The Kosciusko boys basketball team wound up the summer program with a game at Forest.
“We played a great Quitman team — well coached and very athletic,” said Kosciusko coach Eleazarus Greenleaf. ”It was a real battle. We ended up coming back to win the game.”
He said the summer session went well, but the team has some things to work on, mainly the uptempo game. “We want to play uptempo on both offense and defense.”
The Whippets focused mainly on defense.
“As a team, we learned that we will have to continue to work hard,” Greenleaf said. “Everyone has to step up and play. Our defense is going to carry us as far as we want to go.”
Kosciusko is coming off a 21-7 season that ended with a loss to a powerful Gentry team in the opening round of the MHSAA 4A playoffs. But graduation claimed the two best players. O'Corya Forrest and Terry Skinner both signed with Mississippi Delta Community College.
Returning players are led by Antonio Harmon, who will be a junior, and Calvin Banks, a senior.
Harmon is one of the state's top football players, a 4-star recruit rated as the state's second best player in the class of 2021 by the website 247 Sports.
“Antonio is coming into his own,” Greenleaf said. “He's one of the best wide receivers in the country. But he has started to get some notice in basketball.”
Banks is a player to be watched, according to Greenleaf. “I wish more colleges would come and take a look at him. He's a real diamond in the rough.”
Two other key returning players are Omarion Cobbins, who will be a senior, and JaQuan Hall, a junior.
Cobbins is a guard. “He'll be the playmaker this year. I'm really excited about him,” Greenleaf said.
Hall is a power forward. “He's a versatile player. He can shoot, He can pass,” Greenleaf said. “He's a really good talent.”
The summer session was an opportunity for some players expected to play a bigger role, including E'Shjon Mays, Zeke Mays (no relation), Davion Roby and Bobo Miller. “Those guys will contribute a lot this season,” Greenleaf said.
Kosciusko will be in Region 4-4A with Choctaw Central, Leake Central, Louisville, Northeast Lauderdale and West Lauderdale.
