By ROBERT CESSNA
Football is on everyone's mind already.
Well, not everybody.
Eighty-seven of the nation's best girls basketball players attended the Elite Camp for the Texas A&M women's basketball program last weekend. The action-packed two days ended with the top 32 players squaring off in a pair of all-star games which ran simultaneously.
A women's basketball camp at A&M a decade ago received no notoriety. That's changed under head coach Gary Blair, who has led the Aggies to five straight NCAA Tournament appearances. The program had made only two trips prior to the arrival of Blair, who has helped turn Aggieland into a basketball hotbed.
Dan Olson, who publishes Collegiate Girls Basketball Report, jotted down information on players as he watched the games alongside Blair. Besides the players' parents, there were several fans who found out about the games on message boards.
"This is just like being at a college game," said one observer as the girls raced down court at a frantic pace.
Most fans watched the game that was comprised primarily of players from the high school classes of 2010 and 2011.
The Maroon team built a double-digit lead behind the play of 6-foot-6 post Rachel Mitchell from Humble Atascocita (class of 2011) who has pledged to A&M, 6-1 forward Richa Jackson (Midwest City-Oklahoma City, class of 2010), 5-7 guard Curtyce Knox (Humble Atascocita, class of 2012) and 5-9 power forward Devin Griffin (Lubbock Coronado, class of 2010). But the White team rallied for a 43-41 victory on Desiree Bradley's game-winning 3-pointer. Bradley, a 6-1 forward from Carl Albert High School in Oklahoma City (class of 2010), got a chance for the game-winning shot when A&M Consolidated's Karla Gilbert (class of 2010) came up with a steal and the White got an offensive rebound. The 6-4 Gilbert, who has pledged to A&M, helped the White team score several second-chance points in the second 12-minute period.
Olson said the best player in at the camp was Moriah Jefferson, a 5-7 point guard from Glenn Hayes who is home schooled. She will be a sophomore and plays for Dallas-Fort Worth Elite. She tried out for the USA National 16 & Under team in Colorado Springs in May and made the team.
Olson also liked Arlington Lamar 5-9 guard Kristen Grant (class of 2010).
Grant was picked for the Maroon team but didn't play in the all-star game. Grant was worn out after playing at the Nike Nationals during the week, said her father, Tony Grant.
Jefferson opted to leave after Saturday.
Blair and Olson said there's so many Elite Camps and showcases that players get fatigued.
"Some of these players are playing as many as 55 games in the summer," Blair said. "That's too many, but that's the way it is. I'd like to see more skills camps. That's what these players need."
Blair did conduct a segment with his staff where they had four stations devoted to skills.
This was Blair's fourth straight year to have an Elite Camp, which has become the norm at Top 20 programs. Blair started his camp for players with Big 12 aspirations who didn't want to be competing against those with beginning or intermediate skills. Blair said the nation's top prospects plan their summer around the camps that will have the best players for better competition and the most exposure.
A&M's Elite Camp did just that.
Younger players at the camp who stood out according to Olson included 5-7 Brentney Branch from Clear Creek (class of 2013) and Simone Potts, a 5-10 from Houston's University Place (class of 2012)
"Those are a couple of kids who are going to be outstanding players," said Olson, adding that Branch "has a real good upside."
Players who improved their status against the competition according to Olson were Frisco Wakeland guard Haley Texada (class of 2011), Bradley, Jackson, Griffin and 5-11 post Krishunda Harvey of North Mesquite (class of 2010). Olson said Harvey was much improved from the previous time he watched her.
The only other Elite Camp that Olson attended this summer was at Syracuse.
"In past years I've gone to these camps and they've always delivered tremendous talent and are highly organized," Olson said. "It's good for me to go, because I get something out of it."
Olson marveled at the Cox-McFerrin Center for Aggie Basketball, saying what an upgrade it was from Reed Arena, also complimenting Blair for what he's been able to do at A&M in seven years.
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NOTES -- Grant returned home after the camp and pledged to Blair on Monday, his second pledge from the class of 2011. ... Livingston's 5-10 Daylyn Harris (class of 2011) played for the winning White team. She is the younger sister of incoming freshman football player Dustin Harris. ... Rudder's Lamaria Cole (class of 2012) also was on the White team. ... Current A&M players helped with the camp along with former players A'Quonesia Franklin and Morenike Atunrase, who played in the WNBA last season. Blair said Franklin is looking for a college coaching position, while Atunrase is contemplating teaching and coaching in high school for a year or starting nursing school. ... There will be a girls basketball skills camp at the Cox-McFerrin Center on Aug. 28-29 conducted by Gannon Baker, who has rented the facility.
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