SOUTHERN STARZ LATEST NEWZ!
JALA
HARRIS Scores Awards in Conference USA!!
On Sunday, March 7, former Starz player,
Jala Harris (Bob Jones HS) of UAB was named
the Conference USA
Freshman of the Year & the
6th Player of the Year for the 2009-10
season becoming the FIRST player in CUSA history to win both
awards in the same season! In addition, Jala was named to
the
All-Conference USA Second Team, becoming the
only Freshman among the 15 players (1st - 3rd Team) to
receive all-conference honors. Jala averaged 18.3 ppg in 16
CUSA games and 16.4 ppg in all (28) games along with 3.2
assists per game. Jala exploded for 40 points in a
double-overtime game vs Marshall in her biggest game of the
season. CONGRATS to Jala!!
Mekena Randle commits to Arkansas
State! 
On Thursday, March 4, Starz Senior,
Mekena Randle (Class of 2010) a 5'10"
Forward 2-time State
Champion 6A-Bob Jones High School (Madison, AL), verbally
committed to attend and play her college basketball at
Division 1 Arkansas State University (Jonesboro, AR) of the
Sun Belt Conference. Arkansas State Head Coach Brian Boyer
is extremely excited about the addition of a "winner" like Mekena
to the program at ASU. Congrats to Mekena!
COLLEGE
ALL STARZ - SAMETRIA GIDEON!
Former Starz Class of 2009 player
Sametria Gideon (Bob Jones HS) of Division 1
Kennesaw State University (KSU) was named to the
All-Freshman Team in the Atlantic Sun Conference. Sametria
was the Conferences #1 Freshman rebounder with 8.1 rebs per
game. She was 4th among all rebounders and led the A-Sun
Conference in Offensive Rebounds per game! See further
detail at:
www.ksuowls.com/news/2010/3/2/WBB_0302104524.aspx.
CONGRATS to Sametria!
K
ELLIE COOK named to All-Newcomer
Team in OVC!!
On Thursday, March 6, former Starz player,
Kellie Cook (Bob Jones HS) of Tennessee
Tech was named to the All-Newcomer Team in the Ohio Valley
Conference (OVC). Kellie averaged 12.6 ppg and grabbed 4.7
rpg. She began her college career by scoring 22 pts in a
5-pt loss to the University of Alabama and achieved her
career high with 26 pts on Feb. 11 vs Murray
State. CONGRATS to Kellie!!
AMBER JONES is C-USA Freshman of the Week!!
On Friday, March 5, former Starz player,
Amber Jones (Hazlewood HS) of UAB was named
Conference USA Freshman of the Week after scoring 16 points
and helping lead UAB to a 64-53 victory over former Starz
teammate
Chatia Kelsey and the University of
Memphis. Starz Director/Coach Doug Bush along with several
former Starz teammates & current Starz were in attendance.
This is Amber's 2nd time to win this award and the 7th time
for a UAB player and former Starz players to win this award
(Amber &
Jala Harris) in the 16 times it has been
awarded this season. Jala added 12 points in the victory.
UAB opens the CUSA Tournament on Monday, March 8 vs Tulsa in
Tulsa, OK. CONGRATS to Amber!!
ALL-STATE TOURNEY STARZ!
While both 6A-Bob Jones & 3A-Madison Academy both finished
Runner-Ups in their quest for State Championships in Girls'
Basketball this past week in Birmingham, the following Starz
players were selected to the All-State Tournament teams: Mekena
Randle (Senior) &
Tiarra Pritchett (Senior) of 6A-Bob Jones
HS and
Haley Stewart (Senior) &
Lydia McGee (Sophomore) of 3A-Madison
Academy. Congrats to our ALL-STATE TOURNEY STARZ!!
SHOOTING STARZ!
Starz Seniors,
Georgia Myrex (2A-Cold Springs) &
Haley Stewart
(3A-Madison Academy) competed in the high school girls'
3-point shooting contest which took place during the Final
48 State Playoffs in Birmingham, AL last week. Both Georgia
and Haley advanced to the Finals where a Starz Shootout took
place! Georgia narrowly defeated Haley in a close
competition during halftime of the 6A Girls' State
Championship Game! Both Georgia & Haley were teammates on
our Starz Junior (16U) team in 2009. It was a great honor
for these young ladies to be selected to compete! Congrats
to our SHOOTING STARZ!!
ALL REGION & MVP (T. Pritchett) ALL STARZ!!!
Starz Senior,
Tiarra Pritchett (6A-Bob Jones High School)
was named MVP of the 6A NW Regional Tournament held at
Wallace State CC as Bob Jones HS defeated rival Sparkman HS
by a score of 26-25 in a hard fought contest to advance on
to Birmingham and the State Final 4. During last week's
high school regional tournaments, the following
17 Southern Starz players were named to the
All-Region Teams:
This is a great honor for each of these young
ladies! Congrats our ALL STARZ!!
|
Northwest Region (Wallace State CC) |
Northeast Region (Jacksonville Univ) |
Tiarra Pritchett (MVP & Senior)
of 6A-Bob Jones HS
Mekena Randle (Senior) of
6A-Bob Jones HS
Rikeyah McKinnon (Junior) of
6A-Bob Jones HS
Jasmine Jones (Sophomore) of
6A-Sparkman HS
Amber Elliott (Sophomore) of
5A-Russellville HS
Amara Mayers (Junior) of
3A-Madison Academy
Haley Stewart (Senior) of
3A-Madison Academy
Hayden Hamby (Sophomore) of
3A-West Morgan HS
Georgia Myrex (Senior) of
2A-Cold Springs HS
Abby Myrex (Sophomore) of
2A-Cold Springs HS
Jordan Johnson (Sophomore) of
2A-Hatton HS
Alex Gholston (Freshman) of
1A-R.A. Hubbard HS
Anna Claire Noblitt (8th GR) of
1A-Covenant Christian HS |
Alexsis Brown
(Senior) of
6A-Homewood HS
Alicia Williams (Junior) of
5A-Ft. Payne HS
Conner Jordan (Junior) of
5A-Bob Jones HS
|
ALL CITY ALL STARZ!
