Ryder Mjoen of Simi Valley (left) is the SoCal Boys BB Player of the Week. At right is NorCal Girls BB Player of the Week Isabel Tan from Cosumnes Oaks of Elk Grove. Photos: Hudl.com & Cosumnes Oaks Girls BB / MaxPreps.com.
There was one entry for the Cal-Hi Sports Online Record Book to track once again this week, and besides accomplishing that goal of this feature we also uncovered some talent that doesn’t always get the spotlight, including a newcomer who is a senior. This week our stops are in Simi Valley and Lancaster in Southern California, and in Northern California we visit El Dorado and Elk Grove.
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Notes: There will be no players of the week next week due to the Christmas holiday. For these honors, we also consider CIF Central Section players for Northern California. To nominate anyone, email markjtennis@gmail.com.
Cal-Hi Sports Southern California
Boys Player of the Week
Ryder Mjoen (Simi Valley) Sr.
The search for the Southern California Boys Player of the Week takes us to Ventura County where we land a couple of blocks south of Highway 118 at Simi Valley High. We almost visited Simi Valley last week when Ryder was named the Los Angeles Daily News Boys Athlete of the Week after passing the 1,000 point career scoring mark with a 27-point performance in a heartbreaking 56-55 loss to nearby Agoura two weeks ago, but we had a Cal-Hi Sports Online Record Book entry in the mix and we also try to honor players after a win and not necessarily a milestone.
Well, Ryder is riding high again this week by adding a statewide award to the local one he got last week after pouring in 40 points last week in a 78-69 victory over Chatsworth at the Faith Baptist Tournament.
Stats for the last two games, a 4-point loss to Westlake and the Chatsworth win, were not yet reported as of Tuesday afternoon on MaxPreps, but we reached out to Ryder and he reported that he had 28 against Westlake, plus adding in the 40 he had to garner the award, and heading into a Tuesday afternoon game with visiting Poly of Sun Valley, the 6-foot-1 senior guard has 1,070 career points and is one of the leading scorers in the LA metro area with a per game average of 24.5 points to go with 5.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists per contest.
Niya Price has had several 30-point games to start the season for Antelope Valley. Photo: Antelope Valley Girls BB / MaxPreps.com.
Cal-Hi Sports Southern California
Girls Player of the Week
Niya Price (Antelope Valley, Lancaster) Sr.
We head to the high desert and it’s in Lancaster at Antelope Valley where we find this week’s Southern California Girls Player of the Week award winner.
Prior to the past three games, Niya had two 30 point or more performances and could have been eligible to be honored previously, but it’s this week that the price is right for Price.
Price, a 6-foot-2 senior wing, started last week with 30 points (three 3-pointers) in a 62-44 victory over neighboring Quartz Hill. In the second game last week, Niya dropped in 33 points (one 3-pointer) in a 71-35 win against nearby Knight of Palmdale. Going right up the stepladder, on Monday of this week, and in a blowout Golden League victory over cross-town rival Lancaster that got the Antelopes to 8-2 overall and 5-2 in league, Price poured in 35 points with two three-pointers.
So far this season, Price is the No. 6 reported scoring leader in the state by MaxPreps and No. 3 in the CIF Southern Section at 27.8 points per game.
On a side note and in a bit of a twist, we saw Price and evaluated her playing club basketball when the Girls of Summer Caravan was in Orange County back in July. Niya was impressive and tied for the No. 11 ranking out of over 150 players evaluated. In the information packet it did not have a school listed and we were told she lived in the high desert and was being home schooled. Now we know Price is helping punch her potential ticket to a D1 college scholarship by playing her first and only year of high school basketball in California at Antelope Valley.
Cal-Hi Sports Northern California
Girls Player of the Week
Isabel Tan (Cosumnes Oaks, Elk Grove) Sr.
To find the Northern California Girls Player of the Week we head a little over 15-miles south of Sacramento, just west of Highway 99 in Elk Grove, and we land at Cosumnes Oaks to honor the award winner.
The Wolfpack have been going through a bit of a rough spell the last couple of weeks and have lost four of their last six games, but last week, in the one game they played, Tan was the woman that night after going for 46 points in a 90-43 win over Nevada Union of Grass Valley. Isabel also rang it up 12 times from 3-point range and also had nine rebounds, seven assists and four steals.
The 12 3-pointers for Tan will make it into the Cal-Hi Sports Online Record Book and ties Tan for the No. 6 spot all time on the Most Three-Point Field Goals Made (Game) list.
So far this season for the 6-5 Wolfpack, the senior guard is averaging 21.8 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.7 steals and 4.4 assists per game. Tan has also connected on 40-precent of her 3-pointers and made 40 in 11 games. She’s also shooting 86-percent from the free-throw line. The 21.8 points per game is a top 35 reported mark in the state and No. 5 in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section.
Also, on a final note, the four-year varsity starter now has 1,280 career points heading into a Wednesday match-up with Edison of Stockton.
Union Mine had one of the top scorers last season in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section with Mason Mottashed. This year, it has Nate Sweet. Photo: Twitter.com.
Cal-Hi Sports Northern California
Boys Player of the Week
Nate Sweet (Union Mine, El Dorado)
We trek around 40-miles east of the state capitol to the Mother Lode area just south of Placerville on historic Highway 49, and we end up finding our Northern California Boys Player of the Week in El Dorado at Union Mine.
Sweet started last week with 28 points (three 3-pointers), seven rebounds, three assists and three steals in a 71-55 victory over Woodland Christian of Woodland. He finished the week on Saturday with 23 points (four 3-pointers), four rebounds and two assists in a 61-40 win over Sacramento Bradshaw Christian, and those are two pretty solid performances, but the sweetest game for Sweet last week, and the outing that earns him this statewide honor, is the game he sandwiched between the two.
On Friday, and in a 71-65 victory of West Campus of Sacramento, Sweet gave Diamondbacks’ fans a treat after burning the nets for 40 points, including seven 3-pointers, with an assist and a steal.
So far this season for 11-1 Union mine and heading into a Tuesday night game on the road in Fair Oaks at Del Campo, the 6-foot-2 senior guard is averaging 24.2 points 6.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Sweet has also connected on 35 3-pointers. The 24.2 points per game average is a top 35 reported mark in the state and No. 4 in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section.
Harold Abend is the associate editor of CalHiSports.com and the vice president of the California Prep Sportswriters Association. He can be reached at marketingharoldabend@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow him on Twitter: @HaroldAbend
