Each Monday (or Tuesday) throughout the high school boys basketball season, we recognize the standouts from the previous week’s action with the Lowco Girls Basketball Spotlight presented by 4M Metals.
We select an offensive and defensive player of the week, as well as a Team of the Week, and highlight the biggest game of the upcoming week.
Here’s this week’s installment of the Lowco Girls Basketball Spotlight presented by 4M Metals.
ADDITIONAL BASKETBALL SPONSORSHIP PROVIDED BY
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Amelia Huebel, BA
The senior center had a monster game to lead the Eagles past Hilton Head Prep on Friday, putting up 19 points and 17 boards to surpass the 1,000-career rebound mark (she scored her 1,000th point earlier this season), then scored 11 points in a win over Andrew Jackson Academy on Saturday.
Also nominated: Tatyana Aiken, BLHS; Ella Clark, HHP; Tkai DeVore, JPII; Emma Moore, HHIHS
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Tacoya Heyward, BLHS
The kid grew up this weekend. An eighth-grader who has handled the point brilliantly for the Bobcats all season, Heyward had to put the team on her shoulders at times during the B-Town Classic. She averaged 13.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 3.7 steals to earn tournament MVP honors and her second round of accolades this season.
Also nominated: Kierstin Clark, HHP; Janiya Ferebee, HHIHS; Jasmine Hamilton, JPII; Amelia Huebel, BA
TEAM OF THE WEEK
Bluffton Bobcats (3-0 last week, 11-1 overall)
The Bobcats kept the inaugural B-Town Classic title at home with an impressive run through the eight-team tournament. Both the semifinal and championship game victories tested the Bobcats’ mettle, as eighth-grader Tacoya Heyward had to carry the team in the semis with “TnT” partner Tatyana Aiken on the bench in foul trouble all day, and the Bobcats used an outstanding team defensive effort to rally from a 12-point deficit in the second half of the championship game win over Carver (Ala.).
GAME OF THE WEEK
Bluffton at May River, 5:30 p.m. Saturday
The Bobcats blasted the Sharks 46-17 in the first meeting, so this might seem like an odd choice. But May River was without starting guards Emma and Olivia Peluso in that game, which made guarding Bluffton’s dynamic backcourt an impossible task. If the Peluso sisters can keep Tacoya Heyward and Tatyana Aiken from getting to the basket at will, this will be a dramatically different game.
PAST WINNERS
(Offensive, Defensive, Team)
Dec. 9: Zhani Thompson, WB; Tatyana Aiken, BLHS; HHCA
Dec. 16: Emma Peluso, MRHS; Tkai DeVore, JPII; Whale Branch
Dec. 23: Tacoya Heyward, BLHS; Layla Warren, BHS; Bluffton
Dec. 30: Kynew Barnwell, WB; Anna Genova, HHIHS; HHIHS
Jan. 7: Tacoya Heyward, BLHS; Amelia Huebel, BA; Bluffton