The PTP pick

F Kendal Cheesman, Sr., Plant

After helping the Panthers reach the state final last season, Cheesman and her senior teammates are determined to not just make it back to the title game.

This time, they want to finish as champions. 

To do that, Plant has put together a challenging schedule that yields few easy nights. 

Last week, the Panthers played Steinbrenner and Brooks DeBartolo in consecutive games.

Cheesman did her part to make sure Plant prevailed in each one. 

The Vanderbilt signee averaged 27 points and 10 rebounds in those games to help Plant remain undefeated (now 9-0). 

The fans’ pick

G Whitney Rush, Sr., East Lake

In her first two seasons, Rush showed steady improvement as a scorer with the Eagles, going from averaging nine points a game as a sophomore to 15.4 as a junior last season. 

Now, the veteran is East Lake’s go-to player. 

Rush is averaging a state-leading 28.1 points per game. The numbers come from consistency. After all, Rush has scored at 20 points in eight straight games. 

Last week was her best performance of the season. Rush averaged 31 points per game in wins over Gaither and Calvary Christian. That helped her surpass the 1,000-point career plateau this week. 

Rush had the approval from fans. She received more than 70 percent of the votes (82) to beat out Plant’s Kendal Cheesman, who had more than 25 percent (30 votes).