CALEDONIA — Caledonia basketball continued its strong start to the season this week, registering a district win against Greenwood and a road win at Lamar County to improve to 15-2 on the season and extend their winning streak to 10 games going back to the start of December.
Greenwood, though 10-9 this season, made it to the state semifinals last year. As a first test in district play, the young Cavaliers passed with flying colors and continued to show confidence and poise. They hope to carry that into the rest of their schedule as district play picks up this month.
“I go back to Friday, we played Greenwood at home,” Cavaliers head coach Jonathan Comer said. “They got to the big house in Jackson last year in the Final Four, we played extremely well and ended with a double-digit win to start division play. We’re going on the road next against Houston, a formidable team, they’re well coached, and that’ll be a tough test.”
The Cavaliers were led by point guard Chris Blevins, who has been the primary playmaker and scorer this season. The junior leads Caledonia in scoring with more than 18 points per game, scoring 21 against Greenwood on Friday and 20 against Lamar County on Monday. He also leads the team with averages of 6.5 assists, seven rebounds and four steals per game for Caledonia.
“He leads our team in every high-level category,” Comer said. “It’s unprecedented for a point guard, he’s 5-foot-11, 6-foot tall. He’s stepped up and been a leader on our team, and we’ve gotten contributions from guys who were JV or role players last year with eight seniors in front of them.”
Guard Charlie Sullivan, the only senior in the starting rotation, is one of several guys stepping into bigger roles and making an impact for the Cavaliers. He and Blevins have taken on leadership roles for a team that includes several varsity newcomers, but it’s a group that has followed their lead and found a way to contribute.
Junior Ethan Halbert is shooting about 40% from three and sophomore Issac Williams has started to stand out in the post alongside freshman Aaron Harris to round out a young but efficient starting five.
“I’ve got a young team, only one kid with any varsity experience before this year, so it’s been a learning experience this season but they’ve bought in and meshed well as the season has gone on,” Comer said of the group. “That’s been our thing, playing together as a team, buying into what we’re trying to teach and the kids have done that. We’re 15-2 and playing a high level of basketball right now.”
The Cavaliers return home on Thursday for a Senior Night matchup with Tupelo Christian Prep, and though there aren’t many seniors for them to honor, they’ll hope to keep winning and showcase the program’s ambitions in a new facility with a new mindset on making Cavalier basketball a force.
“Anytime you go on the road in high school basketball is a tough test, but I think our win against Greenwood showed that we can compete with anyone in our division,” Comer said. “That’s been a point to our guys this season, we’re young but I’ve got them believing. If you believe you can compete, that’s half the battle.”
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