Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

high school basketball:

Centennial girls basketball ranked No. 4 nationally by USA Today

Centennial Girls BBall Coach Karen Weitz

L.E. Baskow

Centennial High School girls basketball coach Karen Weitz directs her players as to the best position to be in at certain play during practice on the first week of their season on Tuesday , November 17, 2015.

Centennial Girls Basketball Coach Karen Weitz

Centennial High School girls basketball coach Karen Weitz has won a record seven state championships and begins the next season with the first week of practice on Tuesday , November 17, 2015. Launch slideshow »

The Centennial High girls basketball program has long been a Nevada powerhouse. Now, the Bulldogs are making a splash nationally.

They are ranked No. 4 in the preseason by USA Today, which released its rankings this week. Centennial finished 31-2 last season and won the program’s seventh state championship since the school opened in 1999.

Centennial has four players on the Sun’s Super Seven preseason team, including sophomore guard Justice Ethridge, who as a freshman in 2014-15 averaged 14 points and four rebounds per game. The Sun’s team will be released in early December.

“Surprised would be a fabulous word to describe it. We are definitely surprised,” Centennial coach Karen Weitz said. “But the first thing I think of being a coach is, ‘Who have we played to get a ranking like that.’ We haven’t beat anybody. We have to do that first.”

Centennial added a pair of transfers in sisters Bailey and Samantha Thomas of Michigan in the offseason. The sisters were part of a state championship team in Michigan last season and are the daughters of former UNLV assistant Derek Thomas. Bailey is a West Virginia signee.

Other notables for Centennial include junior forward Jayden Eggleston, who averaged 12 points and 8 rebounds per game last season, and veteran guard Tanjanae Wells.

The Bulldogs will have a chance to live up to their ranking in mid-December when they play in the top flight at the Nike Tournament of Champions in Phoenix. It is one of the top girls basketball tournaments nationally.

Ray Brewer can be reached at 702-990-2662 or [email protected]. Follow Ray on Twitter at twitter.com/raybrewer21

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