BY NOAH GRIFFITH FOR THE OBSERVER
OPELIKA –– The calendar flipping to November means the start of the high school football playoffs, but it also marks the beginning of a new campaign for AHSAA basketball.
In order to introduce these new-look teams to the community, 12 squads gathered at the third annual Alabama High School Basketball Media Day hosted by Dicks Sporting Goods in Opelika on Wednesday, Oct. 30. Among the East-Central Alabama schools in attendance, Lee-Scott Academy, Opelika, Auburn High, Smiths Station and Loachapoka represented Lee County.
Here’s a look at what each team is focused on with the season rapidly approaching.
Lee-Scott Academy Warriors (3A, Area 6)
Boys:
Lee-Scott is coming off of a 27-5 season that cumulated in a state championship title in their last ride in the AISA in 2023. A newbie in the AHSAA, this season will be a challenge in an area that includes familiar foe Glenwood, along with AHSAA regulars Dadeville and Beulah.
With only one returning senior, Parker Wright, the Warriors know they have their work cut out for them this year while its junior class of eight grows into major roles. However, the team feels that this summer has helped prepare them. They played with some of the top schools across the state in camps at universities such as Auburn, Alabama and Troy. At those camps, Lee-Scott experimented with its up-tempo style of play that will be its identity as a team in 2024-25.
“We’re a guard-heavy team, and we’re going to play that way – we don’t have a true back-to-the-basket big man. Our team is all about 6-foot to six-foot-2, somewhere in there,” said head coach William Johnson. “We’ll probably shoot 20-plus threes a game. We’re going to attack the basket and play defense. That’s what we’ve done for years, and I don’t anticipate that changing. We’re going to shoot threes, space out and play with pace.
“Competition will be night in and night out better at times, and we’re excited for that. We’re ready to rock and roll.”
Girls:
Veteran head coach Corye Harrison and the Lee-Scott girls, like the boys team, is looking to build on a strong season with a young team. The lady Warriors went 17-10 last season and finished with a 45-36 loss to Glenwood in the state championship.
Half of their losses last season came to Glenwood, but luckily, they’ll have a chance to redeem themselves with Glenwood moving alongside them to the AHSAA. Seniors Kamdin Cleveland and Riley Fields will lead a Warrior team, which consist of no juniors, several sophomores and freshman and one eighth grader, against Loachapoka to begin their season on Nov. 15. They don’t play Glenwood until meeting them twice in January.
“This is probably the youngest basketball team I’ve ever had,” Harrison said. “Last year, we graduated four seniors that had all started since they were ninth graders, so it’s just a completely different look. Everybody’s got a new role… They’ve accepted the challenge, and they’re really excited about it. I’m really excited about having these two (Cleveland and Fields) for their senior year.”
Opelika High School Bulldogs (7A, Area 4)
Boys:
Going into his fourth year as Opelika’s head coach, Wesley Button has been working with standouts like Justin Holloway and Toni Fields since they were freshman – now, they are in leadership roles as seniors. After an 11-15 record last year, the Bulldogs are ready to see the fruits of the work they’ve put in throughout their high school tenure.
Holloway has been a leader since joining the varsity squad as a sophomore and is one of the players “everyone looks to” and a guy that Button has placed his trust in. Fields is Opelika’s most improved player, and as a sharpshooter, Button said he knows he has the “green light” to shoot every time he’s open. Led by those two, the Bulldogs are eyeing their first area championship since 2019.
“I know we’ve got a group that can do it, for sure. I’ll pick my guys over anybody,” Button said. “I have a group this year who plays for each other, they love each other, they hang out outside of basketball. Right now, I really think the togetherness is what’s going to get us there.”
Girls:
Similar to the boys team, the Opelika girls have a fourth-year head coach in Blake Smalley that is leading a veteran team. The lady Bulldogs are looking to make big strides in 2024-25 coming off an 8-17 season last year.
The team is led by seniors Makayla Jones, Tyra Pitts and Monica Whack, who Smalley described as a cohesive, driven group. Jones is the vocal leader that elevates the team’s communication, Pitts is a skilled ball-handler that distributes the ball to keep everyone involved on offense and Whack brings toughness and a strong work ethic to a team hoping to surprise people in a challenging area.
“I think we have the camaraderie, history and senior leadership – that’s one of the things I’m most excited about for this team,” Smalley said. “There’s a lot of little things that are happening that I think have us trending in the right direction.”
Auburn High Tigers (7A, Area 4)
Boys:
The Auburn boys weren’t satisfied with a 62-60 loss to Central in the regional final to end an otherwise spectacular 26-7 season last year. However, the Tigers have all the tools to mount a deeper run in the playoffs this season.
