Jennings County’s Juliann Woodard receives the MVP award from Indiana All-Stars game director Mike Broughton left, and Lan Haywood of MVP Award sponsor Kolache Factory West after leading Indiana to a win against Kentucky Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
INDIANAPOLIS — Andy Maguire had never seen Juliann Woodard play basketball prior to taking the Indiana All-Star girls coaching position, but it didn’t take long for him to become a huge fan.
The recent Jennings County graduate might have picked up a few more fans last week when people had a chance to see her in a Junior-Senior All-Star exhibition at Kokomo on Wednesday, and All-Star games against Kentucky on Friday in Lexington and Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
“I wish I had seen her every game this season because I love the way that girl plays,” said Maguire, who recently retired as the girls coach at Zionsville. “We didn’t see Jennings County, but I’ve always heard her name. Coaches around the state would say, ‘Have you ever seen Juliann Woodard?’ and I honestly hadn’t. But it was obvious in our first workouts that I needed to see Juliann Woodard.”
Woodard capped a big week for the Indiana team on Saturday when she posted a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds and led the team with three assists, five steals and three blocks to earn MVP honors in a 66-64 victory. She went 11 for 11 from the free-throw line, setting a game record for most free throws made without a miss.
“(The MVP honor) means a lot,” Woodard said. “I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and coaches by my side. I just put my head down and played my game, and whatever comes of it comes of it. I came in with the mindset that it meant something. So I just continued to put my head down and worked how I normally would.”
Jennings County graduate and Indiana All-Star Juliann Woodard shoots a free throw Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Pat McKee | For The Republic
On Friday, Woodard led Indiana with 23 points and three steals and grabbed six rebounds in a 90-79 victory.
“It was kind of frustrating (Friday),” Kentucky All-Stars coach Kristy Orem said. “I kept thinking, ‘How in the world is she open again?’ So (Saturday), we were like, ‘All right, we’re going to do a better job.’ So we actually said to them, ‘The next person that jumps on her shot fake is coming over and sitting by me, because she has a really good one, and when you can shoot it as well as she does, she will out-hustle you. That’s one of the things we talked about — ‘You cannot let her out-hustle us. She’s going to be special.”
“I call her an old school basketball player,” Maguire added. “A lot of what she does is old school. It’s never really fast, but it’s always really good. I thought she just had an outstanding week. She lays her body out there all the time. That’s one thing as a coach you really respect. She’s on the floor. She’s after every loose ball. She’s just a really good kid, but a really tough kid.”
Jennings County graduate and Indiana All-Star Juliann Woodard (10) goes up for a shot against Kentucky’s Ramiya White (12) and Marian Knight (8) Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Pat McKee | For The Republic
After playing nearly 35 minutes of the 40-minute game on Friday, Woodard played nearly 36 minutes on Saturday. She played 7 minutes more than any other Indiana player in that Saturday contest.
“I would have done a little more conditioning if I’d have known that,” joked Woodard, who is headed to Michigan State. “But I am preparing for college, so I was up for the challenge.”
Jennings County graduate and Indiana All-Star Juliann Woodard, left) looks to pass to teammate Faith Wiseman as Kentucky’s Jasmine Jordan (7) and Abby Varney (11) defend Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Pat McKee | For The Republic
