Charlotte Catholic joins Sweet 16; some movement, too

As we head down the home stretch of the high school basketball season, the Observer’s Sweet 16 poll is beginning to see less and less movement as the top teams have established themselves.

Olympic (boys) and Myers Park (girls) are still unbeaten and ranked No. 1.

Charlotte Catholic joins the boys poll this week, putting a stamp on a solid 15-win season. The
Cougars are still in the hunt for a conference championship and have a game with No. 1 Olympic later this season that could determine it.

In the girls poll, Providence Day fell from No. 2 to No. 6, allowing some other teams to move up. Berry moved to No. 2.

No new girls teams joined the poll this week.


Boys
Rk.    School    Rec.    Prvs.
 1.    Olympic (4A)    18-0    1
2.    North Mecklenburg (4A)    16-2    2
3.    Concord (3A)    15-0    3
4.     Harding (3A)    15-3    5
5.    West Charlotte (4A)    14-5    8
6.     Lancaster SC (4A)    17-2    7
7.     Berry (3A)    14-4    11
8.     Freedom (3A)    17-2    4
9.    Cuthbertson (2A)    16-1    9
10.     North Rowan (1A)    14-2    10
11.    East Rutherford (2A)    14-2    12
12.    Robinson (3A)    14-3    13
13,    Hickory (3A)    16-2    16
14.    Charlotte Christian (IND)    14-6    14
15.    South Mecklenburg (4A)    14-4    15
16.    Charlotte Catholic (3A)    15-3    NR

Dropped out: Northside Christian (IND, 18-1). Northside drops out of consideration because the school does not meet the Observer’s requirements for inclusion (see rules below). On the bubble:  Lincolnton (2A, 13-2); Shelby (2A, 12-4); Statesville (3A, 12-3); Sun Valley (4A, 14-4); Weddington (3A, 13-5). Records are through Friday’s games.
Girls
Rk.    School    Rec.    Prvs.
1.    Myers Park (4A)    18-0    1
2.    Berry (3A)    16-1    3
3.    Hickory (3A)    17-1    4
4.    Ardrey Kell (4A)    15-3    5
5.    Charlotte Christian (IND)    14-3    6
6.    Providence Day (IND)    17-3    2
7.    Salisbury (2A)    14-2    7
8.    Bandys (2A)    17-0    8
9.    Mallard Creek (4A)    13-3    9
10.    Porter Ridge (4A)    15-1    10
11.    R-S Central (3A)    15-1    11
12.    Carson (3A)    16-1    12
13.    Newton-Conover (2A)    15-3    13
14.    Forestview (3A)    14-2    14
15.    Harding (3A)    13-2    15
16.    North Stanly (2A)    16-0    16


Dropped out:  None. On the bubble: Alexander Central (4A, 14-4);  North Iredell (3A, 11-5); Rock Hill Northwestern (4A, 14-3). Records are through Friday’s games.
Note: To be ranked in the Observer’s Sweet 16, a team must be in the newspaper’s coverage area, must field football and basketball teams and not allow a student-athlete to re-class once they’ve started ninth grade. For a detailed look inside the poll, including the criteria used to compile it, visit this link: http://bit.ly/prNoYM

Major movement in Observer Sweet 16 basketball polls this week

There’s a lot of movement in the Sweet 16 this week and many ranked teams suffered defeats last week.

There’s no change at the top, however.

Olympic and Myers Park’s girls are still enjoying unbeaten seasons and both still sit at No. 1 in the polls.

In the boys poll, North Meck’s continued strong play against strong competition has vaulted the Vikings from No. 5 to No. 2 after former No. 2 Northside Christian lost to a strong Davidson Day team Saturday.

Two new teams join the poll: No. 13 Concord Robinson, which has won nine straight games and No. 16 Hickory, off to a 15-2 start.

-- In the girls poll, No. 4 Hickory and No. 5 Ardrey Kell jumped three spots each and unbeaten North Stanly joined the poll at No. 16.


