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Versatile Peoria High captain is the latest in this family's long basketball legacy

adam duvall, journal star
·4 min read
Peoria High's Denali Craig Edwards (2) battles the Peoria Notre Dame defense in the second half Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022 at Peoria High School. The Irish defeated the Lions 60-47.
Peoria High's Denali Craig Edwards (2) battles the Peoria Notre Dame defense in the second half Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022 at Peoria High School. The Irish defeated the Lions 60-47.

PEORIA — Scoring had been no issue for Peoria High early in the girls basketball season.

The Lions were averaging 74.5 points a game, having scored 100 and 90 points, respectively in blowout victories. But Peoria High hit a cold streak in last Thursday’s 60-47 nonconference loss to Peoria Notre Dame.

After trailing by 25, Peoria High used a third-quarter spurt, spilling over into the final eight minutes that got the game within 10. Denali Craig-Edwards scored seven of the Lions’ 16 points in that span.

Was that second-half stretch a quick peek at how well Peoria High had been playing this season?

“I don’t think we (gave) a glimpse of anything at all of what we could have been,” Craig-Edwards said, “or what we should be at this point (against PND).”

More:Here are the Peoria area's top 12 high school girls basketball players for 2022-23

One of the Lions' leaders

Spoken like the team captain of Class 3A’s third-ranked team. The unanimous all-Big 12 Conference first-team selection knows her approach must be tailored to her individual teammates.

A big part of this, Craig-Edwards says, is that her maturity level is progressing tremendously

“As a leader, you obviously have to know your personnel,” she said. “You can’t get on everyone’s back the same exact way."

As a junior, the 6-foot-1 forward averaged 15.5 points and 11 rebounds to go with 5.5 assists, 4.0 steals and 2.0 blocks. She’s shown flashes of that with a 24-point game against Decatur Eisenhower earlier this season.

Despite being an all-stater, Craig-Edwards says her skillset is still incomplete.

“As far as my game goes, I still feel like I, obviously, have a lot to work on,” she said. “I do think I’ve grown as a player and being able to just take criticism more from my coaches and things of that nature.

“I still feel like I should be able to produce right out of the gate.”

Peoria High's Denali Craig Edwards (2) shoots over Peoria Notre Dame's Biz Daly in the second half Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022 at Peoria High School. The Irish defeated the Lions 60-47.
Peoria High's Denali Craig Edwards (2) shoots over Peoria Notre Dame's Biz Daly in the second half Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022 at Peoria High School. The Irish defeated the Lions 60-47.

Latest in a basketball family

Fortunately for Craig-Edwards, the feedback she receives from her coaches is constant. Her dad, Meechie Edwards, is the longtime coach with her mom, Kelly Craig-Edwards, serving as the assistant.

Edwards has now been coaching at least one of his children for 11 consecutive seasons.

“She just works so hard at everything she does,” Edwards said of his daughter. “It’s been unbelievable. Not just on the basketball floor but as a father and as a coach.”

Opposing coaches also see the work the younger Craig-Edwards has put in. PND coach Layne Langholf knows she can be a matchup problem with Craig-Edwards’ ability to step out a hit a 3-pointer or take into the post.

Her also setting a ball screen for fellow Division I recruit Aaliyah Guyton can leave defenses in a "pick your poison" type of position.

“She’s so versatile,” Langholf said. “She can score all three levels (and) in transition. She’s just a handful.”

Peoria's Denali Craig Edwards, left, jumps and passes the ball to teammate Aaliyah Guyton before it goes out of bounds as Morton's Paige Griffin defends in the first half of their Class 3A regional title game Friday, Feb. 18, 2022 at Peoria High School. The Potters took the title with a 31-27 win.
Peoria's Denali Craig Edwards, left, jumps and passes the ball to teammate Aaliyah Guyton before it goes out of bounds as Morton's Paige Griffin defends in the first half of their Class 3A regional title game Friday, Feb. 18, 2022 at Peoria High School. The Potters took the title with a 31-27 win.

More:Who's No. 1? Ranking the top 12 Illinois high school girls basketball teams around Peoria

Headed to Western Michigan

The Mid-American Conference will get a taste next season of what Big 12 Conference opponents currently face. Craig-Edwards has signed to play at Western Michigan following college recruitment that featured a dozen Division-I offers.

She loved her unofficial visit to the Kalamazoo, Michigan-based campus and was even more fond of the university the second time around.

“I love it even more,” Craig-Edwards said of her official visit. “When you’re going away from home for over four years, you want to feel comfortable and that’s what they gave me. Everything about it just felt like home.”

As a freshman, Craig-Edwards played in a sectional championship. This came after helping the Lions win their first regional championship in 13 years.

Now, Peoria High has its sights on ending a 22-year drought with a state finals appearance.

“That would mean the world to me,” Craig-Edwards said. “That’s the end goal. That’s what we’re striving for every practice, every game. That’s what we’re thinking about, so to get to that point, that’d be a dream come true.”

Adam Duvall is a Journal Star sports reporter. Email him at aduvall@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @AdamDuvall.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: IHSA basketball: Denali Craig-Edwards daughter of coach, city legacy