The next three days will play a part in the future of the Mississippi State women”s basketball team.
Today through Saturday, the Lady Bulldogs will play host to Heritage Academy senior Rachel Hollivay, Hattiesburg High School senior Tiaria Griffin, and two other players. Hollivay and Griffin are ranked No. 12 and No. 93, respectively, in the Class of 2012 by Dan Olson”s Collegiate Girls Report. ESPN”s HoopGurlz has Hollivay ranked No. 8 nationally and Griffin No. 46 at her position, shooting guard.
“They are two of the better players in the South,” said Olson, a longtime college basketball coach and recruiting coordinator. “For them to get those two would be a real plus for them.”
Hollivay, a 6-foot-5 center, took the first of her five official visits to the University of Mississippi two weekends ago. She also plans to take official visits to the University of Oklahoma (Sept. 23-24), Tennessee (Oct. 8-9), and Rutgers (Oct. 14-15). Hollivay said all of the schools were “on the same page” entering the visits, and that she plans to make a decision in November in time for the early signing period.
Olson feels all five coaches have an even chance of convincing Hollivay their school is the best fit for a player he said is a game-changer on the defensive end.
“One thing Rachel Hollivay does better than anybody is her God-gifted athleticism,” Olson said. “Her athleticism is off the charts compared (to any of the other highly rated centers in the Class of 2012). Hollivay is the clear-cut No. 1 in the country when it comes to athleticism. What you don”t know is does she have the ability to do it every night, but I guess you could say that about most of them.”
Olson said it would be great for the state of Mississippi if Ole Miss or MSU could keep Hollivay “at home.” He is convinced Hollivay”s presence would be a “tremendous jolt” to either program, much like the effect MSU experienced when it won the recruiting battle to get state standouts like LaToya Thomas and Tan White to come to Starkville.
“The SEC is basically a super athlete league, and I think she would really flourish in an up-tempo, pressing environment and being back there as a shot blocker,” Olson said. “She is the best I have seen as a pure center who can run and jump and get it done on the block. She is a legit impacter.”
Olson said Griffin, who is 5-8, is a long, lean combination guard who is elusive off the bounce and has shooting range out past 3-point range. He said she would be an ideal complement to Hollivay.
“She is very similar to Tan White, who was an explosive open-court player,” Olson said. “She is capable of manufacturing her shot anytime, anywhere she wants to do it. If you were to put her on some of other high profile teams in the country she probably be better than No. 93 in the country.
“She is an exciting and a real flamboyant type of player. She has a scorer”s mentality like a Rolls Royce. She is really going to put the ball in the hole.”
MSU went 13-17 (4-12 SEC) last season after reaching the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament for the first time in the program”s history in 2009-10. Senior guard Mary Kathryn Govero, who was second on the team in scoring (12.7 points per game) last season, is the only key graduation loss for the Lady Bulldogs.
This season, MSU will welcome Martha Alwal, a 6-foot-4 center from Minnesota, Jerica James, a 5-5 player from Arkansas, Shamia Robinson, a 5-8 player from West Oktibbeha High School in Maben, and Kendra Grant, a 5-11 player from Richland, to the program.
Khadijah Ellison, a 5-8 guard from Massachusetts, didn”t qualify academically and is on the roster at Pensacola State College. Hoopgurlz.com rated Ellison the No. 44 player nationally .
Mark Lewis, the national recruiting coordinator for ESPN HoopGurlz, agrees MSU”s ability to sign Hollivay and any other highly regarded players will bolster the program. He also feels schools like Ole Miss and MSU that are trying to move up in their conference would receive other benefits from signing a player like Hollivay.
“It will help when the next Rachel Hollivay or Tiaria Griffin comes along,” said Lewis, who coached for more than 20 years at Memphis State, Cincinnati, Arizona State, Western Kentucky and, Washington State. “It will help with attendance, it will help with teams camps. You can go down the list of what players like that will bring to your program.”
Lewis said Ole Miss and MSU face a lot of pressure to keep players like Hollivay and Griffin at home. As a former coach at Memphis State, Lewis watched as former Ole Miss coach Van Chancellor built a powerhouse by getting the top players from the state of Mississippi to play in Oxford. Current Ole Miss coach Renee Ladner and MSU coach Sharon Fanning-Otis hope they can work similar magic and convince Hollivay, Griffin, and the rest of the state”s elite their program is the best for them.
Lewis feels Hollivay can”t go wrong with any of the five head coaches on her final list. He also feels Hollivay could attract other top players from the state or regionally (she played her Amateur Athletic Union basketball with the Florida Essence), but that dominoes like that don”t fall as often in girls basketball as they do in boys basketball.
Still, he said that tendency is growing as awareness increases about women”s basketball, and he said the potential is there for a power to be built on the strength of the talent in this state. He feels Hollivay and Griffin could be the first bricks in that foundation.
“Griffin is an attacking guard with speed to spare,” Lewis said. “Her one-on-one skills allow her to slash and create off the dribble at will. She has the touch and range to knock down open looks at a high percentage and force tight closeouts on the catch.
“If I would pick one word I would say she is really dynamic. She is a good athlete with good speed and quickness. If you put kids on the roster like Griffin and like Hollivay you will get better overnight.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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