Way Too Early Best Returners: D12-1A

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The D12-1A district will be interesting in 2023-2024. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline">Teams</span></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Big Sandy*<br>Hollow Rock-Bruceton Central<br>Houston County*<br>McEwen*<br>McKenzie* </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2058086' first='Tate' last='Surber'] (McKenzie)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the only game McKenzie High played in 2023 State Tournament, Surber recorded 13 points and 13 rebounds. Tate was the only non-senior to start in that game too. He stood 6-foot-2 and played under the basket. In 2023-2024 Surber is certain to lead the basketball Rebels, much like he did in winning the football State Championship last December. MHS won 20 games last year and swept the 11th District (6-0). TSWA named Tate All-State Class 1A in basketball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2058104' first='Cole' last='Pierpont'] (Big Sandy)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cole finished 2022-2023 with 16.6 points per and 7.5 rpg during his junior year to lead the Red Devils. CP has good size for Class1A, standing about 6-foot-4 as a center.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2637837' first='Carter' last='Kee'] (McKenzie)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Replacing the excellent departed guards Zach Aird and Marquez Taylor will be <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2637837' first='Carter' last='Kee']</strong>. Class of 2025.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Caleb Coates (McEwen)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Really agile at 6-foot-3. McEwen is tall at the 3-4-5 positions and Caleb Coates is perhaps the most athletic on the team. He hit six three-pointers against Perry County in early March.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Tanner Walters (Hollow Rock-Bruceton)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tanner started as an eighth grader for HRB! The guard will only get better as he physically matures.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cade Dreaden (McEwen)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Unlike the junior-to-be Coates, Cade Dreaden is a classic big man with toughness around the rim. Dreaden gives McEwen no other team in the district touts, a 6'5"+ big man. Listed 6'8", Dreaden appears more in the 6'6" range.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Stafford Roditis (McKenzie)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior-to-be. Roditis helped with five points and one rebound in the March 15th, 2023 State Tournament appearance. Roditis should start consistently for the first time this upcoming season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Seth Green (Big Sandy)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Seth Green helped with 15.2 ppg last year. He is a 5-foot-9 guard.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">Houston County</span></strong><br>#10 Brady Link (2025)<br>#32 Owen Baggett (2025) PF<br>#24 Casen Clark (2025) PG Needs more hulking body. He needs to put some strength behind his scrappiness. No ego. A team success is just as rewarding to him as his individual success. Can he score in bunches? It remains to be seen. <br>#12 Hagan Honeycutt (2025)<br>#33 [player_tooltip player_id='2639787' first='Mac' last='Baggett'] (2025)<br>#22 Built like a hooper. Long and lean. He looks to be a small forward on this team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><a href="https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/events/houston-co-high-school-erin-tn/gam26043ea4ad">Houston County vs Away - Boys Varsity Basketball 06/02/2023</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline"><strong>McKenzie</strong></span><br>When McKenzie advanced to the 2022 State Tournament, four Class of 2024 players dressed: <strong>Hayden Garrett</strong>, <strong>Stafford Roditis</strong>, <strong>Christopher Beck</strong>, <strong>Drew Chappell</strong>. The quartet helped, to varying degrees, the Rebels to return to the Class A State Tournament in 2023.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">McEwen</span></strong><br>#14 Caleb Coates* (2025) 6'3" SF <br>#15 Hawkins Winstead (2025) 6'3" SF/PF<br>#21 Dalton Williams* (2025) 6'1" SF<br>#35 Landon Davis* (2025) C<br>#42 Cade Dreaden* (2024) 6'8" 250 PF</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Starters from 2022-2023 are marked with an asterisk.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><br></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->