On Tuesday, Feb. 9, Starz 7th Graders
Chloe Long of Ed White Middle School,
Shaquera Wade &
T'yNasha Hill of Hampton Cove MS &
Jarnae Dobson of Mt. Gap MS were named to
the All-City Team (8th Graders) for the 10 middle schools
in the City of Huntsville! This is a great honor for these
7th Graders! Congrats our STARZ!!
JALA HARRIS is C-USA Freshman of the Week ... 4th Time in a
Row!!
Former Starz player,
Jala Harris of the UAB Blazers was named
Conference USA Freshman of the Week for a CUSA record 4th
week in a row and for the 5th time overall on Monday, Feb. 1
after her 40-point explosion in a tough Double-Overtime loss
at Marshall. Jala became only the 3rd player in CUSA
history to score 40 or more points in a CUSA game!
This is the FIRST time in the history of CUSA that this
award has been won 4 weeks in a row! Jala leads
CUSA in conference-only scoring at over 20 ppg! UAB looks
to rebound from this tough loss with a challenging road game
vs former Starz teammate
Chatia Kelsey and the University of
Memphis. CONGRATS to Jala!!
HAYDEN HAMBY Scores 2,000th Point!!
Starz Sophomore,
Hayden Hamby (Class of 2012) of #3 ranked
3A-West Morgan High School reached a major scoring
milestone when she scored her 2,000th
point on Saturday, Jan. 2, 2010 in a victory
over 3A-Sheffield HSl! Hayden scored 26 points in the
victory. CONGRATS to Hayden!!
STARZ Fill up ASWA High School Rankings in Alabama!!
In the most recent High School Basketball State Rankings
published by the ASWA on
January 6, 2010
teams led by
30 of our Southern
Starz players are highly ranked, including:
6A ...
#2 Ranked
Bob Jones HS (SRs Mekena Randle, Tiara
Pritchett & Alisia Matthews; JR Rikeyah McKinnon; SOPHs
Joidon Jennings & DeAsha Campbell)
6A ...
#4 Ranked
Sparkman HS (JR Deasia
Henley & SOPH Jasmine Jones)
6A ... #9 Ranked Buckhorn
HS (SOPHs Jackie
Thompson & Nicole Lanzillo)
6A ...
#10 Ranked Decatur
HS (SR Britney McCloud)
5A ...
#4 Ranked
Ft. Payne (SR Tori Edwards; JRs Alicia
Williams, Conner Jordan & Taylor Dean; SOPH Nique Edwards)
5A ...
#5 Ranked
Russellville HS (SOPH Amber Elliott & Ayanna McCullough)
5A ...
#10 Ranked
Athens HS (SR Mookie
Horton & SOPH Destiny McClin)
3A ...
#1 Ranked
Madison Academy HS (SR
Haley Stewart; JRs Kyera "KeKe" Fletcher & Amara Mayers;
SOPH Lydia McGee)
3A ...
#3 Ranked
West Morgan HS (SR
Christy Roewe & SOPH Hayden Hamby)
3A ...
#4 Ranked
Lauderdale County HS (SOPH Lacey Hampton)
2A ...
#1 Ranked
Cold Springs HS (SR
Georgia Myrex & SOPH Abby Myrex)
2A ...
#5 Ranked
Ider HS (SOPH Hope Benefield)
Georgia Myrex is #12 on Super Seniors (by B'ham News)!
Yet another accolade has been bestowed upon Starz Senior,
Georgia Myrex of 2A-Cold Springs High School
as she was recently named to the exclusive list of the 2010
Super Seniors as published by
The Birmingham News!
Myrex, who recently signed to play her
college basketball at U of North Alabama was placed at #12
on this exclusive listing of Alabama Seniors which
includes nationally ranked players such as Keneshia Horn
(Alabama), Tyrese Tanner (Auburn), and Shanece McKinney (LSU)
along with Alabama's all-time leading scorer, Courtney
Strain (Auburn). Congrats again to Georgia!!
Georgia Myrex signs with U
of North Alabama!
In her school library in front of a large gathering
of friends, family, teammates, teachers, coaches,
administrators, and Starz Director /Coach Doug Bush, Starz
Senior,
Georgia Myrex (Class of 2010) a 5'8"
All-State Guard for 2-time defending State Champion 2A-Cold
Springs High School (Bremen, AL), signed her National Letter
of Intent (NLI) to attend and play her college basketball at
Division 2 University of North Alabama (Florence, AL) of the
Gulf South Conference. UNA Head Coach Terry Fowler is
extremely excited about the addition of Georgia to
the program at UNA. Congrats to Georgia!
STARZ at 2009 BlueStar College Showcase!
On Satuday & Sunday, Oct. 3 & 4, many of our Southern Starz
high school players will participate in the Battle of the
Programs and the BlueStar College Showcase in Murfreesboro,
TN on the campus of MTSU. Starz players will be divided
into 4 teams and play in the Team Event on Saturday & Sunday
morning against some of the top travel teams in the
Southeast. Starz 2010, 2011, and 2012 (2 teams) will
participate. Many of the Starz players will then
participate in the Blue Star Showcase event on Sunday with
many college coaches in attendance. For more than 25 years
BlueStar has been one of the most influential organizations
in selecting and advising such publications rankings and
listings as found in The Sporting News, USA Today, Gatorade
Circle of Champions, and McDonalds All American Team just to
name a few. These rankings and evaluations are part of the
national BlueStar Report available to media & colleges
across the country. Please contact Coach Doug Bush at
jdbushman@aol.com at if you have any questions about
this event!
An interview with Starz Senior Georgia Myrex
Click on the following link to read about a Starz senior,
Georgia Myrex
in an article in the News-Herald called
"The
Total Package"
STARZ 14U are Classic Champs at AAU Nationals in Salem, VA!
