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PREP BASKETBALL: Newton's Tre Clark draws his first scholarship offer
Tre Clark
Newton's Tre Clark (pictured) along with fellow seniors Armani Harris and Tyrease Brown will guide the Rams in their Region 8-AAAAAAA title defense when region tournament action begins Wednesday.

COVINGTON, Ga. — Newton boys basketball player Tre Clark has been putting in major work during the offseason, and it’s starting to pay off on and off the court. 

Clark, a 6-foot-2 senior point guard, picked up his first scholarship offer Saturday from Clayton State University, a NCAA Division II school in Morrow, Georgia, after going on an official visit. 

Clark was a starter on last year’s Class AAAAAAA Final Four Newton squad, and helped bolster a talented backcourt led by now-Kentucky freshman point guard Ashton Hagans and fellow returning senior Tyrease Brown. 

Both Clark and Brown have shown sharp-shooter tendencies from the outside, but Clark has gotten noticeably bigger and stronger and is beginning to become more of a paint slasher as a guard. 

Rams coach Rick Rasmussen said he knew the recruiting attention Clark is beginning to get was inevitable. 

“We felt like it was just a matter of time for him to get his first offer, as several schools have seen him and expressed interest,” Rasmussen said. “We played at Clayton State this June as a team, and Tre played well there, so they have been interested since then.” 

Clark was a second-team All-Covington News selection last season, and had a strong summer. With the absence of six graduated seniors from last year’s Region 8-AAAAAAA squad, Clark will be counted on more heavily to pick up the scoring and leadership slack for a Rams squad that will face a stiff non-region schedule, playing against teams like Eagle’s Landing Christian, Jonesboro, St. Pius X and Morgan County. 

“We have another very difficult schedule against lots of great teams,” Rasmussen said. “It will be a real challenge, especially considering we lost six seniors, including five players who are now playing at the next level, including two D-1 talents.” 

And Rasmussen believes Clark has done the work necessary to fill some of those voids, particularly at point guard where he’ll succeed Hagans at that position. 

“We are proud of Tre and excited that his hard work and belief in the process is paying off,” he said. “We are very excited about this season, and can’t wait to see Tre continue to grow and improve on and off the court. He has a bright future.”