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TINY CALHOUN COUNTY WELCOMES BIG CHALLENGE
Published on: 12/18/2002
Section: SPORTS
Edition: FINAL
Page: C1
From Staff Reports
There will be 12 bruisers slugging it out at this week's Chick-Fil-A
Classic at Richland Northeast. Teams from Georgia and North Carolina
will compete with eight South Carolina schools for the title of a
tournament that is quickly growing in stature.
Smack-dab in the middle of the mix will be little Calhoun County,
and that makes Zam Fredrick smile.
Fredrick, the Calhoun County coach, said he's looking forward to
seeing how his team matches up with some of the better programs in
the region. "For years we competed really well in-state and we
always wondered how we would compete outside the state and with
nationally ranked teams," Fredrick said. "This opportunity is
great because tournaments like this are usually associated
with bigger schools."
The Saints will be joined at the tournament by Allendale-Fairfax,
the team that beat them in the Class AA state championship game in
March. Also representing South Carolina are Myrtle Beach, Silver
Bluff, Brookland-Cayce, A.C. Flora, Spring Valley and the tournament
host, Richland Northeast.
McEachern and Landmark Christian will travel from Georgia. Lee
County and
Hillside will represent North Carolina.
The Saints emphasize an up-tempo game with heavy rotation. They'll
be bringing one of the state's top juniors in Zam Fredrick Jr., the
coach's son.
"We've got a lot of team speed and we're very interchangeable," the
senior Fredrick said. "We're not a big team, but we have players who
can play multiple positions. For me and my team, this tournament is
more preparation than anything else. However, we do feel like we can
compete if we execute. If we can do that, we'll have an excellent
opportunity to win some games."
The tournament will feature nine players ranked among the nation's
top 250, including Fredrick Jr., Silver Bluff's Brandon Wallace,
Ramon Sessions of Myrtle Beach and Brookland-Cayce's Jerrell
Jamison.
McEachern might be the tourney favorite, boasting a ferocious 1-2
punch of Josh Smith and Morris Almond. Smith, a 6-foot-7 junior, is
considered one of the top five players in the nation, thanks to his
ability to play guard and forward. Almond, who committed to Rice
earlier this fall, is a 6-6 senior who averaged 24 points and 11
rebounds this past season.
The tournament begins Thursday at Spring Valley and Richland
Northeast, where the eight in-state schools will play. The four
winners will then match up with the out-of-state schools Friday at
Richland Northeast, while the losers will continue on in the
consolation bracket.
CHICK-FIL-A CLASSIC
* When: Thursday-Saturday;
* Where: Richland Northeast and Spring Valley high schools;
* Tickets: $5 per session, $15 for tournament, available at the
door.
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