Gig Harbor’s Willett plays in Adidas Uprising national championship game

Gig Harbor High School senior Maddie Willett has had a busy offseason traveling around the country with her AAU basketball team, the Northwest Blazers Orange squad.

The team, which is based out of Spokane, has traveled to Texas, Arizona and Georgia this summer.

The last stop was Atlanta, and it was the best tournament yet for the Adidas-sponsored Blazers. In the Adidas Uprising tournament, the Blazers advanced to the national championship game in the Adidas 17U Platinum Gauntlet division. While the Blazers lost to the top-ranked Texas Elite Prime team, it was nonetheless a successful tournament and a worthwhile experience for Willett and the team.

“We were really excited to be in that environment,” Willett said. “There were a lot of people watching, a lot of college coaches. It was a little different than a regular game. There were so many people watching, other teams were lined up at the other end of the court. I don’t think I’ve ever had that many people watching one of our basketball games.”

The tournament was played at Atlanta’s Lakepoint Sporting Complex. The Blazers won a game on July 27, two games Friday and one game Saturday to advance to the championship game on Saturday afternoon. Texas Elite came out on top in the title game, 56-36.

“It was just really exciting,” Willett said. “It was a rough start for us, we dug ourselves a big hole.”

The team had two goals before the summer season: To get every player good exposure from college coaches and scouts and to advance to the national championship game.

“We achieved both of those goals,” Willett said. “Even though it became clear that we weren’t going to win, we still had to play hard and we had a chance to show those coaches how we play and who were are.”

Willett, accustomed to being a star for the Gig Harbor High basketball team, embraced more of a role-player position with the Blazers, coming off the bench and doing the little things to help the team win.

“I felt like I showed a lot of confidence and did some good things,” she said. “I got a lot of playing time. I’m more of a big rebounder for the team and an assist maker.”

The Blazers’ coach, Steve Klees, looks for players with solid fundamentals and good passing technique. Klees is a believer in fast-breaks and ball movement.

“The less dribbling, the better,” Willett said. “It’s really fast, old school.”

Willett, who has played something of a forward role for Gig Harbor coach Megan Murray, said she’s working to improve her ball-handling. The 5-foot-10 Willett will likely have to be comfortable playing guard if she hopes to play at the next level.

“I really want to get a lot of game experience as a guard,” Willett said. “With my natural ability and size, I see myself as more of a three guard. I love to drive and shoot. I just really want to work on having pressure on me while I’m dribbling and taking the ball up the court. I’m not a point guard but I want to have point guard skills.”

This story was originally published August 2, 2017 at 3:00 PM with the headline "Gig Harbor’s Willett plays in Adidas Uprising national championship game."