Despite graduating four seniors from last season, the team is returning last year’s leading scorer (11.7 points per game) and leading rebounder (6.1 rebounds per game) in senior Tabari Allen. Also a key returner, junior Antwane Daniels is coming off a season where he scored 10.1 ppg and hauled in 4.7 rpg. Talent is at a surplus, but the team’s chemistry could be a deciding factor in how far this team goes.
“I think our goal right now is just to stay together,” said head coach Chris Brandt. “Did have a lot of seniors graduate, but to the side of me are our two leading scorers, and we have some players who are stepping up – guys who didn’t contribute big minutes (last year), but they’re waiting their time… It’s going to be a grind, but we’re excited for it.”
Girls:
The Auburn girls are moving forward without Syriah Daniels, who was a nominee for Gatorade Player of the Year last season, but it might have a new face of the program in Brooke Hallman.
After the lady Tigers followed a 26-5 season last year with a run to the state semifinals that was squashed by eventual state champion Hoover, the team has a high standard to uphold. Hallman, along with seniors Daley Alsobrook and Kaleah Toles, were key contributors last season and will now step even further into the spotlight without last year’s leading scorer in Daniels.
Hallman averaged 14.6 points, 3.3 assists and 2.9 steals per game last season. Toles led the team with 4.4 assists per game, and Alsobrook led the squad in 3-point percentage at 48%. Head coach Courtney Pritchett has high hopes for his talent-filled squad.
“For me, (Hallman) needs to be a candidate for Gatorade Player of the Year. That needs to be her goal,” Pritchett said. “We’ve had a nominee (for that award) the past three years. That’s a high standard for our program, but I think our girls are ready to show what they’ve got.”
Smiths Station High School Panthers
(7A, Area 4)
Boys:
Coming off an 8-19 season, the Smiths Station boys are going for their first playoff appearance since winning the area championship in 2021. The Panthers haven’t had a winning season since going 21-9 three years ago.
Behind third-year head coach Armon Ingersoll, seniors Cameron Williams and Josias Harris look to build on the experience they got last season. The Panthers did pull off an upset over Opelika last season, and they feel like their team is ready to fight against a tough region again this year.
“We preach intensity, resiliency and toughness,” Ingersoll said. “Last year, these guys were in the fire, learning the hard way. This year should be better seeing them understand the speed of the game and the components it takes to be better.”
Girls:
The lady Panthers are inching towards the top of a daunting region after a 14-5 season last year in which all of their losses came to Auburn and Central. This year, head coach Dewayne Welch is more prepared to lead his team down the stretch as he’s going into his second year at Smiths Station.
The team is losing its top scorer from a year ago in Jasmyn Thomas, but Welch is confident in the qualities that seniors Chantell Barnes and Shamiya Oliver bring to the table. Barnes turned in 9.3 ppg and 7.5 rpg last year, and Oliver is another one of their “pivotal” leaders among a senior class of seven that will be aiming to get Smiths Station over the hump and also set the blueprint for the younger players.
“Our main goal is to win the area. It will be the first time in a while Smiths Station has been able to do that,” Welch said. “I think we did pretty good in our nine non-region games (last year), but when we got to area play is when we stumbled a bit… We want to advance and give ourselves a shot to get to Birmingham.”
Loachapoka High School Indians
(2A, Area 6)
Boys:
In its first year in 2A, head coach Sheroderick Smith and the Loachapoka boys will feature a “sneaky” squad.
In order to compete in an area along with Lanett and Reeltown, the Indians will need their top two scorers from last season – junior Jordan Tyner and senior Zay Shaw – to step into leadership roles. Junior big man Mitchell Chenier Jr. will also bring physicality and toughness to a team that challenges each other to get better each day.
This summer, the team has grown closer through work on the court but also through a tournament of the EA Sports NCAA Football video game with head football coach Branden Hall and his team. Unexpectedly, Tyner said he beat the football coach in the football video game. Similarly, the team is hoping to surprise opponents with success on the court.
“Our identity will probably be sneaky because in year’s past, we add a lot of deception in what we do,” Smith said. “I think we’re going to do a couple things better this year. I just can’t say what – we’ve got to keep them guessing.”
Girls:
First-year head coach Sabrina Milligan is welcoming the challenge of leading a young team into a new chapter. After going 8-13 last season, Milligan wants to help a young team grow into aggressive playmakers.
Last year, the lady Indians played with six freshman, two eighth graders and a seventh grader on varsity. Along with those underclassmen having a year under their belt, the coach is also expecting big things out of juniors Essence Key, Amanda Harris and Za’Hyria Patton.
“We depend on these three to be my voice when I’m not around,” Milligan said. “They’ve got some room to grow, but they’re doing pretty good. If I ask them to do anything, they don’t hesitate to do it. That’s the best thing is being able to trust them without a doubt – they’re always dependable. Just trying to get those seventh and eighth graders and freshman to come along will be their challenge.”
