VaPreps Class 2 All-State Hoops Teams for 2017-18

VirginiaPreps.com is proud to release our 10th Annual All-State Basketball Teams.

There are a total of 12 honorees with six players, including a Player of the Year, for First Team and six more on the Second Team.

So what are the factors that go into the choices that are made? All selections are made by me with no consultation of the coaches simply because that’s what the VHSCA and VHSL Teams are designed for in my opinion. However, we try to study individual statistics (some supplied by coaches upon request) as well as factor into the equation team success and overall impact.

Once everything is weighed, we try to blend it all together and make the best choices possible, even though there’s no such thing as a perfect team or right and wrong picks.

It’s never an easy process because there are always many deserving players who don’t get recognized on First or Second Team.

Without further ado, here’s the VirginiaPreps.com Class 2 All-State Basketball Teams for the 2017-18 campaign with information bios on each player . . .

Class 2 First Team:
Mac McClung - Gate City - Sr.
Jarvis Vaughan - Robert E. Lee-Staunton - Sr.
Quinton Morton-Robertson - Radford - Jr.
Zac Ervin - Gate City - Jr.
Darrin Martin - Graham - Sr.
Cole Meadows - Giles - Sr.

Player of the Year: Mac McClung (Gate City)
Coach of the Year: Scott Vermillion (Gate City)

Class 2 Second Team:
Deion Harwood - Goochland - Jr.
Luke Estep - Central-Woodstock - Sr.
Tyquan Odom - Greensville - Sr.
T.J. Pettway - Martinsville - Sr.
Kobi Alexander - Madison County - Sr.
Dalton Jefferson - East Rockingham - Jr.

There have been some memorable performances at the Siegel Center before, but one would be hard-pressed to find a better showing than what McClung turned in as Gate City won its first state title by a count of 80-65 over Robert E. Lee as the 6-foot-2 senior guard and highlight-reel machine pumped in 47 points. That marked a new VHSL State Championship game record, breaking the previous mark of 43 set by Cave Spring's J.J. Redick, now of the NBA, in 2002.

McClung, who shot 15-of-21 from the field with an array of crowd-pleasing dunks and 16-for-19 from charity stripe, set other significant scoring records. His 1153 points during his senior campaign (good for 38.4 per contest) set a new VHSL single-season mark, shattering the 948 of Bethel grad and former NBA MVP Allen Iverson in 1993. As for career totals, he graduated Gate City having scored 2801 points, eclipsing the VHSL record of 2770 set by Floyd County's Caleb Tanner in 2014.

The Georgetown signee also averaged eight rebounds, four assists and three steals per game for the 2017-18 campaign, one basketball fans in Virginia that witnessed the Mac Attack won't soon forget.

Those that pointed to the presence of Darius George, who's now at Marshall, as the primary reason why Vaughan flourished during last year's postseason have to respect how the 6-foot-8 big man played for the Leemen this past winter. The ODU commit followed up his 31-point performance in the 2017 State Championship win over Amelia by averaging 17.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game as a senior.

Vaughan, the Region 2B Player of the Year, was the calming influence on a Lee team that underwent a coaching change from Jarrett Hatcher to Terrell Mickens as the season began. The Leemen were 26-3 in games that he played, but lost the only one he sat out, which came against East Rockingham. Even though it came in a losing effort against Gate City, Vaughan emptied the tank in recording 21 points and 19 rebounds in his final game at Lee.

Trying to win a third straight state title is never easy, especially when you make the move up from Class 1 to a stronger Class 2 field as the Bobcats did in 2017-18, yet began the State Tournament as one of only two undefeated teams. Morton-Robertson, their dynamo 5-foot-8 junior point guard, allowed the 27-0 start to happen. And even though the ending wasn't what they wanted, a 67-48 quarterfinal loss to Gate City, he continued to turn heads all season long.

Morton-Robertson averaged 21.1 points and 5.1 assists per game while operating with such precision of their attack, illustrated by the fact he committed only 26 turnovers in 28 games. With a high of 35 points, Q proved he can take over a game as a scorer and his outside shooting continued to improve to the point where he connected on 45% of his long range attempts, plus made 81.8% of his free-throws.

As phenomenal as Mac McClung is, his teammate Ervin is a pretty darn good Robin to his Batman. In fact, through three seasons on the varsity level, Ervin's 1675 career points are more than what McClung had - 1648 - entering his senior year. This 6-foot-5 wing averaged 21 points, seven rebounds and three assists per game during his junior campaign.

Avenging a loss to Robert E. Lee from the 2017 State Tournament, the Blue Devils topped the Leemen 80-65 in this year's State Championship and Ervin played a pivotal role with 26 points on 11-of-19 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds. Already, nearly a dozen D-1 schools have offered him and for good reason as he is in position to hit 2000 career points next season and be a three-time All-State First Team performer that plays in the State Playoffs each year of his Blue Devils career.

Any other season, Martin might've been the pick for State Player of the Year at the Class 2 level. After all, he led the G-Men to a 75-59 victory over Gate City in the Region 2D Championship with 27 points in the victory, was named the Southwest District Player of the Year and helped Graham win 24 of the 27 contests that they played.