Rk.    School    Rec.    Prvs.
 1.    Olympic (4A)    17-0    1
2.    North Mecklenburg (4A)    14-2    5
3.    Concord (3A)    14-0    3
4.     Freedom (3A)    16-1    6
5.    Harding (3A)    14-3    8
6.     Northside Christian (IND)    16-1    2
7.     Lancaster(4A)    15-2    4
8.     West Charlotte (4A)    13-5    12
9.    Cuthbertson (2A)    14-1    14
10.     North Rowan (1A)    13-2    15
11.    Berry (3A)    12-4    7
12.    East Rutherford (2A)    12-2    16
13,    Robinson (3A)    13-3    NR
14.    Charlotte Christian (IND)    11-5    10
15.    South Mecklenburg (4A)    13-4    9
16.    Hickory (3A)    15-2    NR

Dropped out: South Point (3A, 11-2); Mooresville (4A, 9-5). On the bubble: Butler (4A, 10-6); Charlotte Catholic (3A, 13-3); Lincolnton (2A, 12-2); Statesville (3A, 11-3); Sun Valley (4A, 13-4); Weddington (3A, 12-5). Records are through Friday’s games.
Girls
Rk.    School    Rec.    Prvs.
1.    Myers Park (4A)    17-0    1
2.    Providence Day (IND)    14-2    2
3.    Berry (3A)    14-1    5
4.    Hickory (3A)    16-1    7
5.    Ardrey Kell (4A)    14-3    8
6.    Charlotte Christian (IND)    12-3    3
7.    Salisbury (2A)    13-2    9
8.    Bandys (2A)    16-0    11
9.    Mallard Creek (4A)    12-3    6
10.    Porter Ridge (4A)    14-1    4
11.    R-S Central (3A)    14-1    12
12.    Carson (3A)    15-1    13
13.    Newton-Conover (2A)    13-3    14
14.    Forestview (3A)    14-2    15
15.    Harding (3A)    12-2    16
16.    North Stanly (2A)    14-0    NR


Dropped out:  Northwestern, S.C. (4A, 12-3). On the bubble: Alexander Central (4A, 12-4); Forest Hills (2A, 10-3); Freedom (3A, 12-5); North Iredell (3A, 11-5). Records are through Friday’s games.
Note: To be ranked in the Observer’s Sweet 16, a team must be in the newspaper’s coverage area, must field football and basketball teams and not allow a student-athlete to re-class once they’ve started ninth grade. For a detailed look inside the poll, including the criteria used to compile it, visit this link: http://bit.ly/prNoYM

Harding boys win must win game over Berry, after Berry girls win thriller

Harding High’s Rams treated Friday’s battle of Alleghany as a do-or-die game.

Harding, No. 8 in the boys’ Sweet 16, beat neighborhood rival Berry Academy 61-52 in a key MEGA-7 3A 4A game on the Cardinals’ home court. The Rams (14-3, 3-3) played like a team desperate to remain in the hunt for the conference championship, creating separation in the second half and maintaining it down the stretch.

“This was our lifeline,” Rams coach Walter Aikens said. “We had to win this. We couldn’t leave out of here with nothing less than a victory, because if we lose, we’re behind (Charlotte) Catholic and Berry. We had to win and the guys knew it.”

Berry’s Alisha Quinn swished a jump shot from the left wing with 1.7 seconds to push the No. 5 Cardinals to a 40-38 overtime win against No. 16 Harding and sole possession of first place in the MEGA-7 girls’ standings. Essence Baucom led Berry (14-1, 6-0) with 13 points, followed by Milan Quinn’s 10, including a basket with 5.8 seconds left in regulation to force overtime. Alexius Hampton, who paced Harding (12-2, 5-1) with 15 points, including a pair of free throws at 3 minutes, 35 seconds left in overtime.

Harding forward Emmanuel Patton came up big with 14 of his game-high 22 points in the second half, mainly on drives to the basket or breakaways. A 7-0 run sparked by Patton and Jarvis Haywood (19 points) put the Rams ahead for good at 40-34 midway through the third quarter and Patton’s eight points in the fourth kept Harding there.

