Hot-shooting teammates lead Westchester/Putnam girls basketball all-stars

Their games are not identical. Even if some of their moves seem to be.

And even if, when on the court together, it often seems as if they're of one mind.

There's no tandem in local high school girls basketball as potent as Panas juniors Sofia Tavarez and Cadence Nicholas.

Friends and teammates since their grade-school CYO days, the pair have taken their Panas basketball teams to the Class A state final for two straight years, winning the crown in 2023 and coming just a basket shy of doing so again last month.

Their quickness and ability to read situations and react helped create stats almost anyone on any level would love to have.

Nicholas averaged 22.9 points per game this season, with her state playoff average at 31.25. Her 670 points brought her to 1,730 for her varsity career, meaning 2,000-plus is all but a certainty before she hangs up her Panther uniform.

Playing small forward or shooting guard , as well point guard when Tavarez was either briefly sitting or sidelined for two games with a sprained ankle, Nicholas also pulled down 7.7 rebounds per game, had 4.1 assists per game and had 5.5 steals per game.

Tavarez put in 19.2 points per game and totaled 479 points on the season to put her at 1,075 for her varsity career. She also averaged 4.8 rebounds a game, 7.8 assists per game and 6.9 steals per game.

Put all those numbers together and they make for a heck of a tandem, or, in this case, a tandem who shares The Journal News/lohud Westchester/Putnam Girls Basketball Player of the Year honor.

The two found success together early, winning a state CYO championship as fifth-graders.

While they play on different outside club teams, the hours and hours they've practiced and played together make it sometimes seem like they're communicating telepathically when on the court.

"I don't have to even say anything and she'll know what I want to do and vice-versa," Tavarez said.

Panas coach Matt Evangelista has seen the two give each other a quick look before something special happens, and he has also seen the no-look passes that have resulted in baskets.

"What makes Sofia so good is she pushes the ball. She plays really fast, both offensively and defensively. She's a really, really great passer − a classic point guard and, with all her incredible moves, the crowd 'Oohs and Aahs,'" Evangelist said, clearly delighting in the memory of Tavarez beating many taller opponents by driving inside, before jumping and floating the ball in an arc up and over defenders and into the hoop.

As with Tavarez, speed is a big part of Nicholas's game. She and Tavarez have an uncanny knack for using that speed to drive inside and score by twisting in the air almost around much taller players who are camped under the basket.

"There's literally nothing Cadence can't do on a basketball court," Evangelista said, noting, in addition to her inside/outside scoring, she has been able to defensively shut down everyone from point guards to other team's "bigs."

Evangelista and his players are already dreading the end of all this. But Tavarez and Nicholas, who've yet to commit to college teams, make it clear their intention is to wrap things up on the high school level with another state title.

"The kids," Evangelista said, "are proven winners."

Coach of the Year

Matt Evangelista, Panas: The Panthers' skipper saw his team come within a bucket of repeating as Class A state champion. He wins this honor, beating out multiple other talented coaches − everyone from the ultimate veteran, Gina Maher, who surpassed 800 wins at Irvington this year, to young up-and-comer Silvio DiSalvatore, who did a fabulous job getting an extremely young Tuckahoe team to the Class C state semifinals. Evangelista preaches calm, even while often directing an uptempo game his players clearly embrace. It won't be a surprise if he has his team back in the state final again next year.

The rest of the first team

Olivia Fernandez

School: Harrison

Year: Senior

Position: Point guard

Highlights: A five-year varsity player for the Huskies, Fernandez was Harrison's engine throughout a strong, 16-win season. The Division I Bryant College commit averaged 13.1 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. But what separated her from many other outstanding players were her 5.6 assists per game, many pin-hole strikes through traffic.

Sophie Nascimento

School: Ursuline

Year: Junior

Position: Guard

Highlights: Nascimento, who has already surpassed 1,000 points for her varsity career, was Ursuline's go-to scorer this season. She averaged 19.5 points per game, along with 10.2 boards. Quick and smart, she was also huge on defense, averaging six steals per game. The runner-up for Journal News/lohud Westchester/Putnam Girls Player of the Year was chosen by Section 1 coaches as the area's top player. Nacimento, who has Division I tools, was also named to Team Ireland's Under 18 squad this month.

Ineivi Plata

School: White Plains

Year: Senior

Position: Point guard

Highlights: Whatever college ends up signing Plata will be lucky. She be a hair under 5-foot-4, but her quickness, court IQ, shooting ability and fearlessness (think countless dives on the floor for loose balls) offset any vertical challenge she may have. Plata was integral in White Plains making the Class AA state championship her junior year, when she surpassed 1,000 career points on varsity. This season, when she was the focal point of many opponents' defenses, she averaged 18 points, 6.5 assists, 5 rebounds and 4 steals per game

Second team

Meghan McDonald, Sr., F, Ursuline

Stella Perini, Sr., F, Harrison

Kaitlyn Raguso, Jr., G, Hen Hud

Mia Strazza, Jr., G, Harrison

Claire Teirney, Sr., G, Ardsley

Honorable mention: Chloe Angello, 8th grade, G, Tuckahoe; Saniya Bell, Jr., C, Ossining; Madison Carlo, Sr., G, Kennedy Catholic ; Grace Corelli, Sr., G., Byram Hill; Iva Corluka, Jr., F, Ardsley; Cara Doherty, Fr., F, Tuckahoe; Addison Dorfman, So., C, Mamaroneck Ashari Emuze; So., G, Woodlands; Brianna Foley, Sr., G, New Rochelle; Lauren Fox , F, Sr.,Kennedy Catholic; Taylor Green, Jr., G, Pelham; Phoebe Greto, So, F, Rye; Sela Halaifonua, Jr., G, John Jay-Cross RIver; Zoey Jowers, Sr., G, Ossining; Anne Keneally, Sr., G, Ursuline; Asia Kirkpatrick, Sr., F, Gorton; Kendall Konigsberg , So., G, Blind Brook; Sequoia Layne, Sr., F, White Plains; Madi Lopez, Sr., G, Kennedy Catholic; Nichole Ljuljic , Sr.,G, Lakeland; Alessa Mendoza, Sr., G, Hackley; Kylie Murphy, So., G, Carmel; Jaya Oliva, So., G, Alexander Hamilton; Tiana Pattan, Jr., G/F, Mount Vernon; Brooke Pfeiffer, So., G/F, Westlake; Alyson Raimondo, Jr., G/F, Irvington; Nai Torres, Sr., G, Putnam Valley

Nancy Haggerty covers cross-country, track & field, field hockey, skiing, ice hockey, basketball, girls lacrosse and other sporting events for The Journal News/lohud. Follow her on Twitter at @HaggertyNancy.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Cadence Nicholas, Sofia Tavarez top Westchester/Putnam girls basketball