Sessions, Myrtle Beach advance past Battery Creek

When Brian Kiper was hired to take over the Myrtle Beach girls basketball program four seasons ago, he was awestruck at the potential that laid ahead.

Back then, Khadijah Sessions was just a freshman – granted, one with some extreme talent and two years of varsity experience. Flash forward four years, and Sessions has already led Kiper’s team to two state championships.

Monday’s 49-35 victory over Battery Creek in the first round of the Class AAA playoffs, however, was another reminder that Sessions’ spectacular high school career is nearing its end. More than likely, Sessions has played her final home game for a Seahawks team that has to go on the road to Dreher on Thursday.

“I want to ride this as long as we can,” Kiper said after his team added another double-digit victory to the Sessions era. “I know she doesn’t want this to end. When you’ve got a player like that that doesn’t want her career to end, you can go places. We’re going to have to play well on Thursday. But we’re going to play this out as long as we can and go from there.”

Even if Myrtle Beach is able to pull the upset against Dreher, the Seahawks would need some other help in the Lower State bracket to get another home game.

Sessions, as she has had to do after most of the last two title teams moved on following last season, did her part to make sure Monday’s game wasn’t her last altogether. Against the Dolphins, she finished 29 points, including 12 straight in the first and second quarters.

Early on, she also did her part to knock Battery Creek’s top two players – Daisja Cannon and Alisha Varela – out of the game. She drew nine first-half fouls, including five on those two players. It was a major factor in Myrtle Beach (20-5) turning a 13-8 first-quarter deficit into a 32-15 third-quarter lead.

For much of that big run, Sessions was doing the damage by herself.

“They say I’ve been a leader since I was in seventh grade. But that leader doesn’t always mean the same thing,” Sessions said. “Sometimes you have to lead vocally. Sometimes you have to come out hard mentally. Sometimes you have to put that all into one. I’ve developed as a leader. I will say, this is the hardest year of basketball. It makes me versatile.”

Sessions and Kiper, though, aren’t immune to the fact that Sessions likely won’t be able to singlehandedly beat Dreher. That team’s in Year Two of what could be South Carolina’s next great team.

That doesn’t mean Sessions, named over the weekend as the player of the year in Class AAA, can’t be the impetus, be it offensively or getting her teammates to play with the same fire.

“You add people to the team year after year. Those new people, during the first couple weeks of practice, where you get into the first game situation, she says something,” Kiper said. “She’s a competitor. She’s probably not the nicest person when she says it. I have to pull that person aside and tell that person ‘She’s only doing it because she’s a competitor and she wants to make you better.’ ”

Against Battery Creek (6-15), the future South Carolina Gamecock took over at various parts of the game despite a nasty cold. At other times, she passed up on open looks to keep her teammates involved.

It’s been a necessary task, especially after forward Tanisha Brown went down with a season-ending knee injury.

And whether it comes on the road or the Seahawks somehow find a way to get another game in Myrtle Beach, Sessions isn’t ready to trade her green and white jersey for a garnet and white one just yet.

“We’ve got to take this game by game. This isn’t a team like last year when we said we’re going to go win state,” she said. “We have to try to get everyone’s best game at that time.

“If I lead my team how I know, I think we can go on, keep winning.”

•  BATTERY CREEK (35) – Khadijah Badger 2, Daisjia Cannon 9, Jasmine Wallace 6, Elizabeth Ford 2, Alex Bazemore 6, Erica Alson 2, Alisha Varela 8.

• MYRTLE BEACH (49) – Khadijah Sessions 29, Christiana Myers 11, Martina Ballestero 2, Shavae Shaw 2, Tasha Chestnut 1, Kardejah Anderson 4.

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3-point goals: BC 2 (Bazemore 2); Myrtle Beach 1 (Sessions). Team fouls: BC 17, MB 17. Fouled out: None. Technical fouls: None.

• Records: Battery Creek 6-15; Myrtle Beach 20-5.