“He’s becoming a scorer,” Aikens said. Last year, he probably averaged eight points for us and this year, he’s almost doubled his points. He’s coming on game by game and it’s really relieving pressure off Jarvis,” the only other Ram to hit double-figures with 19 points.

DaJuan Graf and Cazmon Hayes led Berry Academy (12-4, 3-3) with 13 points each and Osandai Vaughn added 12, but the Cardinals struggled after taking a 19-15 lead into the second quarter. The shots that fell for Berry in the first quarter became more difficult to come by as Harding tightened its grip on defense.

“Harding really outplayed us,” Cardinals coach Carlton Anthony said. “Early in the game we had too many turnovers. Our team has to learn how to play team ball. We were trying to be too selfish, trying to rely on one-on-one too much instead of running our system.”

-- Correspondent Herb White

Area basketball leaders & Meck standings

Boys’ Scoring
Name     School    Avg.
Mark Vehaun    Westminster Catawba    27.6
Clay Byrd    East Burke    26.0
Keyshawn Woods    Gaston Day    26.8
Shelton Mitchell    Cuthbertson    24.6
Shivaughn Wiggins    N. Mecklenburg    24.3
Ray Chen    Gaston Day    24.0
Shaun Stewart    Sun Valley    23.2
Jarvis Haywood    Harding    22.5
Caleb Hines    Kings Mountain    22.0
Ben Simons    Charlotte Country Day    21.7
David Airing    Covenant Day    21.1
Braxton Ogbueze    United Faith    20.9
La’cario Sellers    Gray Stone Day    20.7
Trevor Hyatt    East Burke    20.6
Andrew Wheet    First Assembly    20.4
J. Patton    Highland Tech    20.2
Zach Ferguson    Butler    20.0
Matthew Godley    Cannon    20.0
Antwaine McLean    East Lincoln    19.8
Diondre Pratt    Anson Senior    19.4
Robert Champion    Charlotte Catholic    19.4
Osandai Vaughn    Berry    18.9
Connor Burchfield    Concord    18.5
Bennett Rutherford    Weddington    18.3
Derrick Copeland    A.L. Brown    18.2
Darren Black    Concord    18.2
J.J. Douglas    Kennedy Charter    18.8

Boys’ Rebounding
Name     School    Avg.
Josh Smith    Olympic    11.4
Dionte Adams    Northside Christian    11.4
Keith Griffin    Hickory Grove    11.2
Ben Simons    Country Day    11.1
B.J. Hill    West Stanly    11.1
DeSean Murray    East Gaston    10.5
Zach Ferguson    Butler    10.4
Kennedy Meeks    West Charlotte    10.1
Elijah Hampton    Robinson    9.9
Mark Vehaun    Westminster Catawba    9.8
David Moore    South Mecklenburg    9.1
Dezmond Leach    Mount Pleasant    9.1
Brody Koerner    Robinson    8.7
Deon Christian    Albemarle    8.7
Quan Nichols    Forestview    8.7
Robbie Sterling    East Gaston    8.6

Boys’ Assists
Name     School    Avg.
Jevon Patton    Highland Tech    7.7
Sean Anthony    Olympic    7.3
Logan Jackson    Marvin Ridge    7.3
Justin Ashford    Northside Christian    7.1
L.C. Cooks    Northside Christian    6.8
Matthew Spears    Country Day    5.9
Gabe Devoe    Shelby    6.0
Marcus Keane    Walnut Grove Christian    6.0
Matthew Spears    Country Day    5.5
Danny Bailey    Anson Senior    5.4
Carrington Kirkpatrick    South Mecklenburg    5.1
Shivaughn Wiggins    North Mecklenburg    5.1
Ray Chen    Gaston Day    5.1
Aaron Linton    Harding    4.9
Clay Byrd    East Burke    4.9
Allerik Freeman    Olympic    4.7

