The votes are in for Marion County’s basketball stars, and the Most Valuable Player, Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player and Comeback Player of the Year awards have been decided.
This year’s Most Valuable Player is Columbia Academy junior Macey Jones, who led the Lady Cougars to 29 wins this season, including a South State championship. The 6-foot-4 center dominated the paint in every game she played in this season, averaging 13.9 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game while shooting 60% from the floor.
It’s no coincidence Columbia Academy started off the season 3-7 with Jones missing the first eight games — and easing her into the rotation those final two — before reeling off 18 consecutive victories. Her presence inside wasn’t just about her scoring, pulling in rebounds or blocking shots. She commanded double teams inside and became an effective playmaker for her teammates, delivering timely passes to open shooters on the perimeter and making CA’s offense nearly unguardable at times.
The Offensive Player of the Year was earned by the star who led the county in scoring, rebounding and 3-point shooting percentage: East Marion senior Caleb Rawls. The 6-foot-7 forward put up 21.8 points per game while shooting 55% from the field and 42% from behind the arc, hauled in 12.8 rebounds and blocked 2.8 shots, leading the Eagles to a 14-3 record and to the third round of the Class 2A playoffs.
Rawls has been a valuable starter for East Marion for several years, but he took his game to another level this season. He became a dominant one-on-one scorer both inside and outside and could beat defenders off the dribble, off the catch shooting and in the post. If you didn’t get to see him play this season, he resembled a high school version of Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant, and he will be playing at the next level next year.
The county’s Defensive Player of the Year goes to a versatile player who could defend one through four (point guard, shooting guard, small forward and power forward) for the Lady Cougars and was often deployed against the opposing team’s best player: CA’s Peyton McCain. She often floated between guard and forward depending on the matchup, averaging 10.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game while shooting 46% from the field. McCain’s versatility allowed CA to turn up the pressure at any given time to force turnovers and run out in transition, which was key to their impressive run this season.
The Most Improved Player goes to yet another Lady Cougar: Columbia Academy forward Lauren McDaniel. Her scoring average jumped from 3.7 points per game during the 2019-2020 season to 8.6 points this year, while her rebounding average increased from 3.6 to 5.9. She went from being an average rotational player to be a true weapon in the frontcourt of the starting lineup for CA.
The Comeback Player of the Year, which is awarded to the player who excelled after overcoming an injury or other setback, was the easiest choice to make. East Marion senior Vashon Sims missed his entire junior season because of an emergency splenectomy and spinal surgery — with his surgeons believing he was paralyzed — injuries he suffered in a horrible car wreck. The 6-foot-4 guard had emerged as a star as a sophomore, helping the Eagles win their first-ever state championship in 2019, prior to the accident.
It was a long road to recovery, but Sims returned to the floor as a senior to average 11.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.9 steals per game while shooting 45% from the field and a career-best 37% from deep. He is poised to sign a college basketball scholarship in the coming weeks.
The final voting results for Most Valuable Player were Macey Jones, CA (187 votes), Caleb Rawls, EM (114), Jasmine Sheppard, CHS (36) and Destiny Brown, EM (18). The Offensive Player of the Year results were Caleb Rawls, EM (140), Jaydon Clements, WM (68), Jasmine Sheppard, CHS (40) and Darius Stewart, CHS (17). For Defensive Player of the Year, the final tally was Peyton McCain, CA (155), Caleb Rawls, EM (112), Vashon Sims, EM (39) and Azariyah Magee, EM (11). The Most Improved Player results were Lauren McDaniel, CA (180), Jaydon Clements, WM (94), Hays Carley, CA (33) and Malasia Leverette, WM (32).