The 6-foot-2 senior guard averaged 23 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.8 steals per game as Graham got to the State Tournament Final Four round for the first time since 2003. Martin shot 73% inside the three-point, 31.1% from long distance and was sharp at the foul line in converting 79.9% of his attempts there.

Right away, Meadows made his impact felt against one of the top Class 2 programs when he posted 34 points, seven rebounds and six blocks in a loss at Graham on opening night. There wasn't much slowing down from there for the 6-foot-4 senior guard who had 42 points, eight boards, three assists and three steals in a double-overtime loss to Class 1 State Tournament semifinalist George Wythe at the Chance Harman Classic.

For the season, Meadows averaged 28 points and 8.1 rebounds per game while shooting 57% from the field, 41% behind the three-point line and 83% on free-throws. The First Team All-Region 2C and All-Three Rivers District performer piled up 40 or more points on five different occasions.

Eight times before, the Blue Devils had been to the State Tournament Final Four and failed to win the trophy. In fact, they had gone to the State Championship four previous times since 1999 and been unable to finish as the last time standing. That changed for Vermillion and company in March of 2018.

Vermillion, in his 15th season at the helm of Gate City following a five-year tenure at Twin Springs, saw his squad beat a Robert E. Lee team that denied them the title in 2017 by a count of 80-65 for the Championship. Maybe most impressive is the fact they re-grouped from a 16-point loss to Graham in the Region 2D Championship to win three straight State Tournament games - against unbeaten Radford, Graham and Lee - by double-figures to finish 28-2 overall.

It was a season of milestones for Goochland basketball, which captured its first regional title in program history and can attribute a good deal of their accomplishments to the play of Harwood. In that 55-43 triumph over Greensville for the regional crown, he scored 21 points and knocked down four three-pointers.

Only a junior, the 5-foot-11 Harwood averaged 15 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 2.0 assists per game on his way to earning Region 2A Player of the Year and James River District Player of the Year honors. Also worth pointing out is that he was near automatic at the free-throw line, converting 84%, and made 37% of his field goal tries from three-point territory.

Headed to play baseball at Roanoke College, Estep opened some eyes with his basketball skills as the Falcons captured Bull Run District regular season and tourney titles. Furthermore, the 6-foot-3 senior swingman played a huge role in Central-Woodstock going 24-5 overall and reaching the State Tournament semifinals for the first time since 1999.

On the season, Estep averaged 15.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game. That was more than enough to make him a First Team All-Region 2B selection as well as First Team All-Bull Run District.

As the Eagles clinched their second State Tournament berth in three years by winning 12 of 15 games, two seniors in Odom and DeAndre Anderson proved to be the catalysts. Odom averaged 17.5 points, 6.7 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game, showing that whether it was scoring or facilitating, he managed to do it effectively while playing solid defense for a Greensville squad that finished 20-8 overall.

The 5-foot-7 senior point guard scored 17 points in their State Tournament quarterfinal loss to Robert E. Lee of Staunton by a count of 58-46. Yet, the All-Tri-Rivers District First Team selection consistently used his speed and athleticism in the open floor to give opposing guards at the Class 2 level problems.

With 17 points in his team's overtime slugfest win over Magna Vista, Pettway helped Martinsville capture the Piedmont District regular season title and accompanying #1 seed for the district playoffs. The 6-foot-1 senior point guard averaged 17 points per game a season ago, and although his scoring dipped just a tad to 15 points a contest this year, he remained the offensive sparkplug for a Bulldogs team that has been known for years for their vaunted 2-3 zone defense.

A two-sport athlete that also excelled in football as a wide receiver, Pettway led Martinsville to its fourth State Tournament appearance in five years. SImply put, his vision and burst in the open court were instrumental in the Bulldogs finishing 19-8 overall to remain among the top programs in all of Class 2.

Madison County didn't have nearly the amount of success in 2017-18 as they did the season before, when the Mountaineers captured the 2A-East Region Tournament crown. However, in spite of their 11-14 overall record and first round playoff exit, Alexander should be commended for his superb all-around play.

Alexander averaged 17.9 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game while shooting 57% from the floor. One of his best performances came against Stuarts Draft when the First Team All-Region 2B pick almost recorded a triple-double with 23 points, 16 rebounds, nine assists and three blocks. In a win over Luray, the 6-foot-2 senior forward dominated with 42 points, 14 rebounds and six steals.

With their top three scorers from the season before in Javon Butler, Chis Rogers and Logan Comer having departed, some wondered how East Rockingham would be able to replace those 46 points per game. Enter Jefferson, a 6-foot-6 forward who put up respectable numbers of 11 points and six rebounds a contest during his sophomore year to earn All-District honors.

Once again as a junior, Jefferson was named All-Shenandoah District, but he raised his averages to 17.3 points, 9.8 rebounds, 4.8 blocks and 1.3 assists per game in helping the Eagles to a 18-8 overall record. The First Team All-Region 2B performer turned in several strong performances. Among the most notable was a 32-point effort in a win over Stuarts Draft in the Shenandoah District Tournament semifinals.

*** See VaPreps 2A All-State Teams for 2016-17 Here ***

*** View VHSL Class 2 All-State Teams for 2017-18 Here ***

Matthew Hatfield serves as Publisher for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network, and is a regular contributor to the ACC Sports Journal. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and don’t forget to listen to him every Saturday at 10 AM to Noon on ESPN Radio 94.1.