Girls’ Scoring
Name     School    Avg.
Rajsha Blackmon    Kennedy Charter    28.0
Jordan Whitesides    Gaston Day    23.4
Shannon Hines    R-S Central    23.0
Shelby Winchester    East Gaston    22.2
Beth Erb    Charlotte Country Day    22.1
Ishemia Bivens    Forest Hills    20.3
Stephanie Wats    Weddington    20.2
Aaliyah Jackson    South Iredell    20.0
Laquisha Taylor    Independence    19.8
Bri Mack    SouthLake Christian    19.8
Jaymee Fisher-Davis    Butler    19.5
Gigi Bailey    Charlotte Christian    19.0
Logan Carter    Gaston Day    18.6
Tiffany Mitchell    Providence Day    18.3
Paris Johnson    First Assembly    17.8
Nicole Graham    Mallard Creek    17.2

Girls’ Rebounding
Name     School    Avg.
Bri Mack    SouthLake Christian    16.2
Jessica Gaston    West Charlotte    14.8
Ezzine Mbamalu    Lincoln Charter    14.2
Sydney Stephens    Gaston Day    14.1
Tangela Spears    NW Cabarrus    12.1
Rajsha Blackmon    Kennedy Charter    11.7
Jordan Henry     Marvin Ridge    11.6
Paris Johnson    Firsst Assembly    11.5
Brooke Redmond    North Iredell    11.2
Sandra Knox    East Mecklenburg    11.0
F Statton    Queens Grant Charter    10.8
Bre Armstrong    Forestview    9.9
S. Richardson    Butler    9.8
Brooke Brown    Charlotte Latin    9.8
Hannah Griffin    Hickory Grove    9.7
Amanda Dobner    Hickory Grove    9.6
Gigi Bailey    Charlotte Christian    9.5
Jordan Whitesides    Gaston Day    9.4
Kiana Davis    Hickory Ridge    9.1
Shaigna Wentz    Forest Hills    8.9
Christelle Shembo    Ardrey Kell    8.7

Girls’ Assists
Name     School    Avg.
Morgan Whitesides    Gaston Day    7.1
Stephanie Watts    Weddington    6.1
Jordan Whitesides    Gaston Day    5.8
Abrea Harris    Harding    5.6
Heather Copeland    Draughn    5.3
Kourtney Hailey    SouthLake Christian    5.1
Amber Neely    Mallard Creek    4.9
Giselle Verville    SouthLake Christian    4.8
Tonjai Everett    Forest Hills    4.7
Jasmine Bullock    North Mecklenburg    4.4
Alyssia Watkins    R-S Central    4.1
Cierra Rucker    Queens Grant Charter    4.1
Chelsea Queen     Bandys    4.0
Brittany Green    South Point    4.6

Boys’ Standings
Southwestern 4A

    Conf    Overall
Butler    5-0    9-5
South Mecklenburg    4-1    12-3
East Mecklenburg    3-2    8-6
Myers Park    3-2    8-7
Rocky River    3-2    6-8
Ardrey Kell    1-4    5-10
Providence    1-4    2-10
Independence    0-5    0-13
I-Meck 4A

    Conf    Overall
North Mecklenburg    4-1    12-2
Mallard Creek    4-1    9-3
Mooresville    4-1    8-4
W. Charlotte    3-2    11-5
Vance    2-3    7-5
Hopewell    2-3    4-10
Lake Norman    1-4    5-4
Hough    0-5    3-10
ME-GA 7 3A/4A

    Conf    Overall
Olympic    4-0    15-0
Charlotte Catholic    4-0    12-2
Berry    3-1    12-2
East Gaston    2-2    7-7
Harding    1-3    12-3
Garinger    0-4    2-12
West Mecklenburg    0-4    1-12
CISAA

    Conf    Overall
Charlotte Christian    0-0    10-3
Charlotte Latin    0-0    8-6
Providence Day    0-0    7-8
Country Day    0-0    6-8
Cannon    0-0    4-12

