam, Madi Asbell of North Putnam and Taylor Clark of Cloverdale.
Stevens
While Stevens was neck-and-neck with Greencastle's Taylor all year for the county scoring title, what made both competitors stand out was their toughness and grit.
In Stevens' case, that meant going all in, all the time, and attacking the teeth of opposing defenders whose entire focus was stopping her offense.
And yet she still managed to, scoring 238 points on the year and get to the free throw line 135 times. No other county player made it to the line even 100 times.
An improved free throw percentage (from 64 percent) with all those attempts could help make Stevens even more of a force in her senior season.
Stevens also averaged 3 assists per game along with 1.3 steals.
Taylor
The leading scorer (11.2) on the county's best team, Greencastle's Taylor was one of the biggest reasons the Tiger Cubs won 13 games on the year.
The scoring aside, the junior guard has been a leader for the Tiger Cubs in all three of her varsity seasons. While other players shared the scoring load at times, the offense was at its best when it ran through Taylor's able hands.
Taylor was second on the team with 79 assists.
Her defensive value is apparent in her 64 steals and 71 deflections.
Basile
Basile paired with Taylor to give the Tiger Cubs a two-headed attack in the backcourt. The duo could trade off point guard and shooting guard duties with the attack remaining effective.
A senior, Basile saved her best scoring performance for last, averaging 13.6 points per game over the last seven. In that stretch, the Tiger Cubs went 5-2.
Basile average 9.8 points for the entire year and led the county with 4.2 assists per contest. She also shot 82 percent from the charity stripe.
She was especially remarkable on defense, 85 steals, the second most in Greencastle history, and 172 deflections.
Lenihan
Rounding out the three Tiger Cubs on the first team, Lenihan was the Tiger Cubs' chief inside scoring threat at 8.6 points per game.
The junior also grabbed 6.5 rebounds per game, with more than two per game coming on the offensive end, giving her team 53 extra possessions on the year.
Lenihan also dished out 31 assists and had 31 steals.
Wiatt
While not elite in any one area, Wiatt did a little bit of everything for the Cougars in her senior season.
The guard was first on the team in assists (3.5) and steals (2.8), second in scoring (7.5) and fourth in rebounding.
Barnes
While the season was a disappointment for the Eagles, much of that can be traced to a lingering ankle injury for Barnes.
In spite of her injury, the senior post player still managed to be the Eagles' leading scorer with 135 points and second-leading rebounder at 125.
Barnes was also an 81-percent free throw shooter.
Asbell
Asbell closed out her North Putnam career as the team's leading scorer at 8 per game and second-leading rebounder at 5.3.
She also averaged 1.5 assists and 1.9 steals, second only to Wiatt in each category.
Clark
Besides Stevens, Clark was the only Clover to average more than five points, at 7.5 per contest. She also averaged a respectable 5.1 rebounds per game.
However, Clark's most astounding achievement on the season was her 34 blocks, a total that dwarfed the totals for other teams in the area. In fact, the rest of the Clover team had just two on the year, both from Payton Dorsett.
Banner Graphic 2013-14 All-Putnam County Team
1st Team
POY: Bailee Stevens (CHS)
Callan Taylor (GHS)
Alex Basile (GHS)
Jessica Lenihan (GHS)
Bethany Wiatt (NP)
Honorable Mention
Amanda Barnes (SP)
Madi Asbell (NP)
Taylor Clark (CHS)