Our Southern
Starz 14U-Bush team finished strong at the
AAU 14U
Nationals held on
July 21-26 in Salem, VA as they won a hard fought 70-69
victory over
the Acadiana (Louisiana) Stars in Sunday's
Championship Game of the Classic Bracket!! Starz
14U-Bush becomes the first Starz team to finish First in the
Classic Bracket (after their own 4th Place finish in 2007
and a 3rd Place finish by an 11U Starz team in 2003).
With a goal of improving upon their 9th Place finish of 1
year ago, Starz 14U completed Pool Play in a with a
disappointing record of 2-1 and in a 3-way tie for 1st
Place, losing only to the eventual 7th Place finisher
Indiana Outlaws. Due to
the AAU tiebreaker system, our Starz fell to 3rd Place and
moved on to play in the Classic (Consolation) Bracket.
After putting the disappointment behind them, Starz 14U went
on to win 4 games in the Classic to capture the
Championship and finish in 20th Place in the Nation with a
record of 6-1 for
the week. CONGRATS to STARZ 14U!!
STARZ 14U results at AAU Nationals in Salem, VA!
http://www.aauresults.org/girlsb/re_nationals.php?lkid=&s=128&y=2009.
STARZ 15U results at AAU Nationals in Little Rock, AR!
http://www.aauresults.org/girlsb/re_nationals.php?lkid=&s=126&y=2009
STARZ lead North to 50-44 victory over South!! 
Starz 2010 (16U) players LeCresha ("Mookie") Horton
of 5A-Athens High School, Georgia Myrex
of the two-time
defending state champions 2A-Cold Springs High School, &
Britney McCloud of 6A-Decatur High School
combined to score 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals to
help lead the North All-Stars to a 50-44 victory over the
South in the annual game held in Huntsville at UAH.
Both
Mookie Horton and Georgia Myrex
started for the North team that improved its all-time record
to 11-2 over the South! Tyrese Tanner of 6A-Hoover
High School was named MVP for the North squad. This
marks the 2nd straight year that our Starz organization has
had 3 or more players on the North squad. CONGRATS!!
STARZ "Shine" at Showtime Championships College Exposure!
Our Southern
Starz 16U, 15U, 14U-Bush and 14U-Looney teams
began the month of July by participating in one of the
mostly highly regarded College Exposure events in the
country ... the Showtime National Championships
by Michael T. White (see
http://www.asgr.info/tournaments/sncg/) which
was held on July 10-12 in Suwanee,
GA. There were 146 teams from across the
country (NY to CA) ... there were Hundreds of college
coaches in attendance. Each of our Starz teams played UP at
least 1 age division. Our Starz 16U
(3-2 record) competed in the 17U-Signature division (32
teams),
Starz 15U (2-3 record) and 14U-Bush
(3-2 record) competed in the 16U-Signature division (16
teams), and Starz 14U-Looney (2-3
record) competed in the 15U-National division (24
teams). The nationally known All-Star Girls Report (ASGR)
scouting service was also on hand as they continue
to evaluate these young ladies for their all-important
national player rankings. Many college coaches have already
expressed interest in our 2010, 2011, and 2012 players!!!
GO STARZ!!!
STARZ 11U are AL SPORTS FESTIVAL CHAMPS in 12U! 
Our Southern
Starz 11U team defeated the MLKing 12U team
on Saturday, June 20 in Birmingham by the score of 27-11 to
capture the AL Sports Festival Championship in the 12U Age
Division. Starz 11U went 3-0 on Friday & Saturday and
were not challenged even though they played short-handed.
CONGRATS to our STARZ as they prepare to travel to the AAU
11U Nationals on next Thursday!!
AL AAU State Tournament Results
STARZ 11U - 2nd Place (Qualified for AAU Nationals)
STARZ 13U - 3rd Place
STARZ 14U (Looney) - 3rd Place in 14U (Qualified for AAU
Nationals)
STARZ
14U (Bush) - 2nd Place (already Qualified for AAU Nationals)
STARZ 15U - 1st
Place (Qualified for AAU Nationals)
STARZ 16U - 2nd Place
15u Alabama AAU State
Champs
click on picture to view
larger image |
Our Southern
Starz 15U
team captured the AL 15U AAU State Championship on Sunday,
May 31 with a dominating 66-47 victory over the North AL
Lady Hoopsters 15U team in a re-match of the 2008 finals!!
The Starz 15U team advanced to the finals after a thrilling
69-68 victory over the AL Twisters 15U-Nettles team that was
won on a last-second 2-point basket by Alicia Williams of
Ft. Payne HS. Our Starz 15U team qualified for the 15U
AAU Nationals to be held in Little Rock, AR on July 21-26.
Our
Starz 11U team was perfect in Pool Play,
including a 53-35 victory over the #13 in the Nation AL
Twisters 11U team on Friday night! Our Starz 11U team
advanced to the Finals only to fall short to the AL Twisters
in the re-match. In the process, our Starz 11U team
qualified for the 11U AAU Nationals and captured the #13
Seed previously held by the Birmingham Bullets from 2008.
Our Starz 13U team finished in 3rd Place in
the AAU State Tournament with a close, tough loss in the
Semi-finals. Our Starz 14U-Bush team
advanced to the Finals to play their arch rival AL Twisters
14U-Black team for the 2nd time this season.
Unfortunately, our Starz 14U-Bush team fell short this time
out by a score of 65-43. Both teams had already
qualified for the AAU Nationals to be held on July 21-26 in
Salem, Virginia. Our
Starz 14U-Looney team defeated the AL
Cardinals 14U team in the 3rd Place game to also qualify for
the AAU 14U Nationals to be held on July 21-26 in Salem, VA.
