1. Watching NC State junior commit Paul McNeil on back-to-back Saturday’s in big playoff games was a great way to cap the prep season. NC State coach Kevin Keatts came to both games.
There is a big event coming up this week at Lincolnton (N.C.) Combine Academy for private schools not in the NCISAA, but Championship Saturday had the feel of a perfect ending to high school basketball.
Charlotte Myers Park topped McNeil and Rockingham Richmond Senior in the NCHSAA 4A state title game at the Dean E. Smith Center at UNC. The fans were able to sit in the lower bowl only, and it was probably at 85 percent capacity, maybe higher. That kind of crowd might also mean UNC will host future games where the NCHSAA is worried about crowd size. It felt like the entire town of Rockingham showed up, and that every student from Myers Park made the multi-bus ride over.
McNeil played well but had a lot of responsibilities to juggle, so there is a certain lens to view his game. He finished shooting 6 of 16 from the field 2 of 8 on three-pointers and 7 of 10 from the free-throw line for 21 points. He was credited with six rebounds and two assists and eventually fouled out with about 3:45 left in the game. It was also good to see the 10 free-throw attempts — he made his last seven of them — because he only had one free throw last week against Holly Springs (N.C.) High.
McNeil just didn’t get much help from his teammates and part of that is because of how good Myers Park is. He had to carry the offense, create shots for teammates and then battle 6-7 Elijah Strong and 6-8 Sadiq White in the paint.
McNeil also put a lot of pressure on his defender. He drew some fouls on Sir Mohammed and nearly fouled out point guard Bishop Boswell. Not saying the game was decided by this controversial scenario, but with a little over three minutes left in the third quarter, it appeared that Boswell got his fourth foul guarding McNeil. However, the person doing the official book had him for three fouls apparently, and that meant Boswell didn’t have to sit until 4-5 minutes left in the game.
That said, it also shows the pressure McNeil puts on a defender with his outside-based jump-shooting game. I’ve long said it’s very hard for freshman to come into the ACC and average 10-plus points per game. Only three could do it this season — Duke’s Kyle Filipowski, Syracuse’s Judah Mintz and Notre Dame’s J.J. Starling. I think McNeil will be able to do that his freshman year at NC State.
Seeing the buzz come back was also great. North Carolina is a complicated state with NCISAA usually getting the top teams, but now programs like Lincolnton Combine Academy, Winston-Salem Christian and Raleigh Word of God gobbling up in-state talent but not in the NCISAA.
However, a renaissance has happened with the NCHSAA top teams, and that was on display the last two weekends, and the crowds that attended proved it.
The West Charlotte vs. Winterville South Central game at Reynolds Coliseum on March 16, 2019, was pre-Covid, and it had a combination of star power and well known programs, but the game itself wasn’t close. Future NBA first-round pick Day’Ron Sharpe had 23 points 13 rebounds and three blocks in a 72-46 win. Future NBA first-round pick Patrick Williams led West Charlotte with 18 points and five board.
2. North Carolina historians will study Charlotte Myers Park and rank them accordingly. Personally, the Mustangs looked pretty good Saturday and they had a dominant playoff run.
Not many teams can say they defeated squads led by two top 40 prospects in back-to-back games like NC State junior commit McNeil of Richmond Senior, and last week with Huntersville North Mecklenburg junior wing Isaiah Evans.
Myers Park went 28-4 with in-state losses to Charlotte Chambers and Matthews Carmel Christian, and then two losses at the prestigious City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Fla.
NC State has evaluated sophomore power forward White and junior point guard Boswell, and have offered junior wing Mohammed of Myers Park. NC State assistant coach Joel Justus watched Myers Park and North Meck last week, and as mentioned above, Keatts watched the state title game.
Long-time readers know I have been bullish on Boswell, and he showed again why last night. Boswell went 7 of 10 from the field and 2 of 3 on three-pointers en route to 22 points, six rebounds and four assists. He also took over guarding McNeil at some point in the first quarter after Mohammed started off on him.
Boswell could have been a Division I wide receiver, but after transferring from Charlotte South Mecklenburg to Myers Park, it became clear he was the missing piece in a championship puzzle when the NCHSAA had its recruiting events last June in Bermuda Run, N.C.
