Trib HSSN girls basketball player of the week for Feb. 26, 2024

By: Don Rebel
Tuesday, February 27, 2024 | 12:25 AM

Trib HSSN girls basketball player of the week: Emma Paul

School: Armstrong

Class: Senior

Height: 5-foot-5

Position: Guard

#Earned: Paul finished in the top 10 in scoring in the WPIAL and was second in Class 5A with 470 points and an average of 21.4 points per game. Last week in the first and second round of the district playoffs, Paul eclipsed the 500-point mark this season with a combined 45 points in two wins. The senior scored 20 points in the 51-40 playoff-opening victory over Latrobe. Paul followed up with a 25-point performance in the 59-31 quarterfinal win over No. 4 Lincoln Park for the River Hawks’ 15th straight win and the school’s first trip to the WPIAL semifinals Tuesday when they face top seed Oakland Catholic.

What coach says: “She was just her usual self,” Armstrong coach Jim Callipare said about the Latrobe victory. “She quietly scored 20 while getting her teammates involved. Her will to win and just do what is needed for her team to succeed stood out against Lincoln Park.”.

“Her basketball IQ and her will to win are second to none. She is physically tough despite her size and she is mentally tough as well.”

Background: Earlier this season, Paul broke the school record for points in a game when she scored 45 points and hit 10 3-pointers in a victory over Mars. There was little celebration since she broke her own record. Later in January, she eclipsed 200 3-pointers for her career. As good as she is in basketball, she will focus on softball when she heads to Fairmont State this fall. Last spring, Paul was an all-state shortstop and was a member of the Trib HSSN softball all-star team as a junior. She batted .478 with 34 runs scored, 32 RBIs and 23 stolen bases. Paul played a big part in the 2022 WPIAL championship run for Armstrong as a sophomore, plus two WPIAL and one PIAA runner-up postseason runs.

2024 Trib HSSN Girls Basketball Players of the Week

Week 7 – Bailey Strnisa, South Side

Week 6 – Bella Antonacci, Indiana

Week 5 – Emma Larkin, Geibel Catholic

Week 4 – Shaye Bailey, Freedom

Week 3 – London Creach, Oakland Catholic

Week 2 – Mallory Daly, Seton LaSalle

Week 1 – Iyanna Wade, Clairton

Tags: Armstrong