Our Starz 16U team was undefeated in
advancing to the 16U Finals to play the nationally ranked
(#9) AL Twisters 16U-Black team. Our Starz 16U fought
hard but fell short in the end by a score of 77-57 as the
#24 player in the Nation, Tyrese Tanner of Hoover HS, made
her return from her knee injury. CONGRATS to ALL our
STARZ TEAMS!!!
NIKE Midwest Showdown in Cincinnati on May 23-25!
Our Southern
Starz 14U-Looney,
Starz 14U-Bush, and a combined team of
15U & 16U players participated in the highly
competitive NIKE Midwest Showdown in Cincinnati, Ohio on the
weekend of May 23-25 (Memorial Weekend). Representative of
all major college scouting services (including All
Star Girls' Report, Blue Star, HoopGurlz, Roundball
Basketball Journal, etc.) were on hand at this event!
Starz 14U-Looney went 2-2 to finish 3rd in
Pool D of the 28-team 14U Age Division. Starz
14U-Looney lost its first Bracket Game to a very tough
All-Ohio 14U team. DFW 2012 defeated TN Team Pride 13U in
the finals of the 14U age division.
Starz 14U-Bush went 4-0 to finish FIRST in
Pool L playing UP in the 25-team 15U Age Division. In
Bracket Play, Starz 14U-Bush lost a heartbreaker by a score
of 48-45 to a large & talented Fairfax Stars 15U team in a
back-and-forth contest. Team Detroit 15U defeated the
Ohio Lady Attack 15U in the finals. Our combined
16U/15U team went 2-3 in Pool Play to finish
4th in Pool P of the 28-team 16U/17U Age Division. In the
end, 2 of the teams in our Pool (Fairfax Stars & Team
Detroit) played in the Championship Game of this Division
with Team Detroit finishing with a 55-48 victory! Our
Starz lost by only 2 pts (50-48) to the Fairfax Stars in
Game 1 of Pool Play. CONGRATS TO ALL OF OUR STARZ!!
YBOA State Tournament Results
STARZ 11U - 1st Place in 11U
STARZ 13U - 2nd Place in 13U
STARZ 14U (Looney) - 1st Place in 14U
STARZ 14U (Bush) - 2nd Place in 16U division
STARZ 15U - 1st Place in 16U division
Our Southern
Starz 11U team started off Championship
Sunday (May 17) as 1 of 5 Starz teams to play in the
Championship Game of the AL YBOA State Tournament held at
Hartselle High School.
Our Starz 11U team defeated the AL Cardinals
11U team by the score of 34-29 to capture the 11U YBOA State
Championship. This is their 2nd consecutive YBOA state
title. Our
Starz 13U team battled to the end and fell
just short in a narrow 5-point loss to HoopSouth in the 13U
Championship Game. Later, our
Starz 14U-Looney team wore down the Pelham
Pride to capture a convincing double-digit win in the 14U
Championship Game to win their 2nd consecutive YBOA state
title. Last but not least, two of our own Starz teams
battled in the 16U Championship Game with the
Starz 15U team prevailing over the
Starz 14U-Bush team by the score of 55-40.
This was a highly competitive and spirited game with great
fan support! The Starz 15U team won their 2nd
consecutive YBOA state title. Our
Starz 9U team went 1-2 playing UP against
very tough competition in the 10U age division. A
great weekend by ALL of our Starz teams!!
11u YBOA State Champs
click on picture to view
larger image |
14u-Looney YBOA State
Champs
click on picture to view
larger image |
STARZ Display Talents at DEEP SOUTH CLASSIC in North
Carolina!
3 of our high school level Starz teams participated at the
2009
Deep South Classic College Exposure Event on the campuses
of North Carolina (UNC) and North Carolina State (NCSt) on the
weekend of April 17-19. The Deep South Classic, put on by Michael T.
White/FILA, is the Largest College Exposure Event in the nation
held during the NCAA allowed Spring Viewing period with more than 225
teams! Hundreds of college coaches were in attendance to evaluate
players. Our
Starz 16U
team of 2010 graduates (current Juniors) finished in
7th
Place with a record of 3-2 in the 24-team 17U-Select
Division. Our
Starz
15U team of 2011 graduates (current Sophomores) finished
in
13th
Place with a record of 3-2 in the 24-team 16U-Sponsored
Division. Our
Starz
14U team of 2012 graduates (current Freshmen) finished in
3rd
Place with a record of 4-1 in the 24-team 15U-Signature
Division as they narrowly missed making the Championship Game. All 3
teams won their final games on Sunday morning! For complete results
see each team's Results page or go to http://michaeltwhite.com/dscg/index.php?ct=scores.
CONGRATS to ALL the Players and their families!!
MISS BASKETBALL 2008-09 ... STARZ SENIOR ... JALA HARRIS!!
Starz Senior
Jala Harris
of the 2-time 6A State Champion Bob Jones Lady Patriots
became only the THIRD player in history from Madison County
and the FIRST member of the Southern Starz to be named
MISS BASKETBALL!! Jala averaged 16 ppg, 8 assists, and 4
rebs per game as she led Bob Jones to its 2nd consecutive
state title. Jala was previously named the Alabama Class 6A
Player of the Year and to the Super 5 All-State Team in
addition to 1st Team All-State in Class 6A as well as MVP of
the 6A State Tournament. Harris tallied 156 points in the
state-wide voting followed by Adrienne Webb of 6A-Sparkman
(112), Courtney Strain of 2A-Woodland (90), Jessica Merritt
of 5A-Talledega (66) and Starz Senior
Amber Jones of 1A State Champion Hazlewood
(64). Both Jala and Amber will team up at UAB in the Fall
as they continue their basketball at the collegiate level.
CONGRATS to both Jala & Amber!!
STARZ DUO NAMED "PLAYERS OF THE YEAR" & Super 5!!!
