5 Takeaways From Hopewell’s Destruction of West Mecklenburg.

Sometimes it's difficult to learn a lot in a non-competitive blowout situation like the one I witnessed at Hopewell High on Monday night.  Final score - Hopewell 66 West Mecklenburg 17.  Halftime score - 51-9.  However, here are 5 Takeaways from the game that will be interesting to monitor as the season progresses: <ol> <li><strong>Hopewell has the best starting five I have seen during this young season so far</strong>. 5-3 Sophomore PG, Layla Wall,  5-7 SG - Nevaeh Caldwell, 5-11 Junior Wing Assetou Ballo, 6-0 Senior PF Aniyah Finger and 6-4 Senior C, Nijah Cunningham are long, skilled and athletic.  Employing a nasty 2-2-1 full court press, the Titans made it difficult for West Mecklenburg to get the ball over half court on multiple occasions.  This is a disciplined, play hard group that will definitely have a say in I-Meck 4A play this winter.</li> <li><strong>6-4 Senior Nijah Cunningham is a tremendous rim protector. </strong>This young lady is a big that embraces her height.  She isn't out at the 3 point line trying to stretch the floor.  She is parked down on that right block and has multiple post moves over her left and right shoulder.  On defense, she takes pride in dominating the paint.  She blocked several shots and plays with a joy that is apparent when she is on the court.</li> <li><strong>Hopewell goes 8 deep with quality players.  </strong>One of the benefits of blowing a team out is getting the reserves some significant floor time.  When freshman G Alona McManus, junior F Leila McManus and sophomore G Kayla Lawson hit the floor, the Titans didn't miss a beat.  The younger McManus has a nice handle and showed good range in knocking down a three in the second half.  The elder McManus is rangy and athletic and knocked down free throws consistently.  Lawson displayed tremendous court awareness and showed a knack for making the right basketball play. This bodes well for Coach Scott Parkin and Hopewell when the competition stiffens and depth becomes a factor if injuries or foul trouble occur.</li> <li><strong>Neveah Caldwell is a bigger, stronger, older version of Mallard Creek's Samiyah Suffren</strong>.  Not so fast my friend! That's what I found myself saying when I watched the explosive power guard Caldwell play.  I stated earlier that Suffren will often be the best athlete on the court.  Not on January 7 when these two powerhouses meet at Mallard Creek.  Caldwell is a big time athlete.  If she were on TV, she'd jump off the screen.</li> <li><strong>West Mecklenburg coaches and players never quit</strong>.  Not only did they never quit, they never even seemed to be discouraged despite the obvious mismatch.  Coach Shaunita Randolph stayed calm and wasn't yelling and continued to encourage her players from beginning to end.  As for the players, Nyasia McMillan, a junior guard and senior forward Janiya Jackson continued to play hard and make good basketball plays throughout the game.</li> </ol>