Darrell Moody: King makes splash for Claim Jumpers

Rafe King had a successful first season at Columbia College.

King, the Claim Jumpers’ 6-3 shooting guard, averaged nearly 15 points a game while leading Columbia to a 12-15 record. King was named to the all-freshman team, and came within one vote of making the all-league team.

King was sixth in the state in 3-pointers made and shot 41 percent from long range. He averaged nearly three 3-pointers per game, and twice made eight 3-pointers in a single game.

“He played a lot better than I expected,” said coach Rob Hoyt, who just finished his first year at the helm. “As the year went on he got better and better. When he takes good shots, he shoots a very high percentage. He’s a big kid; a tough kid. He’s fun to be around.”

Hoyt said King plans on returning next season, and one of the things King will be working on his creating his own shot. Right now, he’s a catch and shoot guy, and there is nothing wrong with that. If he can start creating more of his own shots in the half-court setting he will become even more dangerous, and be attractive to higher-level schools.

“Every situation is different,” Hoyt said. “There was a kid that shot the ball really well, but couldn’t create his own shot and went as a walk-on to a Division I school and ended up starting. It has to be the right fit. Rafe’s ability to shoot will allow him to play at a higher level.”

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This weekend at the Mike Bearman Memorial Tournament, I ran into former Nevada baseball coach Gary Powers, who attended the Carson-Damonte game on Saturday. One of Powers’ former assistants, Gary McNamara, is an assistant coach at Damonte Ranch.

I enjoyed covering Powers’ Pack teams, and I was sorry to see him leave Nevada. He was always a straight shooter, and as a media member, you appreciate that in a coach.

We talked a little bit about Adam Whitt’s career resurrection.

Powers said that his staff converted Whitt to a sidearmer during his first year at Nevada.

“We wanted to give him one year to work on it without the pressure of having to face opposing hitters,” Powers said. “He’s pitched real well.”

Whitt has had just two poor outings all season and registered his fourth save of the year on Friday in a 7-4 win against Hawaii.

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Kudos to Kathy Taylor, Carson High’s athletic secretary, was recently honored as the top large school secretary at last week’s state meetings at Lawlor Events Center. The state athletic directors meet every year during the state basketball tournament.

The honor is well deserved.

Taylor has been an immense help to me from getting me schedules and schedule changes to getting messages to student-athletes regarding interview requests.

Taylor said that her boss, athletic director Bob Bateman, knew for a month that she was getting the award but kept it a secret. Taylor said she was tipped off that something was going on when somebody congratulated her prior to the announcement.

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March Madness is finally here. The selection show is today, and this promises to be one of the most interesting tournaments in recent memory.

I truly don’t think there is a dominant team in the NCAA this year. Many people will be rooting for Wichita State to be crowned champion. The Shockers are currently undefeated. It would be a remarkable Cinderella story if they go undefeated.

If you are a basketball junkie, Las Vegas is the place to be in early March. In a span of two weeks, Las Vegas hosted the West Coast Conference, Pac-12, WAC and Mountain West tournaments. Sin City has become the West Cost mecca for college basketball.