Three graduating seniors have been selected to the Southwestern 4A All-Conference Team for the 2018-2019 basketball season.
This elite group has been together for a good part of their high school careers. They were teammates on the 2017-2018 State Championship team with a 31-1 record. Also, this seasons version who were 22-6 overall, 12-2 conference champions during the regular season and tournament champs. They are the only group of players to have won back to back regular season and tournament championships along with other teammates.
The three players are the following outstanding young men who have set a fine example of leadership, sportsmanship and integrity in both victory and defeat.
Matt Smith –  The Murray State University recruit had an excellent career and final season. At 6’6″ and 215 pounds he has been a force under the boards all season for the Patriots. In 28 games he averaged 10.0 points per game, 6.4 rebounds, 1.4 steals, 1.2 blocks and 0.9 assists during his final season. Smith was also named, the Mint Hill Times first Featured Player of the Week recently for his solid play in the state Championship playoffs.
Andra “AJ” McKee – The guard and small forward in 29 games led the team in scoring with 11.0 points per game, 3.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.0 steals while scoring 320 points, grabbing 111 rebounds, dishing out 89 assists and had 58 steals for the Patriots. McKee was also named the Southwestern 4A Conference Player of the Year. This award is well deserved based on his versatility and solid defense he played all season against Indy’s opponents best players in key match-ups.
Raja Milton – The senior point guard in 29 games contributed 10.0 points per game, 2.2 rebounds, added 4.6 assists and had 2.2 steals during this years campaign. He scored a total of 290 points, 65 rebounds, dished out a team leading 134 assists along with 64 steals. Raja had some big moments this season, however, his finest moment came when the Patriots defeated Carmel Christian by one point, he drove to the basket for the winning bucket with seconds remaining and scored 7 of the Patriots final 9 points to secure the victory.
Congratulations from The Mint Hill Times Sports Editor and Independence Sports Writer Ron Morris for another exciting basketball season, we wish you much success going forward in all future endeavors.
