Diamond in the rough

She may not be the tallest of players and she's not from one of the larger schools in the area, but when Abby Cranford hits the basketball court her game is as big as they come.

Blessed with excellent ball-handling skills, quick feet and a knowledge of the game that is well beyond her years, the Williams High junior was one of the most entertaining players to watch this winter as she sliced up opposing defenses to the tune of 22.5 points per game.

Her dazzling dribbling ability and knack for finishing at the rim made her the area's premier playmaker, but that's only half the story. She is also a lock-down defender and with her high hoops IQ it's as if she was born to play the position of point guard.

"I like to handle the ball because I feel like I'm in control of things," said Cranford, the 2009-10 Appeal-Democrat All-Area Most Valuable Player. "I usually try look for an open teammate first, but if I see an open lane I usually hit it pretty good."

Although Williams finished the year with a record of 4-16, it had little to do with Cranford, who was nearly unstoppable on the offensive end. Only once was she held to single digits and she scored more than 20 points on 12 occasions. She also topped 30 points in four games, including a season-high 47 points against Los Molinos on Feb. 5.

In all, Cranford accounted for 428 of her team's 763 points during the course of the year (56 percent), and her 34 assists were tops on the team.

The 5-foot-4 guard also threw her weight around in the post while pulling down a solid 4.7 rebounds per game. And to prove that she's much more than just an offensive-minded scorer and distributor, her 5.1 steals per contest were among the best in the area as well.

"She's got good hand-eye coordination and she knows the game," said Williams' coach Gary Cranford, Abby's father. "But I would have to say that her biggest asset is her ball control."

As the main focus of every team the Yellowjackets faced, Cranford's slick behind the back and between the legs dribbling style became almost a necessity. But even after fighting through full-court presses, half-court traps and everything else coaches threw her way, she never let her defense take a back seat.

"Most of the time I'm on the ball, so I usually try to get them in a position where they can't get around me," Cranford said. "Defensively, it's really all in the feet."

She also plays volleyball in the fall and runs track in the spring, but it's basketball that has been her passion ever since she started playing organized ball as a fourth grader.

"I just love the game and I want to do the best I can," said Cranford, who thanked her older sister, Samantha, for showing her the proper way to shoot. Of course her father received some thank yous as well.

"My dad always pushes me to reach the best of my potential and he relies on me a lot," she said. "But he knows I can get it done and I just go out there and show him I can."

And what does she have planned for an encore?

"Next year I just want the team to have a better season," Cranford said. "Hopefully we'll get a few more wins and make it to the playoffs in my last year."

Earning coach of the year honors was Biggs' Tim Sheridan, who guided the Wolverines to a 17-12 record while advancing to the Northern Section Division V semifinals.

It was an up-and-down season for Biggs, which started strong by racing to a perfect 8-0 record only to have injuries and inconsistent play creep in and lead to a seven-game losing streak.

"We started off pretty well, but then we lost our confidence and we couldn't get it back," Sheridan said. "We were a running team and teams were getting back on defense against us so we had to adjust."

The Wolverines got back on track by winning their final nonleague tune-up against Marysville and took some much needed momentum heading into Mid-Valley League play.

Sheridan led Biggs to a third-place finish in the MVL with a 6-4 record and the Wolverines sneaked into the playoffs as the 13th-seeded team in Division V.

And it was in the postseason where he truly made his mark. Sheridan knew his team was far better than No. 13 in the section and his team was hungry to go out and prove it.

And following back-to-back road upsets of No. 4 University Prep and No. 5 Fall River, the Wolverines found themselves just one game away from playing for the championship.

"It all came together at the right time," Sheridan explained. "We got much better in the half-court game and we played really well on the road."

Although their postseason run ended with a 48-35 loss to league foe Hamilton in the semis, it may only be a sign of things to come.

While the Wolverines lose the services of senior Holly Chandler in the middle, their strong backcourt should remain intact. And with talented guards Maribel Garcia and Fatima Castillo leading the team in scoring as sophomores this winter, next season could be Biggs' year.

"It will be big losing Holly, but all the contributors will be back," Sheridan said.

First team by the numbers:

C — Brenna Gates, junior, Lindhurst

18.3 ppg, 20.5 rpg, 1.5 bpg

PF — McKenna Cox, senior, Gridley

9.9 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 1.5 spg

SF — Caroline Meyers, junior, Colusa

16.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.4 spg

SG — Courtney Clingan, junior, Sutter

12.6 ppg, 6.3 spg, 5.1 rpg, 3.7 apg

PG — Courtney Gravel, junior, Sutter

14.4 ppg, 6.2 apg, 3.2 spg, 3.1 rpg

2nd:
C — Ashanti Sweezer,

junior, Lindhurst

8.2 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 2.4 bpg, 2.0 spg

PF — Lily Struble,

senior, Gridley

11.1 ppg, 8.0 rpg

SF — Kacy Blenn,

senior, Gridley

8.4 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 2.6 spg, 2.5 apg

SG — Alexandra Tanner,

senior, River Valley

11.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.3 spg

PG — Raquel Hammond,

senior, Lindhurst

9.3 ppg, 3.2 spg, 2.6 apg

3rd:

C — Hayley Thompson,

senior, River Valley

9.6 ppg, 9.6 rpg

F — Holly Chandler,

senior, Biggs

8.0 ppg, 11.4 rpg, 4.3 bpg, 2.5 spg

F — Kayla Woods,

senior, Wheatland

9.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 1.7 bpg

SG — Meghan Foster,

senior, Colusa

11.1 ppg, 1.8 apg, 1.5 spg

PG — Danielle Best,

senior, Faith Christian

7.5 ppg, 4.2 spg, 1.2 apg

*HONORABLE MENTIONS*

Lanaya Canalin, Wheatland

Morgan Trimble, Faith Christian

Laramie Vargas, Maxwell

Alexa Montgomery, Yuba City

Melissa Anderson, Live Oak

Paola Sotelo, Marysville

Teryn Mathews, Giridley

Taylor Loehrer, River Valley

*UP-AND-COMERS*

Milinda Kenerick, East Nicolaus

Denise Kenderick, East Nicolaus

Erica Larsen, Sutter

Maribel Garcia, Biggs

Fatima Castillo, Biggs

Melissa Menschel, Wheatland