The Race for GVC Player of the Year
The Greater Valley Conference is an intriguing league. Both co-GVC players of the years from last year (Teagan Quitoriano and Kyle Greeley) are still around. It boasts at least six teams capable of winning a playoff game. Plus, one team (Sprague) that has yet to lose to a 6A Oregon opponent. Perhaps most intriguing is the race for GVC player of the year. With apologies to players like McMinnville’s Aaron Baune and the entire McNary starting five, three players have a legitimate chance to win GVC player of the year. Each of these standouts are, arguably, among the top-10 in 6A. They’re very different players, but all dominant in their own way. Here they are:
Jaden Nielsen-Skinner, South Salem junior
Even of these three, “Skinny” is the long shot. His Saxons are 3-4 in league play and, although he’s a gifted player, team record matters. Still, Nielsen-Skinner is as good of a true guard as you’ll find in the league. He plays extremely well with his backcourt partner, senior Tyler Wadleigh, who is an incredibly crafty high school guard. Nielsen-Skinner can take just about anybody in the state off the dribble and he likes to finish in the paint. He can also hit threes, as he proved with a chilling step-back in double overtime against McNary on Tuesday. The small point guard has offers from Portland State and Western Carolina. He’s unlikely to win this year, but he’ll be next year’s heavy favorite.
Kyle Greeley, West Salem senior
When it comes to pure scorers, Greeley is about as good as it gets in high school basketball. As a junior, he earned co-GVC player of the year honors and led his team to the Chiles Center. He’s doing more of the same this year, but his team isn’t winning at quite the same clip. On Friday, he poured in 39 points and every night he’s a threat to get 20, 30 or (perhaps sometime soon) 40 points. He isn’t considered an elite defender, but he’s sturdy and knows how to get to spots where can he score on offense. He’s complemented by West Salem’s 6-foot-7 guard Tyke Thompson. The Titans are 5-2 in league play, with losses at Sprague and West Albany. If he can continue to score like this (likely) and West Salem can finish as one of the top two teams in the GVC, he will certainly compete for another player of the year honor.
Teagan Quitoriano, Sprague senior
If the season ended today, Quitoriano would win player of the year. His Olympians are 7-0 in GVC play and Quitoriano dominated last week in a pivotal win over 66-53 win over West Salem, posting 25 points, 10 rebounds and two key blocks on Greeley. But, the season isn’t ending today. Sprague still has to play at McNary and West Salem.
Quitoriano, 6-foot-7 and built like a tree, is one of the most physically dominant players in the state. After his loss to Sprague, West Salem coach Travis Myers admitted that few teams in the state have anyone who can guard the interior player. Last year’s co-GVC player of the year, Quitoriano is helped by sidekick Jailen Hammer, an athletic junior.
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