New Direction

Shayla Drakeford spied an opening in the defense before the basketball ever reached her hands. On the opposite side of the court, center Briana Scott had crept pretty much undetected to within a couple steps of the hoop.
No one playing defense spotted her anyway. But Drakeford did and that was the important thing.
So Forest Park’s junior guard skipped a pass through the lane from the left sideline and Scott turned it into a layup.
The assist was only part of a practice drill but Drakeford’s court awareness could wind up hav-ing a significant impact on Saturday, when the Northwest Region champion Bruins face Mills Godwin in the quarterfinals of the Group AAA state tournament.
Known more for the intensity she provides on defense as the Bruins top reserve, Drakeford will have an opportunity to showcase her talents as a ball-handler and shooter as she steps into the starting lineup to replace injured all-region guard Deidre Richardson.
“I’ve been trying to do the offense thing so maybe I can do what Deidre does in games,” Drake-ford said, following a recent afternoon practice. “I hope I can bring some things in the very begin-ning of the game.”
What Drakeford typically brings is excitement, tenacity and quickness. In that regard, she is a lot like her older sister, Candice, who also had a reputation as a terrific defensive player when she wore a Bruins jersey.
That family trait has been handed down to Shayla, who adds her own vibrant style to the Bruins full-court pressure defense.
“Candice helped me a lot on defense,” Shayla said. “I’d watch her play out there and I’d think, ‘I want to be like that one day.’”
For the Bruins, that day has arrived. On a team that takes great pride in the way it plays defense, there are few who do it better than Shayla.
While guard Amber Epps traditionally draws the toughest assignments, Drakeford created her own niche by popping off the bench and dashing right into someone’s passing lane.
Even in practice, she has a hard time standing still. When she isn’t backing up Jackson at point guard or going after a steal, the dynamic 5-foot-2 guard has been known to randomly burst into song — sometimes between practice plays.
“That’s just me. I’m goofy,” she said. “I have a lot of energy.”
And that is a good thing for Forest Park, which will be counting on every ounce Drakeford can muster against Mills Godwin, which won 18 consecutive games prior to Monday’s loss to L.C. Bird in the Central Region title game.
When Richardson’s season — and varsity career — came to an end following arthroscopic knee surgery, Drakeford was thrust unexpectedly into a starting role. She worked out alongside Jackson in the backcourt when the team returned to practice on Tuesday — picking up a big assist, occa-sionally taking the ball to the hoop and even handling some constructive criticism from assistant coach Brian Coleman with the poise of a three-year veteran.
“I used to get yelled at a lot freshman year so I think that helped me out a lot,” she said.
Having already been a part of one state championship team also helped Drakeford make a quick adjustment from super sub to starter.
On Saturday, instead of waiting her turn on the bench, Shayla will stand near mid-court beside two teammates who have already earned Division I college scholarships and another who is receiv-ing significant interest from some major conference schools.
“When I first heard about Deidre’s surgery I was really surprised and scared. She’s such a big part of the team,” Drakeford said. “There’s a lot of pressure on me. I’m excited and kind of nervous, too.”