COVINGTON, Ga. — It is no secret that the Newton boys basketball team backcourt is stacked with Division I talent. But, the frontcourt has assisted with the team’s success during the 2021-22 campaign, too.
Seniors Daniel Pounds, Miokaye Grant and Malachi Hardy are three of the Rams’ centers this season operating down low in the paint.
Head coach Charlemagne Gibbons believes these individuals and their impact often gets overlooked.
According to Gibbons, the Rams wouldn’t be No. 1 in Region 4-AAAAAAA and have a definite state playoff berth if it wasn’t for them.
“We can’t win the state title without Daniel Pounds, Mio Grant and Malachi Hardy giving us a good brunt inside to balance it off,” Gibbons said. “It may not always come out in the stat book, but those interior guys are very important to us.”
Heading into the postseason, the Rams are 21-4 overall with an unblemished 8-0 record in Region 4-AAAAAAA.
As the season’s progressed, though, Pounds, Grant and Hardy said they haven’t worried about who’s in the spotlight. Their focus has been on how the team can get better for the postseason.
Pounds, specifically, said he and his teammates are aiming to be the last team standing.
“From certain standpoints we might get overlooked,” Pounds said. “But I’m not really here for the fame. I’m just here to get the job done. At the end of the day, I want that ring on my finger.”
Even though all of the success seems to suggest smooth sailing for Newton this season, that couldn’t be further from the truth, Hardy said. Nevertheless, Hardy believes the team has become better as a result of some adversity throughout the season.
“We’ve come together and built a better bond,” Hardy said. “I think the chemistry has risen to another level.”
In addition to seeing progression as a team, Pounds, Grant and Hardy pointed to areas they feel they need to improve on individually.
Whether it’s building better stamina, developing better on-court awareness or just simply knocking down free throws, Pounds said no one knows the biggest areas they need to improve in more than themselves.
“We hold each other accountable for everything and hold ourselves to a certain standard,” Pounds said.
Now, with the regular season over, the Rams shift their focus to the region tournament beginning on Feb. 16. After earning a first round bye, Newton will face-off against South Gwinnett in the second round of the Region 4-AAAAAAA tournament at home.
For Pounds, Grant and Hardy, pursuing a state title has been at the forefront of their minds all season. But, now that the postseason is here for the Rams, Grant has sensed a renewed focus by he and his teammates on accomplishing the goals.
As a matter of fact, Grant said they are looking for themselves to be a catalyst for a deep run into early March.
“We are the target now,” Grant said. “We used to hunt, but now we’re hunted. We got to go in there expecting it to be a battle every night. We can’t just walk in there and expect to win.”
