High schools: Area basketball teams see benefit in hosting holiday tournaments

Not everyone can participate in the Beach Ball Classic.

But that doesn’t mean area programs are devoid of opportunities to play uncommon opponents and gauge where they stand.

Several area teams, including the Socastee girls and Carolina Forest boys, are holding – or already have held – tournaments of their own this season.

“We were real pleased, even though the attendance was low,” Socastee coach Ginger Ford said, referring to last week’s Lady Braves Sand and Hoops Invitational. “With some better advertising, I think we can get it to where we want it to be. It was a good mix.

“The plan of the future would be to time it around the holiday where we could get eight teams and get a little more sponsorship. I think that would be good for a lot of people.”

Socastee’s tournament may not have blown the doors off the gym, but plans for growth means the benefits far outweigh the costs. Besides, the smaller tournaments are rarely seen as huge money makers anyway.

What they do develop into is a solid way to not only build momentum into the crux of the regular season, but also a chance to inspire some interest in the sport after a long football season. Lastly, it offers a chance for teams that can’t get into the Beach Ball to remain active on the court while others sit idle.

That also is the case with Carolina Forest. The eight-team Panther Invitational, which will be in its second year, includes five local teams (Carolina Forest, Carvers Bay, Conway, Waccamaw and Myrtle Beach), Upstate school Northwestern and Forsyth Country Day and Metrolina Christian out of North Carolina.

The event will be played Dec. 21-23, and the level of basketball is high enough to draw decent crowds.

Ford has already seen gains by her team from last week’s tournament. The Braves lost to Cheraw in the championship game, but they benefited from the experience, especially considering injury woes.. The team lost junior starter Ellen Rickenbacker to a torn ACL on Nov. 14, and freshman Sierrah McCarthy (stress fracture/tendonitis) and sophomore Madison Lowe (sprained ankle) are also ailing.

Needless to say, the Braves were in need of some self-discovery.

“We were able to concentrate early on things we need to put a little more time into,” Ford said. “… I feel pretty good about where we are if we can get healthy.”

Staley’s biggest supporter?

South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley got herself a prize recruit when Myrtle Beach point guard Khadijah Sessions inked with the Gamecocks on Nov. 16.

Sessions said she’s eager to help build the program alongside Staley, the former Olympic gold medalist and WNBA player.

“She should get something back for what she’s done there,” Sessions said.

The Seahawk senior said Staley’s relative success – USC is 48-49 under her – combined with South Carolina’s 6-1 start this season, means the Gamecocks are headed to bigger and better things. That certainly appears to be the case with Staley’s most recent signing class, one that also includes Spring Valley’s Asia Dozier and two out-of-state products.

As for what Sessions expects out of herself next year?

“I know I’m a good player, but college is a different thing,” she said. “Everyone is on the same level. You just have to do something so you can stand out. I think that’s why I went [with South Carolina], so coach Staley can get the best out of me.”

Sessions’ first game of her final high school season at Myrtle Beach is Tuesday at Lake City. The Seahawks’ home-opener is next Tuesday against Mullins.

Holmes working toward college goals

Carolina Forest senior Jarvez Holmes has attracted plenty of attention for his exploits on the football field.

Now, he’s doing what he can to make sure his academics let him pursue those goals.

Holmes, a talented receiver and defensive back who earlier this month was named to the SCADA North-South All-Star football game, is in the process of pulling up his grades to where he can qualify for one of the potential NCAA Division I scholarships he will have prior to National Signing Day in February.

“He’s making some contingency plans so they can get him in these elite prep schools so they can get him in and get him out,” Panthers coach Drew Hummel said. “He’s done better and everything. It’s a good lesson to young men, if they come in and don’t take it serious, they come back [later] and say ‘Why didn’t I do this?’ ”

Holmes, who was open about his struggle with grades earlier this year, has drawn significant interest from Georgia Tech and North Carolina State. NCAA Football Championship Subdivision member Liberty is also very high on Holmes.

However, Holmes may not be headed the Division I route right away. On the chance he does not qualify academically right away, all three schools are working to get him into either Hargrave Military or Fort Union Military, two prestigious prep institutions in Virginia known improving students’ grades. Both schools also have a direct pipeline to the Southeastern Conference and the Atlantic Coast Conference.

“I talked to him and told him it’s not the worst thing in the world,” Hummel said. “They’ll pump him with discipline and time-management skills. You don’t have to waste a year by going to a JUCO and all those things. He’s going to be taken care of regardless.”

If Holmes ends up at one of the military schools, he’ll retain all four years of NCAA eligibility.

More Panther recruiting news

Junior tailback Harold Atkinson had a tough choice to make last weekend.

According to Hummel, Atkinson was invited to a pair of major-college rivalry games. The invitations were extended from Georgia Tech (which was playing Georgia) and South Carolina’s contest against Clemson. Atkinson went to Columbia and watched the Gamecocks’ lopsided victory.

And while that choice wasn’t easy, it’s nothing compared to what the bruising running back will face in about 14 months. Atkinson pulled in his first offer last summer when Minnesota put it on paper. He’s also heard from Notre Dame and Southern Cal in the last two weeks.

The recent push from schools in the Southeast, though, makes Hummel think Atkinson will be staying closer to home.

“I think when it’s all said and done, and family comes into it, you would see a Georgia Tech, N.C. State, Clemson, [South] Carolina,” Hummel said. “I’m not going to speak for him, but I sort of get that feeling. He likes South Carolina a lot. He wants to run the ball. He likes how they use [Marcus] Lattimore.”

Meanwhile, receiver/defensive back Aaron Williams, who lined up opposite Holmes on both sides of the ball, is also getting plenty of interest from a number of NCAA Division-II programs, including Catawba and Wingate.

Quarterback Danny Daly, who was the centerpiece of the Panthers’ high-octane offense, has interest from Catawba and Wingate, as well as NCAA FCS member Charleston Southern.