Trib HSSN girls basketball player of the week for Feb. 12, 2024

By: Don Rebel
Monday, February 12, 2024 | 6:24 PM

Trib HSSN girls basketball player of the week: Bella Antonacci

School: Indiana

Class: Senior

Height: 5-foot-6

Position: Guard

What coach says: “The biggest thing that stood out to me over this past week was our entire team’s will to win the section title, which was led by Bella’s energy,” Indiana coach Michael Franciscus said. “She and her fellow senior, Cassie Boyer, both deserve a ton of credit for the way they have led this team this year both on and off the court, and it was very special to see them clinch the section title and cut down the nets on their senior night together.

“Bella is the definition of an all-around player. Not only can she score from all three levels of the court, but her defense, rebounding and guard skills have been paramount in every win we’ve gotten this year. With that all being said, her greatest skill is absolutely her ability to control a game from the point guard position. You can always trust her decision-making skills on the court, and that’s huge to have at this time of year.”

“She is absolutely capable of leading us to a deep postseason run, and I can speak for myself, my assistant coaches, and her teammates when I say that we will pour our absolute everything into helping Bella and Cassie extend our playoff run as long as possible.”

#Earned: Antonacci is in the top 15 in scoring in the WPIAL with 350 points and an average of 16.8 points per game for the Section 1-5A champion Little Indians. On Monday, the senior had a game-high 22 points in leading Indiana over host Woodland Hills, 44-34. The in the de-facto section championship game on Friday at home, Antonacci led all scorers again with 20 points as Indiana defeated Plum, 49-34, to clinch the section championship outright. There was no letdown for the Little Indians on Saturday as they took care of business against District 9 DuBois Central Catholic, 46-25, with Antonacci scoring 14 points and younger sister Julia adding 13 points.

Background: Antonacci is a two-sport star at Indiana with her success on the basketball court to go along with her standout performance on the soccer pitch. This past fall, she made all-section first team as a goalkeeper and had four shutouts. After concluding her high school career in a few months, Antonacci will play college basketball at Allegheny. Her sister Julia is a sophomore and is also is a member of the Little Indians section championship squad.

2024 Trib HSSN Girls Basketball Players of the Week

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