State Championship Epilogue: Backcourt Beasts (Part 2)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another exciting season of North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) basketball is in the books. And one can say the Hoop State this season had its best saved for last.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The scene for championship week shifted from the campuses of North Carolina and NC State to the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons have a rich basketball history in their own right as great names such as Nicole Levesque, Dearica Hamby, Tim Duncan and Chris Paul once sported Wake Forest's old gold and black uniform.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Seeing names like those in the Wake Forest rafters had to bring chills down the spines of the stars that shined this past week at the Demon Deacons home court. We unveiled our first list of notable guard performances and, without further adieu, here is our second list. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1772438"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":2378255,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cp style=u0022font-weight: 400u0022u003eWhen one is having a rough outing from the field, one can help his team to victory in other ways. That was the case for Minter this past Friday in the 1A state championship game between Wilson Prep and Corvian Community. Minter lifted his Tigers with a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double to help his team come from behind to stun the Cardinals by a final of 65-63. Where Minter really came up big was at the free throw line. Fouling Minter was a trouble spot for Corvian Community as he made six of his seven attempts from the charity stripe – including the final three with 0.6 remaining on the clock. Oh, and college coaches – two words. Unsigned. Senior. Minter did recently land an offer from Cleveland Community College.u003c/pu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65f8dd5fb8be8"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1716474"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":2378794,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cp style=u0022font-weight: 400u0022u003eJust as Minter came through in the clutch for his Tigers, Neal came through in the clutch for his Reidsville squad in the Rams' 2A championship rematch with Farmville Central. Neal scored 14 points – and Reidsville needed all 14 of them as the game resulted in a 78-77 overtime victory for the Rams over the Jaguars. Neal also tallied the go-ahead bucket late in the overtime period that put Reidsville ahead for good. Along with his scoring prowess, Neal is a gifted ball distributor as he dished out 10 assists for a double-double. He also is a gifted defender as he collected four steals. Neal is a two-sport athlete as he shines as well as a wide receiver and defensive back for Reidsville's football team.u003c/pu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65f8dd5fb8c86"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2149164"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":2378257,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cp style=u0022font-weight: 400u0022u003eMoore's Corvian Community team may not have got the result it was looking for in its 1A state championship contest with Wilson Prep. Moore had his Cardinals in position to win as he put 20 points on the board to lead all scorers for Corvian Community. He made things difficult for the Tigers on the defensive end of the floor as well as he collected four steals to give his team additional chances to put points on the board. Moore also grabbed four rebounds and displayed his 3-point shooting prowess. He had three of the team's five successful tries from 3-point attempts. Moore is also a football standout – he plays wide receiver for the Corvian Community football team.u003c/pu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65f8dd5fb8d10"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2375873"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":2378237,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cp style=u0022font-weight: 400u0022u003eDrawing Central Cabarrus – the team to beat in the 3A ranks – is always a tough task. While Seventy-First experienced this on Friday evening at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Foster put forth a spirited effort as he led his Falcons with 15 points. Foster spearheaded his team's efforts from 3-point range. Seventy-First made five triples for the game with the Vikings – three of those departed from Foster's hands. He can log productive minutes as a guard but can also do the same in the frontcourt as a forward. Foster worked his way up from junior varsity status earlier in his career to make waves in the varsity realm.u003c/pu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65f8dd5fb8d9c"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1220122"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":2378819,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cp style=u0022font-weight: 400u0022u003eFollowing New Hanover's 57-47 4A state championship loss to North Meck, Allen, in his team's postgame press conference, expressed confidence that his Wildcats would be back in 2024-25. If Allen has more games like he had against the Vikings, New Hanover will indeed be playing basketball in March of 2025. Allen scored 13 points and collected two steals along with taking home Most Oustanding Player honors for his team. He also understands the art of ball distribution. Last May, Allen landed his first Division I offer from CAA school Charleston. Something tells us Thomas Carr at the Cougars will not be the only Division I coach to recruit Allen between now and next March.u003c/pu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65f8dd5fb8e23"} /-->