Northside Christian returns to the NCISAA 2A semifinals
Northside Christian 70 Fayetteville Academy 34
Phenom Hoops travelled to Charlotte, North Carolina to cover the NCISAA 2A quarterfinal game between Fayetteville Academy and Northside Christian. Fayetteville Academy came into the contest as the defending state champions. While they sported an 8-15 record, Fayetteville Academy has played a brutal schedule consisting of a very young team. On the flipside, Northside Christian came into the game with an 23-8 record. Northside Christian’s head coach Erasto Hatchett has battled one adversity after another this season. 6’9 senior Jaden Seymour was recovering from a knee injury and wouldn’t return until January. 6’3 junior Glynn Hubbard was developing a reputation as one of the premier players in the Charlotte area. However, Hubbard also was injured in December and was also lost for the season. With the leadership of coach Hatchett, Northside Christian once again is headed back to the NCISAA 2A semifinals.
Northside Christian flexed their muscle on the defensive end of the court. They utilized the 2-2-1 full court press effectively forcing a handful of turnovers. In addition, Northside Christian did a tremendous job of pressuring the ball and stepping into passing lanes for one steal after another. Northside took a 31-12 halftime lead and never looked back. Now, let’s take a closer look at the standout players for Northside.
6’9 2020 Jaden Seymour (Northside Christian)
It was hard to imagine that Jaden Seymour sat out an entire year due to a knee injury. Seymour returned to the team mid-January and he enjoyed a stellar all-around performance. He was patience, yet effective and proved he should be in the conversation as a high major prospect. Seymour scored 16 points including two 3-pointers, a midrange jumper, along with nifty post up moves in the paint. In addition, Seymour collected seven rebounds, dished out five assists, and even had two steals.
6’3 2023 Wesley Tubbs III (Northside Christian)
It’s hard to imagine a talented freshman that may be better defensively than offensively. Rarely do you see a young player zeroed in on the defensive side of the court. Tubbs finished with 14 points, corralled six rebounds, collected five steals, and dished out three assists. Tubbs has a long, lean and athletic frame and really understands deny defense and has the unique ability to anticipate passes in the passing lane.
6’2 2022 MJ Collins (Northside Christian)
Collins may just be the team’s glue guy. He does a little bit of everything well and picks his spots for scoring opportunities. Collins knocked down two 3-pointers and has the ability to score off the catch or create his own shot off the dribble/bounce. Collins finished with 12 points, dished out four assists, collected three steals and corralled three rebounds.
Coach Erasto Hatchett has done a superb job once again getting Northside Christian back to the NCISAA semifinals. The calm, cool, and collective Hatchett is simply one of the good guys in the business. The soft spoken and humble coach continues to leave his mark on his players. There is a nice bond that exists and he does things the right way and if his team can duplicate their defensive effort over the next two games, Northside Christian can add yet another NCISAA banner inside their gym.