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KEARNEY — She’s become a familiar sight at the Miss Basketball
Showcase.
The light-orange tank top and the knee pads and high socks of Kansas
Prime Time’s Ashley Sweat weaving and cutting up and down the
basketball court, pouring in points.
More points, it turns out, than any other player in Miss Basketball
history.
Sweat, a McPherson, Kan., native and Kansas State recruit, broke the
Miss Basketball career scoring record Thursday in her 15th game in
Kearney — half the number of games of the previous record holder.
Through three games this season, Sweat has a career total of 339
points. Renae Luecke is now second on the all-time list with 316
points in 29 games.
“What an asset,” said Prime Time coach Bob Runge. “She can play
inside and out, shoot the three, and on top of all that she’s very
unselfish.”
Anything else?
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“She’s good at moving the ball quickly and getting the ball to her
teammates. She plays great defense, too,” Runge added.
Yep, that about covers it.
A silky-smooth 6-2 forward, Sweat can play both inside and out and
handle the ball as well as most of the point guards at Miss
Basketball. Her skills earned her heavy recruiting attention from
every school in the Big 12, but it was Kansas State that had her
heart.
“At first there was a lot of mail coming in, but I really wanted to
stay close to home,” Sweat said after scoring 20 points against Sports
City Hoops I Friday afternoon. “I like the school, and I loved the
players and the coaches. I’ve gotten to know a lot of them, and I’ve
had a chance to play with the players a few times.”
She’s also had the chance to play in plenty of summer games. This
is Sweat’s third year with Kansas Prime Time, and the senior-to-be
could only laugh when asked how many summer games she’s played.
“I have no idea,” she said. “Probably hundreds.”
Sweat averaged almost 24 points a game at last year’s Miss Basketball
Showcase and is near the top of the list again this year with a
19-point average. Led by Sweat, Kansas Prime Time reached the 2004
Miss Basketball quarterfinals and was a 2003 semifinalist.
“I really would (like to win this tournament),” Sweat said. “We’ve
lost in the early rounds the last couple years, so it would be nice to
get it done this year.” |
