Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield, WV

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December 17, 2009

Player of Week: Hard work pays off for Smith

By LLOYD COMBS

PILGRIM'S KNOB, Va. — It's a shame no one counts the hundreds of hours in the gym, or the thousands of shots taken.

It does, however, count once the games begin. You can tell who's put the time and the work in on their individual game. You can tell just by watching Josh Smith go to work on the basketball court.

A former Black Diamond District Player of the Year, who's estbablished his credentials as a force in the low post in the past two Group A state tournaments, Smith is off to a terrific start for the Twin Valley Panthers, scoring 58 points and garnering 28 rebounds in wins over Graham and Tazewell.

Those efforts make him this week's Pocahontas Coal Association/Bluefield Daily Telegraph Player of the Week.

Smith, a physically strong, 6-1 senior, has been at this at the varsity level for a few years now, and he works just as hard now as he did when he came up through the Buchanan Basketball Foundation ranks as a youngster.

"Josh really is a workhorse," Twin Valley coach Brian Moore says. "People see how hard he works during games, but I don't think most people realize how much work he's put in on his game.

"He's put in a lot of hours over the years working on his post moves, and getting position and holding it. He's worked hard on his shot in the paint. And, this year he's developed a little bit more of a mid-range, game, too."

Smith surpassed the 1,000 mark in career points and rebounds as a junior.



Player of Week Honorable Mention



Dec. 1-13

Bland County (0-3 during 2 weeks): Asher Dillow, 39 points; Darryl Clark 28 points, Chase Hankins, 25 points;

Council (1-1): Travis Viers, 43 points, state record, 14 3s vs. John Battle; Shane Presley 24 points, 15 rebounds; Chris Tiller, 25 points; 17 rebounds.

Giles (1-0): Caleb Tilley, 12 points; Codey Williams, 12 points; Andy Randel, 11 points; Frankie Robertson, 10 points.

Graham (0-1): Jordan Bryan 21 points, 6 rebounds; David Marrs 16 points, 5 3s; Scott Brewster 9 points.

Grundy (2-1): Derek Hess, 56 points; Jon Kelly, 46 points; Cody Justus, 39 points; Logan Boyd, 22 points, 5 steals in win over Tazewell.

Haysi (2-0): Chris Fleming 52 points; Byron Bowman, 15 points vs. Ervinton; Jordan Childress, 13 points vs. Ervinton.

Honaker (1-0): Cory Brown, 16 points, 8 rebounds; Jeremiah Dye 14 points; Clark Dye 13 points; Tyler Brown 12 points; Ethan Davis 12 points

Mercer Christian (0-1): Jamie Beckner, 12 points; Chris Buchanan 10 points.

Montcalm (1-0): Naythan Mooney 21 points, 5 steals; Daniel Pendergrass 14 points, 6 steals; Jabe Meadows, 8 points, 6 blocked shots; Bobby Bailey 6 points, 9 rebounds; Matthew Pennington, 8 points, 9 rebounds.

Mount View (1-0): Malcolm Brown 23 points; Maurice Brown 18 points, Deshawn Headen 16 points; Chris Hardy 13 points; Raheem Pounds 12 points; Antoine Calloway 11 points.

Narrows (1-1): Ryan Dunford, 21 points, game-winner vs. Rural Retreat; Ben Thompson, 18 points; Brock Lusk 15 points; Jordan Green, 11 points, 9 rebounds vs. Rural Retreat.

Pipestem Christian (1-1): Austin Peyton, 40 points; Zach Worley, 19 points; Michael Young, 16 points vs. Seneca Trail.

Tazewell (1-2): Jeremiah Jessee, 39 points; Quentin Harris, 32 points; Blaine Hancock, 24 points; Brady Rhudy 24 points.

Twin Valley (2-0): Lucas Shortridge, 39 points; Daniel Hobbs, 19 points; Brandon Viers 13 points, 13 assists.

Note: Winners are determined from statistics provided to the Daily Telegraph. Coaches are urged to report games and make recommendations for this award.







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