High school hoops preview: Local teams ready to take on new year

The 2023-24 high school basketball season is officially underway. Every team begins the year with high hopes, aiming for this season to be one with many victories and a deep playoff run. While not guaranteed, the likes of Briarwood, Chelsea, Oak Mountain and Spain Park always have the potential to do something special. Here’s a brief look at each squad as the campaign gets going.

Jags embracing journey of new season

The Spain Park High School boys basketball team is on quite a run of late.

The Jags have advanced to the Class 7A final four each of the last three seasons, advancing to the state semifinals and playing on the state’s biggest stage in Birmingham.

Could the Jags make it four trips in a row with another successful season? Sure, but head coach Chris Laatsch is not looking at it that way.

“Every year is [unique],” Laatsch said. “You have to develop new roles and identities. I love that. It’s exciting because we have a ton of spots that nobody has grabbed yet.”

Spain Park lost six players from last year’s roster, meaning the makeup and identity of this year’s team will take on a different look.

“That’s what I get excited about every year, is a new journey,” Laatsch said. “You see if you can get these individual parts and make it a good-looking puzzle, and figure out the best way for this group to play.”

Korbin Long returns as the team’s point guard, and will be in his third year on the varsity team. He is someone the Jags will rely heavily on this season. TJ Lamar will have an expanded role playing in the post this season. Lamar is only playing organized basketball for the third year and is “raw, but has a high motor.”

There are eight seniors on this year’s Jags team, with Chapman Blevins, Parker Chase, Josh Helms, Alex Buchanan, Nick Richardson and Jackson Bradley making up a large portion of the roster.

Josh Fonbah is a junior, and the Jags have three sophomores in Harrison Stewart, Quinn Davis and Cooper Gann.

Spain Park’s schedule features plenty of top-notch teams, including Scottsboro, Enterprise, Huntsville, Baker, Hoover and Vestavia Hills. The Jags play in Class 7A, Area 6 against Oak Mountain, Chelsea and Hewitt-Trussville.

Lady Jags beginning rebuilding process

John Hadder built the Vincent High School boys basketball program into a perennial contender. Hadder took Vincent to 12 area titles in the 14 years he coached there, advancing to the state final four twice and finishing as the state runner-up once.

When he retired following last season, he didn’t know what would come next. Until he got a call from Spain Park, asking him to take on the task of leading the girls program.

Although Hadder had not previously coached a girls program, he accepted the job and took over a program that won a Class 7A state championship as recently as 2020, but has since fallen on hard times.

Spain Park won state titles in 2017-18 and 2019-20, but the Lady Jags won just one game last season and Hadder has been tasked with rebuilding the program.

“Even though there have been a lot of challenges, I enjoy it,” he said. “I enjoy getting here every morning.”

Like many coaches inheriting a situation requiring a rebuild, there is always the difficult balance of attempting to win now versus building for the future. The Lady Jags have a pair of seniors this season in Zyian Heyligar and Indiana Gannett, although Gannett will miss the season with an injury.

“We’re dedicated to getting this thing turned around, but it’s going to be a process,” Hadder said. “It’s going to take a few years. We’re just going to build toward that. We can get better as the year goes on.”

The roster has several juniors, headlined by Jordyn Corey and Tori Flournoy, who played key roles last season as well. Trinity Daniels, Mary Cothran Hunter and Campbell Busby are part of that group as well.

Spain Park will even have a pair of seventh graders playing a big part this season, with guards Ava Leonard and Nylah Calhoun showing plenty of promise and potential.

Adriana Britt, Teagan Huey, Kamia Dawsey, Alyssa Cole, Zadi Thompson-McWhorter and Lynlee Franks are also on the team this year.

Over the first two months of the season, the Lady Jags will challenge themselves with teams like Vestavia Hills, Helena, Pell City, Clay-Chalkville, Hoover and Mountain Brook. Games like that will certainly serve to help the team improve.

“I’m hoping that by the time January rolls around, we have started to jell to where things are second nature. How that translates into results, I can’t speak to that, but if you do those things well [operate offensively and play strong defense], it gives you a chance to find success,” Hadder said.

