SAGINAW, MI – As Taylor Sas’ 3-point range expanded, so did her driveway.
Or maybe it was vice-versa.
The Swan Valley senior scored 18 points Friday in a 62-45 Tri-Valley Conference East win over Birch Run, including a pair of NBA-distance 3-pointers.
“Some people call those Steph Curry 3s,” Sas said. “Maybe we can start calling those Taylor Sas 3s.”
Sas, who will play at Alma College next season, expects to finish her career just shy of 1,000 points, thanks to injuries during her freshman season and a Vikings’ career that has focused on her point-guard skills instead of her shooting skills.
“The past couple of years, we haven’t had that true point guard to bring the ball up the court, so we asked Taylor to do that … and that limited her shots,” Swan Valley coach Dale Roberts said. “This year, she’s able to play more shooting guard because we have girls who can play point.
“She has deep 3-point range. When she takes those shots beyond the line, it doesn’t bother me at all.”
He has her father, Steve Sas, to thank for that. Taylor Sas started taking and making 3-pointers when she was in the fifth grade, but as her reputation grew so did the defense. So she kept taking steps back to get an open shot.
“Pretty soon, I was shooting from the college 3-point line,” Sas said. “So my dad put in more concrete and put in a college 3-point line so I could practice from it.
“To do that, he had to add on to our driveway. We had to add more driveway to get to the college line, but I practice a lot on it. I definitely take advantage of it.”
The high school 3-point line is 19 feet, 9 inches, with the NCAA line at 20 feet, 9 inches.
Saginaw-Area Basketball Scoreboard
“She’s going to fit in well at Alma,” Roberts said. “She won’t have to bring the ball up court. She’s going to be with other very skilled players. Right now, she’s my coach on the court. I don’t have to say a lot because she takes care of things.”
The 5-foot-10 guard averages 15 points a game this season, but she does more than score. In Friday’s win, she also grabbed eight rebounds and dished out five assists.
She also held Birch Run star Sarah Miller to eight points, 17 points below her average.
“That might be Sarah’s career low, and a lot of that credit has to go to Taylor,” Birch Run coach Dan Kramer said. “That might be the best defense I’ve seen someone play on Sarah. She was up on her and didn’t allow her much. Taylor has a lot of length and that made it tough for Sarah. I think it frustrated her a little.”
That was Roberts’ plan.
“Taylor’s a smart player and a great athlete,” Roberts said. “She’s fast up and down the court, and she’s a good defender, even though she may not have elite quickness. But she has long arms and length, so when we were trying to figure out how to try and stop Miller, Taylor was our best option.
“She did a great job.”
Taylor, who expects to major in pre-engineering at Alma, scored a 1360 on the SAT and a 29 on the ACT.
Rachel Resio added 14 points, with Bridget Ready 12 for the 5-7 Vikings, with Ready, Audree Midcalf and Hannah Murphy adding eight rebounds each.
Sarah Miller still led Birch Run with 10 rebounds, while her sister Emmaly Miller taking over the scoring load with 20 points for the 4-6 Panthers.
Michigan High School Basketball Scoreboard