Nygell Verdier, Independence PatriotsÂ
The Independence Patriots Power Forward Nygell Verdier had himself an outstanding Southwestern 4A Championship Tournament. Especially in the final two games of the tournament where he scored 17 points in the semifinal match-up against Myers Park going head to head with Drake Maye for much of the contest, then on Saturday afternoon, he led the Patriots to their third consecutive conference title scoring 26 points against Porter Ridge.
In the Myers Park battle, he drilled 5-6 free throws down the stretch to help secure the win. Verdier added 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 deflections of shots having an all-around solid performance. Then in the title game, he was not only the leading scorer, he made 6-7 free throws, grabbed 11 rebounds for the double-double, added 4 assists and 1 block in leading the charge to the title. Verdier dominated the final period scoring 14 points and one monster slam dunk.
During the season, the senior averaged 13.2 points per game in 27 games played, he scored 357 points, hauled down 132 rebounds, 72 assists, 49 steals, 23 blocks, 39 deflections while shooting 53% from the floor and about 70% from the free-throw line. Based on his final two games performances in the conference championship he deserves to be nominated as the tournament MVP based on the numbers and results provided by this writer. He was outstanding in the two most important games of the tournament.
The Sports Editor and sportswriters at the Mint Hill Times want to congratulate Nygell Verdier for being selected as our “Featured Player of the Week.”