The Lady Jags will take on Chelsea, Hewitt-Trussville and Oak Mountain in Class 7A, Area 6 play. 

Mears takes over Lions

Jeremy Mears has been a head basketball coach before, but that was nearly 20 years ago at Sherwood Christian Academy in Georgia. 

For the last 18 years, he’s been an assistant at Briarwood Christian School in different capacities, serving under head coaches Chris Laatsch and Bobby Kerley.

“Those are two guys that know a little bit about basketball and a little about coaching young men. I was really blessed to work alongside them,” Mears said.

He believes that experience has prepared him for this time. In addition to that, Mears has a special connection with this particular group of players at Briarwood, as he has two sons on the team and has watched them all grow up playing together.

“I’m excited about this new step,” he said. “If you can get buy-in with these guys and create that brotherhood and sense of unity, it’s going to give us a chance to be successful and reach our potential.”

This year’s team has seven seniors, with five of them returning after playing in the program last season, but the Lions lost a few key pieces from last season’s team.

Caleb Keller will start at the point guard slot for the Lions and does all the things a coach likes from that position. He’s a smart player, brings leadership qualities and knows what Mears expects.

Drew Mears is back and will be asked to score the ball quite a bit. Both post players are back for the Lions, as Luke Schultz and Garrett Witherington, who double as linemen on the football team, will be counted upon as well. 

Josh Thompson’s leadership and Eli Stubbs are two things Jeremy Mears is excited about seeing.

The Lions will play in Class 6A, Area 8 with Pelham and Helena.

Young Lady Lions looking to make splash

The Briarwood Christian School girls basketball team is quite young, compared to most of the teams the Lady Lions will play throughout the season.

Briarwood has point guard Mary Beth Dicen as its sole senior, no juniors, a bunch of sophomores and a freshman. 

But there is an abundance of varsity experience in a few spots, at least. Dicen is entering her fourth year as a varsity starter. Sophomores Emma Kerley and Ann Tatum Baker will be third-year starters as well.

Head coach Lorie Kerley said the Lady Lions backcourt is a bit undersized, but they make up for that with speed, quickness and shooting ability. The offense is set into motion by Dicen.

“Mary Beth loves to push and play fast in transition,” Kerley said. “I like our speed and our on-ball defense, with girls that can put pressure on the ball. It’s fun to coach girls that can put a lot of pressure on the ball and make things happen on defense.”

Emma Kerley will handle a heavy portion of the scoring and rebounding load, while Baker is one of those tough on-ball defenders that her head coach loves.

Claire Anderson, Clara Crawford and Sasha Munikar are also sophomores on the team. Sarah Travis is a freshman that will contribute to the Lady Lions this season as well.

Briarwood will compete with solid programs in Helena and Pelham in Class 6A, Area 8.

“We’re looking forward to seeing how January turns out,” Lorie Kerley said. “It could be any of us.”

Hornets looking for consistency

Chelsea High School boys basketball coach Nick Baumbaugh sees the potential in this year’s squad. He has seen it show up in practices, in summer games and in other avenues.

He just needs to see it on a more consistent basis if the Hornets are to achieve their goals this season.

“There’s times we’re not playing well, and there’s times we’re playing really well,” he said. “We’ve got to be more consistent or you’re going to get beat.”

Chelsea has no shortage of older players on the roster this year, with nine seniors leading the way. Gavin Collett was a starter last year and set the program record for charges taken. Braden Macon and Will Lee both came off the bench, but the guards are expected to contribute heavily this season. 

Cohen Hester transferred into the program and will be an impactful senior. Avery Futch and Christen Whetstone were heavy contributors last year and will be once again. Jonathan Laughlin and Jaxon Shuttlesworth are both tall forwards who give the Hornets a different dimension. Aidan Cockrell serves as the team’s manager as well.

Aiden Owens will be a third-year starter for the Hornets, while freshman guard Jordan Garcia could make a splash. Chelsea is carrying 14 players on the varsity roster this season.

