Southern Wayne head varsity boys’ basketball coach Brian West (blue shirt) works with Manesse Redemor, middle, and Jayden Moore, right, on positioning for an out-of-bounds play during a recent practice. The Saints play host to James Kenan Tuesday. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
DUDLEY — Will the odds favor the Southern Wayne varsity boys’ basketball team in their home opener against James Kenan on Tuesday evening?
Maybe.
The Saints are 6-1 against the Tigers since 2011.
Then again, maybe not.
Southern Wayne has dropped three consecutive home openers and emerged victorious on just five occasions in 18 tries overall since 2005.
“Young guys … grooming, grooming, grooming,” said Saints head coach Brian West, who returns two full-time starters off last year’s team that logged 13 wins and advanced to the NC High School Athletic Association state 3A playoffs.
“I feel like their energy will be different; they’re hungry. They’re going to surprise some people, maybe even surprise myself. They love playing with each other and they’re going to give us all they’ve got.”
Returning to the hardwood are seniors Chris Carmon and Ty Williams, and junior Dorien Toussaint. All three multi-sport athletes are expected to provide significant leadership, especially Carmon.
Selected as the team captain, the 6-foot-3 Carmon recently earned Student of the Month honors for his outstanding work ethic inside and outside the classroom. He posted a double-double in the Saints’ season-opening loss at county rival Goldsboro on Nov. 17.
“That alone tells you how responsible he is,” West said of the accolade. “He’s always looking to help people. He’ll be a great leader … older guy who has been through the ‘mud’ here. He’s got that taste of being in the playoffs last year.
“Dorien will definitely be another good leader, has a certain poise and uniqueness about him. He’ll do anything to win.”
Carmon, Williams and Toussaint are joined by several underclassmen, including freshman shooting guard/forward Kairel Evans, who notched 14 points against Goldsboro.
Also on the 10-player roster are senior Karius Bellamy, sophomore Hayden Waller, freshman Demetrius Elliot, freshman Douglas Wynn Jr., sophomore Jayden Hardy and senior Javeion Cole.
West likes his team’s basketball IQ.
“That makes it easier for them to retain stuff as young players and that’s a plus all the way around,” West said. “We have a lot of young guys who are going to fill in [spots] … a mixture with the older guys. We have so many different guys who can potentially lead at any moment.
“Everyone respects each other’s opinion about what they have to say. I’m looking forward to seeing what they do myself.”
Southern Wayne filed a 9-5 worksheet against Quad County 3A opposition last winter. It was the program’s best regular-season league effort since 2018, which the Saints were the Eastern Carolina 3A runners-up.
West isn’t sure how the QCC will play out this season.
He’s using eight non-conference games and the annual Southern Bank/Mount Olive Pickle Classic as preparation for the QCC. A former collegiate point guard, West wants to see discipline, patience and consistent execution during that stretch.
“We have to be able to get up and down the court, but also show discipline in the half-court set,” West said. “As far as patience, we have to know what play to call. [With youth] we’re learning the game of basketball – not just the pace of it, but the whole game and being able to execute.
“If you look at where we were last year and the games that we lost, it was partially because of execution. I want to see how well can this team retain what it’s taught, go out and display what it’s learned at the same time.”