Starz Senior Jala Harris
was named 6A
Player of the Year while Starz Senior
Amber Jones
was named 1A
Player of the Year by the Alabama Sports
Writers Association (ASWA) for the recently completed
2008-09 high school season!! In addition, both Jala
& Amber were named to the very exclusive
ASWA Super 5
All-State team consisting of only 5 player
from all classes. Harris (a UAB
signee) led Bob Jones to their 2nd consecutive 6A State
Championship while Jones (soon to announce
her college choice) led Hazlewood to the 1A State
Championship. Both were also named MVP of the high school
State and Regional Tournaments. CONGRATS to both Jala &
Amber!!
ASWA ALL-STATE STARZ 2008-09!!
The following 13 Starz players earned ASWA All-State
honors for the recently completed 2008-09 high school
season:
6A ... Jala Harris &
Kellie Cook (SRs) of Bob Jones, Jazmine
Martin (SR) of Hoover, and former Starz player
Alexsis Brown (JR) of Homewood (1st Team);
Sametria Gideon (SR) of Bob Jones (2nd
Team); Britney McCloud (JR) of Decatur
(Honorable Mention)
5A ... Emily Dabbs
(JR) of Brewer and Alicia Williams (Soph)
of Ft. Payne (2nd Team)
3A ... Hayden Hamby
(Freshman) of West Morgan (1st Team & finalist for 3A Player
of the Year)
2A ... Georgia Myrex
(JR) of Cold Springs (1nd Team & finalist for 3A Player of
the Year)
1A ... Kylie Black
(SR) of Speake & Amber Jones (SR) of
Hazlewood (1st Team); Alex Gholston (8th GR)
of Hazlewood (Honorable Mention)
ALABAMA ALL-STARZ win 81-73 over MISSISSIPPI!!
5 of our Starz Seniors (class of 2009) led the 12 member Alabama
All-Star squad to a 81-73 victory in the 19th Annual Alabama-Mississippi
All-Star Classic on Friday, March 20 in the Pelham (AL) Civic Center.
Starz Director Doug Bush was proudly in attendance as Kylie
Black (Speake HS),
Sametria Gideon
(6A Champ Bob Jones HS),
Jala Harris
(6A Champ Bob Jones HS),
Amber Jones
(1A Champ Hazlewood HS), and
Jazmine Martin
(6A Runner-Up Hoover HS) helped the Alabama girls win their 2nd in a row
and improved to an 11-8 advantage in the series. CONGRATS to our
Alabama ALL-STARZ!!!
STARZ at BOB JONES are STATE CHAMPS ... AGAIN ... in 6A!!
Starz Senior Jala Harris scored 21 pts &
had 5 assists, Starz Senior Sametria Gideon scored
14 pts & had 7 rebounds, and Starz Senior Kylie Cook
scored 10 pts to lead the Bob Jones Lady Patriots to a 56-43
victory over the Hoover Lady Bucs and Starz Senior
Jazmine Martin (12 pts) to win their SECOND
consecutive Class 6A State Championship. Starz Seniors
Kellie Cook (7 pts) and Jasmine
Green (4 pts) completed the scoring for BJHS as our
Starz Seniors scored EVERY point in the victory. 6 of the
10 starters in this game are members of the Southern Starz
2009 team!! Starz Juniors Mekena Randle
and Tiarra Pritchett played key roles for
Bob Jones in this game. Starz Junior Alisia
Matthews & Freshman DeAsha Campbell
also saw action. The All-Tournament Team was full of Starz,
including Jala Harris, Sametria
Gideon, and Kellie Cook of Bob
Jones along with Jazmine Martin of Hoover.
Jala Harris was named MVP of the 6A State
Tournament!! CONGRATS to ALL our STARZ!!!
AMBER & ALEX of Hazlewood are STATE CHAMPS in 1A!!
Starz Senior Amber Jones scored 23 pts, had
10 rebs, 7 assists and made 9 of 10 FTs while her cousin
and Starz 8th grader Alex Gholston chipped
in 8 points in a 59-52 victory over previously undefeated
J.F. Shields to lead #3 ranked Hazlewood Lady Golden Bears
to the Class 1A State Championship on Friday, Feb. 27 in
Birmingham!!! Both Amber & Alex were named to the State
All-Tournament Team while Amber Jones was
named MVP of the 1A State Tournament!!
This was the final high school game of Amber's decorated
career in which she scored more than 3,600 points finishing
in the Top 8 scorers all-time in Alabama history (all
classes). CONGRATS to both Amber & Alex!!!
Click here to view article on Amber
G. MYREX of Cold Springs is STATE CHAMP Again in 2A!!
Starz Junior
Georgia Myrex scored 26 pts and made 17 of
19 FTs in a 75-60 comeback victory over #2 ranked Ider (and
Starz Freshman Hope
Benefield) to lead #1 ranked Cold Springs to
their Second Consecutive Class 2A State Championship on
Thursday, Feb. 26 in Birmingham!!! Cold Springs trailed by
as many as 14 points in the 1st half and by 35-26 at
halftime before outscoring Ider 49-25 in the second half.
Georgia was also named to the State All-Tournament Team.
CONGRATS to Georgia on her Back to Back State
Championships!!
 |
 |
MVP & ALL-REGIONAL ... ALL-STARZ!!
Starz Seniors
Jala Harris
(6A-Bob Jones HS), Jazmine Martin
(6A-Hoover HS), &
Amber Jones (1A-Hazlewood HS) each were
named Regional MVP's as they lead their
high school teams to Regional Championships and to the State
Final 4 in Birmingham on Feb. 24-28!! Starz players earning
All-Regional Tournament awards included ... Seniors
Kellie Cook & Sametria Gideon of
6A-Bob Jones, Senior Chatia Kelsey of
6A-Sparkman, Freshman Hayden Hamby of
3A-West Morgan & Lydia McGee of Madison
Academy, Junior Georgia Myrex of 2A-Cold
Springs, and 8th grader Alex Gholston of
1A-Hazlewood. Congrats to our ALL-REGIONAL STARZ!!!
Starz are guests of Vanderbilt Lady
Commodores!
