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Will be very interesting to see her transition from high school ball to the college level. Happy she chose us.WBB: Cyclones earn commitment from ESPN Top 60 prospect Audi Crooks
Iowa State's women's basketball program added a fifth member to its 2023 recruiting class on Thursday with the addition of ESPN Top 60 recruit Audi Crooks. The 6-foot-3 product out of Bishop Garrigan High School was a highly sought after prospect in college basketball. She went viral for one o
To be fair, the scholarship offers she's raked in probably come primarily from her AAU play, not her high school games. Hallie Christofferson was a rare example of a small-school player who didn't do much AAU and ended up flying under the radar (although ISU and Iowa both recruited her very hard). I imagine in a case like Crooks, the high school games are good for seeing how they work with teammates, how they handle adversity, etc. But AAU is probably where the coaches focus more on the level of basketball ability, especially with small-school players.
For those who haven't seen her play, this is what you need to understand about the "great hands" comment: when it comes to catching passes and grabbing rebounds, she's Charlie Kolar out there. I'm so used to seeing post players bobble the ball, so this always stands out every time I've seen her play (which hasn't been a whole lot, but I've watched a couple games plus since highlights).
You have to remember that in Iowa fans' minds Clark is the greatest women's basketball player to ever play. So the only thing holding them back from a National Title is her teammates, the refs, and bad luck (in some order).
The thing is, Crooks can run the floor just fine, as long as you aren't putting her out there for 30 minutes. She was usually slow getting up and down the court in high school (except when necessary to get down the court quickly), but you have to realize that she doesn't leave the court unless she has foul trouble or the game is a blowout. If speed/stamina is an issue in college, then you do what ISU did this year with Beagan Kordao (or whatever mashup name we're using) -- get 20 mpg from her and 20 mpg from someone like Zingaro.
Completely agree, that was one of the biggest things that stood out to me. She's so much better at that aspect than tons of posts I've seen even at the college level, she excels at making a clean catch. Plus I love how often she looks to get an outlet pass up ahead after defensive rebounds.
Czinsno (sp?) slows things down so what would be the difference?
