All Entries in the "Player News" Category
Ben McLemore: Diary #1, A New Experience
Hi. This is Ben McLemore. This is my first year here at Oak Hill Academy, Class of 2011.
When I first arrived, it was a long drive, but I knew I was home. At this point I’m a little over a month into school, and it has been going really well. All the teachers are great, the students are awesome and so are the players on both the boys and girls basketball teams.
Keith Hornsby: Diary #1, We’re Back
I must say I’m excited to be back at the Hill this year. I have much anticipation for the upcoming seaon, and I have already set some solid team goals to reach.
I’ve loved meeting all my new teammates. Being the only returning player from last year’s team, I must admit I was a little nervous about meeting a whole new group of guys, but I couldn’t be more at ease with them. They are all really good people who seem eager to work hard and get that national championship ring.
Graduation Photos
The Warriors said goodbye to seven seniors on Saturday, May 22nd. The 2009-10 school year ended with graduation in Turner Gymnasium.
Congratulations to Doron, Marco, Juwan, Baye, Pe’Shon, Rosoce and Martins! Best of luck in the future!
Congrats to NCAA Participants
Former Warriors Nolan Smith (Duke) and Danny Jennings (West Virginia) are headed to the 2010 NCAA Final Four in Indianapolis!
Congratulations to Nolan and Danny as well as the other Oak Hill alum who participated in this year’s NCAA Tournament: Julian Vaughn – Georgetown, Landon Milborne – Maryland, Dion Dacons (asst coach) – Temple, Rod Strickland (asst coach) – Kentucky.
Pe’Shon Howard’s Diary #7 – Finishing Strong
Throughout the 2009-2010 season, OakHillHoops.com features personal stories from our players.
March 5, 2010 — I’m back! I haven’t written in a while. Sorry for the absence, but now the regular season is over. We ended strong by beating Benedictine HS in Richmond, VA. Roscoe, Juwan & I were all in double figures.
We bused back after the game & got to campus really late and then had Senior night. We beat Oak Ridge Military. The whole team played really well & we are now 29-3.
Blue Devils Guard Accepts Advice
by Ken Tysiac, Staff Writer, The News & Observer
February 24, 2010 – The text message delivered to Nolan Smith’s cell phone two weeks ago didn’t say much, but it was exactly what the Blue Devils’ junior guard needed to hear after Duke’s win at North Carolina.
“Get in the gym,” the late-night text read.
It came from Michael Beasley, Smith’s childhood friend and Miami Heat forward who was the No. 2 pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. Short, direct messages such as Beasley’s have helped spur Smith to overcome the struggles of his sophomore season to become the ACC’s fourth-leading scorer at 17.9 points a game.
Quick-witted with an eager smile, Smith remains close with his childhood teammates from Upper Marlboro, Md., and from his high school days at Oak Hill Academy.
Click here to read the full article at newsobserver.com.
Juwan Staten’s Diary #7 – Update from the Hill
Throughout the season, OakHillHoops.com features personal stories from our players.
February 5, 2010 — I’m back everyone. I know it has been a while since my last entry. I apologize. I know you all have been wondering about life on “The Hill.”
Hornsby Opens Eyes with Oak Hill Stint
by Norm Wood, Inside Recruiting
hrvarsity.com
January 24, 2010 — For a guy who thought he’d only be spending about five to eight minutes per game on the floor while wearing the uniform of the nation’s most elite prep boys basketball team, this season has been an eye-opening experience for Keith Hornsby.
As it turns out, he has evolved into much more than just a garbage-time player for Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, a town in southwest Virginia. He’s a legitimate sixth man as a junior. Though he’s still waiting for the bigwigs from programs in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big East and Southeastern Conference to take notice, he knows he’s at least on the radar map — by osmosis, if nothing else.
“There are such great players on this team, so I just naturally get so much better, and my confidence rises, too,” said Hornsby, who is a former Hampton Roads Academy student and the son of Grammy Award-winning musician and Williamsburg native Bruce Hornsby. “My shots, my driving (to the basket), my ballhandling have all gotten better, but especially my defense. With having to guard these guys, that’s the main thing that’s improved.”
Click here to read the full article at HRVarsity.com.
Pe’Shon Howard’s Diary #6 – We’re Back
By Pe’Shon Howard
Throughout the 2009-2010 season, OakHillHoops.com features personal stories from our players.
We’re back! Seems like I haven’t written a diary entry in forever. So I’ll get everyone caught up with what has been going on.
I had a great Christmas break that was really busy. It started in Ironton, OH where we went 2-0 and the team played well.
Pe’Shon Howard’s Diary #5 – Maintaining Focus
By Pe’Shon Howard
December 19, 2009 — Man, the last week and a half has been crazy. We started it off with four games in four days. It was tough, but we came out with four wins. Coach scheduled the games this way to help us get ready for our after Christmas tournament in Portland, so this helped us realize the type of focus it will take for us to win.
Pe’Shon Howard’s Diary #4 – Feeling Better
By Pe’Shon Howard
Throughout the season, OakHillHoops.com features personal stories from our players.
November 20, 2009 — Hey everyone. I’m back! A lot has happened since my last entry. We’ve had a fast start (8-0). It’s great to be undefeated early in our season.
Thanksgiving Break started Saturday (11/21), and everyone was ready to go home and see their families. I hope everybody comes back to pick up where we left off both on and off the court…
Brandon Jennings Eastern Conference Player of the Week
Congratulations to 2008 OHA graduate Brandon Jennings!
The National Basketball Association announced today that Bucks guard Brandon Jennings was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the games played November 9 through November 15.
Jennings averaged 43.5 points, 7.0 assists and 4.5 rebounds in 39.5 minutes per game in helping the Bucks to a 2-0 record. He shot 60.4 percent from the field, 90.0 percent from three point range and 87.5 percent from the line in two contests.
Juwan Staten’s Diary #5 – Staying Strong
By Juwan Staten
November 12, 2009 — Yesterday was our fifth game of the season, and we played a school from North Carolina called Flora McDonald Academy. Despite having two players out sick (Pe`Shon and Marco), we played well.
The game was relatively close to start, but we soon dominated and pretty much put them away in the first half…
Juwan Staten’s Diary #4 – First Game
By Juwan Staten
November 4, 2009 — Saturday we opened our season at home against Central Carolina Academy. With most of the students gone because of Open Weekend, we still drew a pretty nice crowd.
From jump-ball on, we owned the game. We shot well from the floor and played fairly solid defense. Roscoe led all scorers with 24, Doron had 22, and I had 15. Baye had 8 blocks and 9 rebounds.