Click on pictures to view larger picture
A group of
Starz 2012
players (current Freshmen) attended the SEC game played on
Sunday, Feb. 1, 2009 in Nashville, TN between the
Vanderbilt Lady Commodores and the Alabama
Crimson Tide. More than
4,500
fans
were in attendance as the Starz players and Coach Bush sat 9
rows behind the baseline during Vandy's 88-64 victory. Our
Starz were the guests of the Lady Commodore's coaching staff
before and after the game. An experience to remember!!
Starz 2012 players are guests of TN Lady Vols!
Click on pictures to view larger picture
A group of
Starz 2012 players (current Freshmen)
attended the SEC game played on Sunday, Jan. 18, 2009 in
Knoxville, TN between the
TN Lady Vols and the
South Carolina Gamecocks. More than
17,000
fans were in attendance as the Starz players
and Coach Bush sat 6 rows behind the Lady Vols bench during
Tennessee's hard fought 68-56 victory. Our Starz were the
guests of the Lady Vols coaching staff in the postgame
locker room where they were introduced to the players,
entire coaching staff, including legendary Coach Pat Summitt
who recorded her 997th coaching victory as she nears win No.
1000! The Starz group then received a tour of the entire
University of Tennessee basketball facilities. A day to
remember!!
AMBER JONES Scores 3,000th Point!!
Starz Senior,
Amber Jones (2009) of #3 ranked 1A-Hazlewood
High School reached a milestone achieved previously by only
10 female basketball players in the history of the State of
Alabama when she scored her
3,000th point on Saturday, Dec. 27, 2008 in
a victory over 2A-Hatton High School! Amber scored 40
points in the win as her 20th point of the game achieved
this historic milestone. As of Jan. 26, 2009, Amber has
scored
3,348 points moving her up into 8th place on
the all-time list. Due to injuries, Amber missed 1 1/2 full
seasons of her high school career. CONGRATS to Amber!!
One on One with Amber Jones!
FAB 5 STARZ at Bob Jones HS Sign with D1 Colleges!!
FIVE (5) players from our Southern Starz Senior Class of
2009 signed their National Letters of Intent on Friday,
November 14 in a ceremony at Bob Jones High School that was
well attended by Coaches, Friends, Family and Teammates,
including Starz 2009 Coaches Doug Bush & Willie Harris. The
5 Starz who signed were Kellie Cook (TN Tech), Kylie Cook
(TN Tech), Sametria Gideon (Kennesaw State), Jasmine Green (UAB),
and Jala Harris (UAB). Each of the players said a few
words, including a Thanks to their Starz coaches and
organization. CONGRATS to all these young ladies on this
tremendous accomplishment
(click on
images to view larger image)!
 |
 |
Kylie Black of Speake Signs with Samford!!
Southern Starz Senior in the Class of 2009, Kylie
Black signed her National Letters of Intent to play her
college basketball with Division 1 Samford University of the
Southern Conference on Friday afternoon, November 14 in a
ceremony at Speake High School that was attended by Friends,
Family, Teammates, local media, and Starz Coach Doug
Bush. CONGRATS to Kylie on this tremendous accomplishment
(click on
images to view larger image)!
Photo by Daniel Stoler |
Photo by Daniel Stoler |
Coach Doug Bush on Staff at Alabama Elite Camp!
Southern Starz Director & Coach of our AL AAU State Champion 13u &
16u teams, Doug Bush was invited to participate on the Staff
of The University of Alabama Women's Basketball Elite Camp
over the weekend of June 7-8. Coach Bush joined 5 other
non-Alabama staff members in assisting with instruction at
this Invitation-only camp for top players from Arkansas,
Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama. Coach Bush commented that
"it is a tremendous honor to be chosen to be on staff to
assist members of the new coaching staff at Alabama." Three
(3) Starz players participated in this Elite Camp including
Starz 16u players Kylie Black (2009) and Jala Harris (2009)
along with Starz 13u player Jasmine Jones (2012).
click on picture below to see full size |
 |
|
2008
ALABAMA AAU STATE CHAMPIONS! |
|
 |
 |
STARZ 12U-Garth
12u Alabama AAU
State Champions! |
STARZ 13U-Bush
13u Alabama
AAU State Champions! |
 |
 |
STARZ 14U
...
3rd State Title!
14u Alabama
AAU State Champions! |
STARZ 16U
...
6th straight
Alabama AAU State Championship! |
|
click on state champ
images to view larger image |
STARZ 10 ... 3rd Place in AL
AAU State Tournament!
STARZ 13U-Crow ... 3rd Place in
AL AAU State Tournament!
STARZ 15U ... 3rd Place in AL
AAU State Tournament!
STARZ Sweep 4 Titles at 2008 AL
AAU State Championships!!!!
For the first time EVER, our Southern Starz basketball
program won FOUR (4) AL AAU State Championships at the AAU
State Tournament held May 30-June 1 in Birmingham!!
Congratulations to our new Starz 12u team
for their First ever AL AAU State Championship in a
convincing 58-31 victory over the Vigilance Ballers 12u
team! Congratulations to our Starz 13u-Bush
team for their First ever AL AAU State Championship with a
hard fought victory over the 3-time defending state champion
and #13 in the nation AL Twisters 13u-Black team. Our Starz
13u team now takes over the #13 seed at the AAU National
Tournament!!
Congratulations to our Starz 14u team for
their 3rd AL AAU State Championship in the past 4 years with
a 48-37 victory over the N. AL Hoopsters 14u
team. Congratulations to our Starz 16u (Junior)
team for their 6th Consecutive AL AAU State Championship
with a 54-45 victory over the AL Twisters Elite 16u-Black
team. This Starz team has NEVER lost a game in the AL AAU
State Tournament! With this victory, our Starz 16u team
protects its #9 Seed at the AAU National Tournament in July
in Orlando
CONGRATS also to our
Starz 10u,
13u-Crow & 15u teams as they each finished
in 3rd Place in their respective age divisions in the AL AAU
State Tournament!! Way to go STARZ!
