Stephenson hoops standout Kaliyah Mitchell made her name and crafted her game by giving opposing players and coaches fits.

The 6 foot 1 Penn State-bound senior is a matchup nightmare. Case-in-point: her stat line in the Lady Jaguars’ first two games this season.

Mitchell flirted with a quad-double in Stephenson’s season-opening win over Rockdale — 22 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 7 steals. She followed that up with a 22-point, eight-rebound night against Dutchtown the next game.

“She’s truly a blessing,” said Lady Jaguars coach Dennis Watkins. “She can play inside or out — she creates matchup problems.”

Mitchell, a four-year starter, has all the tools.

“Against Rockdale she took [their big] outside and when we need her to penetrate, she can … and when teams try to press us, she can see over the press,” Watkins noted. “We use her to our advantage … and there’s really nobody who can guard her.”

Hard work, talent and experience have guided Mitchell’s transformation from diamond in the rough to polished product at the prep level. The only thing left for her to do in such a stellar career is to win it all.

“This is her senior year and she wants to go out on top,” said Watkins. “So, we’re going to try to do everything we need to do to be successful.”