ABOVE: Martin County West’s Emily Anderson puts up a shot over a reaching Sleepy Eye Saint Mary’s defender earlier in the season. Sentinel file photo.

TRIMONT – Martin County West’s Emily Anderson’s dynamic offensive skill set paired with drastic defensive improvement were the key factors in why the Mavericks were two wins shy of the state tournament this year.

They’re also a reason why she is this season’s All-Sentinel Girls Basketball Player of the Year.

“She has the height that gives teams problems in the post,” said MCW head coach Cliff Anderson. “She can shoot the outside shot pretty well. So she’s a tough matchup for certain teams.”

Emily Anderson’s skill set continued to improve throughout her senior season under the tutelage of her coaching staff, with massive improvements in ball handling and finding her way inside the paint.

“I thought her ball handling was much more improved this year than in the past,” said Cliff Anderson. “Then getting her down in the post has always been a challenge for us, but I think we were able to get her down into the post a little bit more this year, that helped our offense a little bit too.”

Emily Anderson ended the season with 587 points, 275 rebounds, 92 assists, 123 deflections, and 68 steals, giving her averages of 19.6 points, 9.1 rebounds, three assists, and 2.3 steals per game. Anderson’s play and numbers show what a massive part she played in the Mavericks’ 23-7 season.

She made the jump to varsity in her seventh-grade year, and her progression since then has been nothing short of impressive.

“Looking back, in seventh grade when I got moved up, I was more of a just sit in the corner and kind of shoot person,” said Emily Anderson. “Now I’ve definitely moved into a scorer on all three levels and that didn’t come easy. That’s coming in and putting in my own time in the gym. Working with my family in the gym. Working extra workouts in AAU. Lifting weights and all those different things that not everyone sees.”

Emily Anderson focused on the team this year and just taking in her season. All of the goals set were team goals, which, according to her, had more than been achieved.

“I didn’t really have too many personal goals,” she said. “Just a lot of team goals because that’s what it’s all about. We just wanted to have fun. And we wanted to win a lot of games because in the previous year we did win quite a few. We knew that we’d be pretty decent coming into this year. We just wanted to continue that.

“We got in the locker room and we set some original goals and we did meet a lot of those. Winning the Valley Conference, getting a home playoff game. We met a lot of those team goals that we established right away.”

She feels that her communication is where she developed the most this season.

“Just talking and helping my teammates out,” she said. “More so like on the defensive end. We definitely run a unique type of defense, and so the ability to talk to my teammates on defense is really important. I think I’ve come a long way in that and so helping my teammates on the defensive end, and definitely on the offensive end. I think I’ve come a long way.”

For the senior leader, though, it wasn’t all about the wins, rather the special moments shared with teammates and coaching staff that stood out to her as favorites.

“We have a lot of good moments in practice,” said Emily Anderson. “Where we’re doing things, just like little things. Either with my teammates or even with all of our coaches. They just give us a good little laugh. It’s those moments that maybe not everyone sees. It’s like the behind-the-scenes stuff. Which are probably all my favorite things.”

This year’s All-Sentinel Player of the Year is now focused on her final season of softball for the Mavericks, after which she will resume her basketball career at University of Wisconsin, River Falls.