Boys All-Metro team
RODNEY BLACK, Carver, Sr.
This powerful 6-foot-5 center did not play as a sophomore because of high blood pressure. However, in the past two years, he has established himself as one of the area's premier centers while Carver was ranked among the area's top 20 teams, winning the MSA B Conference title in 1991 and losing to Edmondson in the title game this season. Black averaged 19.9 points and 10.5 rebounds this season, pairing with forward Michael Richardson (22.5 points) as one of the best 1-2 inside combinations in the area. Northeastern has been in hot pursuit of Black.
KEITH BOOTH, Dunbar, Jr.
Booth, 6-7, may be the best junior in the nation. Duke and Maryland have made him their No. 1 recruiting priority. This season he helped the Poets go 29-0 and hold the nation and the area's No. 1 ranking from start to finish. Booth accepted the less-glamorous role of power forward for the Poets, but still managed to show his outstanding ball-handling, scoring and defensive skills. He led the Poets in rebounding (11.8) and was second on the team in scoring (19.5). He is an extremely versatile player who has the ability to play all five positions.
DAMON CASON, Southern-B, So.
Not fast, not quick and not a great leaper but a tremendous player with lots of court sense. Cason, 6-0, established himself as one of the area's premier point guards with his pinpoint passing, outstanding ball-handling and accurate long-range shooting. He averaged 16.5 points and an area best 10.3 assists this season while supplanting his brother David (College of Southern Idaho) as the Bulldogs' floor leader in only his first season as a starter for one of the nation's best teams.
KWAME EVANS, Southern-B, Sr.
Probably the area's top shooting guard prospect. Evans has been chosen to play for the Capital team in the Capital Classic on April 9 at Maryland's Cole Field House, becoming the first Southern player to earn that honor. Evans, 6-6, blossomed into a leader this year for the Bulldogs, who spent the season ranked No. 2 in the area behind Dunbar. Evans ranked among the area's top 20 in scoring (20.9). Evans, who has scored the required 700 on his SAT, will visit Temple, Miami (Fla.), George Washington, Penn State and Providence.
BERNARD HOPKINS, Overlea, Sr.
When the season started, Hopkins, a football All-Metro first-team member at tight end, was leaning toward playing football in college, but he made such great strides as a basketball player the offers have been pouring in. Duquesne, George Washington and Northeastern are the front-runners for this powerful 6-6 center, who averaged 29.7 points (second in the area) and 16.1 rebounds (first in the area) in leading Overlea (23-1) to the state Class 3A title game, where the Falcons lost to Forestville.
CYRUS JONES, Dunbar, Sr.
Dunbar's big three often overshadowed Jones, but the quiet 6-2 shooting guard was the unsung hero for the Poets all season. When the others faltered, Jones was there to bail them out as they maintained their No. 1 ranking in the country and the area. Jones, an outstanding three-point shooter, averaged 14.3 points. Jones comes from the same mold as Reggie Lewis and Kevin Green, two former Poets who were overlooked in high school, but went on to stardom. Clemson, Towson State, Loyola, Duquesne and Delaware are recruiting him.
MICHAEL LLOYD, Dunbar, Sr.
Lloyd, 6-2, is an outstanding athlete who overcame physical and mental scars from a car accident last spring that killed his best friend and former teammate Rodney Beasley. Lloyd dedicated this season to Beasley. Lloyd led the Poets in scoring (21.9) and assists (6.3). He was selected as a McDonald's All-American along with teammate Donta Bright and will play in the McDonald's All-American game April 19 in Atlanta and in the Capital Classic April 9. A tremendous leaper with great dunking ability, Lloyd is considering offers from Clemson, Minnesota and Arkansas, but has yet to get the necessary 700 on the SAT.
NORMAN NOLAN, Milford Mill, So.
Nolan, 6-7, led Milford Mill to the state Class 1A basketball title with two overpowering performances in the semifinal and championship games at Maryland's Cole Field House despite an injured left wrist. In those two games, Nolan totaled 54 points, 25 rebounds and eight blocks. This season, he averaged 21.7 points, 15.4 rebounds and 3.9 blocks in 26 games. He is one block shy of the school record held by Breck Robinson (UMBC), 15 rebounds shy of the school record held by Chuckie Moore (Northeastern) and 530 points shy of the school scoring record held by Craig Amos (St. Joseph's).
JERMAINE PORTER, Walbrook, Sr.
Walbrook coach Gus Herrington said the maturity of this four-year starter made all the difference this year. Porter, 6-6, led the Warriors to their first trip to the MSA A Conference championship game. He averaged 23.4 points and 9.7 rebounds while changing his game from primarily inside to a good blend of inside-out. "His defense and his attitude improved, which is why he probably had his best year," said Herrington. Porter probably will attend a junior college and has been considering Vincennes (Indiana) and San Jacinto (Texas).
Boys Coach of the Year
PETE POMPEY, Dunbar
Minutes after Dunbar had beaten Dunbar of Dayton, Ohio, in a championship game in a tournament in Erie, Pa., in January, Pompey sat on the bench sipping a bottle of medicine to cure a nervous stomach. It was not all fun and games for Pompey, whose Poets went from start to finish as the nation's No. 1 team during the 1991-92 season. The Poets did not always play their best and like most teams, they bickered among themselves every now and then. But Pompey, 52, made sure they took care of business each time they stepped on the court. The Poets responded to Pompey's leadership by going 29-0 this season, including a remarkable nine wins over nationally ranked opponents. In his six years at Dunbar, Pompey has shaken his reputation as a football-only coach and established himself as a true basketball coach on the national level with a record of 132-20.
Boys Player of the Year
DONTA BRIGHT, Dunbar, Sr., C
He capped off an outstanding high school career this season as the main cog for the best team in the area and the nation. With his quickness and power inside, Bright averaged 20.3 points and 11.5 rebounds for the Poets. Michael Lloyd may have outscored him and his cousin Keith Booth may have out-rebounded him, but Bright was the Poets' most valuable player. After all, in the Poets' two near losses this season, it was Bright who put in the winning layup at the buzzer over 6-foot-11 junior standout Rasheed Wallace to edge Philadelphia's Simon Gratz in the championship game of the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C. It was Bright whose defense denied Kentucky-bound All-American Roderick Rhodes a possible game-winning three-point attempt against St. Anthony's (New Jersey) in the Charm City Classic at Towson State. Bright has been chosen an All-American by McDonald's and Parade magazine and was selected by Gatorade as the state Player of the Year. He will play in the Capital Classic (April 9) and McDonald's All-American game (April 19). "One of the big things that makes a difference is he's a winner and he's a clutch player and he's made a great deal of difference in the winning record we've obtained the last four years [97-9]," said Dunbar coach Pete Pompey. Bright has visited Clemson, Ohio State, St. John's and the University of Massachusetts. Ohio State seems to have the inside track, but Bright has yet to score the necessary 700 on the SAT needed for freshman eligibility. Pompey expects Bright to be an outstanding collegian. "Donta will only be limited by himself and the things he's not willing to do. He can do a lot of things on the basketball floor," said Pompey.