All-county hoops: Huck, Fuller named players of years

Players of the Year Olivia Huck of Laurens Academy and Taliek Fuller of Clinton headline the all-Laurens County basketball teams for 2022-23.

The Laurens County Advertiser and LaurensCountySports.com selected the boys and girls all-county teams, players of the year and coaches of the year in conjunction with the boys and girls varsity coaches from the county’s three high schools.

Clinton guard Taliek Fuller (2).

The boys team consists of:

* Taliek Fuller, G, Sr., Clinton, 12.5 ppg, 2.5 apg, 3.4 rpg.
* TyQuavis Johnson, G, Sr., Laurens, 15.1 ppg, 1.9 spg, 76% FTs.
* Wil Stewart, G/F, Sr., Clinton, 12.9 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 1.4 apg.
* Andrew Codington, PG, Sr., Laurens Academy, 8.5 ppg, 5.5 apg, 79% FTs.
* Tushawan Richardson, PG, Soph., Clinton, 12.8 ppg, 3.6 apg, 5.6 rpg.

Honorable Mention: Buddy Baker, G, Laurens Academy; Narrius Jones, G/F, Laurens; Jared Willard, C, Laurens Academy.

The girls team is made up of:

* Olivia Huck, G, Jr., Laurens Academy, 17.2 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 75.2% FTs.
* Bryanna Belton, G/F, Soph., Clinton, 10.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg.
* Zoe Young, C, Soph., Laurens, 10.8 ppg, 2.2 rpg.
* Rylee Ballard, PG, Jr., Laurens Academy, 9.6 ppg, 4 apg, 2.5 spg.
* Mylayja Thompson, G, Fr., Clinton, 9.7 ppg, 3.1 apg, 5 spg.

Laurens Acdemy’s Olivia Huck (10).

Honorable Mention: Gracie Hall, G, Laurens Academy; Faith Jackson, G, Laurens; CaDayzhia Grant, G, Laurens.
Laurens Academy girls head coach Jason Marlett and Clinton boys head coach Eddie Romines repeated at Laurens County Coaches of the Year.

Romines, who announced his retirement from coaching after the season, led the Red Devils to a 18-6 record and to the Class 3A Upper State finals.

Marlett’s Crusaders (20-11) won the SCISA Region 4-1A regular-season championship and then went on a run to the state finals before finally falling one step short of a third state title for Marlett and LA.

Before Fuller earned was named Laurens County Player of the Year, he earned Region 4-3A Player of the Year honors as a vital cog for the Red Devils, who have won 32 games over the past two seasons.

The 5-foot-9 guard averaged 12.5 points per game and shot 45% from 3-point range. He was also a reliable defender for the Red Devils.

“Taliek’s ability to shoot the 3-point shot well and the mid-range jump shot made it difficult for teams to defend him this year,” Romines said.

Fuller exploded for a season-high 25 points in the regular-season finale at home against Chester, a total that included 7 of 7 3-point attempts.

An eventful season for Huck as the focal point of LA’s offense ended with a push toward a SCISA state title. Huck, who reached the 1,000-point plateau for her LA career during the regular season, averaged 17.2 ppg despite opponents keying their defenses on her all season.

She led LA in scoring and rebounding (8.3 rpg), and hit 75.2% of her free-throw attempts.

Huck also earned SCISA North-South all-star honors and was named Region 4-1A Player of the Year.