THANKS to each of the Players, Parents & Coaches of these
teams who have worked so very hard during the past 3 months
to prepare for the AAU State Tournament! Hard Work does pay
off! Your commitment, loyalty, dedication and efforts are
greatly appreciated!!
STARZ sweep 5 titles at
2008 AL YBOA State Championships!!!!
Click on pictures to view
larger picture
 |
 |
Starz 10u are
YBOA
State Champions! |
Starz 12u-Garth are
YBOA
State Champions! |
 |
 |
Starz 13u-Crow are
YBOA
State Champions |
Starz 14u are
YBOA State
Champions in the 15u division! |
Starz 10u
Starz 12u-Garth
Starz 13u-Crow
Starz 13u-Bush
Starz 14u |
YBOA State Champions!
(MVP
in 10u - TeMia Pride)
YBOA State Champions!
(MVP in 12u -
Mariah Pennington)
YBOA State Champions!
(MVP in 13u - Jackie Thompson)
YBOA State Champions in 14u division!
(MVP in 14u - DeAsia Toney)
YBOA State Champions in 15u division!
(MVP in 15u - Sierra Sales) |
2008 Starz
13u team
prevails at Duke's famous Cameron Indoor
Stadium!
Click on pictures to view
larger picture
 |
Below the
Starz 14u take
a break in front of the
Dean E. Smith Center |
 |
|
Starz 13u-Bush
players pay visit to "Krzyzewskiville" just outside of
Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium where students set up in
tents days in advance of Duke home games in an effort to
get tickets and become a part of "Cameron's Crazies!" |
 |
Starz 13u-Bush
prior to Sunday's win over CyFair (Houston) Coast to
Coast 14u at Center Court of Duke's famous
Cameron Indoor Stadium ... "Coach K"
Court!! |
STARZ Against the Very BEST!!
Do you want to play with the very BEST players in
North Alabama? Do you want to play against the very
BEST players in the Nation? Following is a list of top
players our Starz teams have faced during AAU & Exposure
competition:
Class of 2008
Elena Delle Donne ... #1 rated
2008 ... [Fencor] ... UCONN
http://www.hoopgurlz.com/story/uconn-epiphany
Glory Johnson ..#3 rated 2008 ... [Knoxville Finest] ... TN
Lady Vols
http://www.hoopgurlz.com/story/battle-glory
Caroline Doty ... #10 rated 2008 ... [Fencor] ... UCONN
http://www.hoopgurlz.com/story/mri-confirms-acl-tear
Yvonne Anderson ... #43 rated 2008 ... [AL Roadrunners]
... Texas
Courtney Jones ... #70 rated 2008 ... [AL
Roadrunners] ... LSU
Keshia Hines ... #?? rated
2008 ... [Michigan Pistons] ... Louisville
Janae Howard ... #?? rated
2008 ... [Kentucky Blast] ...
Louisville
Shantel Poston ... #?? rated
2008 ... [TN Wings] ... Purdue
Kelisha Cook
... #?? rated
2008 ... [TN Wings] ... TN
Tech
Tacarra Hayes ... #?? rated
2008 ... [TN Wings] ... TN
Tech
Lesley Daniel ... #?? rated
2008 ... [TN Wings] ... SC
Upstate
Jasmine Bendolph ... #?? rated
2008 ... [AL Twisters] ... Louisiana
Tech
Kiara Young ... #?? rated
2008 ... [AL Twisters] ... Louisiana
Tech
DeAngela Sword ... #?? rated
2008 ... [AL Twisters] ... Louisiana
Tech
Jasmine Powers
... #?? rated 2008 ... [AL Twisters] ... Samford
Class of 2009
[per
All Star Girls' Report @
www.michaeltwhite.com/agr/index.php]
Kelsey Bone
... #2 rated 2009 ... [Houston Hotshots] ...
South Carolina
Destiny Williams
... #7 rated 2009 ... [Michigan Crossover] ...
Illinois
Tierra Ruffin-Pratt ... #8 rated 2009 ... [Fairfax Stars/Boo
Williams] ...
North Carolina
Kelly Faris ... #9 rated 2009 ... [Indiana
Legends] ...
UCONN
Tayler Hill ... #12 rated 2009 ...
[Minnesota NC Heat] ...
Ohio State
Jasmine Hassell ... #15 rated 2009 ... [TN
Flight-Silver] ...
Georgia
Cierra Warren ... #18 rated 2009 ... [Cal
Sparks-Gold] ...
North Carolina
Leasia Walker ... #19 rated 2009 ... [NY
Silver Bullets] ...
South Carolina
Waltia Rolle ... #21 rated 2009 ... [CyFair
Houstonians] ...
North Carolina
Emilee Harmon ... #22 rated 2009 ... [Dayton
Lady Hoopstars] ...
Ohio State
Simone Egwu ... #25 rated 2009 ... [MD
Sureshots/Boo Wms] ...
Virginia
Jasmine James ... #26 rated 2009 ... [TN
Flight Silver / Memphis Elite] ...
Georgia
Anne Marie Armstrong ... #37 rated 2009 ...
[Georgia Pistols] ...
Georgia
Kamiko Williams ... #43 rated 2009 ... [TN
Team Pride] ...
Tennessee
Mikaela Ruef ... #48 rated 2009 ... [Dayton
Lady Hoopstars] ...
Stanford
Adrienne Webb ... #50 rated 2009 ... [AL
Shooting Stars/AL RR's] ...
LSU
Karisma Penn ... #64 rated 2009 ... [All
Ohio Black NIKE] ...
Illinois
Adia Mathies
... #65 rated 2009 ... [KY Blue Chip Elite] ...
Kentucky
Kendall Hackney ... #67 rated 2009 ... [All Ohio
Black NIKE] ...
USoCalifornia
Christine Huber ... #68 rated
2009 ... [Exodus NYC / NY Silver Bullets] ...