Boswell is physical, has good vision and can create his own shot. With talented teammates around him, he doesn’t have to go for 30 points like he did at South Meck. Will NC State offer? Good question, but if he ends up at some other ACC program, he’ll make an impact. The fact that Keatts was able to see what I’d call a vintage Boswell performance, the Wolfpack have done their due diligence. Boswell is similar in size to L.J. Thomas of NC State, but he has a little more explosiveness in getting to the rim.
White has “wow” athleticism, which he showed in the second half. He finished with 15 points and seven rebounds and went 7 of 9 from the field. He’s about 6-8 and is slender, and is definitely a power forward at the moment (though Rivals has him at small forward). He’s all upside and that has many excited, but he’s also raw. He’ll have some eye-popping dunks in an Ernest Ross kind of way.
Mohammed was aggressive at the start of the game and was off to a good start. He then tumbled a few times on his drives to the rim, and that is when Boswell took over the defensive duties on McNeil. Mohammed finished with nine points and three assists and he’s been a complicated evaluation. There are certain nuances with Mohammed in that his basketball IQ is good, he does the little things and he has name recognition due to being the son of former NBA player and current Oklahoma City Thunder executive Nazr Mohammed. It has led to a high-profile recruitment.
The fourth key cog for Myers Park, but definitely not the fourth most important player is unsigned senior power forward Strong. He’s like clockwork in getting his 15-18 points every game, and in the state title game he went for 22 points and seven rebounds. Richmond Senior doesn’t have a player with that kind of 6-7, 230-pound size.
Strong reminds me a lot of Virginia power forward Jayden Gardner, who once upon a time took Wake Forest Heritage to the NCHSAA 4A state title game. Gardner overachieved at East Carolina for three years and then made the move to UVA. Strong had been planning on going to Wofford, but is now looking at many mid-majors. Could history repeat where he goes to a school for 2-3 years and then ends up at a high major? It wouldn’t surprise me at all.
3. Call it the opening act, but if historians are going to ponder where Myers Park ranks among recent NCHSAA state champions, there is another item to debate. When was the last time a freshmen duo have been as good as Reidsville High’s Kendre’ Harrison and Dionte Neal.
The wait was worth it to watch them battle a tough, gritty Farmville Central squad, which only knows winning NCHSAA 2A state titles. The game had NC State sophomore shooting guard Terquavion Smith at the end of the Farmville Central bench, and it had NCSU sophomore guard Breon Pass at the end of the Reidsville bench as proud alums.
Farmville Central pulled away for a 75-63 victory, but the game was closer than that score. Farmville Central always seemingly had a 3-to-5 point lead, and senior Jah Short had a game for the ages with 35 points and six rebounds. He has signed with New Orleans and he’ll be another player to monitor on whether he gets ACC good enough one day and transfers.
Neal proved to be worthy co-headliner to Short. The football-basketball standout is listed at 5-9 and 160 pounds and his recruitment will probably come down to who isn’t worried about his size.
Neal was electric with 32 points and four assists, and he showed good leadership and moxie. He went 11 of 20 from the field, 3 of 5 on three-pointers and 7 of 10 at the free-throw line.
Then there is Harrison, who is a beast inside at 6-7 and 230, and as has been said repeatedly, good enough to be ranked in the top 100 in both football and basketball by Rivals.com one day in the 2026 class. Harrison finished with 13 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks (though it seemed like more) before fouling out. The nephew of NC State hoops standout C.C. Harrison will need to develop a mid-range jumper and a go-to move in the post if he wants to maximize his basketball potential.
Reidsville also had reached the state title game in football, finishing state runner-up, so this is a heck of a start to the careers of Neal and Harrison. Pondering past freshman duos, with some short-lived, a few came to mind over the last 15 years:
• Cody Martin and Caleb Martin at Mocksville Davie County
• Jarin Stevenson and Drake Powell at Pittsboro Northwood
• Dennis Smith Jr. and Kwe Parker at Fayetteville Trinity Christian
• Rodney Purvis and Tyrek Coger at Raleigh Upper Room
• Jacoby Davis and Marquis Rankin at Charlotte Chambers
• Keyshaun Langley and Kobe Langley at High Point Southwest Guilford
I’m sure there are others and welcome any debate on the subject, but Neal and Harrison are one of a kind.
