The Carolina Corner with @JustinByerly
In this week's Carolina Corner, we take a look at Case Roach's commitment, Destin Clark is heading the Division II route, Ricky Council IV update, Anthony Allen update and a look at The 7th Annual Coaches vs Cancer Shootout at UNC-Asheville
Roach Commits to North Georgia
6-foot-6 senior wing Case Roach who spent this past travel season with Upward Stars-Upstate coached by David Bentley, committed to Dan Evans and North Georgia yesterday. Roach was named a top-performer at our Best of the South event in July. The Travelers Rest (SC) High School product was a familiar face on our HoopSeen stage this season.
Standing 6-foot-6 and now over 200 pounds, Roach is a big-bodied wing that can shoot with the best of them at our event over the week. He showed toughness on the defensive end and with his ability to rebound the ball against bigger forwards. I thought he moves well without the ball and has a high understanding of spacing to get his shot off from beyond the three-point line, where he can hurt you the most. - Justin Byerly
This is what Roach had to say about his commitment, “I chose North Georgia because I loved the coaching staff and they became more of a father figure to me and made me feel like North Georgia could be my second home even though it’s two hours from home. Their plan for me is to come in and make a difference right away and be the go-to-guy. I’m very excited for this opportunity.”
Allen Hearing From New Schools
One of the top unsigned point guards in North Carolina, Anthony Allen of Charlotte (NC) Independence High School has been hearing from Coker College and USC-Aiken recently. He holds offers from Mars Hill University, Mount Olive, Lees-McRae and Rider University.
His play at the NCBCA July live period event caught my eye and here is what I had to say about him from the event. So far he has helped Independence to a 2-2 overall record with their losses to North Mecklenburg and Davidson Day. I can see Allen waiting it out a couple of more months or waiting until the spring to sign with his lone Division One offer maybe working as collateral for other teams during the transfer season.
Ricky Council Update
One of HoopSeenNC’s top-ranked unsigned seniors, Ricky Council IV has been seeing his recruitment pick up some more as of late with High Point University, Western Kentucky and Tulsa all expressing interest in the high-flying wing out of Durham (NC) Southern High School. His offer list includes Georgia Southern, Coastal Carolina, Siena, UMBC, Hofstra, Elon, Appalachian State and Rice. I could see this one panning out until April, with possibly some high-majors looking at Council around then.
Wingate Lands Destin Clark
Team United and Indian Land (SC) point guard Destin Clark will not travel far for his college destination. 24 miles. Clark fits the mold of solid Division II players from around the Carolinas’ that Wingate has had success with over the years.
The system at Wingate allows for the guards to have a lot of control over the game and that is a system that Clark will be able to fit into. Clark is a pass-first lead guard that thrives in running the offense and setting his teammates up.
Cleveland State Offers Gray Collegiate Senior
Latavian Lawrence, a 6-foot-6 small forward out of Columbia (SC) Gray Collegiate picked up an offer from Cleveland State yesterday. The former Aiken (SC) Silver Bluff standout transferred to Gray Collegiate over the summer and was named the Aiken Chronicle’s state Player of the Year last season.
Lawrence’s Head Coach Dion Bethea had this to say about his new small forward, “He is a Stud! He has big hands, great athleticism, can guard multiple positions and can finish with contact. I had a coach tell me that he reminds him a lot of Terrence Mann for Florida State.”
7th Annual Coaches vs Cancer Shootout at UNC-Asheville
An event that has raised a large amount of money for cancer research and sheds a light on a person who has dealt with or dealing with cancer for each participating team shows how this disease affects almost everyone in some way or the other. Candler (NC) Enka High School men’s basketball coach Brian Carver has helped lead this event and this year’s schedule will show some of the basketball in WNC on Saturday, November 30 at the University of North Carolina-Asheville.
11:30 AM - Gastonia (NC) Ashbrook HS vs Charlotte (NC) Hough HS
1:00 PM - Greensboro (NC) Northwest Guilford HS vs Asheville (NC) HS (Girls)
2:30 PM - Asheville (NC) HS vs Greensboro (NC) Ben L. Smith HS
4:00 PM - Newton (NC) Newton-Conover HS vs Brevard (NC) HS
5:30 PM - Brevard (NC) HS vs Asheville (NC) Reynolds HS (Girls)
7: 00 PM - Asheville (NC) Reynolds HS vs Lincoln (NC) East HS