Baumbaugh said his team will be able to put more pressure on teams defensively this year. As opposed to simply playing a 1-2-2 zone defense most of the time, he thinks his team will be able to mix up defenses effectively and cause issues for the opposition.

Chelsea plays in Class 7A, Area 6 with Hewitt-Trussville, Oak Mountain and Spain Park. 

“We’ve got the potential to be really good,” Baumbaugh said. “Multiple coaches like what they see from us, we’ve just got to be consistent day in and day out and game in and game out.”

Lady Hornets looking for new leaders

Chelsea High School’s girls basketball program enters the season on a five-year streak of playing at the regional tournament, including one trip to the state final four.

The Lady Hornets graduated seven players last season, but head coach Jason Harlow feels like his team is in a good spot, considering how much adversity last year’s team faced along the way.

As the team worked around injuries to two of its best players, that allowed plenty of room for a player like Haley Trotter to step into a starring role. Trotter returns for her junior season and is already one of the top players in the area.

Olivia Pryor started as an eighth grader last season and is back with a varsity year under her belt. Sadie Schwallie and Caroline Brown are in their junior and sophomore years, respectively.

“We’ve got pieces this year,” Harlow said. “It’s just up to us to bring it along over the course of the year and continue to improve.”

There are two seniors on this year’s team: softball players Madeline Epperson and Baylor McCluney. Epperson is a returning starter.

“They do everything the right way,” Harlow said. “They’re vocal, work hard, gritty and a great example to the other girls.”

Harlow said freshman Juliann Bass will play a key role this season, and he is excited about the likes of Sydney Carroll and Allie Scott emerging from the junior varsity team to add height to the team’s front line. 

The Lady Hornets will play in Class 7A, Area 6 with Hewitt-Trussville, Spain Park and Oak Mountain.

Eagles continuing winning tradition

The Oak Mountain High School boys basketball team put together a strong season in Joel Floyd’s first at the helm. 

Taking over for Chris Love, who led the program to great heights for many years, is no small task. But Floyd believes that things are moving in the right direction as he enters his second season.

“They’re all bought in and understand and know what to expect from what we want,” he said.

The Eagles lost seven seniors from last year, and there are six seniors stepping into big roles this year. There are also seven juniors that will give the Eagles a big group of upperclassmen.

The biggest of those losses on the scoreboard is Matthew Heiberger. Figuring out who the Eagles will go to when they need a basket late in games is a process that will work itself out along the way.

“One of the great things for us this year is we’ve got multiple guys that can do that,” Floyd said. “We have multiple guys that can get us a bucket when we need it and can knock down a shot.”

Kevin Jasinski, Grey Williams and Emanuel Johnson are returning seniors who played key roles last year. Sawyer Smith, Cameron Channell and Camden Spangler were all on varsity last season as well and will be asked to step up.

Chase Lamey and Chris Kunard are two juniors to watch out for. 

The Eagles play in Class 7A, Area 6 along with Spain Park, Chelsea and Hewitt-Trussville.

Lady Eagles aiming for regional return

The Oak Mountain High School girls basketball team is hoping many of the lessons learned from last year’s struggles will reap benefits this season.

“I’m feeling really encouraged,” Lady Eagles head coach Beth Parmer said. “Last year, we had a lot of youth and we had a learning curve.”

Oak Mountain finished with an 8-23 record last season, snapping a three-year streak of advancing to the regional tournament.

“We’ve been very close to being in the elite eight, and that’s where I would love for them to get,” Parmer said. “I want great things for them, because they’ve worked so hard.”

Ella Holt and Raegan Whitaker are the team’s two seniors this season. Whitaker has been a key player for the Lady Eagles for the last several years. 

“Raegan has been our constant,” Parmer said. “She’s been our backbone.”

Parmer is also encouraged by the junior class. There are freshmen with promise as well.

“We’ve got a lot of girls that are finally going to get their opportunity this year. They’re eager to prove that they can play,” Parmer said.

Holt said she feels like the team’s physical nature and its ability to get up and down the court at a quick pace will be strengths.

Oak Mountain plays in Class 7A, Area 6 with Chelsea, Spain Park and Hewitt-Trussville.