There is a big event coming up this week at Lincolnton (N.C.) Combine Academy for private schools not in the NCISAA, but Championship Saturday had the feel of a perfect ending to high school basketball.
Charlotte Myers Park topped McNeil and Rockingham Richmond Senior in the NCHSAA 4A state title game at the Dean E. Smith Center at UNC. The fans were able to sit in the lower bowl only, and it was probably at 85 percent capacity, maybe higher. That kind of crowd might also mean UNC will host future games where the NCHSAA is worried about crowd size. It felt like the entire town of Rockingham showed up, and that every student from Myers Park made the multi-bus ride over.
McNeil played well but had a lot of responsibilities to juggle, so there is a certain lens to view his game. He finished shooting 6 of 16 from the field 2 of 8 on three-pointers and 7 of 10 from the free-throw line for 21 points. He was credited with six rebounds and two assists and eventually fouled out with about 3:45 left in the game. It was also good to see the 10 free-throw attempts — he made his last seven of them — because he only had one free throw last week against Holly Springs (N.C.) High.
McNeil just didn’t get much help from his teammates and part of that is because of how good Myers Park is. He had to carry the offense, create shots for teammates and then battle 6-7 Elijah Strong and 6-8 Sadiq White in the paint.
McNeil also put a lot of pressure on his defender. He drew some fouls on Sir Mohammed and nearly fouled out point guard Bishop Boswell. Not saying the game was decided by this controversial scenario, but with a little over three minutes left in the third quarter, it appeared that Boswell got his fourth foul guarding McNeil. However, the person doing the official book had him for three fouls apparently, and that meant Boswell didn’t have to sit until 4-5 minutes left in the game.
That said, it also shows the pressure McNeil puts on a defender with his outside-based jump-shooting game. I’ve long said it’s very hard for freshman to come into the ACC and average 10-plus points per game. Only three could do it this season — Duke’s Kyle Filipowski, Syracuse’s Judah Mintz and Notre Dame’s J.J. Starling. I think McNeil will be able to do that his freshman year at NC State.
Seeing the buzz come back was also great. North Carolina is a complicated state with NCISAA usually getting the top teams, but now programs like Lincolnton Combine Academy, Winston-Salem Christian and Raleigh Word of God gobbling up in-state talent but not in the NCISAA.
However, a renaissance has happened with the NCHSAA top teams, and that was on display the last two weekends, and the crowds that attended proved it.
The West Charlotte vs. Winterville South Central game at Reynolds Coliseum on March 16, 2019, was pre-Covid, and it had a combination of star power and well known programs, but the game itself wasn’t close. Future NBA first-round pick Day’Ron Sharpe had 23 points 13 rebounds and three blocks in a 72-46 win. Future NBA first-round pick Patrick Williams led West Charlotte with 18 points and five board.
2. North Carolina historians will study Charlotte Myers Park and rank them accordingly. Personally, the Mustangs looked pretty good Saturday and they had a dominant playoff run.
Not many teams can say they defeated squads led by two top 40 prospects in back-to-back games like NC State junior commit McNeil of Richmond Senior, and last week with Huntersville North Mecklenburg junior wing Isaiah Evans.
Myers Park went 28-4 with in-state losses to Charlotte Chambers and Matthews Carmel Christian, and then two losses at the prestigious City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Fla.
NC State has evaluated sophomore power forward White and junior point guard Boswell, and have offered junior wing Mohammed of Myers Park. NC State assistant coach Joel Justus watched Myers Park and North Meck last week, and as mentioned above, Keatts watched the state title game.
Long-time readers know I have been bullish on Boswell, and he showed again why last night. Boswell went 7 of 10 from the field and 2 of 3 on three-pointers en route to 22 points, six rebounds and four assists. He also took over guarding McNeil at some point in the first quarter after Mohammed started off on him.
Boswell could have been a Division I wide receiver, but after transferring from Charlotte South Mecklenburg to Myers Park, it became clear he was the missing piece in a championship puzzle when the NCHSAA had its recruiting events last June in Bermuda Run, N.C.