Rutgers
Faith Dupree
... #69 rated 2009 ... [TN Flight Silver] ...
Tennessee
Lakeesa Daniel ... #72 rated 2009 ...
[Garner Flames] ...
Wake Forest
Lakevia Boykin
... #73 rated 2009 ... [Garner Flames] ...
Wake Forest
Daniell Jackson
... #77 rated 2009 ... [PW Virginians/Boo Williams] ...
George Washington
Delisa Gross ... #81 rated 2009 ... [FW Frogs]
...
TCU
Terry Green
... #92 rated 2009 ... [NY Silver Bullets] ...
Seton Hall
Nyree Williams ... #94 rated 2009 ... [Team
Unique Amazon] ...
North Carolina
Asia Williams
... #98 rated 2009 ... [Garner Flames] ...
Wake Forest
Eugeneia McPherson
... 130 rated 2009 ... [NY Silver Bullets] ...
St. Johns
Jessica Goswitz
... #155 rated 2009 ... [Knoxville Finest] ...
Rice
Sarah Watkins
... #160 rated 2009 ... [Memphis Flight] ...
Arkansas
Mariah White ... 166 rated 2009 ... [OK Select]
...
Kansas State
Kourtni Jones ... #167 rated 2009 ... [TN
Flight-Silver] ...
MTSU
Karneshia Garrett
... #176 rated 2009 ... [AL Twisters] ...
Alabama
Danielle Johnson
... #185 rated 2009 ... [AL RRs] ...
So. Mississippi
Gabby Smith ... #191 rated 2009 ... [Queen
City Crossover] ...
Vanderbilt
Jala Harris
... #196 rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
UAB
Courtney Clifton
... 222 rated 2009 ... [Kentucky Xtreme] ...
Army
Erin Helton
... 266 rated 2009 ... [TN Team Pride] ...
UTC
Hannah Christian
...#273 rated 2009 ... [FW Frogs] ...
TCU
Taleya Mayberry ... 285 rated 2009 ... [OK
Select] ...
Tulsa
Kayla Christopher ... #292
rated 2009 ... [TN Flight-Silver] ...
UT-Chattanooga
Jasmine Green
... #296 rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
UAB
Ashley Robinson ... #298 rated 2009 ... [Memphis
Flight] ...
Memphis
Symone Roberts ... #303 rated 2009 ... [CT
Shamrocks] ...
Providence
Meghan Perkins
... #329 rated 2009 ... [Montgomery Heat] ...
Alabama
Tiara Hopper
... #362 rated 2009 ... [KY Blast] ...
TN Tech
Kellie Cook
... #407 rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
Tennessee Tech
Yolanda Richardson ... #416 rated 2009 ... [Ohio
Glory] ...
Toledo
Jazmine Martin
... #419 rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
Samford
Taylor Burner
... 598 rated 2009 ... [NY Silver Bullets] ...
Stoney Brook
Kylie Black
... #674 rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
Samford
Kylie Cook
... #718 rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
Tennessee Tech
Sametria Gideon
... #735 rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
Kennesaw State
Haley Ervin
... #1123 rated 2009 ... [TN Elite] ...
TN Tech
Jessica Johnson
... ??? rated 2009 ... [Garner Flames] ...
UNC-Charlotte
Megan Vasquez
... ??? rated 2009 ... [NY Silver Bullets] ...
Yale
Amber Jones
... #?? rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
UAB
Chatia Kelsey ... #?? rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
Memphis
Britney Smith ... #?? rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
Alabama State
Alex Strickland
... #?? rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
U of Montevallo
Nikkia Jordan
... #?? rated 2009 ...
AL Southern Starz ...
NW Shoals CC
Class of 2010
- per the report @
ESPNHOOPGURLZ100
Odyssey Sims ... #3 rated 2010 ... [FW
Frogs / DFW Elite] ...
Baylor
Kaneshia Horn ... #5 rated 2010 ... [AL
Twisters/RRs] ... Alabama
Richa
Jackson ... #6 rated 2010 ... [OK Select/KC
Select] ... Duke
Lauren Mincy
... #23 rated 2010 ... [NJ Crusaders] ...
Maryland
Lauren Avant ... #28 rated 2010 ...
[Memphis Flight] ...
Tennessee
Khaalidah Miller ... #36 rated 2010 ...
[GA Pistols/GA Metros] ... Georgia
Valencia
McFarland ... #38 rated 2010 ... [TN
Flight-Silver] ...
Ole Miss
Stefanie Dolson (6'5") ... #39 rated
2010 ... [NY Silver Bullets] ...
UCONN
Alicia DeVaughn ...
#57 rated 2010 ... [AL Twisters] ...
Maryland
Christina Foggie ... #58 rated 2010 ...
[Fencor] ...
Vanderbilt
Jasmine Robinson ... #65 rated 2010 ...
[Memphis Lady Bobcats] ...
Alabama
Tyrese Tanner ... #75 rated 2010 ... [AL
Twisters] ...
Auburn
Shaunice McKinney ... #79 rated 2010 ...
[LeFlore HS/GA Blazers] ... LSU
Madison
Williams (6'6") ... #100 rated 2010 ...
[Michigan Monarchs] ... Michigan State
Ariel Johnson (6'5") ... #17 rated 2010
(C) ... [Garner Flames] ... Georgia
Tiara Butler
... #34 rated 2010 (SG) ... [Team Unique] ...
Syracuse
Erin
Hall ... #66 rated 2010 (SG) ...
[Wesleyan High School] ...
Wake Forest
Kayci Ferris (6'8") ... #15 rated 2010
(C) ... [Smith County (TN) HS] ...
Vanderbilt
Meagan Henson
... unrated 2010 ... [Ft. Worth Frogs] ...
TCU
Jacqueline Chandler
... unrated 2010 ... [Ft. Worth Frogs] ...
TCU
Kendra Suttles
... #20 rated 2010 (C) ... [OK Select] ... Oklahoma
State
