There is just one individual on the courtroom who was going to cease Tana Kemmer on her historic night time.
That's as a result of her youthful sister Mara tends to get underneath her pores and skin.
“She doesn't like me fouling her,” Mara mentioned. ” She felt it. When she's performed with it, you could get bodily along with her.”
After all, they each play for Valley Christian, so Tana was just about unstoppable.
On December 6, she had maybe the perfect particular person night time in Valley Christian ladies basketball historical past when she broke 1,000 factors in her profession (seventh at school historical past) by scoring 42 factors on 10 3-pointers, set a faculty document for factors and three factors in a single sport.
“Her first factors of the sport put her at 1,000, so we known as timeout,” Valley Christian coach Scott Timmer mentioned. “We advised her she may loosen up and have enjoyable when she acquired that basket. She made 16 of twenty-two pictures and the ball by no means hit the rim. She was completely within the zone.”
Mara was additionally shocked, however hinted at the truth that this could by no means have occurred if she had been on the defensive.
Ah, youthful siblings.
They know find out how to push these buttons, and it's no totally different when the Ahwatukee sisters play one-on-one on the Ahwatukee Foothills Household YMCA. They compete like their subsequent meal is determined by it, and it's that point that has led them to turn out to be Valley Christian's mainstays this season.
Tana is the principle chief everybody counts on when the sport is on the road.
“Tana is absolutely our solely participant with expertise,” Timmer mentioned. “He's an enormous a part of our offense. (South Dakota transfer) Abby Labahn offers us an inside presence and so they (the opposition) can't unfold on us like they did earlier within the season.”
Kemmer, who averaged 13.8 factors, 3.1 assists, 3.5 rebounds and three.0 steals via the primary eight video games, mentioned the massive night time was particular, however extra importantly, she discovered her stroke.
“It was fairly thrilling,” she mentioned. “I went via a chilly and all of it got here again. As soon as I acquired (1000), now I can solely add to it.”
She mentioned being counted on as a frontrunner, though she's quiet and Mara likes to “make loads of noise,” comes with the territory.
“I prefer it as a result of it's what I needed after I was youthful,” she mentioned. “I was the one who regarded as much as the older youngsters and now I get the prospect to try this.”
And lots of of these gamers are from Ahwatukee, because the Trojans have 5 gamers within the space on campus. Along with the Kemmer sisters, Ahwatukee Foothills residents embrace senior Grace Berry, junior Olivia Nowtash and Labahn.
“(Labahn) lives proper subsequent door to us and we're all proud to be from there,” Mara Kemmer mentioned.
The particular a part of it’s that the Kemmer sisters get an opportunity to play off one another just because they're not going through one another in a one-on-one scenario.
“She and I work very well collectively,” Tana mentioned. “It might probably get just a little heated. It's a very good match. She likes to play bodily with me.”
In truth, Mara, who averaged 9.5 factors, 3.9 assists, 3.3 rebounds and three.3 steals, likes to play everybody bodily. She's the staff's prime press defender, main the best way to a 6-2 begin to the season and already assuming a management position regardless of being a freshman.
“I like to look at individuals on and off the courtroom,” she mentioned. “I don't care what individuals consider me, I'll say what I must.”
It's one thing that pressured Timmer at hand over extra duty to the youthful Kemmer earlier than anticipated.
“I've identified her for a very long time, I believed she would make a very good six males,” he mentioned, “however she got here and did all the pieces so nicely. He's already displaying some management and taking part in like an upperclassman.”
The sisters' aggressive nature is what drives the Trojans to success regardless of a reasonably younger roster. It's onerous to see Valley Christian returning to hoist the state title trophy prefer it did in 2010 and 2011, however with the Kemmer sisters on the helm, it might be potential.
“Actually, we now have the potential to do it,” Tana mentioned. “We're younger, however everybody works onerous and everybody needs it.
• Writer contact: (480) 898-7915 or jskoda@ahwatukee.com. Observe him on Twitter @JSkodaAFN