By By BRIAN HAINES, Sports Writer
Thanks to the help of Northside High School and all the people that put in work behind the scenes to piece together the 30th annual Washington Daily News/PotashCorp Aurora Holiday tournament, this year’s basketball festival was one of the best in recent memory.
“In the three years we have been hosting it, this year was probably the most successful,” Northside athletic director Keith Boyd said. “Everything went real smooth, we had some really good crowds and the showcase games were a lot of fun.”
The return of Mychal Parker certainly added spice to this year’s event, as well as a home-for-the-holidays feel to the basketball tournament.
Parker and the rest of his teammates from The Miller School did not disappoint as they cheerfully partook in a brutal schedule that included a five hour bus trip from Charlottesville, Va, after exams.
The Mavericks played two showcase games, the first versus Stevens Prep and the second versus South Central, which were both dynamic contests.
Like The Miller School, Stevens Prep brought a very jovial attitude towards the tournament. Star players from both teams took time to talk to the fans and sign autographs.
Parker, the hometown star, signed autographs before and after both showcase games, and on Saturday he and his Mavericks’ teammates visited a children’s hospital in Greenville before playing South Central.
Not to be overlooked are the local teams that competed this year as Terra Ceia, Mattamuskeet, Creswell, Southside, East Carteret, Pamlico, Washington and of course Northside each played hard in every game.
For the second year in a row, Pamlico took home he big prize as it pulled out a comeback victory over Mattamuskeet to win the tournament championship.
Finishing in third place was Washington, who defeated East Carteret (fourth place) to get the bronze medal. Southside topped Northside in a battle for fifth place, while Creswell beat Terra Ceia to avoid eighth place.
The tournament lasted four days from start to finish and during that time there were several highlights, so here is a recap of some of the best moments of this year’s tournament.
Best game
South Central vs. The Miller School
It was a close call between the Mattamuskeet-Pamlico battle for the tournament title and South Central’s clash with The Miller School in the final showcase game. Pamlico’s ability to shrug off a slow start and erase a seven-point fourth-quarter deficit to win the championship 62-58 was no-doubt thrilling. However, South Central’s 62-49 victory over the Mavericks was just a little bit better because of the underdog factor. Heading into the title game, most fans expected Pamlico to win, and they did. The majority of fans did not feel that South Central could beat a Miller School team that had future Maryland Terrapin Mychal Parker and future Memphis Tiger post player Hippolyte Tsafack. Edge to the Falcons.
Best surprise
Mattamuskeet
Being from the Tideland Conference, Mattamuskeet doesn’t get the publicity or the limelight that some of the other local teams get, so when the Lakers came in and rolled everybody it was a bit of a shock. Mattamuskeet played three quality games to grab second place, highlighting the wonderful job of coaching that Melvin Blount has done with his team. The Lakers post-up game was the best in town and it showed all throughout the tournament. If they could have made a few more shots down the stretch they would have won the title.
Best player (not including showcase teams)
Shane Whitfield, Pamlico
Pamlico’s 6-5 sophomore guard/forward Shane Whitfield was head and shoulders above the competition. Whitfield’s height and athleticism made him nearly impossible to cover. Too big for guards to defend and too quick for post players, Whitfield was a walking mismatch. Whitfield played all five positions for coach Earl Sadler’s Hurricanes, and when his team needed him the most he provided clutch shots.
Best play
Anthony Hilliard, South Central
This year’s tournament was filled with many big plays but none was better than when South Central’s 6-8 forward Anthony Hilliard received a pass all alone at mid-court then proceeded to throw down a thunderous one-handed windmill dunk against The Miller School. The dunk was special on two levels: First, it was physically a thing of beauty. Second, it signified the end was near for the Mavericks.