Joe’s Take: Knights’ offense gives them an edge

Shutting down Cabell Midland’s offense isn’t easy. It’s work, hard work. Grueling, taxing, and cumbersome work. “I wouldn’t want to be another coach trying to stop it,” Cabell Midland head coach Matt Adkins said. Certainly not. <img class="size-medium wp-image-375323 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/KK-Potter.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Try asking opposing coaches Morgantown’s Jason White and Spring Valley’s Bo Miller. Both leaders came in with good game plans, the latter came in with arguably the best defense in the state, and they both fell victim to Adkins’ group. One victory swiftly brought the Timberwolves to their knees, the other victory ripped the hearts out of the Mohigans. They were precision strikes, targeted at each team’s strengths. How do you answer that? There’s nothing harder to come back from. When a team swings for the jugular, any connection no matter how slight leads to a knockout. Those KO punches certainly connect more often than not. Is there an answer? Can there be a response? It certainly takes a disciplined group to come back from such a knock. Few teams found a way and Cabell Midland advanced further and further through regular-season and postseason play. The points and the scores are nice weapons to have along the way. <img class="size-medium wp-image-375324 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/Rylee-Allie.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Now, that attack is coming to the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center for the state tournament. And it certainly will be giving the Knights an edge in the biggest games of the year. How sharp? Let’s just say it is pretty far from being dull. Challenging to show you how on point they are isn’t something strongly recommended. So, what exactly are they bringing that no one wants a piece of? Well, the same thing that made the two-time Parkersburg High champions lethal – they flood the floor with shooters capable of more than just standing around and jacking up 3s. Everyone from [player_tooltip player_id="153410" first="Jayda" last="Allie"], Jaz Wheeler, Sophi Alridge, [player_tooltip player_id="153376" first="Rylee" last="Allie"], [player_tooltip player_id="153391" first="KK" last="Potter"], and [player_tooltip player_id="391470" first="Josie" last="Graves"] create mismatches for more than just a fair share of opponents. Complain about it. Avoid the reality. Think it isn’t going to affect your team. It is affecting your team. 3’s. Transition buckets. Pop-ups. Stop and go’s. The list goes on and on and on. Just name off all the shots in the game and that’s everything the Knights are bringing to the table. “We are comfortable if anyone goes off. There is no set play for any one person. If there is a mismatch, we will run an offense against that one player where we want them but there is no strict “This set is for Jazmyn” or “This set if for Jayda” or anything like that,” Adkins said. “Sometimes Jayda will have the hot hand or Jaz will have the hot hand. They won’t shoot and we have to tell them guys you have the hot hand and it isn’t being a ball hog,” Adkins said. No, it isn’t. Quite simply it is a great thing to have. Whatever an opponent brings well it could be perfect. George Washington might have everyone covered. Parkersburg may match the Knights point for point. But once they start hitting shots everything goes out the window. “It is a snowball effect. A team could be trailing us by nine and all of a sudden Jayda goes off for 25 in the second half,” Adkins said. Sheesh. There’s just no good answer. About the only thing that works well is being Huntington High. Yes, the Highlanders have beaten the Knights three different times, the last one being particularly brutal. The good news for the Knights? Owing to tremendous offensive potential, it makes overcoming such setbacks a little easier. “The girls are excited to get going. We were 32 minutes from one last year,” Adkins said. They certainly have a weapon capable of helping them achieve a state title, this season. &nbsp; &nbsp;