The North Carolina high school landscape is as fluid and unpredictable as ever. New programs are emerging, teams progressing, and players relocating all across the state. Take the So. Meck 7 4A conference, which consists of Olympic, Ardrey Kell, Harding University, South Mecklenburg, West Mecklenburg, Phillip O’Berry, and Providence. Aside from Trevon Williams, Olympic graduated most of their production. The same applies to Ardrey Kell, who will go forward with a core of Evan Smith, Peyton Gerald, and Elijah Gray. South Mecklenburg is considered to be on the rise with Joseph Ferrante and the recent hiring of Gary Hall as the head coach. Phillip O’Berry has seen up-and-down success while Providence and West Mecklenburg have struggled for majority of the decade. What about Harding University'
Well, Coach LJ Johnson took over this team just two seasons ago and has already brought them back to relevance. They went from 11-15 to 18-9 with majority of the key pieces staying in place. Although they enjoyed an improved record, they still found themselves in the middle of their conference. So naturally, one would think that this group is almost guaranteed to continue on their upward trend. The loss of Kobe Funderburk will be tough, given his role as a pure scorer with great consistency from beyond the arc. However, they should have enough capable returning pieces to stand out as one of the better teams in Charlotte.
The switchable combination of Jaleb Grant, Logan Blair, and Bralen Hamrick provide a unique dynamic. Grant is a long, athletic forward with quality skill and two-way versatility. Blair is slightly undersized but makes up for it with a steady, consistent, well-rounded presence around the basket. Hamrick is also somewhat undersized but has a big, strong frame and willingly utilizes it to overwhelm the opposition. Add in useful contributors like Chance Bryson and Darius Abraham, and this team should be able to compete with anyone. They don’t possess a ton of depth, but seem to find success anyway, which is yet another reason to start getting optimistic about Harding University for the upcoming season.