NCHSAA Regionals: East Top Performers (Part One)

We've had so many incredible moments during the NCHSAA playoffs thus far with a lot of those going down on the east side of the brackets. We only have the state championships left to play so let's take a look at some of the top players on the east side.    Wilkins did an incredible job in Vance Charter's final four victory over Southern Wake by simply being the best version of himself. Wilkins imposed his will on the interior and was integral in the 17 point second half comeback to give Vance Charter a berth in the NCHSAA 1A Title game. In Vance Charter's 56-52 win, Wilkins finished with 19 Points, 10 Rebounds, 2 Blocks, 1 Assists, and 1 Steal on 6-9 from the floor and 7-7 from the free throw line. Wilkins uses his strength to carve out space on the interior and does a great job using his size + athleticism to wall up and protect the rim on the defensive end of the floor. Wilkins has high quality touch around the rim and showcased how efficient he can be from the line when locked in during this one. Wilkins is a bonafide next level player that is looking to bring some hardware back home to Vance Charter as they'll be facing Thomas Jefferson Academy for a state title this week.     Townsend was brilliant for Warren County in their 61-55 final four victory over Voyager Academy in the 2A East final. The Sophomore PG finished with 17 Points, 3 Assists, 2 Rebounds, 3 Steals, and 1 Block on 6-14 from the floor and 5-6 from the line. A quick guard with great instincts, Townsend applies a ton of pressure with his dribble and ability to touch the paint with high frequency. He's been a consistent and efficient producer for this Warren County all season long and is showing he can deliver his best when it matters most. He's averaging 14.9 Points, 4.0 Rebounds, 2.7 Assists, 2.4 Steals, and 0.6 Blocks per game as a 5'8" sophomore PG. He's doing all of that on 47/30/61 shooting splits as well. As Townsend continues to refine his outside touch over the course of his high school career, expect him to pop up on articles like this with frequency as he's getting ready for the biggest game of his life this week. Warren County will be playing a super talented Queens Grant team for the NCHSAA 2A title this week.     Herring is one of those guards that checks so many boxes in your backcourt and he delivered a truly complete performance in Kinston's 73-62 final four victory over Martin County to give themselves a berth in the 3A title game. Herring finished with 22 Points, 3 Assists, 2 Rebounds, and 3 Steals on 7-14 from the floor, 3-7 from deep, and 5-7 from the line. Herring's size, athleticism, vision, and shooting touch continue to all progress along at the rate you want along with his game really maturing in general. Herring still plays with a ton of flare, edge, and fire while being in total control of the game at both ends of the floor for his team. The improved consistency as an outside shooter makes life for him easier with how dynamic he is when attacking the rim. Herring continues to evolve into a complete guard at Kinston, a place with high expectations that Herring is truly fulfilling thus far in his Junior season. With one game to go, Herring will do everything he can to bring another championship back to its rightful home at Kinston.     We really are seeing a future star being molded right in front of us with [player_tooltip player_id='2194795' first='Paul' last='Cauthen'] Jr. For obvious reasons, [player_tooltip player_id='1716474' first='Dionte' last='Neal'] gets all of the headlines at Reidsville but in a final four game Vs Washington with the season on the line and Neal not quite his normal self, Cauthen delivered the most important performance of his basketball career. He finished with 28 Points, 7 Rebounds, 3 Assists, and 5 Steals while shooting 10-17 from the floor, 1-1 from deep, and 6-9 from the free throw line in Reidsville's 59-58 win over Washington, avenging their loss from The John Wall. Cauthen's ability, confidence, and general mojo proved to be enough to help Reidsville keep the dream alive. He's got a really slippery handle with the ability to use his body around the rim to get baskets at the cup. He can get hot from the outside and just genuinely take a game over offensively when needed. Cauthen is setting himself for a monster 16u summer but he's got one more big game to win at Reidsville as they'll be facing Salisbury in the 4A Title game.     [player_tooltip player_id='2278321' first='Jamir' last='Loftin'] delivered one of the best single game performances (with stakes accounted for) that we've seen all season. In Fike's 84-77 Final Four win over Southeast Alamance, Loftin finished with 40 Points, 4 Assists, 3 Rebounds, and 3 Steals on 12-20 from the floor, 5-6 from deep, and 11-14 from the free throw line. Talk about delivering! Loftin was in a true flow state for his team in what was an incredible game with Southeast Alamance. Loftin's ability to get to his spots and connect with efficiency and frequency made him quite literally impossible to stop that night. He found a way to channel his best self when it mattered the most. Loftin was getting to the rim, hitting deep off the dribble threes, and simply maximizing his touches and operated with an uncanny confidence. Loftin is continuing to prove that he's a bonafide next level player and is looking to stamp himself in the history books with a State Championship as Fike will be facing Hunter Huss in the 5A Title Game!     In what was a true slug fest of a game, you need your anchor to do just that, hold it down, and that is exactly what [player_tooltip player_id='1672424' first='Chris' last='Silver'] did for Northern Nash in their 50-39 win over E.E. Smith in the 6A East Final. Silver finished with 2 Points, 7 Rebounds, 2 Assists, and 6 Blocks in the win. Silver helped hold E.E. Smith to under 30% from the floor as a team with their inability to score on the inside essentially at all. Silver avoided foul trouble and was able to play 25 minutes, he helped make plays with his passing offensively and late in the game he truly shut the door. Silver and Northern Nash forced E.E. Smith into a 4th quarter where they shot just 3-21 from the floor. Silver is definitely still raw in a lot of areas but is a genuinely dynamic shot blocker and it was on full display to help Northern Nash secure a spot in the 6A state championship vs Kings Mountain.     Morman is simply a special player that is in full understanding of the moment he finds himself in every single time out. In a final four matchup vs a very discipline and talented final four team, Morman had a classic performance in one of the biggest games of his career up to this point. In the 65-55 win, Morman finished with 27 Points, 2 Rebounds, 1 Assist, and 1 Steal while shooting 8-16 from the floor and 11-12 from the line. Morman has truly special ability around the rim where he can finish in traffic with either hand. Morman's ability to control the game down the stretch gives his team the upper hand more often than not. After coming up just short last year, Morman is looking to leave Winston-Salem with a ring on his finger this go around as Southern Durham will look to face Mooresville in the 7A State Championship.     Seward continues to help Hoggard on what has become a dream season as he helped them dispatch cross town rival Laney in a dominant 51-33 victory in Greenville last week. In the win, Seward finished with 20 Points, 7 Rebounds, 1 Assists, and 6 Steals while shooting 7-11 from the floor and 6-7 from the free throw line. Seward's versatile two way game was shining incredibly bright for a Hoggard team that felt destined to get through the east and find themselves in the State Championship game. Seward can play above the rim in transition, score it from all over the floor in the half-court, and exploit mismatches when they present themselves. His steady progression into the player he currently is leads you to believe that he still has more room to develop into an even better player at the next level. He certainly knows how to win and is looking to bring that title back to the beach if he can help Hoggard knock off West Charlotte in the 8A championship game this week!

We've had so many incredible moments during the NCHSAA playoffs thus far with a lot of those going down on the east side of the brackets. We only have the state championships left to play so let's take a look at some of the top players on the east side.