Whether it was pulling up for a 3, crashing the boards, finding the open teammate or forcing a turnover, Hamilton Christian’s Deion Ware and Fairview’s Rylee Cloud excelled on the court.

The standouts are the American Press All-Southwest Louisiana Small Schools basketball MVPs.

Cloud, a senior who signed to play softball at Arkansas, led Fairview to a third consecutive Class B state championship. She averaged 21 points, 5.5 assists, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals a game and scored 52 points in two games at the state tournament.

“She is probably one of the fastest players that I have ever coached,” Fairview head coach Kyle Jinks said. “She can shoot the ball extremely well from a very deep range.

“The range that she has is probably the best that I had. There might be two or three other ones that could shoot it from where she does. She can extend the defense which would open up driving lanes for us. At big moments, she just played her best.

“She is not afraid of contact and is a hard-nosed kid. She doesn’t mind playing the tough teams. She loves the challenge. She wants it to be as hard as it can be so she can show you she can do it.”

Cloud was the lone senior on a young Panthers squad that won 37 games.

“She is just an outstanding leader,” Jinks said. “She can get kids to do things that they really didn’t think they could do and made them do it well. They wanted to play for her, and she was always positive.”

Ware, a junior guard, led Hamilton Christian to the Division IV semifinals for the fifth time in six years while averaging 17.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.6 steals and 1.8 blocks a game.

“He is a one of a kind,” Hamilton head coach Dexter Washington said. “He is a combo guard. He can shoot the 3-ball or make another kind of play. He either would get to the rack, make that no-look assist pass, or get an offensive put-back. Even when he wasn’t scoring, you look up and you don’t think he really had a good night and he still had 15 points.”

Washington said he expects Ware’s recruitment to take off this summer.

“I think the sky is the limit for him,” Washington said.  “He is that guy that has the obvious look that he could go to the next level and be real productive.”

Jinks is the girls Coach of the Year. He led the Panthers to their 12th title in his 26 seasons at the school and won his 900th career game. His coaching record is 912-123.

Lacassine’s Micah Rasberry earned the boys Coach of the Year award after leading the Cardinals to the state tournament for the first time since 2007. The Cardinals finished 32-7, losing to Class B state champion Simsboro in the semifinals.

American Press All-Southwest Louisiana Small Schools basketball team

Boys

First Team

Pos. Player, School Cl. Ht. Avg.

G Deion Ware, Hamilton Christian Jr. 6-4 17.0

G Aaron Garcia, Lacassine Jr. 5-10 20.0

G Leon Posey IV, Oakdale Sr. 5-10 26.3

G Bret Jinks, Fairview Jr. 5-8 17.0

F Demarcus Jack, Elton Jr. 6-2 15.0

MVP — Dieon Ware, Hamilton Christian

COACH OF THE YEAR — Micah Rasbeary, Lacassine

Second Team

Pos. Player, School Cl. Ht. Avg.

F Mason Russell, Hamilton Christian Sr. 6-2 15.4

G Garrett Humphrey, Starks So. 5-8 28.0

G Sherman Bellow, Elton Jr. 5-7 14.0

G Blayne Copper, Grand Lake Sr. 6-2 19.0

G Kenyon Boese, Lake Arthur So. 6-0 16.0

Girls

First Team

Pos. Player, School Cl. Ht. Avg.

G Rylee Cloud, Fairview Sr. 5-5 24.0

G Madison Suire, Hathaway So. 5-4 17.0

G Vivian Sketoe, Lake Arthur So. 5-5 20.0

G Reesie Jink, Fairview Fr. 5-5 15.0

C Mackenzie Joseph, Kinder Sr. 5-11 18.0

MVP — Rylee Cloud, Fairview

COACH OF THE YEAR — Kyle Jinks, Fairview

Second Team

Pos. Player, School Cl. Ht. Avg.

G Kelly Norris, Rosepine So. 5-7 16.0

G McKenzie Deville, Hamilton Christian So. 5-7 21.0

G Chloey Guidry, Hathaway Sr. 5-4 21.0

G Kali Hornsby, Lake Arthur Sr. 5-7 16.0

G Hannah Burr, Merryville Sr. 5-6 19.6