Choctaw County coach Gary Beals doesn't like to lose. But, he said, “If you're going to lose, there is no better place to lose than in Jackson in the state tournament.”
That is exactly what happened to the Chargers this year, who played their best basketball at the end of this season. After beating South Pontotoc and Nettleton for the Region 4-3A championship, the Chargers defeated Mantachie and Amanda Elzy in the playoffs to reach the 3A quarterfinals at the Mississippi Coliseum. A 37-36 loss to Tylertown was heartbreaking, but it didn't diminish the team's accomplishments during the season.
“It was a great success and a great group of kids,” Beals said. “Our community could not ask for better representation than our seven seniors provided for us.”
Graduation will take away the Chargers' top four scorers, but Beals is optimistic about the future. “We have had a philosophy here the last three or four years. We just reload. We have some young guards and some post players. I look for Rakeim Ashford and Logan Murphy to be good leaders for us.”
Ashford and Murphy were the only juniors on the team this year.
“Israel (Whitmore) is going to help us in the post.” Beals said. “I have so many guards, I hate to name them all, guards who are going to be athletic to carry on the success we have had the last three or four years.”
The Chargers were led by seniors Akeem Kirkwood, Devonte Miller, Jeremy Miller and Steven Triplett. Kirkwood led the team in most categories, including points, (17.5 per game), rebounds (9.1), field goal percentage (53 percent) and assists (93). Devonte Miller averaged 9.4 points and led in steals with 77. Triplett averaged 7.9 points and Jeremy Miller 7.8, with a team leading 29 blocks.
The Chargers averaged 56 points in compiling a 23-10 record.
