Shots, blocks & boards: Vote for IHSAA girls basketball players of the week (Jan. 2-6)
IndyStar will be recognizing the top basketball players in Indiana with our players of the week poll.
Scroll to the bottom of the article to vote. Voting is open until noon Friday.
Congratulations to Sheridan's Kenzie Garner on being voted Player of the Week for Dec. 26-30! Garner scored 26 points on 12-of-14 shooting with 10 rebounds, four assists and five steals in a win over Beech Grove. She picked up 14 points, nine rebounds and three assists in a loss to Alexandria-Monroe.
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Player of the Week winners will be honored at IndyStar's Indiana Sports Awards this spring.
Here are this week's nominees.
Emma Ancelet, Danville
Ancelet tore through the Hendricks County Tournament. She was a few steals shy of a quadruple-double in the opening round vs. Cascade, totaling 20 points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds and seven steals; then notched a double-double vs. Tri-West with 11 points, 11 assists, seven rebounds and three steals. The junior guard went for 17 points in the championship game vs. Plainfield, including the game-tying layup at the end of regulation.
.@emancelet10. Wow.
To overtime we go. 47-all. pic.twitter.com/fmaVAENdGr— hank 🇰🇷 (@Brian_Haenchen) January 7, 2024
Lillian Barnes, Valparaiso
The sophomore went for a career-high 33 points with seven rebounds, five assists, a steal and a block in a last-second loss to Lawrence North. Barnes, who finished 15-for-32 from the field, had 18 points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals in a win over Portage on Friday.
Ainsley Brown, Scecina
The freshman scored 23 points with six 3-pointers, plus four rebounds and a steal in a 50-46 win over Tech on Friday.
Gabrielle Burrus, North Central
The junior scored 19 points and four steals against No. 7 Homestead, then tallied 12 points, six assists and a five steals against Ben Davis.
Charlotte Conyers, University
The sophomore, who nearly broke the school's single-game scoring record at the end of December (32 points vs. Western Boone), had 10 points, seven rebounds, an assist and a steal in a loss to Western on Tuesday, and logged 19 points against Covenant Christian on Friday.
Meredith Deaton, West Washington
The sophomore hit 13-of-19 shots from the field with a 5-for-7 mark from 3 en route to a school-record 39-point effort vs. Trinity Lutheran. Deaton rounded out her line with 14 rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Congratulations Meredith Deaton for setting a single game scoring record with 39 points!!! pic.twitter.com/3J1iwW3VO2
— Louisville Lady Sluggers 25/26 Cooper (@07_premier) January 5, 2024
Chloey Graham, Gibson Southern
The senior guard opened the new year by totaling 79 points over three games with a 70% mark from 3, plus eight rebounds, five assists and seven steals. Graham's best performance came Saturday vs. Tell City: 37 points on 13-of-22 shooting with 11 triples on 14 tries. She rounded out her line with four rebounds, three assists and four steals.
Emma Haan, Zionsville
It was a record-setting Saturday for Haan, who drilled a school-record seven 3-pointers on 11 attempts as part of a 26-point effort. It was the second consecutive 20-point outing by the Vermont commit, who had 20 points and six triples against Harrison on Wednesday.
Talia Harris, Fishers
Harris went for 23 points against Pike, then scored 29 in a loss to Mother McAuley (Illinois) and 15 (plus 10 assists) in a win over North Central. The senior guard also picked up 15 rebounds, 14 assists and five steals.
Denyha Jacobs, Warren Central
The senior guard scored 34 points on 13-of-28 shooting (zero 3-pointers) against Hamilton Southeastern. Jacobs rounded out her line with seven rebounds, two assists, four steals and a block. It was her second 30-point performance of the season.
Natalie Knigga, Lawrenceburg
The junior tallied 18 points (6-of-12 shooting), nine rebounds, an assist and three steals in a win over Rising Sun, then posted 15 points, eight rebounds and a steal in a win over Switzerland County. Both wins were part of the Rivertown Classic, and Knigga and twin brother Noah were named MVP at their respective events.
Kaiden Kreinhagen, North Central
Kreinhagen was a model of consistency last week, tallying 13 points, four boards and two assists vs. Homestead, 15 points and a couple assists vs. Ben Davis and a team-high 17 points against No. 14 Fishers.
Maya Layton, Faith Christian
The sophomore dropped 39 points, including a ¾-court shot, against FW Northrop to become the program's all-time leading scorer with 922 career points.
Hannah Menser, Plainfield
The freshman poured in 24 points against Brownsburg in the Hendricks County semifinals, then dropped a career-high 27 in a double-overtime win over Danville in the championship game.
Kira Reynolds, South Bend Washington
Back-to-back triple-doubles for the Purdue-bound junior. She had 10 points, 11 rebounds and 10 blocks (plus five assists) in a six-point win over Butler (Ill.) then went for 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 blocks in a rout of Bremen. Reynolds logged 11 points and 11 rebounds, plus five assists, a couple steals and a block against Bolingbrook (Ill.) on Saturday.
Camryn Runner, Hamilton Heights
The senior Evansville commit went for 31 points in a win over Westfield on Saturday.
Adrianne Tolen, West Lafayette
Following a nearly three-week break, Tolen and the Red Devils returned to action with wins over Frankfort and Warren Central. For her part, the senior posted 19 points, 11 rebounds and 10 steals in game one, then tallied 17 points, seven rebounds, five steals and two assists against Warren Central. Already the top scorer in program history, Tolen is two points away from the school's all-time record (girls and boys). She has 1,345 career points.
Follow Brian Haenchen on Twitter at @Brian_Haenchen.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana high school girls basketball players of week (Jan. 2-6)