Boswell is physical, has good vision and can create his own shot. With talented teammates around him, he doesn’t have to go for 30 points like he did at South Meck. Will NC State offer? Good question, but if he ends up at some other ACC program, he’ll make an impact. The fact that Keatts was able to see what I’d call a vintage Boswell performance, the Wolfpack have done their due diligence. Boswell is similar in size to L.J. Thomas of NC State, but he has a little more explosiveness in getting to the rim.
White has “wow” athleticism, which he showed in the second half. He finished with 15 points and seven rebounds and went 7 of 9 from the field. He’s about 6-8 and is slender, and is definitely a power forward at the moment (though Rivals has him at small forward). He’s all upside and that has many excited, but he’s also raw. He’ll have some eye-popping dunks in an Ernest Ross kind of way.
Mohammed was aggressive at the start of the game and was off to a good start. He then tumbled a few times on his drives to the rim, and that is when Boswell took over the defensive duties on McNeil. Mohammed finished with nine points and three assists and he’s been a complicated evaluation. There are certain nuances with Mohammed in that his basketball IQ is good, he does the little things and he has name recognition due to being the son of former NBA player and current Oklahoma City Thunder executive Nazr Mohammed. It has led to a high-profile recruitment.
The fourth key cog for Myers Park, but definitely not the fourth most important player is unsigned senior power forward Strong. He’s like clockwork in getting his 15-18 points every game, and in the state title game he went for 22 points and seven rebounds. Richmond Senior doesn’t have a player with that kind of 6-7, 230-pound size.
Strong reminds me a lot of Virginia power forward Jayden Gardner, who once upon a time took Wake Forest Heritage to the NCHSAA 4A state title game. Gardner overachieved at East Carolina for three years and then made the move to UVA. Strong had been planning on going to Wofford, but is now looking at many mid-majors. Could history repeat where he goes to a school for 2-3 years and then ends up at a high major? It wouldn’t surprise me at all.
3. Call it the opening act, but if historians are going to ponder where Myers Park ranks among recent NCHSAA state champions, there is another item to debate. When was the last time a freshmen duo have been as good as Reidsville High’s Kendre’ Harrison and Dionte Neal.
The wait was worth it to watch them battle a tough, gritty Farmville Central squad, which only knows winning NCHSAA 2A state titles. The game had NC State sophomore shooting guard Terquavion Smith at the end of the Farmville Central bench, and it had NCSU sophomore guard Breon Pass at the end of the Reidsville bench as proud alums.
Farmville Central pulled away for a 75-63 victory, but the game was closer than that score. Farmville Central always seemingly had a 3-to-5 point lead, and senior Jah Short had a game for the ages with 35 points and six rebounds. He has signed with New Orleans and he’ll be another player to monitor on whether he gets ACC good enough one day and transfers.
Neal proved to be worthy co-headliner to Short. The football-basketball standout is listed at 5-9 and 160 pounds and his recruitment will probably come down to who isn’t worried about his size.
Neal was electric with 32 points and four assists, and he showed good leadership and moxie. He went 11 of 20 from the field, 3 of 5 on three-pointers and 7 of 10 at the free-throw line.
Then there is Harrison, who is a beast inside at 6-7 and 230, and as has been said repeatedly, good enough to be ranked in the top 100 in both football and basketball by Rivals.com one day in the 2026 class. Harrison finished with 13 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks (though it seemed like more) before fouling out. The nephew of NC State hoops standout C.C. Harrison will need to develop a mid-range jumper and a go-to move in the post if he wants to maximize his basketball potential.
Reidsville also had reached the state title game in football, finishing state runner-up, so this is a heck of a start to the careers of Neal and Harrison. Pondering past freshman duos, with some short-lived, a few came to mind over the last 15 years:
• Cody Martin and Caleb Martin at Mocksville Davie County
• Jarin Stevenson and Drake Powell at Pittsboro Northwood
• Dennis Smith Jr. and Kwe Parker at Fayetteville Trinity Christian
• Rodney Purvis and Tyrek Coger at Raleigh Upper Room
• Jacoby Davis and Marquis Rankin at Charlotte Chambers
• Keyshaun Langley and Kobe Langley at High Point Southwest Guilford
I’m sure there are others and welcome any debate on the subject, but Neal and Harrison are one of a kind.
