Lake Norman girls coach ‘speechless’ after star player slighted on all-district team
Lake Norman girls basketball coach McKenzie Graham discussed arguably the state’s biggest recent off-court news before redirecting a conversation to said news’ helpfulness at Tuesday’s N.C. basketball championships press conference at the Doubletree RTP (Research Triangle Park) Hotel.
Kirsten Lewis-Williams, Lake Norman’s leader and a finalist for this season’s N.C. Ms. Basketball award, was an all-district third team selection by the N.C. Basketball Coaches Association (NCBCA).
Graham said she was “speechless” and “hurt.”
Graham acknowledged that Lake Norman (31-0) played many games versus greater Charlotte schools, but the Wildcats’ NCBCA region included teams less familiar with them. Thus, these realities might have contributed to Lewis-Williams – an all-district first team selection last year as a junior – being overlooked.
Lake Norman defeated 4A state quarterfinalist North Mecklenburg twice, and 4A state semifinalist Charlotte Catholic twice.
“We’ve just continued to be doubted,” Graham continued.
“We have had that chip all season long. There’s a little bit of a chip. I think Kirsten probably has that biggest one. That’s a good problem for us to have.”
Panther Creek drives with five
Panther Creek girls coach Danielle Sullivan acknowledges the Catamounts line up against deeper teams often. Barring foul trouble and/or injuries, Panther Creek (28-4) will rely heavily on its five starters (all returning from last season) versus Lake Norman.
“We’ve condensed practice,” Sullivan said. “We’ve shortened it a little bit so that we are more efficient.”
Panther Creek, too, has its own Kirstin, whose last name is Smalls. Earlier this season, Smalls, a 6-foot junior, won a 4A indoor track & field state championship in the high jump. Smalls, the Catamounts’ leading rebounder (8.0 per game), had 16 points in her team’s regional final win.
Myers Park gets all the hype
Myers Park coach Scott Taylor offered a perspective for his Mustangs being compared to some of the Charlotte area’s and state’s most successful teams.
“Different teams have different ceilings,” Taylor said. “For us to get the best out of this group, we should be talking about that.”
Myers Park (27-4), with three national Top 100 college prospects – juniors Bishop Boswell and Sir Mohammed, and sophomore A.J. White – has been compared to the likes of West Charlotte’s legendary 1998-99 4A state championship team led by Jason Parker.
“We have talked about them playing well enough to have people consider them as one of the best that’s been around here,” Taylor said.
Joining such considerations begins with the Mustangs securing the program’s first state championship.
Richmond embracing underdog role
Richmond coach Donald Pettigrew offered a clear, concise answer to a question concerning the Raiders’ 4A boys title tilt versus Myers Park. Richmond (28-2) hosted the Mustangs on Nov. 22. Myers Park won 78-37. The Raiders were without N.C. State commit Paul McNeil (6-foot-6 junior) for that game, and have won 21 straight games.
“They’ve been underdogs all their lives. This right here is nothing,” Pettigrew said. “We’re going do what we do, play our game, and play our style. We’re ready to play.”
Pettigrew was a starter for Richmond’s 1996 and 1997 state runners-up.
Rowan champion never crowned
Rowan County has two girls teams playing for state championships. West Rowan (30-0) will play fellow first-time entrant Rocky Mount for the 3A title. Among the 2A ranks, Salisbury (26-3) a five-time state champion, will meet Seaforth (Pittsboro), a second-year school. West Rowan and Salisbury, though, never played this season.
“In today’s scheduling, it just didn’t work out,” West Rowan coach Ashley Poole said. “I think it would have been a great game.”
The two schools, regular Sam Moir Classic participants, participated in separate holiday events, with West Rowan remaining in the Moir. Salisbury competed in the John Wall Holiday Invitational (Raleigh).
“It was approved for us to go,” Salisbury coach Lakai Brice said of the John Wall event. “Then, we found out that we were having the Sam Moir Christmas tournament. It was kind of like, ‘What do you do?’
“It was best for my team to go to the John Wall tournament.”
Salisbury suffered two of its three losses – to 4A finalist Panther Creek and 2A semifinalist North Pitt – in the John Wall event.
Central Cabarrus realistic
Central Cabarrus coach Jim Baker was honest about what his speedy, undersized Vikings must do – score in bunches – to secure the school’s first state championship in 23 years.
Central Cabarrus (31-0) will meet Northwood (Pittsboro) in the 3A boys final. The Chargers’ frontline includes 7-foot Kenan Parish and 6-foot-8 Max Frazier. The undefeated Vikings’ season scoring low is 66 points (versus Charlotte Catholic). Since then, Central Cabarrus has scored 78 or more points in every game.
“I don’t know if we can beat Northwood playing in the 50s,” Baker said. “But there’s a side of us that has prepared for that all year long.”
The Vikings have had just two games – versus United Faith (Dec. 22) and Charlotte Catholic (Dec. 30) – decided by a single-digit total.
Tucker positively proactive
NCHSAA Commissioner Que Tucker addressed directly the game admissions challenges experienced by fans unable to attend last Saturday’s regional finals at various high school venues.
“In no way did we ever oversell a gym by putting more tickets on sale than what we were given relative to the numbers,” Tucker said.
“And it was based on the belief in man. That people would be honest, and that they would do the right thing as it related to getting into those facilities. We’ve apologized. We continue to apologize. We are already in the process of looking ahead to next year.”
Tucker expressed optimism about thoughts of large crowds attending this Saturday’s finals. Per fan base considerations, the four championship games among the 4A and 2A classifications will be played in UNC’s Dean E. Smith Center for the second consecutive year.
Among 4A, Myers Park (boys) and Cary’s Panther Creek (girls) are among the state’s largest schools annually. Richmond (boys), the lone public high school in its county, has played home football games in front of 10,000-plus fans, and has a history of traveling well to Chapel Hill (for football and basketball finals). Lake Norman (girls) has had strong turnouts among state finals appearances in multiple sports across fall, winter, and spring seasons.