As the new season begins Independence Patriots Coach Preston Davis begins the 2017-18 campaign without any regular starters from last years heavily experienced senior varsity team who recorded a 22-7 overall campaign, and finished 10-2 in SW4A conference competition. The team was ranked 699 nationally and 26th in the state of North Carolina. However, he will have talented players who have gained valuable experience from the previous season and they are expected to make a positive impact. The team is athletic, has good shooters, solid defensively, will rebound and compete under the boards. They have a different look than last season’s version of Patriots which should make this team interesting to watch how they progress throughout the season.
Returning Players: Senior Jamarius Burton 6’4″ G., Senior Jordon Mobley 5′ 10″ PG., Junior Andra’ McKee 6’2″ G., Junior Raja Milton 6’0′ PG., Junior Matthew Smith 6’6″ F.
Newcomers to Watch: Senior Jalen Stewart-Twine 6’1″ G., Junior Miles Pauldin 6’4″ F., and Sophomore Anthony Allen 5′ 11″ G.
Outlook for Upcoming Season: The Patriots are expecting to compete for the Southwestern 4A Conference Regular Season Championship, the Southwestern 4A Conference Tournament Championship, and be a NCHSSA 4A Playoff team once again and compete at a high level of consistent performance nightly.
Additional remarks from Coach Davis: We currently have 3 players with Division I offers (Jamarius Burton, Matthew Smith and Andra’ McKee). Also, there are 3-4 other players who are being recruited and/or are receiving interest from college programs at various levels within the college ranks. Coach Davis is also extremely excited to report outstanding guard Jamarius Burton has fully recovered from his ACL injury a year ago and is ready to go 100%. Burton is expected to help lead this year’s version of the Patriots to compete for the SW4A Conference and in the NCHSAA 4A State Championships.
Independence will open the season away in a non-conference game against Hopewell in Huntersville, NC on Friday November 17th at 7:30 pm.
