Signings signal more success for Lady Huskies
April 11 will go down as another building block in the construction of the Hewitt-Trussville High School girls basketball program.
Senior guards London Coleman and Christina Till signed to continue their basketball careers at the college level. Coleman will continue her playing days at Pensacola State College, while Till heads to Centre College in Kentucky in a few months.
“They have so many great qualities and are great leaders,” head coach Tonya Hunter said of the duo.
Over the last three years, Coleman carved her name into the Hewitt-Trussville record books, as she finished with 1,368 career points. She averaged 10.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists during her senior season, which saw the Lady Huskies advance to the Class 7A Northeast Regional for the second time in three years.
“London is just a phenomenal player,” Hunter said. “Her role changed a little this year, because we had more kids that could score. But when she would play well, she could carry us. I don’t know how many kids can do that.”
Till nailed a team-high 28 3-pointers this past season after fully committing to her role as a left-handed sniper from beyond the arc.
“We said to her after her sophomore year, ‘You’re our shooter,’” Hunter recalled. “We’re talking about weekends, Sundays, after practices, after games, she was getting shots up. She could get up 200 shots in 20 minutes.”
Hunter added, “She hasn’t scratched the surface yet.”
Hunter said both Coleman and Till will be added to the list of players exemplified how future teams and players are expected to practice, play and lead. That list includes past players such as Cayla Dillard, Gabby Hill, Bailey Berry and several others over the last four years. Coleman and Till have only added to what the Lady Huskies are building under Hunter.
“They have changed the outlook of the community and how people look at Hewitt-Trussville basketball,” Hunter said. “These two are huge ingredients that did it. They saw what we were trying to [do] and committed to it. ... They were a huge part of not just laying the foundation; they started building on the foundation.”
Payne named THIrd team all-state
A player who could be signing to play college ball in a few years is freshman Amiya Payne, who was named to the third team of the Alabama Sports Writers Association All-State team after leading the Lady Huskies with 12 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.
“She came in trying to just figure out what we’re doing and we’re trying to figure out what she can offer, and she comes off the bench and was our leading scorer,” Hunter said.