Because Huntley’s Sam and Ali Andrews are two years apart in school, it would seem this high school girls basketball season might be their first as teammates.

It actually is their ninth year playing together. Ali, a precocious 6-foot-2 freshman, has played travel basketball with Sam since she was in third grade and Sam was in fifth. They played in recreation leagues before starting travel.

“It’s helped me improve a lot on my game, especially making me get stronger and my skills have gone up,” said Ali, who averages 18 points and eight rebounds a game.