Tatum Neubert is one of the state's top players and has signed to play at Oregon. After starting her high school career at Regis Jesuit, Neubert has excelled at her home school, Elizabeth.
Courtesy photo
When trying to nail down a comprehensive list of Division I girls basketball signees in the state, there is a small handful of schools from which to find them.
Elizabeth usually isn't one of them.
Well, not typically anyway. But this season is an exception, with the Class 4A Cardinals blessed with the talents of 6-foot-2
Tatum Neubert, a power forward who has signed with the Oregon Ducks.
Neubert is long and athletic, not one to solely play with her back to the basket. Sure, she can post up, but she also can handle the ball, has shooting range and projects as an inside-and-outside player in the college ranks. The question on most observers' minds is, how does a girl from Elizabeth get the attention of a program like Oregon?
"I've been playing club since I was in sixth grade," Neubert said. "That's what got me my attention, I guess. The summer tournaments are really where coaches go and scout."
Neubert played at Division-I factory Regis Jesuit (Aurora) as a freshman and would be part of a senior class that already has six D-I seniors had she remained with the Raiders.
She transferred back to her hometown of Elizabeth as a sophomore and had to sit out half of her sophomore season. Since then, it's mostly been dominance.
"She's still going to end up with a lot of our records, playing only two-and-a-half seasons," said Jaime Schmalz, who is in her third season coaching the Cardinals. "She's on track for points, rebounds, blocks and I think free-throw percentage."
This season, Neubert is averaging 21.2 points and 10 rebounds for the No. 6 Cardinals (5-1), whose only loss came Tuesday night to No. 5 Mesa Ridge (Colorado Springs). Neubert scored 26 points in the loss. She averaged 15 points and 7.2 rebounds last season and 10.5 points, 6.9 rebounds in her truncated sophomore season.
As a freshman at Regis Jesuit in 2010-11, Neubert saw brief action on the loaded varsity squad. She scored her first four varsity points that season.
Neubert didn't transfer from Regis Jesuit for basketball reasons. It was for commuting reasons, with the schools sitting 24 miles apart and her commutes often at heavy traffic times during the drive. She continued to play with Raiders stars such as
Justine Hall and
Kelsi Lidge in club ball with the Rockies Basketball Club.
While she admits it would be a pleasure to play basketball with the loaded Raiders, there is a lot to be said for being the lone Division I girl on the floor at Elizabeth. There are more minutes available and, as the clear-cut go-to player with the Cardinals, she has a larger platform to distinguish herself.
"I mean, I don't want to outshine any of my teammates," Neubert said. "But I guess it does help because there are so many great players on Regis. Here, I am looked upon as the D-I player, so I do think it helps me get a little more of the spotlight than if I was at a bigger school like that."
Neubert will have plenty of time to adjust to a big school when she heads to Oregon next season. The Ducks are developing something of a Colorado pipeline with former Longmont center Megan Carpenter now a junior on the women's team.
The Ducks appear just as excited to have signed Neubert as she is to go there.
"Tatum will be a great addition to our run-and-gun offense," Oregon assistant coach Bianca Ziemann said in a release by the Ducks. "Her ability to play inside and outside is a big advantage in both our offensive system and our defensive schemes."
Neubert also fielded offers from Colorado State and Wyoming, but said it was a slam dunk when she visited the campus in Eugene, Ore.
"When I visited Oregon, the feeling was so different," Neubert said. "I was excited the whole time. The athletics are great. The academics are great. The athletes are treated superbly and the facilities are amazing. It felt like the best fit for me."
The visit included a meeting with Carpenter, and the two talked about Colorado and quickly became friends.
"Tatum's character, in general, is what makes her special," Schmalz said. "She works harder than anyone I know in the offseason. I think she just truly loves the game of basketball and loves what she does."
So that's how a girl from Elizabeth gets the attention of Oregon.
"When she says that that's what she wants to do, there's no doubt in your mind that she's going to reach her goal," Schmalz said. "When she was a sophomore and she stepped out on the floor, she caught people's attention. As a junior last season she was even better.
"Then this year, you think that a player can't get any better, and she just decided she could break through that."
