Best of 2010s: See who made The State’s all-decade Midlands boys basketball team
Here are the best boys high school basketball players in the Midlands for the last decade (2010-19) as decided by a panel at The State. A player had to finish his high school career at Columbia-area school to be considered. Listed in alphabetical order:
Austin Ajukwa, Cardinal Newman — No. 2 prospect in his class as a senior by ESPN. He averaged 21.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.5 steals in helping Cardinal Newman to state title as a senior. Played at Clemson and UNC Charlotte.
Detrek Browning, Irmo — North-South selection helped Irmo to 29-0 record and No. 13 ranking by USA Today as a senior. He averaged 13.7 points, 4.0 assists, 3.3 steals, and 3.3 rebounds as a senior. Played at Francis Marion, where he set school’s all-time scoring record.
Chico Carter, Cardinal Newman — Left as Cardinal Newman’s all-time leading scorer with 1,868 points and helped Cardinals to state title in final year. As a senior, he averaged 24.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and four assists. Freshman at Murray State.
Jordan Davis, Dutch Fork — Class 4A Player of the Year as a junior and 5A Player of the Year as a senior. Left Dutch Fork as all-time leading scorer with 1,659 points. Averaged 22.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.7 steals for his career. Signed with Dayton and is currently at Middle Tennessee.
PJ Dozier, Spring Valley — McDonald’s All-American and No. 19 prospect in the country by ESPN as a senior. Class 4A Player of the Year averaged 19 points and six assists per game during senior season. Played at South Carolina and is currently on Denver Nuggets roster as a two-player. Also has been with Oklahoma City and Boston in NBA.
Jalek Felton, Gray Collegiate — S.C. Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior and averaged 26.8 points, 5.4 assists and 4.8 rebounds in only season at Gray. Ranked as 30th-best player nationally in his class by 247Sports and finished his career with more than 2,000 career points. Played at North Carolina and is now overseas.
Tre Jackson, Blythewood — All-State selection and 1,000-point scorer at Blythewood averaged 20 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 4.0 steals per game as a senior. MVP of Carolinas Classic when he scored a record 38 points. Freshman at Iowa State.
Russell Jones, Westwood — Class 4A co-Player of Year averaged 18.9 points, 4.6 assists and 3.9 steals as a senior; went over 1,000-point mark. Currently a freshman at Winthrop.
Tevin Mack, Dreher — Two-time Class 3A Player of the Year averaged nearly 30 points and nine rebounds per game his senior season. He was ranked as No. 48 player in the country by ESPN as a senior. Played at Texas and Alabama, and is finishing up career at Clemson.
Justin McKie, Irmo — Was 2013 S.C. Gatorade Player of the Year and helped helped Irmo to 29-0 record and No. 13 ranking by USA Today. Averaged 18.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.8 steals as a senior. Played at South Carolina.
James Reese, AC Flora — Class 4A Player of the Year as a senior and part of two AC Flora state title teams. Averaged 25 points per game, 5.0 assists and 3.0 steals per game during his senior season. Signed with Buffalo and is currently at North Texas.
Jordan Roper, Irmo — All-state selection as a senior and Class 4A Player of the Year as a junior. Averaged 17.1 points, 4.6 assists and 2.3 steals per game as a senior and was MVP of Carolinas Classic. Played at Clemson.
Marcus Stroman, Keenan — Part of two Keenan state title teams. He was an all-state selection as a senior and averaged 16.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 7.5 assists. Was No. 2 recruit in state by ESPN as a senior. Played at South Carolina and Louisiana Lafayette.
Clyde Trapp, Lower Richland — Part of Lower Richland’s state title team as a senior. In his final year, he averaged 17.1 points and 5.8 rebounds. All-State selection and MVP for South team at Carolinas Classic. Sophomore at Clemson.
Seventh Woods, Hammond — One of the most talked-about players to come out of Columbia. S.C. Gatorade Player of the Year as a sophomore and helped Hammond win state championship as a junior. Averaged 18.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and five assists per game as a senior and finished his career with more than 2,000 points. Played at North Carolina and finishing career at South Carolina.
Team of Decade, Keenan — Made 5 championship appearances, winning titles in 2010, 2011, 2015, 2019.
