September 28th Update A lasting image from the SPTS games this year was South Dakota Heat/Canistota guard Shay Jolley hitting a big shot in the corner, reacting with enthusiasm, his teammates doing the same, and then all of them running…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Subscribe for access to all premium articles and rankings.
Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log inSeptember 28th Update
A lasting image from the SPTS games this year was South Dakota Heat/Canistota guard Shay Jolley hitting a big shot in the corner, reacting with enthusiasm, his teammates doing the same, and then all of them running back on defense with energy.
The Heat won 17 games this year including memorable victories over Schoolers Daly and ECI plus they took some very good teams to the wire.
“Last season went pretty well with the Heat,” Shay told PHD. “We didn't end it how we wanted to but had a solid summer together and grew as a team.
“It was also challenging playing against some higher competition and that helped me grow as a player.”
Last year Shay was named third team all state for Class B and he is one of only a few guys that were honored that are returning (Michael Rogers, Camden Myers, Gabe King, etc).
The team was 15-6 a year ago and graduated just four seniors.
“(The team is) looking good,” Shay said. “We have four of our five starters back from last year and we will have a lot of experience. The ultimate goal is to make it to the state tournament.”
Jolley impressed several schools with his shooting touch, clutch shooting, inspired play, and consistent production. Many programs are calling but four are talking to him most often.
“The schools that have been talking to me the most would be Dakota Wesleyan, Mount Marty, University of Sioux Falls, and Nebraska Wesleyan.”
Shay was named to the ALL PHD 17U fourth team this August meaning he was one of the top 20 Grassroots performers in North and South Dakota this past spring and summer.
May 21st Update
Shay Jolley and the South Dakota Heat have been the surprise of the spring in Grassroots Hoops beating Schoolers Daly and ECI in SPTS play and generally overall having an excellent start to the spring/summer season.
“It's been going pretty good so far,” said Jolley of Canistota. “We've beaten some quality teams this year and have improved tremendously from last year.
“We have to keep playing together as a team and trust in each other to do our jobs and we should be successful the rest of the summer.”
As an individual the multi-sport all conference performer also has a plan set for improvement.
“I just need to keep getting in the gym and getting shots up,” said Shay. “As a team we just got to keep getting used to playing with each other and become more comfortable with playing together and I think we can accomplish great things.
“I feel like I've become stronger with the ball and my shot off the dribble has improved from previous seasons.”
Shay also has local programs talking to him about college basketball at the NAIA level.
“I've had interest shown from Mount Marty, Nebraska Wesleyan, Dakota State, and Dakota Wesleyan for the most part.”
This winter Jolley was a third team all state performer after putting up 20.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game.
Please type in your name below to claim or create your Prep Hoops player profile.