Girls’ Standings
Southwestern 4A

    Conf    Overall
Myers Park    5-0    15-0
Ardrey Kell    4-1    12-3
Butler    3-2    6-7
Independence    3-2    4-9
Rocky River    2-3    6-6
Providence    2-3    4-10
East Mecklenburg    1-4    3-11
South Mecklenburg    0-5    2-13
I-Meck 4A

    Conf    Overall
Mallard Creek    4-1    11-2
Hopewell    3-1    7-6
Hough    3-1    7-6
West Charlotte    3-2    6-5
North Mecklenburg    2-3    8-6
Mooresville    1-2    3-6
Lake Norman    1-4    7-5
Vance    1-4    4-8
ME-GA 7 3A/4A

    Conf    Overall
Berry    4-0    12-1
Harding    4-0    11-1
West Mecklenburg    3-2    8-4
Olympic    2-2    6-5
East Gaston    1-3    7-7
Charlotte Catholic    1-3    5-7
Garinger    0-4    0-9
CISAA

    Conf    Overall
Cannon    0-0    2-14
Charlotte Christian    0-0    9-2
Charlotte Country Day    0-0    4-7
Charlotte Latin    0-0    3-7
Providence Day    0-0    14-2

Lake Norman buzzer beater stops West Charlotte

Lake Norman upsets West Charlotte with a buzzer-beater

Lake Norman's Ryan Scott hit a shot at the buzzer in double overtime to upset Sweet 16 No. 6 West Charlotte 69-67 Friday. Scott made a shot at the end of the first overtime to tie the game and finished with 19 points.

West Charlotte's Mike Brown made a 3-point shot with less than one second left in regulation to send the game into overtime, but the Lions lost a late lead in the first overtime and blew another one in the second extra period.

West Charlotte (11-5, 3-2 I-Meck 4A) have lost two of its past three games. The Lions - who got 20 points and 21 rebounds from Kennedy Meeks - are is the reigning N.C. 4A champions.

Central Cabarrus football coach resigns

Central Cabarrus football coach Chris Shinn has resigned after three seasons. He will remain at the school as a teacher. The school will accept applications through Feb. 1.

Keith Wilkes hired as new football coach at Vance

Next Wednesday, Winston-Salem Hall of Fame football coach Keith Wilkes will start at Vance High School.

He hopes to make the Cougars a consistent winner.

“I set high standards for myself,” said Wilkes, 48, who is leaving a job at an Atlanta-area elementary school and will move to Charlotte this weekend. “I want to bring our kids to another level. I’m on the back end of my coaching career and I want to try to get the kids to see there’s more to them than they can see. It’s about getting the kids to believe in themselves, to believe they have a future. You give kids hope, you’ll have a good bunch.”

Wilkes replaces Phil Culicerto who coached Vance in the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

Vance was 5-7 last season under interim coach Billy Leeson and has only had one winning season in the past five years. Wilkes, part of the 2011 class of the Winston-Salem/Forysth County High School Sports Hall of Fame, built quite a tradition at Winston-Salem Carver.

From 1992-2007, his teams were 139-62-1 with 11 conference titles and state championships in 1998 and 2003. Wilkes was 9-21 at Shiloh High in Snellsville, Ga., for three seasons before resigning last year.z

At Vance, Wilkes said he is excited taking over a program with great potential.

Vance has “always had potential to be a strong program,” Wilkes said. “That’s what I saw, possibilities and potential. Now, it’s about putting hard work and dedication back into the program, from the administration all the way to the community. It could be a good place to work.”

Wilkes’ teams will run the Wing-T offense, a run-heavy offense used by South Mecklenburg and Charlotte Catholic, with a little twist. Wilkes likes to use more spread formations and throw it some.

“I’ve always been known for having a real aggressive program,” said Wilkes, a former All-America offensive lineman at Winston-Salem State, “and we’ll be aggressive from Day One, from working in the weight room and then taking it to the field. You want to call it the new Vance? Well it’s a new era, yes sir, it is.”